Box Set: The ArringtonTrilogy (54 page)

But he was right, and I knew it.

Opal told me when I came down for breakfast
that Daddy had gone to fetch the doctor.

“You can stay home from school today if you
need to, Lillian,” she said.

Ayden and Heath sat and waited to see what I
wanted to do. But I, more than anything, wanted to go. Heath looked
better; his face was rosy and full of the jovial spirit I had come
to expect.

Because Heath was physically tired from the
rescue, he allowed Ayden to row to the mainland. Ayden was a good
rower, but he did not have Heath’s speed. The day was overcast, and
there was a strong threat of rain.

“You have to hurry,” Heath said to Ayden as a
few drops of rain began to fall.

Ayden struggled, but increased the tempo so
we arrived on the mainland just before the storm blew in.

“Hurry,” Ayden said. We ran and made it to
the school just as the torrent came down.

Quickly we took our seats then Miss
Weatherbee called me up to her desk. “Your father gave me
permission to move you up a ranking,” she said.

“He was here?”

“This morning. He signed the papers.” She
smiled at me, pleased.

Daddy had come through for me; he hadn’t
forgotten about me, even through all the mayhem with Momma.

Miss Weatherbee told me to take a new seat
beside Clara Roth. I grabbed my slate and chalk and sat beside her.
She whispered, “Hello,” then slid over. I felt so small next to
her; her beauty cast a shadow over me. I wanted so much to look
like her when I was her age. I wanted Heath to look at me the way
he did Clara. Now that I sat on the same row, Heath had a reason to
glance at her. When he had the opportunity, he would smile at me,
but I knew very well why he was doing it. I didn’t like it; it
annoyed me. I had never seen someone so enamored with a woman,
except for Daddy. He used to gaze at Momma with such yearning eyes.
However, lately, he only had eyes full of despair for her. It was
devastating to see how quickly things in life could change, as if a
rug could be pulled right out from under you. That’s what happened
with Momma. No one saw it coming. It was like the storms that broke
out of nowhere, like the calm, still sea that suddenly began to
cast giant swells that violently took massive ships to their watery
graves.

If anyone could save Momma from being
swallowed up in the dark sea of her own mind, it would be Daddy.
For certain, he was going to find the very best doctors to help her
at least return to the way she used to be when she was at her
sickest. She used to tell me that Daddy would go to the ends of the
earth and back for her, and now Daddy was about to take that
journey.

While at school, I couldn’t help but go back
and forth in my mind between my own happiness in school and the
troubled times we were all suffering on the island. Because Daddy
was being selfless and allowing me to attend school, Opal had to
tend to Momma when Daddy couldn’t. When Daddy had to be up in the
tower, Opal had to keep watch and tend to her needs. Opal stayed
up, sometimes days on end. Daddy didn’t realize how exhausted she
was. He didn’t notice the bags under her eyes, the slow pace she
kept when cooking supper for the group. Edward suggested Daddy
think about resigning as primary keeper and stepping down to first
keeper. Essentially, they would switch positions. But it had to be
put in writing and submitted to the government, and no matter,
because Daddy wouldn’t hear of it. We were all looking to the
doctor that Daddy brought to see Momma for the answers. Would he
have powders to put Momma’s mind at ease, at least enough so she
was no longer a danger to herself or anyone else?

The doctor had just returned to the mainland
when we arrived on the island after school. Daddy was still with
Momma when I came in, sitting on the edge of their bed with his
head in his hands. When he heard me enter, he looked up.

“She’s sleeping peacefully. Come in.” Daddy
was weary.

I sat down on the bed next to him and
couldn’t look at Momma. I wanted to thank him for allowing me to
move up a grade; I wanted him to see how appreciative I was, but I
knew it wasn’t the right time.

“What did the doctor say? Did he give her new
medicine?”

“He gave her some powders to calm her nerves
and help her sleep.”

“Will it help her? Will it make Momma
remember where she is and who we are?”

Momma, even through the midst of the thick
fog in her mind, did remember Daddy. She continued to call him
Garrett. But none of us, not even me, did she remember.

“I certainly hope so. I miss your momma very
much. I know you do, too. With your help, and the doctor’s
medicines, maybe Momma can come back to us. I don’t know what I’ll
do if she doesn’t,” he said, and he couldn’t contain his tears. I
had never seen Daddy cry before, not once. He was always so in
control, so self assured. Now he was smothered in doubt and
completely insecure. I didn’t want Daddy to turn to me for comfort.
First, I had lost Momma, and now Daddy was becoming unhinged. It
felt awkward to put my arms around Daddy while his shoulders shook
from his sobbing. I was glad when Opal appeared in the room.

“There is a fog rolling in,” she said softly.
Daddy quickly wiped his tears, put on his hat, then hurried out
without another word.

“Does he need me to stay with your momma?”
she asked, gazing at Momma with a deep, forlorn expression.

“No. The doctor gave her sleeping powders.
I’m sure she will rest all night now.”

Momma seemed more at peace than she had for
quite some time. It even looked like she had a smile on her
face.

“We should still lock the door,” Opal said.
The key sat on a small table next to the door. I took it, closed
the door, and turned the key in the hole until I heard the click,
indicating it was locked.

“Do you feel comfortable enough to sleep here
tonight, or do you still want to stay with us?” Opal asked.

I was ready to return to my own room with my
own things. It felt better knowing Momma was getting the care she
needed, that she was under the care of a doctor, and that no harm
would come to her.

“I’ll be fine,” I said, and went to hug her.
I had put my arms as far as I could around her protruding belly,
when all of a sudden I felt the movement of the baby inside her. I
jumped back.

“Did you feel that?” she laughed. “The baby
just kicked.”

“Does it hurt?” I asked. I had never felt
anything like it before.

“No, not at all. It kind of feels like lunch
moving around.”

I couldn’t imagine wanting to have a baby
inside of me, but Opal appeared thrilled.

“Do you think it’s another boy?”

“I don’t know. I would love another son,” she
said, then leaned close to my ear. “But a baby girl would be even
better.”

How exciting it would be to have a little
girl to play with. She could be kind of like my very own
sister.

“When is she going to come?” I asked Opal on
our way to her house for supper.

“No later than March first, the doctor told
me.”

A spring baby. That was something to look
forward to. Among all the trials and tribulations, through the
misery and bleakness, like the fog that rolled in, I was content to
believe in better and brighter things to come, for unrelenting
happiness to seek me out and make my world turn right side up
again.

It wasn’t long before the days became chilly
and the nights frigid. From the island, I saw the mainland turn
into a beautiful landscape of red, yellow, and orange. The fall had
never been a time to celebrate, but to prepare for the hostile,
harsh, and sometimes hellish winter to come. However, since we came
to Jasper Island, I had learned not everything that made me happy
revolved exclusively around the weather. There were holidays I knew
nothing about. Like Halloween. I had never heard of it before.

“It means All Souls Day,” Ayden told me on
our walk from the school to the harbor. “And the very next day is
All Saints Day.”

“What do you do on Halloween?” I asked. What
could you do to have fun on a day that had anything to do with dead
people?

“Kids come into town and play tricks on
people and make all kinds of mischief,” Ayden said with a twinkle
in his dark eyes.

I looked at Heath to see if he wanted to
participate in something like that. To me, it would be out of his
character.

“Don’t you get into trouble for making
mischief?”

“No. It’s actually the one day it’s accepted.
So what do you say, Lillian? Will you come with us tomorrow night?”
Ayden asked.

“Will the other children be doing it,
too?”

“Of course. We have plans to meet at the
cemetery near to the school,” Heath said.

I wasn’t sure. I would have never thought of
participating in such wickedness. But if Heath was doing it and
thought it was okay, I figured I would, too.

The kids were whispering about what trouble
we were going to cause on Halloween the next day at school.
Apparently, Heath had organized it. We were all to meet at six
o’clock at the cemetery then head to the nearest farms to turn over
outhouses and even let some of the cattle loose. Everyone was going
to be there, except Marvin and Mary.

If Opal and Edward were aware of what we were
planning, they didn’t seem concerned. In fact, they both retired to
bed earlier than usual. Daddy was up in the tower, the light
already lit for the long night ahead. It was already pitch-black
out, and it was only five o’clock. The winter solstice was slowly
creeping in, leaving us with less and less light, and the long days
of cold darkness were on their way. Momma was sleeping soundly and
locked up tight. I would be home in time to check on her before
Daddy even knew I was gone.

Heath and Ayden were down on the shore,
waiting for me to board. Through the chilly darkness of the last
night of October, we made our way over the sea to the mainland. The
harbor was noisy and bustling, as usual; drunken sailors from the
taverns roamed the streets, making all kinds of trouble. In the
day, they weren’t around, but at night-time, fancy-dressed ladies
were with the sailors and fishermen.

Heath noticed me staring at them. “You stay
away from women like that, Lillian. They are full of sin. They are
evil women,” he warned me.

“Why? What’s wrong with them?”

“You don’t need to know anything else but
that,” he said, and told Ayden and me to hurry up. I walked only
steps behind Heath, but Ayden trailed behind, still looking at the
pretty, dressed-up ladies of the night. Heath caught on, stopped,
and grabbed hold of him.

“You better not ever let Mother or Father
catch you looking at that kind again. Come on, now; we need to
hurry, or they will start without us,” Heath said, and the three of
us picked up the pace. As we hurried through the village, I noticed
pumpkins on porches with carved faces and lit candles inside them,
creating a spooky glow.

“What are those?” I asked Heath.

“Jack-o-lanterns.”

“Didn’t you ever hear the story of Stingy
Jack?” Ayden asked.

“No, never.”

Heath explained the Irish tale to me.

“So you think it’s true, Heath?’ Ayden
asked.

“What? That Stingy Jack made a deal with the
devil? And that he put the glowing coal into the turnip?”

Ayden nodded.

Heath pondered the question, then smiled and
said, “No way.”

I giggled.

“Over there; that’s the cemetery.”

There was no moon out; we could only see
children by the candles they each had. It was spooky and eerie as
we made our way past the tombstones. The piles of dried leaves
crackled under our feet as we walked. Eloise came over and gave
Heath a candle.

“Is everyone here?” he asked.

“Everyone is here. Are you ready?”

The glow of the candle lit up the stone
beside us. I turned to read the name with Ayden. We both gasped. It
was Victor’s tombstone.

“What?” Heath said then lowered the candle to
get a better look.

“Oh, it’s just the old keeper’s grave,” he
sighed. Ayden and I knew it was more than just a grave. His spirit
was always nearby, watching. Ayden and I locked eyes. He was just
as spooked as I was. Just then, Clara came over with Betty and
William. Heath stood up straight, cleared his throat, and said,
“Hello, Clara.” She gave him one of her prettiest smiles. Within a
moment, some kind of love switch was turned on inside Heath, and he
no longer paid me any attention. He asked Clara to walk with him as
he led the way.

“He sure is smitten with her,” I heard Betty
say to Eloise. Ayden giggled.

Heath swung around and told us all to be
quiet. My heart sank when he didn’t even look at me. I stayed with
Ayden, and we were the last two to reach the edge of Old Man
Powell’s farm. The farmer supposedly hated children. When some of
the students in years past walked by his farm, he let his watch
dogs loose on them. Most often, the children were able to outrun
the vicious canines, and if they couldn’t, they ended up climbing
the nearest tree.

The first thing the boys did was tip over the
outhouse. Then William opened the gates to the corral, and one by
one, the cows strolled out. All together, ten walked along the dirt
road. Ayden couldn’t contain his hysteria and fell to the ground
laughing. Heath then asked who was brave enough to get close to the
house to throw eggs at it. William raised his hand.

“No, William. Let Heath do it,” Clara said.
She batted her long lashes at him and immediately, he agreed.
Through the darkness we all crept along the fence until we got
close to the front door. Clara reached into the pockets of her
dress and handed him an egg for each hand.

“Okay, as soon as I hit the house, everyone
run back to the cemetery.”