Part One
She Said
She was running. Not towards something, but away from it. She could hear the heavy fall of its feet as it pounded along behind her and the hiss of its breath. No matter how fast she ran, it kept getting nearer and nearer. All of a sudden, the ground disappeared beneath her feet and she was plunged into darkness, falling into the unknown…
Trixie awoke with a start, her heart still pounding. All around her, everything was utterly normal. The sun shone brightly outside her bedroom window and beyond her bedroom door were the sounds of a normal weekday morning at Crabapple Farm. This was not the sort of day for such an ominous dream. This was a beautiful early summer day, and one of her last as a student of Sleepyside Junior-Senior High School.
But that wasn’t right. Today was not just another day. Today was graduation day. With a smile that stretched right across her face, she jumped out of bed and bounded across the room. This was the day she had been waiting for; the day when she left high school behind forever and stepped out into a world of greater freedom. The smile got even wider.
There was a decided spring in Trixie’s step as she headed downstairs for her family’s traditional graduation-day breakfast feast, giving a cheery greeting to all she encountered. Taking her seat, she hungrily eyed the platters piled high with blueberry pancakes, bacon, eggs, hash browns, fried green tomatoes and toast, the jug filled with orange juice and sniffed the pleasant scent of fresh-brewed coffee.
“I can hardly believe today is here,” her mother murmured, with just a hint of unshed tears.
“We’ll soon have only one bird left in the nest,” her father joked gently. “We won’t know what to do with ourselves.”
As Trixie could see signs that Helen was ready to break down and sob, she tried to change the subject. “This all looks great, Moms, and it smells heavenly!”
The family – less Brian, who would not arrive home until late in the day – settled to their meal amidst murmurs of satisfaction and happy conversation. Trixie could barely contain her excitement and felt a tendency to bounce up and down in her seat, just as she had as a young child.
“Happy that the day has finally arrived?” her father asked, in amusement.
She nodded. “I can hardly believe it’s actually true.” She gave a rueful smile. “There were a few times there that I thought I’d never graduate – I’d be stuck at high school forever!”
“It seems like only yesterday that you were starting kindergarten,” her mother contradicted, with a fresh threat of tears.
“Moms!” Bobby chastised, rolling his eyes. At ten, he had a fully developed sense of embarrassment about his parents even when there were no outsiders present. His contribution made, he returned to shovelling food into his mouth at full speed.
“Methinks our maternal forebear is suffering from selective memory loss,” Mart whispered with a conspiratorial wink. “My suggestion is that you milk it for all it’s worth.”
Trixie shook her head and continued her meal. A few minutes later, they heard a car pull into the drive and its driver approach the house.
“Hello?” Honey called from the doorway, while gently pushing open the screen door.
“Hi, Hon. Come on in,” Trixie greeted, between mouthfuls. “Just give me a couple of minutes and I’ll be ready to go.”
“Take your time,” Honey soothed. “I mean, I can’t wait to graduate and I can hardly believe this is the real, actual day we’re going to graduate, but I’m not in any hurry to get to school this morning, if you see what I mean. Oh, and before I forget, we’ll meet Di there. She said to tell you that she had a couple of things she needed to do this morning, so she couldn’t ride with us, which is a little disappointing, seeing as it’s the very last time, ever, but that’s what she said, so I guess it can’t be helped.”
That morning all graduating seniors were required at school for one final rehearsal. Privately, Trixie thought it was just an excuse to keep an eye on them just a little longer, but she had decided to keep her opinion to herself. She was anticipating a very boring morning, with very little to do. Minutes later, the two were headed for school in Honey’s little yellow car.
“This is the last time, Honey!” Trixie repeated, as they drove away from her home. “I can barely believe it, but high school is finally over.”
He Said
The room was small and cluttered, filled with more curious and unusual items than the eye could properly appreciate. Dark brown floorboards were almost completely obscured by mismatched wooden furniture and the threadbare red-brown patterned rug. Crowded bookshelves reached the ceiling and the single, tiny window was obscured by a collection of apparently random objects – animals carved of stone, intricate glassware, a wooden box with shiny lacquer, among others. In the well-worn armchair, an elderly man sat, his half-moon glasses perched low on his long and rather crooked nose. From an adjoining room came the sound of bird song.
“Play time, perhaps,” the old man remarked to himself, for there was no other human occupant of the room. Setting down the sheaf of papers he had been perusing, he rose with difficulty and shuffled through a doorway into a long, well-lit room. He blinked once or twice at the change, made a few adjustments to drapes and doors, then focussed his attention on his pets. “Out you come, my darlings. Stretch your wings.”
The door to the large and well-furnished cage opened with a gentle squeak and in a few moments the first of the birds flew out and perched upon the old man’s shoulder. With pride, he admired its bright feathers: a lilac chest and yellow abdomen, grass-green back and cobalt-blue rump, its face a rarely-seen yellow-ochre edged with black. Many years of careful breeding had paid off.
“She graduates from high school today,” he confided in the Gouldian finch. “Time enough to know her family’s true history, I think. Yes, I think it’s time to prompt her curiosity.” Unimpressed, the pretty creature took to wing.
By now, the cage’s other inhabitants had joined their companion and were happily flitting around the room. Their owner made his way slowly across to a built-in closet, turned the key and opened the door. For several moments, he contemplated its contents, a slight frown on his wrinkled face.
“Ah, here it is,” he finally announced, drawing out a box. “I’ll have someone deliver it in the morning. That will be time enough. Perhaps there will be a party tonight and we don’t want her to be distracted by that, do we?”
She Said
Trixie’s dismal prediction of the morning’s interest level turned out to be quite true. After interminable hours of standing around, getting into lines and listening to the same things they would hear at the ceremony that evening, the three female Bob-Whites emerged into the school parking lot.
“Am I glad that’s over!” Di sighed dramatically, as she leaned against her car. “Remind me never to graduate from high school ever again. I don’t think I could stand the boredom.”
Honey laughed. “Just think, though, it’s only a few hours until the real thing and then we’ll be really, truly, completely finished with high school forever!”
“And then…” Di added, with a teasing look at Trixie.
Her friend groaned. “If you’re going to keep secrets from me,” she complained, “the least you can do is keep quiet about them.”
“What are we going to do now?” With a glance at her watch, Honey changed the subject. “It’s almost lunch time, but I think I’d rather wait a little while. Wimpy’s will be really crowded if we go right away.”
After a few minutes discussion, it was decided that the three would split up; Trixie needed to return a library book and run a couple of errands, while the other two began to talk about window shopping. They agreed to meet at Wimpy’s for lunch about an hour later.
Not being provided with a car, Trixie set out on foot. The sun was blazing down and the temperature was soaring, making the walk a lot less pleasant than usual. She finished her tasks as quickly as possible, with only the promise of Wimpy’s air conditioning to spur her on. Reaching the diner, she pushed the door open and sighed with relief as a blast of cool air greeted her.
The bell tinkled as the door swished shut behind her and Trixie began to feel her spirits lift. She noticed her friends had already arrived, so she went straight to the counter and placed her order before joining them.
“Come and sit down right now,” Di ordered, with an excited bounce. “We’ve got a surprise for you.”
“What is it?” Trixie asked, her eyes sparkling. “What kind of surprise? Is it something to do with tonight’s party?”
Her two friends shared a look, but did not answer.
“Shut your eyes,” Di directed, “and hold out your hands.”
Trixie did as she was told. She felt something small and light being placed there, then Di told her she could open her eyes. When she did, it was almost too good to believe. In her hand was the gold chain which Jim had given her last Christmas. He had taken it from her to get a new clasp fitted after it had been damaged by Bobby.
“Oh, it’s fixed!” she cried, fastening it around her neck once again. The tiny gold horseshoe charm glinted against her skin. “But, how did it get here? Is Jim in Sleepyside already? Did you see him? Is that the surprise? He didn’t think he’d get back until right before the ceremony. And, if he’s here, why didn’t he give it to me himself?”
A week and a half before, Jim had gone on a short research trip, with the intention of allowing Trixie to concentrate on the important tasks she needed to undertake at this time. She had to admit – though grudgingly – that it had worked, but that did not prevent her from missing him.
“One question at a time,” Honey chided. “Besides, how do you know that Jim brought it here himself? He might have gotten Brian to bring it home for him and we might have seen him instead – not that either of us has any particular desire to see Brian, just that we might have, by accident.”
For most of the last year, Brian had been overseas, working with disadvantaged people in Africa. Since arriving home a few weeks earlier, he had enrolled in summer school, rather than wait for the next semester to begin. Considering that his relationship with Honey had ended while he was away, and she had begun a new relationship, it made the situation more comfortable for everyone.
“Of course he didn’t.” Trixie waved the suggestion away, as if the matter was completely obvious. “You know that Brian had classes all day today and that responsible Brian would never skip classes, if he could possibly help it. It takes him two hours to get home on the train, which is why Jim is supposed to be dropping by his place to pick him up. There’s no way he could be here before half past five this afternoon – right in time to see me graduate at six. So where’s Jim?” She peered around their booth, as if he might be hiding underneath one of the tables.
Honey and Di exchanged a glance that said as clearly as words could, ‘Should we tell her?’ Almost imperceptibly, Di shook her head.
“You’ll have to wait and see,” Di taunted, grinning. “He dropped that off for you and now he’s…”
“…busy,” Honey finished, with a grin just as big as Di’s. “But, enough of that. We have things to discuss. Most importantly, have you got something picked out to wear tonight? For the party, I mean, not the graduation.”
Trixie groaned loudly and flopped down onto the table. For weeks now, Honey and Di had been secretly organising some sort of celebration for their graduation. They flatly refused to tell her what it was, where it would be held, who would be there, or any other details. All she knew was that they would be leaving straight from the school and that she would return home sometime the following day.
“Should I have?” she asked, her voice muffled by her posture. “And, anyway, is it that important? I don’t normally choose my clothes in advance. I just rummage around in the closet with my eyes shut and put on whatever comes out.”
“We need to make sure that you’ll be appropriately dressed,” Di reminded her. “You won’t be able to just go home and change.”
“Why don’t you just tell me what to wear, then?” she asked, with another groan. “Better still, come home with me and you can pick something out.” The other two exchanged glances, but this time their meaning was hidden.
“I’ll do it,” Di volunteered. “I’ll only have a minute, though.”
As suddenly as it had come up, the topic was dropped. Honey skilfully steered the conversation towards other topics and Trixie was left to silently wonder what was in store for her.
Di’s visit that afternoon was, as she had predicted, extremely brief. She ran her eyes across the sum total of Trixie’s clothes before plucking out a pair of dark blue pants and a the blue and white shirt which had been a birthday gift from Honey. Next, she chose a pair of shoes to match. To Trixie’s immense relief, they were flat.
“How will this be?” asked Di, holding them up to her friend. “I think they’ll go well together. Don’t forget to wear your necklace – that’s why Jim dropped it off. Oh, and,” she dropped her voice to a whisper, “you two may get some time alone, so make sure you have something nice underneath, okay?”
Trixie felt her cheeks turn pink at the implication of Diana’s words, but only nodded. She had not told either Honey or Di any of the details of her relationship with Jim. It seemed that Di had drawn her own – entirely unjustified – conclusions.
“I think that about covers it,” Di continued. “I’ve got to run.”
“Thanks, Di!” Trixie followed her friend back down the stairs. “I’ll see you later, I guess.” With a mysterious smile and a little wave, Di turned and left.
He Said
“Is everything set?” Jim asked his sister, when the two met on the Manor House front stairs a short time later.
“I think so,” she replied, with a little frown. “You’ve packed the car with all of the things I put out?”
He nodded. “There’s a little room left. Do you want to add anything more?”
Honey shook her head. “I think that’s it.” She sighed and ran a nervous hand through her hair. “I just hope everyone likes the surprise.”
“They’ll love it. Just wait and see.” He took a quick glance at his watch. “After this trip, I need to go and get Brian. I’ll see you at the ceremony.”
She gave a nod and turned to enter the house. Jim continued down to the car and set off. Parking the car in Sleepyside a short time later, he made a stop at the drugstore. After a few minutes’ perusal and comparison to the list with which he had been provided, he selected several types of dressing, sterile swabs and adhesive tape. Taking his purchases to the counter, the assistant made polite conversation as she processed the payment.
“Restocking a first aid kit?” she asked, while packing the purchases into a bag and taping it closed.
“Something like that,” Jim replied, reddening slightly. “Better to be safe than sorry.”
Smiling, the woman handed over the small parcel and Jim returned to the car. Well, that’s done, he told himself, with a hint of relief. Now, I’d better go and get Brian.
She Said
Trixie, Honey and Di were in the highest of spirits by the time the graduation ceremony began, and they maintained that level of hype, even through the most boring speeches of the evening. When the ceremony was over, the Bob-Whites, their families and close friends piled into the waiting cars and proceeded to drive away, with Tom Delanoy in the lead. In the trunk, the overnight bags lay ready and waiting.
Trixie bounced impatiently in the front passenger seat of Jim’s car. Due to her pressuring, they were the second car in line. Too excited to hold a sensible conversation, she spent the time peering over her shoulder at the following vehicles, or trying to guess where they were going. Honey and Mart, watching this behaviour from the back seat, shared a smile.
“Well, we don’t seem to be going towards home,” Trixie noted, with a glance in that direction, “though, I’d guessed we wouldn’t be, otherwise why would I have to bring everything with me? We’re not heading towards New York, either, or White Plains. I guess it’s somewhere fairly local, but not too close to home.”
“Maybe it would be easier to wait until we get there?” Mart suggested, winking at Honey.
His sister waved the suggestion away. “Where’s the fun in that?” Peering ahead, she noticed that Tom was slowing to turn. “So, that’s it…” Her eyes shining, she abandoned her speculations. “This gives me an idea.”
“I don’t suppose you’re going to share it, are you?” Mart asked, dryly. Trixie grinned and shook her head, spending the rest of the trip in excited silence.
“Here we are,” Jim announced ten minutes later, as Tom chose the prime position to park. Jim pulled in behind and his girlfriend bounced out of the car and looked around herself in excitement. The land here sloped away towards the Hudson, its waters gently washing against the hulls of several boats. She gave one of them a long, scrutinising look before coming to a conclusion. Honey’s parents emerged from their vehicle and joined the growing circle.
“We’re going on a cruise?” Trixie asked Honey, her excitement bubbling out into her words. “On that boat?”
“Why would you say that?” her friend asked in confusion. “This is a beautiful spot. We could be having on a picnic here. And why that boat? Why not that other one over there? It has party lights.”
“That other boat doesn’t have Moms’ biggest serving platter, loaded with some of her best party foods,” Trixie pointed out, taking Honey by the arm and leading her towards the dock. “This is just wonderful. I can’t wait to get aboard.” She stopped suddenly and turned. “Oh, thank you, Mart!” she called, noticing that he was carrying her bag.
Honey’s eyes met Mart’s. By unspoken agreement, they let Trixie skip ahead of them, across the grass to the dock and onto the boat, with Jim trailing behind her. As Jim and Trixie embraced, the other couple slipped past, each dropping a bag into one of the staterooms before returning to the gangplank.
Over the next ten or fifteen minutes, Honey was kept busy with checking each guest off her list as they boarded and making sure that none of them returned to dry land. After giving the word that they could leave, she found Mart standing at the stern, while the rest of the party were gathered either at the prow, or inside out of the breeze.
There was a little buzz of activity at the edge of Honey’s vision as she stood looking out over the water, her hands on the railing. Mart shifted behind her and put his arms around her gently. When she did not pull away, he tightened his grip slightly.
“I’m not made of glass,” she informed him, leaning back into his embrace. “I won’t break if you touch me.”
“You might hit me, though, and I might break,” he joked, trying to find his feet in a relationship which was still very new. “I don’t know what I can get away with, yet.”
“Neither do I,” she replied with a sigh. “Do you think he’ll get over it?” They were moving now. A light wind blowing across the water stirred her hair. “If I’d known two years ago what I know now…”
“Same here…” Mart replied, in a barely audible voice.
Honey stared out over the water, but did not say anything. With something like wistfulness, she remembered how it used to be: herself and Brian, Mart and Di, Trixie and Jim, Dan and… well, that part was never quite as satisfactory. Then, there had been The Incident, as they had come to call it. A part of her was still shocked at the revelations of that day, almost a year before. In the course of events, Mart and Di’s relationship had suffered an immediate and irrevocable break. A number of weeks later, Di was seen kissing Dan and the two had been inseparable since.
The group had been shaken up, but not broken. Honey knew in her heart that if they could survive that, they could survive anything. That knowledge was a comfort later, when Brian had written from the other side of the Atlantic, telling her that he wanted them to see other people. It had hurt, of course. She knew that what he really meant was that he wanted to see someone else. She hadn’t been prepared for his anger when she started seeing his brother a few weeks ago.
That, quite naturally, had made things uncomfortable for all of the Bob-Whites, but she and Mart had taken things slowly and kept a low profile. Brian had forgiven them after three long weeks. It still wasn’t really comfortable for the three of them to spend a lot of time in each other’s company, but it was a great improvement.
With an effort, Honey pushed the memories away and returned to the present. The last rays of sunlight were shining on the water and she was in Mart’s arms. She let out another sigh, this time of contentment, and pressed back against his chest. Gently, he turned her to face him and they started to kiss. The railing pressed hard into Honey’s back, but she blocked out the sensation. Her hands rubbed slowly across Mart’s back, while his fingers ran through her hair. Behind him, a throat was cleared.
“Are you two love-birds ready to join the rest of us?” asked Di, as the two hastily pulled apart. They turned, to find her smirking at them. “We’re ready to start the party.”
Blushing, Honey followed her friend, clasping Mart’s hand tightly. They entered the crowded room, where the rest of the guests were gathered, and found places to stand next to their fellow club members just as Matthew Wheeler began to address the crowd.
“Welcome, everyone,” he began. “Thank you for coming to celebrate the high school graduation of three lovely and talented young ladies. I hope you will enjoy the surprise cruise we have planned for you. As many of you know, I was less than pleased with the idea of my daughter attending the school’s planned lock-in. I appreciate the idea of keeping the young people safe, but I would much prefer the chance to celebrate with Honey and her friends and to provide a safe place for them to continue celebrating long after I have called it a night. But you didn’t come here to hear me speak, so I’ll ask you to join me in offering congratulations to our graduates and leave you to enjoy the evening.”
As the guests began to mingle, Mr. Wheeler drew the three graduates aside. “I have some messages here for you,” he explained, “from those who could not make it to the party.” He handed each girl a small bundle and each began to read.
“Here’s one from Grandmother Wheeler,” Honey mentioned, handing it to her father after she had read it through.
“I’ve got one from Florida, from my Belden grandparents and great-grandparents,” Trixie added. “And one from my Johnson grandparents, too.”
Di let out an excited shriek. “Here’s one for all of us from Barbara Hubbell!”
In a few minutes, the three had read greetings from friends and relatives far and wide, passed them around for others to see and begun to mingle with the invited guests. By the time an hour had passed, the Bob-Whites had gathered together in one corner of the room to laugh and talk together. Other guests sat or stood in small groups, chatting happily, as a cooling breeze came off the river.
“This was a really great idea of your father’s,” Di observed to Honey as a pause occurred in the conversation. “Everyone seems to be having a really good time.”
Her friend nodded. “I love that we get to spend the night with the Bob-Whites,” she added. “That makes it perfectly perfect.”
“I don’t see why you had to keep it a secret from me, though,” Trixie grumbled. “Not knowing was driving me crazy!”
Her brother Mart’s face took on a snooty expression. “It does you good not to know things,” he pronounced. “It prepares you for the day when you get a case you can’t solve.”
“Like that’s going to happen!” Trixie’s curls shook with indignation. “I’ve never had a case I can’t solve.”
“There’s always a first time,” Mart declared, darkly. He waggled his eyebrows and took his sister’s hand in a fortune-telling pose. “I can see that the case in question is coming very soon. You will meet a dark and mysterious stranger–”
Pulling her hand away, Trixie laughed. “I don’t need you reading my palm to tell me that. The world is full of dark and mysterious strangers, but it’s not full of cases I can’t solve.”
“Let’s go outside,” Di suggested, before Mart could continue the argument any further. “I’m feeling rather warm in here.”
“Why?” Trixie teased. “I don’t see Mr. Stratton anywhere.”
Di shot a look at her boyfriend, whose expression was thunderous. “I know,” she sighed dramatically. “Since my feelings were not returned I thought it best not to have him here. I do need to put him behind myself, you know.”
With a pang, Honey realised that Brian did not know what they were talking about. While the rest of their group laughed, he stood still and stiffly upright, a slightly puzzled look on his face. Until that moment, she had not noticed how much he had been left out of their activities over the last few months. Trixie must have noticed too, for she hastened to explain, “Last April Fool’s Day, Di pretended that she liked Principal Stratton better than Dan.”
“I don’t see the problem,” Di noted, with an innocence so complete that it could not possibly be real. “Trixie’s yen for Ben didn’t do her any harm when it came to a relationship with Jim. Why should my attraction to a mature, handsome authority figure be any different?”
Dan raised her chin with one finger until their eyes met. “I’ll tell you why it’s different,” he growled. “Trixie didn’t have a boyfriend when she went panting after Ben.”
“I did not pant!” Trixie objected, unheard by the pair, who were still gazing into one another’s eyes.
“Well, I think I need some air, if no one else does,” Brian muttered, pushing past them. “It’s too warm in here for me.”
He Said
Later that night, the boat docked once more to let the rest of the guests return home. The Bob-Whites and Miss Trask would remain on board for the night, isolated from the shore and effectively shut-in until morning.
The Wheelers, Beldens and Lynches were the last to leave. In the moments before the boat would set off again, there were the inevitable exhortations for good behaviour, then the three older couples returned to shore. Those still on board called cheery good-byes and good-nights. As they moved away from the dock, they continued to wave and call.
“Jim? You got a minute?” Brian asked in a low voice, as their friends were still waving goodbye to their parents.
“Sure,” he replied, easily. “Come back to the stateroom?”
The door closed behind them and Brian sank wearily onto his bunk. “I’m tired and sore and about ready for bed,” he admitted. “Can you help me with the dressing, now?” A look of concern came over his face. “You did get the time to pick up the extra supplies, didn’t you?”
Jim nodded and got out the package he had bought earlier. “You have something to use on it?” he prompted.
Brian took a small tube from his bag, wincing as he twisted, and handed it to his friend. He drew his shirt up and over his head, dropping it onto the bed beside him. As he turned, a large, white dressing was revealed on his lower back.
With trepidation, Jim began to strip off the old dressing, unsure of what he would find underneath. The wound which was revealed was much less messy than he had imagined, but unpleasant nonetheless. Several outlying punctures had healed enough to form pink, shiny scars. The central, largest one seemed more recent, or perhaps had been infected, as the skin had not yet regrown.
“Be as quick as you can,” Brian advised, before gritting his teeth. “It will help the healing to keep it warm and covered.”
“Right,” Jim murmured, deep in concentration. In a few minutes, his work was done and he carefully applied the new dressing. While his friend’s back was still turned, he breathed a silent sigh of relief.
“Thank, Jim.” Brian stretched painfully, reached for his discarded shirt and carefully packed it away. A moment later, he replaced it with a soft, worn T-shirt. “Remember, not a word to anyone.”
“I don’t know what the secrecy is all about,” Jim grumbled, as he tidied the supplies away. “Why can’t you just tell them you were injured while you were in Africa?”
The other man shook his head. “I don’t want to be fussed over, and I don’t want anyone to worry.” He finished dressing for bed and prepared to clean his teeth. “I might want to go back there one day, when I’ve qualified, and I don’t want Moms worrying that I’m in danger.”
“But you were in danger – grave danger, I would guess,” Jim pointed out. “That wasn’t just a scratch, was it? It was a life-threatening injury.”
His friend shook his head decisively. “It doesn’t matter now. I survived the incident, relatively unharmed.”
“I wish you’d tell me what this so-called incident was,” Jim muttered, without much hope of response. “It looks like a nasty wound, if you ask me, and not the sort of thing you would get in the normal run-of-the-mill accident.”
“You have no idea of the conditions I was in over there.” Brian’s voice was low, but filled with suppressed emotion. “There are things I saw which will never leave me. If I want to shelter my family from the direct impact those conditions had on me, that is my own decision and none of your business.”
“Fine.” His friend cast a glance around the room and saw that nothing was out of place. “I think, if you don’t mind, I’ll go and rejoin the party now.”
The anger drained away from Brian’s face. “Tell the others that I’m tired and wished them good night,” he asked.
Jim nodded and left the room.
She Said
“So, who’s up for a game of cards?” Mart asked, as the group settled inside. “Miss Trask? Come on, we know you’re one of the best.”
“I think I’ll be off to bed now,” their chaperone answered, dryly. “Perhaps you’ll remember to keep the noise down?”
“Of course,” Honey promised, giving her former governess an impromptu hug. “Thank you for agreeing to stay with us tonight.”
“Don’t stay up too late,” Miss Trask advised, with a twinkle in her eyes. “I’ll see you all in the morning, bright and early.”
The group choruses their good nights, just as Jim rejoined them. He settled into a chair and passed on Brian’s message. To one side, Honey leaned closer to Diana.
“Do you think it’s because of me?” she asked, in a whisper. “Is he avoiding me?”
Di cast her an unbelieving look. “What do you think? Of course he’s avoiding you. He wouldn’t stay away if he wasn’t the odd man out.”
Honey nodded and ducked her head. “I guess that’s what I should expect,” she added, gloomily. “I was kind of hoping that he was starting to get over it.”
The unbelief on Di’s face changed to sympathy. “I wish things were as peaceful between you and Brian as they are between me and Mart.”
At that moment, Mart himself interrupted the pair. “Do you think you might join us in a game?” he asked, eyebrow comically raised. “We await the pleasure of your company.”
With a friendly thump on his arm, Di pushed past him and took a seat next to Dan. After a short argument on what to play, Jim began to deal the cards and soon they were in the midst of a rowdy game of ‘Cheat’. Accusations, both true and mistaken, soon flew around the circle. Amidst peals of laughter at the others’ antics, Di declared herself out of the game at the end of the first round.
“You’re too good for me,” she announced. “I think I’ll just watch from now on.”
Despite protests to the contrary, she would not reconsider. A short time later, Di let out a loud yawn. “Well, I think I’m ready for bed,” she declared, while giving Honey a covert wink. “Good night, everyone!”
It was no surprise, at the end of the next round, when Dan also excused himself. The remaining four settled to their game. It was the early hours of the next morning before they all agreed to retire for the night. After each had bestowed a good-night kiss on her boyfriend, Honey and Trixie walked together to the room they were sharing with Di.
“So, do you think Di will be asleep?” Trixie asked, in a whisper. “Will she even be in her bed?”
“I’m not sure,” Honey admitted. “I think I’m just going to open the door a tiny bit and peek before I try to go in.”
They reached the correct door and Trixie waited while the plan was executed. At her friend’s nod, the two entered the room, to find that Di was preparing for bed. “Hi,” she whispered, when she saw them. “That was close! We only just got back in time.”
“Not that it mattered,” Trixie muttered, half to herself. “We all knew why you really left.”
“But, Di,” Honey whispered, in outrage, “it’s been hours since you left!”
Di smothered a burst of giggles. “So, we fell asleep.” She shrugged an elegant shoulder, apparently considering the matter closed. “When are you going to meet Mart?”
“I – I – What do you mean? I’m not meeting him tonight,” she spluttered. “Why would I be meeting him tonight, when you know that it’s not like that between us and I’ve only been dating him for the last thirty-seven days and you know that Miss Trask is trusting us to behave responsibly, and how could I betray her trust in that way, when she’s done so much for me and my family?”
“Did I say anything about ‘tonight’ when I asked when you were meeting him?” Di raised an eyebrow and waited. There was no answer. “As it happens, I didn’t. I also didn’t suggest that you would be doing anything with him that wasn’t responsible.” She gave her friend a wink and hopped into bed. “I’d suggest that you look for him on the deck at first light. Good night!”
A blush crawling across her face, Honey began to prepare for bed. A moment later, she realised that Trixie was not following suit. “Uh, Trix? Aren’t you getting ready for bed?” As soon as she said the words, she knew the answer. “Never mind.” Face flaming, she crawled into bed and muttered a good-night.
Half an hour later, Trixie slipped out into the corridor and padded on bare feet towards the deck. She saw Jim before he noticed her presence and paused a moment, drinking in the sight of his silhouette against the water and distant lights.
“I hoped I might find you here,” she told him, ducking under his arm to allow him to embrace her.
Smiling, he replied, “I hoped you might find me here, too. I didn’t really feel like sleeping.”
Trixie sighed. “Me neither. I feel… restless, I guess, like something’s about to happen, but I can’t see it yet.” She snuggled into his arms, as a soft, cool breeze ruffled her curls. “I’m kind of in-between things; not at high school any more, and not at college yet.”
“With the whole summer ahead of you,” he added, a smile in his voice. “A trip planned for later in the summer… new adventures waiting.”
“But I haven’t got an adventure for right now,” she complained, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Haven’t you got even one little mystery to keep me occupied, while I’m waiting for the next big adventure?”
In the moonlight, she saw Jim smile. “I can think of one mystery,” he teased. “For how long do I have to kiss you before you swoon?”
With a quiet laugh, Trixie replied, “Let’s find out.”
Continue to part two.