Beyond the Garden (Magnolia Series Book 2)

by Ashley Farley

  My greed ruined everything.

  Before she moved to Charleston, she’d all but given up on having a family of her own. The stars had aligned for her when she met Julian and they’d gotten pregnant two months after their wedding. Instead of prioritizing her health and the fetus growing inside her womb, she’d pushed herself by renovating her house and art gallery, flying off to Key West to look for her sister, and getting involved with Ruby’s problems at home.

  I blew my one chance to have a baby of my own. Will Julian ever forgive me?

  She’d seen the pain etched in his face. She didn’t blame him if he didn’t. She was certain she’d never forgive herself.

  For the rest of the night, she lay in the dark, curled in a fetal position, reliving the events of the past months over and over in her mind while waiting for Julian to come to bed. Daylight finally peeked through the blinds, but the dawn of a new day offered no sign of her husband and no consolation to her grief. Not even when she heard the other occupants of the house moving about in the hall outside her room or when she heard her father shushing the twins.

  “Aunt Ellie is sleeping,” he said. “She was up late last night. Let’s not disturb her.”

  Sometime later, perhaps an hour, maybe longer, someone tapped lightly on the door and Maddie entered her room with a breakfast tray. “Morning, baby. I thought you might be getting hungry.”

  Ellie usually liked it when Maddie called her “baby.” It made her feel loved when Maddie fussed over her as a small child. But today, her term of endearment echoed throughout the empty room and brought fresh tears to her eyes.

  “Oh, honey.” Maddie set the breakfast tray on the bedside table and sat down on the bed beside her. “I know you’re hurting. Ain’t nothing gonna take away the pain but time.”

  “My life is over,” Ellie sobbed. “Not only did I lose the baby, I’ve lost Julian as well.”

  Maddie’s brown eyes grew large. “What makes you think you done lost Mr. Julian?”

  “He blames me for the miscarriage, and he’s right. It’s all my fault. I should’ve taken better care of myself.”

  “You hush that crazy talk now.” Maddie massaged her leg through the comforter. “Nobody blames you for losing the baby. Sometimes Mother Nature gets it wrong. It’s as simple as that. Mr. Julian adores you as much as he adores them little girls. Just like they were his own flesh and blood. Experiencing a loss like this helps us see all the good things we have in our lives. And you have plenty to be thankful for—a beautiful home and family. You have to be strong for the twins. They need you.”

  Ellie struggled to sit up in bed. “That’s just it, though, Maddie. Lia could show up at any minute and take them away from me. Then I’ll have nobody left.”

  “Bella and Mya ain’t going nowhere. For all we know, Lia done got herself killed along with their daddy. You gone get to keep them little girls. I feel it in my bones.”

  Ellie threw back the covers and eased her sore body off the other side of the bed. She went to the window and watched a group of small children playing in the park. Their mothers gathered in a circle nearby, chatting and sipping coffee, as if without a care in the world. A woman standing nearby, who looked eerily like her sister, noticed Ellie in the window and waved at her.

  “You know what I feel in my bones, Maddie? Like Lia’s out there somewhere, watching and waiting for the right time to swoop in and take the girls away.”

  Maddie joined her at the window. “You tired, baby. And rightly so. Ain’t nobody out there watching you.”

  “Then explain why every good thing that’s ever happened to me in my life has gone bad. I’m poison to everyone I’ve ever cared about.”

  “You better not let your daddy hear you talking like that. I’ve never seen a man love his daughter the way Mr. Abbott loves you.”

  “What about my mother? If not for me, she’d still be alive.”

  “You talking nonsense, baby. You were just a wee child at the time. You had nothing to do with her dying. Your gramma’s the one to blame. If she’d taken your mama to see the doctor, she’d still be alive.” She wrapped her arm around Ellie and squeezed her tight. “You’ve been through a terrible ordeal. You need time to heal. You’ll feel better in a couple of days.”

  “You’re wrong, Maddie. My heart is not strong enough to recover from this. I don’t know how I’ll ever be able to move on.”

  “You live one moment at the time. That’s how. When you feel like it, you eat some food. When you have your strength back, whether that’s today or the next day or next week, you put on some clothes, brush your hair, and face the world. Your heart is full of love, Miss Ellie Pringle Hagood. And there are plenty of people who need that love. I know from experience that you don’t have to birth a baby from your body to love it like your own. I ain’t never told you this, but you the one who saved me from my own heartache.”

  Ellie furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?”

  Maddie walked her back to the bed and pulled her down to the mattress beside her. “I understand a little about what you’re going through. I had my share of miscarriages, round about the time you were living here with your grandmother. Eight of them, if anyone’s counting. I never carried a one of them to term. I never had my own baby, but I had you. And you needed me. We needed each other. You gave me the strength to face each day.”

  Ellie stared at Maddie. “I don’t understand. I’ve heard you talk about your children before.”

  “They ain’t my own, though. Henry and Joshua are my sister’s boys. About ten years after you went to live with your father, my sister’s husband beat her to death. Leroy went to prison, and her sons came to live with me. They were just boys at the time. Leroy died in prison a year later, and I was able to raise them as my own.” She took Ellie’s hands in hers. “Losing you was the worst thing that ever happened to me, but having you back in my life is the best. Nothing in this life comes without risk, Miss Ellie. But if you don’t take the risk, you don’t get the reward. You eventually came back to me. And that is my reward.”

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Ellie

  Ellie sent the breakfast tray back to the kitchen with Maddie and turned her nose up at the homemade chicken-noodle soup the housekeeper brought her for lunch. She pretended to be asleep when Julian came in to shower and dress for an afternoon meeting with his new client, and when the twins peeked through the cracked door to check on her. But she could no longer ignore the hunger pangs gnawing at her stomach when Maddie delivered her tea tray—a cup of raspberry brew, three tiny cucumber sandwiches, and two cheese straws—around four o’clock. She hadn’t eaten a proper meal since breakfast the previous morning.

  “You eat now, baby,” Maddie said, brushing her hair out of her face. “You need the nourishment to get your strength back. I left a platter of fried chicken and buttermilk biscuits warming in the oven for your dinner. I hope you don’t mind if I head home a few minutes early this evening.” She lifted her fingers to her cropped gray head. “I must look a sight after sleeping in my clothes all night.”

  Ellie gave a smile, her first since the miscarriage. “You look as lovely as ever. I appreciate you staying with Dad last night.” She took a bite of a cheese straw. “The house is so quiet. Where is everyone? Has Julian come home yet?”

  “No’m, the house is empty. Mr. Julian’s still out at his meeting, and the twins are at the park with Becca. Your daddy has gone on a photo shoot, but he’s planning to come back for dinner. He said for you to call him if you need anything beforehand.” She moved to the door. “I done loaded up the refrigerator for the weekend. You shouldn’t have to go to the store till I come back on Monday.” She gripped the door handle. “I feel bad about leaving you in this condition, Miss Ellie. I can come in tomorrow if you want.”

  Ellie shook her head. “Thanks for the offer, but you go and enjoy your weekend with your family. Julian and I will manage fine.”

  “Okay, then. But you call me if you need me,” s
he said, wagging her finger at Ellie. “I’ll be here right away.”

  As she watched Maddie limp off down the hall, Ellie wondered how much longer the old woman would be able to work. She planned to provide for her housekeeper in her retirement, but she would miss having her around.

  While she finished her snack, she thought about the things the housekeeper had confided earlier in the day. How had Maddie survived eight miscarriages?

  If you don’t take the risk, you don’t get the reward.

  Ellie would avoid getting pregnant again. Even if she was able to carry the fetus to term, the risk of birth defects was too great. And that was not the kind of risk she was willing to take.

  But what about the risk involved with adopting the twins?

  What if I take that risk and lose? What if the judge denies my request for adoption? What if Lia shows up as suddenly as she disappeared?

  She was already risking heartache, but not by choice. She couldn’t throw the twins out on the street. But she could do a better job of protecting her heart. She would withdraw her petition for legal guardianship. She would take care of the girls until their mother returned.

  I can do that without becoming more emotionally involved than I already am. Can’t I?

  Ellie placed the tray on the mattress beside her and lay back against the mountain of feather pillows. She was dozing off when the doorbell rang. She pulled the covers over her head, hoping whoever it was would go away, but when the bell rang again—followed by the clanging of the knocker—she forced herself to get out of bed and go answer it.

  A young woman with sea-green eyes and a creamy complexion stood in the doorway. “I’m Franny Flowers from the Department of Social Services, here to see Eleanor Hagood.”

  Ellie drew her robe tighter around her body. “I’m Ellie Hagood. I’m sorry, I wasn’t expecting you.”

  “That’s the point of our surprise home inspections, Mrs. Hagood. Popping in unannounced gives us a better understanding of your lifestyle.” The social worker gave her a quick once-over, starting and ending at her bare feet.

  Ellie’s mind raced as she considered how much to tell her. She hated sharing her personal business with a total stranger, and she shuddered to think what this woman must think of her disheveled appearance.

  “I apologize for my appearance, Ms. Flowers. I don’t usually lie around in my bathrobe all day. I suffered a miscarriage last night.”

  The woman pressed her fingers to her lips. “Oh, you poor dear. I’m so sorry. I’ll come back another time.”

  She started to turn away, but Ellie stopped her. “Don’t go! I assume you are here about Ruby.”

  The woman nodded, and Ellie opened the door wider. “Please! Won’t you come in?”

  She hesitated. “Are you sure, Mrs. Hagood? I can come back on Monday.”

  “I’m positive. It’s important that we talk.” She extended her hand to the woman. “And call me Ellie.”

  The woman took Ellie’s hand. “Nice to meet you, Ellie. I’m Franny.”

  “Why don’t we talk in the kitchen?” Ellie said, ushering her guest down the hall to the back of the house. “Can I offer you a glass of sweet tea?”

  “Tea would be lovely.”

  Ellie poured two glasses of tea and handed one to Franny. They sat down across from each other at the kitchen table.

  “I’ve been assigned to Ruby’s case,” Franny said as she opened a file. “Beth Morgan spoke highly of you when we met earlier today. Considering your . . . um . . . loss, you may want to withdraw or postpone your application to be Ruby’s foster parent.”

  Ellie ran her fingers through her matted hair and tied it back with an elastic tie from her wrist. “I appreciate your concern, but I’ll be fine in a day or two. I want what’s best for Ruby. I’ll let the Department of Social Services determine what that is.”

  “We feel that placing a child with relatives is usually the best option. However, in Ruby’s case, after an extensive search, we’ve been unable to locate any family members.” Franny went on to talk about the application process and the pros and cons of foster parenting. “I’ll be honest with you. Being a foster parent is not for the faint of heart. You need to be prepared for a difficult transition. I’m not saying this is the case with Ruby, but many times these children experience symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder brought about by the atrocities they suffered in their own homes. And it’s my understanding that Ruby was physically abused.”

  Ellie grimaced at the thought of anyone hurting her little friend. “Ruby is an enthusiastic, intelligent child who deserves so much more than she’s been given. I’m prepared to support her in every way.” Ellie couldn’t believe her own ears. An hour ago, she’d made a vow to herself to protect her heart.

  Franny shuffled the papers in her file. “I trust your husband feels the same way. I’d like to speak with him. And we need his paperwork. Is he here?”

  “He’s not home at the moment. He’s an architect and is meeting with clients. I’m not sure when he’ll be back.”

  “I won’t be able to complete my portion of the application process until I speak with him,” Franny said with a glance at her watch. “Are you up for giving me a tour of the house while we wait? I’d like to see where Ruby will sleep.”

  Ellie hadn’t given any thought to where Ruby would sleep. She explained her recent renovations as she walked Franny through the downstairs. When they moved to the second floor, she showed her the two spare bedrooms, saying she would fix whichever one Ruby chose to her liking.

  “You have a lovely home with enough rooms to house an army of foster children.” She circled the upstairs, pausing in the doorway of each bedroom. “Oh!” she exclaimed when they reached the twins’ bedroom. “I didn’t realize you have other children.”

  “Bella and Mya are my nieces. My sister left them in my care. It’s a complicated situation.” Ellie offered a brief explanation as to how the twins had come to live with her.

  “In the nontechnical sense, you already are a foster parent. I’d like to meet Bella and Mya.”

  “They’re with the babysitter in the park across the street. I can call—”

  The slamming of the front door followed by the squeaking of sneakers and clicking of paws on the hardwood floor finished her sentence.

  “You’re in luck. Sounds like they just got home.”

  They found the twins slurping on Capri Sun juice pouches at the counter in the kitchen. The knees of their blue jeans were grass stained, and their faces smeared with dirt.

  “Looks like someone had a good time in the park.” Ellie, feeling no obligation to provide a reason for the social worker’s visit, said, “Becca, girls, I’d like you to meet my friend Franny.”

  For the next few minutes, Franny quizzed them about their lives in a friendly manner, as a teacher might her students, interrogating them without them realizing they were being interrogated. When the girls had finished their juices, Becca took them upstairs for an early bath.

  “They’re adorable,” Franny said. “I know how hard it will be for you to give them up when their mother returns.”

  Spoken like a true social worker, Ellie thought as she swallowed the lump in her throat.

  Watching caring parents give up children they loved was an everyday occurrence for Franny.

  Am I doing the right thing? Is it possible for her to provide for Ruby without giving her a piece of my heart? Then again, haven’t I already given Ruby a piece of my heart? Isn’t that what this was all about?

  “You have a wonderful family, Ellie. I know Ruby will be very happy here.”

  She was gathering up her file when Julian came through the back door. Franny crossed the room with an outstretched hand.

  “I’m Franny Flowers, with the Department of Social Services. I’m sure you’ve had a long day, but if I may have a moment of your time, I’d like to talk to you about your application to foster Ruby Fuqua.”

  Julian’s jaw tightened, but to his c
redit, his smile remained intact. “I wasn’t aware we’d gotten to the application phase, but okay.”

  “Does that mean you’re opposed to being a foster parent, Mr. Hagood?”

  He set his briefcase down on the bench beside the back door. “It means the timing isn’t great.”

  “I understand, sir. And I’m sorry for your loss.” Franny paused a moment before continuing. “Based on a preliminary review of your application, your credentials exceed our expectations. We’d like to place Ruby in your home as soon as possible, but we can’t proceed without your paperwork.”

  “I haven’t seen any paperwork, Ms. Flowers.”

  “I started miscarrying on my way home from Beth’s office yesterday,” Ellie explained. “I haven’t had a chance to give it to him yet.”

  “Of course you haven’t. I’m so sorry,” she said to Ellie as she turned to Julian. “For both of you. This is a difficult time for you. I told your wife earlier, considering the circumstances, I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to postpone the application.”

  “That would probably be best,” Julian said. “At least for a few days.”

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Ellie

  Julian, I can explain,” Ellie said, closing the door behind Franny after seeing her out.

  His hand shot out. “Save it, Ellie. No explanation could possibly justify your actions. You’ve never been married before, so I can see why you don’t understand how these things work. You knew I had reservations about being a foster parent, yet you took it upon yourself to proceed with the application. Fostering a child is a big emotional and financial commitment. We have to give it careful consideration to decide if it’s the right thing for everyone in this family.”