by S F Bose
Sam and I unsnapped and unzipped our parkas and hung them on the back of some kitchen chairs.
“Josh didn’t turn up?” I asked Grace, walking over to the center island.
“No. The DeMarcos are still out there. So are the Cloutiers and Wescotts,” she replied, looking worried.
I gave Dad a brief hug as I passed him and pushed through the doors into the dining room. Sam followed behind me.
Grandma and Nana Anna sat talking to David and Nancy Blackwell at their usual table. It was a little more crowded because Ezra French, a tall and thin retired farmer, sat with them eating pie. Ezra helped Nancy with her service dog charity. I gave Grandma Addie a brief shake of my head but avoided looking at her face. I didn’t want to see her disappointment.
The DeMarcos occupied a round table for four not far from the Blackwells. Two tables to the right, the Cloutiers played cards, while their daughters sat on the floor coloring in their coloring books. Three tables to the right of the Cloutier family, Ray and Marie Wescott sat talking over coffee. Marie caught my eye and I shook my head. She looked down quickly.
When we reached the DeMarco table, I slid into the chair they’d saved for Josh. I looked at Tony, Susan, and Megan. Their eyes locked on mine. Sam stood next to my chair.
“We didn’t find Josh at the house he was at earlier. Has he contacted any of you?” I asked.
Susan covered her eyes with her hands and Tony swore softly. Megan just stared at me.
“Have any of you spoken to Josh today?” I repeated more firmly.
“No,” Tony replied sharply. Susan dropped her hands and shook her head. Megan said, “No,” in a quiet voice.
“This is not like Josh. He wouldn’t stay away like this and not call us,” Tony said, staring at the table.
“I don’t understand why he doesn’t at least call or text us,” Megan agreed.
“We need to call the police,” Tony said finally, looking up at Sam.
“If that’s what you want, we can do that,” Sam agreed.
I saw Susan’s eyes suddenly widen. “Oh my God!” she exclaimed and jumped up so quickly her chair tipped over. She ran around the table. I stood and turned to keep my eyes on her.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. There was a flurry of movement around me.
That was when I saw Josh DeMarco, Dan English, and Nick English walking into the dining room. They must have come in the B&B front door and down the center hall. Josh looked tired but opened his arms and hugged his mother. Tony and Megan rushed over to hug Josh too. At nearby tables, the Cloutiers and Wescotts looked confused but still smiled.
Dan saw Grandma and walked toward her with Nick trailing him. Grandma Addie and Nana Anna stood and hugged both of them. I noticed the forefinger on Nick’s left hand was heavily bandaged. Millie came through the swinging kitchen doors, saw Dan English, and called back into the kitchen. Then she and Tillie were hugging Dan and Nick too.
It was a major hug fest. I glanced at Sam. He stared at Josh and smiled. Then Sam’s eyes cut to mine and he winked. I laughed, and we celebrated Josh’s return with a fist bump.
Chapter 20
The DeMarco family moved one table over to the large, round table next to the Cloutiers. Josh introduced Dan and Nick to everyone at the table. Then he invited Sam and me to join them. Going clockwise, Josh, Dan, Nick, Megan, Sam, me, Tony, and Susan sat around the table. I noticed Nick sneaking glances at Susan, while Dan looked down at the wooden table.
I was facing the main dining room and could see the curiosity on the faces of the Cloutiers and Wescotts, who were looking over at our table. Behind us, Grandma and Nana Anna still sat with the Blackwells and Ezra French. Dad, Grace, and Ryan drifted out of the kitchen and sat at a smaller table drinking coffee. One table over, Millie and Tillie took a break and drank iced soda.
Josh cleared his throat and we all looked at him. “Okay, bear with me. I know I owe you all an explanation.”
“That’s an understatement,” Tony agreed, and nervous laughter rippled around the table.
“First, I’m sorry for worrying you. I never intended to do that,” Josh said, sitting forward. His voice was loud and clear. He sat with his hands together on the table, fingers interlaced.
“Go ahead, son,” Susan said quietly. She patted his arm.
“Okay. When I left active duty with the Marines and came home, I knew right away that I had problems. When I was diagnosed with PTSD, one part of the residential treatment was group therapy. It was hard because I didn’t like talking about my problems. But it also helped because I saw that others were going through some of the same things I’d experienced.”
He stopped and sipped some water from a glass his father slid across to him. Josh smiled briefly at him.
“In therapy one thing they suggested was finding a small project that we could focus on and control. So I decided to track someone down.”
“Who?” Megan asked. Josh held up a finger and continued.
“I did online searches, joined organizations, and asked friends for help. I hit so many dead ends I almost gave up. Then I got a lead and connected with someone who seemed to be a real possibility but was very suspicious of me. I totally understood that. I sent off some photos and received some back.”
Josh paused and looked around the table. “That was when I knew I had found Mom’s little brother, Mike.”
His last words hung in the air as we absorbed them. Josh looked at his mother with a half-smile on his face.
“What?” Susan asked, shaking her head.
Tony looked at Susan and then at his son. “What are you talking about, Josh?”
“It took almost a year, but I’m certain. Mom, Dan English is your little brother, Mike,” Josh said. Everyone looked at Dan, whose face was bright red.
Josh looked at Sam and me and told us a story we already knew, thanks to Tony. “Mom’s parents died in a car crash when she was seven and her younger brother, Mike, was three. They had no other relatives, and, eventually, separate families adopted them. Mom fought to stay together with her little brother, but she was just a kid. There hasn’t been a day since where she hasn’t felt the loss and hasn’t searched for her little brother. Megan and I grew up with that story all our lives.” Megan nodded.
Dan looked across the table and smiled weakly at Susan. Susan stared at him with her mouth open.
“At first, I didn’t believe it either,” Dan said. “But Josh was very stubborn and persuasive. When I was three, Louis and Marie English adopted me and renamed me Dan. When I was older, they told me I was adopted, and they gave me photographs of my parents and my older sister. However, they said the adoption people only told them that my first name had been Michael and they couldn’t give them other family information, like my original surname. Back then, they didn’t share much information. But I did have the name of the adoption agency.”
Dan paused and swallowed. “Later, when I was older, I tried to contact the agency. I learned that a fire had burned the building to the ground and they went out of business. Even worse, I couldn’t find a soul who knew if the agency records had survived or burned up in the fire. It wasn’t until much later that I learned that the fire had destroyed all their paper and computerized records. So all I had from my birth family was this. These are the photos my adoptive parents gave me.”
Dan passed a small envelope to his right to Josh. Josh took out the photos and put them in front of Susan. Susan picked up each photo, looked at Dan, and then back at the photo.
“I’m not as cute as I used to be. I also grew quite a bit,” said Dan and we laughed. Susan smiled. She passed the photos to Tony and I leaned over to look. There were pictures of a couple and two small children and then photos of the children together and individually.
“I have the same photos,” Susan said. “My adoptive parents gave them to me too. They told me my original last name was Benson. But they didn’t know my birth parents’ full names.”
“Benson,” Dan repeat
ed and looked at her.
“No offense, but these don’t really prove you’re my wife’s brother,” Tony said, passing the photos to me. “If Josh sent those to you, you could have scanned and reprinted them or something.”
Josh started to respond, but Dan held up a hand to stop him. Dan looked at Tony and nodded. “I wouldn’t believe it either. My adoptive parents gave me one more thing that came from my birth parents. The agency gave it to them. I had to go over to my safe deposit box at the bank to get it this afternoon. We would have been here sooner, but my son, Nick, cut his finger and we had to stop at the ER first.”
Nick smiled and raised his left hand to show his bandaged finger. “I made it through the Marines and deployment, but met my match cutting a brick of cheese,” Nick said, and we laughed.
Dan reached into his pocket and withdrew his hand. He held something in his fist. After a second, he passed it to Josh who handed it to Susan.
It was a small golden locket on a chain. Susan gasped and turned the locket over. She read aloud, “Michael we love you. Mom and Dad. And their initials.”
We watched as she reached up and pulled a chain and locket out from under her sweater. “It says ‘Susan we love you. Mom and Dad.’ It has the same initials,” she said, tears in her eyes.
Dan smiled. He got up and went around the table. Susan jumped up and they hugged. Everyone in the dining room clapped and cheered for Susan and Dan.
“I want you to know that I’ve thought about you every single day we’ve been apart and looked everywhere I could for you,” she said fiercely.
Dan nodded. “I know. I called and registered wherever I could too. Maybe if the adoption agency had still been in business…” His voice trailed off. They hugged again. Tony stood and shook Dan’s hand. Then Megan hugged Dan. Dan introduced Nick to Susan again and there were more hugs.
Sam caught Josh’s eye and asked, “So B-day was?”
“Brother day,” Josh replied and smiled. Sam returned the smile and nodded.
Josh traded chairs with Dan, so that it was easier for Susan and Dan to get reacquainted.
Grace brought out a platter of cupcakes and some plates for all the tables. Sam and I excused ourselves and moved to another, smaller table to give the DeMarco family some privacy.
Chapter 21
“What a relief,” I said, removing the plastic turkey topper from my cupcake. I forked some vanilla coconut cupcake into my mouth and closed my eyes. The coconut, butter cream, and vanilla cake melted in my mouth. I stifled a moan and sipped some coffee.
Sam smiled and pushed his cap back. “It sure is. Now we can close the DeMarco case.” He looked warily at his cupcake and took a tiny forkful. After chewing it, he smiled and took a larger forkful.
“You eat sweets?” I asked.
“Sometimes,” he admitted. “I’m willing to try anything your Aunt Grace makes.
“Actually, Nana Anna made these cupcakes. She’s a dessert genius.”
“Sure is,” Sam mumbled, his mouth full of cupcake. He drank some iced, herbal tea.
I sipped some more coffee and made a face. “Unfortunately, I was completely wrong about Josh, Dan, and Nick. In my mind, they were plotting something illegal. I couldn’t have been more wrong.”
Sam nodded. “A lot of red flags went up for me too. But we have a happy ending, which is always good.”
I looked over to my right at Marie and Ray Wescott who were eating cupcakes at their table and talking.
“I wish we had a happy ending for Marie,” I said and sighed.
“We still have time,” Sam replied.
My eyes shifted to the Cloutiers seated three tables to the left. Their two little girls, Holly and Jade, had finished their cupcakes and sat on the floor playing. Dante and Shelly had resumed playing cards.
I smiled as five-year old Jade earnestly explained something to her older sister, Holly. Then a plastic cupcake topper fell to the floor from the DeMarco table, landing close to Josh’s chair. I watched as Holly crawled over, picked it up, and returned to her sister. The cupcake topper was a colorful turkey. They examined it closely and had an animated conversation. Finally, the girls nodded and stood.
They returned to their parents’ table and pulled Holly’s “Special Things” bag from under the table. Holly loosened the drawstring top a little and slid the cupcake topper into it. Jade looked on smiling. Then Holly returned the bag to its spot under the table and they went back to sitting on the floor and talking.
“Oh wow,” I said.
“Oh wow what?” Sam asked, his eyebrows arched up over his dark eyes.
“Follow me,” I replied, jumping up. I hurried over to the Cloutiers. “May we join you for a moment?” I asked. Dante and Shelly looked up in surprise.
“Of course. Please, sit down,” Shelly said, her black hair swaying. They both laid down their cards and looked at me.
I sat with my back to the Wescotts, even though they were too far away to hear our conversation. Sam took the chair across from me.
“Lots of excitement tonight,” Dante said with his ever-present smile.
“I’ll say. I’m so happy Susan DeMarco was reunited with her younger brother.” I replied.
“Especially at Thanksgiving,” Shelly added, and I nodded.
“What’s up?” Dante asked. Sam watched me with his steady gaze but was clearly lost. I was sure that he was also wondering what was up.
“I wondered if we could take a look in Holly’s ‘Special Things’ bag?” I asked. Sam frowned.
Shelly’s eyebrows shot up and she looked confused. “Her bag?”
“Why?” Dante asked, his smile dimming a bit.
“My sister, Becky, has twins who are close to Holly’s age. I’m wondering what little kids think is special,” I explained. Actually, Becky’s twins were just three years old, but that wouldn’t have persuaded the Cloutiers to help me.
They both thought about that and nodded.
“We should include Holly in this decision,” Shelly said to her husband.
“You’re right,” he agreed. He turned and called Holly and Jade over.
“Holly, Liz’s sister has twins just about your age. She wondered if she could see the things in your ‘Special Things’ bag. It will help her to understand what’s special to kids,” said Dante. I admired his calm approach to parenting. When I was a kid, I had fewer choices in the decisions that affected me.
Holly’s face lit up. “Sure!” She reached down and lifted the cloth bag with the kitten pictures on it. She brought it around the table to me and put it on the table. Sam’s eyes met mine. His mouth was slightly open and he looked confused. There was no way I could explain what I was doing. Besides, I could be wrong.
We cleared the center of the table. Holly opened the bag and stood next to me. Jade stood next to her, leaning into Shelly. Holly extracted maple leaves packed into a large envelope and put them on the table. “The envelope is so they don’t get crushed,” Holly explained. She carefully pulled out larger rocks, smaller stones, dried berries, feathers, and cupcake toppers. She placed them all in the center of the table.
Holly also had an envelope filled with flower petals. I recognized geraniums, pansies, zinnias, and small cardinal flowers. She had scored a large haul of pinecones, which she pulled out one by one and pushed into the pile in the middle of the table.
I looked inside the bag. Except for a single, pink mitten, it was empty. I hoped Holly had discovered Marie’s ring and put it into her bag. Wrong again, Sherlock, I thought and was disappointed. Shelly pulled the bag toward her and glanced inside.
“Jade, why is one of your mittens in Holly’s bag?” she asked.
“What?” Holly said and looked in the bag. “I didn’t put that in there.”
“I put it in the bag,” Jade replied quietly.
“You did? When?” Holly demanded.
“When we got back from walking outside and went to our room. You were in the bathroom. Mommy and Daddy were tal
king. So I decided to put a surprise for you in your ‘Special Things’ bag.”
Holly looked confused. “Your mitten?”
Jade smiled. “No, silly. My mitten is protecting the magic stones. I was going to keep them, but then I decided to surprise you.”
An electric current jolted my spine and I sat up straight. “Wait. Magic stones, Jade?” She nodded in reply. “Inside?” I asked, and she nodded again.
I touched the bag with a finger. “May I look at the mitten?”
“Sure,” Jade replied. “But be very careful.”
“I will,” I replied.
I picked up the small mitten and probed the inside with my index finger. I felt something hard at the tip of the thumb and pulled out a tightly folded tissue. Holding my breath, I slowly unwrapped the paper. There, in all its sparkly glory, was Marie Wescott’s ruby and diamond ring. I put the ring and tissue paper on the table where the diamonds and rubies caught the light and twinkled.
Sam grinned. Dante and Shelly gasped. Holly’s mouth dropped open. Smiling, I sat back and did some mental fist pumps because I didn’t want to scare the kids.
“Jade, where did you get this ring?” Shelly asked in a quiet voice.
A look of uncertainty passed over Jade’s face. “Ring,” she repeated. “It’s more than a ring, Mommy. The stones are magic.”
“Where did you get the magic stones, Jade?” Dante asked.
“On the floor when you and Mommy were playing cards with those other people.”
“Tell us what happened, honey,” Shelly prompted.
Jade took a deep breath. “I was tired of sitting at the table, so I went down on the floor and colored in my book there. The nice lady who played cards with you threw it away.”
“What made you think she threw the ring away?” asked Dante. His voice was still calm.
Jade’s lower lip slid forward and she glanced at Holly. “The lady just dropped it from her hand. It bounced on the rug and landed by me. I picked it up and brought it to you. I tried to tell you, Daddy, but you were busy and ignored me. Everybody ignored me, even the lady,” Jade replied. “That’s when I knew she didn’t want the magic stones and threw them away.”