Cherry Blossom Baseball (22 page)

KAMIKAZE

T
he
next morning, Michiko brought the blue box Clarence had made into the kitchen and put it down in front of her father.

“For me?” he said as he lowered his newspaper.

“I need a bigger box for my letters,” Michiko said, “and Mr. Palumbo's son needs to learn how to build one.”

Her father said nothing.

“I thought,” Michiko continued with a shy smile, “that you could teach him by making me a new one, like my
tansu,
only smaller.”

Her father took a long time to answer, so long that Michiko thought she would have to repeat her request, and then he put his finger to her forehead and said, “
maho.
”

Michiko looked to her mother for an explanation, but before she could speak, her father laughed out loud. “Now I know why you're so good at baseball,” he said. “You read minds!”

“It's not magic,” her mother said, placing her hand on Michiko's shoulder. “She is a kind person, and this is a kind thing for her to suggest.”

Her father went back to his newspaper just as Hiro came into the kitchen, crying.

“Mrs. Morrison is gone,” he said. “I looked every­where.”

Michiko glanced at the small dishes on the floor. Both were still full. “I'll bet she is up one of the trees,” she said, pulling her little brother onto her lap, “like before.”

Hiro shook his head. “She's gone.”

“We'll find her,” Michiko said. “Come with me.”

Together, they searched the property. By lunchtime, Michiko was also concerned. She didn't want to check the road and decided to ask for help.

“What's up?” Tony asked when they approached the Palumbo house.

“My brother's cat is missing,” Michiko told him. “Would you check the r-o-a-d?”

“Sure,” he said. “I'll use the bike.”

Tony came to their door just as they were finishing their lunch. “All clear,” he said. “When did you see the cat last?”

Hiro stuck out his lower lip and shrugged.

“She followed me to the strawberry stand yesterday,” Michiko said. “That's why I wanted you to check the road.” She didn't like to think about the day Carolyn showed up, and then she felt her heart collapse like an umbrella as the most horrible of thoughts struck her.

Michiko turned to her little brother. “I think Mrs. Morrison went to visit someone,” she said. “Don't worry, we'll find her.”

She lined the basket in front of her bicycle with a piece of worn cloth and set off down the lane toward the village. It wouldn't be too difficult to find Carolyn's house. She lived on the same street as Mary, and Michiko knew Mr. Leahey's car. It being Sunday, she hoped it would be in the driveway, and it was.

At first, Michiko planned to pound on the front door and demand that Carolyn give the cat back, but her resolve faded as she leaned her bike against one of the trees in the boulevard. It was only a hunch. She decided to look in the backyard and walked to the gate at the side of the large stone house and gave it a push. It swung open with a loud creak. Michiko held her breath as she followed the walkway calling out to the cat in a soft voice. Just as she searched a large flower garden, a voice from the back porch said, “You know that you're trespassing, don't you?”

Michiko straightened her back and turned to face Carolyn.

Carolyn rose from a garden chair wearing white shorts and shirt. She held a tennis racket.

Michiko stepped up to the porch. “If you took that cat,” she said, “ I will ... I will ...” She faltered, trying to think of a terrible fate. “I will
KAMIKAZE
you.”

“Daddy,” Carolyn called out in a shrill voice. “Daddy, I need you.”

The back door to the house flew open and a woman appeared. “Your father is on the phone,” she said in an irritated manner. “What's the matter now?”

“There's a strange girl in our backyard,” Carolyn cried out. “She's threatening to hurt me.”

The woman stepped out on to the porch.

“Hello, Mrs. Leahey,” Michiko said in her most polite voice. “I'm in Carolyn's class at school. I guess she couldn't tell because the sun was in her eyes.”

The woman took a step closer to get a better look at Michiko. She looked at Carolyn and then at Michiko. “Why are you in our backyard?

“I was looking for my brother's cat,” Michiko replied. She looked directly at Carolyn and said, “I thought she might have gotten into your yard by accident.”

“Your cat?” the woman said. “Carolyn said it was a stray. I'm allergic to cats, so she took it to the pound. It's not far from here.”

Michiko thanked her and went toward the gate. Just as she lifted the latch, she heard a plaintive mew. It came from the garden shed at the back of the property.

Carolyn ran to the shed, but Michiko got to it first and opened the door. “Here, kitty, kitty,” she called in a soft voice.

Mrs. Morrison, the black and white cat with its distinctive milk drop marking, came toward her, mewing softly. She looked scared. Michiko picked her up, took a deep breath, and turned to face Carolyn.

“How could you steal a little boy's cat?” she asked. “How could anyone be so mean?”

Carolyn gave a shrug, but her smirk faded as her mother approached. “You told me you took that cat to the pound,” she said.

Michiko unlatched the gate with one hand, cradling the cat with the other. “Carolyn says a lot of things, Mrs. Leahey,” she said, “most of which are not true.” Then she ran to her bike, placed the cat in the basket, and pedalled away.

The fielder for the Seaway Seagulls ran for the ball, but not knowing whether to throw it to first or home, hesitated and threw it home. The catcher had expected a throw to first and was not at the plate. The ball dropped and rolled toward the pitcher's mound. The pitcher scrambled to pick it up, but Michiko, who was on third, made it to the home plate, winning the game 7–6.

“We're going to get those hats!” Billy yelled. “We're in first place!”

Michiko grimaced from the thumps her teammates gave her on the back.

The apple trees stood in fields of wheat-coloured summer grass dotted with lacy white flowers. School finished with the excitement of upcoming Dominion Day celebrations on July 1. There was to be a parade of servicemen, tug of war, sack races, and a huge game of bingo for the adults.

Michiko suggested to Tony that he strike a deal with her father. He could help with the farm work in exchange for lessons in woodworking. Sam and Tony made a good team both in the field and shed. But they both insisted on one thing. No one was to see what they were doing until the boxes were done, except for Mr. Takahashi, who was allowed to inspect at any time.

“We should do something special for Dominion Day,” Michiko suggested to her mother.

“What do you have in mind?” her mother asked.

Michiko looked over at her little sister sleeping on the blanket in the shade. She remembered a picnic under a cherry tree, before they were forced to leave Vancouver, before Kaz met Sadie, before Hannah was born. “It's been a long, long time since we had a picnic.”

Michiko's mother lowered the stick she was using to beat the rug on the clothesline. “We'll see,” was all she said.

In the shade of a tree, Mr. Palumbo patted his breast pocket to find his pipe. He bent forward to shield the flame of his match from the breeze until the smoke escaped from the corner of his mouth. Then he settled on top of a turned-up crate to enjoy the day off. The two families had gathered to celebrate Dominion Day, but more importantly, the completion of Tony's woodworking project.

A wooden trestle table held the remnants of a summer feast. Michiko's contribution was a plate of the crispy marshmallow squares from Mary's party. To her surprise, the recipe was on the back of their new box of cereal, and using her berry money, she'd purchased a bag of marshmallows to surprise them all.

That wasn't the only surprise she planned to reveal. Her Uncle Kaz's latest letter waited in her blue box in her bedroom. It was short, but so important that Michiko decided it was time to share it with her parents.

Everyone admired Sam's small, polished maple chest. A tiny heart-shaped lock dangled from the front clasp. Her father stuck his hand in his pocket and pulled out a key attached to a length of string. “Little brothers are nosy,” he said to her with a wink as he handed her the key.

Before Tony revealed the large box under the blanket, he cleared his throat and said, “After I show the box to the man in Toronto, it will be a gift for my mamma.”

Mrs. Palumbo looked about and smiled. Michiko knew she didn't quite understand what was going on. She had seen that look on faces in the camp when English was spoken too fast.

He lifted the blanket with a flourish, and everyone gasped.

Rectangular in shape, with deep carvings on the front, it reminded Michiko of the kind of chest that carried treasure.

Sam pointed out the large dovetail corner joints and then raised the lid to reveal a second set of iron hinges inside.

Tony lifted out the fitted top tray and passed it to Mr. Palumbo for his approval.

Mr. Palumbo gripped the edge of the pipe in his teeth as he examined it.

Mrs. Palumbo ran her hands across the carvings with a grin.

“A very solid, well-crafted piece,” Eiko said as she examined the box. “Good for you.”

Back at the house, Michiko emptied her blue box and placed her grandfather's letters, tied with red ribbon, back inside. Then she set four packets of letters out on the kitchen table.

“You
have
been busy,” her mother commented. “I thought you wrote to three soldiers.”

“The fourth soldier is a very, very, very, special one,” Michiko said as she pulled the thin blue paper from its envelope to read the last part of his most recent letter out loud. “When you hear it you will know why.”

Congratulate me! I have been promoted to the rank of sergeant. You would think we would all be sent home now that the war is over, but we are needed now more than ever for what is called clean-up work. There is a chance I will get posted to Hong Kong as a member of the Canadian Intelligence Corps. Please keep in touch with your aunt. I know she will be lonely in Toronto.

Kaz

“You have been writing to Kaz?” her mother asked in surprise.

“All servicemen like mail,” Michiko said. She paused for a moment and said, “It's really hard for them to be far away from their family and friends.” She put the letter back into the envelope and placed it on top of his stack.