The Magic in her Gift (4 page)

“
Yeah, she was one unhappy
young lady.” Karl looked up and smiled. “Not just with me, mind
you, but unhappy being on an island without any friends.” He
grinned wickedly. “Specifically, boyfriends. After talking it over,
I agreed with Lizzie that it might be best to give into her demands
and let her go away to school. Lizzie had been home schooling her
up to that point.”

“
And that made her
happy?”

Karl snorted. “I’m not really sure
Gwen’s ever been happy, or even capable of being happy.” He looked
at Sara apologetically. “Sorry, kid. I forget that she’s your
mother.”

“
No apology necessary.” Sara
sighed. “I’ve never known her to be happy either.” She was quiet in
thought for a moment. “You never said how you met Grandmother.
Where do you come from?”

He looked uncomfortable for just a
moment. “Well, I’m from a place called Rysm, which I already know
you’re gonna say you’ve never heard of. When Lizzie called for me,
I was in a bad way. I had lost my wife and son in an accident and
just wanted to start my life over. She gave me that chance and I’ll
always love her for it.”

“
Did you always stay here
with Grandmother, or did you get to travel when you were
younger?”

“
No traveling, it just
wasn’t possible. We spent our life on this island, happy right up
to the end.”

“
You look wistful. Did you
want to travel with her?”

Karl looked away and brushed at his
eyes. “I always wanted her to come to Rysm, but she wouldn’t leave
Gwen here alone.”

“
That’s sad, Karl. I’m sorry
you didn’t get to show Grandmother your home. You said you’re
leaving here in the morning. Are you going home?”

“
I’m not rightly sure, girl.
My time here’s up, but whether I end up back home or not is
anybody’s guess at this point. I didn’t really wanna go on without
her here. It’s time for me to move on.”

Sara walked over to stare
out the window. “I don’t understand any of this, Karl. Grandmother
said she was leaving me her
magic
, but she didn’t explain what it
meant.” She turned to look at him. “Do you know what she meant by
her
magic
?”

Karl stood and walked over to take her
hands in his. “You have to find the magic in yourself, Sara. It’s
there, deep inside you just waiting to help you find happiness.
Don’t be afraid to embrace it.” He reached into his pocket and
pulled out an envelope. “Lizzie wanted you to have this letter, but
I’m supposed to tell you not to read it until after the reading of
her will. Will you promise me to do that?”

Sara stared at the letter from her
grandmother and swallowed hard. She slowly held out her hand. “I
promise.”

“
Be happy, little Sara.”
Karl bent and placed a kiss on her cheek, then turned and walked
toward the door.

“
Wait, where’re you
going?”

He turned and smiled. “It’s time for me
to move on, little girl. I’ve fulfilled my promises to Lizzie so I
can leave this place a happy man.” His eyes narrowed as he gave her
a shrewd look. “Now it’s time for you to find your happiness, and
don’t you let anyone stand in your way.”

Before Sara could say anything, he
walked out the door. She thought for a moment and realized it was
silly for him to leave before the memorial service. “Karl, wait,”
she yelled as she ran to the door. Surprised to find the hall
empty, she rushed down the steps in an attempt to catch him. Still
not seeing him at the bottom of the stairs, she walked to the front
door and stepped outside.

“
Is everything all right,
Miss?”

Sara turned around at the sound of
Elias’s voice. “Yeah, everything’s fine. Did you happen to see Karl
come this way?”

“
No, Miss, I didn’t, but he
did say he was leaving this evening. Perhaps he’s already
gone.”

Frowning, Sara stared toward the jungle
path. “I guess you’re right, but he sure did leave in
hurry.”

“
I wanted to ask if you or
your family need anything before I leave.”

“
You’re leaving?” Sara
couldn’t keep the anxiety out of her voice.

“
Don’t worry, you’re
perfectly safe here. I’m heading back to the mainland for the
night. I’ll be bringing Mr. Aames back with me in the
morning.”

“
And Mr. Aames is
Grandmother’s attorney? The one who’s going to go over her
will?”

“
Yes, Miss. Mr. Clinton
Aames to be precise.”

“
Is he coming for the
memorial as well?”

Elias looked uncomfortable. “About the
memorial…”

“
What about it?” Sara didn’t
like the way he wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“
There isn’t actually a
formal memorial planned. It was Elizabeth’s wish that the family
gathers and have a quiet time on the beach to remember her by. I
had thought that the three of you could take care of that after
your breakfast and then you’d be ready to listen to all the legal
jargon by lunch time.”

Sara laughed, pleased to see the relief
flow over his features. “That’s perfect, Elias, more than perfect.
My mother hates funerals and Bart never met my grandmother. It’s
much easier on everyone if we can just be left to our own
thoughts.”

“
Excellent! Then I’m going
to be taking off. I’d rather not start any later so I can dock
before nightfall. You’ll find dinner in the oven and I set the
timer so that it would be warmed for you to eat around six
o’clock.”

“
Thank you, that’s very
thoughtful of you. I hope you have a safe trip back and we’ll look
forward to seeing you tomorrow.”

“
Thank you, Miss.” Elias
began walking down the path.

“
Elias, wait.” Sara waited
for him to turn around. “Are you taking all of us back to the
mainland after the reading of the will?”

“
Well, I guess that depends
on what the will says. I know Mr. Aames is going back because he
has a late plane to catch. I figured we would wait on your plans
until after the reading. I was under the impression that you came
prepared to stay at least one more night.”

“
You’re right, we did. I
just thought if it was possible for us to travel with you we could
all get back to our lives faster.”

“
Are you in that much of a
hurry to get back, Sara?”

“
No, I’m not in a hurry.”
The truth of that statement surprised Sara.

“
Then let’s just wait and
see what happens tomorrow.” Elias turned and disappeared in the
trees.

Feeling restless, Sara strolled around
the side of the house, thinking a walk might clear her head. She
cried out in delight at the carpet of color strewn across the lawn.
There were so many different kinds of flowers in every color in the
rainbow. Bright reds, oranges and golds mixed with pastel pinks,
yellows and blues beset her eyes. Sun-dappled leaves glittering
with drops of water from the sprinklers weaved among the colors.
Standing in the center of all that beauty stood a small
gazebo.

Carefully, Sara made her way along the
stepping stone walkway to the small, lattice structure. Inside hung
a swing and she promptly sat down and began to move back and forth.
Closing her eyes, she inhaled deeply, taking in the sweet flower
perfume along with the smell of damp earth. She could hear the wind
through the leaves and felt her hair blowing around her face. The
sounds of birds calling and small animals skittering through the
foliage pierced the air around her. She glanced around and saw
several bird feeders at the edge of the garden, birdseed scattered
on the ground below. “This is a real paradise. It’s no wonder
Grandmother never wanted to leave. I don’t wanna leave.” So caught
up in her enjoyment of the garden, Sara didn’t hear footsteps
approaching.

“
What are you doing out here
all alone?”

Startled, Sara swung around. “Bart, you
scared the life out of me. I didn’t hear you walk up.”

“
You didn’t answer my
question. What are you doing out here?”

Sara watched as he walked into the
Gazebo and joined her on the swing. “I’m not doing anything but
enjoying the view. Don’t you think it’s beautiful here?”

He looked around, his eyes narrowed.
“Yes, it’s very beautiful. It would make a perfect vacation
paradise.”

Feeling pleasantly surprised, Sara
turned and took his hand in hers. “You think you’d like to come
back here with me for a romantic vacation?”

“
Don’t be ridiculous, Sara.
It’s much too far away from our home to be of any use to us. You’d
need a vacation just to recover from the trip here and back. I’m
thinking about how much money your mother could sell this place
for. There are people who would pay a fortune for a private island
like this in a tropical paradise. Do you think she would be
interested in letting me find a buyer for it?”

Releasing his hand, Sara sat back in
her seat and tried not to let her disappointment overwhelm her. “I
have no idea, Bart. You’d have to discuss it with her.”

“
I’ll do that, tomorrow
after the will’s read. Do you know what time the lawyer will be
here?”

“
According to Elias,
sometime around noon. He’s already left for the
mainland.”

“
We’re having the memorial
service first?”

“
No, not exactly.” Sara
proceeded to fill him in on the personal time meant to be a
memorial planned for the morning.

“
That’s perfect. I’m sure
you and your mother will excuse me from participating since I
didn’t know the lady. I can spend that time on some conference
calls for some cases I have coming up. If they get the reading done
quickly, maybe we could be back at the airport heading home by
tomorrow night.”

“
Elias isn’t expecting to
take us back to the mainland until day after tomorrow.”

“
I don’t care what he’s
expecting. He’s being paid to do a job and we’ll go back when I’m
ready.”

Sara sighed and snuggled close to
Bart’s side. She leaned up and kissed his cheek, then ran her hand
down his chest. “Don’t you feel romantic in a place like this?
Doesn’t it make you want to make love on the beach?” She tried to
pull his head down for a kiss only to have him pull away from her
hands.

“
What’s gotten into you,
Sara? We’re here with your mother who’s probably watching us out
the window as I speak.” He glared down at her. “We talked about
this and we agreed to hold off on our relationship until after the
wedding.”

“
You decided, but I didn’t
agree, Bart. We’re thousands of miles away from home, without your
son in the next room, in a romantic
Garden
of Eden
. How can you not be romantic in a
place like this?”

“
Romance has its place, but
not at somebody’s funeral. We’ll have our romantic honeymoon after
the wedding.”

She could see his anger building and
her courage drained away. “I’m sorry, Bart, you’re right. We’re
here for a reason and I should stick to the plan.”

“
That’s my good girl,” he
soothed. “We’ll have a good life together, Sara, if you just give
it a chance.”

“
I know and I am sorry.” She
let out a shaky breath. “So, you haven’t told me where this
romantic honeymoon is gonna take place.”

“
I’d planned on it being a
surprise, but I guess it would be better to let you know so you
pack the appropriate wardrobe.” He smiled, a look of utter
satisfaction coming over his face. “I’ve been offered a chance to
second chair a civil rights case in Houston. I know what you’re
going to say, that I’m a corporate attorney and you’re correct. My
friend and former school mate, Alex Walson, is the head attorney
and he’s asked me to come in with him.” He turned and looked at
Sara. “It’s a news-making case, Sara. It’ll make national headlines
and we’ll be right in the thick of it. I’ve already passed the bar
exam for Texas.”

“
We’re going to Texas so you
can try a case for our honeymoon?” Sara hated the indignation in
her voice.

“
Houston is a great place
for a honeymoon. There are plenty of sites for you to take in
during the day and we’ll be together most evenings. I’m sure there
will be a few working strategy dinners for the case, but it won’t
be every night.”

“
I see,” Sara choked
out.

“
It’ll be great, I promise.
You’ll get to meet a lot of interesting, important people. It’s the
chance of a lifetime for us. It could really advance my
career.”

Sara blinked back her tears. “You’re
right. It’s a great opportunity for you. I’d never want you to miss
out on something like that.”

“
That’s the spirit, my
dear.” He reached over and kissed her cheek before he stood.
“What’s for dinner?”

“
I don’t honestly know.
Elias said he left it warming in the oven and it would be ready by
six.”

He glanced at his watch. “Well it’s
nearly six now so I’m going to check it out. I’ll get things
started while you go wake your mother. Instead of waiting until
morning, I’m going to feel her out about letting me broker a sale
of the island for her while we eat.”