could meet here again, but it would be better..." "If Echo didn't know. I know." I said. "Until I had a chance to explain things to her
and make sure she was all right."
"Okay."
He glanced at Destiny and then he looked at me
and smiled, "C'mon, tell me how you did that card
trick.
I
promise I'll never tell another living soul." "Why do you want to ruin the magic?" "I find my magic in reality, not in illusion," he
replied. "It's healthier."
He's right. I thought.
"All right. I'll tell vou. Hand me the control," I
said, pointing to it on the seat beside Destiny. He did.
"There's a tape recorder inside Destiny's head. I just push this button on the control," I said, showing it to him. "Destiny's ear is the microphone. When you whispered the card in her ear, it was recorded and I just played it back through her mouth by pushing the
button again."
"Wow," he said, looking at Destiny. "What else
can this doll do?"
"That's for me to know and you to find out. For
one thing, she just stopped us from going too far
without protection."
"Yeah, right," he said, shaking his head. "She
stopped us. I gotta go before I end up throwing my
voice through her, too." He stepped forward and
kissed me quickly on the lips. I watched him go down
the short stairway and out the door.
I turned to Destiny. "Should I be happy or sad?"
I asked her. She said nothing, of course.
It was too soon to know.
I turned off the lights this time and left the
motor home. Before going any farther. I stopped and
looked at my car. It had been so long since I had
driven it. Maybe I'll take Echo for a ride tomorrow. I
thought. Maybe we'll look Tyler's mother in the face
so she can't ignore our existence or at least Echo's.
Tyler might be upset about it, but maybe his mother would see how sweet Echo is and she wouldn't be so against Tyler's helping her. Once in a while, it's good to think positively and be optimistic, whether it has a
chance to come true or not.
Once in a while.
When I rounded the corner of the house. I
immediately saw the van was gone. I was relieved at
that. I wasn't looking forward to confronting Rhona so
quickly again. The house was very quiet when I
stepped in, but then I heard the rattle of a pan in the
kitchen and I headed for it.
It wasn't hard to see Mrs. Westington was
upset. "Where is everyone?" I asked.
She stopped working, took a breath, and turned
to me. "My daughter has decided to take her daughter
to a restaurant for dinner tonight. She says it's about
time they got to know each other. Can you imagine?
It's about time? Ten years? There's enough water
under that bridge to fill an ocean. But," she said after
another deep sigh, "I guess a child always has a right
and a need to know her mother, even if that mother is
as irresponsible and as selfish as Rhona."
She looked at me as if she just realized she
wasn't talking to herself aloud.
"I've prepared a nice chicken salad for the two of us. Do you want a baked potato as well? It won't
take long."
"No, the salad is quite enough for me." "Determined to lose weight now, are you?" "Yes. I am," I said. I wondered if I should say
any more about Rhona, about her wanting me out.
I
decided for now I would just ignore it and see what I
could do to help Tyler with Echo. "Let me help with
the table," I said, but she told me everything was
already done.
"I had to keep myself busy so I wouldn't be
nervous about Echo going off with Rhona in that junk
heap."
I helped her bring the food into the dining room
and we sat at the table, just the two of us. I watched
her nibble at her food. Lifting a fork seemed to be a
treat effort for her.
To me it seemed as if a strange thing had
happened with Rhona's return: Mrs. Westington,
instead of finding any pleasure and hope in this
reunion, grew older instantly because of it. Rhona was
like a dark storm aggravating Mrs. Westington's
arthritis, invading her very bones. She moved slower,
looked much more fatigued and simply overwhelmed. I was sure that for a time early on in her marriage and life with Mr. Westington, the world was joyful and bright. The vineyard prospered. They had friends and parties. Their home and property glistened with success. Her beauty was nourished by the happiness and she blossomed, Before Rhona became their problem child. there were waves and waves of laughter rolling over this house and family. Neighbors and other people who knew them or of them were envious. Many wondered why it was some people were so successful and so lucky. Why weren't they as
blessed as the Westingtons?
And then Mrs. Westington's life took a dark
turn. The death of their newborn, the battle with her
brother-in-law, the growing discipline problems with
a rebellious Rhona, and eventually Mr. Westington's
death sent her spiraling down a long, seemingly
endless hole of pain and disappointment. The burdens
grew. Echo was enough of a responsibility and a
weight for young, healthy parents, much less an older
woman, a widow deserted by her daughter.
Nevertheless, her spirit was too strong, her
determination too fixed, to permit her to surrender.
She made do with what she had and she continued,
assuming the role of mother again, but this time far
more protective than she had been with Rhona. In a real sense Echo suffered for her mother's sins because she was being stifled, kept in this cocoon her grandmother had lovingly woven around her. Mrs. Westington saw hope and promise in Tyler Monahan's successes with Echo, and I. in my small way, looked like I would contribute in the areas that were still deficient. She truly believed I had been brought here not for myself so much as for her granddaughter's best
interests. There was new hope.
And then Rhona returned and the prospects of
what she had brought along with her-- not only in
Skeeter, but in her new determination to get what she
believed was hers. Including control of Echo-- was a
new weight on the frail shoulders of this heroic old
lady I quickly had come to love.
More than ever. I was determined to help her. "I guess," she said. "I might just have to give
them the money."
"She doesn't have the legal right to make
demands on you," I offered.
"I don't have faith in the courts. I've seen too
much injustice signed, sealed, and delivered by greedy
lawyers. Rhona gets one of them legal criminals
working for her and we could be knocked into a
cocked hat. An old lady, who's already lived long past her due date with the Grim Reaper, and an old black
man won't suffice as a substitute family."
"But you have!" I insisted. "You've been more
than a grandmother. You've been a real mother and
you're providing for her and you've protected and
taken care of her."
"I couldn't have done otherwise. No one would
have expected less, but it's not enough to guarantee
they'd agree with us. Na. we'll have to face the music
one way or the other eventually. I'm afraid. Best we
can hope for is putting it off as long as we can.
Maybe, just maybe she's grown up some. too." I looked down. I was happy she included me by
saving "we," but I had no false hope about Rhona
having changed for the better. Just the little I had seen
of her had already sickened me. I didn't have the heart
to disagree. however.
"You just make sure Echo is okay." she
continued. "If you see something bad happening,
come right to me. Don't be afraid and don't hesitate.
I'm happier than ever that I have you here to do all
this with me."
I nodded, tears building in my eyes.
"You're a sweet child," she said. "Your parents
were lucky folks and I'm sure you were lucky to have them. too. But you see how unjust things are with their being gone too early? We can't depend on the right things always happening on their own. We have to do our best to ensure they do and that's all we can
do. I think you already know all that."
"Yes, Ma'am."
"Eat up. I know you won't have any of my
homemade apple pie,.'
"Maybe just a small piece." I said. relenting. "I don't put all that much sugar in it like starebought pies."
"I know, Thank you."
She smiled and we finished eating silently, both
of us lost for a while in the hopes and the dreams that
gave us reason to go on.
I enjoyed the pie, helped clean up, and then
went up to my room. As the hours marched by and I
didn't hear Rhona. Skeeter. and Echo return. I knew
Mrs. Westinaton was probably growing, more and
more agitated. I hadn't heard her come up to bed
either. so I went downstairs and found her dozing in
her chair in the living room with the television set on
but the audio almost too low to hear. The moment I
entered, her eyes snapped open.
"Are they back?"
"No, not yet." I said. She looked at the clock. It
was close to eleven.
"Where could they have taken that child this
late?"
I had no answer, but I saw she wasn't about to
get up and go to sleep, so I sat on the sofa.
"You don't have to wait up with me. April." "It's all right. I won't fall asleep knowing you're
down here worried."
"If my daughter had one ounce of your
decency, I wouldn't be worried."
I wondered if I should reveal what Tyler had
told me about his having to stop tutoring Echo very
soon. It seemed like a flood of bad news. Maybe wait
a little longer. I thought. Maybe he would change his
mind anyway.
I gazed at the television.
"You can make that louder or change the
channel if you want. Half the time I fall asleep
watching it. My eyes get tired and most of what I see
seems silly."
I reached for the remote just as the headlights
of the van ran a ray of light over the walls. We both
turned to look out the windows.
"Finally." she said. rising.
We both went to the doorway of the living
room. We could hear Rhona's loud peal of laughter.
Skeeter was making some strange sound, imitating
something that resembled an elephant. The door
opened and they entered with Echo, who looked like
she had been asleep, probably in the van. Her eyes
were droopy and she barely had enough energy to
smile when she saw us.
"Where have you been with her?" Mrs.
Westington demanded immediately.
Even though a good five or six feet separated us
from them. I could smell the odor of whiskey, Skeeter
swayed a little.
holding on to his dumb grin. Rhona
wavered, her hands on Echo's shoulders.
"What are you getting yourself in an uproar
about. Ma? We just stopped at one of old hangouts
and I met same of my old friends, friends I haven't
seen for ten years."
"And what did Echo do all that time you were
in a bar? Don't tell me you took her in. too." "No. She stayed in the van and actually took a
nap on our bedding,"
"You let that girl sleep on that lice-infested
filthy old mattress you had in that van?"
"Don't exaggerate, Ma. It just looks dirty. It's
not. It's old."
"And well used," Skeeter added with a laugh. "Yes, well used,' Rhona agreed.
"Come here," Mrs. Westinton beckoned to
Echo. She moved quickly to her and Mrs. Westington
looked through her hair. "She'll need a good bath and
shampoo."
"That's disgusting, Ma. We're not dirty slobs." "Until someone invents a better way to describe
you two, I'll
stick with that." Mrs Westington said.
"This is no hour to bring home this girl. She has to let
her sleep."
"It's Saturday night, for chrissakes," Rhona
said. "Are you still living in those dark ages?" "I'm still a responsible person, if that's what you
mean. yes."
"I don't expect to frustrate the girl the way you
frustrated me. Ma. Here I was locked up in this house
while my friends were out there having fun all the
time. You have to trust the people you love and not
expect they'll do something terrible all the time." "In your case. Rhona, you exceeded my
expectations," Mrs. Westington said, and turned Echo
toward the stairs. She signed and told her she would
help her take a bath and get to bed.
Rhona and Skeeter watched them start up the
stairs and then Rhona turned and glared viciously at
me.
"Did you work her up into this mood?" she
asked.
"I just came down myself, surprised you
weren't back yet."
"Oh, so you let her know you were surprised.
Very convenient. I'm warning you. I'm not going to let
you turn her against us." Rhona said, stepping toward
me.
"I don't have to do that. You do it so well
yourself," I replied and, even though I was trembling,
glared back at her and then turned and followed Mrs.
Westington and Echo up the stairs.
"Bitch," I heard Rhona call after me.
"Easy," Skeeter told her.
I glanced back and saw him whispering in her
ear. She nodded and smiled and then they turned and
went into the living
,
room. I looked in on Mrs.
Westington and Echo, who was already in the bathtub,
the water runnin g.
"Come here," she said, bringing me over to the
tub. "Just look."
She pulled some strands of Echo's hair apart
and I could see the bugs.
"This is what wants to turn a new leaf and be a
mother. Lord, give me the strength." She poured the
shampoo into Echo's hair and began to scrub. "I can do that for you. Mrs Westington. Please.
Let me," I said.
She thought a moment and then stepped back. I
shampooed Echo's hair and rinsed it with the shower
hose. Mrs. Westington stood by with a towel and
wrapped her as soon as she stepped up and out of the
tub.
"Let's get this child to bed," she said. She told
me where to find her pajamas. Echo put them on and
Zot into bed. She still looked confused. dazed. Mrs.
Westington arranged her blanket and gave her a kiss.
"I'm going to sleep," she told me. She started out. "Are you all right?" I signed to Echo. Through her fatigue, she smiled and then
brought her hands out from under the blanket to tell
me.
"I had dinner with my mother. And she said she
was sorry she left me," Echo told me. "She said she
would never leave me again. Never."
Her happiness not only disappointed me, it
frightened me. She was being set up for a great fall. I was positive, but I dared not contradict her or Rhona
directly.
"People say things sometimes and forget," I
told her.
"No," she said, and shook her head vehemently.