The Healing Quilt (21 page)

She glanced at the clock and propelled herself upright. She needed to wash, change, and make it to Myrna's Fabric Hut in twenty minutes.

How could I have spent half an hour at the hke without leaving the house?

Tapping her fingers on the steering wheel, Elaine waited to turn left at the light on Main. When the green arrow showed, she pulled out, staying in the center turn lane. She was just about through the intersection when a car that had been signaling a right turn, coming from the opposite direction, pulled out and swung too wide, clipping her right rear panel. The crash sounded like a demolition derby.

She banged die wheel with the heel of her hand and yelled several imprecations that didn't suit her ladylike demeanor whatsoever. “Just what I need, another tie-up. Why does everything always happen to me? Minding my own business and now look.” She pulled over to the side of the street and stepped from her car, billfold in hand with all of her information. Striding back to assess the damage, she kept herself from screaming at the other driver only through a monumental force of will.
Oh, great, an old geezer who most likely shouldn't even be driving anymore. Why didrit I take the SUV? Its got a bumper strong enough to stop a tank.

“1… I'm so sorry.” The old man limped from his car and stood looking myopically at the damage. “I guess I hit the gas too hard.”

“I guess you did all right. Do you have your insurance information?” She motioned him to the sidewalk so they were no longer in the road.
With my luck, we'll get hit by a passing looky-loo.
She glanced around. Where was a cop when you needed one?

“Ah, yes, right here.” He fumbled in his back pocket and finally pulled out a leather wallet that should have been retired and interred years earlier. With shaky fingers he sorted through various cards and finally pulled out both his driver's license and an insurance card, laying them on the right front fender of his car.

Elaine did the same and took out her notebook to write down what she needed. The man lived out in the country. Finally looking at him, she realized how shaky he was. “Are you all right? I mean, did you get hurt?”

“No, no, I had my seatbelt on. And this blasted palsy, been suffering from it for the last couple of years. Getting old sure ain't for sissies, like that man said. Uh… Who was he? Famous comedian, you know who I'm talking about. Oh, pshaw, well, it'll come to me.”

Elaine looked up from her writing. “You mean George Burns?”

“Yeah, that's the one, the short guy.”

The old man's hands shook so badly, she wondered how she'd ever read his writing. And why is he still driving with such a condition?

“If you need a witness, ma'am, I saw what happened.” A young man dressed in running clothes stopped beside her.

“Thanks.” She took his name and phone number just in case. Who knew what this old man would claim after he thought about it for a while?

“Oh, and I called it in. The dispatcher said a patrol car should be here fairly soon.”

Soon must mean one thing to the police and another to me.
She checked her watch. They'd been standing around here at least fifteen minutes already.

By the time the city police arrived, she was ready to chew someone's ear off.

“Hey, Mrs. Giovanni, didn't realize it was you who got hit.” Officer Hendrickson had been in her Sunday-school class some years before. “How's Ramsey doing?” He pulled out his pad and flipped it open as he inspected the damage to her car.

“Good, he's coming home for a long weekend.” Elaine swallowed her anger and faked a polite smile.

“Good, good. Anyone get hurt here?”

“No, at least that's the consensus right now.”

The officer checked the damage to the old man's car. “Sir, can you tell me what happened?”

Elaine listened as the man gave a totally truthful account of the accident. At least he was accepting blame for what had happened. Her insurance company would be glad to hear that.

“You have anything to add?”

“Not really. I know I was in my lane and had the right of way ” She handed him her insurance card so he could finish filling out the paperwork. “What a pain in the keister,” she muttered.

The officer gave her a sympathetic glance and extended his notebook for her signature. “You both need to fill out accident forms within twenty-four hours. Get them at the station and notify your insurance agents immediately.” After getting the mans signature, he flipped his notebook closed. “That'll be all, folks.” He turned to the old man. “Unless you think you need to be seen at the emergency room?”

“No, no, I just need to get about my business.” He climbed back in his car. “Oh, would you please look at that fender to make sure I can turn corners?”

Elaine returned to her car and checked the rearview mirror to see Officer Hendrickson pulling the crumpled fender out from the wheel. She ran her fingers through both sides of her hair and let it fall back in place. One more thing to add to her to-do list, take the car in for an estimate.

“I didn't need this now. Why me?”
With my luck hell decide he's injured, probably have a heart attack and sue me.

She pulled into the parking lot beside Myrnas Fabric Hut and looked once more at the damage on her way past.
George will most likely think it was my fault Like I was speeding or something

She straight-armed the door to the fabric store and entered as though she had a strong wind behind her.

“My, you look ready to rip someone apart.” Myrna looked up from where she was cutting fabric.

“An old man just hit me and crumpled the entire back side panel. Took almost an hour by the time the policeman finally got there and did his bit. Old geezer shouldn't be driving anymore, shaking like he does. What's this world coming to anyway?”

“What was his name, the man who hit you?”

“Donaldson, out on Lower River Road. You know him?”

“Of course, his wife has been coming in here for years. You know her, Esther, makes those wonderful angels. Has Parkinsons now and can't sew any longer. He takes care of her. Swears he won't put her in a nursing home like everyone tells him he should.”

Elaine groaned. “Oh no. She made that angel for me one year, the one I hang above the fireplace. Now he'll probably lose his license.” She thought back to her brusqueness at the site.
If only I'dput two and two together.
She shook her head. “What a mess.”

“So how can I help you today? Besides your order that's here, I got some new tapestries in. I think you might like some of them. Wild animal prints are getting more popular all the time.” Myrna led the way back to the upholstery fabrics.

Elaine trailed her fingers over the velvets as they passed. She'd need more of those for the holiday projects.

“Here we are.” Myrna pulled out one of the racked rolls so Elaine could see more of the print.

“Gorgeous. Give me two yards of that one and the same on this. Oh, and look at this one with the roosters. Amazing how popular chickens have become all of a sudden. While you cut those, I'll go look for trims.”

“I've got some to complement these. That red for the roosters was real hard to match. I saw something done with both sides ofthat one.” She flipped the rooster print to show how appealing the back side was too.

“Good idea. Why don't you just give me your entire roll of quarter-inch cording?”

“Figured you'd be wanting that again soon, so I ordered extra. There's some gold lamé that might work too.”

By the time Elaine was writing the check, she had two large bags full on the counter.

“Now is there anything else I can get you?” Myrna asked.

“Yes, I'll take these out to the car, and then I'm meeting here with Kit Cooper and Teza Dennison. They're heading up that quilt project to purchase a new mammogram unit for the hospital.” She checked her watch. “Good thing they are running a bit late too.”

“I heard about that. Was wishing I had time to take part in it.” Myrna left her cash register to help Elaine carry out the sacks. “We sure have been hit with a lot of breast cancer in this town. Every time I turn around I hear of someone else.” She stopped to look at the damaged quarter panel. “What a shame. Accidents happen so quickly”

“I know. George is going to have a fit.”
But I phn to do something about the cancer problem. I wonder what it would take to rally all the women in this country or if that is even possible?

“There're Kit and Teza now.” Myrna waved as the two cars drove into the parking lot.

“Afternoon, Myrna.” Teza hugged the store owner. “I suppose you've already heard that we're shopping for a special quilt.” She smiled at Elaine. “I saw some of your pillows over at the hospital gift shop. My, but you do beautiful work.”

“Thank you.” Elaine gestured toward the bags in the backseat. “Myrna has some lovely new fabrics. I'm sure we'll be able to find what we need here.”

The women made their way back into the store and ambled down the aisle to the calico section, all of them stroking bolts of fabric as they went, stopping to comment on something that caught their eye.

“What colors do you have in mind?” Myrna snagged a shopping cart and brought it with her.

Kit turned from pulling out a bolt of fabric with a deep burgundy background. “From this to mauve, then several shades of royal blue, with creams.”

“The pattern is a variation of the starburst.” Elaine stopped at the cream section. “King size.”

“Sounds lovely. Why don't we pull all the bolts that look like possibilities and then lay them out on the cutting table. I've installed a true color light above that table so we can really see the colors.”

“What a good idea. I have one of those in my workroom now.” Teza reached up to pull down a blue bolt and flinched before she could catch herself.

“Here, let me take that.” Kit took the one bolt down and another near it. “That shoulder getting worse?”

“No, but you know how long it takes for pulled muscles to heal. I put Ben-Gay on it at night and that helps.”

“Let's take some of those watercolor prints to the table too. They go really well in a quilt.” Myrna pointed to another row of fabrics.

By the time they finished pulling bolts they had twenty on the wide cutting table, all separated according to basic color.

“How many colors do you need?” Myrna looked to Elaine.

“Kit has the design. I'm just one of the worker bees on this project.”

“Oh.” Myrna turned to Kit. “Sorry.”

Kit laid her notebook open on the table and unfolded Beth's drawing, then turned the page to her list of supplies and fabrics. “We figured ten to twelve with six of the red family, three of the blue, and three creams. But that's why we're all here, to make those kinds of decisions.”

“Okay. Then let's do the reds first.” Myrna stacked the other bolts
off
to the side. They laid out ten ranging from light mauve to deep burgundy.

“Take this one away, too orange.” Elaine pulled out one bolt and folded the end over before setting it back in the cart.

They debated, put two of the watercolor bolts in with the others, moved them around, pulled out two more.

“This starts with creams in the middle, right?” Myrna studied the drawing again.

“Unless we start dark and go toward the light.” Teza laid one of the cream bolts at the dark end.

“No.” Both Elaine and Kit spoke at the same time, half smiling at each other.

“I like the way you planned it here, with the light in the center, going toward the dark. Seems richer that way.”

They finally settled on seven in the red tone. After stacking them up, they laid out the blue. Only two bolts worked, since some had too much yellow or green and others red.

“True royal blue isn't easy to come by.” Teza laid another bolt in between the two they had and took it away again. “I like that solid one and this one with the small white flower in it.”

“We could use the solid one for the backing too.” Elaine fingered the folded edge of the bolt. “There's plenty here for that.”

“I thought we'd back it in the dark burgundy.” Kit tapped the bolt on the bottom of the stack. “The blue is just for accent.”

“Hmm.” Teza studied both bolts. “I don't want to be the tiebreaker. Myrna, what do you think?”

“Either one will be beautiful.” She studied the fabrics. “What about the cream while we think on that.”

With only three creams that looked good together, that was easy.

Kit looked toward her aunt and saw that eyebrow rise. Did she want to chew on shoe leather again? Not really, but the picture in her mind said a burgundy backing. The eyebrow inched upward. Kit sighed.

“You're right. The lighter blue will look lovely, and our stitching will show up well on it too.”
Tem, you doritpUy fair, not at all One would think you d back your niece, your only niece for that matter.

“Good.” Myrna flipped one of the cream bolts over a couple of times so the fabric lay flat for cutting. “How much of this one do you need?”

Kit numbered each of the bolts according to where it would fit in the design and laid out the list of required yardage. “I've added extra in case someone loses or ruins their square. The worst thing would be to run out of something after all the cutting.”