by Lesley Crewe
Annie thought David looked wistful as his friends talked about the fun they’d have roaming the town. He was now eleven and Annie could detect a slight change in his enthusiasm for the bungalow. There were friends to play with in Round Island, but by the end of a school year they were often like strangers. And you had to play with whoever was there, even if they wouldn’t be your friend in town. It was almost two different worlds they lived in, with their summer friends and their winter friends. Annie had no reservations. Her best friend and Freddy were waiting for her.
By this time, the Macdonalds had a car of their own, a Chevrolet, and so Dad and Mom piled in the supplies they would need for a summer at the bungalow. Dad worked all week and only came out to Round Island on the weekends.
“Poor Dad, he never gets any fun,” Annie said.
“I think he enjoys the peace and quiet, so don’t worry about him,” Mom laughed.
When they arrived all of them hauled things from the car, but after that Mom and Dad said they were free to go. Mom was going to spend all day organizing, making beds, and putting groceries away, and she was happier when they weren’t underfoot.
“Just don’t go in the water,” Mom yelled after them.
“We won’t!” David answered as he ran down the hill with Annie. No one wanted to go swimming the very first of July unless June had been exceptionally warm, which it hadn’t. The water would still be bone cold.
Down at the beach, they did their customary stop at the bluffs to overlook the entire bay. Mira Gut was to the right and Catalone was in front of them. Scaterie Island was to the far left. The slight rolling hills that made up the horizon directly across from them were something Annie could picture in her head when she closed her eyes, as if that background had been imprinted on her mind.
They both kicked off their shoes and socks and carried them when they realized that the stream was too wide to jump over. The bubbling sound of the water cascading over and around the rolling pebbles was familiar, the water freezing cold and brackish, and a few rocks were slippery with moss. It took great skill not to fall in completely. Their toes were numb, so they stopped in the dry white sand and took the time to put their socks and shoes back on—no easy task when your feet are wet and sandy.
Then they were off to Long Beach, once they navigated the huge boulders that sat on one particular part of the shoreline. It was easy to cross if the tide was low, but pretty difficult when the tide was high, so you had to plan your escape if you wanted to come back the beach way. Fortunately there was easy access to where they wanted to go, just by cutting through the fields and orchards at the back of the Dillon property.
Long Beach was a vast, gently curved stretch of unsullied sand. It took a good three minutes to run across it to the next point, and only if you ran really fast. It was a great beach for writing on with a stick. Your sentence could go on forever.
They headed back onto land and through the woods to get to the edge of the Johnsons’ property, following an old pathway. Annie often thought it would be scary if they veered off course, but David taught her to always keep the sound of the waves close so that she knew where the beach was; that way she wouldn’t get lost in the thick brush.
They eventually emerged at the back of Joe and Eunie’s house. Annie skipped up to the back door first and rapped on it.
“Come on in,” cried Aunt Eunie. It sounded like she was in the pantry.
They both entered the house and the smell of baking made Annie’s stomach growl. “Hi, Mrs. Johnson.”
Eunie appeared in the doorway. “Goodness gracious, call me Aunt Eunie. We’re practically family. You’ve both grown so tall! Lila will be happy to see you. We weren’t sure if you were coming today or tomorrow.”
“Where is she?” Annie asked.
“Well, she has several places she likes to go. She and Freddy are never indoors.”
Just then the sound of a dog barking heralded Lila’s arrival. Annie and David ran out the back door as Lila and the dog emerged from the trees.
“Annie! David!”
Lila and Annie ran to each other and hugged tightly. Then Lila let Annie go and she ran and hugged David too. He was a good sport about it.
“Hi, Lila. I like your dog.”
“Freddy’s the best dog in the whole world.” She bent down to give Freddy a quick head rub, as he wiggled in and around the three friends. “Are you here to stay now?”
“We’re free!” Annie shouted. “I’m free of Miss Doom and Gloom!”
Just then Aunt Eunie stuck her head out the door. “I’ve got some bologna sandwiches made and lemonade. Would you like a picnic?”
They all shouted yes and were soon on their way to the beach to sit in the warm sand and eat to their hearts’ content. Even Freddy got a sandwich, which he gulped whole. He also finished off the lemon tarts they couldn’t eat. Then they lay back in the beach grass and looked at the giant clouds going by. Annie talked and talked and talked and David and Lila listened, or pretended to listen. Lila laughed at David when he’d interrupt his sister to give Lila the real facts of every story Annie told. Annie didn’t appreciate it, but it was a happy day so she let it go.
Out of the blue, Lila said, “Do you want to see my ballerina?”
“Sure,” said Annie.
David looked confused. “A ballerina?”
“Yes, but you can never tell anyone where she lives. Do you promise?”
They both promised.
Lila led them through the woods, much farther than either of them had ever been. They skirted Long Pond, the body of water beside Long Beach. No one lived here, as it was too swampy, so there were no neighbours or houses nearby. Annie got nervous.
“Do you know where you’re going?”
“Of course. I’m a tree fairy, and tree fairies always know exactly where they are.”
Annie glanced at David. He looked amused. “You’re a tree fairy?”
Lila stopped and turned to face him. “I am a tree fairy, and if you don’t believe me, then I won’t show you the ballerina.”
“Don’t get mad. I only asked a question.”
“Do you believe me or not?”
“Okay, okay. I believe you.”
Only then did Lila turn around. “It’s not much farther.”
It felt far to Annie, but she could still catch glimpses of the water through the trees, so she wasn’t completely lost. After stepping over dead trees and thick branches, Annie was about to say she couldn’t go any further when Lila stopped.
“It’s just ahead.”
How could thick woods suddenly turn into a large clearing? There was this huge empty space in the middle of nowhere. The entire ground was covered with soft green moss and in the centre was a gigantic juniper tree. In fact, Annie soon realized it was three juniper trees all growing together as one, its wispy, unruly branches stretched out as if seeking the sunlight that filtered through the shadowed space. The upper branches looked like the swaying arms of a dancer and the full circle of sloping lower branches appeared to be a ballet skirt made of tulle. It was constantly moving in the wind.
“It does look like a ballet dancer! Do you see it, Davy?”
David had to admit it was true.
“But this is the best part.” Lila and Freddy ran towards the tree, so the other two followed. Lila pointed at the base of the trees. “The roots have pulled away from the ground. There’s a safe cubby hole in the centre and when you’re in it, no one can find you.”
“Wow,” Annie said. “A secret hideaway.”
David crawled in under the maze of roots and disappeared. Annie heard his muffled voice. “This is amazing.”
“Let me see!” Annie wriggled her way into the dark. She couldn’t see Davy’s face, but she felt his body. He was lying on his side. It was surprisingly warm and the smell was earthy and old. “I love it in h
ere. Can you get in too, Lila?”
Lila appeared on all fours and blocked the light completely. There wasn’t enough room for her so she withdrew. The other two were silent, except for their breathing. The dog whimpered, wanting them to get out.
“Freddy’s worried.”
Annie and David crawled back out into the daylight and patted down their clothes, now covered in dirt and small shards of dead wood.
“No one else in the whole world knows about this,” Lila said. “It’s only for us. Agreed?”
The other two nodded.
“You have to say it out loud.”
David looked exasperated. “Do you want to shake on it? That’s better than saying it.”
Lila nodded.
David spat in his hand and held it out.
“What are you doing?” Lila frowned.
“This is how you know that we won’t break our word. You have to spit in your hand and shake it with both of us.”
“That’s awful.”
“No it isn’t.” Annie spat in her hand.
Reluctantly, Lila spat in her own hand too. They each shook hands with each other. Lila was about to rub her hand on her clothes when David stopped her.
“It has to dry on there or it won’t work.”
“Boys are crazy,” Lila said.
The three of them walked out of their secret cathedral towards the water. The edge of the land was quite high here, too high for jumping down to the beach. They sat and leaned their backs against the trees, their feet dangling off the ledge. Freddy sniffed around before settling by Lila. The sunlight sparkled off the tips of the waves as seagulls cried out from above.
“I love it here,” Lila said. “I’m never leaving.”
David shook his head. “Not me. I want to see the world.”
“I’m going to join the circus,” Annie said.
“As what, the bearded lady?”
“I’ll be a lion tamer.”
“Lions belong in Africa. They’re unhappy anywhere else,” Lila said.
“Do you talk to many lions?” David teased.
Lila turned her head to speak to him. “There are some creatures on this planet who know where they belong.”
David gave her a long look.
“You two belong to your parents. I belong to the ballerina tree and Round Island. I finally have a home.”
“I’m glad you showed us,” Annie said.
Lila smiled that smile of hers. “I had to. You’re my kin.”
CHAPTER FOUR
1940
Sometimes twelve-year-old Lila felt like her old life was a dream. Whenever she thought she remembered something it slipped away before she had a chance to grasp it. The only tangible evidence was the picture of her mother holding her as a baby, now framed and hanging on the wall by her bed. Even meeting Annie and David was a blur. Lila’s first real memory was driving up to the Johnsons’ in the winter with the snow-covered fir trees surrounding the perfect jewel of a house.
Now, five years later, she loved Uncle Joe and Aunt Eunie with all her heart, and the three of them were a content and happy family, contained in their own little world. Aunt Eunie always stayed home, not one for entertaining or gallivanting, and this suited Lila perfectly. Uncle Joe would come home from work and regale them with tales of his employees at the fish plant he managed. Lila had learned over the years to take what Uncle Joe said with a grain of salt. She and Aunt Eunie would exchange knowing looks in the middle of his embellished stories, but they never challenged him because he was always so entertaining.
Lila knew there was a war on, but she tried hard not to think about it. Whenever Uncle Joe listened to the news from overseas on the radio, Lila would go upstairs to her room and read a book or draw a picture. It felt safer not to know.
The one-room schoolhouse, a small wooden structure that housed almost thirty children from grades one to ten, wasn’t very far from the Johnsons’. Some of the neighbourhood kids farther along had to get a ride on a horse and sleigh in the winter if the snow was too high. The year they started plowing the roads after a snowstorm was a huge thrill for everyone in their neck of the woods. The feeling of isolation diminished greatly knowing they could get out in an emergency. The other memorable day was when they finally got electricity—no more studying by kerosene lamps.
Lila was close enough to walk to school, but Aunt Eunie had to keep Freddy in the house when she left in the morning or he’d follow her and create a huge fuss when she tried to go inside the building. The dog was finally let out about an hour later and he would still run down to the school, but he was content to lie outside and wait by the door. All the kids knew Freddy by name.
One of the older boys, Ewan, was paid to come and stoke the school’s fire at night and early in the morning so it was warm by the time the rest of the students arrived. Lila sometimes wondered when Ewan slept.
Their teacher, Miss MacAuley, was a sweet young woman who spoke softly and was full of encouragement. Lila bloomed under her care. It was a happy day when Lila was given a fountain pen instead of a pencil. She worked hard at her penmanship, but, like Annie, she loathed math. For a girl who was very content to stay in one place, her fascination with geography was a bit odd, but Miss MacAuley made a point of letting Lila take home books that had maps in them. She would pore over them at night upstairs in her room.
Lila didn’t have a lot of friends. Other children tried to befriend her, but Lila just preferred to be on her own. The kids knew that Joe and Eunie Johnson weren’t her real parents, but who was she, then, and where did she come from? Lila never talked about it.
There were a few girls she liked, but they spent all their time giggling at the boys, and Lila avoided the boys. They looked at her as if they wanted something, and it made her nervous.
One day after school, Lila crunched through the snow with Freddy at her heels. One of her classmates, Archie, ran after her.
“Wait up, Lila. Going home?”
“Yes.”
“Want me to carry your books?”
“No, thanks.”
Lila hurried along, but he kept up with her.
“I wondered if you wanted to go to the show sometime.”
“No, thank you.”
“Come on. You can’t like being by yourself all the time.”
She stopped. “But I do. I do like being by myself. I have to go now.”
He reached out and touched one of her curls. “You have beautiful hair.”
Lila slapped his hand away and started to run. When she realized he was chasing her, she dropped her school bag in an attempt to go faster, but he was gaining on her.
“Leave me alone!”
And he did. He stopped dead in his tracks. It took a moment before Lila realized why. Ewan, a heavy-set boy, came out from behind a tree and stood in his way. He stared Archie down.
Archie spat. “What do you want, you dumbass?”
“Leave her be.”
“Why, you want her for yourself? She won’t give you the time of day. You’re too stupid.”
Lila went up to Ewan and put her arm through his. “I don’t want to go to the show with you because Ewan and I are going. Isn’t that right, Ewan?”
“Yep.”
“You two deserve each other.” Archie turned around and walked away.
Ewan picked up Lila’s books and gave them to her.
“Thank you.”
Ewan nodded.
“I’m sorry I lied, but he had no right to call you stupid. You’re one of the smartest people I ever met.”
“I am?”
“Yes. The teacher asked us what a group of crows was called and you said a murder of crows. Everyone laughed, but you were right. I think you love animals, like I do.”
“I do.”
“You’re also th
e nicest boy I’ve ever met, except for my friend David. He’s nice too. Today I’ll write in my journal that my hero saved me.” When she laughed, Ewan gave her a smile.
“Bye, Ewan! Come on, Freddy.”
When Lila got home, she shrugged off her coat and sat at the kitchen table, catching her breath. Aunt Eunie walked in. “Did you run home?”
Lila nodded. “Aunt Eunie, would you please cut off my hair?”
“Why? It’s so beautiful.”
“I don’t want it to be beautiful and I need your help.”
“Oh dear, I love your hair.”
“You can keep the hair that falls on the floor.”
“Gee, thanks.”
So Aunt Eunie cut Lila’s hair up to the nape of her neck. She sighed when she saw all the soft curls around Lila’s feet. “There. Are you happy?”
Lila looked in the mirror and fluffed it with her hands. “Now I look more like Annie, which is a good thing. Thank you. Come on, Freddy.” She and the dog bounded up the stairs.
The best time of day for Lila was in the early evening, after the supper dishes had been washed and put away. The family would gather in the parlour and enjoy the crackling fire, Boots spread out in front of the hearth, Aunt Eunie in her rocking chair crocheting trim for her pillow cases, Uncle Joe reading the Glace Bay Gazette in his leather armchair, and Lila curled up in one corner of the sofa, reading, with Freddy curled up in the other corner, keeping Lila’s feet warm. Sometimes they never said a word to each other, but their contentment was palpable.
Lila made bargains with God that if things could just stay like this, she would be his true servant. She wasn’t exactly sure what she would do, but every Sunday the minister mentioned it so she assumed that being a servant was important.
“Did any of the kids in school mention your short hair?” Aunt Eunie asked.
“Yes.”
“What did they say?”
“I don’t remember.”
Aunt Eunie smiled over Lila’s head at Uncle Joe, who’d lowered his paper to exchange glances with her. “You must be a very old soul, Lila Jane, because you can’t seem to remember anything.”
