Sea Bound Read online

  Publisher: Amy Marson

  Creative Director: Gailen Runge

  Acquisitions Editor: Roxane Cerda

  Managing Editor: Liz Aneloski

  Project Writer: Teresa Stroin

  Technical Editor / Illustrator: Linda Johnson

  Cover/Book Designer: April Mostek

  Production Coordinator: Zinnia Heinzmann

  Production Editor: Jennifer Warren

  Photo Assistant: Mai Yong Vang

  Cover photography by Lucy Glover and Mai Yong Vang of C&T Publishing, Inc.

  Cover quilt: Sunburst, 2017, by Teresa Stroin

  Published by C&T Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 1456, Lafayette, CA 94549

  Dedicated to

  Janice Anne Bailey Packard, whose friendship I truly treasure. She has always been there for me with unselfish and caring devotion and has always been willing to lend a hand or an ear.

  Acknowledgments

  The creation of this book was notably enhanced by the input of a small group of amazing friends: Janice Packard, Phyllis Inscoe, and Robin Palmer. Their suggestions, encouragement, reviews, editing, and patient support have been invaluable. My sincere appreciation goes out to all three of these special people who have freely given their time, energy, and talents.

  Chapter 1

  Barney’s tail wagged his whole body as he tried to keep all four feet on the floor and not jump up on his favorite person. “Good dog, Barney! I missed you, too,” Sarah replied as she stooped down to hug her special friend.

  The light on the answering machine was blinking. Sarah hung up her sweater as she listened to the message. “Hi, Sarah. This is Vicky Barnett. We have a patient who I think could really benefit from your visits. Please give me a call.”

  Sarah played the message twice, wondering what Vicky had in mind. Vicky was the volunteer coordinator at the local nursing home. When Sarah first moved to Cunningham Village, she had hoped to get a volunteer assignment in the nursing home, but her initial tour of the facility had caused her to rethink her plan. She was having enough trouble adjusting to life in a retirement village, and she was afraid that spending time there would make the adjustment that much harder.

  Sarah thought about that first visit to the nursing home and the environment of despair she found on the upper floors. But that was over two years ago, she reminded herself. Now she had friends, activities, a wonderful dog, and even a gentleman friend. She giggled at the thought. Nearly seventy years old and I have a boyfriend!

  In fact, Sarah met Charles through Vicky and the volunteer program. Sarah had been reluctant to work in the facility back then. Even so, Vicky had thought Sarah could be helpful to a particular gentleman who had recovered from a massive stroke and was now living independently in the Village. He had been isolating himself, and he needed help getting connected to the community. Upon meeting, they both realized they had met before. Charles had been the police officer sent to her home twenty years earlier to inform her of her husband’s death. Over the past two years, Sarah and Charles had developed a deep friendship from her point of view and a deep love from his.

  “Well, that referral of Vicky’s sure worked out,” Sarah said aloud with a smile. “Perhaps I should give her another chance.”

  Hearing her voice, Barney assumed she was talking to him. He wagged his tail and looked deep into her eyes, hoping she was talking about treats or perhaps a walk in the park. Sarah laughed at the anticipation and love he was able to express simultaneously. “Okay, fella. Let’s go for a walk.” Barney ran to the kitchen and clumsily pulled his leash off the hook. He dragged it to Sarah with the buckle bouncing across the floor. Sarah snapped it on, and the two friends eagerly headed out the front door.

  “Where are you going with that homely mutt?” Sophie called from her porch across the street.

  “He’s not homely,” Sarah called to her good-naturedly, knowing Sophie didn’t mean it but also knowing he had a rather straggly look about him. “Do you want to take a walk with us?” she called to Sophie.

  “Surely you jest,” Sophie hollered, “but stop in for tea on your way back.” Sarah waved her acceptance. Sophie put her book aside and reached for her cane. “… and perhaps a big slice of cake,” Sophie added to herself as she moved slowly toward her kitchen. She was having trouble moving. Her back and shoulders were hurting and her side was bruised, but that was well concealed under her shirt. Her friend Andy had asked her just that morning why she was limping so badly. She didn’t tell him about her fall in the bathroom the previous day. Just like she hadn’t told Sarah the week before when she fell in the parking lot getting out of her car. “It’s nobody’s concern,” Sophie told herself as she lifted the cover off the cake plate and prepared to cut two large pieces. Nobody’s concern.

  By the time Sarah and Barney appeared at Sophie’s kitchen door, they were both panting. Sophie had a pan of water ready for Barney and a glass of ice tea ready for Sarah. “Sit,” Sophie said to Sarah in her usual abrupt manner, pointing toward the table. Barney sat. Both women laughed, and Sarah pulled a treat out of her pocket.

  As the two women enjoyed Sophie’s latest culinary creation made with her three favorite ingredients—butter, sugar, and dark chocolate—they caught up on the latest gossip and laughed at Sophie’s rendition of who said what to whom at the community meeting the night before. Sophie could imitate anyone and frequently did, often right to the person’s face!

  “I got a call from Vicky today,” Sarah began, anticipating Sophie’s objections. Sophie’s husband had died in the nursing home following several years of progressive deterioration.

  “And …?” Sophie responded with a frown.

  “She said she has a patient she would like me to visit.”

  “And …?”

  “I know how you feel about this, Sophie, but we can’t hold what happened to your husband against the people that might need us now.”

  “You do what you want, but you won’t catch me near that place. They murdered my husband.”

  “Sophie, you know that isn’t true.” But Sarah knew there was no arguing with her. Sophie had spent many months sitting with her husband, remembering their love and their years together, while he sat wondering who it was that sat with him. She had brought in specialists trying to reach him, but he continued to disappear into the abyss of Alzheimer’s. No one could stop it, but Sophie, to this day, blamed the nursing home.

  Changing the subject, Sarah asked, “Didn’t I see Andy and Caitlyn coming out of your house this morning?” Andy lived in the next block and was younger than Sarah and Sophie by about ten years. Andy was a gentle man with a troubled past. Earlier in the year, his fourteen-year-old daughter, Caitlyn, came to live with him. Andy and Caitlyn, who had previously been strangers, had become inseparable.

  “Yes,” Sophie responded. “They stopped by to see if I wanted to go out with them today. They were off to the mall to get Caitlyn’s school clothes, and I guess Andy feels insecure about it.”

  “I think that girl can choose her own wardrobe without much help from her father. That’s one independent young lady!” Sarah said with a proud smile. She thought of Caitlyn as family. Andy and Caitlyn had no relatives, and Caitlyn had immediately gravitated toward Sarah as a surrogate grandmother.

  Cunningham Village was a retirement community in Middletown, a small Midwestern town. The Village had separate houses and one-story villas connected in groups of five for the independent residents. Sarah and Sophie lived across the street from one another in the villas. There were several apartment buildings with elevators and assistance for those residents who needed help with their care, and there was a nursing home for those needing total care. Sophie, who enjoyed the occasional gallows humor, would announce, “Cunningham Village offers t
he whole package, from active retirement living to a cemetery just a stone’s throw away!”

  As Sarah and Barney were saying goodbye to Sophie, a car pulled up across the street in Sarah’s driveway. An unfamiliar man got out and hurried to her door. “I’d better get over there,” Sarah announced. “Whoever that is seems to be in a hurry.”

  “Sarah Miller?” the stranger asked hesitantly as Sarah approached.

  “Yes,” she responded with a puzzled look. She thought she would recognize him once she got closer, but although he looked slightly familiar, she couldn’t place him. She glanced back at Sophie’s house and saw that Sophie was waiting at the door, protectively watching over her.

  “Hi,” the man said. “I’m Gary Pearson, Rose’s grandson.”

  “Oh my! Gary! I’m so embarrassed. I didn’t recognize you. What are you doing in Middletown?”

  “It’s no wonder you didn’t recognize me,” Gary responded, beaming. “It’s been over twenty years since we saw each other!” They exchanged an awkward hug, and Sarah waved to Sophie that all was well. “My company needed someone to go to Hamilton to meet with some buyers. Since Hamilton is only a forty-five-minute drive from Middletown, I volunteered to make the trip so I could come see you.”

  “Well how sweet of you, Gary!” In a more serious tone, Sarah laid her hand on the man’s arm and said, “I’m sorry about your grandmother. Aunt Rose was very special to me. I wanted to come to the funeral, but …”

  “No explanation necessary, Sarah. No one expected you to make that trip. Portland is a long trip to make for just a day or two.”

  Gary put his arm around Sarah’s shoulder, and they walked into her house. Barney ran up to meet them, but seeing Gary, he backed away and looked at Sarah. “It’s okay, fella. He’s one of the good guys.”

  Gary chuckled, and Sarah noticed how his eyes twinkled when he laughed. Sarah hadn’t seen her Aunt Rose for many years, but in that moment she could see her eyes. She gave his arm a tender squeeze and asked if he would like a cup of coffee.

  “I could use a whole pot of coffee, if you don’t mind.” He chuckled and followed her into the kitchen. “I took the red-eye and didn’t get much sleep. I have a room in Hamilton, but I drove directly to Middletown as soon as I checked in so we could have a few hours together. I’ll be tied up in meetings the rest of the week.”

  “How about a little food with that coffee?” she asked.

  “If it’s not too much trouble, that would be great.”

  Knowing he had been flying all night, she decided breakfast was in order. While he sat at the table talking about his job, Sarah fried bacon and eggs and put on a fresh pot of coffee. Barney kept his distance until they were both settled down at the kitchen table. He then cautiously checked out this new person. Before Sarah brought Barney home from the shelter, he had experienced a life on the street that Sarah didn’t know much about, but she certainly noticed that he was cautious around some people.

  The two cousins sat in the kitchen for a couple hours, talking about past experiences and catching each other up on happenings in their respective families. Sarah saw Gary’s eyelids growing heavy. “How about a nap?” she offered.

  “I’m embarrassed to say that’s just what I need about now. Would you mind?”

  “Not at all,” Sarah responded cheerfully. “You take a nap, and when you wake up we’ll plan our afternoon.” Sarah led him to the guest room. She had converted it into a sewing room the previous year but had a comfortable futon for visitors. She removed a quilt and a pillow from the oak cabinet and placed them on the futon.

  “What a beautiful quilt,” Gary remarked. “Grandma had said you were quilting now. Did you make this one?”

  “I sure did. You lie down and take a nap. When you wake up, I’ll show you the few quilts I’ve made, and we’ll decide what to do with the rest of our day.”

  “I have something to talk to you about, too, but we’ll save that for later,” Gary said, loosening his tie.

  Once Gary was settled down in the guest room, Sarah hurried to the phone to return the call to Vicky.

  “Hello, Vicky. It’s Sarah Miller returning your call. I’m at home now if you want to call me back.” Answering machines! Sarah knew they were necessary and often helpful, but she still yearned for the days when you called a person and you either reached them or you didn’t. So simple, she thought.

  Sarah tidied up the kitchen and took a roast out of the freezer for dinner, assuming Gary would want to stay. If he did, she thought she would invite Charles, too. She decided she would invite Charles either way. She put in a quick call to him and left him a message. Sometimes answering machines are very helpful, she thought with a smile.

  After that was done, Sarah felt a bit at loose ends. She had planned to work on the quilt she was making, but Gary was in the sewing room. She needed to run by the fabric shop for some thread and another yard of her background fabric, but Gary was parked in the driveway and she couldn’t get her car out. She was momentarily baffled, but looking down into Barney’s eyes, she realized what she could do.

  Sarah wrote a quick note in case Gary woke up, telling him she was out for an hour or so. She latched Barney’s leash onto his collar, and again the two hurried out the door and up the street toward the nursing home. Once they reached the main entrance, however, they hesitated. Sarah wasn’t sure Barney was welcome inside. She tied him to a post and stepped in to ask. She came back out a few minutes later, smiling, and told Barney happily, “You’re in!”

  They headed up the hall to the volunteer office. Sarah stuck her head in, holding Barney back in the hallway. “Is Vicky in?” she asked the receptionist.

  “I hear a familiar voice!” Vicky came out of her office to greet Sarah. Vicky looked pleased to see Sarah and Barney. “We could use Barney here, too,” Vicky said. “Have you considered getting him trained as a visitor?”

  Sarah admitted she had never thought of it, but it sounded like something the two of them would enjoy. She said she would look into it.

  Barney curled up at Sarah’s feet as the women talked about the current assignment.

  Chapter 2

  When Sarah returned home, she found her cousin Gary sitting on the couch enjoying a cold beer and a baseball game. Charles sat on the nearby recliner, but he stood as she walked in. “Well hello there, stranger,” he greeted. “I got your message about dinner and stopped by to respond in person, but I found this poor fellow wandering aimlessly around the house, lost and alone …”

  “Stop the dramatics!” she kidded. “I was only gone a little while. Barney and I went to the nursing home to touch base with Vicky.”

  “I know you folks have lots to talk about, so I’ll be on my way,” Charles began, “and I’ll be back …”

  “No,” Gary interrupted. “Why don’t you stay? We’ll watch the rest of the game, and tonight I’d like to take the two of you out to dinner. Would that be okay with you, Cousin Sarah?”

  Sarah thought about the roast that was defrosting but decided she would cook it in the Crock-Pot the next day along with some vegetables. “Sounds good to me. You said earlier you would like to see Cunningham Village, so why don’t we eat at the restaurant in the Center and we can show you around on our way there?”

  “I’m game. I need to get back to Hamilton relatively early. Meetings in the morning, you know.”

  “Well if you eat dinner with us, you’ll be on old folk’s time. We usually eat our evening meal around 5:00, but the restaurant starts filling up at 4:30! You’ll get back to Hamilton in plenty of time for a good night’s sleep. You boys watch the game, and I’ll pull out my quilts to show you during halftime.”

  “There’s no halftime in baseball, sweetie,” Charles said tenderly, hoping not to embarrass her. “But bring your quilts in whenever you’re ready. The game’s a dud.”

  Sarah was a relatively new quilter and only had a bed quilt, a throw, and a table runner to show off. She had made several other quilts that s
he had given as gifts: a Civil War quilt for Charles; a throw for her daughter, Martha; and a table runner she made for Sophie’s seventy-fifth birthday. Most of her quilts were made in classes that she took at the local quilt shop, but lately she had been sewing on her own at home. Ruth, who owned Running Stitches (or simply Stitches, as her customers called it), and Ruth’s daughter, Katie, were always willing to help when Sarah ran into trouble.

  She stacked the quilts on a chair just inside the living room and turned to leave when Gary called to her. “Come show them to me.” He picked up each piece individually and studied it. “I’ve been looking at quilts my whole life and can never stop marveling at the intricate, detailed work you gals put into them.”

  “Your grandmother’s quilts were works of art,” Sarah said. When Sarah was very young, her mother had been seriously ill. In those days, people didn’t tell the children what was going on, and to this day Sarah didn’t know what was wrong with her mother. Sarah only knew she was sent away to live with Aunt Rose for many months. To her surprise, those months turned out to be the highlight of her youth. Aunt Rose was full of wonderful stories and could make the grumpiest of people laugh. And her quilts! They were spectacular. Sarah had recently learned about appliqué and realized that was what made her aunt Rose’s quilts so beautiful. Rose often had flowers and vines intertwined around her pieced designs.

  “While we’re on the subject, Sarah, I have something to talk with you about,” Gary said, sounding a bit serious. Sarah noticed the twinkle had faded from his eyes.

  “I think I’ll run home and take care of a couple things,” Charles said as he stood and turned off the television. “If it’s okay with you folks, I’ll be back in a couple hours.”

  Sarah knew he was being sensitive and giving Gary time alone with her. She wanted to object, but Gary looked as if he wanted to discuss something serious, so she simply gave Charles a kiss on the cheek and said, “See that you come back soon. I’ll miss you.” Charles winked and turned to leave.