Sanctity (17 page)

“OK.  What time do you think you would
like dinner, 6 or 6:30?”

“Six would probably be better, I feel a
little hungry already.”

When I got to my room I found that Margaret
had folded all the laundry and left mine in a number of stacks on
my bed.  I methodically put everything away before sitting at
one of the window seats with my laptop perched on my knees.  I
logged into my e-mail and was excited to see that Danielle had
already rattled one off to me.

She mentioned a few highlights from the day
and asked about the weekend.  I was sure Aunt Margaret
wouldn’t mind dropping me off at Dani’s either day.   I
quickly tapped out a response to Danielle asking which day and time
would be best so I could let Margaret know. 

When I was done my e-mail I put the laptop
aside and picked up a copy of some fashion magazine Margaret had
left for me.  It had a little post-it note stuck to the cover,
“Does this interest you at all?”

I began to peruse the pages and found little
worthwhile amongst them.  At about the halfway mark I was
about to put the magazine down when I came to an ad featuring a man
in a beautifully tailored suit.  He had barely the hint of a
smile playing on his lips.  He must have been looking directly
into the camera when the picture was snapped because it seemed as
though he was staring back at me from the page.  I couldn’t
stop looking at him.  There was something…something… familiar
about the man; his dark hair, expressive eyes.  I wracked my
brain trying to figure out if I knew anyone with similar
features. 

I couldn’t seem to come up with anything and
decided to pull the page out before returning the magazine to
Margaret.  I wasn’t sure why I wanted to hold onto it but I
told myself it was in case I had some sudden inspiration as to who
he reminded me of.  I folded the page into quarters and tucked
it into my nightstand near my other little treasure.

It was getting late so I decided to head
downstairs to see if I could help Margaret with dinner.  Her
love of cooking was starting to rub off on me and I had really
begun to enjoy it, too.  It was a nice way for us to spend
time together and she was always eager to share her knowledge with
me.  Our dinners were always pretty simple – usually chicken,
beef or pork and a side of steamed veggies.  Occasionally
Margaret would make a second side of rice or potatoes but so much
would go to waste because it was generally just the two of
us.  I didn’t mind that it was never much more than that,
though, because no matter the recipe or cooking method she chose
(roasting, grilling, frying, etc.) Margaret always seemed to bring
out the best in whatever it was she made.  To me it was always
different and was always satisfying.

When I got downstairs I found her still in
the family room.  She was reading a book and looked up as I
came around the bottom of the staircase.  “Oh, I forgot
myself, what time is it?”

“A little after 5:00,” I replied.”

“Did you want me to start dinner?”

“Actually I was wondering if I could
help.”

“Of course you can dear.  I would love
that,” she always seemed legitimately charmed with the idea. 
“I found a recipe for Black Peppercorn Chicken that looked
interesting.  Would you like to give it a shot?”

“You haven’t given me anything I haven’t
liked yet, so I’ll trust you to it.”

“Well, you’re going to help
me, so you’ll trust 
us
 to it.”

We went to the kitchen and washed up. 
Margaret began setting out all that we would need to get started
then gathered a couple of aprons for us from the pantry. 

“So let’s have a little vegetable medley
with it.  How about cutting up some carrots, broccoli and
zucchini?”

“Sounds good,” I fished them all from the
refrigerator and lined them up by the sink.  I put a light
towel next to them and began peeling and rinsing the carrots then
placing them on the towel when I was done.  I rinsed the
broccoli and zucchini and left them with the carrots.

While I got the veggies ready Margaret
started taking down the spices she would need and arranged them
along the kitchen island.  She measured each of them out and
began to mix them all together. 

I fetched a cutting board and the heavy
knife we used for chopping and put them on the kitchen island where
I planned to work.  Afterwards I got the steamer out and
tucked the attachments and bowl into place and started chopping,
slowly chopping, since I was not that comfortable with the
knife.  I made it through the carrots and onto the broccoli
but just as I was about to finish with the florets I somehow nicked
my finger. 

“Oooh,” I said and then I was awestruck by
the little drop of blood on my fingertip.  The man in the ad
came to mind but there was something different and more familiar
about him.  Before I could delve any further into what
appeared to be some long lost memory Margaret had me at the sink
rinsing my finger.  When I pulled it from the icy stream of
water she had me holding it under there was no trace of the
nick.  I could not for the life of me see where I cut
myself.

“That’s odd,” said Margaret.  “It must
have been a very small cut and closed right back up.”

“I guess so,” I frowned.

“Maybe I should finish the
chopping.” 

“Sure,” I smiled, “but not because I need
you to.”

“No, of course not,” she gave me a
reassuring smile.

She had me finish up the seasoning. 
Once I felt I’d gotten the consistency of the mixture right I put
it aside and brushed the chicken breasts with some olive oil. 
I took a pinch of the seasoning and began rubbing it into first one
of the chicken breasts then the other.  I made sure to coat
each of them evenly then placed them both in a baking dish.

“They look very nice, Lily,” she said as she
took the dish and popped it into the oven. 

She set a timer for 10 minutes so we would
know when to start the veggies.  We both washed up and
Margaret began clearing away the dishes we had used.  I
gathered up the spices and put them away one by one.  Margaret
was wiping the counter and I decided it was a good time to take
Kaley for a walk.

“I’ll be right back,” I held up the leash in
explanation.

Kaley scrambled to the front door and we
headed to the greenway.  It had gotten dark already and grown
a good deal cooler since the afternoon.  I could see my breath
as I meandered down the path.  I found myself puzzling at the
man in the magazine.  I wondered if he reminded me of my dad
but knew that couldn’t be it; my dad would have been much
older.  I started contemplating other scenarios – an actor
from a television show, an old teacher, a neighbor.  Nothing
sounded quite right.  Then I started to feel ashamed at the
thought that I was just having a little crush. 

“Good grief, I’m
ridiculous,” I said out loud.  I made a pledge to keep it to
myself and tried not to think about 
him
 whoever he was, any
more.

Kaley left me a gift and was ready to head
back home.  I realized how hungry I was and after cleaning up
quickened the pace of our walk.  Kaley perked up when she
sensed my enthusiasm and took my hurried step as a signal. 
She started bounding toward home.  A moment later we were both
running and I couldn’t help but smile at the simple joy of the
act. 

We burst into the house, both of us
breathless and panting. 

“Just in time,” Margaret said as she set our
plates on the table. 

I gave Kaley some food and freshened her
water bowl.  I washed up and hurriedly joined Margaret at the
kitchen table.  Our dinner smelled fabulous and I couldn’t
wait to take the first bite.  Margaret was more patient than I
was and as I stuffed a huge bite of chicken into my mouth I could
see her from the corner of my eye.  She was shaking out her
napkin and placing it on her lap.  It was a simple gesture but
it served as a reminder to curb myself.  I followed her lead
and did the same. 

I took up my knife and fork and cut my
chicken into bite sized pieces and forced myself to eat
slowly.  It came out really well and I was just bubbling with
pride.

“It’s so good Aunt Margaret, nice and
spicy.”

“You did a great job,” she said. 

“Thanks.”

About halfway through our meal I remembered
the e-mail from Danielle.  “You don’t mind if I spend the day,
do you?”  I asked.

“We don’t have any plans, so I don’t see why
not.  Just let me know what you two decide.”

“I will.”

It had not been the best of school days but
a nice dinner and the prospect of a fun weekend gave me just what I
needed to pick myself back up.  I helped Margaret with the
dishes and once everything was cleared away ran upstairs for my
shower.  It was still a bit early by the time I was done so I
took a few extra minutes getting ready for bed. 

I checked my e-mail but Danielle hadn’t
gotten back to me yet.  Margaret was in the family room
watching television when I went back down to say good night. 
I sat quietly for a few minutes thinking about everything that had
happened.  School would have been fine if it hadn’t been for
Brooke and the rest of the day wasn’t all that bad.  I really
enjoyed making dinner with Margaret and racing home with Kaley
after our walk.

“Well, I feel a little sleepy,” I
said.  “I think I’m going to head up.  Goodnight.”

“Goodnight Lily.”

I started the climb up the stairs.

“Lily?”

I paused, “Yes, Aunt Margaret.”

“I enjoyed cooking with you tonight.”

“Me, too.  I think making dinner was my
favorite part of the day.”

 She gave me a warm smile, “Well,
goodnight dear.”

For a while our weekdays were predictably
routine; I got up each morning and got ready for school. 
Margaret helped while she sipped her coffee.  She would drop
me off and I would spend the day cramming myself with Trig, French,
Literature and so forth.  After coming home I would spend some
time with Kaley and do my homework.  Most nights I helped
Margaret with dinner; I kept her company while she shared her tips
and techniques for whatever it was we were making.  I enjoyed
having her teach me how to cook and was thrilled that she thought I
was becoming so adept in the kitchen.   

There hadn’t been
any 
drama
 in school since the day Brooke decided to act out
against me.  She seemed to be consciously avoiding me, which
was completely fine with me; I had no desire for any more
unfortunate experiences with her.  

Winter seemed to be completely over and
everyone was getting excited about our upcoming Spring
Formal.  I had never been to a school dance and still wondered
if I would even bother to go.  I was not very demonstrative
and didn’t have a boyfriend which to me seemed the heaviest points
for being there.  Part of me thought it might actually be a
fun way to spend a night with all of my friends; the other part of
me rejected the idea completely since I wasn’t interested in or
dating anyone.  I knew Danielle wanted me to go and was hoping
that Zach would ask her.  I was praying that no one would ask
me and felt it would be much simpler to go alone if I went at
all.

It was Saturday and I was
planning on spending the day at Dani’s.  We had been getting
together almost every weekend since we met freshman year.  We
tried to switch off every other weekend spending one there and the
next at Margaret’s.  I liked going to her house since it was
not in a subdivision like Margaret’s and I never had to stop and
chat or wave 
Hi
 to a neighbor like I did when I was out and about at
home.  Dani’s house sat on a little hill and their backyard
sloped down to a greenway that led into one of the state parks,
which was another reason why I liked visiting.  The park was
one of the most peaceful places I knew and I loved spending time
there.

Danielle had a younger brother, Malcolm, who
was always causing trouble of some sort or other.  He was 100%
boy and liked catching bugs and frogs and getting muddy, climbing
trees and breaking things.  He never wore pants, always
shorts, even in the dead of winter and he always had a bandage on
one knee or the other along with a variety of bumps and bruises
from whatever mischief he had gotten into.  I felt sorry for
Danielle’s mom, Mrs. MacDowell or Mrs. Mac for short, because she
never gave up on trying to curb his renegade ways and was always
wild with her frustration at the chaos he created. 

Mr. Mac was ever busy, too but with yard
work.  He was always mowing, raking, weeding or planting
something.  It certainly paid off, though, because his efforts
painted a picture perfect view as you approached the front door to
their house.  Everything was so well laid out and at that time
of year so colorful that you couldn’t help but let your eye wander
from one artful display to the next. 

They were a very
affectionate family.  There was always an
I love you
on one of their lips or
the other.  Mr. Mac was always trying to steal a kiss from
Mrs. Mac which she always seemed to protest (perhaps because he was
always dusty from working outdoors) but also always returned. 
There were also plenty of hugs being thrown about, too but
fortunately they were only directed at the members of the
family.  I was sure I would not react well if one were to come
my way.

“Lily,” Margaret called up the stairs to me
startling me out of my reflections.

I was in my bedroom just lacing up my
sneakers, “One minute,” I called back.

I grabbed a sweatshirt from my closet and
hurried down to Margaret.  She was ready to take me to
Danielle’s and to hurry off to her hair appointment.  Dani and
I planned to take the greenway into the park that day and do a
little hiking.  It was so nice out that I doubted I would need
my sweatshirt but there was no harm in having it handy.  I
wished I could bring Kaley with me, I knew she would love chasing
squirrels and snuffling through the fallen leaves along the sides
of the trails.  I decided I should ask Danielle how she would
feel if I ever did bring Kaley along.