I pressed my lips together to keep from smiling and hugged her to me again. She pushed me away after a minute or two and blew her nose again.
“Isn’t he still dating Velma?” I asked.
She nodded. “Yes, but it’s because I told him I’d never marry. I told him not to break up with her.”
“Laurie, you’re being foolish. If you love him, date him. You might find out he’s not the one for you.”
Her eyes widened. “No. He’s the one. I knew it the minute I saw him.” She bent over again at the waist. “Why, oh, why did I go with old Jack Watson? Why did I let him talk me into it...”
I got up and walked to the window, staring out, although I couldn’t see into the darkness. Laurie’s words had lost much of their country flavor while she was in distress. After a few minutes, I turned to face her.
“Laurie, you have a couple of choices. First, you can forget Walter... just stay away from him. That’s my suggestion. My goodness! He’s got a girlfriend. If he was a real man, he’d break up with her before asking you to marry him. That’s just craziness.”
Laurie sat up and stared at me as if I’d taken leave of my senses. “He didn’t mean to ask me... it just slipped out of his mouth.”
“Well, he should have kept his mouth clamped tighter. And I thought you were staying away from him.”
“I tried... Momma wanted me to take the men a jug of water. And Walter was walking back, to get a tool he had forgotten... and... and...”
I held up a hand before she could begin crying again. “So? Something happened between you. What did you do?”
“He just blurted out he couldn’t live without me. I took off running, as fast as I could. Still had the jug with me. Forgot all about it.” Her eyes took on a faraway look.
“That’s what I think you should do... keep running. Stay away from him. Why isn’t he in the army, anyway?”
She waved a hand. “Oh, he’s 4-F. He was born deaf in one ear.”
“Well, in that case, maybe you need to shout a little louder in his other one to stay away.”
“You said I had a couple of options... what’s my other one?”
I smiled at her. “Marry him, you goof.”
“Oh.” She swallowed hard. “But I can’t leave Momma and Daddy...”
“So, we’re back to Option one.”
Her eyes were stricken. To get her mind off of Walter, and because I had nothing to add, I asked about William.
“He’s coming home next month, before he ships out... I sure wish he’d take Sylvia with him.”
“Maybe William will think of something to do with her, maybe get her to move back to Plainsville. Why don’t you ask him?”
She pushed her hair away from her face. “I just might.”
“I don’t know why Sylvia hasn’t moved back to her parents...”
“Me either. Good thing she keeps the roads packed, so I don’t have to see much of her.”
“Where does she go?”
“Who knows? She’s always hopping into her car and taking off, never telling us where she’s going or when she’ll be back.”
I nodded thoughtfully. Marla had said Sylvia had moved down here for revenge. At the time, she had thought it was for revenge against me, because Michael had rejected Sylvia and married me. But what if it was revenge against Marla? Michael had said she had always been after Dan, from the very beginning. And, in her eyes, Marla had stolen him away.
Laurie was up and speaking. “I’d better get back. I didn’t tell anyone where I was going.”
I gave her one last hug and a pat on the back. “Don’t worry, Laurie. Things will work out. They always do.”
Her eyes were dubious, but she nodded. “You’re right. Love you.”
“Love you, too.” I closed and locked the door behind her and climbed into bed.
Love was strange. I had caught a glimpse of Walter, working in the fields. He was a handsome, striking man, well over six feet tall. His muscular build seemed made for farming and for sweeping girls like Velma off their feet.
Yet, he had fallen for Laurie — little Laurie with her freckles and sun-burnt nose, who liked to run barefoot in the summer. I snuggled under the covers, although it was warm in the room, and pulled Michael’s pillow to me. I had not washed his pillowcase since he’d been gone and his scent remained, the scent of a Marine, the scent of my Michael, the scent I missed so.
And I slept with it in my arms, dreaming of him.
Chapter 32—Liberty Belle
William came home the next month, in July. In the few days he was home, he found Sylvia an apartment and moved her in. He had been so busy, getting her settled into the apartment, actually a set of rooms rented out by an older couple, that I barely had time to see him. He seemed distracted and unhappy, not like my normal level-headed cousin at all. I didn’t have time to figure out if it was his impending deployment or Sylvia’s behavior causing his unhappiness before he was gone. His unit was going to England, to be deployed from there.
Dr. Driscoll’s business continued to pick up, and he left me in charge of the small animals, working in the offices. I didn’t complain, much, but I missed going out to the farms to work with the cows, pigs, and the horses and mules. Velma was getting better in her office work, filing the papers as I instructed her, and learning to bill customers properly.
And I grew bigger, although Sylvia was downright huge. I often spotted her around town. Once Laurie was with me and caught my eye, nodding her head knowingly. It was no surprise to us, anyway. But we wondered what William had thought when he was home, although surely he had known before he married her.
Amazingly, Sylvia never seemed to suffer ill effects from the heat and her energy levels never faltered. Thankfully, in the vet’s office, Dr. Driscoll set up small fans. Otherwise, I was sure I would have fainted more than once.
It was a scorching hot day, on August thirtieth, when Sylvia’s baby was born, after only four hours of labor. Her son weighed seven and a half pounds. I just prayed my delivery would be as easy.
Aunt Jenny and Laurie began to come into town more often, to see Joseph Alexander, although I was sure by this time Aunt Jenny knew the baby was not William’s. Sylvia seemed proud of her son, who grew chubby from her nursing in just a few short weeks.
As I entered into my eighth month, I longed for the cooler temperatures of fall. But September brought temperatures in the eighties that climbed into the nineties in the second week. Zeke and Grace went back to school. Mr. Drake’s health continued to decline, but he hung tenaciously to life. Laurie quit talking about Walter and looked happier. And I took to stopping in the pharmacy to buy ice cream sodas at least twice a day, trying desperately to stay cool.
A side effect of the ice cream sodas was that people no longer worried about me not gaining weight. One day, I was heading back to work, licking an ice cream cone I had splurged on, when I heard a commotion in the street behind me. A horse pulling a wagon was in the middle of the road, among scattered pieces of metal. I threw down my ice cream and ran toward the scene as the horse reared up. A young boy stood on the sidewalk, watching with rapt attention.
“Get the vet, Dr. Driscoll.” I pointed him in the direction of the vet’s office and hurried on to the accident. A couple of men had the horse already under control. The bay quarter horse’s muscles were quivering, and she shimmered in the sun.
“What happened?” I asked as I drew nearer.
The two men looked at one another and then at me, neither speaking.
“I’m a vet,” I said. One of the men looked at my belly, and neither spoke.
A crowd was gathering, and a woman took my arm. “I saw what happened,” she said, her voice whistling through her toothless gums. “A piece of metal that there truck was carrying flew off. That poor old horse crashed right into it. Hope he ain’t hurt.”
Dr. Driscoll came huffing up beside me. One of the men with the horse immediately stepped toward him.
“Dr. Dri
scoll!” He motioned him over.
Dr. Driscoll picked his way through pieces of twisted metal, and I followed on his heels.
“Liberty Belle ain’t hurt, ‘cepting there. It ain’t that bad, is it?” He pointed at the right foreleg.
Dr. Driscoll ran his hand along the leg that spurted blood. I moved closer, to check the leg myself. Dr. Driscoll’s eyes caught mine, and he shook his head. I didn’t want to believe the beautiful horse was that badly hurt. I knelt down to examine her.
“My best horse...” the man was saying.
“I’m sorry. She needs to be put down.” Dr. Driscoll’s voice was kinder than normal.
The owner of the horse patted the animal’s neck while I stood and pulled Dr. Driscoll to the side.
“Her leg’s not broken,” I said.
“But the tendon is cut...”
“Only partially...”
“It would take a lot of time, wet poultices, constant surveillance, and treatment...” He shook his head. “The chance of infection is great... and with the shortage of antibiotics... I’d only give her, at the most, a twenty percent chance of recovery, more likely ten percent.”
“What if I checked with other vets? Maybe someone has antibiotics...”
“Even so, six months of stall rest and changing wraps twice a day...”
“I’ll do it.”
“You’re about to have a baby.”
“I’ll work something out.”
“Your husband was clear about your duties, and I agree with him. No work with large animals...”
“I’ll write him and let him know. Michael would want me to try.” My eyes pleaded with him.
Dr. Driscoll still looked doubtful, but he nodded his head and turned back to the man.
“Recovery will take a great deal of time and your horse will have to be confined... Chances are slim, but we’ll try.”
“That’s all I ask.” The man grasped Dr. Driscoll’s arm.
Dr. Driscoll became all business. “Let’s get her to the stable behind the office.” He tilted his head toward me. “Get the supplies we need.”
I sprinted away, still able to jog, even if I was pregnant.
And that night, I wrote Michael a long letter, telling him about Liberty Belle. I had been working with the mare for a couple of weeks when I received a letter back. Michael had agreed, as I had known he would. He admonished me to be careful, and I wrote him back, assuring him that I would.
In the next few weeks, time slowed down. There was less to do at the clinic, except for administering to the horse, who was healing nicely but getting restless from her confinement. Marla was caring for Mr. Drake who was in his last stages of illness. He had lasted longer than the doctors had predicted, but death was closing in. Not only did I rarely see Marla, but Laurie was staying away, too.
Velma had accepted Walter’s job and was no longer fretting over Laurie. Zeke was busy with schoolwork and often went to the Drake’s house, supposedly for help with his homework. Momma remained her taciturn self. Uncle Colt was harvesting and had enlisted Aunt Jenny’s help.
Loneliness dogged my steps, with my friends and family so busy that they rarely had time for me.
At the beginning of October, with the days still warm, I went into the pharmacy for my regular ice cream soda. I gave my order to the soda jerk, and idly let my eyes roam around the store. Mr. Aaron was sitting in a back corner booth... with a woman. Her back was to me, and all I saw was a red floppy hat.
I smiled to myself, wondering who the woman was, and walked over to the booth. When the woman looked up, I let out a gasp but tried to cover the sound with a cough. I might have known.
“Hi, Sylvia, Aaron.” I gave him a curt nod, my eyes narrowed. And there would be no more mister for him. If he was going to date Sylvia, I sure wasn’t going to give him the respect of a title. Date? Was that what this was?
I cleared my throat. “I came in for an ice cream soda and thought I’d say hi. How’s your baby, Sylvia?”
“Oh, fine. Growing like a weed. Joe Joe is just the cutest thing, smiling and cooing like crazy. He’s such a wonderful baby. Already sleeping through the night.”
I tried to tamp down my jealousy. She had breezed through pregnancy, had an easy labor and delivery, and now her baby was one of those perfect children who didn’t give a moment’s trouble. According to her...
“Well, I’d better be getting back to the office.”
Sylvia’s eyes traveled to my stomach. “And how are you doing?”
“I’m fine.” I wasn’t about to tell her my back ached all the time, my feet and ankles were swollen, and a good night’s sleep was beyond my reach. The fall’s warm weather kept me from sleeping well. Even if it had been cooler, my bulging belly kept me from finding a comfortable position. I pushed back a tendril of sweat-soaked hair. “I’d better get my ice cream soda. See you later.”
Aaron hadn’t spoken, and as I walked away, I gave him a hard glare. What could he be thinking?
I shook my head, paid for my ice cream, and went out onto the sidewalk, the sidewalk’s heat rising to meld with my own anger.
Chapter 33—Aaron
Surely the weather would cool off soon — I wasn’t sure if I would. What was Aaron thinking? I was in no hurry to get back to the office, walking around town, trying to understand Aaron. I finished my ice cream before going in.
Velma greeted me before going back to reading the latest Ladies’ Home Journal.
I stood in front of the black metal fans to let it whisk away some of my sweat before going outside to check on Liberty Belle.
She stuck her neck over the partition and neighed. She was getting tired of being cooped up. I entered the stall and patted her neck before reaching down to check her leg.
When someone cleared their throat, I jerked up, and Belle’s hoof came down on my foot. I yelped in pain, turning to glare at whoever had startled me.
It was Aaron. He swung open the stall door and Belle pranced forward. Aaron blocked her chance of escape and hurriedly pulled the stall door shut behind him. I was bent halfway over, my foot throbbing in pain. Aaron took my elbow, and I leaned against him.
“Jay, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Belle snorted but was standing still. It was crowded in the stall with Aaron there.
“I’m fine.” Or I would be. Right now the pain made me want to vomit.
“Come sit down and let me check your foot.”
“I’m okay.”
“I can see you’re in pain. Let me help you.”
Leaning heavily on him, I limped out of the stall, over to a bale of hay, and sat down. He knelt down and took off my shoe.
Sitting back on his heels, he shook his head, shooting me a look of apology. “I think it’s broken. You need to see a doctor.”
I looked down at my foot that was turning black and blue. “I’ll get Velma to take me. I’m sure you’re busy with more important things.” I tried to imitate Momma and shoot daggers at him with my stare.
“Quit being foolish. Wait here, and I’ll let... was it Velma?”
I nodded and tried to stand. The pain shot up my leg, and I fell back on the hay.
I motioned with my hand. “Just go.”
I waited until he had made a quick trip into the office, and pulled his truck around. He was out of breath when he came back to where I sat and put out a hand to help me.
“Let me check Belle.”
The muscle in his jaw twitched, just like Michael’s when he was mad. “What?”
“I want to be sure she’s all right.”
My eyes held his for a long moment before he sighed. “Okay, but hurry.”
I put my arm around his neck and limped to the stall, making sure it was fastened securely. Belle seemed fine.
I gave a short nod. “Okay. I’m ready to go.”
“Do you want me to take you to a doctor in town?”
I shook my head. “Take me to Dr. Burch.”
; “Are you sure? It will take longer...”
“I don’t care.” I limped beside him, out to his truck, and he helped me in. I cried out once in pain.
He eyed me anxiously before he closed the truck door and went around to the driver’s side.
“Maybe I should get ice for your foot...”
“Just go,” I said.
He clenched his teeth, the muscle once again twitching. But he drove.
We were halfway to Dr. Burch’s office when I spoke again. “You do know Sylvia is married to my cousin.”
“I know very well.” He scratched at a day’s old growth of beard. “I’m aware of many things.”
I eyed him suspiciously. “Like what?”
He shook his head and had his lips pressed together. Obviously, he wasn’t going to tell me.
“Why were you with her? Don’t you care what people think?”
He shrugged. “Not really. People who know me know what to think. People who don’t know me, what does it matter?”
I frowned at him. “You don’t care what your family thinks?”
He looked at me as if I’d grown two heads. “People who know me — those people are my family. Family members trust each other.”
I tried to digest what he said, but couldn’t. “I have no idea why you’re doing this.”
“Doing what? I was in a public place with your cousin’s wife... Did I do something wrong?” He gave me a calm, penetrating look.
“She’s... she’s... Have you...” My words wouldn’t form into coherent sentences. I grimaced. “Can you hurry up? My foot is killing me.”
After I saw Dr. Burch, we stopped at Uncle Colt’s and picked up Laurie who planned to stay until I was back on my feet. Aaron helped me into the house. My foot was in a cast, with orders to stay off of it, as much as possible, for the next couple of weeks. Dr. Burch thought it might not even be broken. The cast was a precaution, and he wanted to see me back in two weeks.
Momma shook her head when she saw me. “What fool thing you done now?” she asked.
I didn’t answer her. Aaron apologized to me and left. I was sitting on the side of my bed while Laurie gathered my night clothes. Momma came into the room.
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