Page 78 of The Party Line

“That night, after her birthday dinner with her folks, she climbed out her window and met Davis in the backyard. He gave her the roses and kissed her. They thought that it was late enough no one would see, but Rita did, and the next morning she called Clarence on the partyline that three people shared—my granny, Rita, and Gracie’s folks. Miz Betty had the phones put in so that if she wanted Rita or Granny in the middle of the night, she could get a hold of them.”

“And Gracie listened in on the conversation, right?” I asked.

Jasper nodded, his face turning very, very serious. “Gracie stormed downstairs and confronted Clarence right in front of Betty.”

“What had she heard that upset her so badly?”

“That, darlin’ girl, is the big bad secret,” Jasper said softly, as if he couldn’t say it out loud. “She overheard Rita telling Clarence that they either had to tell the kids the truth or he had to help her move. Clarence said it was for the best and said he would set her up in a nice place in Poteet because he didn’t want to stop seeing her.”

“What was the truth?” I was all ears by then.

There was a long, pregnant silence that seemed like the air just before a tornado hit. Finally, Jasper broke through the thick, heavy stillness.

“That Davis was Gracie’s brother.”

That almost took my breath right out of my chest. My poor Aunt Gracie. No ... poor Davis, who had been shunned and treated like the help.

The world stopped turning, and I sat there in stunned silence, unable to think. Tightness filled my chest, and tears rolled down my cheeks.

“Are you going to faint?” Jasper asked.

“No, but that doesn’t mean I’m not shocked and sad for Gracie and Davis,” I whispered. “Go on with the story, please.”

“The story that Gracie told us was that she stormed down to the living room and confronted her father with a big fight. Betty heard it all, and the two of them had a screaming match right in front of their daughter. Clarence accused Miz Betty right to her face of being cold in the bedroom. Then, in a fit of anger, he said that all she had produced was a daughter, and he couldn’t even acknowledge his son because he was married toher. Back then, divorce was a pretty big deal—not ashuge as fatherless boys, but still it wasn’t accepted like it is today. Gracie went back up to her bedroom. She told me and Davis in between sobs that she would never forgive her father for abandoning him or for not telling her that Davis was her brother.”

“What happened then?” I asked around a baseball-sized lump in my throat.

“Miz Rita moved into a house in Poteet. We still saw each other at school. ’Course we didn’t talk about those things there, and then me and Davis went to the army, and you know the rest. It wasn’t long until Miz Betty left. She tried to get Gracie to go with her, but there was no way she would leave me and Davis. I expect, although I do not know for sure, that Clarence kept seeing Rita until the day she died. And now you know the secret of the house.”

“Why did Gracie want me to know?” I asked.

“You can ask her when you get to heaven,” he said. “She just told me to tell you. What do you intend to do about it?”

“Not one thing,” I replied. “For all I care, everyone can think that she had a little wild streak because she wore red panties. If she had wanted the whole state of Texas to know, she would have put it in theDallas Morning Newsor maybe went onOprahand told it on live television. I have no idea why she’s trusted me with it, but she has.”

“What about Connor? You going to tell him?” Jasper asked.

“Not even Connor,” I vowed. “What’s in the past should stay there. It’s Gracie’s secret, and I can’t pass it on.”

“That’s good,” Jasper said. “She never loved another boy, and as far as I know, she never even kissed another one. I would have just as soon taken the story to the grave with me, but she wanted you to know.”

“Probably because I was always a nosy little brat.” I tried to laugh, but it came out more like a snort.

“She told me that you would find things in the house that would make you wonder. She had pinned notes to her clothing in case she got that forgetful disease. She wanted to remember the past, especially afteryou came into her life. She always said you were a little piece of heaven on Earth and had brought light back into her heart,” Jasper said.

Tears began to stream down my cheeks and drip onto my olive green shirt. Swiping them away was useless because more kept taking their place. “That’s quite a thing to have to live up to.”

Jasper put his arm around my shoulders. “Let it out, Lila. You haven’t had a really good cry since Gracie died. You’ve had to be strong for your mama and for me, but it’s time for me to be a rock for you now. And like I said, that’s not the only secret I have to tell you.”

“I’m not sure I can handle much more today.” My tears left wet circles on his suit coat.

His whole wrinkled face changed to be even more serious than it had been. “Well, you have to, because I’m not going to live forever, and someday I might need some help like she did.”

My breath caught somewhere in my chest, and I couldn’t make myself exhale. “What are you talking about?” I asked, even though I pretty well knew what the answer was.

“She never forgave Clarence for what he did or her mother for leaving her, but she did sit beside her father’s bedside the last two weeks of his life. He had congestive heart failure, and he refused to give up his cigarettes or his liquor. Then he got lung cancer, and he died a hard death, gasping for every breath. He wanted to die at home, so she granted him that wish. He begged her to forgive him, but she couldn’t do it, not until a few minutes before he passed.”

“I’m not so sure I could have forgiven him, either. I’m glad I didn’t have to meet my own father,” I said in a low voice.

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