Shadows on the Lane

by Virginia Rose Richter

  “He says it’s more sounds or smells that you need to repeat,” Jessie said. “I’ve been concentrating on what happened that day before the accident.” She was quiet for a few minutes—thinking. “But there’s something else.”

  He stopped and faced her. “What do you know?”

  “You cannot tell anyone. Not anyone, Bryce. Not your dad or Miss Tyler.”

  He took her hand and they started walking again. “I promise.”

  Now she couldn’t think. She could only feel his hand holding hers. She took a deep breath. “You know Mrs. Livingston has a daughter, Rita?”

  He nodded. “My dad said he dated her when they were in high school. I guess she’s an alcoholic now.” They stopped at the curb and waited for a passing car. “What about her?”

  “It’s just a feeling. They have a car parked in their barn. Rita’s not supposed to drive because of her drinking. But one day when I was at my lesson, I know she drove that barn car because we heard it leave and Mrs. Livingston got very upset.” She looked at Bryce. “I’m wondering if she’s the one who hit Sunny. Has Sunny ever met Rita?”

  “Maybe.” He sounded excited. “Right after Sunny came, Dad and I went to Mrs. Livingston’s to arrange for my lessons. Sunny was with us. But I don’t remember seeing anyone except the teacher that day.”

  “Was Sunny with you the whole time?” Jessie asked.

  “I think so. No, wait. She was getting bored and asked dad if she could go outside.” Bryce was quiet. “Do you think she met Rita that day?”

  “It all fits,” said Jessie. “But how do we prove it?” She frowned. “Daddy says the police can’t go looking into people’s barns without a good reason.”

  By now, they had reached Courthouse Square. The green and white bandstand sat on the lawn, with a fresh coat of paint after the winter storms. People were talking and moving about, finding places to put their blankets or lawn chairs and preparing to listen to the music. Musicians on the platform tuned their instruments and spoke quietly among themselves.

  When they stepped onto the lawn, Jessie felt as if everyone was looking at them and she dropped Bryce’s hand. She glanced at him. He had a little smile and held himself straight and tall. She tried to do the same but instead gave a nervous giggle. I’ll never be smooth like Bryce.

  The concert began with the “Star Spangled Banner” and the crowd stood up. Seated back on the grass, people forgot about Bryce and Jessie and enjoyed the music while they ate lunch from picnic baskets and read books. Small children chased each other around trees and were shushed by their parents when they became too rowdy.

  Jessie felt so happy. She clapped with enthusiasm after each piece and drank a cup of punch that Bryce brought her from the drink stand. It’s a perfect day!

  When the performance ended, they stood and worked their way to the street. Then she saw it. “Bryce!” she said. “Look at the red flower on that antenna! That’s the car!”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Jessie and Bryce pushed through the crowd, but by the time they reached the curb, the car was gone.

  “Drats!” exclaimed Jessie. “What should we do?”

  Bryce’s face was red with fury. “I can’t believe that car is still driving around loose. Let’s go to ROSIE’S CAFÉ and have a coke. We need to do something, make a plan.”

  They sat in a booth and sipped their drinks. “This is what I remember about that afternoon at the museum,” said Jessie. “Let’s write it down.”

  Bryce still looked grim but seemed calmer. He pulled a paper napkin from the silver holder and got up to ask the waitress for a pencil. “Okay. Fire away,” he said.

  “The sounds were people talking and laughing, your dad tapping a glass, dishes and silverware, chairs scraping on the wood floor…” said Jessie. Bryce was writing it down.

  “What about people walking, like the waitresses? And once someone dropped a tray and it was really loud,” said Bryce. He added that to the list.

  “I forgot about that,” said Jessie. “How about smells? What do you remember?”

  Bryce smiled. “The cookies. I remember because they smelled like they just came out of the oven. And the smell of coffee. Some people don’t like tea. And how about the lilacs? They were all over the place, in vases and outside the open windows too.”

  She nodded. Boy is he cool to notice the lilacs. What other boy in town would pay attention like that? “That’s nice, Bryce. About the lilacs.”

  His eyes became sad. “My mom loved lilacs.”

  “Oh,” said Jessie. “No wonder you noticed.” She didn’t know what else to say.

  “What did you smell?” he asked.

  “I remember the scones,” she said. “Or maybe I just remember how they tasted with butter and jam,” she laughed. “But what I really remember smelling was outside. They’d just mowed the grass and I love that smell. Also, all the flowers in the beds on the lawn and the trees too. Everything smelled like spring.” He probably thinks I’m silly. Like some dopey girl in a book.

  But he was smiling at her and it was the sweetest smile. Oh, I like him so much!

  He finished writing the list on the napkin, folded it and stood to put it into his pocket. “We’d better start home. Your folks will be out looking for us.”

  The sun was setting as they walked. Pink and orange streaked across the endless horizon. Jessie didn’t want the day to end. When they got to her house, she said, “Thank you for inviting me today. I had so much fun, even though we didn’t make much progress on the mystery.”

  Bryce took hold of her wrist and pulled her toward him. “Me too. It was great.” He kissed her cheek.

  “Mama, Mama!” shouted Phillip from the upstairs window. “Kiss, kiss, kiss, Jessie?”

  “Phillip, get in here and take your bath,” ordered his mother from the next room.

  Jessie jumped back. “Oh, no! He’ll be going on about this for days.” She ran up the porch steps, then turned and waved. “Thanks again.” She floated through the door.

  Jessie leaned against the wall and relived the moment. After a while, she went to the kitchen where her dad was starting to make sandwiches for supper. “Daddy, we saw the hit-and-run car drive by the band concert, but we couldn’t get through the crowd fast enough to see a license number.” Her voice shook a little. I hope Daddy didn’t hear Phillip shout from the window.

  “The police will find it, Jessie. These things take time.” He spread butter on a slice of rye bread. “Will you get the ham and cheese from the fridge?”

  Her hand trembled as she took the food from the refrigerator and set it on the counter.

  “How was the concert?” her dad asked. “Did you have fun with Bryce?”

  She thought of the kiss. Her head felt light, as if it might drift into the air if she didn’t hold it down. “Oh, we had so much fun, Daddy. It was great!”

  He turned and looked at her closely, smiled and resumed his sandwich making. “That’s good. Bryce seems like a nice boy.”

  Silently Jessie thanked her dad for not making a big deal out of her “date.”

  * * *

  That night, in her dreams, she saw Bryce and blue cars. At one point, she and Sunny were playing the piano together. And she heard Phillip laughing and shouting, “Look at Jessie.”

  It was still dark outside when Jessie opened her eyes and sat straight up in bed. Oh my gosh! That’s IT! Why didn’t I think of it before? She looked at her clock. It’ll be hours before I can call Bryce. She tossed and turned until the early sun peeked through her window.

  At eight-thirty, she called the Petersons’. The housekeeper answered the phone. Jessie could hear violin music in the background. “Could I speak to Bryce?”

  “He’s practicing. May I take a message?” said the woman.

  “I hate to ask this, but would you please interrupt him? It’s very important. Tell him Jessie is calling.” She heard the housekeeper lay down the receiver.

  “Jessie?” said Bryce. “What�
�s happening?”

  “Bryce, in the middle of the night, I thought of the duet that you and Cami played just before the accident.” Jessie twisted the cord nervously. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before!”

  “Oh, my gosh!” Bryce said. “I didn’t think of it either and I was the one playing.”

  Jessie said, “Do you think you and Cami could play the same piece again at your house? We’d be real casual about it. Pretend like it’s just a little get-together, to listen to music.”

  “I’ll call Cami and set it up,” said Bryce. “Thanks, Jessie. This could be the key to Sunny’s memory!”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  “How was the band concert?” It was Monday and Jessie’s mom was folding clean clothes on the kitchen table. Phillip sat at his little desk by the window and worked a wooden puzzle.

  “It was great! Lots of drums and horns.” She retrieved a blue bowl from the cupboard and poured cereal into it. “We saw the hit-and-run car, Mom! But we couldn’t get to it fast enough to see the license plate.”

  “Oh, no! Aren’t they ever going to find that car?” said her mom. “Honestly, this is ridiculous!”

  “I know,” said Jessie. “I can’t believe it either!”

  “Did you have fun with Bryce?” Her mother leaned over to help Phillip fit a piece into his puzzle.

  “We had a really good time,” Jessie mumbled. She could feel her face getting hot and glanced at her mom. She’s not saying anything. Maybe she didn’t hear what Phillip yelled from the window.

  “I have to do some work at the office today,” said her mom. “Mrs. Winter will be here to take care of Phillip.” She picked up a stack of clothes and started up the stairs. “Watch him for a minute, will you?”

  “Sure,” said Jessie. What a relief. The phone rang and she answered it in the hall. “Hello?”

  “Hi, Jessie,” said Bryce. Her knees felt weak, hearing his voice and remembering the kiss. “It’s all set. Cami’s coming this morning at eleven o’clock. She’ll just drop by casually to see Sunny.”

  “This is great!” said Jessie. My voice sounds pretty confident. Not like some mooning cow.

  “Thanks for going with me yesterday,” Bryce said.

  She felt like she was melting—actually oozing onto the floor. So much for confidence. “It was fun, Bryce. And I haven’t heard any embarrassing remarks from Phillip.”

  He laughed. “I wonder what your folks did to keep him quiet.”

  “Bawled him out I hope. He deserves it sometimes.” She didn’t want this conversation to ever be over, but she could hear Phillip making a fuss over his puzzle. “Gotta go. See you at eleven.” They hung up and Jessie ran to the kitchen and diverted her brother from a full-blown tantrum.

  * * *

  Before she went to Bryce’s, Jessie searched the house for Mrs. Winter and finally found her in the back yard by the sandbox.

  “Please don’t throw the sand outside the box, Phillip. It kills the grass,” said the babysitter.

  Phillip looked up at her, filled his little shovel with sand and poured it slowly onto the grass, all the time watching Mrs. Winter.

  The sitter lifted him from the sand and said, “I think you’ve had enough of this. I guess you need a nap.”

  He launched into a full howl, kicking at Mrs. Winter who held him firmly and carried him across the lawn.

  As she walked away, Jessie shouted, “I’m going to the Petersons’, Mrs. Winter. Good luck.”

  The sitter nodded her head and disappeared into the house.

  Thank goodness I don’t have to watch him today. He’s being a real pain. She crossed the street, ran up the path to the cottage and rang the doorbell.

  Bryce opened the door and said in a loud voice, “Well, hi, Jessie! Come in.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her across the threshold. “Cami’s here visiting Sunny.”

  “You should join the drama club,” Jessie whispered. He kept a hold of her hand. She felt dizzy.

  In the living room, Bryce said, “Look who’s here. We should have a party!”

  Jessie sat down by Sunny and said to Bryce, “While Cami’s here, why don’t you play that Beethoven piece, you know—“Spring Sonata”? It’s so beautiful the way you play it together.” Oh, like in my dream. Only it was Sunny and I playing a duet.

  Cami pretended to be thinking about it. “I’d need a page turner.”

  Sunny stood up with her crutches. “I’ll turn pages.” She hobbled to the piano where Bryce helped her get settled into a chair next to the keyboard.

  “Okay,” said Cami. “Do you have a copy of the piano music for the piece, Bryce?”

  Bryce rummaged through the sheet music in the piano bench and pulled out a thick book with a gray cover. “Look, here it is!” he said.

  Sunny frowned. “I didn’t know we had that,” she said. “I’ve never seen it in the bench before.”

  Bryce and Cami exchanged nervous glances.

  “I must have left it here one time,” Cami said. She looked inside the cover. “Sure. Here’s my name on it.” She sat down at the piano while Bryce tuned his violin.

  Brother, we better get this show on the road before Sunny figures out what we’re doing. “Okay, your audience is ready,” said Jessie.

  They began to play. Jessie was thrilled with the music and hearing Bryce play. She watched Cami at the piano and wished she’d started lessons years ago. It was hard to keep from being envious of Cami. Sunny was engrossed in page-turning.

  When it was over, Bryce and Cami bowed and Jessie and Sunny clapped vigorously.

  But the look on Sunny’s face told Jessie the child had made no connection between the music and the accident.

  They moved their little party out to the patio. The housekeeper brought a plate of goodies and iced tea. “When do you get your cast off, Sunny,” Cami asked as she helped herself to a thick frosted brownie.

  Sunny’s face lit up with a beautiful smile. “Tomorrow! I can hardly wait!”

  When Jessie got home, she called Bryce. “What do you think?” she twisted the phone cord between her fingers. “Do you think it reminded her of that day at all?”

  Bryce sounded discouraged. “Not that I can tell. I wonder if the accident will always be a blank.”

  “Maybe it needs a little time to sink in,” said Jessie. “Don’t give up yet.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  That evening, when Jessie called Tina, there was silence in the background. “Where are the twins?”

  “My folks took them for a ride in the car,” Tina said. “They’re hoping it will lull them to sleep. The quiet is heavenly!”

  Jessie told Tina about re-creating the music from the day at the museum to see if it would jog Sunny’s memory. “But, I don’t think it worked. We are so discouraged.”

  “Yeah,” said Tina. “It doesn’t sound good. Speaking of Bryce. How’d it go yesterday? I waited for you to call.”

  “I couldn’t talk. Everyone was here,” sighed Jessie. “But actually, no one said anything—except Phillip, of course. When Bryce kissed me, Phillip saw us from the window and shouted the news all over the house and the neighborhood too, no doubt.”

  “WHAT?” Tina screamed. “He kissed you? Tell me every detail!”

  “I can’t now. Big ears everywhere. I’ll tell you when I see you, if that ever happens again.”

  “You cannot leave me hanging,” said Tina. “Just tell me—what was it like?”

  “It was only on the cheek, but I thought I was going to faint,” whispered Jessie.

  “Ohh, cool!” Tina said. “Listen, Mom wants me to take the twins for a walk tomorrow. I thought I’d visit Sunny. Will you be there?”

  “Yeah, at ten in the morning. Sunny’s getting her cast off at nine. I bet she’ll love those babies.”

  “We never know from moment to moment how loveable they’re going to be,” moaned Tina. “Gotta go. They’re back. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  * * *

  In
the morning, Jessie practiced her lesson and then found Phillip. “Shall we go see Bryce and Sunny?” she asked him.

  “Okay,” he said with a big smile.

  On the way to the Petersons’, they stopped and waited for Tina, who was pushing a double baby buggy up the sidewalk. The buggy looked bigger than Tina.

  When Tina caught up with them, Jessie lifted up her little brother for his first peek at the twins. “Aren’t they cute, Phillip?” She studied the babies. “Which is which? I can’t ever tell them apart.”

  Tina pointed to one baby. “That’s Pam. She has a little red birthmark on the back of her hand. “This is Victoria. We call her Tory.”

  “Cute,” said Phillip.

  They all headed for the house where Bryce was helping Sunny along the brick path.

  Phillip ran to Sunny. “Where’s your white leg?”

  “I got my cast off!” said Sunny. “Pretty soon I’ll be running around just like you. Oh, are these the twins?” She looked into the buggy. “They’re angels!”

  Tina rolled her eyes. “For now. Just give them a few minutes.” She rocked the buggy back and forth. “When they realize we’ve stopped moving, they’ll start screaming.”

  “We don’t have to stop,” Sunny took Bryce’s arm. “I’m supposed to exercise. Let’s walk around the museum. All the flowers look so pretty.”

  They formed a little parade. Jessie and Bryce were on each side of Sunny, and Phillip helped Tina push the buggy. When they came to the main entrance to the museum, Sunny said, “The grass looks so cool and the flowers…”

  Jessie looked at Sunny to see why she’d stopped speaking. The girl’s face had lost all color. “We’d better sit down, Sunny. You don’t look so good”

  Bryce guided her to the stone steps of the museum. “What happened?”

  Sunny looked up at them. “I just remembered something.”

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Jessie felt a chill cross her scalp. “What?”

  “I remember throwing a ball back and forth with a boy, I think. Who was that?” Sunny searched Jessie’s face. “When I missed catching it, the ball rolled toward the street and I chased it.” She wrung her hands. “That’s all I remember.”