Two days later, the sun was out and Lindsay and Angus had come to spread the ashes with us in the gardens overlooking the lake. As they arrived, we shared a cup of coffee and I told them about Heather, about her background and about the decisions she had made. I told them about her loneliness and her need for someone to love her, for someone to think that she mattered.
After our coffee, we went out in the sun and, as we were walking around the castle, Heather drove up. Lindsay and Angus looked worried, and they stood in front of me in a human shield.
Heather bounced out of the car and came running up. "Steph!" she said, a smile on her face. I looked at her, and her hair was pulled back neatly in a ponytail, and she had elected not to wear makeup. She looked fantastic.
She stopped in front of Lindsay and Angus. "I'm sorry that I caused all the problems that I did", she said. "I was looking for something that didn't exist."
"You took the paternity test", said Angus.
"Yes. And it showed what you'd been saying all along, that Colin wasn't my father. I wish that I could apologize to him."
Angus still looked on edge, but Lindsay looked inquisitive. "What caused the change in heart?"
"I had a long talk with Steph, and that made me think. And then with Steph's encouragement, I started seeing a therapist, and that has been a help as well. I have gone for a couple of sessions. All I wanted was for someone to care about me. I wanted my mom to care about me enough to tell me the truth about my father. And then I wanted my father to care about me as a person enough to love me. I lost my way for a while. I wanted to believe my mother, and I hurt Colin in turn. And that was inexcusable."
"I forgive you", said Lindsay, "and if Colin was here, I'm sure he would have forgiven you as well. He was a great believer in second chances. And that everyone makes mistakes. It is how you recover from them that defines the kind of person you are."
Heather sniffled. "Thank you", she said. "That means a lot to me."
"So what did you have to tell me?" I said with a smile.
"I handed in the final copy of my thesis this morning. I am really happy with it, so I hope I get a good mark."
I grinned. "That's fantastic! I know that you worked really hard on that, and I'm sure you will do well. When you talked about it the other day, it sounded really interesting."
Heather laughed. "Yeah, I can tell that you are a researcher at heart." I laughed, and Ranger wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me in for a kiss as he smiled with pride. "I thought I'd change my looks again", she said. "I had been dressing like my mother to try to encourage Colin to recognize me. However, this is more me."
"I can see why. You are gorgeous, and all that paint hid your true beauty."
Lindsay looked at Angus, and Angus sighed and nodded. "Heather", said Lindsay, "we were just about to spread the ashes in the garden. This is the garden that Cami had her ashes spread in. Cami was Colin's grand love. She died, pregnant, fifty-three years ago, and he had never been with another woman since. That's how we knew that it was impossible. However, we were wondering whether you would like to join us as we spread the ashes."
Tears came to Heather's eyes. "That is very sweet of you to offer. However, this is just for family."
Lindsay patted her on the arm. "Come. You can mentally say any last thoughts to him at the same time."
Heather looked so wistful, but she shook her head anyway. "No", she said, "this is just for family. And I'm not."
Angus looked at his mother and sighed. "And sometimes family is what you make it. Join us." He put his arm around her and guided her to the garden and, as they went, a beam of sunlight shone down on them.
Lindsay looked back and smiled at us. "Colin would have been pleased", she said.
