Winter in Full Bloom (16 page)

After a few minutes of walking, I spotted Camille. Relief flooded me. But something wasn’t right. She not only wasn’t performing, but she stood arguing with a man in front of the Crown Complex, next to one of the monolith-type structures that adorned the front. Was that the boyfriend she’d mentioned? I held back, not wanting to interrupt or even hear their argument, but the man’s sharp words pierced the air.

“How could I have convinced myself that I loved you,” the man said. “Tell me.”

Camille reached out to him. “I know you’re upset about being fired again, but you shouldn’t take it out—”

He slapped her hand away. “How dare you bring that up. You know what? Before I go, I’m going to teach you a lesson.” The man—red-faced and muscles taut—yanked the instrument case from Camille’s hand.

“Give it to me. You know it’s all I have left.”

The man hurled Camille’s flute into the river below.

“No!” Her voice shriveled into a whimper as the case splashed into the water. She swung at him.

He caught her hand and spewed curses at her. Then he stormed off without even glancing back.

Camille leaned over the railing, almost as if she were going to throw up, but coughed instead.

At that same instant, a massive flame belched out of the top of one of the black towers. And then a mushroom cloud of gas, still burning, released into the air, reminding me of the clouds of fire when Dorothy dared approach the Wizard of Oz. Somewhere on the other side, tourists squealed, apparently stunned with astonishment and delight at the show.

I reared back.
Goodness me.
Such an inferno. Even at that great distance, the heat prickled my flesh. Another black tower let loose with a plume of fire and then another and another until the whole row of pinnacles was ablaze. Camille paid no attention to the spectacle. She must have gotten used to the heat and fiery display.

Camille, dear Camille. I’m so sorry. Should I comfort her, or would it frighten her to know I’d seen their argument? I couldn’t fake that kind of thing. I couldn’t look like I was just appearing and hadn’t seen the drama. My face would betray me right away, and I knew I couldn’t live with the lie.
Oh, dear God in heaven, tell me what to do.

I stood paralyzed, not wanting to move forward or go back. All the while, people were milling by, but giving her a wide berth. I finally decided to take a chance. Camille might bolt when she saw me, but she was my sister after all, and she needed me. I had to do something.

I walked up to her. “Camille? May I help?”

Camille looked at me
, her face full of fear. “Lily?”

She let me take her into my arms and rub her back just as I’d always done for Julie when she was distressed about something. “You don’t have to tell me what happened.”

“I have no one else to tell.” She pulled away. “Jerald left me. After a year of dating. Of promises. Little whispers of such love and devotion. Now it’s over … just like that. Yeah. It’s over. He said I will never see him again.”

“I’m so sorry.” I ran my hands down her arms and held her hands, which shivered at my touch. “So, you loved this man?”

“Don’t look at me that way. I know what you’re thinking. That Jerald was a bad man. Yes, he did a terrible thing to me just now, destroying my flute, my music and part of my livelihood. But he was angry because I’d mentioned that he’d gotten fired. It was his weak spot, and I knew it.”

I squeezed her hands, but I was certain I didn’t look convinced. How could I be? Camille spoke the wild talk of a woman whose love had blinded her from all common sense.

Camille wiggled her hands out of my grasp. “I’m telling you the truth. He wasn’t always like this. He’s kind of a rough guy, and he could really throw a wobbly, but he’s had trouble holding down a job, and it’s made him feel like nothing. Like less of a man. I guess it sounds like an excuse, but he really was damaged emotionally by all the rejection.”

“Most of us are damaged in some way, but we don’t destroy other people’s property in the process or destroy their livelihood. He could have just walked away.” I didn’t know the man, but I thought a good flogging would be in order. If Jerald could behave that way openly on the streets, I cringed to think how he might have abused Camille behind closed doors.

“Honestly, I don’t know how Jerald will live now, without me, but I’m sure something will turn up.”

Camille hadn’t heard a word I’d said. “You mean you were paying his way?”
Oh, dear, please say you weren’t.

“Worse than that.” She gazed out over the river. “I loaned Jerald some money, which he gambled away on the pokies. He was so …” Her voice trailed away in a hoarse murmur.

How could my sister put up with such abuse, especially after what she’d already been through with her adoptive father? Humans were so frail, so vulnerable.

“That was my only flute, and I can’t afford another one.”

“Do you think you can get any of the money back from him? You know, so you can buy another one?”

Camille released a bitter laugh. “No, I’ve seen the last of Jerald. That I know for sure.”

I wanted to ask her how she’d gotten herself bound to such a worthless and iniquitous man. I wanted to know if she saw the pattern she was creating from her past. That she was choosing anguish out of some unhealthy desires. Perhaps she’d come to think of herself as deserving unhappiness and pain. I remained silent on the subject—for now. “Do you need any money? I could get some through one of the ATMs.”

Camille shook her head. “I won’t do that to you. Fortunately, I still have my daytime job. I work at a small grocery store. I can get by. And eventually I’ll be able to buy another flute.”

If sadness could melt a heart, then mine had become a little pool. Not just for my sister’s loss, but for what she couldn’t see. She didn’t seem to recognize the strong connection between her choices and her unhappiness. “I wish I could do something. I feel useless.”

“You could buy me a cuppa. Or maybe a cappuccino with extra foam.” She tried on a weak smile. “We have the best in the world here.”

“Let’s do it. It’ll keep me awake half the night, but then so will what happened to you today.”

“I’m sorry about that. But for now, let’s have that coffee. We can eat later.” Camille reached over to me and zipped up my jacket. “You always look like you’re shivering.”

“I’m used to lots of heat in Houston, so yeah, I’m freezing.”

“Spring is almost here, Lily.”

I hoped that was true in a number of ways.

When we were cozy with our cappuccinos in one of the local coffee shops, I hovered my spoon over the cup, not wanting to mess up the creamy heart design on the top of the foam. “I hate to stir or take a sip. It’s so pretty. And I like the fact that they give it to us in porcelain cups, not to-go mugs.”

“That’s because we take our coffee seriously here, and you shouldn’t drink cappuccino out of paper cups unless you absolutely have to.”

I took a sip, letting myself slurp it. “Oh, wow.” I slapped the table. “Best cappuccino I’ve ever had.” I licked at and then daubed at the foamy mustache with my napkin.

“See? The best.” Camille suddenly coughed, which turned into quite a bout. She took several quick sips of her coffee. Her shoulders relaxed, but her cup made a clattery landing on the saucer when she set it down.

“You okay?”

“Not really.” Camille stared into her cup.

“I don’t mean to pry, but what exactly are your health issues? I noticed your cough when we first met on the street.”

“I’ve never known what was wrong. The doctors don’t know either. It seems I’ve always been ailing with something, just like when I was little. I guess I never outgrew that sickly nature.”

“Do you think it could be—”

“Listen, Lily, I need to ask you something.”

Sounded serious. I took a deep sip of my coffee. “Okay. Anything at all.”

“As you already know, I expected Jerald to propose. He won’t now. Obviously. But with that loss goes some of my hope for making a family here. As old as I am and with my health issues I wasn’t expecting to ever have a baby. But I’d hoped to adopt a little girl someday, although I don’t know when that will be. Maybe it’s just a pipe dream too. But now without Jerald, I have no one. Nothing. I’m like a ship bobbling around, lost at sea.”

“You don’t have any friends?”

“I did, but my best friend, Samantha, moved to America a few months ago. I thought we’d stay close. I hoped so anyway, but it didn’t work. We emailed and texted for a while, but now I never hear from her. It was just too much I guess. She moved on, made new friends there.”

“That’s unfortunate.”

“Yes. It is. And now comes my question. Well, I guess it isn’t a question. It’s an announcement.” Camille looked at me then, really looked at me, her jaw set with determination. “I’ve decided … when you go back to America … I’m going with you.”

I opened my mouth
, but nothing came out.

Camille grinned. “Guess I shocked you a good one.”

I laughed. “You did. I’m happy, of course. I just didn’t expect you to say it, because you were so opposed to the idea when I brought it up before.”

“Well, everything changed for me today.” She dropped her shoulders as if in sad surrender. “My whole life.”

“I can’t think of anything that would make me happier than to take you back with me. Julie will be thrilled too.”

Camille rested back in her chair. “It wouldn’t be forever.”

“You may stay with me for as long as you like. I have a house and two extra bedrooms. It’s kind of old, but it’s a comfy place. It’s home.”

Camille placed her palm on the window glass next to us just as she had when I first saw her on the tram. She said softly, “From what I gather … Mrs. Gray isn’t all that big on seeing me.”

“But Mother did tell me about you. She opened that door, and it makes me think she would be willing to open other doors. Deep down, I’m sure she wants to see you again.”

“But why should I be the one to shove open the door, Lily?” she asked. “Mrs. Gray is the one who should be clamoring to see me, begging my forgiveness.”

“I admit, it’s all pretty screwed up. We’re a very dysfunctional family. But you coming home will jar things back. Make things right. I just know it. Kind of like, well, you know, when you shake a pecan tree and all the nuts come down.”

“Yeah, well that doesn’t help me to feel warm and fuzzy.” She grimaced.

“Sorry, bad simile.”

“Are you really that much more of an optimist than I am?”

“No.”

We laughed.

I drank down the rest of my cappuccino, wiped off my foamy mustache, and then gave myself a moment to rejoice. Camille was right—spring was on its way. I ordered another cappuccino to celebrate. I had more than I’d ever hoped for—a twin sister who wanted to be my sister and who wanted to come home, even if only for a visit.

“When would we be going back?” Camille asked.

“In about two and a half weeks.”

“That should give me time to close down some of my life here. I admit that even though I feel a measure of despair right now, I also feel something else. Something I didn’t expect to feel. Relief that I don’t have to look into those green eyes of Jerald’s anymore and feel … edgy.”

“Relief is good.” I reached out to her with my right palm.

At the same exact moment, Camille stretched out her left hand, and we met palm to palm.

We stared at each other and then put our hands down and laughed.

“Creepy, isn’t it … the way we think alike … move alike?” she asked.

“It is … wonderfully strange.”

“I’d so glad you came to Australia, Lily.”

“Me too,” I said. “I suppose we need to make a plan now.”

“Well, while we make our plans I can show you Parliament. That is, if we hurry. Then we can eat.”

“I would love that. I haven’t seen it yet.”

“It’s not far from here.”