Wishes (18 page)

Why were people such fools? Terel wondered. Why couldn’t they see that Nellie was so much better off with her family? Who knew what this man Montgomery was like? Maybe he was abusive to women. Maybe he drank. Maybe he was an impostor and not really rich at all. Maybe Terel had saved Nellie from a fate worse than death.

Anyway, Terel thought, forget about the man; there was Aunt Berni to think about. Terel thought she would make an excellent heiress. Paris, Rome, San Francisco, she thought. Furs, jewels, houses.

She looked again at Nellie. She’d better keep this rich aunt away from Nellie, in case she was one of those do-gooders who would fall for Nellie’s sad face. Terel didn’t mean to lose a fortune just because Nellie was temporarily a little upset.

“I think I’ll make up some menus,” Terel said thoughtfully. “We mustn’t skimp while Aunt Berni is here.” She smiled at Nellie, thinking of the complicated dishes she’d order. Nellie wouldn’t get out of the kitchen for a week, and as Aunt Berni’s visit was only going to be for three days…

Nellie was in the kitchen when she heard the commotion of her aunt arriving. She didn’t go out to greet her because both her father and Terel were there. She heard her father’s voice raised and the sound of men grunting as they carried trunks up the stairs. After a half hour or so Nellie prepared a tray with a mug of hot cider and a plate of Christmas cookies to take to her aunt. Just as she was leaving the kitchen Terel burst in.

“She brought six trunks of clothes with her,” Terel said, partly in horror, partly in admiration. “And she’s fifty if she’s a day, but she doesn’t have a line in her face.”

“That’s lovely for her.”

“Perhaps.” Terel picked up a cookie and munched it thoughtfully. “There’s something about her that I don’t trust. There’s something in her eyes.”

“Maybe she’s lonely. Didn’t Father say she lived alone?”

“It’s not loneliness, I can assure you of that. There’s something I don’t understand in her eyes.”

Nellie pushed open the kitchen door. “I’ll just take her some food and say hello.”

Berni sat in the parlor and smoothed her velvet skirt. She liked these ornate Victorian clothes: no synthetic fibers, lots of hand embroidery, intricate detailing. What she didn’t like was Terel. It hadn’t taken Berni but moments to see that Terel was out to get what she could for herself. Berni looked at her and smiled and thought, I’ll get you, brat, and I won’t need to resort to magic.

When Nellie entered the room Berni’s face softened, for she recognized the goodness in Nellie. All the images Berni had seen of Nellie’s childhood flashed before her eyes, and before she thought she gave Nellie a radiant smile.

Terel, just behind Nellie, saw that smile, and she vowed to find out what it meant, but she betrayed no wariness as she offered her Aunt Berni cookies and cider from the tray Nellie held. An hour later Terel was able to slip away from the house and find the dreadful child who called himself Duke.

“Well?” Terel demanded of the boy. He wouldn’t speak until she’d put a quarter in his hand. “Have you been watching the hotel like I told you to?”

“Sure thing, and this mornin’ there was a message in Montgomery’s box. I didn’t see nobody put it in there, it was just
there.
”

“Did you get it?” she snapped impatiently.

He handed her the note, and she read it quickly. It was an invitation to luncheon today at the Grayson house, and it was signed by Nellie. But Terel knew the note hadn’t been written by Nellie; the way it was worded wasn’t the way Nellie would write. She crumpled the note in her hand. It had to have been written by this Aunt Berni, but how had she found out about Nellie and the Montgomery man?

“She’s just like all the others,” Terel muttered. “They all think of Nellie, and no one thinks of me.”

“What’s that?” the boy asked.

“None of your business. Now go back and continue watching.”

The boy snorted and then walked away, hands in his pockets, whistling.

As Terel started back to the house she began to plan. She didn’t know why this Aunt Berni was here or what she wanted, but Terel meant to find out.

When Terel returned her Aunt Berni was in the guest bedroom, lounging on the bed eating chocolates and reading one of Terel’s novels. “There you are, my dear,” Berni said. “I was hoping you’d return soon. You will help me unpack, won’t you?”

“Nellie will—” Terel began, then she smiled radiantly. Better to keep those two apart. “I would be delighted to help.”

Two hours later Terel was furious, but she managed to hide it. She hadn’t “helped” Berni; she had done all the work of struggling with the trunks, opening them so they formed short closets, then inspecting everything to make sure nothing was damaged. The sight of the dresses alone was enough to make Terel vow to do anything to make Aunt Berni leave everything to her, but the jewels nearly undid her. “What is this?” she asked, holding up a long tube of what looked to be green glass.

“Actually, it’s a magic wand. One long emerald,” Berni said.

Terel gave a little smile, further angered that Berni would make fun of her. There’s something wrong here, Terel thought again.

Luncheon came and went, and Berni was puzzled as to why Jace didn’t come. He had seemed to genuinely like Nellie. So why didn’t he accept Nellie’s invitation? Perhaps a note wasn’t strong enough; perhaps Jace needed to see Nellie in person.

After luncheon Berni suggested Terel take a nap. “You have worked so hard today helping me. You deserve a little rest.”

“I do feel tired,” Terel said, yawning. “I think I will take a nap.” She went upstairs, climbed into bed fully clothed, and pulled the spread over her, concealing that she still wore her day clothes. Ten minutes later she heard the door softly open, and she saw Berni peek in at her and then silently close the door again.

Berni went downstairs to the kitchen, where Nellie was already working on dinner, and sat down on the other side of the big table. “You and I haven’t had much time to talk, have we?”

“No,” Nellie said, trying to smile, but she didn’t feel much like smiling.

Berni once again felt guilt. It was her fault Nellie was stuck in the kitchen now. If Berni hadn’t interfered, Nellie would probably be on her honeymoon right now.

“Nellie, if you could have one wish in the world, what would it be?”

Jace, Nellie instantly thought, but she stamped down the idea. “I guess I’d want my family to be happy.”

“You mean, to get what they deserve in life?”

“Oh, no!” Nellie said, then she realized how that must sound. “I mean, yes, I want them to get what they deserve because they deserve only good things, but I wouldn’t want them to be unhappy.”

“All right,” Berni said, “it’s a deal. They’ll get what they deserve, and they’ll be happy with it.”

For the first time in a long while Nellie gave a genuine smile. “You’re very kindhearted, aren’t you?”

Berni looked away. No one had ever called her kind before. She turned back to Nellie. “I have a favor to ask of you. I have some friends whose son is visiting Chandler. Perhaps you’ve heard of my friend, LaReina, the opera star.”

“Yes, certainly I have, though I haven’t heard her sing.”

“Divine, utterly divine. Anyway, her son is visiting Chandler, and I’d like to ask him to dinner tonight, if that’s all right with you.”

“Of course you may invite him.”

“But I was wondering if perhaps you would ask him. I think he may be a little shy.”

“I would be glad to ask him. Where’s he staying?”

“At the Chandler House. Just ask for Jace Montgomery. He—Nellie! Are you all right?” Berni hurried to the other side of the table and helped Nellie to a chair. “Did I say something wrong? Would you rather not have anyone here for dinner?”

“It’s not that, it’s…it’s that Mr. Montgomery and I…”

“Oh, so you know each other, do you? That’s wonderful.” She helped Nellie to stand, then took her heavy wool shawl and her wool felt hat from a peg by the door. Berni jammed the hat on Nellie’s head, wrapped the shawl about her, and shoved her toward the door. “Go and ask him to dinner. Terel is sleeping, so she’s comfortable, and your father isn’t here. Everyone is taken care of, so you’re free to go.”

“I can’t ask him,” Nellie whispered.

“For me? For your dear old aunt?” Berni said pleadingly.

Nellie took a deep breath. Her heart was pounding. “All right. For you.” She stepped out the door into the cold, snowy air and started walking toward the hotel.

Berni shut the door and smiled. Easy, she thought. Almost too easy. Jace probably hadn’t come to lunch because he hadn’t received the note, but Berni knew Nellie was a person who took her responsibilities seriously and would no doubt sit down and wait for Jace to give him the message personally.

She sat down at the table, started munching Nellie’s cookies, then snapped her fingers and the 1989 Christmas issue of
Vogue
appeared in her hands. This fairy godmother stuff is a cinch, she thought. She’d probably have Jace and Nellie together by ten o’clock tonight. Maybe they’ll name their first kid after me, she thought, smiling.

On the other side of the kitchen door Terel tightened her mouth into a firm line. So that’s it, she thought. Their aunt was a friend of the Montgomery man’s mother.
That’s
why Aunt Berni had so suddenly and unexpectedly come to Chandler. It had nothing to do with choosing one of the Grayson girls to inherit. Aunt Berni wanted her friend’s son to marry Nellie.

And leave me behind, Terel thought. Nellie gets to marry a rich man and get out of this dreadful town while I have to stay behind.

Tiptoeing, Terel made her way across the room and out the front door without making a sound. “Nellie!” she called, once outside.

Slowly, Nellie turned to her sister. “I thought you were taking a nap.”

“I was, but I was afraid to leave you alone with her.”

“With Aunt Berni?”

“Yes, with her. I tell you, Nellie, my every instinct cries out to beware of her.”

“But she seems so nice. I don’t think—”

“You didn’t think there was anything wrong with that awful man who said he loved you, either.”

Nellie looked down at her hands.

“Where were you going?” Terel asked.

“To the…ah, Aunt Berni asked me…”

“She didn’t ask you to see
him,
did she? Oh, Nellie, she is cruel. This is unspeakable! How could she do something like this to her own flesh and blood?”

“I don’t think she meant any harm. She merely wanted me to ask her friend’s son to dinner.”

“And you think that was mere coincidence? You think she just ‘happened’ to ask
you
to go to this man? You think she doesn’t know every sordid detail of what’s happened to you?”

“I didn’t really think about it. She asked me to go, and—”

“And you obeyed her. Oh, Nellie, why don’t you ever stand up for yourself? Tell her you’re not going to degrade yourself more than you already have. Tell her the
truth
about the man.”

“The truth?”

“Yes, that he made free with you then went off and left you, and that he walked out, and more, with nearly every female in town, and that he’s a liar, saying he wrote you letters while he was away. Oh, Nellie, the man is a scoundrel. He’s proven that repeatedly, but here you are chasing after him like you did the night of the Harvest Ball”

Nellie wrung her hands. She knew Terel was saying these things because she worried about her, but the words made Nellie feel really awful.

“All right, Nellie, I wasn’t going to tell you,” Terel said with a sigh, “but your Mr. Montgomery has been taking Mae out for the last two days.” She put her hand on Nellie’s arm. “I’m so sorry about him. I know you believed you cared for him, but you’ll get over him. He’s not worth shedding one tear over. Now that you’ve lost weight you’re quite presentable-looking, so we’ll be able to find you a husband. Ted Nelson needs a wife, and he’s a very dependable man.”

Ted Nelson was at least fifteen years older than Nellie. He ran a livery stable on the edge of town with his two big half-grown sons, who everyone said were so dumb that the horses were teaching the boys to read and write. It was debated around town whether any of the Nelsons had ever had a bath.

“Well, don’t turn up your nose,” Terel snapped. “Everyone says Ted Nelson has a fortune hidden somewhere. But if you don’t like him, we’ll find you someone else. Maybe we can look in Denver. No one there knows of your reputation. Maybe—”

“I won’t ask him,” Nellie said, putting her hands over her ears. “I won’t ask Mr. Montgomery to dinner. Please stop.”

“All right,” Terel said tightly. “I don’t know why I bother. Sometimes you act as though
I
am the villain.” She slipped her arm through Nellie’s. “Let’s go to the bakery and get something to eat. You really are getting too thin.”

At the moment Nellie felt hungry enough to eat the bakery itself—boardwalk, shingles, sign, and all.

Berni was again puzzled when, at dinner, Jace Montgomery didn’t show up. She sat through the long, boring meal eating Nellie’s delicious food and listening to Terel chatter. She watched Charles Grayson smile at his younger daughter and now and then frown at Nellie.