Cora nodded. “He wasn’t from around here. His family lived in Raleigh.” She tapped her finger on the tabletop. “I know what brought him to your mind today,” she said.
Julia flinched, sitting back in her chair. “What?”
“Tina had a few dates with him at one time, years ago. It’s strange how a tragedy can make the mind conjure up all sorts of details from the past. I’d always hoped those two would get together.”
Julia swirled the contents of her coffee mug. “I’m sure that’s it. Why else would I think of Cameron?”
A soft shuffling caused both women to shift their attention to the door. Katie stood in the entrance, one hand fisted around the folds of her white nightie, the other curled and rubbing her eye. Tousled blond curls fell over her shoulders like spun silk in the morning sun. She looked like an angel, a sad, heart-weary angel.
Julia went to her and got down on one knee. “Hello, Katie.”
The child’s voice was barely a whisper. “Hi, Aunt Julia. Grandma said you’d be here today.”
Julia gently finger-combed hair from Katie’s cheeks. “Of course, sweetheart. We Sommerville women have to stick together, don’t we?”
Katie’s expression didn’t change. She stared at Julia, then dropped her gaze to the floor. “I guess.”
“I can’t believe how big you’ve grown,” Julia said. “I haven’t seen you since Christmas.”
Cora got up, opened a cupboard and carried a bowl to the table. “Do you want some breakfast, honey?”
“Okay.” Katie sat in a chair, folded her hands in her lap. “Daddy’s gone, isn’t he?”
Cora opened a cereal box. “For now, yes. He had some things he had to do.”
“He has to pick up Mommy’s ashes.”
Cora dropped the box on the floor. “What?”
“He said she was cre… I don’t know the word.”
Cora grabbed the handle of the refrigerator to steady herself. Her eyes glittered with fresh torment and something else—fury. “D-damn your f-father,” she cried. “I told him I wanted a traditional service to bury my daughter properly here on the mountain. He’s taken that away from me.”
Julia’s momentary hope that Cora had found the strength to face this tragedy for Katie’s sake vanished. She looked into her niece’s eyes, saw the fear reflected there. She took the girl’s arm and led her onto the back porch. “Look at the trees, sweetie. It’s beautiful this morning. We’ll have breakfast out here.”
She went back to get Katie’s cereal, poured herself a glass of water and took her prescription bottle from the pocket of her robe. She swallowed the tiny pill and brought a sobbing, trembling Cora to a chair before facing the fact that a few weeks might not be enough time for any of them to heal.
CHAPTER TWO
JULIA ENTERED the kitchen on Tuesday morning and headed for the coffee machine. She filled a mug that had been left for her on the counter and smiled at her mother. “Thanks for letting me sleep in.”
Cora glanced at the kitchen clock. “8:45 a.m. is hardly worth thanking me for. Besides I have a good idea how many times you got up during the night.”
Julia took her first sip of fortifying caffeine, walked to the back door and looked onto the porch where Katie sat in an old bent twig chair, her eyes cast down on a book. An empty bowl and glass were on the rustic table beside her. “At least she ate her breakfast,” Julia said. “That’s encouraging, even if she’s still not sleeping well.”
“Nightmares again?” Cora asked.
Julia nodded. “I doubt she remembers them, though. She cries without fully waking up.” She sent her mother a concerned look. “Did you bring up the subject of taking a bath yet this morning?”
“I mentioned it. Katie just shook her head and said she didn’t need a bath yet. She said you’d help her wash when you got up.”
Julia mentally counted the days since Tina’s death—again. “It’s been a week. I understand her reluctance to get into water now, but this can’t go on. Phobias that affect children at Katie’s age can last a lifetime.”
Cora sighed. “I guess you may be right about Katie needing to see a professional.”
Relieved that Cora had come around to her way of thinking, Julia sat across from her mother. “I know you were hoping to avoid outside influences at this early stage of her grief. But we have to face the fact that family may not be enough to see Katie through this.” She sighed, staring down into her mug. “Especially when one of those family members is me and I’ve been conspicuously absent for too much of my niece’s life.”
“Stop blaming yourself for the alienation between you and Tina,” Cora said. “Your sister didn’t do anything to bridge the gap, either. Anyway, you saw her and Katie on holidays. That’s more often than many estranged siblings get together.”
Cora’s absolution didn’t make Julia feel better. Now that it was too late, she wished she’d tried harder to reconcile with Tina and reestablish the relationship they had enjoyed as kids. But first there had been Cameron, then Wayne, then Tina’s refusal to share the responsibility for family problems…
Julia shook her head, dispelling the same old destructive thoughts that had kept the sisters apart for years. It was pointless to dwell on regrets. Julia would deal with the past later. Now she had a frightened, grieving little girl on the porch who needed her help. “I’ll check with the elementary school today,” she said. “They must have a counselor who deals with children’s trauma.”
“While you’re at it, see if you can find someone who can help the older generation.”
Julia had suggested many times that Cora seek help for her grief over her husband’s death. “You’ve been dealing better with Dad’s passing lately, haven’t you?”
“I was. But this…I don’t know if I can do it again.”
“Yeah. It’s a lot, Mama.” Julia paused, her mind struggling to focus on Cora’s problems, but refusing to abandon Katie’s. An idea suddenly occurred to her. “About that bath situation…”
“What?”
“I’ve got an idea.” Remembering the prescription she’d tucked into her jeans pocket, Julia said, “I’ve got to go into town and I think I’ll suggest a shopping trip for Katie that just might make her decide a bath isn’t so bad, after all. At least maybe it will be a first step.” She returned to the back door and waited for Katie to look up. “Hey, sweetie.”
“Hi.” Katie sat placidly.
“I’ve got to go into Pope’s Drugstore today. You want to come?”
Katie chewed the inside of her cheek. “I guess.”
“Bring your bowl and glass inside. We’ll get you dressed and go.”
Katie shut the book and reached for her dishes. It was a start.
LINUS POPE, the pharmacist and owner of Pope’s Drugstore came around the counter where countless prescriptions had been filled for Glen Springs residents over several decades. He stuck out his hand when Julia approached. “Well, look who’s here.”
Julia shook his hand. “How are you doing, Mr. Pope?”
His eyes were kind when he said, “I should be asking you that.”
Julia