Unexpected Ties

by Gina Dartt

  Chapter Sixteen

  Kate sat in the Halifax International Airport and recalled the tragic day in September, 2001, when it earned its stripes along with every other airport in Atlantic Canada as all the planes, including several large-bodied transatlantic jets, were hastily diverted from the American East Coast airports. They landed them all safely, one after another, in the space of a few hours, managing to park them in every spare foot of pavement and offload tens of thousands of confused and frightened passengers even as they arranged the necessary facilities to house and care for them in the terrible days afterward.

  Fortunately, Kate mused, there were only two gates to worry about here, one for domestic flights and another across the room for the international flights. The area wasn’t conducive to waiting, having only a few hard, plastic seats and a couple of soda machines scattered around the large conveyor belts carrying luggage, but since Kate didn’t expect to be waiting long, she didn’t complain.

  She leaned against the wall by the international gate where her grandmother would be coming through customs, her hands balled up into fists inside her jacket pockets. She had always been Irene’s favorite grandchild, but she wondered if that was still the case. She had absolutely no idea how Irene regarded homosexuality. The subject had simply never come up before, but if Irene thought like Hannah Elliot, this was not a confrontation Kate was looking forward to.

  Her breath caught as the passengers began filtering through the gate in ones or twos, and she expected to see Irene any moment. When she did, she had to smile. Where other passengers had lugged their own baggage through customs, Irene had coerced an airport handler to carry hers, the young man pushing a cart full of trunks and bags, his face red with exertion. Hopefully he would also carry it out to the car; Kate didn’t think she could lift some of the bags.

  “Kate.” Irene presented a powdered cheek to be kissed. Taller than her granddaughter, she had immaculately styled snow-white hair, which looked a bit limp after her flight. Her light gray eyes missed little as they assessed Kate. “You’re thin.”

  “Grandmother, you haven’t been here three minutes and already you’re criticizing?”

  Irene colored faintly. “That wasn’t my intention,” she began, then frowned. “Stop looking at me that way.”

  “How was your flight?” Kate offered her arm, not because her grandmother had difficulty navigating, but because she was elderly, and Kate wanted to make sure she didn’t stumble. Puffing, the airport attendant followed as they left the air-conditioned terminal and walked into the bright sunshine. Despite the relative warmth, Irene pulled her sweater tight around her, and Kate realized that after Florida, this was much cooler than she was used to.

  “My car is just at the bottom of the stairs,” she said as they crossed the lane in front of the terminal building and walked past the Hertz rental stand to the short-term parking lot down the hill.

  “Do you still have that monstrosity?” Irene asked as they maneuvered down the handicap ramp.

  “The SUV? It’s only a year old, Grandmother.”

  Kate helped her up into the passenger seat of the black and silver vehicle parked in the last space next to the stairs, and then, went to the back of the vehicle where she opened the hatch. After helping the attendant load the luggage, she slipped him a ten dollar bill, for which he gave her a disgusted look and didn’t linger.

  Kate unlocked her door and slid behind the wheel, starting the engine. Irene was regarding her intently, and Kate resisted the urge to squirm, wondering how long it would be before Irene brought up the topic she was dreading.

  “So you’re a lesbian now.”

  Apparently not long at all, Kate thought, as she turned left out of the parking lot onto the road leading back to the 102. “Is that what you heard?”

  “Are you saying it’s not true?”

  Kate waited until she was off the ramp and had merged with the traffic heading north. “I’m not saying anything. I’m just asking what you’ve heard.”

  “Hannah Elliot contacted me a few months ago to tell me you were involving yourself with an undesirable element.” Irene’s calm inflection matched Kate’s. “Since then, she’s spent her weekly phone calls informing me of your scandalous behavior.”

  All Taylor women became calmer as the situation became more emotionally charged. Nikki didn’t always understand that approach to personal confrontations between them, but then she always burst into incoherent tears, which Kate found equally trying. Somewhere in between was a happy medium, but Kate wasn’t sure how long it would take before they found it.

  “I see.”

  “Of course, I thought she was exaggerating, but then I heard what happened at the Historical Society Dinner from other, more reliable sources.”

  “I’ll just bet you did.”

  A silence. “It’s true then. You’re involved with a woman.”

  Kate took a deep breath. “I’m in love.”

  “With this very young woman?”

  “Is that why you’re upset? Not that she’s a woman, but that she’s significantly younger than me?”

  “Don’t try to change the subject.”

  “I wasn’t.” Kate gripped the steering wheel tighter. “Gram, I know this is probably upsetting, but I love Nikki with all my heart. I’m sorry if that’s difficult for you to accept. I’m happy now in a way I wasn’t before. Hopefully you can be happy for me, but if you can’t…well, you can’t.”

  Another silence, one stretching on as the pavement slipped beneath the wheels of the SUV. Kate felt frozen inside as she waited for her grandmother’s response. Despite her brave words, she dreaded Irene’s condemnation or even the disappointment in her eyes. She loved her a great deal and wouldn’t recover easily from the shattering of that bond.

  “Are you sure about this?” Irene’s voice was very cold.

  A lump formed in Kate’s throat. “Yes.” She risked a glance over and saw Irene purse her lips, her jaw moving as if she tasted something not very pleasant.

  “Very well,” Irene said finally after a moment that stretched to eternity. “When do I meet her?”

  Kate blinked. “Who?”

  “The love of your life.” Irene lifted an eyebrow. “Bring her over to dinner Saturday night. I should be settled by then.”

  “Ah, um…” Kate managed to bring herself under control. “Just like that?”

  “Honestly, Kate, what did you expect? Excommunication from the family?”

  “I expected you’d be more upset than this.”

  Irene sighed, a trifle theatrically. “That’s the trouble with you young people. You think that anyone older than your generation simply hasn’t arrived in the current century. Furthermore, whenever you have a crisis you’re always certain that you’ve come up with something entirely new. Did you really believe I haven’t encountered anything like this before?”

  Kate was flabbergasted. “Are you saying you have?”

  Irene smiled faintly, as if thoroughly enjoying Kate’s shock. “You do know that Aunt Sarah and Aunt Vera aren’t sisters?” She was referring to a couple of elderly relatives living in Toronto who had shared a house for decades. Kate saw her great-aunts only rarely, but did exchange Christmas cards with them every year.

  “I…uh, never thought about it.” Kate inhaled slowly, getting over one jolt only to experience another. “You mean they’re not?”

  “Your grandfather only had three sisters.” Irene sounded impatient with Kate’s denseness. “The oldest was Maureen, the youngest was Karen, and Sarah is the middle. You never noticed Sarah and Vera had different last names?”

  “Uh—”

  “Honestly.”

  “So you’re all right with this?” Kate dared.

  “I’m not pleased to know I’m not going to have any great-grandchildren in your line, but when you reached thirty-five, I realized you weren’t the maternal type anyway. I know you’ll face aggravation in pursuing this path and I’m sorry that’s the case. I l
ove you, Kate, and I don’t want to see you hurt. But I’ve been alive long enough to know that a person has to make their own way in life regardless of what other people think. It’s up to you to decide if this decision is worth the consequences.”

  Kate exhaled, feeling warmth spread through her, thawing her frozen fear. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I guess…I was afraid you would be ashamed of me.”

  “Are you ashamed?” Irene asked sharply.

  “Not at all.”

  Irene’s voice gentled a great deal. “Kathryn, if you were, then yes, I would be very much against this. I taught your mother to live proud, and I expect that she taught you that in turn.”

  “It’s not always that easy.”

  “Of course it isn’t.” Irene snorted. “Nothing worth having ever is. Is this girl worth it?”

  “Yes, she is.”

  “Then that’s all that matters. Now, about Saturday night, I’m thinking of serving a clam chowder. This girl isn’t allergic to seafood, is she?”

  Because Kate’s mind was still a bit clouded she didn’t quite understand what her grandmother was saying, but when she did, she shook her head. “We can’t.”

  “Excuse me?” Irene’s tone became icy and Kate swallowed a smile. Her grandmother might be willing to take the lesbian thing in stride, but disrupt her dinner plans and there would be hell to pay.

  “Nikki and I are going to be busy this weekend,” Kate explained. “I’m sorry, Grandmother, but we made the arrangements weeks ago. I can’t change them now.”

  “I see.” Irene looked dissatisfied. “What are these plans?”

  “We’re going canoeing and then camping overnight by the Stewiacke River. We won’t be back until Sunday afternoon.”

  Irene stared as if Kate had lost her mind. “You’re doing what?”

  *

  “Your grandmother sounds pretty cool,” Nikki said enviously, glancing over at her lover.

  “I guess she is,” Kate agreed as she watched the passing scenery out the car window. “Frankly, she surprised me. The more you think you know someone, the less you really do.”

  “I still can’t believe you have gay aunts that you knew nothing about.”

  “I know them. I just didn’t know they were lovers. I thought they were just spinster aunts. Actually, I’d rather not think of them as lovers. It’s…well, somewhat disconcerting after all this time.”

  Nikki swallowed a laugh and refocused on the road. Driving out to her parents’ home to pick up her canoe, Nikki was grateful that Kate had taken time away from the store to help her. It was a two-person job to secure the boat on top of her Honda, and she doubted she could find any help at the farm on a Friday morning. Not that she wanted to run in to any of her family. Kate might have been pleasantly surprised by her grandmother’s reaction, but Nikki had no illusions about what her family thought about lesbians and their relationships.

  “I guess your new employees are doing okay if you’re able to come today.”

  “I’m very pleased with Todd. He caught on quickly enough that I have no problem trusting him with the store. It’s fortunate they had today off for exams next week. Besides, we’ll be back before the afternoon rush today, right?”

  “It shouldn’t take very long to tie the canoe down.”

  “You know, I’m looking forward to meeting your parents.”

  Nikki took a breath. “They probably won’t be home. Friday morning is when they do the weekly shopping, and then they visit Julie and her kids. They usually don’t get back until later in the afternoon.”

  “I see.” There was a somewhat significant pause. “Did you plan it that way?”

  “Doing it today is more convenient than tomorrow morning,” Nikki said, feeling defensive. “But I’m not disappointed that my parents aren’t going to be there, if that’s what you’re asking.”

  “Are you ashamed of me?” Kate asked, her voice suddenly tight.

  Nikki whipped her head around toward her, astonished. “Of course not. Truth be told, I’m ashamed of them…at least, I am of my sister and brother. My parents aren’t too bad, but it would be awkward as hell. You don’t need that. I don’t need that.”

  “All right,” Kate said in that eerily calm tone that Nikki was learning meant more than its superficial appearance of composure. “It’s your call.”

  “Do you really want to meet them?”

  “They’re your family, Nikki. Of course I do.”

  “All right, one of these days I’ll bring you out to meet them. It just won’t be today.”

  “Fair enough.”

  Nikki clenched her jaw, believing she had ducked a bullet of sorts, even if it was one she couldn’t duck forever. Turning down the dirt road, she felt her heart twitch as she saw the farm. It was home to her in a way no other place could be, yet at the same time, she knew she would never be able to return to it. That hurt profoundly. She swallowed her pain back as she turned into the driveway and parked before the main doors of the barn.

  The house was a two-story, with large windows and a rambling front porch, painted white with red trim. A large red barn dominated the property, its silvery, metal roof streaked with rust. Undulating fields stretched out behind the buildings, while a corral by the side of the barn held two large horses. The animals’ coats were a dark brown in contrast to their cream-colored manes.

  “I didn’t know your family had horses.”

  “Bob and Tom are older than I am.” Nikki moved over to the fence and patted the closest, Tom, on his aged white muzzle. “Dad used to haul wood with them a long time ago. They don’t really do anything now. They’re just retired.”

  Kate reached over and lightly stroked a muscular neck, her eyes bright as she looked up at the large draft horse. “I’ve always loved horses. We lived in town so I was never able to have one, but I always thought that one day I would like to have a home with stables.” She smiled wistfully. “It just never seemed to work out that way.”

  “Horses are a lot of work,” Nikki said pragmatically. “Unless you really love them and are willing to devote a considerable portion of your time, energy, and money to them, then you probably shouldn’t own one.”

  Kate glanced at her. “I guess you’re not crazy about them.”

  “Oh, I like them okay. I had a pony when I was a kid and a horse when I was a teenager, but, no, I don’t love them the way Mom and Julie do.” She gestured to the field stretching out behind the farm buildings, rising until it met the trees on the ridge. Brown specks dotted the verdant green. “Mom still has a couple of riding horses, and Julie keeps her gelding here, too. A few neighbors also board their ponies.”

  Kate looked at the field, her eyes squinting in the bright sunlight. “Only a few cattle, though. Are the rest somewhere else? This is a very large barn.”

  Nikki shook her head. “Jeffrey was never interested in farming and neither is Julia’s husband, so Mom and Dad sold most of the herd. They only keep a few now, mostly for the beef. I think Dad rents out some of the fields to the other farmers around here.”

  “You weren’t interested in taking over the farm?”

  Nikki turned and headed for the barn door. “I wasn’t consulted in the matter.” She didn’t look back to see if Kate’s expression altered at this admission or the tone in which it was uttered.

  The barn was dark and musty with the scent of straw and animals. If Nikki flinched as she entered the structure, she was sure the dimness hid it from Kate, for which she was grateful. Moving past the large bales of hay, Nikki found the small tack room at the rear where a large, tarp-covered shape rested on two sawhorses. She flipped off the dusty cloth to reveal a fifteen-foot canoe painted a dark forest green. Kate, who had followed her lover without saying anything further about what she had learned in the barnyard, lifted an eyebrow.

  “Can we carry that?”

  “It’s not that heavy, just a little awkward. The easiest way to carry it is on our shoulders.”

  “Like t
he pictures of portages I saw in school.”

  “Something like that. Ready?”

  Kate nodded, though her expression was slightly skeptical as she moved to the rear of the canoe, following Nikki’s lead.

  Taking a firm hold of the front, Nikki glanced back at Kate. “On three. One, two, three.” They hefted the canoe over their shoulders, and Nikki led the way out of the barn, directing Kate to lower it to the ground by the car once they were outside. “Are you okay?”

  Kate grinned and dusted off her hands. “You were right. It wasn’t as heavy as I thought it would be. But I can see where it’s a two-person job.”

  “No kidding. I’m really glad you’re here.” She leaned over to kiss her lover quickly. “Not just because of your strong back, either.”

  Kate grinned and colored faintly. “What next?”

  “I’ll get the supports out of the back.”

  Her car was already loaded with the camping gear they needed for the next day, and she rummaged around in it until she found the lightweight canoe carrier she had purchased at Canadian Tire not long after buying her car. Eventually, she would buy a more permanent roof attachment, but for the moment, the Styrofoam supports were sufficient. With Nikki instructing Kate what to do, it wasn’t long before they had the canoe resting on top of the car and secured with ropes at the sides, front, and back.

  “It may be difficult to drive with that on the roof,” Kate said, regarding the finished product as she stood with her hands on her hips. “Are you sure you won’t have any trouble?”

  Nikki glanced at her and, not for the first time, she felt a surge of tenderness and desire for Kate. Dressed in a dark blue T-shirt and jeans, a dusty smudge on her nose, Kate looked adorable as she stood in the farmyard.

  “I’ve driven with one before.” She put her hand on the door handle. “Shall we go?”

  “Do we have to? I mean, would you mind showing me around a bit? I’d like to see where you grew up.” Kate tilted her head appealingly. “Please?”