Back on Blossom Street (16 page)

Colette managed to restrain a smile.

“I like you,” Elizabeth announced abruptly.

This time Colette did smile. “I like you, too. Do you mind if I sit?”

“Go ahead.” Elizabeth nodded. “All I can say is that it’s high time my great-nephew settled down. I was beginning to wonder if he had the brains God gave a goose.”

Colette wanted to laugh at Elizabeth’s disgusted tone.

“Can you stay for dinner?”

“That isn’t necessary. I—”

Elizabeth cut her off with an imperious wave. Before
Colette could stop her, she’d called for Doris, instructing the housekeeper to set another place at the table.

“Over dinner, tell me
everything
you know about Christian. I haven’t seen the boy in months and I’m starving for news of him.”

“I—”

“Elliott and Christian are my only living relatives,” Elizabeth said before Colette could attempt an answer. “One day this house will be his.” As she looked around, her gaze fell lovingly on the things in the room—the books, the antique desk, the rich Oriental carpet. “I’ll tell you right now, if he marries one of those…those girls he’s been dallying with for the last few years, I’d rather donate my home to the zoo. As I said, it’s time he settled down and married a lady.”

“I…I’m not sure I qualify as one,” she murmured.

The older woman’s gaze narrowed and she appeared to carefully choose her words. “You’ll do. Now, tell me about yourself.”

Colette paused and was about to describe her own family when Elizabeth raised a hand.

“Before you get started, I’d like you to answer one question. It might be an uncomfortable one and I apologize for that in advance. Nevertheless, I insist on the truth.”

“All right.” Colette hoped it wasn’t the question she feared most.

Elizabeth leaned forward and stared at Colette intently. “It’s obvious you love the boy. Something’s gone wrong. What?”

“I…”

“The truth,” she demanded.

Colette clasped her hands and nodded. “It’s complicated.”

The older woman sighed. “My dear, dear girl, love is
always
complicated. It wouldn’t be love unless it was.”

Colette agreed with a silent nod.

“You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”

Colette’s eyes widened and then instantly flooded with tears.

Lydia Goetz

F
riday started off well. Sales were steady, and I saw some of my favorite customers.

At home the night before, Brad and I had spent hours discussing adoption, weighing the pros and cons.

My biggest fear, and one I shared with Brad, was the future. It was one thing to open a yarn store; if the cancer returned, I could always sell out. Bringing a child into our lives was another story entirely. As much as I lived in hope and health, the threat of the disease always hung over me and I couldn’t ignore that and neither could Brad.

By the end of the evening, we were still of two minds, but I felt closer to him than ever. We decided to set the question of adoption aside for the moment.

Friday morning, I noticed an improvement in Margaret’s
attitude. I assumed this had come about because of Thursday’s conversation with Detective Johnson. It seemed likely that the suspect they’d been watching would soon be picked up. Margaret was in a state of excitement all day, and I felt so pleased for her. Pleased and relieved. Yes, by all means, I wanted this lunatic found, charged and sent to jail. Even more, I wanted this matter shelved for Julia’s sake. And my sister’s.

The yarn store was doing well financially and I felt such a strong connection with my customers, especially the women in my prayer shawl class. I’d noticed that Colette and Alix had become friends. That shouldn’t have surprised me, and yet it did. I wouldn’t have thought they had much in common. But then, Alix is probably one of the most complex people I’ve ever met. She’s able to adjust to people and situations easily—except for that out-of-control wedding. Still, she was doing her best to cope because she loves Jacqueline.

Who would’ve believed Jacqueline Donovan and Alix would become so close? That was a shocker. I think the world of Jacqueline and Reese for the way they helped Alix, helped and encouraged her through her schooling and as a bride-to-be.

When Paul, their only son, married Tammie Lee, Jacqueline wasn’t involved in the wedding. At one time there were hard feelings because of this. Now, of course, that’s all water under the proverbial bridge. With Alix’s wedding, however, it was as if Jacqueline was making up for lost time—and lost opportunities. She was planning the social event of the year. I had to hand it to Alix; she’d been patient and good-natured about the whole thing.

At about four o’clock, the phone rang, and because I was standing closest to the cash register I automatically reached for it. “A Good Yarn,” I said into the receiver.

“Aunt Lydia?” It was Hailey, my niece and Margaret’s youngest daughter.

“Oh, hi—”

“Don’t say my name,” Hailey pleaded. She was whispering. “Is my mother there?”

“Well, yes.”

“Is my mom watching you? She doesn’t know it’s me on the phone, does she?”

This was a very odd conversation, and it was beginning to alarm me. “She’s with a customer,” I said, lowering my own voice. Margaret apparently wasn’t listening, since she didn’t acknowledge the comment. “Is something wrong?”

“I…I don’t know what to do. Julia’s crying.”

“What happened?”

“I…I don’t know,” Hailey said, and she seemed close to tears herself. “No one’s here and…and Julia’s talking crazy.”

“What do you mean, crazy?” I asked urgently.

“I…I don’t want to tell you.”

“All right.” I hesitated for a moment. “Let me talk to Julia.”

“Okay.” The relief in Hailey’s voice was evident. “I’ll take the phone to her.”

“She’s in her room?”

“No, she’s on the kitchen floor,” Hailey said.

As soon as she walked into the kitchen, chatting as she went, I could hear Julia’s heart-wrenching sobs. Crying like this wasn’t normal, and the sound sent shivers through me.

The customer left and Margaret looked at me. I tried not to reveal that I was talking to her daughter.

“Hold on a minute,” I said to Hailey.

“Okay.”

I held the phone away from my ear and glanced at Margaret, who’d gone into the office to retrieve her purse.

“I’m going to run over to the French Café for a latte,” my sister told me. “Can I get you anything?”

I shook my head. “Thanks anyway.”

“I shouldn’t be more than ten minutes,” Margaret said on her way out the door, blissfully unaware of what was happening in her own home.

“Okay.”

The bell above the door jingled as she left and Whiskers, my lazy cat, raised his head, then stretched his well-fed body in the warm afternoon sun.

As soon as Margaret was gone, I went back to the conversation. “Okay,” I said to Hailey, “put your sister on the line.”

“Here. Julia, talk to Aunt Lydia,” Hailey said.

“Julia,” I said softly, trying to encourage her. “Sweetie, tell me what’s wrong.”

She hiccuped a couple of sobs. “I…I don’t know. I can’t stop crying.”

“Are you frightened?” I asked, thinking something must have happened to trigger this emotional breakdown.

“Yes…I can’t sleep. I try and try.”

Margaret had told me how poorly Julia had been sleeping after the incident. The carjacking had taken place more than two months ago and I’d thought Julia was doing better. Apparently not.

“Have you talked to anyone?” I asked.

“No.” The word was accompanied by a sob.

“Are you ready to talk?”

“No!” she screamed, anger taking control. “I want to
forget.
Why did he have to pick me? I hate him… I hate him.” She sobbed again, harder this time, almost wailing. “Why won’t everyone just leave me alone? It’s all anyone wants to talk about. I can’t stand my life…. I don’t want to live anymore.”

Now I understood why Hailey was so frightened. “Sweetheart, don’t say that.”

Julia must have tossed the phone away, because I heard a loud clang and soon afterward Hailey was on the line again. “She’s still crying, only now she’s got her face on the floor.”

Julia screamed an obscenity that made me blink a couple of times.

Hailey gasped. “What should I do, Aunt Lydia?”

“I’d better tell your mother about this.”

“Can she come home?”

“Of course.” Julia might not want to see Margaret, but it was evident to me that she needed to talk to someone, perhaps a counselor or her doctor.

A few minutes later, after I’d reassured Hailey as well as I could, Margaret returned. “Alix was working as the barista,” Margaret told me, grinning. It’d been such a long time since I’d seen my sister this carefree that I hated having to tell her about Julia.

“That was Hailey on the phone,” I said.

The animation immediately left her face. “Is everything all right with Julia?”

I shook my head. “I think she’s having some kind of breakdown.”

The color drained out of Margaret’s face. The reprieve was over. She tensed and for a moment seemed rooted to the spot, frozen with indecision about what she should do.

“She needs you,” I told her. “She’s talking nonsense.” I couldn’t tell her Julia was talking about not wanting to live anymore. It terrified me that she’d even suggested…

Margaret stared into the distance.

“Go home and call me once you’re there so I know everything’s okay. Leave now, Margaret.”

My sister nodded.

I went to her then and hugged her. “Everything’s going to be fine,” I assured her and I prayed that was true.

Margaret left. As soon as I saw her drive away, I wished I’d closed the shop and gone with her. I wasn’t sure it was a good idea to let her deal with this by herself.

An eternity passed before the phone rang again. When I picked up, it was Hailey. I didn’t recognize her voice at first because she was crying so hard. “My mom and dad are here,” she sobbed into the phone. “They decided to take Julia to the hospital. Daddy thinks Julia needs professional help.”

A hard lump formed in my throat.

“I’m coming over,” I told Hailey.

“They don’t want me to go with them and I don’t want to be here by myself.”

“I’m on my way.” I’d never just left the shop like this. Even when Margaret and I learned that our mother had been found unconscious at home, Jacqueline had been here to take over.

After reassuring Hailey, I called Brad on his cell and told him what had happened. He confirmed that I should put a note on the door, lock up and leave right away. I promised to phone him as soon as I had any news.

I don’t even remember getting in my car and driving to Matt and Margaret’s house. The minute I pulled up in front and parked, the door banged open and Hailey raced down the steps and hurled herself into my arms, sobbing.

Holding her tightly, I stroked her hair. I noticed two neighbors watching us, and knowing what a private person my sister is, I kissed the top of Hailey’s head and steered her back toward the house.

Once inside, she got herself a tissue and blew her nose loudly.

“Do you know what set Julia off?” I asked, wondering why this had happened now.

Hailey shook her head.

I put on water to make tea. Tea always seemed to calm me and I hoped it would help my niece, too.

“Mom tried to talk to Julia. She said the man’s going to be caught and the police are making an arrest soon.”

That was the same news Margaret had given me. “Did that make any difference?” I asked.

“No.” Hailey stared up at me with tearful eyes. “Julia just kept crying. She tried to stop. I could tell she wanted to, but she couldn’t do it. It’s like…like she’s kept everything inside and then it all just broke loose.” She bit her lip and looked as if she might start weeping again herself.

The tea kettle whistled and I immediately tended to it. I poured the boiling water into a ceramic pot that had once belonged to our mother and added plenty of sugar to our cups, thinking the events of the afternoon warranted it.

“Tell me exactly what happened,” I said, carrying our tea to the table and sitting down next to Hailey.

My niece frowned, as though trying to remember the details. “Julia was home before me and I could see she’d been crying.” She gestured at the tissues scattered about the kitchen. “I asked her if everything was okay, and she said…she said she wanted to die.”

I couldn’t help it; I swallowed a gasp just hearing those words again.

“Julia said…she said everyone looks at her. That’s not true, Aunt Lydia! No one looks at her any different than they did before—she just
thinks
they do.”

“I know.” I wondered if there’d been any other signs of trouble since the carjacking.

“When Mom got here, Julia started talking about dying again and Mom phoned Dad. When he got here, he said we had to get Julia to a hospital.” She sipped her tea and
sucked in a wobbly breath as she made a determined effort to hold in her emotions. “Julia
scared
me.”

“How?” I asked.

“I think she might’ve done it… She might’ve actually killed herself. She looked so desperate and I think…I think she really meant it. That’s why I called the shop. I was so glad when you answered. I…I—” She shook her head, unable to go on.

“You did the right thing,” I said, trying to comfort her.

“I know.” She held the mug with both hands. “It isn’t right that a strange man could hurt Julia like this.”

“No, it isn’t,” I agreed.

“He broke her arm, but he did more than that. He broke her spirit, too—that’s what my dad says,” she told me in a solemn voice. “Julia isn’t the same person she used to be. I hardly know her anymore.”

I’d seen a change in Julia, too, and I was with her a whole lot less than her family. When it happened, the attack had seemed terrible enough. But I’d had no idea how far-reaching the impact on my niece and my sister would be.

Another two hours passed before the phone rang. Hailey nearly threw herself against the wall in her eagerness to answer it. As soon as she did, her gaze flew to me.

“Aunt Lydia’s here with me,” she said into the receiver. Following that, she nodded a couple of times. A minute later, she said, “Okay,” and hung up. Then she burst into tears. “The hospital’s going to keep Julia overnight—they have her on suicide watch.”