Stardust A Novel (28 page)

“So what are you wondering?”

I couldn’t gather a suitable answer into words, so I listened to the rumble of cars on the highway, a cricket in the spirea beside the porch, the scruffy sandpaper sound of Peter’s hand as he rubbed it over his chin.

Finally, I looked at him. “You first. What are you thinking?”

“That it’s high time you got to practicing for the talent show. My buddies at the mill say it’s the highlight of the Mayhaw Festival.”

“Not sure I’ll even enter this year. Not with four kids to take care of. Why don’t you enter? You’re the best on the guitar I’ve ever heard.”

“I’m not as pretty as you.”

“Get outta here.” I rolled my shoulders, the earlier tension now gone. “Tell you what. I will if you will.”

“Trouble is, my guitar pickin’ would sound better with a certain redhead I know prettying up the stage.”

I didn’t have to think twice. “You got it. The Pearl triplets never can play in my key.”

“Who in the devil are the Pearl triplets?”

“You’ll find out soon enough.”

The porch light came on, and Rosey stuck her head out. “MeMaw wants to know how much Carnation milk to put in the bottle.”

I shrugged and looked at Peter. “So much for the fantasy. Guess I’d better get in there and pay attention to my real business.”

“How about we shoot for a jam session tomorrow? Same place?”

“It’s a date.”

True to his word, Peter brought over his guitar for jam sessions. The girls joined in, while Mary Frances cooed and spent time with Willie. I was afraid my mother-in-law’s heart would be broken again when Mrs. Benning came, but I saw no reason for her not to enjoy the time she had.

Ludi and Merciful helped with the cottages and the kids in the daytime. With summer bearing down, it was easier and cooler to cook outdoors, so most evenings we picnicked with whoever wanted to come.

On the Fourth of July, Malcolm cut up a snapping turtle the size of a hubcap and cooked the meat from its legs along with the day’s catch. He wangled Ludi and her kids into joining us. Ludi sent Merciful for a quick trip to Zion to get a mess of ’maters from her garden.

As she bit into a thick, juicy tomato, she smacked her lips. “Next week there’ll be cantaloupe and string beans.”

I shook my head. “Ludi, how do you have time to keep up the garden and do your job here?”

“The garden ain’t no burden. It’s the place I watch the sun come up ever’ mornin’ and do my confessin’ to the Lord Jesus. The ’maters and melons is His way of saying He be listenin’ to me and mindin’ what we need.”

Malcolm offered her another helping of the fried turtle legs. “You’re one of a kind, Miss Ludi, but I know what you mean. I feel the same about the bayou. Even this danged snapping turtle. Some might think it’s an ornery nuisance, but I see it as a gift from the muddy waters.” He had a gentle way with Ludi and Mary Frances that made me warm inside. He served the rest of us, then lifted his head in greeting as Mr. Sweeney came from his cottage.

Malcolm motioned him over. “Hey, there, you look like a fella who needs to put some meat on his bones. How about some of the best fried turtle you ever tasted?”

Mr. Sweeney laughed. “You can’t imagine how many of those ugly buggers I’ve eaten in my day. We got creeks in Tennessee, you know. Thanks, but no, I’ve already eaten a fine meal.”

Malcolm winked at me. “You know, if I didn’t know better, I’d say old Van’s falling for that aunt of yours. Second night in a row she had him over for dinner.”

A familiar twinge pinched my insides. Aunt Cora always had a good eye for refined men. “Is that so? I thought you might have gone to the jelly tasting downtown.”

Mr. Sweeney laughed. “I might’ve, but I met Cora at the planning meeting a couple days ago. I can’t remember when I’ve seen such dedication to a worthy cause.”

“How are the fund-raiser plans coming?”

“This is going to be one of the finest shows I’ve done. The enthusiasm from Bobby Carl, Mayor Sheldon, and your aunt has been inspiring.” His voice flowed with sincerity, a deep passion, and I could see why Aunt Cora was interested in him.

He walked over to Catfish and stooped down. “What you doing there, son?”

Catfish held up the cypress knee he was carving on. “Just messing around. This one’s gon’ be a snapping turtle.” He nodded toward Malcolm, who’d taken his usual spot beside Mary Frances. “For him.”

“You have a fine gift there.” He lowered himself to the grass and watched as Catfish whittled.

The girls played tag in the grass while Sebastian raced after them. Mary Frances bounced the baby on her lap. Peter sat with his back against a tree and pulled me down to sit by him. The trees hummed with cicadas as twilight fell, hypnotizing us all with its murmuring blue haze. Peter slipped his arm around me and nuzzled me on the neck. As I was imagining what the sweet taste of his lips might be like, headlights flashed between the cottages, breaking the spell.

Half dizzy with the bliss around me, I hurried toward the office.

An unfamiliar car jerked to a stop, and a woman peered through her open driver’s side window. “This the Stardust Inn?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Your name Georgia?”

“Yes.” The half-dizzy feeling turned into a swarming nest of wasps in my stomach.

An ample woman dressed in a plain shirtwaist emerged from the car. She pulled a hankie from her bosom and dotted her forehead. “I’ve come for the Callahan children.”

[ CHAPTER 33 ]

P
eter steadied me, his arm encircling my waist, but still my voice quavered when I spoke. “You must be—”

“Theodora Benning.”

“Aunt Teddy.”

Her eyes widened as if I’d startled her. “Please, call me Theodora.” Other than the accent, which had a backwoods sound to it, the woman before me looked reasonable. Clean. A late-model car. Sensible lace-up shoes with a heel.

I offered my hand. “Please, won’t you come in?”

When she leaned in to shake my hand, I detected the scent of cloves on her breath and remembered Bonnie said her aunt smelled like Christmas. Sweet. Pleasant. As I ushered Mrs. Benning in, it wasn’t Christmas cheer I felt, but something deep and painful. Like someone was getting ready to sever my leg.

The bell above the door jangled when Peter opened the door, and Theodora’s lips curved into an anxious smile. “Where is my sweet girl? I’ve not seen her in a month of Sundays. And a boy I’ve yet to lay eyes on. I must say, it all came as a surprise.”

Peter offered to fetch Bonnie, and I was suddenly aware that I must look a fright and probably smelled like wood smoke. I ran my hand across my mouth in case any food crumbs remained. “We were just finishing supper. With the heat and all, we prefer to eat in the back. We just had a little Fourth of July celebration. There’s still plenty of food if you’ve not eaten. Can I fix you a plate?”

“No, thanks. It smells like you had fish, and fish generally disagrees with me. But thanks for asking.”

I didn’t dare tell her we had snapping turtle; she would wonder if we were hillbillies.

She gazed around the office. “If it’s no trouble, I could use a cool drink.”

“Certainly. Let’s go back to our quarters, where it’s more comfortable.” She followed me through the connecting door and seated herself at the kitchen table.

“Sweet tea all right?” I poured it without waiting for the reply then shoved the girls’ coloring books aside to make room.

She’d just taken her first sip when Peter came in, carrying Bonnie. She had a strawberry on her knee, the bottoms of her feet nearly black from running barefoot. Pale gold eyes looked cautiously at Theodora, then me.

“Hey, sweetie. There’s someone here to see you.” I took her from Peter and asked if he wanted some tea. He said he’d better get back and help clean up. I took a seat next to Theodora and set Bonnie on my knee. “Look, your aunt has come for you.”

The woman held out her arms. “Got a kiss for your auntie? My goodness, you must’ve grown a foot since I seen you.”

The tension in Bonnie’s wiry body made it seem like she was trying to anchor herself to me.

I brushed the hair from her face with my fingers. “It’s okay. You don’t have to be shy. It’s your aunt from Arkansas. Remember you told me she lived in the Ozarks?”

Mrs. Benning reached for her, getting a grip on her forearm. “Come on now. You weren’t shy the last time I saw you. Remember I let you play with the kitties? Isaac was your favorite. Betcha he remembers you.”

Bonnie winced and tried to pull away. “Isaac scratched me.”

“Only because you were too rough. I bet he’ll give you another chance. Where’s your brother? I bet he’ll come sit on Aunt Teddy’s lap.” She looked at me. “Has your husband gone to get the boy?”

“Peter? Oh, he’s not my husband. He’s one of the boarders.”

She smiled. “Do you think he could bring him? I’m anxious to get on the road. Bonnie, sweetheart, why don’t you run on now and get your things?”

Panic bubbled into my throat as Bonnie scurried to the bedroom and closed the door, anxious, it seemed, to get away from her aunt. Poor thing had been tossed about so much, and I wished I’d known Mrs. Benning was coming so I could have broken it to her gently.

“Surely you’re not leaving tonight. It’s late and, well, I haven’t told you what’s happened with Fiona.”

“I gathered from speaking to a woman on the phone that she got the polio. We’ve had a mess of it, too, over in Green Oak.” She drained the sweet tea. “The Wilhite girl got hit the worst. Twisted legs. Poor thing will always be a cripple. We’ve got more than our share of misfits out our way. Last month Silas Sparks got kicked in the head by his mule and don’t make a speck of sense no more.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. I hoped you might want to see Fiona while you’re in Texas. Let her know you’ll take good care of Bonnie and the baby.”

“I’ve no desire to see her. She never was one to write. I didn’t even know about the boy. To be expected, I suppose.”

“What do you mean?”

“She never cared too much for us, her and her highfalutin ways, wanting her and Rusty to move back to Texas, closer to
her
family. She outright stole Rusty away from us.”

“Fiona has family in Texas?”

“She’s got a sister. Inez something.”

A spark of hope went through me. Mrs. Benning, though willing to take the kids, was not the sweet and doting aunt I’d imagined. Bonnie’s reaction had been telling enough, but the more we talked, the worse I felt about relinquishing Bonnie to her.

“Do you know where Inez lives?” The name seemed familiar.
Aunt Eyes.
Could she be the one Bonnie mentioned?

“She lived in Kilgore, same place as Rusty and Fiona.”

My guess was Rusty might’ve been anxious, too, to get away from his aunt and uncle. Perhaps we’d been looking for the wrong relative, although it worried me that Inez hadn’t been looking for Fiona. If Bonnie was to be believed, she and Fiona had an argument, so perhaps it was just as well we didn’t explore it. I rubbed my temples, hoping to ease the pressure these added twists had put in my brain and trying to remember what Bonnie told me.

Mrs. Benning hugged her handbag to her body. “I need to get on the road. My Elmer’s had this hernia operation, ain’t quite himself. With the doctor bills and all, I’m not even sure we can afford two young’uns, but since the woman told me the March of Dimes would pay us a stipend, we’ll get by.”

“You would have to check with them.”

“I figured you’d have the information since you’ve been the one watching them.”

“I’ve only volunteered my time. By the way, how did you know the children were with me?”

“I went to the sheriff’s office, one reason I’m so late. There was a mess of cars downtown, and the sheriff was out gallivanting somewhere. The dispatcher said I had to talk to him personally.”

“He was probably at the Fourth of July celebration. Did he tell you there would be an allowance for the kids?” Mr. Salazar hadn’t mentioned the trust fund being available, so I wasn’t sure where Mrs. Benning had gotten the idea. I was beginning to suspect the money had influenced her decision to take the children.