This suited Barb because she had wanted to have a chat with her friend. She parked and met Henry at the café near the bank.
“How are you managing these days, Henry?” The poor man seemed to be going in so many different directions lately that she and Sam were worried about him. Dominic was another one who worried about him.
“Barb, you sound just like young Dominic,” Henry replied. “Why do you guys worry about me? You have a family to worry about, and he has his sister as well as his mother to worry about; so why me?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Could it be because we care about you? You are too much. Now don’t you forget that you are no longer in the navy, where you had to worry about everyone else before yourself. So please try to be just a bit selfish and demand some rights in this world and get to the bottom of the stuff that bothers you. Don’t deny yourself the privileges of human rights — stand up for what is long due to you.” Barb realized she got a bit carried away but she did not regret it.
“What is this all about?” Henry was quite surprised about the outburst but pleased at the same time. “You seem to know something that I don’t.” He was unable to grasp the gist of it.
This got him thinking well into the night and for a few nights to come. During the day, he kept busy with the daily routine, but at night, he kept coming back to what Barb had said. She had this tendency to get him going quite often, which was something new for Henry. On one hand, Lily had too much compassion to let him know just how she felt. Barb, on the other hand, would dish it out straight and with fewer words. She would get to the point and seemed afraid of nothing. People like that can be very helpful . . . or very destructive. Had it not been for Barb, he would have avoided a whole lot of things lately.
Sasha was another one who would not spare you, if she could help you.
A week or so passed, and Henry still couldn’t let go of what Barb had said to him. He decided to go and ask her about it.
“Barb, am I imposing if I step in for a few minutes?” Henry said as he peeked into her private office, where she was concentrating on something.
“Oh, Henry — please come in. What is on your mind?” She pushed the papers aside and put a paper weight on them. Then she turned to Henry and gave him her undivided attention. “I’m all ears,” she said with a wide smile.
Barb was always pleased to see him. She had often wanted to tell Henry how he reminded her of her father, who had passed away quite young of an aneurism. She was only twelve years old. She’d had a good relationship with him and was always allowed to come to him with any problems. Henry was the next best thing.
“I have been thinking a lot about what you said to me the other day, about defending myself. Am I supposed to know what or whom I am defending myself from?” Then, he paused and said, “Unless you were referring to my accidents by any chance?”
“Yes, that is exactly what I was talking about. If I were you, I would be knocking on doors and perhaps even crying on some shoulders trying to find out who would want you — and your brother — dead.” She pulled her chair closer to the desk and leaned on it. “What is the holdup regarding the information concerning the two accidents?”
“Barb, I am too busy just staying alive, because I know that those two children still need me for a while longer. I was never blessed with having children and for the first time in my life I feel useful. You and several other people may think of me as naïve for believing that Dominic and Sasha need me, but something in my gut tells me they do.
“I gave my promise to Dominic that I would stand by and help him financially until he gets on his feet as a psychologist. The boy deserves this. As for Sasha, I never got involved in any of her finances, but I gave her my word that I would stand by and if she ever needed anything, I would be there for her as well.” Then he paused . . . “Come to think of it, she has never asked for anything. Neither has Dominic, for that matter. She is as proud as her brother; but of course, she is making pretty good money by now at the store, and their mother is also working —”
“Well, their mother is not ‘all there,’ exactly, when it comes to working. I can’t believe that they keep her on, for all the time off that she takes. However, I must say she is good at what she does.” Barb has always maintained how talented her friend really was — if she would just use her abilities.
“As you know, Dominic is at the end of his basic studies, and another two years will bring him right where he wants to be.” Henry smiled at that with confidence. “Then he will no longer need me.” To which he gave a sigh. Barb was sure that it was with relief.
Barb understood what he meant but was still not satisfied with the whole conversation.
“Well, Henry, I respect your wishes, so what can I do for you today?” She smiled at him. “I promise to be a good girl and behave.” She wished she could just go and get it done for him.
“Actually, you have answered all my questions. I did mean to ask you about Susanne . . . how she was doing emotionally. I don’t wish to impose on her children by asking too many questions, in case I start something unpleasant. They have every right to tell me it’s none of my business but neither of them would ever say that to me.” He was right about that. The kids respected him from the bottoms of their hearts.
“Oh, I see you are referring to what I said about her being unreliable regarding her work. Yes, she is still somewhat weak from time to time. And it is partly because of Larry. He has been spotted around. He has changed his appearance somewhat (whether on purpose or by chance, I don’t know). I hope he ran into a wall. Well, that’s how I feel about him. I am not denying it.”
“Is Susanne still afraid that he might come after them?” Henry was now worried.
“Yes — one never knows what that man might come up with. Something tells me that he is the one who should be on medication, and perhaps then Susanne wouldn’t need any. I have known Susanne well before she started needing those pills. We were not friends then by any means, but we attended the same college. After college, we both got married and went our separate ways. Then, one day, I ran into her at a baby shower, and after that, we reconnected and became close friends. It’s a small world, as they say.”
Barb and Henry both realized it was time to bring the conversation to a close. She had a few things to finish, and he had an appointment.
“Thank you, Barb. It’s been a real pleasure talking with you, as always,” Henry said as he got up to go.
Henry felt better after their talk. He could always count on Barb to set him straight. She was an honest person, without being offensive. As Sam often said, “Don’t ask Barb anything that you don’t want to hear about.” He himself used to get caught by telling her about something he had done — just to make conversation — and she would tell him how he should have known better.
Barb decided to give Susanne a call and see if she was all right. Just talking about her had rung the bell. One never knew what the woman was up to . . .
“Hi, how are you?” Barb tried to sound casual, as if she had just happened to think of her.
“Barb, I was just talking about you with Dominic. We were discussing what we should do this summer. I mean about the holidays. Dominic is hooked on the cottage again, Sasha is right there with him, and I just don’t have the same way of thinking.” She seemed evasive.
“I’m surprised that Dominic is at home today. He has been working a lot over the weekends.” Barb was sure something must have prompted the boy to stay at home for a change. “What brought this up, about you not wanting to go to the cottage anymore?” She waited for a minute.
“Barb, I have never wanted to go to that cottage in the first place —”
“Mom, what are you saying?” Dominic could be heard in the background.
“Dominic, we will not discuss this any further. If you don’t mind, Barb and I have something else to talk about.” She excused herself to Barb. “I will let you know what I plan on doing this summer.” She seemed irritated and had dismissed h
er son in order to speak with Barb. “I’m telling you, Barb, this boy will send me to my grave with his obsession regarding that man.”
“What man are we talking about?” Barb knew very well what man Susanne was referring to but she chose not to acknowledge it. She waited until Susanne had gotten a hold on herself again and decided to admit being jealous of Henry, when it came to priorities in her son’s decisions.
Barb asked, playing it safe: “Is something going on that I don’t know about?”
“No, Barb, nothing new is going on. I am just tired of having Henry so involved in our lives.”
“Henry is involved in all of our lives. As far as I know, we want it that way, don’t we?”
“I am not comfortable in his presence. He makes me feel uneasy.”
“Do you want to talk about it? Is that what you meant when you said to Dominic that you wanted to talk with me about something?”
“No. I didn’t mean anything in particular. Oh, Barb, I don’t want to talk about it. I am tired.” She became quite irritated again and claimed to have a headache. So, they both bade each other goodbye.
Barb was quite disturbed about this and decided to have a word with Dominic, who was by now at their house quite a lot. Trevor had made it very clear that Dominic is by far the smartest guy around . . .
At the first chance, Barb asked him what was going on. “Is everything all right at your house? I don’t mean to pry, but your mother has taken quite a dislike toward Henry. Has anything new developed recently that we should all be aware of?”
“No, Mrs. Preston, everything is just the same as always. My mother has never cared for Henry but she refuses to talk about it. Sasha and I have tried time and time again to penetrate that corner of her mind in order to help her clear the cobwebs, but without any luck.”
“Something is bothering her. I wish I could help her.”
“Mrs. Preston, you sound just like Mrs. Miller. She has tried on several occasions, but my mother is in total denial about reality. If she were only willing to ask for help in dealing with her emotions, she would eventually be grateful for the freedom she could obtain by facing her demons.”
“Well, Dominic, you had better stick to your plans for your future in order to be able to help her someday.” She meant it and then changed the subject in order to ease any further conversation regarding his mother.
At that point, Nicole walked in. She had had a late night at the community centre and she was tired. She had been working more or less every night in recent months after school, and it had taken a toll on her.
“Hi, everybody!” To which they all replied, happily. Now they were all together and felt complete. “I hope to be able to withstand another two years of this till I get through my studies and then I can concentrate only on my career.” She then turned to Dominic and said, “I can’t tell you how happy I am that you will complete your studies at the same time, because you deserve a break as well.” Dominic gave her a friendly squeeze.
Sam said, “The two of you will need a long holiday before you start working full time. I am warning you: Once you do, it will be a long time before you get a decent holiday. Even though the start of a new career is good and exciting, things don’t always go smoothly right away.” Sam was being realistic, as always.
The kids were nodding. Nicole said, “Yes, Dad, we know that you mean well, but the two of us will not have the money for holidays at the end of our studies. Just having some time off without deadlines, and, hopefully, fewer complications, will do fine. Besides, you would miss us if we went away.” She chuckled.
“That’s right,” Dominic added. “We have all been taking vacations together at the cottage, so let’s all go there this summer, and the two of us can perhaps have our honeymoon somewhere else.”
“What?” Barb cut in. “Did I just hear what I think I heard?”
“That makes two of us.” Nicole, who was also surprised, looked at Dominic kind of stunned.
“Forgive me, Nicole. For a long time, I have been trying to get up the nerve to ask your parents for your hand in marriage. This whole conversation presented an opportunity to do so. Of course, I have no right to ask such a question while I am still a student, because I could not provide for you and look after you unless I am working full time.”
“Yes, I know that — but why bring it up just now?”
“Oh, I don’t know. You and I both know that we were meant for each other. I suppose I decided to jump in and come right out with it, while I had the courage.” He hugged her even harder now. Nicole slapped him lightly on the shoulder and held him tight in return.
“So what has all this to do with our holidays?” Trevor commented, at which they all laughed.
In the meantime, Olivia was bursting with her own news. “Would you people mind very much if I added something to the celebration?” She had been seeing a young man almost ever since she started working for her mother at the office. His name was Mark Osborn. His family owned two clothing stores, and Mark had completed his degree in economics. His family fully expected him to follow in his father’s footsteps.
“Are you trying to tell us that you won’t be joining us at the cottage?” her mother interrupted. “I hope you realize that we have barely met this young man — and now are you trying to desert us and spend the holidays with him?” Barb was not impressed with the way Olivia approached the whole idea of so-called “good news.” “So what is the addition to this celebration supposed to be about, my dear?” Olivia fidgeted somewhat uncomfortably, because she was supposed to wait until Mark showed up before sharing her news. However, since Dominic mentioned the idea of a honeymoon, she just couldn’t hold back. Luckily, at that moment, Mark showed up, and all eyes went to him.
“Hi, everybody! Am I in some sort of trouble?” All of them laughed.
“Not as far as I am concerned,” Sam was quick to say in order to restore peace in the house.
However, that did not satisfy Mark. “What’s going on?” Mark wanted to know. He gave Olivia a look that proved he was pretty sure he knew what was going on. He would have appreciated being present at the revealing of their plans, but he knew Olivia quite well and knew she was both happy and anxious about their decision.
Olivia felt bad and jumped up from her seat and apologized to Mark for not being able to wait until he got there. “Mark, forgive me for getting ahead of myself. Dominic had just announced that he and Nicole are planning on getting married, and at that moment I simply had to tell my family about our exciting plans as well. That is all I said. Go ahead and tell them the rest in your own words.”
“Actually, I am not going to tell anything. I was going to ask something.” He felt uncomfortable and didn’t quite know how to begin, under the circumstances. He needed a bit of time. “Mr. and Mrs. Preston, I would like to ask you for Olivia’s hand in marriage. I am aware that we haven’t been dating for a very long time but I am sure we both feel the same about each other.” He took Olivia’s hand when she came to him and held it so hard she had to remind him to ease up.
The Prestons were delighted with the news and of course gave their consent. Only Trevor was a bit perturbed that they were fussing about instead of concentrating on the holidays. The rest of the family were hugging and congratulating back and forth. They were chatting above one another how this came about, and what a coincidence it was to hear about both engagements on the same night. Many questions were being asked, and Barb and Sam were overwhelmed all of a sudden.
This all came up just two days after Sam and Barb had talked about Olivia and Mark possibly getting serious about their relationship. They had noticed that Olivia had been more relaxed lately; as Trevor put it, “more human.” She had dropped her fantasies regarding her childhood dreams of becoming an actress, or an opera singer (a diva). She could not sing, after all, nor was she willing to work hard.
“Wait a minute,” Barb was saying. “I think we should all start from the beginning and in some order so that we can all u
nderstand everything in proper perspective. Don’t you think?”
Now they were all trying to decide who should start and where . . .
Sam added, “Okay, now that we are all here together, let’s have Nicole and Dominic have their say. After all, they were the first to announce their future plans, even though not in any straight order.” He was trying to be fair to both couples; but everyone had been quite aware for some time that Nicole and Dominic were meant for one another. He turned to them. “So, may we hear more about your future plans?”
“You go first, Nicole,” Dominic said.
Nicole put her arm around Dominic’s shoulders and announced, “We would like to get married at the cottage, if Henry wouldn’t mind. Needless to say, we’ve not approached him about it yet.”
Dominic was quick to add, “This announcement simply ‘happened’ tonight, and it is just as well; I’m glad it did. Now, about the cottage: This has been our wish ever since we fell in love. Up to now it has all been a roller coaster regarding the cottage, as you all know, so there could be changes in our plan.”
Nicole said, “I hate to tell you this — it would not be fair to Henry — but we would have preferred the old cottage for our wedding. We had a sentimental attachment to that one. We are both aware that it sounds as if we are ungrateful, but we are far from that. The new cottage will do just fine. We just need to ask Henry for his permission but we are not expecting any trouble there.”
Barb was so taken with the way the two of them spoke she found herself in tears. “Pardon me for being equally sentimental — I fully understand it. However, the new version of the cottage will probably be a more convenient place for a wedding.” Barb was known to be the most practical person around. Henry always complimented her on her organizational skills and practicality. Henry always agreed with her, no matter what she proposed to him.
Now it was time to ask Olivia and Mark what their plans might be.
Sam asked, “Let’s hear it from you guys: Where do you wish to be married? And when?” To which Olivia replied, “I have no intention of getting married at that place.” This surprised them all. Not the answer so much as the attitude. Olivia had never quite taken to “that place,” as she called it. Mark, on the other hand, loved going to the cottage with the rest of them.
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