Shadow in Serenity (24 page)

J
ason was pensive as their plane left the runway later that day. “Mom?”

She glanced at him, smiling at the headset that was too big for his head. “Can I call Logan when we get home, and tell him we’re back?”

Carny hadn’t spoken of Logan to Jason since they’d left Serenity, and for a moment, she pretended to be intent on flying the plane.

“Mom?”

“No, honey,” she said finally. “Logan … Logan is gone. He went to Dallas the morning we left.”

He gaped at her. “When’s he coming back?”

“I don’t know.” She struggled to find the right words. “It’s kind of like the carnival, Jason. The magic comes first —”

“Logan’s not like that.”

She bit her lip, wishing she could tell him he was right. But she wouldn’t lie to him. “He is, baby. He’s just like that.”

“He’ll be back,” Jason said. “He has to. He’s my friend.”

Carny didn’t answer, and again, Jason waited. Tears came to her eyes. “Honey,” Carny said, “we may not see Logan again.”

He caught his breath, and when she looked at him, she saw anger rather than surprise. “But what about the park?”

“There are things you don’t know about Logan. He hasn’t been honest about everything.”

“No!” He screamed the word into his microphone, almost bursting her eardrums. She’d never seen more rage on her son’s face. Not even the night he ran away. “That’s not true! Logan wasn’t lying. He’ll be back! You’ll see!”

Swallowing the knot in her throat, she didn’t answer.

She watched as Jason looked out the window, hiding the tears pushing into his eyes. When she reached over to touch his hand, he jerked it away.

“You still think he lies,” he said into the mike bent in front of his mouth. “After all he’s done!”

“Jason —”

“Well, he doesn’t!” he shouted. “You’ll see. Logan’s gonna do everything he promised!”

For the rest of the trip, Jason cried quietly in his seat, staring out his window. Carny couldn’t seem to fight her own tears, and by the time they landed, she was exhausted from the tension in the plane.

When they finally pulled onto the tarmac at Carny’s hangar, she touched his arm. “Jason, you know I love you, and I would have done anything to keep you from getting hurt. I’m so sorry.”

“You’re wrong, Mom,” he said. “I know you are.”

The moment she killed the engine and the propeller stopped turning, Jason was out the door, running to their truck.

The Texas sun was directly overhead as Carny reached her house. The grass had grown taller than she liked it, since she hadn’t mowed it before she left. Next door, she saw Janice out working in her garden. When Janice saw Carny, she abandoned her rake and walked across the empty lot between them. Before she’d even gotten out of the truck,
Janice called through the window, “Carny, where have you been? I’ve been worried about you.”

Carny slipped out of the truck. “We went to see my folks. I’m sorry you were worried, but I left J.R. and Bev a note.”

She pulled their suitcases out of the back of the truck. She wanted to ask Janice if she’d heard anything from Logan, but she wouldn’t let herself, not in front of Jason.

Handing the smaller suitcase to her brooding son, she said, “Take your stuff in, Jason, and I’ll call J.R. and Bev to let them know we’re back.”

“Then I’m going to Nathan’s.” Jerking up his bag, Jason took it into the house.

“Go ahead and call them,” Janice said, breaking into a soft smile. “Then come over and I’ll update you on things.” She started to walk away, then turned. “I’m so glad you’re back. We missed you.” Waving, she cut across the yard.

Carny got her suitcase and went into the house just as Jason shot back out. The curtains were still drawn and the lights were out, and it was hot, since she had turned the thermostat off before she’d left.

It was the first time since Carny had bought the house that she hadn’t been happy to come home to it.

She set the suitcase down in her living room and looked at the couch, where she’d held Logan and talked about Jesus.

What had Logan been thinking? That she was a fool?

Tears assaulted her again, and she slumped onto the couch. Taking a deep breath and sniffing back her tears, she grabbed the phone and punched out her in-laws’ number.

“Hello?”

“Bev, it’s me. We’re back.”

“Carny, why didn’t you call? And why didn’t you answer your phone?”

“I turned it off Sunday,” she said. “Guess I let the battery
die after that. I really just didn’t want to talk.” Carny heard Jason’s shouts outside. She stood and looked out the window. He was running, with Nathan on his heels, heading home with a smile on his face the size of Texas.

“It just isn’t like you to go off like that,” Bev said. “Are your folks all right?”

“Yes, they’re fine. Uh … Bev, let me call you right back, okay?”

“Carny, I have things to tell you!”

“In just a minute,” Carny said.

Hanging up the phone, Carny hurried to the door and caught Jason as he burst in. “Jason, what is it?”

“Mom! It’s started! I told you it would!”

“What has?”

“The park!” He tried to catch his breath. “Nathan said there were bulldozers and cranes, and they’re clearing all the land!”

“What?” She turned to Nathan, who looked ready to burst. “Nathan, that can’t be. Logan left town.”

“Yeah, to get more money,” Nathan said. “Now Logan’s got all the money he needs. Our money, and the bankers’, and some other people he got. It’s gonna be so great! My dad took me out there to see the work this morning. They’ve been working for three days.”

Carny felt the blood draining from her face. “Are you sure?”

“Positive. Dad said they’re clearing all the trees, but the ground-cutting ceremony is next week.”

“Ground-cutting? You mean ground
breaking?
”

“Yeah, that. The governor is coming and everything!”

She brought her hand to her forehead and released a shaky breath. “This is unbelievable.”

“I
told
you, Mom! I told you!”

“Get in the truck, Jason,” she said, grabbing her keys. “We’re going to see.”

“All
right!”

Nathan called home to tell his mom he was going with them, and they climbed into the truck. Carny screeched out of her driveway and drove toward the site.

“Isn’t it great, Mom? Logan did just what he said he’d do. Now aren’t you sorry for what you —”

“Jason, please!” she snapped. “Just … just let me think for a minute. I have to think.”

Jason got quiet, and Carny tried to sort out the thoughts spinning through her mind. If what Nathan said was true, then Logan was going ahead with the plans. And that must mean that he’d decided to keep hiding the truth from Serenity. But maybe he really was making good on his promise to build the park. He wouldn’t have spent money on land and excavation if he wasn’t.

On the other hand, the failure to honor his commitment to come clean spoke volumes. But maybe …

No. She couldn’t entertain the maybes. There were too many of them. The town could be operating on assumptions, clearing trees on faith. She drove up the highway until she neared the site, then slowed down.

“Mom! Hurry up!”

Swallowing, she forced herself to step on the accelerator again. And as they passed a cluster of trees, she held her breath.

“Mom, look! A bulldozer!”

Jason began bouncing on the seat, and Carny brought her hand to her mouth. Across the horizon, she saw bulldozers and bush hogs and other machinery clearing the land. Teams of men worked across the site. “This can’t be!” she whispered, pulling the car onto the shoulder.

“I told you, Mom! I told you!”

“But … where’s Logan?”

Jason and Nathan jumped out of the truck. Slowly, Carny got out too. A man with a hard hat and a clipboard stood near them, talking into a walkie-talkie. “Excuse me,” she said. “Who do you work for?”

The man took off his hat and wiped his tanned face with the back of his arm. “King Enterprises and the town of Serenity, ma’am. We’re clearing for the amusement park.”

Still amazed, Carny looked around. “Are you sure? I mean … did they pay you? With money?”

The man set the hat back on his head and laughed. “Well, I sure wouldn’t be out here in this heat if he hadn’t paid a good portion, lady. And MidSouth of Houston and the FSB of Dallas guaranteed the rest. That’s good enough for me, ma’am — I’ve done a lot of work for them before.” He looked her over, then glanced back at her truck. “Are you from the zoning board?”

Her breath seemed to come harder, her brain spun with possibilities, and her heart hammered … but whether it was with hope or dread, she wasn’t sure. “No. Uh … where is Mr. Brisco?”

“Last I heard he was in Dallas. But he’s supposed to be flying in sometime today. We have a meeting at three, so it’ll have to be pretty soon now.”

The fragile hope growing in Carny’s heart frightened her as she took the jubilant boys back to Nathan’s. She found Janice sweeping her back porch. “Janice, I don’t understand why they started clearing the land so soon. What happened?”

Janice leaned the broom against the wall. “Logan called a town meeting Monday night and showed up with Eric Hart. Eric gave a small concert, then told us he was going to partner with us on the park. They actually chose Serenity!”

So it was going to happen. The park was going to be
built. And Logan was going to withhold the truth to make it happen. Did he really think that she —?

“I know you’re still worried, Carny. We all know you were right about him.”

“Wait. What?”

“After the concert, when Eric left, Logan told us the truth.”

Carny narrowed her eyes. “What truth?”

“That he really came here to con us.”

Carny almost choked. “He told you that?”

“Yes. He said he fell in love with the town and God got hold of him. He asked our forgiveness.”

Carny was dizzy. She reached for a patio chair to steady herself. “He really did that?”

“He did. He had all our cash separated into envelopes and offered to return it to anyone who asked. Some people took their investments back. But the rest of us forgave him and decided to trust him. After all, he didn’t have to tell us. People change. We’ve seen that happen in you, so we knew it could be done. If God can forgive, then we should, too, right? We’re setting up a corporation called Serenity Trust, so we’ll be partners with the other investors. It’s really happening, Carny.”

Carny couldn’t think. Could it be true? Leaving Jason with Janice, she ran back to her truck and headed for the airstrip. As she drove, she had the dizzying feeling of teetering on the edge of a cliff, waiting to fall off with the slightest breeze. Her heart pounded and her adrenaline surged.

The airport was quiet when she got there, and she went straight to the radio and sat in front of it, wondering who would be flying him in.

“Serenity ground, King Air Zero-Niner Bravo. Anybody there?”

Carny attacked the radio mike. “Serenity to zero-niner Bravo. Who is this?”

She heard a loud whoop. “Carny, is that you? You’re back?”

“Brisco?”

“Oh, thank you, God.” She heard a long pause, then, “Carny, why did you take off like that? Why haven’t you been answering your phone? Didn’t you get my messages?”

She slapped her hands over her face, then grabbed the mike again. “I got one … part of it. It made me mad so I deleted it. I thought you reneged.”

Again, a long pause. “I thought you trusted me.”

“I did, until you skipped town!” She carried the mike toward the window, until the cord pulled her back. “Where are you, Brisco?”

“About fifteen miles southeast of Serenity,” he said. “Which runway are we using?”

“Runway one-eight,” she told him. She let go of the mike, went to the window, and looked southeast. She couldn’t see him yet. Not sure whether to laugh or cry, she went back to the mike. “Serenity to … whoever you are.”

She heard him chuckling. “King Air Zero-niner Bravo.”

“What did you do? Steal a jet?”

“I’m in Eric Hart’s plane,” he said. “He’s in big, Carny. All the way in. We’re calling the park Hartland.”

She laughed and shook her head. “I heard.”

“I have a lot to tell you. Are you ready to talk me down? I’m still not sure about these landings.”

Collapsing back in her seat, Carny wiped her eyes. Then it occurred to her what he’d said. “Tell me you’re not alone in that plane, Brisco.”

“Except for Jack,” he said. “For some reason, Eric’s under the impression that I’m a longtime pilot. So he loaned
me the plane for a few days. Only thing is … I forgot to tell him my landings are a little shaky, and I haven’t yet gotten my pap er work.”

Her chest locked. “Are you scamming me again?”

He laughed. “Just a little. I’m with Eric’s pilot, who’s also a certified instructor. We’re completely legit. So what do you think?” he asked. “Fifty bucks says I can land this pup as smooth as butter.”

“No bet, Logan,” she said. “You’ve been flying by the seat of your pants all your life. Something tells me you’ll land the plane just fine.”

She heard him laughing across the radio waves, and hurrying outside, she watched his approach. He had landed smoothly the last few times they’d flown, and she was confident that he could do it. Logan could pull off anything.

It was as if he’d done it a thousand times, and as he came in with the finesse of a veteran pilot, she put her hands on her hips and waited.

Tears flooded her eyes again. Idly, she wondered if she’d ever again be that stoic, free spirit who never cried. So much had changed since Logan blew into her life. She watched him taxi back up her small runway and pull onto the tarmac, and as she wiped her tears, she gave in to the relief and unadulterated joy merging in her heart now. He was here. She could hardly breathe as the plane came to a stop and he opened the door and stepped toward her. Then she couldn’t stand still any longer. She broke into a run as he came toward her, and soon he was running too, his face a fragile mask of new, unexplained emotions. He swept her into his arms as they met and crushed her against him.