That Friday was the 18th and the last day of school before winter break. Connie was talking excitedly about her holiday plans when she remembered that Laura was going away.
"Has your mother told you where you are going yet?" she asked Laura who was clearly daydreaming. Connie hoped it wasn't about a certain blonde boy.
"Oh, no she said it was a surprise," Laura said, startled out of her long gaze.
"How do you know what to pack," Connie asked incredulously.
"It's winter," Laura shrugged, "I packed warm clothes."
"Fair enough," Connie said but Laura was already daydreaming again.
When she got home that afternoon Caroline was already carrying their suitcases out the front door.
"Are we leaving now?" Laura asked, she didn't think it would be at least until Saturday.
"The bus doesn't run on weekends," Caroline explained. She put the last of their luggage down and started waving at something behind Laura. "You remember my friend Nancy?" she said, "she offered to drive us to the bus station."
The lady waved at them and rushed to help them with their luggage. After everything had been secured and the two passengers and driver were back in the car they set out.
"Where did you say you were going Caroline?" Nancy asked.
"It's a place called Lake Candling," she said.
Laura's ears perked up, that was where her grandparents had lived. That was where her father had grown up. "Why are we going there?" she asked.
"Because I want to," her mother replied.
The two Stratford's boarded the bus later that night. It was just past eight o'clock when they left Castle Rock.
"Why didn't you tell me where we were going?" Laura asked her mother as the bus rolled steadily along the empty road.
"I knew you would get upset, and look," she said noticing Laura's downcast look, "I was right. Or is this the look we are reserving for Ace," she said nudging her in the side. Her features softening as she realised that was the case.
"Oh Laura, you can't keep moping around, pining after that boy."
She sniffed and leaned her head against her mother's shoulder. "Did you and ever Dad fight?" she asked softly.
"No, we didn't," Caroline said, knowing that this answer wasn't very helpful. "But your father was such a sweet man, he was a lot like you honey," she said brushing some hair away from her face, "Ace is obviously crazy about you," Caroline assured her, "I bet he's missing you too."
Laura turned to face the window, it hadn't seemed to her like he missed her at all.
At this time Ace was eating dinner with his parents.
"We barely see you anymore," his mother said as she scooped extra mash potatoes on to his plate. "Spending all your time with your girl I expect," she said winking at him.
Ace didn't respond and started eating his dinner. He really didn't want to talk about Laura. His mother could believe what she wanted to believe.
"You should ask her around to dinner," his mother continued, "such a polite girl at Thanksgiving, wasn't she Joe?"
Ace's father nodded his head in agreement, not looking up from his peas.
"I could have died of embarrassment when Janice asked about her poor father. Why didn't you tell us he had passed away John?"
"I didn't think Laura wanted me talking about her family business," he said a little hostilely, his voice faltering a little when he said her name.
"Don't be silly John, it's not a private matter and it could have saved us some awkwardness."
Ace stood up from the table and went to his room. He was a bit surprised that his mother had not known all this herself, Castle Rock wasn't exactly heavily populated. The residents lives seemed to be everybody's business anyway.
He stripped down and lay in his bed, wishing he was in hers.
The bus arrived at Lake Candling early the next morning. The weather here was warmer than in Castle Rock but snow lined the roads just the same.
"It's the air," Caroline explained when Laura pointed this out over breakfast, "it's still here, no breeze at all. It's pretty here isn't it?"
"Yes I suppose it is," Laura said looking out of the diner window.
"You don't remember coming here at all before do you?" Caroline asked.
"What do you mean?" Laura asked.
Caroline thought a minute before speaking, she had been trying to bring this up ever since she had booked the holiday here. "We used to live here Laura," she said.
"What?" Laura said taken aback, that couldn't be true, she would remember.
"Right after your father died, I was having a lot of trouble taking care of you," she confessed, "you were so small and we were alone," she inhaled a shaky breath, "when your grandmother offered to take us in I jumped at the chance."
"My grandmother?" Laura said dumbfounded, for as long as she could remember all her grandparents had already passed on.
"That's right, her name was Rosemary Stratford, your father's mother. You don't remember any of this?"
Laura shook her head, she had barely been two years old when her mother received the telegram informing her that her husband had been killed in action.
"We lived with her for about six months until we were able to settle everything and find a place to live. Unfortunately soon afterward your grandmother passed away."
"How did I not know this?" Laura asked, "Why didn't you mention before?"
"I know how upset you get when we talk about David," Caroline said softly.
"I just know how much you miss him mom," she said, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.
"Laura," she said rubbing her arm, "I have grieved for your father for many years now but it doesn't mean that I never want to talk about him. Both of you were and are the greatest people in my life. I don't want to just forget him."
"I wish I knew him," Laura said, "I don't even have a single memory of him."
"Just know that you were his greatest joy," Caroline smiled, "he said so often."
"What do you think he would have thought of Ace?" Laura said smiling softly.
"He would have hated him going after his little girl," Caroline laughed.