Stealing Time (7 page)

“I want you to have the car, Andrew.” Anna
placed her hand gently on his arm.

“Oh, I couldn’t, really. This car’s a legacy
to the family.” Drew shook his head.

“Didn’t you hear Dan? No one wants it.
Please, Andrew.” Her eyes pleaded with him. “I don’t know how much
longer I’ll be on this earth. I want to know the Packard’s in good
hands.”

“Then it’s my pleasure to accept this
wonderful gift. May I?” Drew offered Anna his arm and walked her to
the car, placing her in the passenger side. He appeared to know
what he was doing as he jumped in the driver’s side.

“Open the door, Dan,” Anna directed.

A garage style door lifted up right in front
of the Packard, exposing a dirt road that led to the main one.

“Start it up!” Anna called out.

Drew looked at Dan for confirmation. Dan
nodded and said, “She had me working on this thing all year. Mom
was determined to have it up and running for your birthday,
Katie.”

My Roaring Twenties Birthday, a gift to
all of us, complete with car.
Tears filled Kate’s eyes as she
watched Drew and Anna drive the shiny crimson and cream automobile
out of the barn. It was a convertible so the top was down. Kate
could see the two friends talking and laughing. Anna turned around
happily waving. For just a second Kate thought she saw her young
friend, throwing her head back with laughter, enjoying a beautiful
summer day. Drew made a turn and headed back to where Kate and Dan
stood watching.

“Anna insists you get a turn.” Drew hopped
out and ran around to the passenger side, lifting Anna out and
placing her on the ground.

“It’s in good shape, Dan.” Drew shook hands
with him.

“It’s a six-cylinder, eighty-one horsepower
engine. I learned a lot from Dad and was able to get the parts I
needed on the Internet.”

“I believe this is the Packard Fourth Series
Six that came out in 1927.” Drew continued the car talk.

“I see you know a little about cars.” Dan
patted him on the back.

“You two stop talking all this mumbo jumbo,
and let Andrew take Kathryn for a drive.” Anna put her cane between
the two men, making everyone laugh. “I take it my little
great-granddaughter already spilled the beans about the birthday
party theme so you can see why I wanted this ready to go.” Anna
winked at Kate.

Kate ran over to the Packard and stood on the
running board, peering in. “Wow, this is so cool!”

“Kathryn, you and Lindsey are going to be
driven to the party in this car,” Anna shouted over the noise of
the engine.

“Drew, can you believe this? Daniel kept this
car all these years.” Kate ran her hand over the dashboard as she
sat down. “Drew, did you hear me?” She looked over and saw tears
welling up in his eyes as he desperately fought them back. “Start
driving,” she commanded.

He drove to the other side of the barn,
stopping where they couldn’t be seen. “Kate, I’m overwhelmed. I
need a minute.”

“Sure.” Kate knew when Grandpa Dan said his
father kept the car to remember good times and old friends that
Drew was affected. She put her hand on his shoulder and rubbed his
back as he slumped over the wheel of the car. “I love the car. We
should probably keep it here because the weather’s better than
Ohio. Less wear and tear. Don’t you agree?”

Drew sat up. “Yes, that’s a good idea. If
anyone in the Jenkins family wants to drive it, see it, it will be
here. Good plan.” He leaned over and kissed her. “Happy Birthday,
Mrs. Martin.” He started up the car and drove back to where Anna
and Dan stood waiting outside the garage. As they traveled along
the little dirt road, Kate filled Drew in on Aunt Sue’s story.

“Another connection between the families!” He
parked the car in the garage, and Kate helped cover the Packard
with the tarp.

The couple joined Anna and her son, as they
slowly made their way back to the house.

“What a great birthday present, Anna.” Kate
wrapped her arm around the small woman’s shoulders. “What a great
friend I have.” She whispered so only the two of them could
hear.

“Remember these days, Kathryn. There may not
be many left.” Anna broke Kate’s happy mood.

“Don’t say that!”

“I need to keep reminding you. You look at me
as if I were still eighteen.” Anna smiled slightly. “And I like
that. The rest of them treat me like an old woman who needs
constant help. You don’t. But I have to help you now. You need to
let go a little, accept that I may not be in your life much
longer.”

“Never,” Kate answered. “I will never accept
that as long as I live.”

Chapter
Five

The birthday girls were whisked away to an
upstairs bedroom for the day of the party, banned from coming
downstairs. The party would start early, for Anna’s sake, and go
into the night. Kate and Lindsey played with their hair and tried
on each other’s dresses to pass the time. The moment finally
arrived to get ready for the party. They helped each other dress,
picking out the right shoes and jewelry. Then, the finishing
touches of their outfits—the flapper headbands—were put in
place.

“Can you believe the week’s over, and you’re
going home?” Lindsey did her little pout which cracked the two
girls up. Nothing could spoil the festive mood in the room.

“No, I can’t believe it. I don’t want to go
home, but you know there’s important business to take care of,”
Kate reminded Lindsey.

“I know...the book.”

“Exactly. Tyson can make me so mad at times!
Just when I think he’s out of my life, he jumps right back in. Is
this how my whole life’s going to be?” Kate applied red lipstick
from the make-up bag Anna gave her. She twirled around, watching
the fringe of her black dress flash in the mirror.

“I hope not. That would be awful.” Lindsey
spun around, too, making the fringe of her white dress fly in all
directions. “I love that Grandma J chose black, white, and red for
the color scheme. She has a sense of style, don’t you think?”

“Of course, remember my wedding? She gave us
make-up bags there, too.”

“How could I forget? I had to sneak back in
time to go. Plus isn’t that when Carl got Rachel pregnant...on your
wedding day? Bet you’ll never forget that!”

“Well, at least this year, we’ll know what
he’s doing... Oh, you know what I mean! Not like last year.” Kate
giggled with her friend.

There was a knock at their door. “Katie?
Lindsey? You guys ready?”

Kate opened the door to see Megan standing
there in a red flapper dress, wearing a touch of light red lipstick
and pink blush. “Oh, sweetie, you look so grown-up!” Kate lightly
hugged her so as not to mess up their make-up.

Megan came dancing into the room. “I have to
take you to the car. You have to follow me and do as I say.
Remember, Grandma J’s orders.” Kate knew Anna wanted their entrance
to be the first time they saw the house decorated for their
birthday.

“We’re ready. Let’s go.” Lindsey took Kate’s
hand and let Megan lead the way.

They walked down the back staircase leading
straight to the kitchen and down the hall to the laundry room and
garages.

“Don’t look around,” Megan commanded. She
opened the door to the garage. Parked in one of the spaces was the
Packard.

Grandpa Dan was waiting and opened the
passenger door for the girls. “Ladies, your carriage awaits.” He
bowed to them.

“Grandpa, you look great!” Lindsey flung her
arms around him as she stepped into the car.

Kate agreed. He looked like he stepped out of
the 1920s. His black suit with white pinstripes complimented his
black shirt and white tie. Kate thought she saw white suspenders
under the jacket. “You do look great.” She took the hand he offered
as she stepped into the car.

“Hope you can squeeze into the seat with
Lindsey. This is only a two-seater.” Grandpa Dan gently closed the
door.

“We’ll make it work.” Lindsey called out as
she took the remote and opened the garage door.

The sun shone brilliantly in the azure sky. A
hot, dry day greeted them, but that didn’t matter to the girls. The
party would take place throughout the main floor of the house and
spill onto the deck as day turned into evening. They’d make their
grand entrance on that back deck now. The friends held hands as
Grandpa Dan started the car and slowly pulled around the garage
heading to the back of the house.

Kate strained to see who stood on the deck,
but they weren’t close enough to see clearly. A loud yell went up,
and the guests began to hoot and clap wildly when they spotted the
Packard. Black, red and white balloon bouquets were everywhere.
White twinkle lights were wrapped around the posts and railing of
the deck. Tables covered in black linen were scattered across the
floor. Red and white roses popped out of crystal vases on each
table. Dan stopped the car at the bottom of the stairs, and the
crowd parted. Drew and Charlie stepped through the makeshift aisle
down to the waiting girls.

Kate let out a small gasp. They both looked
like gangsters of another era—especially Drew—as both wore black
fedoras. That could have been his fate if he had stayed in the
past.

No, his father had clientele that were in
the mob. Nicolas wasn’t in it himself.
Kate reminded herself of
that fact.

Drew reached the door first and gave Kate his
hand. She stepped out of the car to chants of “Happy Birthday” and
other greetings. Everything became one big blur.

Focus
, she thought.
Remember how
you missed out on your wedding because you were overwhelmed. Enjoy
the moment.

Kate blinked, and everything became clear
again. She saw her two cousins, Retta and Lucy, so darling in their
vintage flapper dresses. They waved from a corner of the deck
unaware Kate knew and loved their mother in another time.

Thomas and his family were all smiles. Kate
was happy to see them, especially for Drew’s sake. Thomas III
resembled his grandfather, Drew’s best friend at the canyon, so
much that Drew had a hard time separating the two. Kate hoped he
wouldn’t spill any secrets in a weak moment.

Brandon brought a date, and a group of young
people she never saw before crowded around Lindsey. She seemed very
friendly with them.

Great, she has new best friends she never
told me about.
Kate was jealous. She shook her head as if to
scold herself.
She’s allowed to have other friends.
She
admonished herself for having those feelings.

Kate searched for her parents in the crowd
and saw them standing next to Lindsey’s parents, Beth and David.
All of them looked very proud. Beth’s brothers, Steve and Scott,
were busy putting the final touches on the deck with Anna giving
the orders. Part of the large deck floor was covered over for a
dance area.

“Anna!” Kate waved to her. “This is
unbelievable, so gorgeous. I haven’t even seen the house yet.” Anna
wore a simple red chiffon dress that fell loosely around her. “You
look lovely.” Kate kissed her cheek when she reached her.

“And you are stunning, child.” Anna patted
Kate’s face. “And look at this one! If it isn’t the spittin’ image
of me!” Anna pulled Lindsey toward her. “How do you like your boys?
Needed some gangsters here. You notice I left out the machine
guns.” Anna chuckled at her own joke.

Kate was able to finally get a good look at
Charlie and Drew and even Brandon. They were all wearing black
suits with black shirts, white ties and pinstripe vests. Each one
wore a black felt fedora, not the summer straw hat Megan had
mentioned.

“Very gangster, Anna,” Kate said almost to
herself. The image of Drew standing in his father’s house, dressed
in that outfit, flashed before her. Something very familiar came to
mind, but she couldn’t quite place it. She blinked and shook her
head as if to make it vanish from her thoughts.

“Kate! Kate, did you hear me? Carl’s here.
You’re in for a big surprise.” Drew motioned for her to follow
him.

She stepped into the kitchen, and Carl headed
straight for her. He wore a custom-made charcoal pinstripe suit,
white shirt, charcoal tie with a white fedora.

“Lil’ sis.” Carl walked toward her with open
arms. As they hugged, Kate could see what appeared to be an
entourage behind him. “Kate, I’m pleased to introduce you to
Josie.”

Kate stuck out her hand and shook the old
woman’s hand. Her pure white hair was beautifully curled. Her honey
brown skin was still relatively smooth for someone her age. She
wore a designer black chiffon beaded dress and one black feather in
her hair. Standing next to her was another man, who appeared to be
in his fifties. From the similarities between the two men, Kate
guessed he was Carl’s grandson, the other Carl.

“And Kate, this is Josie’s son, Carl.” Carl’s
eyes twinkled as he introduced him.

“Nice to meet you.” Kate shook his hand, but
someone behind him distracted her.

“Finally, may I present my girl, Renae.” Carl
took the girl’s hand and led her around Josie and Carl.

Kate suppressed both a gasp and look of
shock. Renae looked almost like Rachel Cook...only a modern day
version. Tall and slender with large dark brown, almond- shaped
eyes and high cheek bones, she was gorgeous. Her jet black hair
hung straight, chin length, parted to one side, falling over most
of one eye.

“Wow, you could be a model,” was all Kate
could think of to say.

“And so could you.” Renae smiled. Her white
beaded flapper dress sparkled under the lights.

“Renae, you’re too modest.” Carl put her arm
around her. “She
is
a model.”

“I’d love to hear more about that and how you
met.” Kate tried to muster up a smile as she looked back and forth
between the two of them.