Through the Storm (Bellingwood Book 8)

by Diane Greenwood Muir

  She reached out and tried to pull some clothes away by tugging on the sleeve of a dress and moving it to the right. That didn't work, the dress ended up in a heap on the floor.

  "Damn it," she said, tears filling her eyes. "This just shouldn't be so hard. Damn it, damn it, damn it."

  "Polly?"

  Rebecca stood in the doorway of Polly's bedroom.

  "Are you okay?"

  "I'm sorry, sweetie. I'm just frustrated. I was trying to find something to wear and everything hurts. But I'm okay."

  "Can I help you?"

  Polly walked back to her bed and dropped down on it. "Sit here beside me for a minute and tell me about your day. How was school?"

  "It was okay. Mrs. Hastings changed the seating chart and I have to sit by Maddy Collins now."

  "Do you like her?"

  "She's kind of nice. She asked if I wanted to sit beside her at lunch."

  "That's nice. Maybe you'll start getting to know some other kids, some of her friends."

  "I guess."

  "How's your mom doing? I haven't seen her since she got home."

  "Fine. She's really weak and they made me leave when she got a shot. She said it was in her stomach!"

  "Are you glad to have her here?"

  "I can go see her anytime I want, but it's okay that I'm sleeping up here."

  "I'm glad," Polly said. "Are you going to Sylvie's party tonight?"

  "Mom said I should go for a while, but that I can come see her before I go to bed tonight. Is that okay?"

  "Sweetie, whatever your Mom says to do is fine with me. Now, would you mind helping me pick something out for tonight? I need a top."

  "Why don't you just wear that pretty blue dress?" Rebecca asked and ran over to the closet, pulling out a dress that Polly had forgotten. "That way you don't have to worry about zippers or buttons or anything. Just pull this on." She bent over and picked up the dress that Polly had dropped, hanging it back up. Then she took out a pair of black flats. "These would look nice."

  "You're perfect, you know that?"

  Rebecca smiled.

  "That's exactly what I'll wear. Thank you. Now, you go get changed and then you can help Jessie put my makeup on and style my hair so I don't look so freaky."

  "You just look like Polly to me." Rebecca approached and reached out to hug her, but stopped. "I don't want to hurt you."

  Polly wrapped her left arm around the girl. "Thanks for checking on me and I'm sorry you heard me swear."

  Rebecca giggled. When Obiwan rushed into the room, she bent down and hugged him tight around the neck. Henry wasn't far behind him.

  "What's going on in here?" he asked. "Girl stuff?"

  "Rebecca helped me decide what to wear tonight," Polly said.

  "I hope that you will let me get away with slacks and a polo," he said.

  "You should wear that grey shirt," Rebecca said. "I heard Sal say it was sexy."

  Both Henry and Polly laughed. "Not much gets by you, does it?" Polly asked. "Now go and I'll see you downstairs later."

  Henry shut the door behind her and said, "Sexy, eh? I'll wear the grey shirt!"

  "You do that. Even if I can't do anything about it, I like hanging out with my sexy husband. But first, can you help me wrangle all of this so I can pull my dress on?"

  ~~~

  "You don't look half bad," Jeff said, dropping into a chair beside Polly.

  "Thanks to Jessie. She spent at least a half hour getting me to this point. I've made her promise to take it all off my face when we get back upstairs tonight. Otherwise, tomorrow morning my pillow will look like a ghoul slept there."

  "How are you feeling?"

  "I'm fine. And tomorrow I'll be better and the day after and the day after until this will only be a memory."

  "She's quite the star, isn't she?" he said, gesturing to Sylvie.

  Sylvie was surrounded by several people from town that Polly didn't know well and one or two young women that had been introduced as her classmates.

  "She has a lot to be proud of. It's kind of fun to watch it happen. So, you never told me. How was your date?"

  He shrugged. "It was fine. He had tickets to a show in Des Moines. I bought dinner. Come to find out we have nothing in common. He never called, I never texted. So, it was just a date."

  "Okay," She looked at him to see what his face told her. There wasn't any real emotion there. "You don't seem too upset about it."

  "I'm still young and fabulous," he said, laughing a little. "Someday someone will figure that out."

  "You are and they will," she agreed.

  "Polly, look what Mom got!" Andrew cried, running over to her with his hands behind his back.

  "What's that?" She hoped it wasn't the knife set. That could get bloody.

  He pushed a box into her hands. "We're going to grow mushrooms!"

  "That looks like fun. And a little weird."

  "Maybe we can plant them in the garden next year and have lots of mushrooms."

  "Uh. Okay. Whatever your Mom wants."

  "You don't think these are cool, do you?"

  "I think it's wonderful. Where's Rebecca?"

  "She went over to her Mom's room after we were done eating. I'm supposed to go get her when they serve dessert."

  "Very nice."

  Andrew ran off and Polly turned to Jeff. "I feel like such an invalid. People have been coming up to me all evening to talk and I just don't feel like wandering in and out of groups to mingle."

  "Stop it, you silly girl. We all know that you're hurt. This isn't a normal night for you."

  "Okay, but give me your hand. I'm going to get up anyway. It feels weird."

  He walked with her over to the table where Henry had landed with Nate Mikkels.

  "I'm so glad you're here," Joss said. "Look at them."

  Polly looked. The two men had their phones out and were swiping through websites that had parts for Woodies. "That's kind of sick," she said. "They can't even enjoy a social night out." She said the last a little more loudly and pointedly at the two men.

  Henry looked up, not looking the least bit chagrined. "What? Nate found these sites and wanted to order parts."

  "Whatever," she sighed. "Where are the kids?" she asked Joss.

  "Nate's mom is in town. She's going to be here through the weekend, so I was thinking that I might come over to see you tomorrow if you're up to it."

  Henry looked up again, this time his eyes lit up. "I could go out and get some work done," he said.

  "I guess that's a great idea," Polly said. "Come on over any time."

  "I'm bringing lunch, so maybe just a little after noon."

  "You don't have to bring anything."

  "Yes I do. I'm looking forward to it. You haven't had my chicken enchiladas yet."

  "Polly?" Jeff said, touching her elbow. "We're going to do a couple of presentations for Sylvie. I hate to interrupt, but are you ready to say something?"

  "I am." She said to Joss. "I'll see you tomorrow and thanks."

  "I'm glad you're standing," he said. "That makes this part easier. We won't go up on stage since there aren't that many people here. You don't need a mic, do you?"

  "No, this should be fine. I'm just talking to them. It's not like a speech or anything, right?"

  "Whatever you want."

  "Folks!" he called out. "If you could take a seat, we have a few things we want to say to Sylvie as we congratulate her on her achievement and welcome her to the full-time staff of Sycamore House." He waited as everyone sat down.

  Sylvie sat with Jason, Eliseo, Rachel, Hannah and Andrew at a front table. It occurred to Polly that having Eliseo sit there was very interesting. She had no idea what Sylvie was doing.

  "We know that Sylvie's ceremony won't happen until December, but this is such an auspicious occasion we didn't want to wait that long." Jeff nodded at Rachel, who went over to the stage and brought a package back to him.

  "A graphic artist rendered her certificate for us and
we'd like to present this to you as we congratulate you, our Head Chef. Sylvie?"

  She came forward and the two of them pulled the paper off the sixteen by twenty frame.

  "There are actually two of these, and the original has been framed as well. One will proudly hang in our kitchen here at Sycamore House and the others are for you to do with as you please."

  "Thank you," she said shyly, looking at the certificate.

  Hannah came up with another wrapped package and handed it to Jeff.

  "Now that you're our head chef, we wanted everyone to know just how important you are to us." Jeff handed the package to her and waited while she unwrapped it. She shook out five aprons. "If you look at the front, we have embroidered your name over the Sycamore House logo. These are yours and there are plenty for as many messes as you can make in one day."

  "Thank you," she said, laughing and then gave him a hug.

  He looked at Polly, who began to speak. "One of the first times I met Sylvie, we were going to a party and she was carrying in this immense set of candy dishes. I don't even know what they were."

  Sylvie blushed and dropped her head.

  "She had made all of these little treats for five of us and then told us that the others would go to her boy's classrooms and then she was planning to take food gifts to several older people she knew who wouldn't get such fun treats otherwise. She impressed me with her care for others.

  "Things happened pretty quickly those first few months here at Sycamore House. Jeff showed up and all of a sudden we had a Christmas party to prepare for. When I asked Sylvie to help, she didn't hesitate. Cooking for untold numbers of people didn't frighten her at all. She just dug in and got it done and it was wonderful. Do you remember?"

  Polly looked around the room as her friends applauded Sylvie. "Then there was the barn raising and once again, Sylvie was right there, organizing meals for the workers and surprising me with her generosity. I knew she had to work here, no matter what. I was ready to hire her as our chef for any event Jeff could wrangle. But Sylvie wasn't satisfied with that. She wanted to be more than just a cook, she wanted to reach beyond herself.

  "The day she ran into my office to announce that she was going to school was exciting for all of us. No matter what it took, Sylvie was going to make this happen. She has worked hard these last eighteen months. Days and evenings in class and the rest of her free time and weekends she worked here with Jeff as they developed Sycamore House into a prime location for weddings and other events. I never imagined that all of this would happen so quickly, and it wouldn't have without her skill in the kitchen and her talent for working with others.

  "I'm proud of you, Sylvie Donovan. You've done something that most people would never dream of doing and I can't wait to see what you do next."

  Sylvie came over and took Polly's hand as the room burst into applause. She held her hand up.

  "This wasn't an accomplishment I managed on my own. My boys supported me, all of you have encouraged me and Jeff has inspired me, but you, Polly, you were my catalyst. You took care of my family, you took care of me and you gave me freedom. I will never be able to thank you enough, but for now, what I can do is this!"

  Sylvie clapped her hands over her head, the lights went out in the auditorium and Rachel and Hannah pushed carts filled with flaming dishes into the room. Everyone clapped again, amidst laughter and smatterings of conversation.

  "We have homemade ice cream and cherries jubilee for dessert," Sylvie said as the lights came back up. "Thank you for everything!"

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  "My mother-in-law is great. She really is and I do love her," Joss said. She and Polly were alone in the living room after lunch. Henry had grabbed the opportunity to leave for the afternoon and he took Obiwan so that the dog could have some time outside.

  "But?" Polly asked. The storm that had been threatening all morning had finally hit and thunder rattled the glass windows in the apartment.

  "But, he's her baby. If he's in the room, I don't exist and now that he has children, I've slipped all the way down the totem pole. It might be different if Cooper and Sophie needed me in order to eat, but since they don't, I'm just superfluous while she's in town." Joss batted her eyes at Polly, "Can I move in here?"

  "I thought you said you loved her. And you know you'd miss those babies of yours."

  "Like I'm going to get to spend any time with them this weekend anyway. She's come, she's seen and she will conquer."

  "Sounds a little intimidating."

  "She is that, but I should be good and take advantage of the time. I have work that needs to be done at the library, so I can get in there this weekend when it's quiet and I won't worry about Nate being too overwhelmed."

  A knock at the front door caused Polly to jump. "Who's there?" she called out.

  "Open the door, it's the bogeyman."

  "I've got it," Joss said and ran to open the front door to Sal, who folded her umbrella and propped it outside the door. "When did you get home?"

  "I flew in last night. Two days of my mother is more than enough. How are you doing, Polly?"

  "I'm okay."

  "It certainly didn't help the relationship with my mother when I found out you'd been in a terrible accident and I was flying to Boston so I could sit in a hospital while Dad had knee replacement surgery. I was so mad. If I was going to be in a hospital somewhere, I'd much rather have been worrying about you here."

  "Didn't you have to host a tea?" Joss asked.

  Sal dropped into a chair. "Yes, it was boring as always. Mom's club met at our house and she'd engaged a woman who spoke about handling life changes with proper etiquette. I'm not kidding when I tell you that she covered everything from having grandchildren to burying your husband."

  "How's your dad?" Polly asked.

  "He's fine and was going home yesterday afternoon. Mom wasn't any too happy that I was at the airport getting on a plane. She wanted me there for the whole event, but I'd already scheduled the flight and I was gone with the wind. So tell me about your face," Sal said.

  Polly reached up and touched her cheekbone. It didn't hurt quite as badly as it had earlier in the week, but was still pretty sensitive. "I think I look good in multi-colored hues, don't you?"

  "You really need to stop doing this, people are going to talk about Henry."

  "I know, I know. I try to stay out of trouble, but it finds me with absolutely no effort. I wasn't even taking my normal way home and it found me."

  "Have you seen the truck yet?"

  "No," Polly said. "And I don't know if I want to. Henry and Aaron said they'd take care of it for me." She picked her phone up and then put it back down. "That reminds me, I need to ask Aaron if they've taken my things out of it. I didn't have much in there, but I don't want to lose it to a junkyard."

  "You should call him while you're thinking about it. We aren't going anywhere," Sal said.

  "Are you sure?"

  "Do you want coffee?" Joss asked Sal. "I brought cookies and it looks like there are chocolate cupcakes and brownies, too."

  Polly shook her head. "I can't go anywhere or do anything and everybody keeps bringing me food. This is going to be very, very bad for me."

  "Let me help," Sal said. "But first, I'm going to freshen up." She winked at Polly. "I've spent too much time in Boston, haven't I?"

  They left the room and Polly dialed Aaron Merritt's phone.

  "Tell me you are still safe in your home," he said. "I don't want to hear that you are out traipsing about the county looking for more trouble."

  "I'm right here, safe and sound. But I was just thinking about all of my things from Dad's truck. Do you have those and can you bring them up to me sometime?"

  "In a little box on my desk. The team has finally gone through everything and they are finished with the inside. We're not releasing the truck yet, though."

  "I don't need that. I don't know if I ever want to see it again," Polly said.

  "That's probably
a good idea. It's a sad little truck, but it certainly did its job and kept you safe."

  "I said those same things to Henry."

  Polly looked up when she felt a presence in the room with her. A strange man, his face covered with a ski mask, was standing just inside the front door.

  "Who are you?" she demanded, loudly. "Why are you in my house?"

  "It doesn't matter who I am. I just want what's mine and then I'll leave."

  "I don't understand. Why do you believe I have something of yours? I don't even know who you are."

  "Oh, you have it and you are going to hang up the phone right now and then you and I will gather what's mine and I'll leave."

  "I have to go," Polly said into the phone. "Someone is here to see me."

  "I heard everything. Is Henry there?"

  "No, I have to go."

  "Someone will be there soon. Be careful, Polly," Aaron said.

  She put the phone down without swiping the call closed and braced herself to stand up. Joss chose that moment to come out of the kitchen with a plate filled with goodies.

  "Oh!" she exclaimed. "Who are you?" Her face grew bright red and she began to back into the dining room, then looked at Polly and tried to step forward. It was obvious that a million things were processing through her brain and she wasn't sure which way to go.

  The man pulled a gun from his pocket and pointed it at Joss, making the decision for her. "Don't move and no one gets hurt. Miss Giller and I just need to get a few things and I'll be gone before you know it."