Beyond These Hills (32 page)

Rani stayed on her knees long after the prayer was finished. She placed the palm of her hand on Matthew's chest and took pleasure in its rise and fall with each breath he took. As long as there was breath, there was life. Finally satisfied that he was resting comfortably, she eased to her feet, settled back into her chair, and began to nod.

Sometime later she stirred at a sound in the room. She opened her eyes and blinked into the darkness. What had awakened her? Then she heard it again. Matthew was calling her.

“Rani?”

She bolted to her feet and bent over him. “Yes, Matthew. I'm here.”

A sigh of relief drifted up from the bed. “I'm glad. I thought you might be somewhere else.”

She cupped his cheek with her hand and smiled. “Where would I be except at your side? That's the only place I ever want to be.”

“I'm sorry I woke you up. I just wanted to see you.”

“Then let me get some light in here so we can see each other better.” An oil lamp and a box of matches sat on a table next to the bed. She turned her back to him so he couldn't see how her hand shook as she removed the lamp's chimney and held the struck match to the wick. When she replaced the chimney, the soft glow of the lamp lit the room. She turned back and smiled. “That's better. Now I can see you.”

She pulled the chair closer and sat down. He stared at her for a moment before he spoke. “I'm sorry I gave you such a scare today. I've known for a long time I wasn't well, but I didn't want to worry you.”

The memory of him wincing in pain and rubbing his chest
flashed in her mind. Why had she been so blind? Maybe she could have gotten him to a doctor sooner. Then another thought struck her, and her eyes grew wide.

“Is that the reason you gave up the fight to hold onto our land and insisted we get started building the new house and studio?”

“Yes. I didn't want you to have to deal with everything alone if something happened to me.”

A tear ran down her cheek, and she wiped at it. “You should have told me, Matthew. You didn't need to carry that burden alone.”

He sighed. “Well, I guess my secret is out now.” He reached for her hand. “I don't know if this is my time to die or not. If it is, everything is taken care of. The lawyer who handled our court case has all the papers you'll need to sell our farm. And everything's arranged about building the new house and studio. He'll also help you sell all the livestock and whatever you won't need when you move to Gatlinburg.”

She reached over and placed her hand over his mouth. “Don't talk like that. You're going home with us, and I'm going to take care of you just like you have done for me for all these years. We're going to finish raising Willie, and we're going to see Laurel married, and…” She choked up and cleared her throat. “And we're going to be together when Charlie comes home.”

He wrapped his fingers around hers and squeezed them. “I hope so, Rani. I sure hope so.”

Chapter 16

I
t was a glorious afternoon. Or so Laurel thought. She kicked at a rock in her path as she walked to the house from the lodge that had probably seen its last guest. She clasped her Brownie camera tighter and mulled over her plans for developing and cataloguing the pictures she'd just taken. By the time she left the Cove she wanted to have pictures of everything she'd known all her life.

As she approached the house she caught sight of her father sitting in a rocker on the front porch. He stared down at the Bible in his lap. It didn't seem possible that three weeks had passed since his attack. After a week at the clinic he'd been allowed to return to the Cove, and so far he was getting better every day.

Laurel tiptoed up the steps, raised the camera, and stared through the view finder. She smiled at the image of her father. The color had come back to his cheeks, but he looked like he'd lost weight. He glanced up when he heard the camera click and scowled at her.

“Did you just take my picture?”

Laurel laughed and dropped into the chair beside him. “I did. I thought I'd see what you were up to out here on the porch by yourself. I couldn't help but take your picture.”

“I figured it was about time for your mother to send somebody to check on me. If it's not her, it's either you or Willie. You're all treating me like I'm an invalid.”

She laughed and patted his arm. “We're so glad to see you doing so well that we can't stay away from you.”

“And you can't quit taking my picture,” he growled. “Every time I look up that thing is aimed at me.”

“It's because I'm so glad to have you home. It wasn't the same around here without you.”

He grunted and closed the Bible. “Sweet talk will get you nowhere with me, young lady.”

She set the camera down next to the chair and grinned up at him. “My, my. Aren't you grumpy today? Have you had your medicine?”

“Yes. I'm full of those vitamins Dr. Pearson gave me.” He patted his shirt pocket. “And I've got my nitroglycerine right here.”

“Good. Keep it close at hand in case you need it.”

He smiled, leaned back in the chair, and took a deep breath. “I'm sorry I gave all of you such a scare.”

“Well, everything turned out all right.”

He looked at her and arched an eyebrow. “All right? I've been practically retired from working and I have to spend part of the day in bed. Not to mention all those vitamins I'm taking.”

“Now, Poppa, you know Dr. Pearson said medical science still knows very little about the heart. You're lucky to be alive, so you need to follow his orders. We want you around here for a long time to come.”

“I want that too, darling. One of the things I kept thinking about when I was at that clinic was that I wanted to see you get married.” He frowned and glanced toward the corner of the house. “That reminds me. Where is Andrew? I heard him drive up before I came outside, but I haven't seen him.”

“He's at the barn with Willie. They're doing the milking, although that's not a very big job since Mama sold all the livestock except that one cow. But Andrew keeps coming to help out.”

“That boy has sure been good to help out since I've been sick.” He sat in thought for a moment. “It reminds me of the time I went
over to help Jimmy's grandmother Laura with the chores when Pete got hurt chopping wood. It was the beginning of a great friendship with Pete.”

“I've heard you tell that story, but you were probably better at what you had to do than Andrew was at first.” She swiveled in her chair to face her father. “Oh, Poppa, I wish you could have seen him that first day. He had no idea how to milk a cow. Willie had to show him. In fact Willie has really amazed me at how he's taken over the chores. You'd be so proud of him.”

Her father's chin trembled. “I am proud of him. He's growing up.”

“You sound like that makes you sad.”

He smiled. “I know I've said he needed to grow up, but now that he is I find I'm missing the mischievous boy that he was.”

Laurel laughed. “Oh, don't worry. I have a feeling that little boy is still around somewhere.”

Her father nodded and gazed toward the mountains in the distance. They sat in silence for several minutes until he turned to her. “I haven't asked you how things are going with you and Andrew. Have there been any changes since I got sick?”

“No. For the last few weeks the only thing on my mind was getting you well. In fact Andrew and I have hardly talked. He's been busy every day finishing up the sale agreements with some of the last holdouts in the Cove. Then by the time he's through with the chores in the afternoon and has supper, he's ready to get back to the camp.”

“I've enjoyed having him here at supper. I've really gotten to like that boy.” He paused and cast a quick glance at her. “I'm still concerned that he questions whether or not he can ever turn his life over to God.”

Laurel sighed. “I know. That concerns me too, as well as his relationship with his father.”

“Why? Is there a problem?”

Her father listened intently as she related her meeting with Andrew's father. When she finished, she glanced at him. He pursed
his lips, propped his elbows on the arms of the chair, and tapped his tented fingers together.

“I've prayed and prayed about this, Poppa, and I don't know what to do. I don't want to be the reason for Andrew to be alienated from his father.”

“It sounds to me like there was a problem before you came along. Maybe you just helped it come to the surface.”

“I've thought about that, but it still worries me. The Bible says for us to honor our father and mother. I want Andrew to be able to work out his problems with his father.”

“Maybe he will. Keep praying about it. That's all I know to tell you right now.”

Before she could respond, Andrew and Willie walked around the corner of the house, and Willie hopped onto the front porch. “Mama says for me to take you for a walk before supper. She thinks you need some exercise.”

A growl escaped her father's throat. “Oh, she does? And where does she suggest we walk to?”

“I thought we could walk down to the creek. Maybe we'd see that big fish that stays around that log in the water. How 'bout that?”

Her father smiled and pushed to his feet. “I think that's a good idea. Let's go.”

Laurel watched them go before she turned back to Andrew. “Come on up and have a seat on the porch.”

“Okay.” He stepped onto the porch and dropped down in the chair where her father had sat a few minutes ago. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes for a moment. “This has been a busy day.”

She reached over and squeezed his arm. “We really appreciate all you've done to help out while Poppa's been sick. I know it hasn't been easy for you on top of all your responsibilities at work.”

He straightened in his seat and faced her. “I wanted to talk to you about that. I talked with your mother when we brought the milk
from the barn. I have to go back to Gatlinburg for a few days. I hate to leave, but the superintendent wants me there.”

“Don't worry about that. We'll make do just fine. We understand you have a job to do.”

He nodded and grinned. “Willie can milk that cow by himself. He's quite a boy. I think we've become close since I've been helping out here.”

“I'm glad. I want you to like my family, but I worry about your relationship with your family.”

His eyes darkened, and he pushed up out of his chair. He walked to the porch railing and turned to face her. “Laurel, there is no relationship with my father anymore. I thought you understood that.”

She jumped up and moved closer to him. “But that's not right, Andrew. Everybody needs family, and he's all you've got. You have to find a way to heal this rift between the two of you.”

His lips straightened into a thin line, and he shook his head. “I am through living with his domineering attitude and his determination to run my life. He's not going to push me around anymore.”

“But, Andrew, he's your father. You don't have to cut him out of your life. I almost lost my father, and I'm so blessed that he lived. I don't want you to live your life without your father.”

“My father is very different from yours. Besides, this doesn't concern you. It's my problem.”

She gasped and took a step back. “Not my problem? I thought whatever affected one of us did the other also.”

He shook his head and glared at her. “Not this. My relationship with my father is my business, not yours. Don't ever mention him to me again.”

She clenched her fists at her side and gritted her teeth. “Are you giving me an order?”

“If that's what it'll take to get you to leave me alone about this, then yes, I am.”

Her body trembled with anger. “What makes you think you have the right to talk to me like that? Maybe the words we said to each other the day Granny died made you believe I'd obey your every command like a well-trained dog, but I assure you that's not the case.”

He raked his hand through his hair. “Laurel, I didn't mean it like that. I spoke in anger.”

“That's no excuse, especially if you profess to love someone. Maybe I was right to keep my distance from you when we first met. We come from two different worlds, Andrew, and we don't see things in the same way.”

His cheeks turned red and his eyes narrowed. “Oh, now the truth comes out. This is not about my father after all.”

She frowned. “What are you talking about?”

“It's all about me not understanding the way of life here and how all of you pray about every little detail of your life. But most importantly it's about the fact that I grew up in a more affluent environment, and the folks in the Cove don't trust outsiders. Somehow that makes everybody here suspicious of me and my motives.”

“What do you mean?”