Love Never Dies (13 page)

So the summer speeded toward
Labor Day weekend and after school started once again, with a whole new class of small second graders gazing up at her with hope and trepidation, her brother’s wedding date arrived. The First Lutheran Church was filled to capacity as the sun streamed through stained glass windows depicting the Madonna and Child gazing lovingly at one another. The rosy rays fell upon the beautiful arrangements of gladiolas, baby’s breath, and roses decorating the wide steps of the front altar. Her brother looked splendid in a black-tailed tuxedo, and he, in his typical mischievous manner, had placed a glossy top hat upon his head. On another man it might have looked silly, but on Paul it looked jaunty and appropriate, making him resemble a modern-day version of Fred Astaire ascending the matrimonial stair.

Angie’s niece Cindy
took her job seriously as the flower girl and dropped fragrant rose petals freely upon the aisle as everybody chuckled at the dainty little girl in her bright violet dress. The music swelled as the pale bride, stunning in an exquisite full-skirted white gown with pearl beading covering the delicate front, approached. Beautiful gathered tucks ran the length of the material in the back and she wore a full see-through veil hinting at the lovely French braid dangling halfway down her back. Angie had never looked more beautiful or more nervous and Julia flashed a reassuring smile at her as Paul straightened his shoulders and received the hand of the bride from her suspiciously shiny-eyed father.

The wedding proceeded
without a hitch and Julia noted her mother shed more than one tear as Jim Morris beamed proudly at his only son. She steeled herself for the reception, recognizing too much genuine merriment and laughter would abound in the church’s flower-clad banquet hall. As Julia joined the reception line, she once again felt that strange pang above her heart where Seth’s soul lived. He should have been standing here next to her brother, watching the scene with his bemused gray eyes and tossing off cryptic comments as he was inclined to do.

Instead he lay in
a grave she secretly visited every Sunday morning to lay two beautiful roses, one pink and one red, upon his mowed plot. Julia would sit and converse with him, even though she knew only his ashes were interred under the earth, and found it comforting to relay her week’s business to his ever attentive ears. Sometimes, though not as often as in months previous, Julia cried, but more and more she was able to speak in resigned tones about her life without him. Oh, how she wished he were here!

The bride and gr
oom headed onto the dance floor and did their single waltz together as the festive crowd watched in delighted appreciation before moving onto the parquet floor themselves. Julia found a lonely chair near the buffet and watched her brother laughingly twirl his new wife around the floor.

Julia couldn’t know that in a shadowed corner of the reception hall, a sad dark-haired man watched the transparent emotions flit across her face.
He shook his head grimly, wishing he could somehow ease her pain. If only he knew a way to make her life easier. Julia was too thin, he could tell, having apparently lost a great deal of weight after Seth’s death; and her delicate face gleamed palely against the lovely violet dress Angie had chosen for all her bridesmaids. How he wished he could enter the noisy banquet hall and greet her, but knew that would probably be too much of a shock for her frail system. Instead he’d have to devise a more subtle way to meet her, so she’d know Seth hadn’t died completely friendless and without family. Thus determined and fortified, the tall stranger left the joyful reception hall with its one somber inmate, resigned to wait a few more days before he made his move.

Chapter 7

The letter arrived in a nondescript white envelope with only a return address in the upper left
-hand corner. Julia opened it with all the rest of mail, which included the electric bill, a short note from her grandmother, and an invitation to attend the upcoming P.T.A dinner to be held at the school within two weeks. Her heart recoiled in shock at the contents and she reread the single sheet three times before picking up the phone and dialing her brother and his new wife. It was October
first, and Paul had only just returned from his honeymoon ten days ago, restarting work at Tri-Tek amidst a great deal of grumbling. When he heard his sister’s voice Paul instantly knew something was terribly wrong.

“Could you and Angie come over here right now?
I received something in the mail I have to show you. Something that is well... almost frightening. Please Pauli?”

Paul had not heard that kind of distress in her voice for months and immediately agreed.
Angie was in the kitchen chopping vegetables for their late evening stir-fry.

“We’ve got to go o
ver to Julia’s now; something’s happened.” Angie’s brown eyes locked with his and without a word she grabbed her coat.

Within fifteen minutes he and Angie were seated at the small breakfast counter in the two
bedroom flat Julia and Angie had shared as roommates only a couple of months earlier but now Julia had taken as her own. Mira lay at his feet as Paul reread the letter twice and shook his head grimly.

“Did you know Seth had a brother?”

“Well yes. Seth indicated he and his brother had had a severe falling out and when I tried to pursue it further, said he’d talk to me about it later. Seth also mentioned having a cousin but never went into much detail about him either.”

“But this is not from the cousin, but the brother Simon.
He says he would like to meet you but is afraid to do so because you’ll be shocked because they were twins.”

“A twin!” snorted Angie. “You would have thought that was something worthwhile mentioning to you Julia.”

“You’re right. It all seems so confusing now,” said Julia, pacing the kitchen again for the hundredth time.

Angie scanned the letter again.
“I don’t know what to say Julia. If it’s going to upset you, maybe you should just let us handle it.”

Julia wag
ged her head vehemently. She’d never played the coward before and wasn’t about to start now. “It says he has something for me. Do you have any idea what that could be Paul?”

“Maybe some of Seth’s personal effects; who knows.
So you’re going to agree to see him?”

“I don’t know,” said Julia
, wringing her hands. Paul let her pace about, knowing the decision had to be hers. Finally she settled down and inspected the letter again. “I guess I could meet him, but only if the two of you agree to be here as well. I don’t want to see him alone. You know if they’re twins, they probably look similar.”

“What if they’re identical twins?” said Angie, the thought just hitting her.
“Maybe that’s why he’s so afraid of distressing you.”

“I still can’t believe Seth wouldn’t have mentioned the fac
t he had a twin brother to me, though he did mention twins ran in his family. It seems so unlike him.”

“Was it?” asked Paul
, rising and straying to the window overlooking the sparkling blue compound pool. “Was it really? One of my profoundest memories of Seth was how very private he was. I recall him mentioning once how he’d had a falling out with some people he’d known on the east coast and that’s why he transferred here. To make a new start he said. His deciding not to talk about a brother who’d pissed him off doesn’t seem unlike him in the least somehow.”

“But no one c
ame forward after the funeral. There were no phone numbers or any sort of records indicating relatives at all and suddenly this brother shows up,” grumbled Angie

“Yes, but we also left the search for a will and f
amily members to Lenny Glickstern, remember? Maybe he was successful in his search but never mentioned anything to us because he knew how distraught Julia was.”

But Angie’s mind had
already taken a different track. “Paul, you remember my great-aunt Beatrice and her sister Sharon?”

“Yeah, what of it?” said Paul
, drumming his fingers on the window sill.

“T
hey didn’t speak for forty years even though only fourteen months separated them. Then one day Aunt Beatrice calls her sister Sharon up just like nothing had happened and asks her to come over for tea. Though they only lived an hour away, they’d managed to avoid each other for nearly forty years. When they finally got together they couldn’t even remember the reason they hadn’t spoken for all that time. Maybe that’s what happened to Seth and his brother. Now it’s too late for Simon to make amends to his brother, but he
can
to his brother’s girlfriend. I think you’re right to meet him Julia, but I also believe Paul and I should be there as a backup.”

Paul smiled at his bride.
She was always clear-headed and rational, and had that uncanny ability of getting right to the root of a matter. “I believe you’ve hit the nail right on the head Carter! This Simon has a Santa Barbara phone number so I think you should give him a call Julia.”

Julia shifted nervously upon the mauve couch. “No, why don’t you call him Paul.
I’d feel so much better if you did since I’m just not sure that I could talk to this Simon in any sort of normal manner. Could you do it for me?

“Alright,” said Paul
, returning to the couch and smiling down at her. His sister had substantially more guts than he. “When would be a good time to meet him?”

“Tomorrow night
, if you guys are free.”

“Absolutely,” said Paul reassuringly.
“Let’s make it for 6:30.” Paul moved confidently to the phone, his broad forefinger punching in the numbers Angie dictated to him. A voice similar to Seth’s answered the phone.

“Simon Hayes,” c
ame tersely across the line.

“Hello, my n
ame is Paul Morris and you sent my twin sister a letter indicating you were Seth Hayes’ brother and would like to meet her?”

“That
’s correct,” uttered the quiet voice across the line.

“My sister’
s had a rough time, and while she’s willing to meet with you she’d like to do so only in the presence of her family. I hope that’s alright with you.”

“Of course,” returned the pleasant voice.
“What time is good for you?”

“How about tom
orrow night; six-thirtyish? May I give you directions to her flat?” Simon answered in the affirmative and Paul recited the directions to Julia’s two-bedroom apartment, gave a brief goodbye, and hung up the phone.

Julia’s arms were crossed defensively across her chest but she managed a brave smile. “So it’s done.”

“He’ll be here at 6:30. Don’t you worry about anything Sis since Angie and I will be present to back you up. Everything’s going to be just fine.”

6:30
came way too early for Julia. She straightened the apartment, rearranged the dining room table, adding fresh cut gladiolas as a centerpiece, and even made some cream cheese appetizers for Seth’s brother. Around five p.m. she felt that familiar burning pull within her heart; the one that occurred when she knew Seth was near or agitated. Considering his feelings regarding his only brother, she was certain his soul somehow protested his brother’s intrusion into her life and was letting her know about it in no uncertain terms. The burning sensation, as well as the clock’s persistent march toward 6:30 made her a nervous wreck.

“I have to see your brother Seth,” she whispered to the ceiling.
“It’s the right thing to do and you know that as well as I. I’d appreciate it if you’d try to prop me up for this encounter and be a little supportive okay?”

Am
azingly, her chest soothed and she rubbed her yellow shirt front in gratitude before placing four wine glasses upon a white wicker tray.

“Try to
calm down,” urged Paul nearly ninety minutes later as he approached the wine cabinet and pulled out her one bottle of good brandy, pouring himself and Julia each a stiff dollop.

“You need to drink this down.
I’m sure his brother is a nice enough guy and after he’s been here for a few minutes and you’ve exchanged pleasantries we’ll send him on his merry way. He just wants to touch base with someone he knew was his brother’s girlfriend. It’s the proper thing to do so you’ve got to relax.” Paul fiddled with his wedding band, a sure sign he was agitated, while Angie cast her sister-in-law a knowing glance as she placed silver napkin holders upon the glass coffee table.

At
6:30 on the nose the doorbell chimed, and since Julia was too nervous to open the door herself, Paul did the honors. He gasped at the sight of Seth’s identical twin, for Simon Hayes was the splitting image of his brother except for three minor details. The first existed in the form of a swatch of silvery hair discoloring his long dark hair near the crown of his head. The second was a thin white scar running from under his nose down to his lip; and the last was the extreme paleness of his skin; a pallor so unhealthy it appeared as if he’d been frightfully ill for the last few months. He immediately stuck out a lean hand to Paul, who shook it warmly.

“I’m Simon Hayes, Seth’s twin brother.”
His voice was slightly deeper and huskier than his twin’s but still possessed the unusual rich tones of the international traveler Julia had noticed the first time she’d met Seth. Julia forced herself to meet his face. Thinner than Seth by perhaps ten or fifteen pounds, the strange white swatch of hair sprouting from the crown of his forehead seemed odd and out of place and reminded Julia of a widow’s peak she’d witnessed once on a friend of her mother’s. Simon’s hair fell shoulder length and he wore a single gold hoop in his left ear.

“I’ve been hoping to meet you for some time,” he a
dmitted. Julia noticed a brown leather briefcase hanging like a satchel over his shoulder as Paul moved aside to allow Simon Hayes’ entry.

“You must be Julia,” he said quietly
, and extended a lean hand toward her which she grasped almost reluctantly. When he squeezed the slender appendage, she felt her heart burn painfully. There was no doubt about it, Seth wasn’t only a witness to his brother’s arrival but seemed highly agitated by his presence.

“I’m so sorry about your loss.
I would have come sooner but certain circumstances prevented my traveling down here.” He seemed to flounder so Angie piped in.

“We understand since it was such a tough time for us all.
Please sit down. Can we get you something to drink?”

“Just water would be fine.”
He waited as Angie poured his drink, letting his eyes wander around the tasteful apartment.

“Did you hear about his death immediately?” asked Paul
, seating himself beside Simon and pouring himself a glass of white wine. He lifted his eyebrows to Julia, but she gave her head a nervous shake. She was in no state to drink.

“No
, not until late February. I’d been down in Detroit working on a project before zooming off to Manitoba for six weeks to finish up another. When I got home to Toronto, there was a message on my answering machine from my brother’s lawyer informing me my brother had died in early January. I guess his employer had contacted Martin somehow, and now that I was home, there was going to be a reading of his will. By this time my brother had been dead for nearly seven weeks. Less than three days later I was involved in a fluke car accident and was incapacitated for several months. You probably consider me some sort of heartless jerk to have missed his funeral but it was history by the time I heard about it. Once I felt better and could get additional time off work I flew to LA, rented a car, and drove up here. It had been almost ten months, and the more time that passed, the more difficult it was to call. I finally realized a call just wouldn’t hack it after all this time and had to meet you in person.”

“I take it y
ou and your brother weren’t close?” observed Paul, who disliked his sister’s tight face and clenched hands as she perched on the edge of her easy chair across from the jean-clad Canadian.

Simon
took a deep drink before answering. “Over the past year we weren’t, but before that we were inseparable. We had similar tastes and after our parent’s deaths we remained physically and emotionally close. We attended the same college and both received degrees in architectural design.

Bu
t, about a year ago we went our own ways after having a terrible spat. Seth didn’t write me for a full six months and when he finally did, it was just a brief note to inform me he worked for a firm called Bastam, Hughes, and Glickstern in southern California. He said he wasn’t going return to the east coast for awhile and suggested we keep up a mild correspondence until we worked out the problems we’d had.”