The Hero (9 page)

But he couldn’t get the girl off his mind.

* * *

He nursed a cup of coffee at the bar while Sarah and Cooper looked at their building plans—not just for a house, but for the whole ridge that stretched between his place and the town, including roads. Austin was in the RV watching TV, laying around and eating cereal out of the box. Landon had taken one of Cooper’s kayaks out on the bay for an upper-body workout and would come in for his work shift after that. There were two kayaks rented, two paddleboards, and since Spencer had been in the bar, six people had been in for coffee. Four of them took coffee cups down to the beach and dock; two customers sat on the deck and enjoyed the morning view.

Despite all this activity, Spencer couldn’t get the girl off his mind.

Rawley came into the bar from the kitchen. “I need a little time, Coop. You okay here alone?”

“No problem, Rawley,” Cooper replied without looking up.

“Could be gone for a spell.”

“I got it,” Cooper said, still studying the layout in front of him.

A minute later, Spencer heard Rawley slam something into the bed of his truck outside. Then he was back in the kitchen. Next he was struggling out the door with a box full of stuff. Then he was back, then out again with a load of cleaning implements—mop, broom, rags.

Cooper finally looked up. “Rawley, what the hell are you doing?”

The old guy stopped short, mops and brooms and stuff in his arms, and said, “Every night I beat Devon and the little one home and you know why? Cause she works all day, then takes the little one to that shit hole she rented. They eat a sandwich she packed up and then Devon tries to make a dent in the filth and damage of that house while her daughter either looks at her books or sits with that old lady neighbor next door. It just ain’t right. I’m going over there. See what I can do.”

As if he had been hit with a cattle prod, Spencer was off his stool. “I’m in that with you, Rawley. Let me get my shoes and tell Austin I’ll be gone awhile.”

“Take your own car,” Rawley said. “I’m putting in some serious time.” And he was gone.

“Can you manage Austin?” Spencer asked Cooper.

Cooper turned to Sarah. “Can you handle Austin? The bar should be quiet. It’s a weekday...”

“But I want to go!” Sarah said. “I’m embarrassed I didn’t think of it!”

“Okay, we have a problem,” Cooper said. “I can close the bar for a few hours, but we got us a kid.”

“Landon will help out,” Sarah said. “We’ll just tell him not to serve alcohol and to keep an eye on Austin.”

“Yeah,” Spencer said. “What does he get for that? Double pay?”

“He gets me to not hate him,” Cooper said. “If we’re helping out a friend, he can just suck it up.” And with that, Cooper went out on the deck and split the morning calm with a piercing whistle.

By the time Spencer was back on the deck in jeans and shoes, Landon was coming up the stairs to the deck. “What?” he asked.

“We’re heading out to help a friend,” Sarah told him. “We’d like you to keep an eye on the bar and Austin. Austin’s watching TV right now—don’t let him get away. And just don’t sell alcohol. Cooper will be back before five.”

“What friend?” he asked.

“Rawley’s cousin,” she said. “Devon. She rented a house down the street from us and it needs...help.”

“Help because she shouldn’t have to live in a completely demolished dump,” Spencer said. “Austin goes no farther than the dock. In a life jacket.”

“Gotcha,” Landon said.

They headed out in two cars and when they arrived the front door was standing open. Rawley’s old truck was backed into the driveway with the hatch down and there was the sound of pounding coming from inside.

“No moss growing under that old boy’s feet,” Spencer said as he stood outside the front door with Cooper and Sarah. Rawley was already involved in patching a hole in the wall with drywall he’d obviously brought along. There were a couple of cans of paint sitting on the floor.

“What’ve we got, Rawley?” Spencer asked.

Rawley looked up. “Bag the trash. She’s got it in neat piles in each room. We got nasty kitchen appliances and while you’re at it, pull ’em out from the wall and clean that nasty stuff under ’em. We got a bathroom that a vagrant wouldn’t use. We got walls to paint, trim to scrub and paint, windows to wash. Leave the fireplace till last—she don’t need it this summer.”

Sarah walked across the living room and peeked into each room. “Cooper, that bathroom is yours. It’s awful. Spencer, why don’t you help me in the kitchen.”

Spencer took a look at each room. “Yep, Cooper gets that bathroom.” And then he got started pulling out appliances. While Sarah worked on cleaning the inside of the refrigerator, he bagged the trash and threw it in the back of Cooper’s truck. A little over three hours later, the kitchen appliances were clean and Spencer was washing the walls so he could paint them while Sarah got started on cleaning out the cupboards.

And then they were interrupted when Landon and Austin pulled up in the Razor with a cooler strapped to the back.

“Lunch!” Landon announced.

Work stopped at once while Landon opened the cooler to reveal sandwiches and cold drinks. Austin carried a grocery bag full of chips and snacks.

“What did you do with the bar?” Cooper asked.

“Put the closed sign on the door, just like you used to do before you had slave labor,” Landon replied. “Wow, this place is a wreck.”

“And it’s already a lot better than it was,” Spencer informed him.

After some serious hand washing, they sat on the living room floor in a circle, all of them, and ate the sandwiches. And then they went back after it with a vengeance. By four-thirty Cooper and Rawley were leaving to take care of the evening crowd down on the beach. Sarah was looking over her handiwork—she’d cleaned all the windows while Spencer painted the kitchen. The floors were clean but ill-used. She scuffed a toe on the floor. “I guess that’s what rugs are for,” she said. “And, if Devon is interested, I might’ve found a home for some of the furniture I can’t keep.”

“I’d been thinking the same thing,” Spencer said.

“Looks damn good in here.” Sarah turned full-circle. “I’m going to walk down the block, let Ham out and take a shower. See you back at the beach?”

He laughed. “Remember, I still live at the beach.”

“Maybe not for too much longer.”

When Sarah was gone, Spencer stayed behind. He started to envision furniture in the rooms he could see. A table for four in the kitchen. A sofa and chair and bookcase in the living room. A toy chest. A blackboard on the kitchen wall by the back door for schedules or shopping lists. A thick rug in front of the fireplace. He’d never been much for decorating; it had never mattered to him very much. For some reason he wanted this little nest to be safe and cozy for Devon and Mercy. He wasn’t entirely sure what she was running from, but he wanted her running
to
something decent.

He could have left. He should have left, but he stayed. It was almost five when she arrived with her daughter. He went to stand in the open doorway and when she saw him, she looked confused.

“Spencer?” she asked. She was wearing her scrubs and tennis shoes. He backed into the house wordlessly and let her enter. She put her hands over her mouth in awe. “Spencer!” she gasped.

He realized what she thought and said, “Oh, no—I didn’t do this. I helped, that’s all. It was Rawley. He wanted to help out so the rest of us came along. They had to get back to the beach—people start showing up, looking for drinks and sandwiches and deli pizza at about four.”

“Who did this?” she asked in a soft voice. “Who?”

“Well, it was Rawley, Cooper, Sarah. And I helped.”

She looked him over. “Helped?”

He was a dirty mess. He laughed. “I did everything Rawley told me to do.”

She glanced around. “My God...”

“The bedrooms aren’t done. Well, they’re swept and mopped, but Rawley’s got some paint for the walls. It’s boring. It’s just ‘renter’s white.’ But I think he’s finished patching walls. And if I could just brag a little, I hauled trash and painted the kitchen....”

“Oh, my God,” she said. “It’s immaculate. It’s shining.” And then her eyes filled with tears. “I can’t believe you guys did this for me.”

He gave a shrug. “You’re Rawley’s cousin, so I guess we’re all family. And it’s not like I had to work today....”

She looked down for a long moment, frowning. Just what she didn’t want—another extended family. She wanted
friends
. Spencer couldn’t know how much the idea of everyone being one big family caused her to cringe inside.

Mercy came in the door carrying her books and her blanket. She stood there, oblivious. Apparently a three-year-old couldn’t see the improvement. Then Devon lifted her eyes to Spencer’s face. There were tears on her cheeks. “Do you know how long it would have taken me to get this far?”

“Yeah.” He laughed. “I do.”

“You’re not going to understand this, but I’ve had great kindnesses given me but the price has been... Well, never mind that. ‘Thank you’ will just never be enough.” She wiped the emotion off her cheeks.

“Devon, I want you to stop right there. There’s not going to be a bill. It was just us being good neighbors, that’s all. I don’t want you to think you owe anyone anything.”

“Thank you,” she said.

“But you’ll probably want to start with that—just ‘thank you.’ The rest of the bucket brigade is at the beach. I need a shower. I have to check on Austin, make sure he hasn’t driven anyone crazy. I’m going to take off—I’m really ready for a cold beer.” He headed for the door and she stopped him.

“Thank you, Spencer.”

“I was glad to help out.”

Seven

D
evon drove to Cooper’s to thank the rest of the cleanup crew and, as she thought about it, she had to acknowledge that there was a difference between people helping one another in a small town, and relying on each other in a commune. And she had so much to give in return—even managing the doctor’s office, she could be of help every day. She could extend herself the extra mile, making sure those people who called or came in received the best she had to offer.

Then she remembered something she had known long ago—that kindness wasn’t only demonstrated by giving material things or labors. There were the simple gestures that people forgot, that were so important—a little extra time, a smile, patience, conversation, gratitude. These were the things Aunt Mary had valued, she had never had much by way of material wealth but she’d been one of the most generous people Devon knew.

She reminded herself of these things as she walked into Cooper’s, holding Mercy’s hand. She went first to the kitchen to find Rawley. “You wonderful sneak,” she said. “I can’t believe what you did!”

He turned from the sink. “I just meant to put a dent in it for you,” he said. “But all them others just jumped in. Looks darn good, don’t it, though?”

“Darn good. Thank you. You are certainly my guardian angel.”

He grinned at her and if she wasn’t mistaken, flushed a little bit. “Ain’t no one ever called me that before.”

“Can I buy you a beer?” she asked.

“Girl, I don’t drink nothin’. I don’t make all that much sense without ever takin’ a drink. Those others, though—they’d prolly take your beer money.”

She just laughed at him.

He bent at the waist and peered at Mercy. “Wanna help old Rawley wash up dishes?”

Her little face lit up and Devon said, “Oh, Rawley, she’s just going to make a big mess.”

He scooped her up and planted her on the step stool in front of the sink. “I reckon. There ain’t no sharp things in there, I know what I’m doing.” He tied an apron around her neck and it fit her like a long dress. “Why don’t you take a break for once. Sit out on the deck and count seabirds.”

Devon wandered back into the bar. Cooper was alone behind the bar and he was smiling at her. She leaned on the bar. “How can I thank you?”

“You just did.”

“I can’t even buy you a beer in your own bar,” she said. “I’ll think of something special. Something that will show you how much it means to me that you’d take on that cleanup job for someone you barely even know.”

He leaned toward her. “Listen here, you’ve already done enough for me. For us.”

“But I haven’t done—”

His voice was lowered when he talked, as if this was just for her. “I’ve known that old boy in the kitchen for almost a year now. He’s a curmudgeonly old coot. He hasn’t had an easy life, he doesn’t trust people quickly. He’s been mostly alone and hardly anyone knows how big his heart is. I’m maybe the best friend he’s got and he makes me work real hard for a few words. But since you and your little girl have been around, Rawley’s a whole new man. Almost can’t shut him up. And he’s got a twinkle in his eye that I haven’t ever seen before. He’s been needing someone to take care of—he’s been needing family. And I wouldn’t be saying this but it’s pretty plain—you’re not just good for him, you’re good to him. That matters to me, Devon.”

“He’s a good man,” she said.

“He is that, hard as he might try to keep it a secret.”

She leaned toward him and in a hushed tone said, “I’m not his cousin.”

And Cooper whispered back, “I know.”

“He told you?”

Cooper shook his head. “I guessed, that’s all. It was awful sudden, you showing up, but as long as it works out...”

“I would never hurt Rawley.”

“That’s coming across loud and clear.”

“I can’t really talk about...”

“About why you cut off your pretty hair and won’t talk about where you’ve been? Look, hardly a one of us doesn’t have stuff to get over, so you don’t have to explain. I could make you blush with my past. In fact, let’s leave that alone. There might come a time you want to talk about whatever it is, but know this—it doesn’t really matter that much. What matters is that you find what you need, that Rawley is happy, that your daughter is okay.”

“That’s what’s important to me, too.”

“Then we’re bent on a single purpose. Now, what’s your pleasure? Coffee? Soda? Wine?”

She sniffed back some emotion. “Can I have a beer?”

“You got it,” he said, pulling a bottle out of the cooler. He popped the top and put it on the bar as she was struggling to open her wallet. He put a hand over hers. “Devon, I’m not taking your money. Don’t be ridiculous. The families of folks who work here eat and drink for free. Now find a place in the sun to relax—Rawley says you’ve been working day and night for a week.”

“I could just kiss you,” she whispered.

“I’ll take that,” he said with a handsome big grin. Then he leaned across the bar, presenting her with his cheek.

* * *

Devon sat on the deck with her beer. Down on the beach she saw Spencer throwing the football with Landon. So much for his shower. He was wearing the same jeans, but without his shirt or shoes. He had apparently been distracted by a little ball practice. He had amazing shoulders and arms, which she wished she hadn’t even noticed—but there was no denying it, he was a beautiful specimen. His boy, Austin, was fooling around on the paddleboard, very near the shore. There were a few people out on the water—a couple in a small skiff, rowing around the quiet bay. Two people were on paddleboards, taking them farther out into the bay.

Her eyes went back to Spencer and Landon. They threw long, powerful passes. This was the coach and his star player, and they were impressive. She could hear them shouting at each other and laughing. She just couldn’t believe she was here. Feeling for the first time as if she was actually living a normal life. Not just that, but in a setting millions of people would envy—the beauty of the rocky sea, the long peaceful beach. It felt as though right up to this very moment, this very second, she had worried and wondered what was coming tomorrow, that she’d been a little afraid each day that somehow the clock would be turned back and she’d find herself again behind that fence.

Sarah came out to sit beside her. Ham was by her side and Sarah sat down beside Devon. “What did you think of your duplex?”

“I was speechless,” she said. “You guys are my magic fairies. I don’t know what came over you.”

“I had a day off.” She shrugged. “I’m going to pay for it by sitting alert for the next two nights, but that’s okay. I’m almost done. I’ll be on paid vacation by the end of the summer.”

“How do you manage that?” Devon asked.

“Well, you give the Coast Guard ten years, accumulate a lot of leave, fall in love with Cooper and marry him.” At that precise moment he appeared at her side, handing her a glass of white wine. Sarah laughed. “He promises to serve me and pamper me for the rest of my life.”

Cooper disappeared again and Devon said, “I’d marry him for that.”

“Watch it, now, I saw him first.”

“And when is all this going to happen?” Devon asked.

“It’s beginning to happen right now. I’m moving in with Cooper. Spencer is vacating the RV and taking my rental house in town. Landon is taking over the RV as his bachelor pad, under the watchful eye of his diligent and suspicious sister—I even have a new pair of binoculars. And a week from Saturday we’re having a wedding, right here, on the beach. Will you come?”

“Oh, my gosh, seriously?”

She nodded. “It’s going to be very laid-back, just like my Cooper. By the way, I’m getting rid of a couch. Interested?”

“Sure,” she said, sitting straighter. “Are you selling it?”

“No,” Sarah said, smiling. “Hopefully I’m moving it down the street to your house where it will find a good home.”

Three days later Sarah’s couch appeared in her living room along with two side tables and some lamps. A couple of days later she noticed a moving truck pulled up in front of Sarah’s house—Spencer was moving in. He had a dinette set he didn’t need anymore moved into her kitchen. Then Sarah offered her two beds. “Not like you got them off craigslist,” she said. “They’re almost new and I’ll give you the mattress protector to go with them. And some linens I can’t use anymore.” Spencer gave her a dresser and chest that had been in his last guest room and, just like that, her little house was ready to move in to. Then Sarah and Spencer had a huge yard sale and Devon went, picking up a few extra items—kitchen things, a set of old dishes that looked fine to her, even a couple of things to hang on the wall.

She ordered a few towels, a couple of blankets, pillows and some flatware online.

When she embraced Rawley at the front door of her little house, she said, “We will see you almost every day.”

“Yes, you will. If you don’t come by Cooper’s, I’ll check on you here so don’t go thinkin’ you’re done with me. Me and Mercy, we bonded.”

* * *

Rawley went to the Farmers’ Market in Myrtle Creek one afternoon. He just roamed around, looking at the crafts and produce stands, taking his good old time, observing. He felt like a man in a foreign country, checking out the status of things. And then he saw what he was looking for—a produce stand run by a couple of farm girls with long single braids. They were selling strawberries, early pears, root vegetables such as carrots, onions, red potatoes and scallions. There was leaf lettuce, butter lettuce, beets, peppers, small, early hook squash, little zucchini and green beans. They had small cucumbers for pickling and some fine looking tomatoes. He gave a tomato a gentle squeeze—soft and meaty yet firm. “What fertilizer you use on these?” he asked one of the girls.

“We have livestock, so we make our own blend—all organic, all clean,” the smiling girl said.

“Wish I could get my hands on some of your fertilizer. I got me a couple tomato plants—they’re healthy and strong and still don’t produce like this. Where does all this come from?” he asked. “You grow it yourselves, right?”

“We have some property down the river. In two weeks we’ll have larger squash and in late summer the melons will start coming in. Plus apples and the tomatoes will keep coming as long as the weather holds.”

He had never paid much attention to these ladies before, but now he was looking at them in a whole new way. The three young women did the selling and behind them, in the back of their booth, looking as if they were there to do heavy lifting, were two large men in jeans and boots. They looked friendly, but they didn’t chat with any of the customers. They stood back, arms crossed over their chests, wearing half smiles, talking only to each other.

On their display stand they had big jars— old-fashioned pickle jars with hand-lettered labels: Veterans, UNICEF, Save The Children, Police and Firefighters Fund, St. Jude’s Hospital. Well, covered their bases, didn’t they? Rawley thought to himself. He tried to remember if these were the same charities they had been supporting the last time he stumbled on them. He took out a couple of dollars for the Veterans jar and asked, “Does any of the money you earn go to charity?”

“If there’s anything left after we pay the bills we donate,” the young woman said. “The Fellowship supports a number of worthy causes.”

“The Fellowship, yeah, that’s right. You have a produce stand on the road back by the river, don’t you?” he asked.

“Not open every day, sir. We don’t get a lot of traffic back there so we’re only open about four afternoons a week and always on the weekend in the summer.”

“Gimme a couple of big bags of these tomatoes,” Rawley said. “And a bag of them green beans. You ladies do a right fine job.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“And you weave them things?” he asked, pointing to a display of shawls and throws.

She laughed happily. “Yes, sir. Charlotte does that—and she taught some of us how to knit and crochet. That occupies us on all those cold winter nights. Would you like to look at them?”

He wandered down to the end of the stand and picked through them. The prices on them were pretty high. “Wow, you’re awful proud of these. Seventy-five dollars?”

“They’re handmade, sir. And original designs.”

“I’ll have this one here. I have an elderly neighbor lady who would really take to it.”

“Perfect. I hope your neighbor loves it.”

They wrapped up his vegetables and throw. Rawley paid in cash and left. Instead of going back to Cooper’s to work, he went to the doctor’s office. Devon was sitting behind the counter at the desk and looked up, surprised to see him.

“What a surprise! I hope you’re not sick.”

“Never felt better,” he said. “I brought you a couple of things.” He put his parcels on the table. “I split up the beans and tomatoes, kept half for myself. Then there’s this,” he said, giving her the tissue-wrapped parcel with the throw.

She smiled at the beautiful vegetables, but when she saw the throw she frowned. “Rawley, what have you done?”

He gave a shrug and a fairly handsome smile. “Just checkin’ on things in Myrtle Creek. I thought you might like knowin’ it seems to be business as usual. Not that I expected to see anything amiss. But they’re still there, sellin’ their tomatoes and woven things, wearin’ their overalls and braids.” He shook his head. “Devon, we’ll be careful, but it’s gonna be all right, I think.” He gave her a gentle smile. “I think you got yourself a new home.”