Scattered Leaves (19 page)

"I need thirty dollars for a physical education uniform."
"Yeah. I know
.
I'll have it for you. Don't worry. Just go to the table. I'm waiting for our hero."
I joined Nikki and Raspberry, who were already eating. How did they get here so fast? I wondered.
"I hope Stuart did what he said he would do," Nikki told me. "There he is."
I turned and saw Alanis talking to him. He nodded, and then she came to the table.
"He'll be here after he buys his sandwich. He said he did it." We all waited anxiously. He came and sat.
"Lucky for me I'm right-handed," he said.
"Does that hurt?" Raspberry asked him, nodding at his cast.
"A little. I gotta wear it for a long time, and of course. I can't work. I could drive with one hand, but delivering the tanks is impossible. My dad got the truck running. It's smashed up, but it runs. Needs a headlight," he added and bit into his sandwich.
"Mrs. Browne said you would lose your license.'
"I might. I gotta go to court, but until I do. I still have it," he told us.
"That's all great news. Stuart, but we want to hear what you told Mrs. Browne and what she said," Alanis said. He nodded, hurriedly chewed and swallowed.
"Just what I said I would tell her. I told her I came with the alcopops and you guys told me to leave. She sat there looking angry and told me it was just as much a crime to lie about a crime as it was to commit it. She tried to scare me," he added. "but
I
told her I wasn't lying. I was wrong to try to blame you guys. I think she believed me finally."
"Good," Nikki said.
"We won't have you assassinated now," Raspberry told him. He laughed and turned to me.
"Sorry I got you in trouble. Jordan."
"Let's forget about it already," Alanis said. "Next time, we'll all be more careful."
Stuart nodded and ate and smiled at me. I could see the smiles on the three girls.
"You want us all to sign your cast?" Nikki asked him. "Sure," he said and again looked at me.
"Who would you like to do it first?" Raspberry asked him.
"Jordan's closest." he said, digging into his pocket to get a pen. He handed it to me. "You can write anything you want," he said.
I wrote. Get better, Jordan.
"Nice," he told me. I gave him his pen.
"Do you even want anyone else to write on it. Stuart?" Nikki asked. teasing.
"If you want," he said.
"Naw. Raspberry?"
"I'm too tired to write anything."
"I don't put anything in writing," Alanis said, and the three of them laughed.
"So, tell us everything. Stuart. Are you confined to quarters like a bad sailor boy?" Nikki asked him.
"Hell, yeah. I gotta ao right home after school every day forever. But." he added with a wide smile of his own. "I can sneak out when I want. I still got my old motor scooter, and it's not hard to drive it with one hand. My dad's going to his small- business company convention this weekend, in fact. Maybe I'll come over to see you," he told me.
"We'll let you know if we're having any guests this weekend." Alanis answered for me. "I can't wait to see Mrs. Browne in the ball. I'm going to ask her if she thinks we still need lawyers."
Everyone laughed, even Stuart.
"You better take off your hat before you ask her that," I said.
"Don't worry about it. Okay. Stuart," Alanis said. You can eat lunch with us every day, if you want."
"I could? Thanks," he said.
"How do you get here so quickly?" I asked Nikki. "You're upstairs and I'm just down the halt"
"We ask to go to the bathroom sometimes and just come to the lunchroom.'
"Won't you get into trouble?"
"Naw," Raspberry said. "Our teachers are happy to see us go." They laughed again.
Afterward.
I
looked for Mrs. Browne in the hallway to see if Alanis would do what she said she would. but I didn't see her. Stuart walked with me back to my classroom.
"MaybeI'll call you," he said. "I know your aunt's number."
"Great-aunt," I reminded him.
"Oh, yeah. right. See you," he said and hurried away.
Mrs. Morgan gave us as much homework, if not more, as she had the first day. so Great-aunt Frances's theory about first-day assignments didn't work. Just thinking about it all made my schoolbooks feel heavier in my bag.
"Stuart is smitten with love." Alanis told me when we boarded the bus.
"Smitten?"
"He's got a big crush on you. Don't worry. I'll tell you exactly what to do. It'll be fun," she said. "I can't wait to lay it into Granddad now that Stuart did that. Not that he'll apologize. It's just good to make him feel bad."
"Why? He's your grandfather."
"Trust me. Whenever you can make an adult feel sorry about what he or she said to you, you're better off."
There was so much to learn. I thought, so much that was new and different in this world.
When the school bus let us off at the end of the day, I saw Grandmother Emma's limousine parked in front of the house. My first thought was that she had gotten better and she'd had Felix drive her here-- or else. I thought, he really had told her everything and she had sent him back to get me. Alanis thought otherwise,
"That chauffeur came back here fast to check on my granddad
.
He's going to be in a bad mood now no matter what," she said. "I think
I'll
hang out with you a while longer."
We hurried up the driveway. When we entered, we heard Great-aunt Frances talking to Felix in the living room. They both turned when we appeared in the doorway.
"How we you doing, Jordan?" Felix asked. "Getting along at your new school?"
"It's harder," I said. "My teacher gives us too much homework."
"Alanis is being a big sister," Great-aunt Frances told him. "I'm sure she can help her."
Felix looked at Alanis, but suspiciously. I wondered if Great- aunt Frances had told him anything about Mrs. Browne calling.
"Her teacher ain't so nice," Alanis said. "but I'll do what I can."
"Thank you. dear." Great-aunt Frances said.
"How come you came back so soon. Felix?" I asked him, still hoping he had been sent to bring me home.
"Your grandmother sent me back to check on things for her. I see the house is in a little better order and the grounds are better. Anything on your list that needs attending?"
I'd forgotten to start one. but I didn't say so. I just shook my head.
"How is Grandmother Emma?"
"Well, she's made some progress. She's in active therapy now and her doctors are pleased.'
"What about my mother?" I asked quickly.
"I haven't heard anything new. Jordan. Sorry about that."
"Does my father know anything?"
"Maybe. If so, he hasn't told me."
"Did he get that special car?"
"Not yet."
"Didn't he want to come see me, come with you?"
"He took a little vacation," Felix said. "He and Kimberly went to Florida for a week."
"Oh. Do you know anything about Ian?" He just shook his head.
"Will you take us to see Grandmother Emma?" I asked. I was sorry about firing one question after another at him, but he wasn't telling me anything about my family.
"She doesn't want any visitors at the moment," Felix said. "What about taking us to see my mother. Can you?"
"I'll ask your grandmother," he said. He didn't sound hopeful.
"I want to write to Ian. but I don't know where to send the letter, Felix."
"I'll see if I can find that out for you," he said, but again, it didn't sound hopeful. It sounded empty, words without letters, words made of air.
"It does sound as if Emma will be here someday," Great-aunt Frances said. She looked very troubled.
Felix rose.
"Yes. I would expect so. Miss Wilkens. When she has her mind made up to do something. Mrs. March will do it one way or another."
"I know. You don't have to tell me about my sister." she said. He looked at Alanis and then at me.
"You just do the best you can for now. Jordan," he said. "I have a few matters more to discuss with Mr. Marshall, and then I'll be heading back. I brought some things for you and left them in a carton in your room,'" he added.
"Things for me?"
"Just stuff from your room back at the March house. Nancy packed them for me. She's given her notice," he said. "She's leaving in two weeks." He turned to Great-aunt Frances. "Nancy was your sister's housekeeper and cook."
"Yes. Jordan told me."
"I've got to find a new one now," Felix said.
He started out. I hated to see him go. Just talking to him about my family made me feel closer to them. He turned. and I think he saw the sadness in my face.
"I'll return again in a short time." he told me. "If something comes up, you know how to reach me."
I knew I would call my grandmother's house and press two when the telephone answering service rattled off the extensions. Two went directly to Felix. I nodded.
"Take care. Miss Wilkens." he told Great-aunt Frances.
As soon as he left. I turned to Alanis and said. "Let's go see what's in the carton."
She followed me up. It was a big carton on the floor at the foot of my bed. I hurried to it and opened it quickly. In it I found my framed pictures of my parents and Ian. which I showed to Alanis.
"Your mother's pretty and your father's pretty Good-looking too. So this is Ian," she said, studying his picture. "He's not bad-looking either."
"Oh, here's my Sleeping Beauty clock," I said, showing it to her. Now I can set my alarm myself."
I continued to take things out of the carton. There was more of my clothing, blouses, skirts, socks and a pair of sandals, too, but the most surprising thing of all was the book Ian had bought me.
I Was a Girl and Now I Am a Woman.
How had it gotten back to the mansion? I had left it in the cabin in the Poconos when Grandmother Emma had taken Ian and me home so my parents could meet there alone and discuss their problems. I was sure Grandmother Emma would be very angry if she found out that Nancy had sent my book along with the other things.
"Let me see that," Alanis said and plucked it out of my hands. "This the book you said your brother gave you?"
"Yes."
She started to flip through it and then stopped and smiled.
"This could be fun to read. Look at this chapter," she said, turning it to me. 'Female Pleasure Zones, Knowing Your Own Body.' I like the idea of that. You read this chapter?'
"Not yet."
"Well, we'll read it together," she said, sitting with her back to the bed. However, she began by reading to herself. While she did. I began to put away my clothing and set my pictures up on the dresser and on the desk.
"Damn." she said, looking up at me. "I never knew reading could be this much fun. There's lots of stuff here I never knew and can't wait to try," she added. "I'll have to thank your brother when we see him."
"See Ian? Do you think we ever will?"
"You just find out where he is." she said, her eyes narrow with determination. We can do anything. You saw that already. No one's gonna stop us."
She returned quickly to the book.
Maybe she was right. Maybe we could visit Ian. After all. Ian had gotten him and me in to see our mother all by ourselves. Alanis wasn't anywhere as smart as Ian, but she seemed to know how to get things done.
"Here's a word I heard but never knew what it meant: erogenous. We have erogenous zones." She looked up at me, her eyes wide as she smiled, "It says here there's nothing wrong with experimenting with your own body to learn about
y
ourself, I didn't need a book to tell me that, but the school nurse never mentioned any of this in that health class I had to take. You know what?" she said.
"What?"
"We'll form our own health class, a secret club, and call it the Erogenous Club. Just us. After I read all this. I'll be like the teacher. too,"
She thought a moment, looked at the page she was reading, which had an illustration on it I didn't understand, and then nodded at my bedroom door.
"Close the door." she said in a hoarse whisper. "We can't take the chance of even your great-aunt overhearing us. We don't tell anyone else about your book. okay?"
"Okay." I said and closed the door.
"This is the biggest secret we'll have. Jordan. You swear you won't tell anyone.."
"About what?"
"The book, the club!"
"Okay." I said, although in my heart of hearts, I wasn't sure Ian would approve. Then I had an idea why Ian would approve. "I won't tell if we call it the Erogenous Project instead of the Erogenous Club."
"Good idea," she said. "Makes it sound scientific and makes me sound more like a teacher. too. Good." She waved me off. "Don't bother me for a while." she added. 'I've got a lot to read, and usually I hate to read."
Like someone starving, she attacked the words and the pages while I sat looking at my pictures of my mother, father and Ian and wondering where and when we would find ourselves doing the simplest things together again, like sharing a dinner or riding in a car. At the moment. as I watched Alanis reading excitedly. I thought going back to the way things once were was as hard as being reborn.

.
"I just got another great idea." Alanis said, sitting there on the floor by my bed and looking around my room. She nodded. "A really great one.'
"What?"
"I should move in here with you." "Move in here?"
"Yes. I sleep on a sofa now, and I have about as much privacy as a goldfish. Granddad is always complaining about how much time I take in the bathroom. We've only got one. Besides. I can see where you need me around more. Your neat-aunt is more than a handful. I know I can convince my mother. I'll promise to do all the housework here. We both will. She'll be happy about that and take my side against my granddad in case he puts up opposition."
She paused and looked up at me.
"Why don't you say something? Don't you want me to move in with you?"
"Yes," I said, even though I wasn't really sure I did. I'd never even had anyone sleep over for a night when I was at Grandmother Emma's, and sometimes Ian had been so involved in his projects. I hadn't seen him much at all.
"We have a lot to do. It's best that I'm here." Alanis said, nodding like someone convincing herself.
She rose quickly and went to the closet. "What is all this?"
"My Great-aunt's things."
"Well, why are they in your room?"
"This was once her room and she hasn't gotten around to getting her things out. She said some of it could fit me or you. She told me she would give away whatever didn't fit us."
"I wouldn't be caught dead wearing any of this," Alanis said, sifting through the clothes. "And neither should you, C'mon. Let's get it all out of here so there's room for my things. too."
She started to pull clothing off hangers and toss garments onto my bed. When she started on the shoes and boxes on the closet floor. I lunged forward, realizing she would discover the bag of Ian's letters.
"What's that?" she asked when I took it out quickly.
"Nothing," I said.
"It can't be nothing."
"Just same old letters I kept.'
"From who? Your brother?" she followed quickly.
"Yes, but I'm not supposed to let anyone else read them. I'm not!" I said firmly, tears coming to my eves.
"Okay, don't bust a blood vessel. I won't read them. I'm sure they would be boring anyway." She paused, then turned back to me. "Isn't there a return address on the letters? That'll tell you where he is."
I shook my head.
"Someone ripped it off all the envelopes."
"Who would have done that? The Grandmother from Hell?"
"I don't know," I said.
"Whatever," she said and shrugged as she went to the dresser drawers. "I can't believe she left all this in here." She started flinging things out of the drawers, "I'll need at least three of these drawers. Put some of this in that carton now," she told me. "I'll get some big garbage bags for the rest and we'll take it all down to the basement. Aren't you excited about us being together all the time?" she asked when I just stood there clinging to the bag of letters and looking at the clothing on the floor.
I nodded.
"You don't look very excited. But don't worry," she said, smiling and tapping the book Ian had given me. "I'll show you how to get excited. Okay, I'm heading over to Granddad's to break the news to them. I'm telling them you asked me to stay here, so go down and tell your great-aunt you did and ask her if it's okay."
"What if she says no?'
"She won't. Tell her I'm helping with the housework, the cooking, everything, and with your homework, too! Don't forget that. She likes the idea of my being your big sister. This is perfect," she said, looking around the room. "The bed's certainly big enough for both of us."
"The bathroom's very small," I said. "There's hardly room for my things."
"Don't worry about it." She looked at the book. "For now, let's keep this under the bed." She slipped it under. "I'll be back with the garbage bags. Don't just stand there. Get everything in a pile and go down to tell your great-aunt."
She rushed out. I felt swept along in a wind swirling about the room. My first thought was. Where do I hide Ian's letters? I didn't trust that she wouldn't sneak into the bag to read them. and I still had many more to read myself. I decided the best place to hide anything was in the untouched room, the room reserved for Grandmother Emma. I hurried down to it and put the bag of Ian's letters in the closet. Then I returned to my room, piled up the clothing Alanis had tossed around, and went downstairs to ask Great-aunt Frances if Alanis could move in. A part of me was hoping she would say no. I couldn't help being afraid of having Alanis actually live with me.
"She wants to move in?" Great-aunt Frances said, sitting up on her sofa. Her show had just ended. "What a wonderful idea. She'll really be like your sister then, won't she? And you say she'll help us with the cooking and cleaning?"
I nodded. "She already took all your old things out of the closet and drawers to make room for hers."
"That's okay. That's fine. Remember I told you to put whatever you don't want in bags and we'll give it away?"
"Yes."
She clapped her hands together. "Oh, this will be fun. The three of us will dress for dinner tonight. We're going to have steaks and potatoes and peas. We'll make the steaks on the grill in the back. It's going to be a Western dinner. so I'll go look for the cowboy hats I have and some great skirts and blouses. We used to wear them to a barbeque."
"Alanis might not want to," I said.
"Of course she'll want to. You tell her. Oh. I don't remember if I defrosted the steaks."
She rose and went to the kitchen. I followed her.
"Oh, dear," she said.. "I did forget. Well, it will just take a little longer to cook them, that's all."
She took the packages of meat out of the freezer and put them on the counter. They were like rocks.
"I'd better go look for the clothing," she said. "This will be great fun."
I decided to wait for Alanis upstairs. I wished I could be as excited about it all as Great-aunt Frances seemed to be, but it still made me nervous to think of someone sleeping in my bed and sharing my room. I didn't want to say anything that would make Alanis angry, though. What if she could help me find out where Ian was and we did visit him? Maybe she could help me get to visit my mother.
I went into the bathroom to see how I could rearrange some things to make room for hers. Once she discovered the untouched room reserved only for Grandmother Emma and she saw that bathroom, she would want us to use it for sure. I knew that would upset Great-aunt Frances. I wondered what
Grandmother Emma would say when she found out Alanis had moved into my room. Felix would surely tell her.
Maybe her granddad won't let her do it
_;
I thought.
I heard the front door open and close. Alanis, carrying full garbage bags, started to charge up the stairs, then stopped when she saw me in the hallway at the top of the stairway.
"Well? What did she say?"
I told her everything, adding, "She went into the basement to look for things for us to wear to a barbeque."
"That's great, I'll put on the costumes, wigs, masks, anything to move in," she said and continued up.
"But you laughed at us when we did it before," I reminded her.
"We have to make your great-aunt happy. My mother couldn't care any less about my moving in, especially when I said I'd do all the work. Granddad wasn't there so he doesn't know yet, but he'll have to accept it because I'm doing it," she said with determination. "These bags are full of my things. We'll empty them, put my things in the closet and dresser and fill the bags up with those old clothes. C'mon, let's finish setting up our room."
Our room?
I followed her into the bedroom. Sometimes. I thought, everything just happens so quickly that you hardly have a chance to think. That seemed to be the rule for my life. I felt like someone caught in an ocean current and carried along. I remembered when that had once happened to me and my mother had pulled me out of the water. It hadn't mattered one bit if I had been able to swim or not. The ocean had just been too powerful, and so were all the things happening to me now.
Alanis took her things out of the bags as if she thought someone would stop her if she didn't empty them quickly enough. I saw she didn't have all that much more clothing than I had. At the bottom of one bag was all her makeup, hair sprays and brushes. She showed me the CD player and discs. too.
"I still have Chad's CD player. We'll listen to music every night while we do homework, whenever I do it, that is." She looked around as if my room had been a palace. "This is going to be so great. Even when my father was with us. I didn't have a room this big. Cram, let's get rid of her things and make more room for ourselves."
She began to fill up the emptied bags. and I started to do the same. When we had stuffed most of Great-aunt Frances's clothes into the bags. Alanis hung up her things and put other things in the drawers she had emptied.
"I have to tell you something," I said as I watched her organizing her things so happily.
"What?"
"There might be a ghost in this house." She stopped and looked at me.
"What did you say?"
"There might be a ghost. Sometimes at night. I hear crying, and it sounds like someone moving through the walls."
She stared at me. "If you don't want me moving in, just come out and say it directly."
"No. I want you to move in."
"Then don't talk stupid," she said and returned to her clothing.
"My great-aunt forgot to defrost the steaks for the barbeque," I said. "My brother would say she was absentminded."
Alanis paused and shook her head. She sure is. Who knows what's in her head? That's why it's good I'm here. We need to take complete charge of everything as soon as possible. It's best for your greataunt.."
"Here she comes." I whispered, hearing her footsteps in the hallway.
She appeared in the doorway with armfuls of clothes, hats and even cowboy boots,
"Okay, wranglers, here we are," she announced and dropped everything on the bed. "Pick out your outfit. I have mine in my closet,"
She looked around the room as if we had already done loads of things to change it. Her eyes fell on my pictures, and she went to them quickly.
"This is your mother and father?"
"Yes."
She stood there studying the picture.
"What a good-looking pair they are. Your father looks a lot like Blake," she said softly. She touched the picture as if she'd been touching both their faces. Then she put it down and looked at Ian's picture. "Your brother reminds me of my cousin Harris. He was very nice. I felt sorry for him because he had a lung disease and died in his teens. Emma was never very nice to him. She treated him like a leper. You know what a leper is?" she asked us. Alanis was already sifting through the Western clothing and not really listening.
I shook my head.
"People who had leprosy were called lepers and made to live in leper colonies. Sometimes." she added, her voice starting to drift and her eves turning vacant. "I felt like I was a leper, especially after my father died.
"Oh," she cried, recuperating from her sadness instantly, "no time for unhappiness, ever. Let's get started. Welcome to our ranch. Alanis. Partner. I mean." She clapped her hands to drive away the heavy moment and hurried out of the room.
"She's bonkers." Alanis said, nodding after her. "but that's good for us. I'm wearing this one," she said, holding up a Western- style blouse. "This skirt isn't really all that bad either," she added. "It goes well with my hat, and these boots actually fit me. Maybe there are some things I can use here. We'll take our time searching this house.I'll bet it's full of all sorts of treasures. Here," she said, tossing some garments at me. "Try these on. Let's get moving. We need to start the barbeque before Granddad comes over to raise hell."
After we both dressed in the Western clothes, we went down and found Great-aunt Frances in her embroidered red-and-brown shirt, a pair of very baggy jeans and a red cowboy hat. She had put on a pair of brown boots that were obviously men's boots a few sizes too biz.
"Oh. Alanis, darling, can you light up the fire for us?" she asked in a Western accent. "Ma hands are busy lassoing our fixin's."
Alanis widened her eyes, looked at me, and hurried out the back.
"Why don't you see about settin' the table. Jordan, honey. The men will be comin' in from the roundup any minute. There's a tablecloth in the top drawer there,' she added, nodding at a cabinet.
I took out the tablecloth and some dishes. Alanis came back in: she had already started the barbeque.
"I watched Granddad do this for her
sometimes," she explained. "We got steak dinners that way. That meat's going to be tough because it wasn't defrosted, but that's okay. She's happy. Granddad won't be able to say she doesn't want me here."
I set the table and hurried back and forth with silverware, napkins and glasses. Minutes later. Alanis had the steaks cooking. She was right about her granddad, Mr. Marshall came charging around the corner of the building, looking like he was bound to beat her. Fortunately. Great-aunt Frances came out just as he arrived.
"What's going on here. Alanis?" he asked, stopping and putting his hands on his hips. "What do you think you're doing. girl?"
"Why. Tex," Alanis said. "You're just in time for the roundup dinner."
"You are certainly invited. Lester,' Great-aunt Frances said.
He looked at her but turned back to Alanis quickly. "Your mother said you took your clothes to sleep over here," he continued.
"Not just sleeping over. Granddad. I'm settling in here." Before he could respond, she added. "Miss Wilkens has invited me. and I'm going to help out with all the chores."
"Now see here. girl--"
"Oh, she can stay. Lester. She's welcome."
Alanis smiled victoriously and her granddad stood speechless. fuming. Then he pointed at her.
"I know you're up to something. Alanis King. You don't volunteer for work. You do one wrong thing and make trouble for Miss Wilkens and I'll have you in the woodshed," he told her.
"Oh, she'll be no trouble. I'm sure. Lester...
He looked at us all again, shook his head and walked off. "Thank you kindly. Miss Wilkens," Alanis said. "I sure do appreciate your hospitality."
Great-aunt Frances smiled at Alanis's Western accent. "Why, you're as welcome as warm sunshine. darlin'."
Alanis beamed a smile at me. then leaned over to whisper. "See?" she said. "This will be easy as long as we play in her little shows. We're in control."
It sounded good and she looked very happy, but it made my heart flutter.
Alanis and I heard the phone ringing. but Greataunt Frances acted as if she didn't hear it.