Читать книгу A Child Shall Lead Them - Carole Page Gift - Страница 10

Brianna brought Marnie home the next day, a balmy, late-June Saturday. The moment Marnie stepped inside the Rowlands’ house, she did a double take. “Wow!” she said with grudging admiration. “This is awesome. Not glitzy, like a rich person’s pad, but warm and homey. Like that retro Ozzie and Harriet stuff. A real home.”

“Thanks,” said Bree. “I think.”

“I like it,” Marnie went on, clutching a leather satchel in one hand and a canvas bag in the other. Tall and slender, with a coltish energy and grace, she looked like an ordinary teenager in her tank top and oversize bib overalls. No one would have guessed she was over six months pregnant.

“We can take your things directly up to your room, if you like,” said Bree, nodding toward the stairs.

“No, I’ll just set them here for now.” Marnie dropped her belongings beside the staircase and ambled across the entryway, her stacked sandals clicking on the marble floor. “This place beats some dreary women’s shelter.” She drifted into the living room and gazed around at the overstuffed sofa and chairs, the oak furniture, and the bay windows letting in sunlight. They could see a profusion of color from the rosebushes lining the front yard.

Marnie flashed a lopsided smile. She had an oval face with sharp features—a nose too pointed, lips too full, teeth a bit too large. Her long, umber-brown hair looked a bit bedraggled, as if she had got up in the morning and absently smoothed it back from her forehead with her hands. Marnie’s eyes—her most striking feature—were large, wide-set, shadowed at the corners, and a light spring-water blue. They seemed ageless, fathomless, melancholy, yet riveting, as if they were looking beyond the surface at something no one else could see.

“You sure your dad doesn’t mind putting me up for a few months?” she asked in an offhand voice that failed to hide an undercurrent of anxiety.

“I’m sure,” said Bree. “You stay as long as you need to.”

Marnie managed a hard-edged chuckle. “I guess him being a minister makes him want to do nice things for people, like taking in the poor and homeless…and pregnant.”

“He’s a neat guy,” said Bree. “Funny and warm and caring. You’ll like him.”

The two crossed the living room to the kitchen. It was roomy, with a sunny breakfast nook and garden window overlooking a sprawling backyard festooned with snow-white calla lilies, bright orange birds of paradise, pink azaleas in porcelain Ming pots, bougainvillea bushes, and a variety of tropical foliage.

“Are you hungry, Marnie?”

“Starved.” She smiled grimly. “I’m eating for two, you know.”

“Then, let’s raid the fridge.” Bree opened the refrigerator door and gazed inside. “Let’s see. We’ve got all sorts of mysterious concoctions hidden in butter tubs, but I’m not sure we want to risk our lives by sampling them.”

“I’m not fussy…as long as it’s edible and not growing little fuzzy green things.”

“I can’t vouch for most of this stuff. My dad believes you should never throw anything out until it’s clearly beyond redemption.”

“Not a bad philosophy,” noted Marnie with a hint of irony.

Bree nodded. “I never thought of it that way.” She retrieved a large plastic container and peeked inside. “Tell you what. We have spaghetti left over from last night. My sister Frannie makes the best pasta dishes in the world. She does this thing with basil and oregano. I’m no cook, so I have no idea how she does it, but it’s scrumptious.”

Marnie sat down at the oak table. “I love spaghetti.”

“Me, too. I’ll zap us some in the microwave.”

For the next half-hour they sat at the cozy table devouring the last of Frannie’s spaghetti and sipping diet colas. They engaged in idle chitchat for a few minutes, discussing the weather, the house, even Brianna’s job at the counseling center.

“What’s it like giving out advice and helping people all day?” Marnie asked. “Does it make you feel like a saint? Joan of Arc or something?”

Brianna smiled. “It’s scary and wonderful all at once.”

“How so?”

“Scary when I think I’m responsible for people’s lives. Wonderful when I know I’ve made life better for someone.”

“Someone like me?”

“Yes. Someone like you.”

Marnie lapsed into silence.

Brianna traced the rim of her cola glass. “I hope you don’t mind, Marnie. I don’t mean to intrude on your privacy, but now that you’ll be living here, I’ll need some information.”

Marnie twisted a strand of chestnut hair. “Like what?”

“General stuff. About you. Your family. Your plans.”

Marnie’s tone was guarded. “What do you want to know?”

“For starters, where your home is.”

“I filled out the papers you gave me.”

“You listed a San Diego hotel.”

“That’s where I was staying. Until I ran out of money.”

“What about your family? Where do they live?”

Marnie lowered her gaze. “That’s not important.”

“But it is. If we needed to reach them for some reason—”

“Leave them out of it,” said Marnie sharply. “They have nothing to do with me anymore.”

“Because you’re pregnant? Did they force you to leave home? That’s what you implied when you first came to see me.”

Marnie sipped her cola. After a moment she looked up, her eyes shadowed, her lips tight, as if she were willing herself not to speak lest she say too much.

“Marnie, if I’m going to help you, I need to know the truth. Please. I’m on your side.”

Marnie licked her chapped lips. Without makeup, she had a winsome, childlike face. She was still twisting her hair, so tightly that the tip of her finger had turned white. At last she met Brianna’s gaze. “Truth is, my folks don’t know I’m pregnant. When I started to show, I just wore frumpy clothes. No one could tell. I wouldn’t even admit it to myself until a couple of months ago. When I told my boyfriend, Sam…Sam Dillard—we were both sophomores at San Diego State—when I told him, he told me to get rid of it. Just like that. He didn’t even think twice about it. Just said he didn’t want anything to do with a baby. It was my problem.”

“Couldn’t you tell your folks?”

“You kidding? My parents are…you’d have to know them…they’re like, totally perfect. I mean, that’s how they act, like they can do no wrong. You should see them. Rigid and unbending as a ruler. They expect perfection from everyone. No one can please them. Especially me.” She gnawed on her lower lip, her gaze downcast. “Of course, my brother is another story.”

“Your brother?”

“Eric. He’s ten years older than me.” Marnie pulled a thumb-worn snapshot from the pocket of her bib overalls and handed it to Bree. “I keep his picture close to my heart. Makes me feel like he’s watching over me. Stupid, huh?”

“Not at all. That shows how special he must be.” Bree studied the photograph. The face staring back at her was one of the most compelling and captivating she had ever seen. As finely honed as a Michelangelo sculpture. A valiant face reflecting a startling paradox of strength and vulnerability, melancholy and mischief. And those dusky, half-moon eyes flashed lightning bolts straight into Bree’s heart. They seemed to read her very thoughts. She couldn’t tear her gaze from those eyes.

“This is…your brother?” she murmured, her voice catching. This was crazy. Her heart was doing a strange little pitter-pat dance. A self-conscious warmth spread across her face, flushing her cheeks, leaving her pleasantly dazed and distracted. What was wrong with her, reacting so viscerally? For heaven’s sake, if a person could fall in love with a mere photograph, she just had!

“Cute, isn’t he,” said Marnie offhandedly.

“That’s, uh…not the word for it.” Bree forced her eyes from the snapshot. Help me, Lord! I’m behaving like a tongue-tied schoolgirl. “What’s he like…your brother?”

“Oh, wow! He’s like every girl wishes her brother would be.” Marnie’s eyes grew misty, as if she were glimpsing distant, faded memories. “He was always looking out for me…always there when I needed him. When I was a little girl, he carried me around in one of those little snuggly things. On his chest. Like I was a papoose or something. Can you imagine? Him a big teenage boy carrying around his little sister? He took me everywhere. To his ball games and track meets. On bike rides and hikes. He always fixed me hot dogs and macaroni and cheese—his absolute favorites. When I was sick, he brought his friends in to do stupid animal imitations. Bugs Bunny. Donald Duck. We’d laugh our silly heads off. But what was so cool…he made me feel like one of the gang. He was never ashamed of me.”

Bree struggled to find her voice. She was falling harder by the minute. “He sounds like a…a wonderful guy.”

“The best.” Marnie cupped her cola glass with her palms. “He’s a lawyer now. One of the good guys. Not one of those greedy dudes chasing million-dollar lawsuits.” Marnie met Bree’s gaze. “Actually, he’s a lot like you, Brianna. Always helping people, championing some cause for the poor and downtrodden.”

“Then, why didn’t you tell him about the baby?”

“And see the disappointment in his eyes? No way! He’s the only one who ever stood up for me. When my folks got on my case, Eric always came to my defense. He’s the only person who ever really believed in me, who thought I was worth something.”

“Then all the more reason to take him into your confidence.”

“No way!” Marnie blinked back rising tears. “Don’t you get it? I don’t ever want to stop being special to him.”

Bree sat back and gave a relenting sigh. Reluctantly, she handed the photo back to Marnie. “Okay, if that’s how you want it. But he sounds like a fabulous brother.”

“He is. You’d love him.”

I already do! The thought stunned Bree. How could a stranger’s face leave her feeling so shaken and flustered?

“Trouble is, he’s too dedicated to his work. It’s his whole life. Doesn’t even have a girlfriend.” Marnie eyed Brianna knowingly. “I bet you’re the same way, aren’t you. Too busy with your work to have a special guy?”

Brianna grimaced. She might consider having a special guy if he were anything like Marnie’s brother. “We’re talking about your life, Marnie,” she said evasively. “Not mine.”

“But it’s true, isn’t it? No boyfriend?”

Bree assumed her quasi-professional voice. “That’s how I like it, Marnie. No man complicating my life.”

“Smart lady!” Marnie’s blue eyes darkened. She resolutely mopped back her hair with one hand. “If I’d had that attitude, I wouldn’t be in this mess now.”

“About your brother,” said Bree. Tell me everything, she wanted to say, but resisted the impulse. “You don’t want him to find out you’re pregnant. But you can’t just disappear without raising suspicions. Won’t your parents be looking for you?”

“No. Never in a million years.”

“How can you be so sure?”

Marnie flashed a sly smile. “I got it all arranged.”

“Arranged?”

For a moment Marnie looked as if she couldn’t quite decide whether or not to confide in Brianna. Finally she said, “Here’s the scoop. My girlfriend from school got a scholarship to study in Europe this summer. I told my parents I got a scholarship, too. Said I was going with her.”

“To Europe?”

“Yeah. You should have seen how happy they were, thinking I got this humongous scholarship worth thousands of dollars. Thinking I was going off to study in Europe. What a hoot! That’s the picture they have of me—the daughter they want. Not some stupid girl who gets knocked up by her first boyfriend.”

“Your family really thinks you’re in Europe studying?”

“Yeah. Would you believe? I even wrote postcards for my friend to mail from Europe. Me raving to my mom and dad about what an awesome time I’m having in Paris. And all the while I’m right here, a half-hour away, in some minister’s house…a charity case, waiting to have a baby.”

“You’re no charity case. You’ll be earning your keep.”

“For sure? How?”

“I told you. Doing secretarial work for my dad.”

“I figured you just said that so I wouldn’t feel so bad about sponging off your family.”

“No, my father can really use your help. You can type letters…you did say you can type, right?”

Marnie nodded. “Yeah, that’s one thing I’m good at.”

“And maybe help him with some research on his sermons.”

“Sermons?” Marnie’s eyes widened. “Listen, girl, I’m not one of those religious types. I mean, my family went to church now and then, but it was more for show, you know?”

“Marnie, I’m not asking if you—”

“Okay, so my brother’s into this church thing. He goes to a church my parents totally disapprove of. What a hoot, huh? I went with him once. They meet in a school. No piano or choir. Just a ragtag band. Guitars and drums. Doesn’t matter what you wear—jeans, tees, sandals. No one cares if you’re rich or poor.”

Bree finished her cola. “So tell me. Did you enjoy going?”

“Yeah, I did. Weird, huh? The people were kinda nice—down to earth, you know?” Marnie poked at her last strands of spaghetti. “Eric wanted me to keep going, but I was with Sam at the time, and Sam wanted no part of church.”

Bree met her gaze. “The truth is, Marnie, while you’re living here, my dad expects you to attend church with us.”

She shrugged. “I can handle it. Your dad’s the preacher, right? If he’s as cool as you say, it shouldn’t be so bad.”

“You might even like it. My dad has a way of telling the truth so you want to hear more.”

Marnie glanced around, as if expecting someone to appear suddenly. “Maybe I should get my stuff upstairs before your family gets home.”

“No hurry,” said Bree. “My dad’s at the church, Frannie’s teaching an art class at San Diego State, and Ruggs, our dog, who rules the house, is in the backyard, probably burying his favorite bones in the flower garden.”

Marnie laughed lightly. “I love dogs. But my parents wouldn’t let me have one. Said an animal would mess up their house. But if I had my own place, I’d have a dozen dogs running around. And maybe a couple of cats, too.”

Now it was Bree’s turn to laugh. “Sounds like a regular menagerie. How about a bird? And monkeys are fun.”

Marnie stifled a chuckle. Her eyes were merry again, her cheeks ruddy. “Guess I’d need a farm, huh? Cows, horses, pigs, sheep. Nice little place far from California, where the land goes on forever and the stars are so bright they wink at you.”

“Sounds marvelous,” said Bree, “if that’s the kind of life you’re looking for.”

Marnie twisted another strand of hair. “I don’t know what I’m looking for.”

“You must have some plans…dreams…”

“Nothing. Except get through the summer and have my baby.”

“What then?” asked Bree. “Will you take your baby home?”

Marnie looked up reproachfully, her eyes welling with tears. “I can’t. My family can never know. My baby…I’m giving her up. I gotta find a good family to adopt her.” Marnie sat forward, her elbows on the table, her voice filled with sudden urgency. “You’ve gotta help me find a good home for my baby. A family to love her and accept her as she is, not make her feel she can never be good enough. Will you help me?”

Brianna reached across the table and clasped Marnie’s hands. “I’ll do what I can. But maybe you’ll change your mind and decide to keep your baby.”

Marnie’s eyes hardened to an icy blue. “No, I can’t keep her. I’ve got to pretend she never existed. I’ve got to go home at the end of the summer and go back to school and act like nothing ever happened. I’ve got to get my education and pray someday I can make my parents proud of me.”

“You’re asking a lot of yourself, Marnie. Are you sure about your parents? Maybe once they got used to the idea, they’d welcome a baby into the family.”

Marnie pushed back her plate. “Not my parents! They don’t want me…and they sure don’t want my baby.”

“Okay, forget I mentioned it.” Bree stood up and took the plates and glasses over to the sink. “If you’re ready, Marnie, I’ll show you to your room.”

Marnie hoisted herself from the chair and suddenly clutched her abdomen. “Oh, wow!”

Brianna pivoted. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

“The baby.” Marnie moved her hand slowly over her rounded belly. “Man, she’s kicking like mad. Feel, Brianna.”

Gently Marnie placed Brianna’s hand on the spot where the baby was moving. Sure enough, Bree could feel the fluttering kicks against her palm. Rhythmic little thumps. The sensation was amazing…as if this tiny, unseen child were reaching out to her, trying to make contact, entreating her for help.

Don’t worry, little one, Bree promised silently. I’m going to take care of you and your mommy. I’ll make sure you have a wonderful family to love you…if it’s the last thing I do!