Since Amanda arrived in Rock Creek a few days ago, Teaspoon's visits to the ranch became nil. The marshal spent all his free time with her, which was logical and expected. Louise had not tried to favor an encounter with him after the conversation she had heard in her stables. What Amanda had said about her did not concern her any longer, and as Kid had said, she should not let herself be influenced by opinions of those who meant nothing to her. Yet, it pricked her pride and self-esteem to think how weakly Teaspoon had defended her. Lou couldn't care less about Amanda, but Teaspoon's opinion was important to her. His indifference to those atrocities Amanda had uttered told Lou so much, and she was hurt and disappointed.
Louise had kept away from Teaspoon on purpose. He and Amanda had been dining at Rachel's and Buck's on two different occasions, but Lou had found excuses for her and her family to stay at home both nights. That had not raised suspicions, but Kid knew the reasons even though he had not said a word about it. All he had mentioned was that it was them next who should extend an invitation for dinner to Amanda and the rest of the family. Lou had not replied, but silently mused she had no intention to have that woman under her roof when she thought so little of her. Hopefully, she would soon leave, and peace will be restored.
Lou knew her attitude was not sound, but she could not help it. In truth, she had never been too fond of Amanda O'Connell, and the way she had come to Teaspoon's life was a giveaway of the dark side she could easily cross to. The episode with the Pikes also spoke for itself even though Lou had begrudgingly accepted that Amanda had acted that way to protect Teaspoon. The past was past, but, even so, she had never been able to bring herself to like Amanda too much. Something in her repelled her somehow, and what she had overheard in the stables the other day managed to overflow the limits of her constraint and politeness.
That morning Louise volunteered to drive her oldest children and little Ike to school since she needed to buy some provisions from Tompkins. Ellen had accepted to look after her young ones in the meantime. Janey and Matt kissed their mother goodbye and rushed into the schoolhouse, and then Lou continued her way to the store. With a nod she greeted Tompkins and walked to the table displaying the rolls of fabric. Before she got the things from her list, she would have a look at the gingham cloths for sale. Ginnie was growing fast, and she needed new dresses. Her little girl was not a baby anymore, and that made Lou feel melancholic, thinking she was losing something irreplaceable forever.
As Lou examined the beautiful blue and green shades of the fabrics, a familiar, rough voice echoed in the store. Louise lifted her eyes and saw Teaspoon stalk inside and greet Tompkins in his usual manner. The marshal did not notice her presence as he approached the counter, and she did not make any attempt to come closer to him.
"What can I do for you, Teaspoon?" Tompkins asked.
The marshal gave the store keeper a wide smile. "I need somethin' pretty for a very special lady… a brooch, a necklace, or a little piece of jewelry."
Tompkins raised an eyebrow. "You going courting now, Teaspoon?" the shop keeper asked in jest.
The marshal chortled amused. "This old dog?" he exclaimed, "I'm afraid romance and yours truly don't mix anymore. Naw… I just want to give a little trinket to Amanda. A little celebration gift."
Tompkins lifted his left eyebrow with curiosity. "Celebration?"
Teaspoon's grin widened as he announced, "Amanda's decided to move to Rock Creek."
"I wonder why you're so happy," the store keeper quipped with a coy smile.
"What can I say? For me she's the closest thing to a real daughter, and I couldn't wish for anythin' better than have her around."
"I'm glad for you, Teaspoon," Tompkins replied honestly. "Let me check what I havein my back room. I'll be right back."
As Tompkins slid into the door to the back of the store, Teaspoon kept drumming his knuckles against the old, withered, wooden counter. His eyes casually glimpsed at the right, stumbling with Louise's figure. His mouth automatically widened into a welcoming smile. "Lou, I hadn't noticed you were here, girl."
With a solemn pose and slow steps Louise walked closer to Teaspoon. She did not say a word, and the marshal studied her before saying, "I can see you're much better, honey. You've gained some of your color and looks back."
Louise stretched her lips, trying to smile but all she managed was a bitter expression. Teaspoon's comment felt like lava coursing all through her veins as she remembered the conversation he and Amanda had a few days ago. That shouldn't matter, but Lou couldn't help herself to feel hurt. And today after hearing Teaspoon talk to Tompkins, she was very close to exploding, and it was taking a supernatural effort to bite her tongue. Yet, her self-control was not strong enough, and a few cracks in her self-constraint power let the stilted comment seep through. "I heard what you said about Amanda… about her moving here."
Teaspoon nodded. "Ain't it great?"
"Just splendid," she muttered, forcing a fake smile onto her lips.
Teaspoon narrowed his eyes as he noticed Lou's attitude quite out-of-sorts. Today she did not sound like the laid-back, affable person she usually was, but she appeared strained and uncomfortable. The marshal could well imagine that she and Kid had a squabble of some sort. Teaspoon was no stranger to this stiff woman that was before him, and he knew from experience that when Lou turned into this cold, stand-offish person, the reason of her change could normally be found in her husband.
His lips opened to utter a question, but his intentions to quench his curiosity were thwarted when Tompkins returned. The store keeper placed a wooden box, removed the lid, and unfolded the chamois in which several sparkling items were sheltered. "Have a look at this, Teaspoon."
The marshal's attention instantly got drawn to an object he picked up. It was a brooch in the shape of a butterfly. Its body was made of silver filaments and its wings were of blue crystal, surrounded by tiny zircons. "This one's pretty."
"You have a good eye, Teaspoon."
Teaspoon looked up and met Lou's eyes. "What do you think?"
"It's sure beautiful… but must be expensive too," Louise replied curtly.
"Well, the occasion calls for somethin' very special, don't ya think?"
Lou simply sent him a withering look, and shrugging her shoulders, she walked away.
"Lou…"
Kid tried for the umpteenth time to appease his wife. His voice got drowned in the ruckus Lou was making in the kitchen as she angrily opened and closed drawers and cabinet doors. When she found the saucepan she had tried to locate, she thumped it on the stove with a loud clank.
"Lou…"
"What?" she seethed, swirling around to face her husband.
"Will you please calm down? It does you no good to blow the top like this, and…"
"Didn't you hear what I told you?" Lou cut him off loudly. "Don't you understand why I'm so upset?"
Kid sighed tiredly. "Honey, you've been going on and on about Teaspoon and Amanda for days, but I think you're giving all this matter too much importance."
"He said Amanda was the closest thing to a daughter! The closest, Kid!"
"I heard you," Kid replied patiently.
"And who the hell am I to him? Does he think I'm still his frigging employee?" Lou ranted, her voice shaking with sheer anger.
"Lou, I'm sure he didn't mean…"
"I was there, Kid, and I know what he said. He sounded very confident in what he was talking about!" Lou roared, flapping her hands frantically.
Kid took a few steps closer, covered her hands with his, and looked into her eyes. "Lou, don't do this, please. Just stop and think about what you're saying. You do know Teaspoon loves you like a daughter…. Gosh, our children even call him grandpa."
"You could remind him of that…" Lou muttered sarcastically. A tired sigh escaped her lips and in a calmer tone, she added, "I admit it… I've never liked Amanda, and I can't trust her… not after what happened all those years ago. And well, if Teaspoon decided to overlook that, it's up to him. I know he's fond of her, but it hurts me to realize that what I believed I was to him is a mirage."
"Lou, Teaspoon loves you, and this ain't a competition."
Louise did not heed her husband's words and continued regardless. "You can't imagine what all this means to me, Kid," Lou whispered. "She's the refined, graceful lady he can proudly boast about while I'm the poor relation nobody needs to acknowledge."
"Honey, that's not true."
"It feels that way, Kid!" Lou roared. "I just don't understand! Hoity-toity Amanda O'Connell sitting in her palace, leading the lavish life that Teaspoon's big dollars let her… and here we are, worrying about him, looking after him, caring for him! Who's been there for him year after year? Who stayed with him when he was sick? Who cares to take him a hot meal on a daily basis? Who frets when he doesn't follow the doctor's warnings? Whose door is widely open and welcoming whenever he feels like having some company? Who washes and mends his clothes? Not Amanda O'Connell living hundreds of miles away."
"It's you, Lou."
"But then Amanda is the daughter, and I'm nothing!"
"Honey, you're taking this matter too far. I'm sure Teaspoon feels very strongly for you. Everybody can see that, and what you heard at Tompkins's must have been just a figure of speech. You know what he's like and he's peculiar in the way he talks, Lou. You can't take a simple comment like that to heart."
Lou shook her head. "I'm very disappointed, Kid. I can't help it. I hardly had a relationship with my real father, and I ain't even sure if I ever loved him. A father is much more than the man who started you. And with Teaspoon… I thought of him as a father, and now when I heard him talk about Amanda… It wasn't just what he said, Kid… it's the way his eyes shone when he uttered her name, how happy he was, how proud he sounded. And I felt all of a sudden I was a lousy orphan again."
Tears came unleashed, and as the tears sprang from her eyes, anger soared. She was furious for feeling so annoyed, needy, and foolish. This shouldn't bother her so much. She was a grown-up woman with a big family, and she was crying like a baby who couldn't find her daddy. The more ashamed she felt about her tears, the more she cried. Kid did not say another word. He simply hooked his hand on the nape of her neck and brought her against his chest. Feeling his warmth and silent love against her skin, Louise crumbled down even more and she quietly sobbed as she held onto him.
That afternoon when Lou opened the door, she did not bother to hide the surprise from showing on her countenance as she came face to face with a very smiling Amanda. "Hello, Louise. I hope I'm not intruding on your normal routine for coming to you unannounced."
Lou kept a neutral expression as she asked, "What can I do for you?"
Amanda kept smiling and shifted her eyes to her son, who stood by her side. "Uh you know what small children are like, and my Adrian is getting restless and bored in the sole company of adults. I wouldn't dream of imposing on you, Louise, but Teaspoon said you wouldn't mind if my boy could come and play with your boys."
Louise lowered her eyes. The last thing she wanted was to endure the woman's presence after the turmoil she was causing in Lou's spirit. However, as Louise looked at the boy's eager eyes, she felt a tug in her stomach. Adrian was a pretty child; dark hair and eyes like his mother's, and even though Lou usually disapproved of children dressed in too serious clothes, she had to admit that the navy blue jacket and matched short pants looked cute on Adrian. "Uh… yeah, no problem," Lou muttered as she pushed the door more widely to let her uninvited guests in. "Please come in."
Amanda and her son followed her inside, Lou said, "Mattie was finishing his reading now, and Jed's drawing."
"Naturally. Adrian, you'll wait for the boys to finish their school homework," Amanda remarked.
"Jed's not going to school until next September. He's still too young."
In the living room, Matt and Jed were sitting at the big table, and both boys lifted their heads as they heard the approaching steps. "Hello, boys," Amanda greeted them with a ready smile, and the two brothers politely replied in chorus. Amanda's grin did not falter as she said, "You children are having a playmate this afternoon." Jed and Matt exchanged a genuine smile, and Amanda added, "Honey, why don't you draw something like Jed is doing while Mattie finishes his homework?"
"I'll make some tea," Lou volunteered solemnly. "Please make yourself comfortable." As she was on her way to the kitchen, she tossed a look at the children. Adrian and Jed, kneeling on their chairs, strove with their pencils over the white sheets of paper before them while Matt seemed to be daydreaming. "Matthew, I can't hear you."
The sound of his mother was enough to spur the boy into action and he continued reading the book opened before him. Lou could hear her son's voice as she made the tea and arranged some of her cookies on a delicate china plate, part of the tea set she reserved for visits. When she carried the tray to the living room, she addressed her son once again. "Matt, I think that's enough for today. You and the boys can go play."
No sooner had Lou given her permission than the three children scurried outside, taking with them their arsenal of playthings and toys. Lou could not help but smile, but as she directed her steps to where Amanda was comfortably sitting, her features sobered. In cold silence only interrupted by a few polite questions, Lou served her tea and sank down in the armchair across from her visitor. They did not speak, and Ginnie toddled to her mother, demanding her attention. Louise dipped a cookie in her tea and fed it to the girl, who beamed contentedly.
"She's a love," Amanda commented as she longingly observed the moment between mother and daughter.
"She is," Lou admitted as she struggled to wipe the toddler's mouth with a napkin, and as soon as she let go, Ginnie scurried away to play with the rag doll she had left stranded on the floor across from where the ladies were sitting.
"And your eldest?"
"Janey is at her friend Daisy's. They had some school work to do together," Lou explained as she sipped her tea.
"I'm surprised you'd let her wander off unchaperoned after what happened," Amanda blurted out before she realized what she was saying. The comment naturally impelled Louise to send a shocked look in her direction, and when Amanda realized she had spoken out of turn, she hastened to excuse herself. "I… I… When we were at Buck's for dinner a couple of nights ago, Ellen remarked something about Billy that roused my curiosity. I guess she had forgotten I was there, and later I asked Teaspoon about it."
"And he told you!" Lou exclaimed in an accusing tone.
"Oh please, don't blame him. I badgered him all the way to town and didn't give up until he told me. He's a dear, and has never been able to say no to me. Please don't be hard on him because it wasn't his fault."
Lou kept a bitter expression as her fingers tightly twisted the napkin she had in her hands. "What happens to me or my family is nobody's business," Lou said dryly.
"I know I'm sometimes terribly nosy. Please forgive me for sticking my nose where it doesn't belong. I was just wondering how your daughter was getting on after that."
"Janey's perfectly fine now," Lou replied in the same curt tone.
"I'm glad. I imagine it must have been a terrible ordeal for her … and you naturally," Amanda continued, but Lou did not say a word. "I heard Ellen say she's worried because Billy refuses to come home after he and Janey broke up and…"
"Could you please let that go? This ain't something I feel comfortable talking about with…" Lou was about to say 'with a stranger' but decided not to voice her thoughts. What had happened with Jane a couple of months ago still upset her too much whenever she thought about it and what would have become of Janey if her unplanned pregnancy had progressed to full term. However, she had to admit that the whole episode had made the girl mature, and there was almost nothing left of the child she was once. That also saddened Louise, but it was true that after those horrible confrontations she had with her daughter, they had come out stronger, and they were closer now.
"Please forgive me. You're right," Amanda admitted in a low voice.
The two women continued sipping their teas in silence. Lou cast a look where Ginnie was playing quietly with her doll and in that moment the door opened and the three boys bolted inside raucously. Matt asked his mother if they could play in the bedroom where he and Jed kept their toys and those knick-knacks they thought of as invaluable treasures. Louise nodded her permission, and as the three children stormed up the stairs, their steps sounded as if a crowd had invaded the house instead of three young boys. As Lou shifted her eyes, she found Amanda smiling from ear to ear.
"Boys," she laughed, shaking her head. "I'm relieved Adrian gets on well with your children. That'll make it easier for him when he goes to school"
Lou did not even attempt to match her light-hearted disposition, and simply said, "I heard you're moving to live here."
Amanda nodded. "I think that's the best decision I've made in a long time. Teaspoon's over the moon, and I'm sure Adrian will love it here in the long run."
Lou's stomach made a bolt as Amanda mentioned Teaspoon, and a powerful wave of jealousy shook all her insides. "How do you plan to earn your keep here?" Lou blurted out unceremoniously.
"I'm going to buy Mrs. Kelly's old teashop. It costs a bit more than what I got from selling my business in Abilene. I'm tired of being around drunkards and raucous men all the time. I plan to have a decent, quiet establishment for ladies and gentlemen."
Lou realized that Amanda's plans to move to Rock Creek had been in her mind way before she had come for this visit. "I imagine you're barely hard-up after all the money Teaspoon so generously gave you years ago."
Amanda tensed and blushed at the inappropriate comment. "That money's always belonged to Teaspoon, and I only invested it in the business we shared. We're partners, and now it'll be the same." The tension was thick, and Amanda fidgeted in her seat uncomfortably. After coughing discreetly and clearing her throat, she spoke up once again, "I have the sensation you've never liked me, Louise."
"No," Lou simply said, admitting the truth. Why should she pretend and deny something that was as plain as day.
"Why?"
Louise shrugged her shoulders in indifference. "That doesn't matter, does it?"
"It matters to me," Amanda argued. "I'd really like us to get on well. Now that I'm moving here, we'll be seeing more of each other and…"
"You don't like me either," Lou stated, cutting her off.
Amanda stared at her as if she had been slapped, and after that brief hesitation, she exclaimed "Of course I do…"
"You don't," Lou insisted. Amanda's face tensed as she felt unable to pretend and put up an absurd fight, and her silence confirmed what Lou was saying. With narrowed eyes Louise stared at the woman, and said, "What do you want from me, Amanda?"
"I… it's Adrian."
"What about him?"
"When I open my shop, I…I won't be able to look after him during the day, and it'll be months before he goes to school. Teaspoon … he thought you wouldn't mind…" Amanda's voice trailed off, and she added, "Never mind. I see it was daft of me to even entertain the idea."
Amanda was rising to her feet when Lou stopped her. "Wait!" The woman stared at her wonderingly, and Louise added, "I love children, and I can see Adrian is a lovely boy. Whatever you and I feel about each other has nothing to do with him. I'd love to look after him when you're busy."
Amanda's astonishment was obvious, but she did not even try to pretend any longer, and grabbed what Louise was offering willingly. "Oh thank you, Louise! I really appreciate your generosity and…"
"You don't need to butter me up. I said yes, and I'm happy to do it."
Amanda nodded. She had to grant it; Lou was a no-nonsense woman who called a spade a spade, and even though they did not see eye to eye, she was glad she would not have to play games around her. "Thanks, and I guess I'll be on my way now. I don't want to bother you any longer."
"Stay where you are," Lou almost ordered. "The boys haven't had much time to play, and it'd be a shame to stop them now. Let's have another cup of tea, and then you can decide if you want to go."
Amanda did not say another word; she merely nodded and accepted the cup of tea that Louise served and stretched to her.
Faces glowing with awe and excitement stared in admiration as the lid was lifted. Matt had retrieved a wooden box that he kept hidden in the closet. His mother would give him an earful at the very least if she knew, but the boy did not have the heart to leave his most valued treasure in the barn where Ma had told him to. As Matt lifted the lid, Adrian gasped as he looked with big eyes at the dozen silk worms crawling over a floor of mulberry leaves on the bottom of the box.
"They're beautiful!" Adrian exclaimed as his small index finger made an attempt to touch the small, white worms but stopped in mid-air afraid.
"Pa got me five last year," Matt explained. "And they bred the others in spring."
"Mattie and I looked after the babies together, but a few died," Jed said, his enthusiasm petering out as he shared the last part of his speech.
"You're lucky to have them," Adrian replied, still staring at the silkworms in obvious amazement.
"You can take two of them home with you," Matt suggested. "We can spare them. This lot will breed more soon."
Adrian shook his head morosely. "Ma wouldn't let me. She doesn't allow me to have pets. I wanted a kitty, but she said she was … she was al… allergic," the boy explained, straining to get the last word right.
"More's the pity," Matt replied, trying to sound older than his nine years of life.
"You can always come here and play with ours," Jed added.
Adrian shrugged his shoulders. "They're nice to look at, but they are boring. They ain't like a puppy or a kitty you can play with."
"They ain't boring!" Matt exclaimed, feeling affronted by his new friend's words. "They're fun."
"Oh yeah?" Adrian replied apathetically.
"We do races!" Jed enthused.
That bit managed to draw Adrian's interest, and as the three boys looked at each other, there was no secret in their eyes that they were entertaining the same idea. Every child picked up one worm and placed it on the floor abreast. Kneeling behind them, the boys started cheering, clapping, and even strongly patting the wooden surface of the floor, trying to encourage their candidates to be the fastest and first to cross the finishing line they had placed between two discarded slippers. The noise and loud cheers did not seem to bother and affect the three silkworms that slowly crawled along the floor, stopping to their taste and swerving in another direction, causing distress and disappointment in their young cheerers.
Finally, it was Adrian's selected silkworm that managed to cross the line in the first place. The child jumped and cavorted about the pitch in obvious delight. Matt creased his frown displeased as he said, "That's just beginner's luck."
"Let's do it again," Jed said excitedly, already grabbing another silkworm from the wooden box and putting it on the floor.
"Hold on, Jed. I have another idea," Matt said. His eyes took the special gleam and glimmer they got whenever he had one of those new ideas of his, which usually got him in big trouble with his parents. The two younger boys gazed at him with expectation, and Mattie added, "We're gonna find out how good they are at keeping balance when racing."
The two other boys exchanged a confused look. "What's that?"
"Just follow me," Matt urged them, picking up the wooden box with his silkworms. He led the way to the door, but before turning the knob, he swirled round to the other two children. "We need to be very quiet. Ma and Aunt Amanda are downstairs, and I'm sure Ma won't like this."
"I don't want Ma to get upset with us, Mattie. Why don't we stay here?" Jed said, not looking forward to being in the receiving end of his mother's angered lectures. He usually didn't get in trouble with his parents, but if Matt got him to join him in his crazy plans, Jed usually knew that would end up with Ma or Pa angry.
"No," Mattie refused categorically. "We won't be found out, and it's safe enough."
Without giving his brother the chance to reply, Matt opened the door and crept down the corridor, followed by the two other children. As they reached the beginning of the stairs, Matt pushed himself on his tiptoes as he craned his neck and leaned on the banister. Just below where he stood, he could see his mother and Amanda sitting on the sofa and armchair in a cozy corner of the living room. Months ago Lou had come up with the idea of furnishing that almost naked spot in her lounge, and Kid had bought an armchair, a small table and a sofa. It was there that Kid sometimes moved to read in solitude. Lou also chose that quiet spot to do some sewing or knitting, or when she occasionally had a visit like today.
The wood creaking behind him shifted his attention and brought his finger to his lips in an obvious order. "Be quiet," he hissed to the two smaller children. "Do you want Ma to find out where we keep our silkworms?"
Jed shook his head, wondering what plan his older brother would come up with now. Matt turned away from the banister, put the wooden box on the floor and lifted the lid. One by one the nine-year-old transferred the worms from their home to the top of the banister, arranging them in a line. "This will be way more thrilling than a dull race in the bedroom," Mattie whispered, winking at the two boys conspirationally.
Adrian grinned, finally realizing what Matt planned, and at once he helped him to move the tiny pets from the box. Jed, though, remained still, foreseeing the problems ahead which his brother's brilliant idea might cause. After a few seconds, he dared to whisper, "Mattie, what if they fall off the banister?"
Matt shrugged his shoulders. "No danger there," the boy whispered back. "Once I was playing with them on the hayloft, and one of them plunged from there. Nothing happened. Don't you see they're very light?"
"And Ma?" Jed asked again, tilting his head in the direction they could hear their mother's and Aunt Amanda's voices.
"Even if they fall, she won't notice."
Jed did not say anything. A row of at least ten silkworms was arranged throughout the width of the banister. Adrian and Matt stepped back, and the three children stood there, watching them crawl. Some of the worms did not even move and seemed to be in a lethargic state, but at least four of them slowly crawled along. The three boys watched, fascinated by the new race, giggling softly when one of their pets found an obstacle in the form of a carved form on the banister, and had to creep over it. Jed was so spell-bound by the spectacle before his eyes than he forgot his previous apprehensions. Yet, when after a few minutes he noticed one of the silkworms change its direction and zigzagging its way towards the external rim of the banister, he got alarmed. "Mattie," he whispered in a fearful tone, pointing at the target worm.
Matt pressed a finger against his lips, urging him to keep quiet. When Jed took a step forward, intending to rescue the worm from a more than probable fall, Matt grabbed him by the elbow. "Don't. Let's see what he does, and we'll remove it from there at the last possible moment."
Jed stared in anguish as the tiny white insect dangerously approached the border. The seconds seemed to lag, but finally, Matt moved and reached for the silkworm, but as luck would have it, instead of grasping the delicate body of his pet, his little fingers clumsily pushed it. The silkworm missed the surface underneath, and fell. The three children rushed to the banister and stared down fearful as the insect hovered in the air as if it were flying, but ever so slowly it was plummeting down. The worm was plunging straight to the space just below the staircase, but somehow a draft changed the direction and in horror the three boys saw it plunge into one of the teacups on the table around which Louise and Amanda were sitting.
"No…" Jed let out in a strained voice.
As the children then saw Amanda's hand reach out for the cup which the silkworm had dived into, they moved simultaneously and scampered down the staircase, trying to avoid the disaster they foresaw. "No!" the three boys cried out in unison as they realized they were late and Amanda was already having a sip of her cup.
The two women got startled by the children's unexpected shout. "What on earth are you doing?" Lou asked, noticing the strange expressions on the boys' faces, staring at Amanda in sheer panic. None of the children said a word, and Louise also noticed the other woman cringe and cough. Amanda opened her mouth and her delicate fingers removed something from inside. Her black eyes widened in disgust and horror when she took in the slimy, tender creature between her fingers.
"We're sorry, Aunt Amanda. We didn't mean…"
Matt did not know if the woman even heard his words since she blindly darted out of the room, as she was overcome by sudden nausea. The door slam shut behind her as she was obviously dashing to the outhouse. The nine-year-old bravely dared to shift his eyes and glanced at his mother, who did not look happy at all. "I'm sorry, Ma."
"Just go to the kitchen, and wait for me there. We're going to have a very serious conversation later."
The boy morosely headed for the kitchen, and the other two children remained in a discreet position, trying to appear as inconspicuous as possible. Amanda returned a few minutes later, looking pale and off-color. Lou managed to convey her apologies, and Amanda took her leave.
Jed had moved to the big dining room table to draw a bit more, and Louise straight directed her feet to the kitchen. Matt was sitting, resting his head on a flexed arm on top of the table. When he saw his mother appear, he straightened up and stared at her in fearful expectation. "I… I'm sorry, Ma."
Louise let out a sigh. "That wasn't a nice thing to do, Mattie."
"I know. I didn't mean to fill Aunt Amanda's tea with my silkworms. It was an accident."
Lou remained silent for a few seconds. "I'm sure you're very sorry, ain't you, honey?" she said in a soft voice.
Matt stared at her, frowning in confusion. His mother did not sound as angry as he usually did when he played one of his stunts. "I am."
"All right. Just go to play now."
Matt, though, did not move from the spot, and kept looking at his mother with a stunned expression. "Ma? Ain't I gonna get punished? Ain't I grounded?"
"I'll overlook it this time. I know you didn't mean to do it, and that's the important thing."
Matt did not need to be told twice and scurried away from the kitchen before his mother changed her mind. This was very strange from her indeed, but he was not going to risk angering her more. The rest of his silkworms were still on the banister, and before they caused major trouble or Ma forced him to get rid of them forever, he rushed up the stairs to retrieve them.
Lou remained in the kitchen, sighed, and dropped on one of the chairs. The stunt Matt had played today could not be ignored. That boy needed to learn that his behavior, though unintentional, needed to be corrected. But how could she do that when she had almost laughed at Amanda's face when she had seen the silkworm? It was not right of her to do that, and whatever problem she had with her, it was wrong of her to rejoice in this small misadventure. It was really wrong, but that was the way she felt. So how could she punish her son when she had almost laughed her head off at the woman's expense? No, that would have been twice as bad, and as she brought to mind Amanda's face and her expression of utter disgust and shock, Lou smiled, a smile which turned into a giggle and finally into laughter, echoing in the kitchen and smarting her already bruised conscience.
