Phantom of Riverside Park (37 page)

“You should have seen that dear old man this
afternoon. He cried when he saw the cows, David, and then that
adorable little child put his hands on Mr. Jenning’s face and asked
why his papa was sad, and do you know what that sweet old man
said?”

“No, but I have a feeling you’re going to
tell me in spite of the fact that I’m dog tired and have a meeting
at eight o’clock in the morning.”

His protest was token and McKenzie knew it.
Far from being tired, David felt more alive than he had in
years.

“He said
happiness sometimes makes us
cry
. Isn’t that beautiful, David? He’s so wise and gentle. He
reminds me of Grandpa Snead.”

“I’m glad you like him, McKenzie.”
What
about Elizabeth? Did she like my house? Did she love the farm as I
do? Would she be happy living there?

“Oh, I do like him. And you know what?
Elizabeth let me read bedtime stories to Nicky, then stay and
listen to his prayers. God, David, a little child’s faith is enough
to make us all ashamed.”

“He’s a great kid.”

“How do you know?”

Caught. Almost
. “I’ve seen him from
my window, down in the park.”

“Well, you’re going to see him in the
flesh.”

“Now, McKenzie. We’ve been through all
this.”

“I don’t give a rat’s butt what we’ve been
through. That little boy is going to turn five and you’re going to
get yourself down here for the party or I’m not speaking to you
again as long as you live.”

“Those are strong words, McKenzie.”

“David, I mean it. It was bad enough that you
sent Elizabeth down here all by herself...”

“She’s not by herself. She has you ... and
Peter.”

“She needs you.”

“I’m doing everything in my power to help
her.”

“When are you going to stop being a
long-distance hero, David? When are you going to realize that
people will love you for who you are if you will only give them a
chance? Give Elizabeth and her family a chance.”

Could it be true? There is a hopeful part in
all of us that never dies, no matter what happens. A tiny fragile
seed of hope popped up through the mire of his soul and checked to
see if it could find the sun.

“When is the party?”

“This weekend. As it turns out, he’s not
going to be five for another six months, but this little kid has
been through hell, David. He needs a party. We’re calling it the
unbirthday party.”

David smiled. McKenzie was having the time of
her life, and so, he suspected, were Thomas and Nicky.

What about Elizabeth?

“
You’re coming, then?”

“I’m not making any promises.”

“I’ve told you how I feel, and I meant every
word I said.”

“I’ll think about it, McKenzie.”

“I’ll see you this weekend, David.” She hung
up before he had a chance to say anything else.

As David climbed into his bed he noticed he’d
only turned back the covers on his half. The other pillow was still
plumped up with the bedspread tucked underneath, waiting, it
seemed, for someone with the scent of honeysuckle caught in her
hair to claim it as her own. It occurred to David that he’d never
turned back that side of the bed, that since he’d come back from
Iraq his night-time ritual had been an exact reflection of his
life. He was living a half life.

He stared at the other side of his bed and
the tucked-up pillow mocked him. All of a sudden he reached over
and jerked the covers off. Then he punched the pillow so hard it
left an indention in the middle.

“There now,” he said, as if he’d settled some
long-term argument with himself.

The first thing Elizabeth thought when she
woke up in the big four-poster bed with the silk canopies was
yes, here I am at last
. Then she wrapped her arms around
herself so she could tell she was real, so she would know that she
wasn’t still in her little rental house in Vine Street in the
middle of a good dream. Or back in Tunica, startled out of a
night-time fantasy by the sound of the train whistling through the
night.

It was early. She could tell by the gray
tinge of the sky that the sun wasn’t even up yet, much less her
family, and all at once she wanted to see the sun rise over her new
home. Elizabeth flung back the covers and raced through the French
doors, then stood on the balcony with her heart in her mouth while
the residual darkness scattered like a covey of quail, flushed out
by a great golden ball that rose up out of nowhere. Or so it
seemed. Elizabeth knew better, of course, but standing in her
nightgown in the middle of sudden splendor she saw the sunrise as a
miracle... and a promise.

She leaned her arms on the railing and tipped
her face up, thinking
shine on me.
And then she stuck her
tongue out to see if she could taste the sun. She’d seen Nicky do
that, and always, afterward he’d have this look on his face as if
he’d just been sprinkled with holy water.

She went back into her
bedroom--sprinkled--with the intention of getting dressed and going
down to the kitchen to make coffee. Seized by impulse she raced
through the house instead, her gown flying out behind her like the
wings of some skinny-legged white bird, her bare feet absorbing the
mysterious generations of people who had lived and loved in that
house. It wasn’t the portraits of David’s ancestors on the wall who
spoke to her, but the ghosts who lounged in the leather chairs and
reclined on the satin covered sofas and stood beside the massive
fireplace, winking at her. Mae Mae would feel right at home
here.

The house was enormous. McKenzie had given
her a tour, and Elizabeth remembered enough of the layout not to go
barging into occupied bedrooms. There were good spirits in the
house. She heard them singing and whistling and whispering,
laughing and loving. The whole history of the house presented
itself to her, covered her like a warm mantle, and she was glad
she’d given in to impulse.

The kitchen was just around the corner, if
she remembered right. That’s where she headed, and that’s where she
met the woman in jeans and crisp white shirt. It was no ghost, but
McKenzie making coffee.

“I didn’t think anybody would be up. I’d have
dressed. I’m not even wearing shoes.”

“Welcome to the club.” McKenzie held up one
long skinny bare foot, then did a little jig in place. “I love
feeling these ancient wooden floors on my bare feet. There’s
something so homey and inviting about it.”

“I think so, too.” It’s easy to love a woman
who can be at ease in her bare feet. They are warm, approachable.
Elizabeth felt an immediate affection for McKenzie, as if they’d
been friends since grade school and had been in the habit of
sharing secrets for years. “That coffee smells good.”

“Cream and sugar?”

“Both.”

McKenzie nodded. “Just what I thought.”

“How come, as Nicky would say?”

“When I saw your face at the wedding I said
to myself,
McKenzie, here’s a woman who lives life wide open,
no holds barred.
That means forget the calories and pass the
cream and sugar.”

“The real kind, too. None of that artificial
sweetener for me.”

They laughed, and Elizabeth pictured a string
of sunny mornings in the kitchen, just the two of them, talking
about everything from socks to Socrates and giving both equal
importance.

“Have you talked to your brother lately?”
Elizabeth didn’t even pretend to act casual as she inquired about
David. The friendship she and McKenzie had didn’t need a long
settling-in period. They didn’t have to test the waters with each
other, but could dive right in naked as an egg and just as
vulnerable, all the while knowing they’d found a safe place.

“Last night.”

“How is he?”

“In his current mood he’d be good company for
the grizzlies.” McKenzie beamed at her. “I really like this you
know.”

“What?”

“You, inquiring about David. Why don’t you
inquire in person?”

“You mean call him?”

“Why not? You’re his wife. Or ask him in
person. He’ll be here this weekend.”

Elizabeth’s pleasure was all out of
proportion to the event.

“You think so?”

“Oh, I’m positive. He has these hang-ups
about his prosthetic leg and his scars, but any man who gets that
hot and bothered over a woman is bound to show up sooner or
later.”

Is that the way David felt about her?
Elizabeth certainly hoped so. The fervor of her wishing caught her
by surprise.
No
, actually if she was going to be
completely honest with herself; it didn’t surprise her, not when
she thought back, not when she remembered how the feel of being
held in his arms had lingered with her for days.

McKenzie was studying her in a wise and
knowing way.

“I don’t think any of that matters,”
Elizabeth said.

“You don’t?” McKenzie’s smile was
triumphant.

And all of a sudden Elizabeth was desperate
to change the subject. She was ready to jump buck naked into other
people’s troubled waters, but she preferred to have her own all to
herself for a while till she could think it all through and come to
some conclusion.

“Well, no, not really,” she said, and then
added, “I have an idea. Why don’t we make something delicious for
this weekend? A pound cake, maybe. Just in case David comes.”

“I was thinking you might fix something a
little different for him.”

“What?”

“Pound cake decorated with condoms. Or do you
think that’s too subtle?”

They laughed till they had to hang onto each
other to stay upright. Then McKenzie pulled her shirttail out and
wiped her eyes, while Elizabeth mopped her face with the sleeve of
her gown.

“It’s so good to have another woman around
here,” McKenzie said. “There’s Lora Bea, of course, but she’s as
old as God and only comes over when she needs to feel needed. She’s
been with the family for years, and still thinks of David and me as
children.” McKenzie topped off their coffee cups, then added extra
cream and sugar to Elizabeth’s without asking
how
much?

“I guess you know how happy I am to be here,
and for more reasons than I can count. Nicky and Papa, too. I
hadn’t realized how much he’d missed the farm until I saw him
yesterday.”

McKenzie put her hand over Elizabeth’s. “I
hope you won’t think I’m pushy...” She stopped to laugh at herself.
“Heck, I am pushy. I never thought I’d see the day when David would
bring a woman here.” She held up her hand as if warding off evil
spirits. “I know the circumstances and all that, but still... My
brother’s a good man, Elizabeth, one of the finest men I’ve ever
known. I’d do anything in the world for him, and have, actually.
I’ve gone and meddled and manipulated, all in the name of love,
mind you, and I hope you won’t be upset.”

“I haven’t heard anything so far to be upset
about, but then you haven’t told me much, McKenzie, except that
David’s a wonderful man. I couldn’t agree more.”

“See. I knew it. I told David that people
would love him if he’d just give them a chance.” McKenzie put a
hand over Elizabeth’s. “I hope you don’t mind that I meddled. I
mean, there’s hardly any way David can be in this house without
meeting your grandfather and Nicky. And I didn’t even ask how you’d
feel about that before I put my two bits in.”

There would be no problem with Papa. He would
view David as a hero. Already did, as a matter of fact. Nicky was
the one who concerned her. Events had moved so fast Elizabeth
hadn’t given the subject any consideration, which was a failure on
her part.

It wasn’t David’s scars that worried her, but
the fact that he was only a temporary fixture in their lives. She
didn’t want her son to fall in love with him only to be jerked up
by the roots later and replanted like a little dogwood tree.

On the other hand, how would he ever know joy
if he didn’t risk loss? How could she? How could anybody?

The thing was, David was already a major
factor in Nicky’s life. A true hero. A kind and compassionate
friend. A protector. A rescuer. He deserved to be thanked in
person. By Nicky.

People come and go. That’s life. Nicky would
always be faced with losing a friend, a teacher, a relative.

A breeze stirred the curtain at the window.
You have to live your life in the present, not in the future.
If you don’t you’ll be scared to get out of bed.

“I will be proud for my son to meet David.”
Elizabeth spoke with absolute conviction. “Papa, too. They’ll both
want a chance to thank him for all he’s done for us.”

McKenzie wiped her eyes with her shirttail
once more, but not tears of laughter.

“Happiness sometimes makes us cry,” McKenzie
said. “Do you know who told me that?”

“Papa. He’s told me the same thing many
times.”

McKenzie wrapped her arms around Elizabeth.
“I’m turning into a sentimental fool,” she said.

Elizabeth and McKenzie were still in the
kitchen when Nicky came bounding down the stairs with Papa right
behind him, dressed in overalls again and looking perkier than
she’d seen in years.

“‘Morning, Papa. ‘Morning, angel.” She kissed
them both. “Did you sleep well?”

“Like a rock,” Papa said.

Nicky giggled. “Rocks don’t sleep, Papa.”

“How do you know so much?”

“‘Cause Bear tole me. He waked up and got
scared las’ yesterday but I singed him back to sleep.”

“What did you sing?” Elizabeth asked.

Instead of answering, Nicky burst into song.
“
I found my pill on Blueberry Hill
.”

As she listened Elizabeth decided she wasn’t
going to wait to find out about David’s weekend plans before she
prepared Nicky and Papa. She had already made up her mind: whether
or not David came to the party, she was going to make certain he
met her family. It was the right thing to do... for all of
them.