Wild Woods
9
Recrimination
In Stitches
“AS YOUR DOCTOR, I’m ordering you to stop jumping in the river, Gee,” Adam said as he stitched the cut on Gee’s leg. Ellie held a tight pad against the jagged cut on his arm but Adam had decided the leg injury was worse. Gee could feel a slow trickle of blood on his face as well. He sighed.
“The first thing I remember is the sign for the Pub & Grub,” Gee said.
“Yeah, get your smartass comments out before your future wife gets here,” Ellie said. “She won’t be amused.”
“How is Beck?” Gee asked, wondering why he was being treated before the injured man.
“Gaston’s with him. We split up the task.”
“The coroner?”
“He’s also a damn fine doctor on the staff here,” Adam said. “Though it would have made everyone happier if he was conducting an autopsy. Why would you risk your life for… that man?”
“He was hurt,” Gee said. Adam and Ellie both sighed. Adam moved to the cut on Gee’s arm. Ellie used a damp cloth to wipe the trickle of blood from above Gee’s eye. Gee winced at the shot of local anesthetic Adam gave him before cleaning the wound and beginning to stitch it closed.
“Gee!” Karen cried when she saw him on the table, tattered clothing in a pile on the floor.
“Mask, Karen!” Ellie said. “He has open wounds and we don’t want them infected.”
“My God! You’re bleeding!” Karen said. “Do something!”
“Karen you’ll have to go back to the waiting room if you can’t calm down,” Adam said. Karen caught her breath and regained her composure.
“I’m sorry. Gee, I love you. I had to see that you were alive. I need to go back out and wait. Nina is out there and she’s scared to death.”
“Take her to the children’s room,” Gee suggested. “I’ll be okay until Adam decides on a bigger needle. Nothing’s broken. I’m just a little scratched up. I love you.”
“We think nothing’s broken,” Ellie said. “When Adam’s done with the worst of the cuts, we’re getting Gee into x-ray.”
“Okay. I love you, Gee. We’re here for you.”
“Make sure Nina knows I love her, too, Karen.”
Mead Oliver had no better opinion of Gee’s good deed than Adam had. Gee was wheeled into a room after x-rays had shown no fractures, even though he was bruised from the battering of the current and rocks.
“You couldn’t have waited for the rescue vehicles?” Mead demanded.
“He would have died.”
“Maybe. No great loss.”
“Mead…”
“Gee, you rescued your greatest enemy. Do you think that will change things? Lance Beck is still going to blast you from the pulpit. He’s still going to invite parents to send him their children for conversion therapy. He’s still going to poison the minds of the community. But you dragged him out of a wrecked car, kept him breathing, and held him above water while you risked drowning.”
“I had to do it.”
“I know. And I respect you for it.” Mead sat heavily in a chair and took out a notebook to scratch in as they talked. “Finding Nina. Her panic in the woods. We know he has something to do with it all.”
“Nina’s time in the Woods was before Beck came to town, Mead. We can’t blame him for that.”
“We’re all edgy,” Mead sighed. “We lost one of our ambulances on the way to help. Slid off Fairview Avenue and nearly ended up in the river itself. We only have two tow trucks in this town and we need both to pull the car out of the river. But one is pulling the ambulance back up to the street while the other is anchoring the car so it doesn’t dislodge and crash downstream. If we have an emergency right now, we have one ambulance that could respond. No one should be out driving on this ice.”
“I wasn’t driving, Mead.”
“I wasn’t blaming you. Just, like always, you’re in the middle of it,” Mead said in frustration. “Okay. We got to the point where you were smashing out the windshield and getting lacerations on your right arm,” he continued. “Tell me more.”
“Things got confusing. It was… really cold. I lost track of which way was up. I know I lost a glove trying to unfasten the seatbelt. I remember dragging him across the seat and wedging the door open with my shoulder. And calling for help. He started to wake up and I struggled to keep him calm. But I don’t remember much else until they fastened a harness around me and dragged me through the water to shore. Then it was the ambulance.
“Had to hold Beck in the ambulance to wait for you because the other one was off the road,” Mead said. “Gave the fire and rescue boys a real workout. Finally stretched a ladder across to the car to make a bridge to reach you. And you weighed about twice as much with your waterlogged clothes. I brought your coat, hat and cellphone in for you, by the way. I don’t think you have any clothes left.
“They aren’t letting me go home tonight. Karen will bring me clothes in the morning.”
“She’s a bit of a wreck comforting Nina,” Mead said. “Should be back soon, though. Laura is up with the kids and they’re all hugging Nina.”
“She’ll be fine,” Karen said as she walked into the room. “I could have been back sooner but they told me you were in x-ray.”
“Just bruised, not broken,” Gee said.
“Just lucky,” Karen responded.
“I have everything I need for now,” Mead said. “Let me know if you remember something we should check out. It looks pretty clear at this stage.”
“Thanks, Mead.” The detective left the room. Free from doctors, nurses, and police for the first time, Gee held out his arms and Karen flung herself into them.
“I’m sorry, Love,” Gee said as he tried to calm her tears. “I didn’t mean to frighten you and Nina.”
“I know,” she sniffed. “Nina was… Oh, Gee! She thought she was to blame. She just kept saying she was sorry and please not to send her away. What could I do? I had to stay and tell her what happened and that it wasn’t her fault. She’s still so afraid we’ll send her back to her former masters.” Gee held her and petted her hair, though his arm was stiff and he had trouble reaching her. “She’s okay with Laura and the children now. I’ll bring her down to see you and then take her home.”
“Karen, about Beck…”
“You never have to explain something like that to me,” she said, cutting him off. “I don’t like him. I want to believe he’s responsible for all the bad we’ve found… the kidnapping, Rena, the children… I want him to be struck by a bolt of lightning as he stands distorting the Word of God in his pulpit. But God is silent. Maybe the accident was God finally taking action and coming up against you, the Champion of the City, thwarting god’s best move. Or maybe the accident was simply another test to show how pure you are. No matter, I’m not the judge. I am your lover and your supporter and your helper and your partner.”
“I love you, Karen. You are my refuge as well.”
“I was scared,” Nina said as she sat on the edge of Gee’s hospital bed so he could give her a hug. She’d come in to say goodnight before they went home.
“What were you scared of, Nina?” Gee asked. “Do you know?”
“I thought it was because you were nice to me. I knew it was my fault and you’d punish me because you were hurt.” Karen edged up on the bed behind her and stroked her hair.
“Honey, why would you be punished because Gee was hurt. You didn’t have anything to do with it. You didn’t cause the accident or make Gee foolishly jump in the water. Who would ever punish you for that?”
“Sir and Madam. Sometimes they watched television and punished me for what they saw. Sometimes they came home late at night and took me from my kennel to punish me for what they saw or did when they were gone. It’s all my fault. I get punished.”
“Kick the dog,” Gee whispered. Karen jotted down notes. Everything relating to Gee’s or Nina’s past was important. “Nina, I will never…” he glanced at Karen and she nodded. “We will never punish you like that. We will not blame you for things you do not control. And even if you do something wrong, we will never, ever hit you or abuse you. We want you to be safe with us, not frightened.”
“Even though you got hurt?” she squeaked.
“Trust me. I’ve been told by people who know, how foolish I was tonight and how I deserved the injuries I got.”
Nina hugged him again and stood up so Karen could kiss Gee.
“They’re keeping you overnight, but I need to take our girl home and get her to bed. We all have a big day tomorrow helping the children move to their new home.”
“I wouldn’t be much company tonight,” Gee yawned. “They brought me another blanket and I’m finally getting warm. I love you.”
Karen and Nina left to walk the half dozen blocks home.
Homecoming
Gee was released in time to help the children pack.
“My! Where did you get so many clothes?” he laughed as each child brought shirts, pants, and underwear for him to see before putting them in the little suitcases. Laura and Jude had been buying things for the children and now it all had to be boxed and taken to the house where the new family would be living.
Esther stood watching Jude carry the box of books to the car with her lip trembling. She looked uncertainly at Gee and he held his arms out. She launched herself into them and he carried her around the room assuring her. The children had lived here for seven weeks. It was the only home they’d known since being found on the truck. Seeing the familiar things disappearing from the room and the room gradually transforming back into a sterile hospital room instead of their home was obviously stressing them.
“Once upon a time, there were three children who went on a great adventure,” Gee began. The children had heard Gee tell stories enough times that their focus snapped to him and he sat on the edge of their bed, Littlest still in his arms. Gee continued his story. “‘What do we need for an adventure?’ the big girl asked. ‘A bear,’ said the boy. ‘A book,’ said girl. ‘I need Brother and Sister,’ said the little one. She took the hands of her brother and sister and with bear and book they went on a hunt for adventure.’” Gee paused in the story as Laura brought winter coats for the children.
“It’s cold outside,” she said. “The children need to bundle up warmly so they can go on their big adventure. Naomi, can you help Esther with her coat, please?” Now that they were engaged in the process of actually leaving, the children became more active and walked to Jude’s car. The main roads were deemed safe for travel but the children were still nervous about being fastened into the car seats. Gee and Jude gently reassured them and showed them that Laura and Jude also fastened seatbelts.
Three vehicles made their cautious way from the hospital to Laura and Jude’s home, formerly Karen’s. Grandma Sue had agreed to a temporary position as live-in nanny for the children and would begin training Jeanie when she was available. Her car was filled with boxes of the children’s toys.
Jeanie was waiting at the door with Nina to welcome the children to their new home. The children understood quickly which rooms were theirs and put their toys and books in the room with bunkbeds with their clothes and bedtime things in the room with a double bed. Grandma Sue moved into what had been Karen’s bedroom suite and the children visited her as they explored their new home.
Nina and Jeanie helped the children into different sized booster seats at the dining table when pizza was delivered. Prayer before meals had morphed into a simple bowing of heads as one of the adults said, “Thank you for this food.” It was a compromise among Jude’s Jewish prayer, Laura’s Lutheran prayer, and Grandma Sue’s Baptist prayer. The adults agreed to keep it simple.
Pizza was a new experience for the children and they were soon decorated with tomato sauce from ear to ear. The laughter of the teens was infectious and the children were soon giggling as well.
“Come to Mommy, Esther. Let’s get your face cleaned up.” The child immediately went to Laura to have her face washed and give her a hug. Naomi and David lined up next and then scampered off to their playroom.
“That was quick,” Karen said, as Laura watched the children head upstairs. Gee reached to take Karen’s hand. Laura turned and blushed as Jude wrapped her in his arms.
“Well… It’s just… We’re parents!” she burst out.
“It’s a dream,” Jude said. “We have children of our own.”
“I’m so happy for you,” Karen said. “It’s wonderful that the children are responding to you so well. You really are a Mommy and Daddy.”
Jeanie had a quick whispered conversation with Laura and Jude as they cleared the table. She nodded at Nina. Nina tugged at Karen’s sleeve to get her attention.
“Mommy, may I spend the night here with Jeanie?” she asked. Karen’s mouth dropped open. Nina waited expectantly.
“Um… uh… Is it okay with Laura and Jude?” she choked out.
“We told Jeanie she could invite her. Jeanie’s headed back to Flor tomorrow afternoon but this bedroom will be hers when she is with us,” Laura said.
“Then yes, Sweetie. Do you need to run home and get your night things?”
“Yes. Thank you.” She and Jeanie left for the quick trip across the street to pack Nina’s overnight bag.
“Wow,” Karen sighed. “Wow.”
“It sounded like you are parents, too,” Grandma Sue said softly.
“Wow,” Karen repeated.
Making a Family
“I’m so sorry you were fired, Troy,” Taryn said as she sat beside him on the little sofa in her apartment. It was late Sunday evening and she’d just gotten Ricky settled in bed. Monday would be the first morning Troy did not need to get up early and head for his window on Main Street as people started moving in Rosebud Falls.
“I knew it was happening before Christmas,” he said. “It’s a backlash against the Families.” He pulled Taryn into his arms to kiss her. Their relationship had moved quickly after Christmas with Troy’s family. Even his mother had taken to Ricky as if he were her grandchild. Christmas Eve, Troy and Taryn had slept together for the first time. She melted into his arms, compliant to his every wish.
“What will you do?”
“I have a pretty good following and this isn’t the only station that reaches Rosebud Falls. But I’m thinking a fresh start somewhere would be good. Anyone with a Family name around here is going to have a hard time being in the media or politics,” he said.
“The Families are funny. Everyone looks to you for help and then pushes you away from the places you could do good,” she said. “I’ve never seen a place like this. Of course, I haven’t really traveled that much. What are they going to do with your morning show?”
“Oh, they were very clever. We’ve had a kid as an intern doing weekend slots for several months. He managed a mid-year graduation from high school and they are moving him straight into the Eye on Main. He’s nice enough but he’s about to come face-to-face with the hard reality of having a full-time job in the public eye. You don’t sit in that window and pick your nose.”
“Troy, you talk bravely, but I know deep down you’re hurting. You’ve been in that job since you left broadcast school,” Taryn said. Troy was amazed again at how gentle and empathetic she was. She was simply perfect. “I just want you to know… I’m very comfortable with you, Troy. If you want me, I’ll be whatever you need me to be. You can talk to me. You can cry with me. You can make love to me. Whatever you want, Troy.” He looked at woman curled in his arms. Ten years younger and so willing to please him. Wanting to take care of him. What was he waiting for?
He spared only a flicker of a thought for the mentally challenged child in the next room.
“Is that true, Taryn? You’ll be whatever I want?”
“Yes.”
“Will you be my wife?”
“Troy! Do you mean that? Yes! Of course I’ll marry you.”
“We will probably have to move away from Rosebud Falls,” he said. “I’ve sent out queries to some bigger cities. We’ll need to move.”
“I only just got to Rosebud Falls a couple of months ago. I’m not that attached.”
“Then let’s find a justice of the peace and seal the deal tomorrow.”
“Tonight, let’s make love,” she responded. She led Troy to her bedroom and into her bed.
Sated and content, the couple fell asleep in each other’s arms. He was roused from sleep when Ricky fussed in the next room and Taryn went to attend him.
What had he done? If he married Taryn, the mongoloid child came with the deal.
Oh well. Kids like that often died young, didn’t they?
School Day
Still stiff from his escapade in the water, Gee sat at the table with a cup in his hand. Nina was busy at the stove as she chattered about her weekend with Jeanie and the children. Laura taught the two girls how to make pancakes and Nina insisted she wanted to fix breakfast for Karen and Gee.
“The children are like me,” she said as she chatted away. Karen came into the kitchen and Gee poured her a cup of coffee as Nina mixed the batter. “Except, I talk now. I didn’t before, though. I wasn’t allowed to say anything when I was with Sir and Madam. You are so nice to me! You ask me things and let me answer. I think Naomi will begin talking soon. I thought I heard her whisper something to David Saturday night.”
“That would be wonderful, Sweetie. Soon they’ll be ready to start school, like you will,” Karen said.
“Will I really go to school? I’ve learned my ABCs and counting up really high. I want to read books like Gee reads to us.”
“We don’t know what kind of classes they will recommend for you,” Gee said. “Ms. Parris will talk to you and ask you a lot of questions this morning. Just remember that all you have to do is answer the best you can. This isn’t like a test you have to pass. It’s so we’ll know how to help you learn.”
“Will… um… Ms. Parris want me… to do things?”
“Things?” Karen asked. Nina hung her head. Karen jumped up to hug the girl and Gee moved over to flip the pancake on the griddle. “No one will ask you to do things like that again. And if they do, you can say no. If anyone tries to make you have sex with them, tell us and they will never try again. Do you understand me, Honey? No one will abuse you like that ever again!”
“Well, what do we have?” Principal O’Reilly asked as Nina and Susan Parris joined them in the conference room. Gee and Karen had spent most of the hour while Nina was being tested chatting with the principal. “Was it difficult, Nina?”
“I don’t know things Ms. Parris asked,” she said.
“Not everything, but you know some of the very important things.”
“Tell us all about it,” the principal suggested. A well-disciplined child counselor, Ms. Parris began by addressing her remarks directly to Nina.
“You are a very intelligent young woman. Very smart. Talking to you has convinced me we should talk to the younger children Gee rescued.”
“I didn’t really do any rescuing of the children or of Nina.”
“I understand and won’t argue the point,” Susan said. “Often, when there is long-term drug and physical abuse—even prescription drugs for ADHD and other common treatments—we find the child is damaged intellectually. Nina, you have been deprived of an education but you are in no way intellectually challenged.”
“Is that good?” Nina asked.
“Yes! It means you want to learn and you’re capable of learning. So, we want to help you learn as quickly as you can.” Susan finally turned to Gee and Karen. “Which is our problem. Nina needs the fundamentals of an elementary school education, though she will probably advance through them rapidly. I don’t think she should be placed in a class of six-year-olds and forced to progress at their pace. Socially, she as at the level of a new high school student. She’s new in the adult world and is learning to make friends but she is still a little shy as she feels her way. Sexually… Nina has experience that I hope no other high school student in Rosebud Falls has suffered. This has given her a distorted view of sexual maturity that relates strongly to reward and punishment. And finally, we have the issue of age. Nina is eighteen. Technically, that means she is an adult and the school system does not have an adult education program. I don’t think we can help her here at the school.”
“That might be,” the principal said, “but let’s focus on what Nina needs and wants before we decide how to provide for her.” The discussion went on for an hour before any conclusions were reached.
“So, what we have in the near-term is a homeschooling program that would be guided by and supplemented by an elementary school teacher. If the testing shows good potential, the Woods children should also be included even though they might not progress as rapidly as Nina. Nina is highly motivated to learn. She could potentially join some appropriate high school classes next year,” O’Reilly said.
“Nina, how much you learn and how fast is up to you. Your schooling right now will focus on reading and math, two things that you’ll need all through your life. Without them, it is hard to live independently. That doesn’t mean you have to leave Gee and Karen one day. It means being able to find a job, go on a date, drive a car, shop in a store, use a bank. You might decide you want to go to college one day. Right now, we want you to feel safe and confident whether you are at home, walking down a street, or in school with your friends,” Susan concluded.
“Thank you,” Nina said.
“Yes. Thank you very much,” Karen added. “We will do whatever we can to help Nina be a healthy and happy member of our family.”
“That was more exhausting than I prepared for,” Principal O’Reilly said as he sat opposite Susan in his office.
“I should learn, but I never seem to,” she sighed.
“So, what is your concern.”
“It’s only moderate. We have a lot of students who interact with Gee on a regular basis. He takes them to the woods and talks to them. Today, I saw two girls and a boy all give him a hug when he was in the hall.”
“Do you think he’s behaving inappropriately?”
“No. I have no reason to suspect that. I’m more bothered by Nina.”
“How so?”
“During our evaluation, I questioned her about her sexual experience. I was shocked beyond anything I let show in our meeting. Thankfully, she’s spoken to the police and they are trying to find her ‘sir and madam’. In my book she was saying ‘owners’. She was abused for years in every way you can imagine. When I asked if she had been sexually active with Gee and Karen, she firmly said no. But when I asked if she would have sex with either of them if they asked, she just as firmly said yes. It’s not that I don’t trust her guardians, but with her desire to please and her level of compliance, they could easily slip into the same kind of abusive relationship.”
“I see. Your recommendation?”
“Wait and see. We just need to hope they are of as high character as they seem to be.
Waters in the Woods
“Roy, I’d like you to meet Gee Evars. Gee, this is Roy Waters, Environmental Protection Agency, General Harassment Division,” David said at the forester’s office on Wednesday. The two men had known each other for many years and had an easy relationship. “We asked for another snowstorm but Mother Nature could only delay his visit briefly.” Gabe handed Gee a cup of coffee and returned to his usual seat in the corner.
“Don’t let your boss fool you, Gee. This is a pre-harassment investigation. I need to make up some facts before I start harassing,” Roy said.
“That sounds fair,” Gee said. “I’d hate to think you harass people without making up facts first.”
“What’s the real issue today, Roy?” David said. “It looks like you came dressed to do actual work.”
“I’ve been a supporter of your Forest Management Program since I joined the agency in ’88. You have a good program,” Roy said. “But not long ago, reports started filtering in about accidents, poisonings, and even drug manufacturing. I took it upon myself to come out and check the condition of the new land you’ve acquired and hopefully write an innocuous report that pulls attention away from you. That doesn’t mean we won’t have some issues to address regarding the air, water, or quality of life in the Rose River watershed but, with luck, it might divert the attention of OSHA, DEA, CDC, FBI, or any other alphabet soup you care to name.
“I’ve asked Gee to lead you out into the Wild Woods that we acquired to show you what we’re doing and how we plan to manage things this spring,” David said. “Gee’s on limited duty this week because he got banged up in a non-work-related incident this weekend. He can walk okay, but we don’t want him pulling at any of those stitches. It’s been too cold and icy recently to do any real work in the Wild Woods, so wear your hard hats and goggles. Watch for falling ice.”
“How can I help today, Mr. Waters?”
“Just Roy, Gee. I’ve looked across the fence at the Wild Woods on occasion but had no reason to go into it. Whenever I was on that side of the fence, it was to check the operation of SSG and condition of the quarry. I’d like to visit that while we’re out here.”
“We’ve cut some paths and this one leads from the Forest to the quarry.”
“What is the purpose of the paths?”
“We’re doing a mapping and survey of the hickory out here. I’m also cutting a path down the fencerow on the east to determine what kind of abatement we need to do for nuts falling off Forest-managed land,” Gee responded. He avoided the search for missing children and the suspicion that some could be hiding in the woods.
“Sounds reasonable. You’ll be clearing all the underbrush like was done in the Forest?”
“That’s under investigation. The land out here has been neglected for a hundred years or more. We’re assessing how much work and of what kind we need to do. I expect it will take us until next Harvest season to reach a solid conclusion.”
“Pull up here a minute, would you?” Roy asked. Gee stopped the ATV and Roy carefully stepped onto the crusty snow. He examined a section of thorn thicket along the path. “I see you have some experience with Pyracantha.”
“The thorn bushes? Yes. There are some places they’re so thick we might have to bring in a brush hog to clear them.”
“They’re not common to this region.”
“We don’t know, but we suspect they may have been planted a generation or two ago.”
“Why?” Gee thought about his answer carefully before responding.
“It’s pure speculation on my part,” he said. “This area grows the same kind of trees and has the same kind of nuts as those in the Forest. But it hasn’t been managed or harvested. My guess is that the firethorns were planted to keep people out of the Wild Woods and control the nut traffic.”
“I see. Be careful of those trees, by the way,” Roy said pointing at a hawthorn. “The firethorn is nasty and tough, but the hawthorn can be deadly. Its thorns are small branches that can be sharp enough and long enough to go right through you.” Gee thought of Nina’s torn coat and shirt.
“We’ve had some experience with torn clothing. We’re issuing heavy canvas coveralls when we get back out here in the spring.”
“Good. Let’s go.” They got back on the ATV and Gee continued to point out areas of interest, showing the mapping of large trees on the geocaching software. Roy continued to give helpful pointers but seemed uninterested in collecting samples of soil of plants until they reached the quarry. Here he removed a rope and bucket, having Gee help him toss it into the quarry to collect water from fifteen feet below them. They had to weight the bucket with a large rock to break through the ice on the surface.
“This water has always had a high concentration of bromide sulfate in it,” Roy said. “It’s what gives the water it’s pinkish cast. In running water, the solution bubbles out and when the river goes across the falls and rapids, it is essentially purified. My question is, will clearing the underbrush in the Wild Woods have an impact on water quality here at the quarry and downstream.”
“I see. Is there anything else in the quarry besides the stone or the runoff from the woods that could contribute to the high concentration?” Gee asked.
“I suppose someone could have dumped a couple of truckloads of heart pills in the bottom. Gee, a few years ago we passed a quarry reclamation act. Most of the provisions are left up to the states to develop and enforce. This quarry hasn’t been worked in over seventy years. Maybe a hundred. But it is grandfathered in as ‘inactive’ rather than ‘abandoned.’ I’d still like to see a full reclamation project out here but it’s nearly a hundred feet deep in the center. If the water is safe, having it filled and used for recreation might be the best abatement we could hope for.”
“We’ll keep an eye on it.”
“I’ll be back in the spring to compare the levels after the melt. Now, I’m cold and I’d like a cup of Birdie’s good coffee before I head back to DC.”
Tutors
The mansion was bustling Saturday. Or at least the kitchen was. Gee and Karen were having their first dinner guests and were learning more about the kitchen and a few of its antiquated idiosyncrasies.
“That burner doesn’t light automatically,” Karen said. She produced a long-stem lighter and held it near the gas jet to light the back-left burner. “The ignition seems to work on all the others. I’ll have to call a service person to fix it.”
“This house needs an instruction manual,” Gee replied. “Okay. As soon as the noodles are soft, I’m ready to assemble the lasagna. Do we need to worry about meat and cheese together?”
“The only person it matters to is Jude and I have a vegetable and cheese version for him.” She took a moment to peck Gee on the cheek.
“I finished cleaning my room,” Nina said as she came into the kitchen. “And I vacuumed all the floors upstairs. Except… I didn’t go into your room, just the empty ones and the hall.”
“You’re such a big help. We’ll work out a signal for our room just like we do for yours. If the door is closed all the way, we’d like privacy so please don’t enter. If it is open, you may come in,” Karen said.
“I was only allowed to be in my room or the kitchen when I lived with Sir and Madam, unless they had me on a leash,” Nina sighed.
“Thank you for pitching in, Nina,” Gee said.
“I talked to Laura and to Jeanie and to Grandma Sue,” Nina said. “They’ve been explaining what it means to be part of a family. I don’t think Jeanie knew some of it. I’m sad she doesn’t have a family.”
“I know, Sweetie,” Karen said, hugging the teen.
“One of the things I learned when I came to Rosebud Falls is that having a family isn’t just about a name you were born with,” Gee said. “I think some people look at the seven Families and only see a family tree. But our family is the people we choose to love and have near us.”
“We love you and I know Jeanie is discovering people who love her as well. Like you do.”
“I… never had a friend before. At least the children have each other. I think I’d remember if I had a brother or sister,” Nina sighed. “What can I help with next?”
“Well, it’s early in the day yet. Do you remember where dishes and silverware get placed on the table?”
“Fork on the left of the plate. Spoon and knife on the right.”
“Very good. And how many people will be at the table for dinner?” Karen asked. Nina started counting on her fingers.
“Ten!”
“Hmm. I think you forgot to count someone.” Nina’s face fell.
“Who?” She named off the guests.
“You, silly girl. You count, too.”
“Oh! I forgot me,” she giggled.
“And when you set the table, be sure you allow for the children to be next to adults and give them plastic plates and glasses.”
“They don’t get to use nice things. That’s mean.”
“No, honey, it’s not to be mean. Their hands are little and things slide around. They would be very upset if they dropped a glass and it broke. We want them to enjoy the meal as much as everyone else does,” Gee said. Nina thought about it for a moment.
“You aren’t mean. I knew that. I just didn’t understand. Jeanie and I will help them with their food so they enjoy the meal, too!” Nina scampered off to begin setting the table and to get booster seats on the chairs for Naomi, David, and Esther.
“Remember, no matter where she sets things, it will be perfect,” Karen whispered in Gee’s ear. He nodded and began layering the hot noodles in the casserole.
Laura and Jude arrived with the three children and Jeanie promptly at six o’clock. Nina led the children to a room next to the parlor where she’d discovered a playroom. They happily went about discovering what was there.
Jo and Wayne arrived a few minutes later.
“Whoa! This place always sets me back a step when I see it,” Jo said. “You must rattle around in here!”
“We’re working on ways to fill it up,” Karen laughed at her cousin. “We even have a nursery!”
“It will take me a few minutes to become accustomed to having adults around,” Wayne said. “Spending my life with first graders sometimes leaves me craving grown-up conversation.”
“Aren’t you providing grown-up conversation, Jo?” Karen teased.
“Ka-ren! Be nice.”
“Come all the way in, friends,” Gee said, collecting coats and hanging them in the foyer closet. “I think there are plenty of adults for conversation this evening and we can enjoy the children, too.”
“So, how’s the book coming, Jude?” Jo asked. “Your mother said you’ve been working on it for two years.”
“My mother’s idea of philosophy is that you say whatever pops into your head and consider it profound. Nothing against Mother’s view of the world but writing about the subject is a little more complex than that,” Jude answered. “That being said, getting married, moving, and becoming parents has slowed down the writing a bit.”
“And here I was hoping you’d be able to help me with my book,” Karen said.
“You’re working on a book?” Wayne asked. “I wondered what you’d be doing now that you’re not at the newspaper.”
“I’ve been researching and collecting material for a book about sex trafficking for ten years,” Karen said. “I have reams of data, interviews, and more recently, personal experiences. It’s tricky, though.”
“We need that book,” Jude said. “When I think about the future that was awaiting my children, I get so furious I can’t contain it. I’m afraid some of that has bled into my own manuscript.”
“The problem has many facets,” Karen said. “I’m sure we could both write books from the same research and they’d be completely different. Not that we’d necessarily disagree with each other but we’d each see something unique. I could write an entire volume on the ill-advice and ineffectiveness of laws intended to stop trafficking. They’re feel-good laws. People wipe their hands and say, ‘There, we did something.’ In reality, they often do more harm than good, villainizing the victims and disguising the perpetrators.”
“Is there a law against Sir and Madam?” Nina asked, keenly following the adult conversation as she helped David cut up his lasagna.
“Yes, Nina, there are many laws against what they did,” Gee said. “The biggest problem is we don’t know who or where they are. And if we found them, we would have to prove they did the bad things to you. That is one of the problems Karen is referring to.”
“We have small victories,” Wayne said. “You got away, Nina. You should have been found when you were Esther’s size and saved from everything you went through. When I think of how I first found these three huddled in a blanket and hidden in a shipping container… I’m just so thankful that Laura and Jude are here to love them and make them their family. That’s what children deserve.” Jo squeezed Wayne’s hand as silence surrounded them. They all took a moment to just look at the children—all five when you included the teens.
“Nina, how’s your math coming?” Jeanie asked, breaking the silence.
“I have cards that show all the numbers and the plusses. It’s hard but I counted how many people would be here tonight so I could set the table.” She started giggling as she looked at her friend over the top of David’s head. “I forgot to count me!”
“Just think. Once you learn all the numbers and letters and the ways they can be combined, we’ll be able to read Jude’s and Karen’s books,” Jeanie laughed.
“Who’s doing the teaching?” Wayne asked. Karen waggled her fingers.
“We’ve barely gotten started from the material the school provided. I’m totally lost doing it,” she said.
“Me, too,” Laura agreed. “The children are learning to count and can show me the right number when I ask for three blocks or something like that. But they’re still non-verbal.”
“Maybe I could help,” Wayne said. “The school’s already suggested—not too subtly—that I will probably want to join my grandfather in the business rather than teach school next year. A couple of parents have said they don’t like their children being taught by a Savage. They associate the name with the Wild Woods and how the company fought the annexation. I’m afraid there are more stories out there about the horrors of the woods than you can imagine.”
“Would you consider tutoring all four?” Karen asked. “We could find a way to match instructional time with your schedule.”
“I’d like to but it would be difficult while I’m still teaching. I could consult with you each week to make sure you’re on track and answer questions. But I have a day job dealing with thirty little angels in my classroom.”
“Angels?” Jo laughed. “I thought you called them monsters the other day.”
“Let us not forget that Lucifer was also an angel,” Jude nodded.
“Mommy!”
The room fell silent and forks dropped as all eyes focused on little Esther. Her milk glass had slipped through her greasy fingers and dumped down her front. Big tears welled up in her eyes.
Laura moved so quickly that Jude scarcely caught her chair to keep it from crashing to the floor. She had the little girl in her arms and set the empty glass back on the table.
“It’s okay, Littlest,” she said, using the pet name Gee had first given her. “Mommy’s here. It’s just a little milk and we’ll get it all cleaned up. Don’t cry, Esther. Everything will be okay.” She held and danced Esther toward the bathroom. “Mommy’s here. Mommy loves you.”
David and Naomi looked terrified. Jeanie and Nina were startled but wrapped an arm around the children. Gee reached across the table to take Naomi’s hand.
“You’re safe, Sister,” he said softly. “No one is angry.” The older girl swallowed and bit her lip, looking toward the bathroom where Laura had taken Esther to clean up.
“She’ll be right back,” Jude said. “Mommy is just making sure Esther is dry and clean. Do you need to use the bathroom, too?” Both children nodded. “Come my precious children,” he said as he scooted their chairs back and helped them down from the booster seats. He held their hands as they followed where Laura and Esther had disappeared.
Nina and Jeanie looked at each other with open mouths.
“She spoke,” Jeanie whispered.
The Trials of Job
“It is a difficult story to understand,” Pastor Beck said from the pulpit. “How could God allow Satan to destroy all Job had built? Satan wiped out Job’s herds, killed off his family, and afflicted him with disease. Job’s so-called friends told him to curse God and die. But Job remained faithful.”
Deacon looked out at the congregation from his seat near the lectern where he’d read this morning’s scripture.
Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said, Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge? Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me.
The congregation was less than half the size it had been just a few months ago. Those who remained were not the nicest people. They came to fuel their anger without regard to its direction. No matter what passion the preacher put into his words, he would never attract new members again. It might be time to close the church. Permanently.
“I look at this congregation and I see Satan’s hand at work in the empty seats—seats that so recently were filled by weak Christians who could not suffer the tribulation set upon us. We have been vilified by the press, investigated by the police, harassed by the Families, and, yes! even attacked by the hand of Satan himself. What other explanation, I ask you, for the murder of Brother Reef at the hands of the police? What other reason for the comatose body of Rena Lynd? What other explanation for the deaths of Simon and Janet Alexander? How else do we explain the burning of John Daniels’s barn and the loss of his livestock, leaving a destitute family? Yes, and even my near demise in the icy water of the river a week ago. And to add mockery to his machinations, the devil himself plucked me from a watery grave and said, ‘See here! I have saved you. Worship me!’
“Why? Why, Lord God do you let Satan send the hordes of evil against your faithful? I weep in sackcloth and ashes.”
Pastor Beck bowed his head over the pulpit and then lifted his eyes toward heaven.
“And then the story of Job came to me and I knew the mind of God. Where, he asked, was I when He laid the foundations of the world? And who am I to think that I can understand the mysteries of the universe when all Jesus has asked of me is that I believe on him and be saved?
Behold I am vile; what shall I answer thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth. Once have I spoken; but I will not answer: yea, twice; but I will proceed no further.
“Gentle brothers and sisters, we will continue to endure the hardships Satan in all his guises subjects us to. We will continue to repent of our sins and do the work of our Lord. We will stand fast against the tides of misfortune that Satan hurls at us. But we will not deny God!
“Believe on Him and ye shall be saved.”
Senior Forum
“I looked at the questions you gave me this morning,” Gee said to the gathered upper classmen at Flor del Día. There were nearly a hundred students in the multipurpose room where they would later eat lunch. Gee noted several students from RHS who worked on his crews were in the audience. He wondered if they had received special permission to attend or were simply cutting classes to join their friends.
“You asked two main questions. ‘What does it mean to be a good person?’ and ‘How can I become a good person?’ I think the questions are pretty similar because if we know what it means to be one, we should know what to do to be one. Right? A good person.” He hesitated and looked around. It shouldn’t make him so nervous to talk to the kids. He did it every day in the Forest. But they all looked at him like he knew a great secret. He barely knew his name.
“The problem is, I don’t think I know.
“Is there supposed to be a rulebook that has a checklist in it? ‘Answer yes to eight of these ten questions and you are a good person.’ I have no idea what those ten questions would be. I don’t know if I’d pass the test. Maybe if it were six out of ten. Is that good enough?” the kids laughed at his deprecatory humor.
“Seriously, why ask me? The Christians have a rulebook. The Jews have one. The Muslims have one. The Buddhists have one. There is no lack of rulebooks for life. You could probably follow the High School Athletic Association Football Rules and be a good person for all I know.
“Why don’t you answer the question for me? What do you think makes a good person?”
Gee stepped down off the low platform stage and walked out among the students so they could respond. He pushed the mike toward a young woman near the aisle. “What do you think?” he asked.
“Um… Being kind, I guess.” He nodded and turned to a young man on the other side and two rows back.
“Being honest?” the boy asked. Gee nodded. A boy farther down the row raised a hand and Gee handed the mike to him.
“Being brave. Like you are.” Gee chuckled and shook his head.
“There’s a fine line between being brave and being foolhardy, and it keeps moving,” he said. He handed the mike to another girl.
“Helping the weak or helpless. Like you helped those children they found.”
“Littlest spoke her first word out loud last weekend,” Gee enthused at the mention of the children. “They are miracles of life. I’m so happy for them.” He completely ignored the suggestion that he had helped in any way and the kids all got caught up in his joy as they clapped for the children. Then Gee saw Trevor stand up and hold out his hand. He handed his crew member the microphone, knowing that it was often left to Trevor in these forums to ask challenging questions. Gee wasn’t prepared for the one that was asked.
“Why did you save that preacher?” Trevor asked. Gee blinked back his surprise.
“He was drowning.” Trevor kept hold of the microphone.
“He’s a bad man. He stood in this hall and told us all we were going to hell because I corrected his misquoting of a Bible verse. He looked at the young kids here at Flor like he wanted to eat them. He drugged his congregation and tortured kids into converting from being gay. He incited his congregation to throw nuts at you in the parade, lied about knowing that monk who tried to kill you, called you the devil. He stood up here and said you were Lucifer and the Forest was the Devil’s Playground. How could you…? Why would you save his life when God put him in a river to drown?” Trevor handed back the microphone and sat down. His accusation hung in the air and the students were silent. Gee returned to the front while he thought about the question and waved the Headmaster back to his seat.
“I don’t know, Trevor. From what you are saying, you believe—maybe all of you believe—the world would be a better place without Pastor Beck in it. I didn’t know who was in the car until I smashed out the windshield and reached through it. But then I recognized him so I can’t tell you I didn’t know who I was helping. I could have let him drown. Maybe I could even have helped him drown and made sure of it. No one would ever know. And we believe the world would be a better place because there would be one less evil in it.
“But that wasn’t the question you asked at the beginning of our time together. You asked what made a good person. So, I ask you, would I be a better person if I let him drown?”
Gee sat on the edge of the platform and looked at the students. They were quiet and he saw some nodding and some shaking their heads.
“I think, Trevor, that you might have unlocked an even bigger question. What makes a good world? And that comes right back to the original question. The answer can only be ‘good people.’ If something makes you a better person, by extension it makes the world a better world. If it makes you a lesser person, it makes the world a lesser place.
“When I was reading to the children in the library Wednesday night, Ms. Tomczyk handed me a book of Indian legends. Among them was a story credited to the Cherokee that said an old man counseled his grandson by saying,
There is a terrible fight going on inside us. Two powerful wolves strive for dominance. One is evil. He is anger, arrogance, self-pity, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, pride, and ego.
“It was that last one that made me think this wasn’t quite the way the story was told among the Cherokee. I’m not sure when ancient Indian legends acquired words like ‘ego’,” Gee laughed and then continued the story.
The other wolf is good. He is peace, joy, contentment, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, charity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside every one of us.
The grandchild asked, “Who wins?”
“The one you feed,” said the old man.
“It is a nice illustration, whether authentic or not. It might mean something different to each of us. I don’t believe a little pride in your accomplishments is a bad thing, for example. Pride is a great motivator because it feels good and so we want to do things that make us feel that way.
“I am a baby among you. My memories of life go back only six months. Still, I have known since the day I arrived, all I want to do is feed the good wolf. And I hope that one day he will be strong enough within me to make me a good man.”
Comments
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