by Claire Fogel
The Chief stood and said, “Thank you, both of you, for helping Alicia get through this.” He looked at my mother. “You’re lucky to have each other. I’ll leave you in peace now. No need to see me to the door. Good night.”
The sooner I could put my mother’s chilling words out of my mind, the better.
The Chief left and my father took Mom’s hand and brought her to her feet. “Alicia, there’s a special place in the forest I’d like to take you. It’s a place Cara loves. She thinks it would be a good place for us right now.”
She gave him a tired smile. “It sounds perfect. But I don’t want to leave Cara alone right now.”
My father smiled at me and said, “You won’t be alone. Come outside.”
We went out on the back porch and I saw Adam walking toward us from the woods. My father had evidently sent him a message that I needed him.
Mom looked at me. “You don’t mind if we leave you for a while?”
“I think you need some quiet time together. Adam will keep me company.”
She reached out and hugged me, whispering, “Thank you, sweetheart.”
They met him halfway through the yard, and my father said, “Take care of her. She’s had to listen to too much today.”
He climbed the porch steps and turned those cobalt blue eyes on me. “Are you all right?”
I nodded. But then I realized the need to hold it all in was gone. The outrage I had been holding back, over what had been done to my mother, broke loose. The tears started to flow and I gasped, having trouble breathing. And then I heard his soft voice, “Come here, love.” And his warm arms were around me, but it wasn’t a hug. He was literally holding me together so that I wouldn’t fly apart. I kept gasping, unable to get a deep breath.
“You’re going to be all right, Cara. Your father sent me a message so I knew what was happening today. It must have been hard to listen to, but you’re a strong girl. You’ll get all of this sadness out of your system tonight, and then it will be over. Do you understand?”
I nodded, still gasping. He held me, rubbing my back, while I leaked tears all over his chest.
His voice was soft. “You held it together in front of your parents, didn’t you?”
I nodded again.
“Hmm. But you can let it all out with me. I wonder why that is.”
I sniffled. “Because you’re my anchor, Adam.”
He chuckled, still rubbing my back. “You mean that jackass you used Vox on a few months ago?”
I choked on a reluctant laugh. “Yeah, that guy.”
He tilted my chin up with one finger, and I could see we were both laughing, sort of.
“How about making some tea for us?”
“Okay. Come inside with me while I boil the water. I don’t really want to be alone.”
He opened the door and followed me in. “I know. That’s why your father called me. By the way, red’s your color.” Oh. He was talking about my shirt, not my eyes.
I looked into his understanding eyes. “Thank you.”
I was finally able to smile as I boiled water and made a pot of Kathleen’s tea for us. When it was ready, we carried the teapot and cups out on the back porch, along with a sweater for me, and sat down to drink tea and watch the moon rise over my beautiful, peaceful forest.
After a while, I began humming the dragon’s song and soon felt her magic wrap around us. She was flying high above the house and the woods so I could barely hear the sound of her huge wings.
Good evening, Cara.
“Good evening, Rowenna.”
Peace had been restored. I wondered how long it would last.
It was late when my parents walked out of the woods, hand in hand. It was almost full dark. I could barely see them. When they climbed the stairs to the porch, I asked them how they were feeling.
They were both smiling. My dad said, “Excellent suggestion. Spending some time in the forest was soothing for both of us.”
Mom added, “Very therapeutic, dear. I think I understand why I had such a hard time getting you out of the woods when you were little. It’s like another world in there, isn’t it?”
“The forest was always my refuge.”
She asked, “When did you ever need a refuge, dear?”
“Only when we’d argue.”
“Oh,” she said, “that’s right. All the times you asked about your father, and I wouldn’t tell you.” She shook her head. “That was unfair of me, Cara. I know that now.”
My father’s arm tightened around her shoulders. He chuckled. “I didn’t think she’d ever turn sixteen.”
“I thought I was being extremely fair, making him promise to stay out of your life until you were sixteen. But it was wrong to keep the two of you apart all those years. I’m so sorry, Brian.”
My father looked down at her, understanding on his face. He whispered, “Alicia, I’m sorry we couldn’t be married the way you wanted. There was nothing I could do.” He leaned down and kissed her, obviously forgetting that Adam and I were there, taking it all in.
But Mom knew we were there. She looked at me, slightly embarrassed, and said, “Brian, we have company. Let’s talk about this later.”
My father straightened up, clearly startled, and grinned. “Sorry. I’d forgotten we weren’t alone.” He looked at me with a smile. “But I think Cara has one question she wants to ask us.”
“What is it, honey?” Mom asked. My telepathic father knew exactly what I wanted to know.
“Mom, I’ve never understood why my parents never got married, and why you were so angry for so many years.”
She and my father sat down with us. My father kept her hand wrapped in his.
He said, “I can explain, sweetheart. I tried to take your mother to Elvenwood so that we could have a traditional Elven wedding ceremony there, but the gateway wouldn’t open. That was when we realized she has no Elven blood. We had thought she might because so many long-time Thornewood residents do, but we were disappointed.
“Then we thought we could get married in Thornewood, like humans do. This was before Harry Callahan retired from the FBI and came back to Thornewood to live and help us with these details. Alicia and I went to City Hall to get a marriage license, something I’d never heard of, of course.” He shook his head sadly. “That’s when we learned you need I.D., like a birth certificate, or a Social Security card, a credit card, a driver’s license with your picture on it. I had none of those things. As far as the human world was concerned, I didn’t exist. We couldn’t get married anywhere.”
“And that’s why you were so angry, Mom? I mean, it wasn’t Dad’s fault.”
She sighed, looking embarrassed. “There was a lot more to it than that, dear. I was only eighteen, a year out of high school, and I’d just learned I was pregnant with you. My parents were still here then, but they weren’t much help. They owned the bookstore but hadn’t been taking care of it and the store was failing. I’d worked in the store since I was a child, but I knew it would have to close its doors. My parents wanted to retire. My mother wanted nothing to do with a pregnant, unwed teenage daughter. I think my dad was more sympathetic to my situation, but my mother ran things and Dad wouldn’t fight with her.
“They stayed here until you were born. The day I brought you home from the hospital, they left for Florida. I haven’t heard from them since. I’ve sent pictures of you to my dad so he could see his beautiful granddaughter, and he has sent a card to say ‘thank you’ each time.”
“I always wondered about my grandparents, Mom. I’m sorry they’ve never given you any support. But I still don’t know why you got so angry at Dad.”
She took a deep breath. “When I told your father that my parents were leaving, and that the store would be closing, and I wasn’t sure how I would be able to take care of you, he offered to take you to Elvenwood and raise you there. I realize now he only wanted to help, but I felt as though he wanted to take my baby away from me, as though he had no confidence in me as a
mother.
“Cara, you have to remember how young I was, and, frankly, I was immature. I felt betrayed on all sides. Brian wouldn’t marry me; my parents wouldn’t help me; and then Brian wanted to take you away from me. At least, that’s how it felt. Pregnant women are often over-emotional, and I over-reacted in a big way. I stayed mad because it seemed preferable to a total emotional meltdown. I wasn’t in a good place, mentally or emotionally.
“Nevertheless, your father bought the bookstore for me, paid for the renovations, and has always supported you. I see now that he wanted to help me, not hurt me, but at the time, I just thought he did those things out of guilt.”
She leaned her head on my father’s shoulder, whispering, “I’m so sorry.”
Very gently, he pulled away from her, got out of the deck chair and knelt on the porch floor in front of her. He took her hand and I realized I was holding my breath.
He said, “Alicia, will you marry me now?”
Mom’s mouth fell open. She closed it and I could see tears in her eyes. She squeezed his hand and nodded. “Of course I will, Brian. I’ve never loved anyone but you.”
From the porch floor, my father put his arms around Mom, holding her tightly. “You are my one true love, my mate, Alicia.”
I had both hands pressed against my mouth to keep myself quiet, but I felt like cheering! Sitting next to me, Adam squeezed my hand. I looked over at him to see he was grinning. He looked at me and whispered, “This is what you’ve always wanted, isn’t it?”
I just nodded. Words were beyond me.
Mom turned and smiled at me. “I’m so glad we were all together tonight. Cara, you certainly deserve to share in our happiness. If it wasn’t for you, I’m not sure it ever would have happened.”
“Dad, nothing’s really changed. How can you and Mom get married now? You still don’t have a birth certificate or a social security card.”
My father grinned. “Harry Callahan has taken care of that for me. I have a birth certificate that says I was born in Vermont, in a tiny town no one ever heard of. I have a social security card too, although I’ll never use it. So as far as the human world is concerned, Brian Blackthorne exists.”
“We’ll have two weddings, Alicia. Since we can’t have an Elven ceremony in Elvenwood, the Elves can come here. We can have the ceremony right here in your big, beautiful back yard. There’s plenty of room for any Elves who are willing to leave our village for a few hours. Some of my people have never been outside Elvenwood, you know.”
I was so excited. “Mom, we can have both weddings and one party right here. We’ll have it catered. You won’t have to do a thing.”
Mom couldn’t stop smiling. “Cara, I think there’s an old bottle of champagne in the pantry. Put it in the freezer now and we’ll break it open later.
Turning to my father, she leaned against his shoulder. “Today has really run the gamut, from misery to joy, but it’s been a day to remember. We should celebrate!”
I said, “How about Pizza for dinner?” I knew my father would be delighted.
We all enjoyed Pizza and garlic bread for dinner, and we washed it down with Champagne someone had given Mom for Christmas last year. Mom said that she and Dad would celebrate this date every year with Pizza and Champagne, their first tradition.
I thought it was a wonderful idea.
Later that evening, Adam left for camp after congratulating my parents again, and I went to my room to call Sean. I didn’t think he’d be answering his phone. After all, he’d had surgery that morning. So I was amazed when I heard his hoarse voice, “Hi, beautiful.”
“Hi, I thought I’d be talking to your dad again. How are you feeling?”
“Pretty sore, but the pain pills are great. I’m kinda floatin’ right now.” He giggled. “All I need is a certain green-eyed angel to float up here with me. Ah, sorry, Cara. I’m really out of it.”
I couldn’t help laughing. “Well, at least you’re not in a lot of pain. Is it just your nose that’s painful? I heard you had a big lump on your head too.”
“Well, that baseball bat got me in a lotta places, but it’s mostly just bruising. Real colorful right now.” He giggled again.
He sounded so silly, I had to laugh with him. This was a side of Sean I’d never seen before. And probably never would again once he returned to the land of the sober.
“When do you think you’ll be coming home?”
“Whatsa matter, beautiful? Miss me?” More giggling.
“Of course I do. There are a lot of things I want to talk to you about, but they’ll have to wait until you’re back to normal.”
“Aw, come on, Cara. What’s been happenin’? It’s mean, keepin’ me in suspense.”
“Most of it will have to wait, my drugged-out friend. But one happy thing I can tell you. My parents are getting married!”
“Ah, that’s wonnerful. What you’ve always wanted, right?”
“Yep. I’m really happy for them. My father proposed to Mom tonight out on the back porch. We celebrated with pizza and champagne.”
“Aw, wish I coulda been there, beautiful. Hey, I just had an idea. Will you marry me, Cara? We could have a double wedding.” Giggling again.
Laughing, I said, “I’m not sure our parents would approve, Sean.”
His voice was suddenly faint. “Well, I love you, Cara, and I think it’s a very cool idea, tha’s all.”
“Are you falling asleep, Sean?”
“Yah, but I’ll see you in my dreams . . .” There was silence on the phone. A minute later I heard him snoring.
I hung up, smiling. Sean was responsible for another first in my life, my first marriage proposal! I couldn’t help giggling. He’d be mortified when I told him about tonight’s conversation. But I wondered if somewhere in his drug-induced state, he actually thought I was his girlfriend again. As soon as he’d recovered, I had to level with him.
I called Amy next. I knew she’d be thrilled when she heard the news about Mom and Dad. The usual shriek came from the phone and I had to hold the phone away from my ear for a few seconds. I laughed. Amy’s responses were so predictable.
“Have you talked to Sean yet?” she asked.
Still laughing, I said, “Yeah, but he was really high on pain killers. He was actually giggling. When I tell him about the conversation we had tonight, he may want to leave town.”
“What on earth was he saying?”
“Well, I told him about Mom and Dad, and he asked me to marry him; he suggested a double wedding.” I was laughing again; Amy was hysterical.
“Even sober, I doubt he’ll take it back. We both know how Sean feels about you.”
“Well, I certainly won’t bring it up again.”
We were both laughing when we hung up.
The phone was ringing as I was getting into bed. It had to be my other best friend.
“Hey, Kev. Everything okay at your house?”
“Oh, sure, babe. I wanted to find out if the Chief was actually at your house this afternoon to take your mom’s statement, and not because of some new disaster.”
“Yeah, Mom was ready to talk about the whole miserable experience. The Chief got the info he needed and Mom got the whole thing off her chest.” I sighed. “It was really rough, Kev. Dad couldn’t listen to all of it. But I think Mom feels better now that she’s talked about it.”
“Things like that should never happen to your mom, or my mom, or anybody’s mom.” He sounded angry.
“Kev, Mom had Rowenna flying overhead, talking to her, reminding her how strong she is, and telling her that my father was on his way to rescue her. Mom assumed that Rowenna landed in the road in front of the SUV so they’d have to stop.”
“I’ll give that dragon a big kiss if I ever get the chance,” he said.
“That’ll make two of us,” I said. “But I have some good news to share with you too.”
“Good. I could use some.”
“My parents are getting married! Dad proposed to
her while we were out on the back porch tonight.”
“Wow! That’s fantastic. I’m really happy for them, and for you. I know that’s been a dream of yours.”
“They both admitted, right in front of me, how much they’ve always loved each other. I can’t even tell you how thrilled I am. They’re both so happy.”
“You just made my night, short stuff.” I could hear him smiling. “See you in the morning.”
I put my phone away and climbed under my covers. I thought I was too excited to sleep, but I must have nodded off while I was planning their wedding. I was deliberately pushing all the threatening stuff out of my mind.
When I walked into the kitchen the next morning, everyone was smiling, and I could actually feel the happiness in the air. Mom had gone beyond pancakes this morning. There was my favorite quiche sitting on the table, looking like it had just come out of the oven.
I grinned at them. “I guess we’re celebrating this morning, aren’t we?”
His arm around Mom, my father said, “It’s nice to have something to celebrate, sweetheart. The quiche was your mother’s idea, and she’s had to physically restrain me from cutting myself a piece.” He laughed. “Please sit down so we can eat it now.”
Breakfast with my two happy parents was a dream come true for me, but it was over too quickly. I heard Kevin’s horn from outside and hugged both of them before I rushed out the door.
“Have a great day, you two. See you this afternoon.”
Ryan was wearing a bigger than usual smile when I came through the door. I had to assume he’d heard the news too. I smiled and grabbed his arm as we ran down the steps and jogged to Kevin’s Jeep. He whispered, “Happiness is contagious, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it is. Did my father speak to you last night?”
He chuckled. “No, lass. But I’m telepathic and there was no way he could keep his happiness and good mood to himself. I’m sure every telepath in Elvenwood is now aware that your father and mother will be wed soon.”
