Finding Madelyn (4 page)

She took a deep breath, flinging her hand toward the dresser behind him, “I brought you lunch.”

“Well how’d you end up. . .”
h
e pointed to her in the bed. “There!”

She sat up, she wouldn’t tell him that he’d been dreaming. “You pulled me down
there
, when I tried to wake you.”

One hand held the sheet loosely around his waist, the other ra
n over his head. “I’m sorry, Madelyn. I didn’t mean. . .”

“I know.” She let the door slam behind her.



He hadn’t been dreaming about her, he smacked his head with his hand. Still she’d been there, in the dream and in his bed. Madelyn, the way she’d been
before he left, but it wasn’t supposed to be her. Now she was a little different, stronger somehow. She’d grown up.

But he wasn’t here to remember. Not here to have her close. He was here to bring her home
.
S
he had to answer for taking the payroll, for leaving when she had promised she would be there.

She had made a good point though. Why would she return the ring and take the money? The ring would have been enough to pay her way any
where she’d wanted to go and the Madelyn he knew wouldn’t steal
. Especially
,
from working people who had little more than she did.

He slid on his pants and peeked at the plate on the dresser. How could a thief, who sure didn’t trust him right now, bring him lunch? Maybe she was having as much difficulty separating then from now as he was. He pulled the roll off the plate.

Along with growing up, she’d gotten better at cooking. She’d been good at that, cooking for herself, since her mother disappeared.

Life was so much simpler before they grew up. He knew where he stood. He’d always stood by Madelyn.

“I’m sorry
,
Mrs. Langley, my aunt’s sick and
I can’t leave her at home with h
er pa.
There’s no way for him to take care her.
”

Galen stood at the railing of the stairs watching the plane float down. His mama sure wasn’t happy that the nice lady that cleaned the house brought her daughter.

“Well I can’t have her wandering around, Cassie.”

“Oh no, ma’am. She’ll be right with me the entire time. You won’t even know she’s here.”

“Well,” his mama bent down toward the girl. “You’re Maddy, right?”

The nearly black hair moved around the edge of her mother’s flowered skirt.

“Galen!”
h
is mama
called
, sending her back to hiding.

He went down the stairs to the landing, turned and went down again, staying on the dark red carpet. His feet echoed off the hardwood, as he hoped not to get yelled at for the plane hitting the foyer floor. He picked it up, “Yes, Mama.”

“Now that was quick. Were you eaves-dropping again?” Her hair
, the color of honey,
fell into her face with the grimace.

“I couldn’t help it. I was playing with my plane and . . .”

“I’ve told you about that.” She put her hands on her hips.

“Yes ma’am.”

“This is Maddy, she’s going to be here for the day. Think you can keep an eye on her for us?”

“Mrs. Langley, that’s not necessary.” Cassie said, pushing a strand of blonde behind her ear.

“She’ll have
more fun playing with Galen than helping you fold sheets. What do you think, Maddy?”

Big brown eyes looked at him from her hiding spot, the sun pushing through the windows on the side of the front door highlighting her head.

“You can play with my plane.” He held out the small paper toy.

She looked up at her mother.

“It’s fine with me, baby.” Cassie shrugged.

The girl eased out, staring at the plane.

“She wears pants, like a boy, Mama.”

Maddy stopped moving forward to look at the floor.

“Galen!”
M
ama was yelling again.

“I’m sorry. I was just saying.” He backed away.

“The chickens peck ma’ legs if I wear a skirt.” Maddy’s words were directed to the floor
and seemed so soft especially after his mama’s
voice which hadn’t made her jump
.

“You got chickens?”

She nodded.

“Neat.”

She smiled.

“Wanna go outside, before Mama makes me get a switch?”

His mama moved her hand over her mouth, which she normally only did when she was trying not to laugh at him.

Maddy looked a little more scared of his mama now, but nodded.

He took off for the back door with her a step behind. Once outside, he ran to the tire swing and she looked in awe as he swung back and forth.

“You’ve never seen a tire swing?”

She shook her head, still eyeing the plane he’d forgotten to give her.

“Never seen a plane before, either?”

She shook her head, looking at the ground again.

“Daddy owns one.” He handed the paper replica to her.

She sat down hard on the ground and looked it over like it was impossible.

“This thing fly?”
her words were drawn out more than anyone he normally heard.

He held out his hand and she gave back the plane. Once he double-checked that she hadn’t torn it, he threw it through the air. It looped back to him. He turned to give it back and her mouth was standing open.

“You wanna try?”

She took it back, even gentler than before.

“Now don’t go throwing it, you just kinda let it glide out your hand.”

Letting it go, it started the loop and she followed it all the way around.

“Do it again if you want.”

She it picked up, watching it intently as it glided through the air.

“You don’t talk much.” Galen continued.

Her eyes moved back to the ground. “Pa gets mad.”

“My daddy yells when we get too loud or run through the house.”

She smiled, picking up the plane.

They spent the morning out there. When he pushed her on the swing she laughed good and loud before closing her mouth, waiting for someone to yell. The color and smile returned when no one had.

They even spent a few minutes tossing his baseball back and forth. Harland’s glove was a bit big on his hand, but she couldn’t wear it at all. His was closer to her size. She sure didn’t throw like a girl, tossing it almost as far as Harland could.

M
ama
called
out the back door that lunch was ready and she’d gone running in with him, but when he climbed into the chair next to Harland, she’d stopped dead in her tracks at the door, her eyes back on the floor.

“Go ahead and get a seat, Maddy,” Mama said.

“I. . . better ask my mama.”

“I already talked to her, get up there with the boys.”

His brother poked him. “You’re playing with a girl.”

“Better than going to work with Daddy.” He pushed him back.

“Stop that.” Mama swatted them both with a kitchen towel. “No fighting at the table.”

Harland turned to Maddy, “You gonna eat standing?”

“Are you going to . . .” Mama corrected him.

“Fine. Are you going to eat standing up?” He pronounced out every syllable.

“Shut up, Harland.” Galen pushed him again. “She’s just quiet.”

“That she is.” Mama stated. “Your behavior isn’t helping any. She’ll sit down when she’s ready.”

Tess, their cook, set a plate down in front of each of them and one
by
the empty seat, too. His mama left the room with their daddy’s plate. He must have been eating in his study
as usual
.

Daddy spent a lot of time in his study and that’s when he was home. Mama said he worked so much to provide a good home. Harland said it was because he wanted to be in politics, whatever that was.

Tess bent down to Maddy’s height and whispered to her. The girl’s face colored, but she nodded and eased toward the empty chair.

“Tess, what’d ya tell her?” Galen asked.

“That I made potato salad.”

He looked back to Maddy to see her taking a bite of the stuff like it was as good as chocolate. “You want mine?”

She n
odded and he slipped it off his plate to hers. When he’d eaten his sandwich, she offered half of hers while she was finishing the potato salad. Mama was none the wiser.



“Fred, we can’t just ignore it.”

Galen heard his mama’s voice and crept into the h
all, taking a spot just outside the light next to Harland.

Harland whispered, “They’re talking about that girl.”

“Maddy?”

“Yeah. Daddy said her pa used to work with Uncle Will and was hurt in one of the fish packaging plants. That’s why he can’t work.”

Fredric’s voice carried better than Kate’s, “What do you want me to do? I can’t get a cripple a job.”

“Let me give her a raise.”

“A raise?” Both boys ducked with the volume.

“Just a small one. Enough that she can get the girl a dress for church. She’s wearing hand-me
-
down boys’ pants. It just isn’t right.”

“Then buy her a dress.”

“I will, but I want to give Cassie a raise
.
”

“You’re going to keep pestering me until I agree.”

“That I am.”

“Fine, give her a small one.”

“Oh, Fred.”

They heard the kiss and rolled their eyes.

“And a dress.” His mama finished.



Since Maddy’s mama only came to clean once a week, Galen looked for Maddy in church. The balcony was where most of the poorer folks sat, with the kids hanging their legs through the slats of the railing for a better view. He wished he could do that, bu
t his mama would have yelled.

Maddy wasn’t with the other kids. She was trying to sit on her Mama’s lap without showing her underwear to everyone and
was
failing at it.
He laughed.

“Galen, don’t you laugh at her.”

“She looks like a girl, Mama.”

She looked a little proud. “That she does.”

“Are you
happy now Kate?” His daddy asked, almost growled as usual
.

She smiled bigger.

After church, while he and Harland played with the other boys, his mama talked to Cassie. Maddy stood by them instead of running around.

“I’d love to bring her to work, Mrs. Langley, but
I don’t think
. . .”

“No, buts. She can keep Galen out of my hair and maybe even study with him.”

“Not sure her pa would like that.”

“Then don’t tell him.”
Mama
patted Cassie’s arm
.

“It would save me walking her to my aunt’s.” She looked down at Maddy. “Would you wanna go to work with me, baby?”

Maddy glanced his way
, bit her lip
and nodded.

Maddy came in the back door with her Mama and every Wednesday for the rest of the summer. She’d come in the back door, greet Mrs. Langley and Tess, and run off to find Galen.

Most of the time
they’d spend in the yard, playing and staying out of trouble. That is until the rain hit.

After watching Maddy put together the puzzle of the forty-eight states for the fifth time, Galen had enough. “I’m gonna go
bonkers
sitting in here all day watching you do that.”

She pushed away the wooden toy, moving to sitting cross-legged. “I don’t have anything like this at home, I find it
interesting
.”

“You find everything
interesting
.” He moved away from the window. “Don’t you have any toys?”

“I got a doll Mama’s aunt gave me.”

He sat down in front of her. “And?”

“That’s all.”

He looked around his room full of toys. “One doll?”

She nodded.

“Your family’s different than mine.”

She nodded.

“What’s your house like?”

“Small.”

“Well, how small?”

She thought about it for a moment. “About the size of your garage.”

“How do ya’ll live there?”

“Mama and Pa have their room, we got a kitchen, and I sleep on the sofa.”