“Weeding,” answered Meg calmly.
“What the heck for?” Abner kept walking, with Jason just a couple steps behind.
“Because it needs to be done.”
“Says who?” Abner placed both hands on his hips and glowered down at her. The bottom of the bog was three feet below the level where Abner and Jason now stood, and their height advantage had an intimidating effect on Meg.
She took a deep breath. “Grandmother has authorized me to do this.”
Abner laughed. It was a deep, howling laugh that seemed to echo through the bog, but there was no trace of humor in it. As quickly as it had begun, it stopped. His brows drew together into one dark line.
“So you mean to tell me you’re out here weeding these bogs because some senile old woman told you to? Well, Meggie Lancaster, you are dumber than you look!” He spat into the bog.
Meg glared up at him but said nothing. She looked over to where Jason stood. His gaze was downcast, and his lips were pressed together tightly, making a thin white line of his mouth. His cheeks were blazing red, even redder than his curly hair, and she saw his eyes flicker to where Clive was standing with her blue eyes opened wide. Poor Clive, she’d come out to help and had ended up in the midst of this family feud.
“For your information,” Meg began in a tight, angry voice, “Grandmother is not senile. And furthermore, she happens to own this property.”
“Just look at you!” Abner snarled as he pointed his finger at her. “Who are you to tell me whether that old bat is crazy or not? Here you are, out groveling in the dirt like an old sow. I don’t know which of you is the craziest. But I’m telling you this: I don’t want to see you up here again. C’mon, Jason.” He grabbed the boy roughly by the arm and pulled him away. Jason turned and looked over his shoulder with an expression that looked half apologetic and half humiliated.
“Poor Jason,” said Clive as the Suburban roared down the road, followed by a cloud of dust. “How would you like to have him for a dad?” She looked at Meg. “Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot he’s your relative.”
“Don’t be sorry about that. I’d like to forget he’s my relative, too. And I’m sorry about his lack of manners. I don’t know what his problem is. But I’ll have another talk with Grandmother; maybe she can set him straight.” Meg glanced at her watch. “We’d better get you into town. You may not want to come back and work now that you know what kind of kooks I have for relatives.”
Meg drove silently to town. The scene with Abner had rattled her considerably. She dropped Clive off at the Feed and Seed and started to turn around. Just then, Sunny popped out of the gallery and ran into the street, waving her arms frantically. Meg rolled down her window, afraid something was horribly wrong.
“Oh, Meg, I’m so glad I caught you,” called Sunny breathlessly. “Sigfried left a message with Rosa inviting you to join us for dinner tonight. I know it’s last minute, but Sigfried made reservations at the Osprey Inn—”
Meg cut her off. “I don’t think so, Sunny. I’m filthy and tired, and it’s been a very long day. I’m just not up for it. How about another time?”
“Oh, well, sure. Okay.” To Meg’s surprise, Sunny didn’t argue. She just stepped away with a sad face and waved. Meg waved back and continued driving down the street. Great. Now on top of everything else, she felt guilty. But the last thing she needed tonight was to have dinner with Sunny. Was it so wrong to decline a last-minute invitation?
By the time Meg had cleaned up for dinner, Grandmother had already eaten and was asleep for the night, and Rosa was parked in front of the TV intently watching Wheel of Fortune. Meg’s dinner of leftover roast beef was neatly arranged on a plate, and she popped it into the microwave and sat down to wait. Suddenly the idea of dinner at the Osprey Inn sounded pretty good. Maybe she shouldn’t have been so hasty. Or so stubborn. On the other hand, it might have been another disaster. She took the plate out and began to eat. Part of the meal was too hot and part of it was still cold. After a few bites, she tossed the remainder into the garbage and put the kettle on for a cup of tea.
“Meggie,” called Rosa from the front room. “Did you see my note about the dinner tonight?”
“You mean with Sigfried and Sunny?” Meg moved to the doorway as she waited for the kettle to boil.
“Yes. Did you decide not to go? I thought you would want to go and celebrate your mother’s birthday.”
“Sunny’s birthday?” Meg asked weakly.
“That’s right. Tom and Erin were going, too. Why did you not go, Meggie? Are you feeling okay?”
“Just very tired, Rosa. Thanks for the message.” Meg looked at her watch. It might not be too late to join them. But then again, she didn’t want to walk in while they were in the middle of dinner. Besides, with her luck, she and Sunny would probably end up in a fight, and that would be some great birthday surprise. No, it was better to sit this one out. She would think of some way to make up for it tomorrow.
FIFTEEN
The next morning, Meg got up early and crawled painfully out of bed. Every muscle in her body screamed in protest. She hurt in places she didn’t even know she had muscles. Maybe Abner was right. Maybe she was crazy.
Feeling slightly better after a long, hot shower and some aspirin, she went downstairs, grabbed a cup of coffee, and dashed for the door.
“You need some breakfast, Meggie,” said Rosa.
“I’m okay for now, but I’ll see you at lunch,” Meg called as she shoved her feet into her boots on the back porch. She considered driving up to the bog, but that seemed ridiculous. She thought it was ironic that she’d always wanted a Jaguar but now that she had one it seemed totally inappropriate. Fine for a marketing executive, but useless to a farmer. It was all wrong. Or maybe she was just trying to live the wrong life. As she passed the car, she saw her cell phone inside. At least that might come in handy. She tucked it into her coat pocket and headed for the bog.
She walked up the hill slowly, allowing her muscles to stretch and adjust. Birds were singing; it sounded sweet, almost as if they were welcoming the day or celebrating spring. Today the sky was clear, and she didn’t see any fog banks looming on the ocean. She breathed the cool, fresh air and knew deep within her that this wasn’t the wrong life. It couldn’t be.
She had been worried that Cal might have dropped Clive off before she got there, but there wasn’t a soul in sight. She thought about Abner’s nasty fit yesterday and figured it was entirely possible that Clive would not be back today or ever. Meg wouldn’t blame her, either. She got the wheelbarrow and headed toward the bog that they’d been working on. She slowly bent over and began pulling weeds. Before long, her muscles began to loosen up. She hoped by the end of the week she wouldn’t even be sore anymore. She just needed to pace herself. There was no sense in trying to rush it; she could only work so fast.
She had been working quietly for almost an hour before she heard the sound of a vehicle coming up the road. Fortunately it was from the north, so she knew it wasn’t Abner. When she spied the blue roof and hood of Cal’s old pickup, she waved happily.
“Howdy!” called Clive as she jumped from the rig. “Thanks, Granddad.”
Cal waved at Meg. “Heard you had some trouble,” he called. Meg climbed out of the bog and walked over to the pickup. She figured she had better do some fast explaining about Abner; she owed that much to Cal.
She leaned against the door. “Abner’s not too happy about my working on the bog. I told Clive I’d understand if she didn’t feel comfortable coming back.”
“She’s not worried, Meggie. And neither am I. Abner might be a bit of a loose cannon, but I never heard of him hurting anyone. If I thought different, I wouldn’t bring Clive, and I would warn you as well.”
“Thanks, Cal.”
“You girls have a good day,” said Cal before he backed up and drove away.
She went back and joined Clive, but after a few minutes she heard the sound of another engine. This time she got worried, b
ut once again it was coming from the north. A moment later, Erin’s green Volvo pulled to a stop. Meg climbed out of the bog and ran up to the road. She hoped everything was okay; she worried that maybe Ashley had had a relapse.
“Hi, Erin,” Meg said breathlessly. “What’s up?”
Erin and the three girls climbed out of the car. They all had on overalls and boots.
“We’ve come to help pull weeds, Aunt Meggie,” said Hannah.
“Yeah, we’re gonna help the cranberries to grow,” said Ashley with a big grin.
“You’re kidding! I can’t believe it. You all came out here just to help? That’s so sweet of you.”
“Sweet has nothing to do with it. It’s spring break, and we needed something to do,” said Erin. “And don’t you remember how we used to help Grandpa during spring break, Meg? This is our history. Our heritage.” Erin and the girls marched down to the bog, and soon everyone was working hard.
Meg used her cellular phone to call Rosa and tell her to expect Erin and the girls for lunch. Hannah and Jennifer turned out to be good workers, and Ashley found a frog to entertain her. At noon, they had nearly a third of the bog cleared, and they all piled into the Volvo and rode down the hill.
Rosa had set up their lunch in the dining room, and to everyone’s surprise, Grandmother was seated in a wheelchair at the head of the table.
“Well, don’t just stand there gawking,” chided the old woman. “Come on, everyone, get washed up and sit down.”
Before long, they all were cleaned up and seated around the same long table that Meg remembered sitting at as a girl. Grandpa had always sat at the head then. Today, Grandmother had saved a special spot beside her for Ashley, and she invited Erin to say a blessing.
When Erin finished, Grandmother looked up with glistening eyes. “Now, this is how it always should be,” she said in a trembling voice.
Soon they were all chattering and eating, and somewhere midway through the meal, Meg remembered Sunny. She felt bad for forgetting Sunny’s birthday, but even more than that, it didn’t seem right that Sunny was not here to share in this unexpected gathering. A wave of guilt swept over her. Meg told herself it wasn’t her fault; she hadn’t planned this little impromptu lunch. Who could have known that Grandmother would get out of bed and sit here with them?
Meg decided to take photos of the group. She got shots of the three girls with their great-grandmother, and Clive offered to take ones of Erin and Meg with Grandmother. Finally, it was time for Grandmother to retire to bed and for the rest of them to return to work. Erin put Ashley down for a nap on the couch, and Rosa promised to watch her so Erin could go back to the bog.
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay here and take a nap with Ashley? This kind of work is tough,” teased Meg as they headed toward the bog.
“No problem,” said Erin. “I do aerobics three times a week. I’m in great shape.”
“Tell me that in the morning,” said Meg as they plodded up the hill. “How was the dinner for Sunny last night? I didn’t find out until too late that it was her birthday. I would have come if I’d known.”
“I would have warned you, but it caught us by surprise, too—what with Ashley’s illness and all, I blanked out on Sunny’s birthday. But we really had a nice time. We ended up taking the girls because we couldn’t get a sitter, but it was fine. It was sweet of Siggie to plan the whole thing. I just wish you could have come. In some ways, it was really quite amazing. Sunny was getting very reminiscent and nostalgic. It was a whole new side of her.”
“Well, it’s probably better that I wasn’t there,” said Meg as she pulled her gloves out of her coat pocket. “I might have spoiled the whole evening by getting into it with Sunny.”
“It’s funny, Meg. Lately, Sunny and I have been getting along a whole lot better. I have to admit, it’s nice. I’m just sorry to see you having such a hard time with her. But I think maybe she’s changing.”
“Maybe,” said Meg. She wondered if she would ever be able to change, too. It seemed she was always getting stuck in the past when it came to Sunny. Why couldn’t she let go of all this old bitterness?
“Who’s that?” asked Jennifer, pointing to a lone figure by the bog.
“Oh no,” said Meg as they got closer. “It’s Jason. I hope this doesn’t mean trouble.” Clive was walking ahead of the rest, and Meg watched warily as the girl approached Jason. It looked like the two were talking normally.
“I don’t see Abner around,” said Erin. “Maybe it’s okay. You know, Jason’s not a bad kid.”
“Yeah, I know,” said Meg. “I’m just not sure how much influence his dad has over him. And after yesterday’s fireworks I’m feeling a little skittish when it comes to that family.”
The rest of the group approached Jason and Clive. They might all be females, but they had him outnumbered five to one. Clive turned and smiled.
“Jason came to help out in the bog,” she called out.
“Really?” Meg stepped up and looked into Jason’s eyes. His cheeks were reddened slightly, but nothing like yesterday. “You really want to help us weed?”
“Yep.” Jason looked from Meg to Clive and nodded his head.
“Does your dad know about this?”
“Nope.” A slight frown creased his forehead.
“Aren’t you concerned about that?”
Jason rubbed his chin as if giving the question serious thought. “I guess so,” he finally answered.
“Hmm.” Meg sighed. She could certainly use a couple more hands. “Well, I’d love to have your help, but I don’t want your blood on my head.”
“I don’t think there’s gonna be any bleeding going on.” Jason grinned. “My dad might yell pretty loud, and he can sure make a big stink, but that’s about all that comes from it.”
Meg stuck out her hand, and Jason shook it firmly. “Well, I’m glad to have you on board, Jason.”
“Okay, troops,” Erin ordered. “I suggest we break up into pairs and divide the remainder of this bog into thirds. Hannah and Jennifer, you take the east side. Meg and I will do the center, and Jason and Clive can work the west side.”
Meg grinned at her sister and saluted. “Yes, sir! We shall divide and conquer.”
Soon they were all working in their designated areas. Jason had brought another wheelbarrow, along with an old garden wagon that he said he’d found in the toolshed. Each group now had its own cart to haul the weeds out.
“What do you suppose got into Jason to make him come and help like this?” whispered Meg as she and Erin worked side by side.
“I’d guess it’s Clive.”
“Ah, I think you may be on to something. Well, whatever it takes to increase the labor force. I just hope Abner doesn’t drop by.” Meg impatiently shoved a stray lock of hair back from her eyes. She’d forgotten to wear Grandpa’s old cap to keep it out of her face.
“Here, let me help,” said Erin, pulling a coated elastic hair band from her pocket. “I always keep these handy for the girls. I think your hair’s long enough to make a French braid—that should keep it out of your eyes.” Erin quickly began weaving Meg’s hair until it was off her face and out of her eyes.
“You have beautiful hair, Meg,” said Erin. “What I wouldn’t give for that perfect amount of wave and curl. My hair is still as straight as a board. And you should see how the color shines in the sun. It looks just like this old burnished copper kettle that I have.”
“Thanks, I think.”
Erin twisted the band several times around the end of the braid. “There you go. Lovely.”
“And much better,” sighed Meg. “That’s great, Erin.”
Erin plucked several purple asters and stuck them artfully into Meg’s hair. “Now it’s perfect. Truly a work of art.”
“Well, I’m glad those weed flowers are good for something.” Meg grinned. “And now back to the grindstone.”
The afternoon turned out to be unseasonably warm, and before long they stripped off j
ackets and sweatshirts. Fortunately, Erin had brought along sunscreen for her girls and shared it with everyone else.
In the middle of the afternoon, Rosa and Ashley came up the hill bearing lemonade and sugar cookies. Ashley proudly carried a stack of paper cups.
“I hope you don’t mind, Erin,” said Rosa. “She begged for me to bring her out, and she did take a nice long nap.”
“Not at all, Rosa. Thank you for bringing her,” said Erin. “The fresh air and sunshine will do her good.”
“And thanks for the cookies,” said Jason as he took another.
They returned to work, and by four o’clock they were closing in on having the entire bog cleared.
Erin looked at her watch. “I hate to go when we’re so close to finishing this up, but Jennifer has Awana tonight.”
“No problem, Erin. I can’t thank you enough for coming out. Can you believe how much we got done? It’s really encouraging, especially after yesterday.”
Erin rounded up the three girls, and Meg thanked them all again.
“Can we come back, Mommy?” chirped Ashley, and the other two girls chimed in.
“Sure, if you want to,” said Erin. “And if Meg doesn’t mind. Although you girls got a little silly this afternoon; Meg might not think you’re very good workers.”
“Of course, I’d love to have you come back. And if I remember right, Erin, we used to get a little silly sometimes, too.”
Erin laughed. “I guess we did.”
“Can we play in the cabin tomorrow?” asked Jennifer. “It looks like a playhouse.”
“I don’t see why not,” said Meg. “We’ll have to check it out and make sure it’s safe, though.”
“Sounds great,” said Erin as she herded the girls up toward the road. “We’ll see you tomorrow, then.”
“Thanks again,” called Meg.
Jason worked for another hour, then announced that it was time for him to go. He promised to be back the next day, and Meg told him that she would pay him the same wages she had offered Clive. He accepted her offer, then waved and took off walking toward the south.
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