[Desert Roses 03] - Beneath A Harvest Sky (7 page)

“Miss Gordon, I have my family rallied for the trip,” Mr. Van Patten announced as he brought his entourage down the hall.

Rainy smiled. “I was just coming to find you. Looks like we’ll have a beautiful day for travel. The temperature has warmed quite nicely but shouldn’t get too hot. That’s the luxury of traveling this time of year.”

“I cannot bear the heat,” Mrs. Van Patten said, her chin raised ever so slightly.

Rainy could tell the woman would most likely be a problem guest. Guests came in three varieties. Accommodating— those with easygoing personalities, who rolled with the punches and unexpected catastrophes.

Confused—those who were too old, too young, or just too misplaced to enjoy themselves fully. And the problem guests—those who found fault with everything from the food to the transportation to the color of the tour guide’s hair. Rainy actually had one woman refuse to take a tour with the Gordons because they had red hair and that was an omen of bad luck for her.

Rainy tried to push aside her fears of Mrs. Van Pat-ten being just such a guest. “I shouldn’t imagine it will be a problem this time of year, Mrs. Van Patten.”

“And what will you do if it is hot? How will you see to our needs?”

Rainy smiled. “I shall pray for cooler temperatures and find you a fan. But right now we need to be on our way. We have a schedule to keep.”

She left without waiting to hear what Mrs. Van Pat-ten might have to say. Sometimes Rainy had a hard time keeping her sarcasm to herself. Again she sent up a petition to God for patience, only this time it was for an entirely different reason.

Along the route of their tour, Rainy told them of rock formations and rivers, of vegetation and wildlife. She pointed out a roadrunner that seemed rather intimidated by the huge touring car.

“I’m sure he’s afraid we might eat him,” Rainy said, laughing. She glanced at her watch. “We’ll be arriving at the San Augustine Church in Isleta in about fifteen minutes. Before we get there, and because the stop is a very short one, I thought I’d give you the history of the church. Something quite unusual has taken place there, and for over one hundred years everyone from officials in Rome to the president of the United States has been rather stumped as to why these things have happened.”

With that prelude into the mystery of her story, Rainy realized she had the unwavering attention of everyone in the car, with the exceptions of Sonny and Mrs. Van Patten.

“It is said,” Rainy continued, “that a Franciscan friar named Brother Juan Padilla was murdered by a hostile Pueblo Indian in 1756. Now, the Pueblos are generally a very peaceful people, as they were then.

The killing took place because the murderer was afraid Brother Juan might betray the Pueblos to the Spanish.

“The Pueblos were terrified at what would happen if the killing were discovered. After all, Brother Juan had been with them for some time and his healing abilities had proven to the Pueblos that he must serve a powerful god. Knowing he was of Spanish descent, they feared Brother Juan’s powerful god would bring the Spanish to destroy them.” Rainy loved the way the boys seemed to be perched on the edge of their seat, waiting for the rest of the story. She glanced at Duncan and saw that he, too, seemed to be thoroughly enjoying himself. He gave her a smile that warmed Rainy to the bottom of her toes.

“Ah . . . where . . . was I?” Rainy stammered, trying to regain her composure. “Oh yes. The Pueblos, fearing retribution, arranged for four of their swiftest runners to take the body of the friar to Isleta, which was nearly seventy miles to the east. There, they were to bury the friar and return.

“The runners were in a very big hurry, terrified that they’d get caught with the body and the Spanish would find out what had happened. When they arrived at Isleta, they buried the friar without any form of ceremony. They dug a six-foot-deep grave in the dirt floor of the church and buried the friar in front of the altar. They stomped down the ground so that it looked as though it had never been disturbed and fled. Their deception worked, and the tribe bore no retribution for the death of the friar.

“Fifteen years later, a caretaker noticed that there was a bulge in the floor, directly in front of the altar.

He thought nothing of it, but over the years it grew and gradually began to resemble the outline of a man’s body. The ground cracked and the people tried to fill it with dirt, but nothing seemed to work. Twenty years to the day after the friar’s death, the people of the church came in one day to find the body of the friar lying on the ground. He looked newly dead, and his skin was soft and pliable. His robes had rotted, so they reclothed him and reburied him.”

“Oh, that’s awful. That poor man,” Gloria Van Pat-ten gasped. “What a horrible thing to happen.”

“That wasn’t the worst of it,” Rainy stated. She lowered her voice for effect. The boys moved from the back of the touring car and took a seat on the midway bench. “Twenty years later the same thing happened.

The friar again resurfaced and again he seemed just as freshly dead as when he’d been buried nearly forty years earlier.”

“What a horrible stor y!” Mrs. Van Patten exclaimed.

“There’s no possible way that could happen,” Mr.

Van Patten stated, as though Rainy had insulted his intelligence. He dutifully patted his wife’s hand as if to calm her. Rainy only smiled.

“That’s what many people said. So when the people grew fearful and tired of this, and after the padre had resurfaced a few more times, they called on the authorities of the church. The padre was given a proper burial with church rites in 1895. So far,” she said with a smile, “Father Juan has stayed buried. But every time I bring a tour group here, I always wonder if this will be the year Father Juan reappears.”

“Oh, I hope so,” Thomas declared. “This is much more fun than I thought it was going to be.”

“I want to be the first one in the church,” Richard said, nudging his brother. “I’m the oldest and I should have the first look.”

Rainy couldn’t help but chuckle at their sudden interest. How disappointed they would be when they found two-inch planks on the floor as an added incentive to keep Friar Juan in the ground.

Sonny pulled up to the church and before Rainy could say another word, the Van Patten boys hurried from the car. Their parents and Gloria followed at a slower, almost apprehensive pace. Mrs. Van Patten seemed quite pale, in fact, almost as if she had begun to worry about what they’d find.

“That was a great bit of storytelling,” Duncan said as Rainy climbed from the car.

She straightened her skirt before meeting his gaze.

“It’s a fascinating story, isn’t it? I’ve always wondered, though. If the Pueblos said nothing about the death, then who learned the truth of what happened to the poor friar?”

Duncan laughed. “You have a strong investigative nature. You’d make a good archaeologist or anthropologist.”

“You’re kind to say so. I can’t imagine anything I’d enjoy more. In fact—”

A girl’s scream filled the air, causing Duncan and Rainy to exchange a surprised look before bolting at full speed to the open door of the church.

Rainy couldn’t imagine what had happened. She came up behind Mr. and Mrs. Van Patten to find Gloria clinging to her mother. Mrs. Van Patten’s face was now a greenish gray, and her tight-lipped expression suggested a true tragedy had befallen the party.

Peering inside the church, almost sure she’d find the poor old friar had resurfaced once again, Rainy found instead that Thomas Van Patten had stretched himself out in front of the altar, hands crossed over his chest, eyes closed. Richard stood to the side laughing hysterically.

“Oh, we scared her good, Thomas,” Richard called. “You can get up now.” Thomas popped up, giggling.

Rainy shook her head while Mr. Van Patten launched into a reprimand of his sons. Leaving the scene to afford the family some privacy, Rainy looked up to find Duncan barely containing his mirth.

“Oh, so you think that was funny too?”

“Indeed. It was perfect.” He leaned toward her.

“Did you see the look on Mrs. Van Patten’s face? I doubt she’ll be any more trouble for the rest of the day.”

“If only it were that easy,” Rainy replied. “I’m sure we’ll hear an earful before the day is done. Remember, we still have hours to go before we reach Gallup.”

CHAPTER FIVE

D
ay three found the tour in the land of the Navajo. Rainy explained how the Navajo people had taken the dry, unyielding land and created life from it. They were able to raise crops by using ingenious manners of irrigation and raised sheep for the wool and meat they could provide. The Navajo jewelry was especially pleasing to Mrs. Van Patten. She bought several pieces before retiring for the night.

Day four brought the group into Hopi land. Here, Rainy’s good friends Istaqa and his wife, Una, were happy to see her and happy to share their native stories with the tourists. Istaqa and his wife had actually allowed Rainy to live with them for several months one summer. She taught them better English, including how to read, while they taught her Hopi and lessons of their people.

Rainy had the highest admiration for both the Hopi and the Navajo. The Hopi, too, had taken the desert land and made it into fertile farms. Their ability to dry farm was a marvel that was getting more than a little attention as drought had begun to cause problems in various areas of the country. Perhaps the whites would learn that the Indian nations had something to teach them after all.

They spent the night in Tuba City, an old Mormon settlement that now acted as the western headquarters for the Navajo reservation. Their accommodations were at the Trading Post, which offered comfortable rooms and good food, although both were far simpler than seemed to please the Van Pattens. Rainy was more than a little excited to know this would be her last night of responsibility for the group. Falling asleep that night, she thought of Duncan and the fact that, while they’d been together throughout most of the trip, they’d spent very little time in private conversation. Duncan always seemed preoccupied or busy with questions for Sonny, while the Van Pattens consumed her time with everything from Mrs. Van Patten’s concern about Indians growing suddenly hostile and attacking to the boys’ pranks.

Finally the morning of the fifth day arrived, and Rainy knew that by evening she’d be able to eat and relax at the Harvey Hotel in Williams and be free of the Van Pattens. That promise was enough to help her endure Gloria’s whining and Richard’s covert love notes. At least the love notes had offered Sonny, Duncan, and Rainy a bit of amusement. The previous night Richard had accidentally slipped his note under Sonny and Duncan’s door instead of Rainy’s. Sonny thought the note had come from the Trading Post management and had opened it to read:
My heart is ever yours.
You are the joy of all I see. Please know that I will adore you
until my dying day. RVP

Sonny had shown Duncan the note, and knowing Rainy had received similar notes from Richard Van Patten, they risked waking her to show her the missive. Rainy had chided them for being such ninnies but laughed nevertheless. She thought the boy was only toying with her, otherwise she might not have laughed. She had no desire to crush the romantic spirit of the young man. Richard, however, seemed not at all sincere in his attitude but rather appeared to be playing a game with his brother as to who could garner more of Rainy’s attention.

Day five passed quickly with tours of the Painted Desert, the suspension bridge across the Little Colorado River, and the Petrified Forest. Soon they were approaching Williams, where the Van Pattens would catch the train for the Grand Canyon. Rainy had never been happier to see the familiar sights of the little town. Exhausted from the marathon trip, she sighed with relief as Sonny pulled up to the train station.

“This is the end of our journey,” she announced. “I know from your itinerary that you have a week’s stay planned at the Grand Canyon. I think you’ll be impressed with El Tovar’s service and décor. The hotel has long been admired for its beauty and quality service.”

“Anything would be better than what we just endured on this trip,” Mrs. Van Patten muttered.

“Now, dear, in all honesty, we knew this trip was more strenuous and less luxurious than most. We all agreed it would be fun to give it a go.” Mr. Van Patten seemed to stress the latter with a stern look at his wife.

She nodded and said nothing more, and Rainy took this as her cue to exit. “I’ll go inside and make sure your reservations are in order.” With that, she bid the Van Pattens farewell.

————

Rainy had just finished supper and was enjoying a soothing cup of coffee when Sonny and Duncan joined her. “Where have you two been? I tried to wait to eat but got too hungry. I joined some of the other Harvey staff and ate without you.”

“You know how this was supposed to be a dead-end trip?” Sonny asked. “Leave the car here, catch the train home, and so forth?”

“Yes,” Rainy said, drawing the word out. “What’s happened?”

Duncan took the chair opposite her, while Sonny took the one beside her and whispered, “We’ve been hired to do the trip in reverse.”