Secrets in the Lowcountry--The River (30 page)

The small group formed a half-circle before the
w
rought-iron door that
for the present
remained
open.
Father
Mike
handed everyone a Prayer Book from a pile he had placed on a small table to the right of the crypt.
After giving the page, he started the short service.
Taylor duly turned to the correct section, but instead of reading the
w
ords, she st
ared at the opening to the mausoleum
.
She sensed long gone
Harris
e
s surrounding them and shivered
,
w
hether from fear or comfort, she didn’t kno
w
.

A moment later, she felt Jeff
’s
arm go around her
w
aist.
Although grateful for his support, she
couldn’t shake the sensation
that had come over her
w
hen she originally took her place
.
The tomb
still
called her.

Brick and tabby
covered
three sides
of the building
.
More brick an
d tabby formed the frame that secured
the
w
rought-iron door.
Inside,
on the right side,
a fe
w
small
spaces
remained empty as if
w
aiting for the next person.
At the back, t
w
o large stone sarcoph
agi occupied the entire section, one on the top shelf and the other directly belo
w
.
These b
elong
ed
to the first
members of the family that
settle
d
in the Beaufort area.
The left side held only marble shelves. Her mother’s urn
w
ould rest there
, alone
.
She and her father had discussed the reason, but for the moment,
Taylor
didn’t remember
w
hy. A
shivered
raced up and do
w
n her spine.
Jeff tightened his hold
.
She leaned against him
, grateful for
h
is support
.

If he’d died
, w
ould Rod’s body soon join her mother’s?
Or
w
ould his parents
… Oh, my gosh! Taylor hadn’t contacted them. Did she have their address? Since they’d
left town
, she’d neither heard from them nor seen them.
Actually, she hadn’t said good-bye before they
departed.
She’d asked him several times what had caused the split. He refused to answer
,
finally saying talking about the problem made the hurt worse. When she asked about inviting them to the wedding, he
’d sworn
at her for the first and last time.
Immediately, he apologized, took her in his arms, and… She shook her head chasing away the memory.
Regardle
ss of the reason, they must be called
.
As soo
n as she returned home, she would
find their phone number.
Did she have it? She couldn’t remember
ever getting one
.
Father Mike’s voice brought her back and she pushed her concerns
aside.
Right n
o
w
, she must concentrate on her mother’s
funeral
.

Thoughts of Julia Ann
filled her.
For the first time
since her mother’s passing
, she recalled
some of the happy times they’d
had together.
She refused to d
w
ell on the other
s
.
Over the years, h
er mother had stayed sober for many months
at a time then fallen off. This past year, she’d beaten all previous records.
M
ight the
t
w
o of them
have had a chance
to reconnect
?
W
ould they have
develop
ed
a strong relationship?
She didn’t
kno
w
.
But she decided to
believe
in a positive outcome.
Taylor had loved her mother and standing here experienced that love returning.
Tears formed in her eyes
. A sarcastic idea hit her. If she didn’t stop crying, perhaps she could rent herself out as a professional mourner.

Taylor look
ed
up at
Jeff and gave him a
w
arm smile
. A sense of peace filled her
;
she
turned her attention to the Prayer Book.
Jeff sho
w
ed her the spot
. S
he
joined the others and
spoke the correct responses.
As she did,
the serenity of the service
w
ashed over her.
She stood s
traighter
and squared her shoulders
.

Her mind jarred her as a picture of Rod filled her brain. G
uilt
and
unfaithfulness
rained do
w
n on her.
Perhaps sensing
a change in her
sentiments toward him,
J
eff
eyed her strangely and
dropped his arm
to his side.
A
n
awareness
of loss
filled her.
She
hadn’t
w
anted
that
. She craved him
right next to her,
enfolding
her,
sustaining
her, being there for her.
Yet, her mind warred with her emotions. Rod’s face continued to invade her mind.
She eased
further
a
w
ay from Jeff and closer to her father
, who supported her aunt
.
She sensed Jeff regarding
her
but
she
remained attentive to
the Prayer Book.
Inside
her
, all her
joy
w
ashed a
w
ay.

As Taylor
strolled to her house,
late that same day,
she experienced a sense of calm that al
w
ays flo
w
ed through her
w
hen she’d spent time
w
ith her horses. No one had return
ed to the house after the intern
ment. Jeff
and she had bid a strange
,
even ter
se good-
bye
,
at the crypt. Once through the gate at Harmony
, her
aunt requested they leave her at her cott
age. U
pon arriving
at home
,
her
father had stated his desire for privacy and shut
the door t
o his office. Left with her
thoughts
and
unsettling memories,
she
’d
sought her piece of heaven on eart
h,
the
barn, h
er salvation
for most of her life.
Hastily chang
ing her clothes, she’d almost ru
n out of the house.

Now with
the distance
growing between ‘her happy place’ and reality, h
er mood darkened. Jeff’s face and that of Rod’s bombarded her. Shame sho
w
ered her soul. Yes, she loved Rod. She’
d agreed t
o marry him, hadn’t she? Jeff,
Jeff, her friend, her almost brother, her companion forever, she loved him, too, but in a different
w
ay. She respected him, trusted him, taken his counsel, used him as her rock, counted on his strength.
W
hy did she have
a
guilty conscience for that? If she’d lost Jeff, too, ho
w
w
ould she
endure? She must call him, but
w
hat
would
she say?
How did she apologize for her strange behavior?
She shook her head violently
, hoping to jar lose an answer
.

The sound
of tires
striking the stone road
w
ay
interrupted her
brooding
. Glancing around, she
recognized the Sheriff’s car
.

He stopped and
rolled do
w
n the
w
indo
w
.
“
W
ant a lift
?”

Any diversion was welcome.
She climbed in the passenger seat. “
W
hat
’s
the
ne
w
s?”

“Let’s
w
ait ’til
I tell
everyone.”

Taylor’s mind raced. Ideas gushed around and through her head.
However, Sheriff Trotz retained his silence.
Gratefully, the drive ended a fe
w
minutes later.
             

As they
w
alked into the hall
w
ay, her father, Mary, and Jeff greeted them. Everyone exchanged helloes then stood a
w
k
w
ardly
, waiting
.
Each showed their tension.

“Where’s Aunt Bertha?”
Taylor asked.

“I thought I’d spare her the Sheriff’s report and talk to her privately later.”

Her father’s words made sense. Her aunt had aged tremendously in the past few days. Taylor, again, wondered if Aunt Bertha would agree to a companion or at least part-time help.

Martin
broke the silence
that had settled on the group
.
“Shall
w
e go in the living room?”

They
follo
w
ed him
at various speeds, the uneasiness and concern building
.

Taylor maneuvered Jeff close to her. “Sorry about my behavior…”

He smiled. “
W
ith everything that’s been happening in your life, an apology isn’t necessary.”

“Thanks.”
She managed a smile.
He always understood and demanded so little. What a relief to have such a true friend.

“
W
hy don’t
w
e sit do
w
n,” the Sheriff instructed
.

Going to the
green and gold striped
couch
w
hich occupied one section
of the room, Taylor indicated that her father should take one side and J
eff the other. Mary eased into the gold
,
w
ing-back chair
which stood at a right angle to the sofa. T
he Sheriff selected
the straight-back cane
one
and
placed
it
directly opposite the others
. He
laid the
papers on the coffee table
making a divider between him and Taylor’s group.

“State autopsied
the ‘gators.”

Grabbing her companions’ hands, she leaned for
w
ard
, eager to learn but afraid of the results
.