Silver Threads

by Bette Lee Crosby

  The girl pinched her brows together and asked, “How much for supper?”

  “There’s no charge,” Annie replied. “You’re our guest.”

  When they sat down to supper, Annie noticed how the girl took tiny portions and gobbled them down in no time. Without asking if she wanted seconds, Annie refilled her plate.

  “I’m certain your mama wouldn’t want you eating like a bird,” she said.

  “Mama died a year ago,” the girl replied. She went on to say that she’d graduated high school and was on her way to Camp Blanding in Florida.

  “Me and Tony are getting married,” she said with a smile.

  Annie sat and listened as the girl told how she and Tony had been sweethearts since the eighth grade.

  “We ain’t got much money,” she said. “But we got each other, and that’s a start.”

  “It certainly is,” Annie said, smiling. “A good start.”

  The clock ticked off an hour and then two. When it struck eight, Annie told the girl she had to get the twins into bed.

  “Relax and enjoy your tea,” she said. “I’ll be right back.”

  With a squiggling baby tucked under each arm, Annie disappeared up the stairs. Twenty minutes later she returned to find the dishes done and the counter sparkling clean.

  “You didn’t have to…”

  “I know,” the girl said. “I wanted to.”

  They sat together and talked late into the night about the girl’s love for Tony and his military aspirations at Camp Blanding. The next day Annie took out the silk dress she’d worn for her own wedding and insisted the girl take it before she left. It was a bit too big and hung loose around the bosom, but the girl looked nonetheless beautiful wearing it.

  When Annie stood at the door and waved goodbye, she knew she would forever hold on to the image of the girl’s face when she was given the dress. She’d cried and clasped her skinny arms around Annie saying that she would for the rest of her life remember such generosity.

  “I am only paying forward what I’ve found here in this house,” Annie replied. “Perhaps one day you too will find a time and place to do so.”

  “Oh, I will,” the girl said. “You can be certain I will.”

  It was a promise Annie felt sure would be fulfilled.

  This was how it came to be at Memory House. As the days, weeks and months passed, it evolved into a place where fatigued travelers could come to find a measure of comfort and peace.

  Annie often asked her guests how they’d found Memory House. There was no advertising, no commercial listing, just a single sign out by the willow tree. Not one of her guests could answer the question. They’d shrug and say something drew them here, but what it was no one could say.

  Elizabeth’s Arrival

  Elizabeth Cunningham arrived at Memory House on the first Saturday of December. Early that morning the rain that had threatened for days finally started. It came with a blustery wind and pellets of water that were icy cold and hard as hail. When Annie opened the door and saw Elizabeth standing there with an umbrella turned inside out and water puddling around her shoes, she believed her to be the most forlorn looking woman she’d ever laid eyes on.

  Annie gasped. “Good grief!”

  She tugged Elizabeth inside the house without stopping to ask what she’d come for. Once she’d caught her breath, Elizabeth said she’d seen the sign and wondered if there was an available room.

  The moment she said she’d seen the sign, Annie knew she was a woman in need of help. For some odd reason it seemed vacationers passed by the sign and never noticed it. Only those in need of solace saw the glitter of gold lettering peeking out from beneath the branches of the willow.

  As soon as Annie said there was indeed room and they’d be delighted to have her stay, Elizabeth turned back to the door.

  “I’ll get my suitcase,” she said, but Annie wouldn’t hear of it. She hurried Elizabeth back to the kitchen, set a pot of dandelion tea to brew and sent Oliver to fetch the suitcase. After a few sips of the tea, Elizabeth kicked off her soggy shoes and started to relax.

  “I’m sorry for dripping water all over your carpet,” she said.

  Annie laughed. “Don’t give it another thought, Elizabeth. A bit of water is nothing. The twins carry in clumps of dirt, lizards and frogs all day long.”

  “Call me Liz,” the woman said. “Elizabeth always sounds so formal.”

  One word led to another, and before long Annie asked what brought Liz to Burnsville. Elizabeth leaned into the conversation and lowered her voice as if she was about to share something very hush-hush.

  “Simply put, I got tired of being known as Elliott Winslow’s ex-wife. People I hardly knew were looking at me as if I was someone to be pitied. Elliott could have left quietly and moved to another town, but, no, he had to make a spectacle of himself.”

  “What kind of spectacle?”

  “The day after he left me, Fritzi Easton saw him walking through town arm-in-arm with a bodybuilder from the gym. A man, for heaven’s sake!”

  “Is it possible they were just friends?”

  Elizabeth narrowed her eyes and twitched the right side of her mouth.

  “Don’t I wish!” she huffed. “Nothing is worse than living in a town where everyone knows your husband dumped you to move in with another man!”

  A look of concern settled on Annie’s face as she listened. Elizabeth caught sight of her expression and gave a weighty sigh.

  “See, now, that’s exactly what I mean,” she said. “Hearing what Elliott’s done makes people think I’m to be pitied.”

  “I’m sorry,” Annie said. “I didn’t mean to—”

  Elizabeth waved the apology off. “No need to be sorry. It’s not just you. It was the whole town of West Haven. It happened over a year ago, but with Elliott parading around town with his bodybuilder people can’t forget. They mean well and say things like ‘You’re better off without him,’ but that constant look of pity wears a person’s nerves to a frazzle.”

  “Well, rest assured, you’ll never see it from me again,” Annie said.

  “Good,” Elizabeth replied then began telling the story of how she’d finally made the decision to move on.

  “It happened on a Monday evening after I’d closed the bank, locked up and gone home. I was watching a television show about travel, and, boom, the thought hit me like a stone being dropped on my head.”

  “Was it the travel part that got to you?”

  “Shoot, no. It was the thought of starting over in a whole new life.” She gave an impish grin and snapped her fingers. “Just like that I decided to sell the house and look for a new job in a new town.”

  At first glance Annie had seen Elizabeth as a downtrodden soul, but she had now changed her mind. Liz wasn’t downtrodden at all. She was smart, savvy and determined. A person Ophelia would call spunky.

  Annie refilled both cups, and they continued talking. By the time the twins woke from their nap, Annie knew that Liz was going to be the branch manager of the Heartland Savings Bank in Dorchester and was looking for a furnished apartment somewhere in the area.

  “Something small,” Liz said. “An efficiency or at the most a one-bedroom. I don’t start my new job until the end of the year, and hopefully I’ll be settled in by then.”

  Listening to the positive way Elizabeth spoke it was easy to believe she had moved beyond the hurt of Elliott’s betrayal, but in truth she hadn’t. It was like a sinkhole beneath her skin, a thing waiting for the chance to cave in and destroy the new life she was building. When Elliott walked out he took his clothes, his skis, his tennis racquet and her self-esteem. What he left behind was an emptiness that she tried to hide beneath layers of pluck and determination.

  The rain continued throughout the evening and into the wee hours of morning. Elizabeth was bone tired when she finally went to bed, but sleep wouldn’t come. She snuggled deeper into the comforter and tried to think positive thoughts.

  The problem wa
s that the future was still a blank slate. She couldn’t imagine the new friends she’d meet, because she’d never met them. She couldn’t imagine living in a cozy little apartment, because she’d not yet found it.

  Never mind, she thought. Anything would be better than living all alone in that big house. At one time “big” meant plenty of room to spread out, to have a sewing room and den, a kitchen with cabinets enough for a gourmet collection of cookware. But after Elliott was gone “big” became a vast emptiness. All those rooms, and she hardly used any of them. Cooking for one was a waste of time, so more often than not she carried home a container of Chinese food or a rotisserie chicken and the Cuisinart cookware remained in the cupboard.

  Tears filled Elizabeth’s eyes and rolled silently down her cheeks.

  Tomorrow, she promised herself. Tomorrow will be better than today.

  A Running Kinship

  Early in the morning, even before the twins started fussing to be lifted out of their cribs, Annie heard the front door squeak open and then close. She slid out of the bed and peeked from the dormer window. The rain had stopped, but she could feel the icy cold air pushing up against the glass. After only a few seconds she spotted Liz jogging down the driveway bundled in layers of clothing with a woolly headband covering her ears. At the end of the long drive she turned right and disappeared around the bend of the road.

  Liz jogged to the end of Haber Street then turned onto Lakeside Drive. It was a long road that circled the pond in back of Memory House and came out at the opposite end of Haber. As she ran past the first bend she stopped once and switched the track on her iPod, then continued. Music set the mood, and this morning she had a need for something familiar. It was Jennifer Lopez’s album This Is Me.

  When the first chord sounded she upped her pace. Liz loved running. It was the one time when she thought about nothing but putting one foot in front of the other and feeling the beat of the music pounding in her ears.

  Few houses had lights on this early in the morning, and there was not a single car on the road. A newspaper delivery boy pedaled past her and tossed a folded newspaper onto the walkway as he sped by. It was only a few weeks until Christmas, and several houses had decorated trees standing in the window.

  Next year, she thought. Next year I’ll buy a tiny tree and celebrate Christmas, alone if I have to.

  Elizabeth was hopeful that by then she wouldn’t have to celebrate alone. Maybe she would have made a number of new friends, friends she could invite over for a homemade meal. Luckily she’d kept most of the gourmet cookware.

  At the end of Lakeside Drive she slowed her pace, and as she swung onto Haber her stride turned to an easy trot. By the time she got back to the house Annie was already in the kitchen, and the twins were in their matching high chairs.

  “Did you have a good run?” Annie asked.

  “Great!” Elizabeth said through heavy breaths. “I see you’ve got the little charmers up and rolling.”

  “They’re the ones who get me up.” She handed Ethan a clean spoon to replace the one he’d dropped on the floor. “They’re usually the first ones awake, but I don’t mind because then I know they’ll go down for a nice long afternoon nap.”

  Elizabeth gave a wistful sigh.

  “I envy you,” she said. “You’ve got such a lovely family.”

  “Yes,” Annie replied, “I am definitely blessed.”

  A thousand things crisscrossed Elizabeth’s mind at that moment, but she said only that she’d grab a quick shower and join them for breakfast. She hurried to her room, peeled off the layers of clothing, then pulled on a robe and crossed over to the bathroom.

  As the cascade of warm water splashed against her shoulders and trickled down her body Elizabeth thought back to the week Elliott left. She’d celebrated her thirtieth birthday a few weeks earlier, and it had been a poignant reminder that her biological clock was ticking at what seemed an accelerated speed. That same afternoon she’d gone out and bought a lacy black nightgown thinking she’d wear it when the time was right. Back then she’d believed the only problem was that after nine years of being together the excitement had gone out of their marriage. How foolish she’d been to think a sexy nightie could relight the fire.

  Elizabeth hated these thoughts. No matter how they got started they always circled around to the same question: had Elliott ever loved her?

  At first she’d believed he had, but now she honestly couldn’t say. Whenever she’d mention it was time to start thinking about a family, he’d dodge the issue. The time was never right. He was pressured at work, or felt they should first get a new car, or questioned whether they could manage on his income alone.

  “It’s only for a few years,” she’d argued. “Once the baby goes to school, I’ll go back to work.”

  That last time he said that he’d think about it and Elizabeth had felt hopeful, but two days later he was gone and it was the end of everything. The end of their marriage and the end of her hoping they’d have a baby.

  How unfair it all seemed.

  Elizabeth stepped from the shower, toweled herself off and returned to the bedroom. Anxious to move on to thinking about something else, she dressed quickly and hurried to the kitchen.

  Not long after she and Annie settled at the table with a pot of dandelion tea and a basket of freshly baked scones, Brooke rapped the front door knocker then came in calling for the twins. At the sound of her voice both babies gave a squeal of delight and ran toward the hall.

  “Company?” Liz said.

  Annie shook her head and hollered for Brooke to come and say hi to Miss Cunningham.

  Liz noticed how Annie referred to her as Miss Cunningham. There was the sound of friendship in her voice but no pity, which was a good thing. Perhaps after all was said and done, she’d moved past being the unfortunate woman who’d married Elliott Winslow.

  When Brooke came into the room Annie gave a nod toward Liz and said, “I want you to meet Miss Elizabeth Cunningham. She’s going to be the new branch manager at Heartland Bank.”

  Brooke stuck out her hand the same as she’d seen her daddy do.

  “Pleased to meet you,” she said. “Are you going to live at Memory House?”

  “For a little while,” Elizabeth said. “Until I can find an apartment.”

  Brooke gave a knowledgeable nod as if she understood such a problem.

  “It’s very hard to find the right house. We looked for ages, then found the perfect house right across the pond.”

  It was all Liz could do not to laugh at Brooke’s grown up mannerisms. “Well, that was certainly fortunate, wasn’t it?”

  “Very,” Brooke said. “We’re so close I can see Memory House from the balcony in my bedroom.” She looked toward the kitchen window and pointed a finger. “See that white house, that’s ours.”

  “My goodness,” Liz said, “I think I ran right past your house this morning.”

  “Why were you running?”

  “For exercise. It makes me feel good.”

  Liz paused. Talking to this little girl was almost like talking to another adult.

  “Do you do anything just because it makes you feel good?” she asked.

  Brooke hesitated then gave a nod. “Babysitting. I get paid a dollar an hour, but I would do it for free. I like that Starr and Ethan get excited when I come, because it makes me feel special.”

  Annie turned and joined in the conversation. “You are special.”

  Having waited as long as she could, Starr tugged at the tail end of Brooke’s sweatshirt.

  “Arbie!” she squealed.

  Brooke squatted down. “Not arbie, Barbie. Say buh, buh, buh…”

  “Buh, buh, buh,” Starr repeated.

  “Now say Buh-arbie.”

  Starr giggled and once again said, “arbie.” Everyone laughed.

  It was the first time Brooke saw Elizabeth Cunningham, but it would certainly not be the last.

  A Budding Friendship

  Throughout th
e month of December Brooke continued to babysit the twins, and she almost always sought out Elizabeth with some new thought or tidbit of conversation she had to share. Often she arrived before the twins were up from their afternoon nap, and while she waited she and Elizabeth would sit side by side sipping cups of dandelion tea and talking of life.

  Brooke told Elizabeth about losing her mama as well as what happened with Eddie Coggan, referring to him only as “the bad man.”

  “Because of the bad man we moved away, and I had to leave my friend, Ava, and Miss Marta,” she said sadly.

  Elizabeth gave an understanding nod. “I know exactly how you feel. When I decided to take the job in Dorchester, I had to leave all my friends behind too.”

  “Isn’t it easier when you’re a grownup?” Brooke asked.

  “Not really,” Elizabeth replied. “But maybe it will be once I get settled in my own apartment and start to make new friends. Right now the only people I know are you, Annie, Oliver and the twins.”

  Brooke grinned at the thought of being on the list of friends.

  On an afternoon when the twins napped through until almost four o’clock, Annie brewed a second pot of tea and they all sat and talked. After a little while Ethan started calling to get out of the crib, and Annie went to him. Brooke leaned close to Elizabeth.

  “Annie’s tea is magical,” she whispered. “Did you know that?”

  “I was beginning to suspect it,” Liz said with a grin.

  If anyone asked Elizabeth why she was so drawn to this little girl, she would be hard pressed to answer. At times she thought perhaps they’d met before or crossed paths in some unidentifiable way, because as they sat sharing secrets and cups of tea Elizabeth felt a distinct connection to the child. One night as she lay in bed with her eyes still wide open, a thought came to her. If Elliott had consented to having a family when she first asked, they would have a child just about Brooke’s age.