Updrift (6 page)

Kate cocked her head. “None of it makes sense to me. What does it mean?”

Carmen scanned the chart with a practiced eye. “Here is the alignment of the planets relative to where and when you were born,” she pointed to a place on the sheet. “This was the phase of the moon, and here are astrological activities relative to your parents’ charts that affect your life.”

“This must have been a lot of work, Carmen. How long have you been doing it?”

“These things take a long time to put together,” Carmen hedged. “I jotted down initial information way back when we met. Do you remember when you first came to the house, for Gabe’s birthday party?” Kate nodded. “When Cara told me you and Gabe had the same birthday, I began your chart. It wasn’t difficult, since I had one going for Gabe too. I just mapped information that was similar.”

Kate breathed out a low whistle. “This is really impressive. But I still don’t understand what it means.”

Carmen paused, seeming to deliberate where to focus next. “Here.” She placed her index finger near the middle of the sheet. “This shows the stronger influences on your nature that manifest themselves as physical characteristics. And this area suggests personality traits. In general, you’re physically attractive.” She hip checked Kate and grinned at her. “You also have excellent concentration, you’re loyal, and you’re slightly introverted.” She moved her finger to another planetary grouping. “Which is unusual for a Gemini. Gabe’s chart shows the same thing for him, actually.”

“Does it tell me how many children I’ll have, or if I’ll die young?”

“Not exactly. This isn’t a tool for predicting the future so much as for helping determine a best course of action given the circumstances. And the future can change, depending on who you interact with and what their astrological influences are.”

Carmen retrieved two additional scrolls from her desk. “I shouldn’t do this but I have to show you something.” Her smile was conspiratorial as she laid another map over Kate’s. “This chart is mine.” Kate noticed how it showed the same prolific array of graphs, lines, and colors but it differed from the one Carmen had drawn for her—different color scheme, different arrangement of graphics. Carmen then unrolled another scroll and placed it over her own. It was too familiar. Kate picked up the top two charts to glance again at hers.

“Hey! This one is just like mine!”

“It’s Gabe’s. I’ve never seen such similar charts.”

“So, what does
that
mean?”

Carmen’s expression shuttered. “It means you and Gabe share a similar astrological alignment.” She rerolled her charts brusquely. “Anyway, it’s just something I thought you’d find interesting.”

“I do find it interesting,” Kate told her as Carmen put the scrolls away. “I just don’t quite understand it.”

“That’s because we haven’t quite discussed it yet,” Carmen replied. When Kate waited for her to say more, she offered, “I promise to go over it with you again when you’re older, okay?”

Kate shrugged. “Sure.” She glanced at the clock on the wall. “Carmen, I have to get back to the library. Tell Gabe I stopped in, will you? And thank you for showing me your charts. They’re really something.”

“You’re welcome, Kate. Tell your mom hello for me.” Kate left reconsidering her distrust of astrology and wishing she’d been able to catch Gabe.

* * * *

Maya and Kate stuck together as best they could at school, even though their interests led them in different directions. Maya’s athletic abilities grew with every challenge she assumed, eventually gaining her inclusion in practices and training for a bigger and bigger portion of each day. Although she was too young to play varsity, she attended summer camps and scrimmaged relentlessly in the off-season with the older players who were starters. She was dressing for varsity by sophomore year.

She was also a strong student, although studying was her parents’ stick to the carrot of athletic involvement. “Your studies come first,” Jeremy had insisted when they discussed expectations going into Maya’s freshman year. “We’re very proud of your accomplishments in volleyball but if your grades suffer, we’re taking you out.” Maya’s grades never slipped, and she continued to improve on the court.

Under Alicia’s orders, neither Maya nor Kate were allowed to date, something Kate was surprised Cara complied with, as she thought this issue should be solely under her mother’s authority. In front of Cara, Alicia informed the girls, “We’ll talk about it when you two are juniors, and not before. I care too much about you both to let you get all caught up in things you’re better off waiting to experience.” Her mother didn’t even consider her outrage over receiving social restrictions from a neighbor, even a close one. “She’s right on this, Kate. I want you to listen to her.” Kate huffed and marched away.

Not that she had any specific prospects. She maintained her bookworm social status and prided herself in getting good grades. She had to really work for them in math but she did the work and received the resulting As. She also participated in speech and drama, which she enjoyed because they tied together her interests in written and oral communications. Outside of school, she still loved to garden, cook, and read. Every moment she wasn’t engaged in those activities, she helped out at the library, which remained her favorite haunt whenever she could steal away.

As threatened, Carmen and Michael home-schooled Gabe for all of senior high, meaning Kate and Maya no longer saw him during the week, although their families still got together on weekends. Kate sorely missed Gabe’s quick, incisive wit at school. Neither she nor Maya came up with the same sarcastic asides Gabe did, which had so often made difficult social situations palatable. She felt as if she and Maya lost half of their personality when he transferred.

She continued to spend two weeks each summer with her aunt and uncle in Philadelphia, where she reveled in the luxury of their impeccable home, signed up for an interesting class or two, and cooked like a maniac in their fabulous kitchen. As she got older though, she started to see through the story they told her about their life, the fervency with which they represented themselves eventually fostering skepticism over the perfect image they worked to project.

On the subject of children, for example, Dana had something to prove. “I see what it does to women I’ve worked with, Kate. It’s a rare person who doesn’t falter on the job after having kids. I mean, they’re always sick, or have kept their parents up at night, or mom and dad need time off to be at some school event. I know this sounds harsh but I just think it makes you exhausted and unable to perform.” Her philosophy on this subject was typically followed by her philosophy in general. “It’s an unpleasant truth, maybe but a truth nonetheless: you can’t give it all to your career and raise a family. And everyone needs to work.”

Kate couldn’t help but think of her mother on these occasions. Granted, her mom was no tycoon but she made a living and enjoyed community support for the job she did. During the times Kate had been sick, or her mother needed help at the library, board members or volunteers pitched in. Kate questioned if work and family needed to be classified in the black-and-white terms Dana ascribed to them; although she conceded the ongoing lifestyle Dana and Will had might require stricter rules of engagement. And while she loved and admired her mom, Kate still wondered if her aunt’s lifestyle wasn’t worth the price.

Her mother was always sad when she hinted at these ideas. “Oh, honey. The desire to have children, or be part of something bigger than yourself in this life is healthy.” She took her hand. “You’re too smart and too kind-hearted to be happy with Dana’s situation for very long. You’d figure out in pretty short order just making money isn’t a big enough box to live in. Plus,” she chucked Kate’s chin, “I want grandchildren.” She seemed to consider her next words carefully. “And I wouldn’t necessarily accept Dana’s assertion her life is perfect, Kate.”

By the time Kate was in senior high, she saw more of what her mother meant. She noticed, for instance, Uncle Will drank a lot. So much, she couldn’t tell how much, and so often, she couldn’t discern between when he’d been drinking and when he hadn’t. She saw too how her aunt and uncle’s endearments for each other were easily given but casual, even empty. Their glances darted away from each other when they spoke, and while they were never unkind to one another, neither were they genuinely warm. It was as if they were each too preoccupied with a private dilemma to register the other’s true state of mind.

She caught all of these nuances, which did not alter her overall perception of the Fletchers but did make her doubt the details of the pretty picture she saw when she was with them. She no longer accepted her aunt’s advice and opinions at face value.

The summer Kate turned seventeen, she often went to Griffins Bay with her mother to spend the day at the library reading or working in the gardens. One such Friday in late June, Cara handed her a packet.

“Would you mind delivering this to the Blakes’? Carmen is researching the first settlers in the area, and I came across some information for her.”

“Sure.” She’d love an excuse to see Carmen, although she’d heard Gabe was in Maine for the week and regretted she’d miss him.

“I get done at three, honey,” Cara reminded her. “Don’t forget and make me wait.”

The day was made for landscape artists and casual strolls, the sky a brilliant blue, the sun a crystalline yellow, and all around were the sounds of people enjoying themselves. With nothing to distract her but the buzz of outdoor activities and a pleasant breeze, her half-mile walk went quickly. She approached the Blake house in high spirits.

The Blakes had made interesting modifications to their traditional beach home over the years, effectively blending modern architectural elements with classic styling to give the structure a freshness that somehow went with its original charm. And despite its expansive setting and prominence, the house gave the impression of privacy. Kate noted how discreet side-mounted box awnings hugged many of the windows from the inland side, presumably directing the view from the interior toward the water but also restricting visibility into the home. Seaside, a series of sculptural, wave-like walls hid an ascending walkway between the ocean and a platform Gabe mentioned had once served as a deck for entertaining. The Blakes had built the deck out as a small guest cottage, offering visitors coming from the water a private path much of the way to the main house.

But she approached from the inland side this time, skipping up the steps of the deep, gray porch to knock at the door. She heard a burst of masculine laughter inside, which was unusual, and she tensed. A few seconds later, an absolutely stunning man opened it, smiling to welcome her in.

The normally tranquil Blake household had transformed into an upscale frat house of sorts with the presence of more than a dozen truly beautiful young men. They were everywhere, milling around and lounging, looking as if a modeling agency had sent them over for a retro, Ivy League fashion shoot. Every single one of them oozed charm, vitality, and—Kate could think of no better word for it—virility. Several stood around a flat screen television to watch qualifying races for the U.S. Olympic men’s swim team. They seemed amused.

She stood wide-eyed inside the front door, not sure she wanted to navigate this group to find Carmen. Maybe she could just hand off the envelope and apologize later to her for being in a hurry. Her greeter closed the door behind her, however. The sound startled her. What happened next unnerved her.

“Hi, I’m Luke Hokeman.” The door opener extended his hand. “Catherine Sweeting,” she replied. She had no idea why she gave her formal name, which was used almost exclusively by her mother when she was in trouble. In fact, she felt like she was in trouble. She mustered up enough bravado to extend her hand.

Instead of shaking it as she expected, Luke turned it so he held it almost to his chest, and she panicked as she thought he might raise her hand to his lips. Did guys still
do
that? He placed his other hand gently around her wrist, she could swear to God, to check her pulse. “Are you home for summer break from college, Catherine?” He smiled. Distracted and more than a little terrified, she dropped her envelope, which attracted a different man to her side, bending to retrieve it. Yet another of the party came to stand behind her, placing his hand proprietarily at the small of her back. “Come in and sit down.” She broke out into a sweat.

“Hoke, Libby, Gins—back off and give the poor girl some air.” Kate felt weak with relief as she saw Gabe bounding lightly down the stairs. “Hi, Kate.”

He took her hand from Luke and tucked it through his arm, a gesture that would have been remarkable and strange in any other situation. He grabbed her envelope and led them firmly away from the front door and its trio of male sirens. “And no, she’s not home from college, Hoke,” Gabe threw over his shoulder. “She’s seventeen, which is I think what you were getting at. Too young for yo-oo-oo-ou,” he sang, grinning down at Kate.

“Not too young for you though, looks like,” someone teased. “You’re not supposed to be in the running yet. Why don’t you give this one up and wait your turn?” Bass laughter rippled across the room.

Gabe paused to stare at the group with mock admiration. “You guys are so smooth. Desperation gets the girl—is that right?” Guffaws all around. One member of the group high-fived Gabe as he and Kate left the room. Kate’s legs shook.

“Um, Gabe, who
are
those guys?” she squeaked.

“Cousins.” He laughed out a cough in which Kate may have heard the word,
horny
.

“Wow. They’re all so…” Kate trailed off, at a loss to identify what she’d just seen.

“Yeah, and don’t think they don’t know it. Mom!” he called. “Kate stopped by.”

Carmen was alarmed when she poked her head out of her office. “Hi, Kate. I wasn’t expecting you today. Is everything all right?”

“Oh, yeah…no, I should have called,” she stammered. “My mom mentioned you were reviewing information on the Griffin and Hutchins families. She said you’re doing some research on the first settlers here? She photocopied some old letters and articles for you and gave them to me to drop them off.” Kate gave her the envelope.