Gypsy Spirits

by Marianne Spitzer

  He would proclaim proudly, “I weigh the same today as I did in high school.”

  When she turned onto the long drive, Annamarie saw him sitting on the front porch. Dressed in bib overalls and a plain white t-shirt, he looked more like a farmer than a businessman. Annamarie climbed out of her car, walked over to him, and hugged him.

  “Hi Grandfather Logan, I hope I’m not late.”

  “Right on time, Annamarie,” he replied smiling. “Before we get started, I’d like to talk to you about this ‘Grandfather Logan’ thing.”

  She stared at him a bit confused. “Okay, what’s wrong?”

  Grinning he said, “Nothing’s wrong, but ‘Grandfather Logan’ sounds like an old man’s name. Do you think you could call me ‘Grandpa’ and drop the Logan?”

  “Sure,” Her eyes mirrored her joy.

  It was quite a surprise because no one called him grandpa. Daniel always called him grandfather, George and Maureen called him father. In town, she heard his friends call him “ole Mike” and some people called him “old man Logan,” but no one ever called him simply grandpa. Taking her hand, they walked up onto the porch and sat down.

  “It has been a long time since we had a young woman in this family and Maureen is so stuffy.”

  Annamarie stifled a laugh. Daniel’s mom was dynamic, but she was formal and proper.

  “Maureen never was a daughter figure to me, and I truly miss my wife and baby daughter. You’re exactly the kind of girl I would choose to be my daughter. Calling me grandpa would make me feel special.”

  Hugging him, she replied, “You’re important to me. I’ve loved you since I first met you.”

  He slapped his knee happily. “It’s settled then. From now on you’ll call me grandpa and when you have children they can call me great-grandpa. I’m sure they’ll be exactly like you and not Daniel.”

  Not knowing how to answer, she hugged him again. She hoped she would have a chance to ask him some questions about Daniel.

  Michael Logan was a special man, and now he was Annamarie’s grandpa. Both her maternal and paternal grandfathers passed away before her birth. She never had a grandpa until now. Annamarie was thrilled.

  ***

  They were planning to visit the greenhouse when George’s car drove up. Stopping in front of the house, he and Maureen emerged from the parked car.

  “Hello Father,” called George.

  “George, Maureen what a nice surprise,” answered grandpa.

  “Annamarie, I didn’t know you’d be here,” mumbled Maureen.

  “Annamarie and I enjoy spending time in the greenhouse.”

  “It’s Saturday. I assumed she’d be with Daniel,” George said.

  “What?” Annamarie exclaimed, “I thought Daniel was with you working on your car?”

  “We’re taking the car to a body shop on Monday.”

  Annamarie dropped back onto the porch swing. “He lied to me again. He said he had to spend today with you.”

  “Umm…, maybe we have our wires crossed,” Maureen said.

  Annamarie asked, “Didn’t you call him early this morning?”

  Maureen’s face gave Annamarie her answer before she spoke, “I umm…”

  “Don’t worry. You don’t have to cover for him. It’s not the first time he lied about where he’s going.” Trying not to sulk, she didn’t want them to know how much she was hurt by Daniel’s indiscretions.

  Attempting to change the subject, George said, “Father, I have some papers we need to sign.”

  “Let’s go inside,” grandpa nodded rising from his chair. “The women can talk while we take care of business.”

  Pushing the porch swing with one foot, Annamarie stared at the morning glories climbing the front gate. Maureen strolled to the far end of the porch. She spun and strode up to Annamarie exclaiming, “I don’t appreciate you accusing my son of being a liar.”

  Pushing the swing harder, Annamarie retorted, “I wouldn’t say it if it weren't true. It happens all the time. I’m sure he’s out with the guys trying to find a way to fight the spirits again. The same friends you wish he’d stay away from.”

  “Watch your tone, young lady, and don’t mention spirits. Daniel doesn’t need any more spirit talk.”

  Maureen grabbed the swing and jerked it to a stop, nearly toppling Annamarie off.

  “Let go,” Annamarie cried. “That hurt. What’s the matter with you? Leave me alone. It’s not my fault Daniel sees things that aren’t there and believes spirits exist. He believed in them long before he ever met me. Maybe you’re the cause.”

  Annamarie stomped down the steps to the lawn and away from the house, leaving a livid Maureen on the porch. She walked toward the oaks knowing Maureen wouldn’t follow. Kicking the grass along the way, she fumed over Daniel’s dishonesty and his mom’s attitude.

  ***

  Annamarie turned when she heard George’s car leave. Grandpa waved at her, and she hurried back to the porch.

  He met her half-way and put his arm around her. “Don’t let Maureen get to you. She has days when she’s difficult and days when she’s impossible. Today was somewhere in between.”

  His kindness brought unwanted tears to her eyes. She wondered how a family could consist of a man as kind as grandpa and someone who could be as cruel as Maureen.

  “Let’s get to work on those lilies,” he said.

  They walked slowly toward the greenhouse. Grandpa loved to putter around and build things. The greenhouse was one of his first projects, and it had held up well over the years. He built it solely for his lilies. His love for them was well known. Several varieties grew in all corners of the greenhouse. Grandpa grew lilies Annamarie had never heard of or seen before.

  There were Easter lilies, calla lilies, fairy bells, queens cup, and red firecracker flowers. For Annamarie, the loveliest were the Asiatic lilies with their yellow, red, white, and pink shades.

  ***

  She loved the lilies in the greenhouse. They reminded Annamarie of her wedding day. Grandpa had told Annamarie he would bring her a wedding bouquet before the wedding. She placed her flower order at the local florist, but didn’t request a bouquet for herself. Everyone thought she was a bit silly to put her trust in an old man no matter who he was. However, she knew Daniel’s grandfather wouldn’t let her down.

  Paula and Maureen were becoming increasingly concerned. Both agreed they should have ordered the bouquet they loved with over a dozen white roses. Paula asked Annamarie’s dad, Theo, to go to the local florist and buy some white roses. Opening the church doors, Theo saw grandpa walking toward the door. He had arrived moments before the wedding began with a bouquet of the most beautiful lilies anyone had ever seen. The bouquet was incredible. All Asiatic lilies most were yellow, white, and pink with a red one in the center. The stems were wrapped in white lace ribbon with two wide streamers hanging beneath the bouquet along with thin lace ribbon streamers that matched the lilies shades.

  Annamarie was thrilled to see the glorious colors radiating against her white dress. It seemed they were meant to add a touch of her inner self.

  He explained to her each lily represented something he wished for her. “Pink stands for long love, yellow for happiness, white for peace, and red for passion.”

  ***

  “Annamarie,” Grandpa asked, “Are you lost in thought?” She had to admit she was, but his question brought her back to the present.

  “Please, don’t let what Maureen said hurt you. She can be spiteful, and she would lie or kill for Daniel. In her eyes, he can do no wrong. She nearly lost him at birth and being her only child, she can be a wild-cat when it comes to protecting him.”

  “I didn’t know she almost lost him. It explains a lot about her spoiling Daniel. I promise to do my best to understand.”

  They spent a delightful hour working in the greenhouse trimming plants, watering them and cutting a few blooms to take into the house. While Grandpa Logan was in such a happy mood, she thought she woul
d ask him a few questions about Daniel. Knowing he was disappointed in Daniel, she hoped he would be candid.

  “Grandpa, may I ask you a question about Daniel?”

  “Sure, kid. Shoot.”

  “Daniel seems to be nervous about anything supernatural, and he thinks some sort of spirit lives in the woods. Has he always been so afraid of things like that?”

  “Hmm, Daniel can be a real handful. When he was little he was a sweet boy. However, his unusual imagination worried all of us. He would weave strange stories about spirits roaming the woods. Since I buried my wife and child near the house, he believed they’d joined the other spirits.”

  “What other spirits?” She queried, moving closer to him to catch every word.

  He had her hooked with his story. There were no old wives’ tales or legends about anyplace near where they lived. The local cemetery’s tombstones dated back to the mid-1800s, but no ghost stories or strangers lurking in the woods. She was curious about Daniel’s “spirits.”

  “No one understands what makes Daniel uneasy or afraid of the woods. He will go up to the hunting cabin with our family or his friends, have a wonderful time, and suddenly become sullen. We always needed to leave when he was sure the spirits were near.”

  Annamarie swallowed and thought before she spoke, but she had to know. “Grandpa, has Daniel ever been diagnosed with any emotional problems? I apologize for asking if I’m out of line.”

  “Not at all, that is what Maureen thought. She took him to a hospital in the city, and no one could find anything. He was fifteen at the time. He became angry at his parents for not believing him, and that’s when he began to act out. His grades fell, we knew he was drinking with his friends up at the cabin, and he would stay out until all hours. He blamed his problems on spirits.”

  Annamarie listened intently, not moving.

  “Maureen hoped she could spoil him into being a decent son, and George felt being strict would be the best way. They were both wrong, and I let them know it. That’s why Maureen and I don’t talk much. She’s so worried about being cut out of my will she would never get angry with me regardless of what I said.”

  That explained why Daniel called his parents heaven and hell. His mom was sweet to him, and he and his father tolerated each other. His parents gave him his motorcycle when he was sixteen, but it was Maureen who was the driving force behind the decision. His father forced him into becoming an insurance agent by threatening to cut off his allowance. Yes, it explained a lot about Daniel.

  “Thanks for the talk, Grandpa, but I need to get my errands done and go home,” Annamarie said.

  “You have a little more time to spend with an old man don’t you, Annamarie?”

  “Sure Grandpa.”

  They walked back to the house, sitting down in wooden chairs on the large white porch. She loved the house with its porch running the full length of the house. Three stories high, painted white with black shutters, and stain-glass windows, it reminded Annamarie of homes in romance novels. It appeared like a picture from an old postcard. In the summer, colorful flowers grew everywhere, in well-tended beds, up trellises, and dangled down from hanging planters above the porch. In the winter, snow covered the grounds transforming it into a frosty wonderland.

  “Do you need any help getting those lilies in water?” She asked.

  “No, but come in anyway. Elaine will get us some lemonade.”

  Elaine was grandpa’s part-time housekeeper and cook. She was there on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. On Saturday nights, grandpa played poker with four of his friends. They always had dinner at Ray’s first. Sunday meant lunch at Maureen’s which was more like a formal dinner, and she always made enough to be sure grandpa had plenty for a meal on Monday. Elaine baked extra biscuits and cookies for any snacks grandpa might want during the week. She also purchased his groceries, which assured his pantry and refrigerator were well stocked.

  Winter brought snowstorms and no one wanted grandpa to be stranded without food. He owned a truck with a snow plow for his driveway, and no one could convince him someone else should plow for him. He would say with a chuckle, “if need be, I can plow my way into town.” No one doubted he would try if needed.

  “As long as I pull breath, I will care for my home,” grandpa would say defiantly.

  Entering the living room or front parlor as grandpa liked to call it; he took the lilies and walked off to find Elaine. Annamarie loved his home. It was the most beautiful house she had ever seen.

  Returning with the lilies in a vase, he said, “Margaret and I purchased most of this furniture during our first year of marriage.”

  “It’s in perfect condition. You took excellent care of it.”

  “Margaret did while she was alive, and I always had a housekeeper after she passed. Elaine is the best one I ever hired.”

  The house had stunning hardwood floors that looked brand new although she knew they were as old as the house.

  “Margaret loved color. She’s responsible for the colorful oriental rugs throughout the house,” Grandpa said proudly.

  There was a rug in the parlor, dining room, master bedroom, and Grandpa’s study. He laughed when he told Annamarie his wife was kind, and picked a rug with muted colors for his study. It was the right place for the gentlemen to retire after dinner for cigars and cognac, and not feel they walked into a floral paradise. The rest of the house had carpets fitting each room with the most colorful in the master bedroom.

  ***

  Annamarie’s thoughts drifted to the first time she saw the house.

  Grandpa stopped using the master bedroom when Margaret died. Daniel showed it to Annamarie after their engagement. It was a walk back in history.

  Of course, Daniel tried to frighten her when he whispered, “My grandmother haunts this house. I saw her spirit downstairs. I think she hides up here during the day and waits until dark. She could be hiding in the attic. No one ever goes up to the third floor.”

  “Daniel, stop. This room is beautiful and no one is haunting it.” She pulled away from him to explore the room.

  Delicate floral wallpaper, lacy white curtains, white chenille bedspread, crystal containers on the dressers, and floral photo frames with family pictures, the Oriental rug with the most vibrant colors completed the room.

  Margaret had also ordered a custom-made long runner. It extended from the north wing double door entrance all the way to the kitchen, which was the most southern room in the house.

  Grandpa never entered the master bedroom. Annamarie knew a heart could break, but had no idea how long it could remain broken. It was a lesson she learned from grandpa. She also learned where part of Daniel’s fears oringinated. At the end of the hall, a double door entrance to the north wing is rather dark even during the day. It was at the end of that hall where Daniel claimed he saw his grandmother and her baby. Annamarie assumed it was an optical illusion, and if his grandmother was going to haunt the house, she thought it would be upstairs where her room and the adjoining nursery were closed off. Daniel laughed when she made the suggestion, and she never brought it up again.

  ***

  Hearing glasses clinking brought her thoughts back to the parlor.

  Grandpa smiled at her. “It warms my heart you love it here so much, child. I know when I’m gone you’ll take superb care of this place for me.”

  “Me?” She replied, “I know Maureen has plans for this house when you no longer want to live here.”

  “I will die here,” grandpa said. “Maureen will never live here. This house is meant for you and Daniel. It needs love, and while you and Daniel may not always be together in the future, I know you have enough love to fill this house. It’ll always be your home.”

  “Yes, but…”

  “Remember that, Annamarie. The house will always be your home,” grandpa repeated.

  She wasn’t sure if she should be worried about grandpa or grateful. She hugged him tight instead of thinking about it further.

  “
I promise I’ll always remember.”

  Annamarie had no idea why Grandpa Logan was so emphatic about her remembering the house would be hers. She worried about his health and advancing age.

  Chapter Four: The Cabin

  Not many people in Timmus Woods have the desire to get away for the weekend or take long vacations in the country. They live in an idyllic woodland setting. Most homes had patios and pools in their backyards, and a barbecue or picnic isn’t a special event.

  Acorn Park is an open expanse of approximately two acres between the oaks and Acorn Lake which resembles an enormously large pond. Joggers use the quiet area more than anyone else, and people have long since given the lake to the ducks and geese migrating south each fall.

  An old logging road heading east past the park leads into the woods. Anyone wishing to travel the road would need a 4WD vehicle.

  The only people in town with 4WD vehicles were Daniel, two of his friends, the sheriff, fire chief, and a few volunteer firefighters. Daniel and his friends loved to drive their vehicles up and down the logging road, but they also enjoyed racing them around town, much to the chagrin of the sheriff.

  Owning a cabin in the woods for a vacation get-away was not something the average person in Timmus Woods gave much thought. However, the Logans weren’t your average family. Daniel’s father built the cabin when he was a young man. He loved to hunt any animal that crossed his path. He hunted for fun, not food, but when he got older he stopped going to the cabin. Before he did, he taught Daniel to use his guns. Daniel seemed to share his love of killing anything that moved. Annamarie always wondered if Daniel would draw the line with a person if they crossed him. She had her doubts. His father’s decision to no longer use the cabin suited Daniel’s needs. He and his friends could use the cabin anytime and no one would bother them.

  Daniel enjoyed hosting parties at the cabin. If a group of teens was partying and Daniel said, “Did you see that? Let’s get out of here.” At least one girl would scream saying she saw “spirits.” Their belief reinforced his.