Page 118 of The Singing Trees
Even after all that time, Thomas could still get swept away by anger when Emma’s name came up. Maybe he could have forgiven her for the letter she’d forged and sent along with the photograph, but when Emma had admitted to knowing about the baby, seeing the stroller and counting the months since Annalisa’s visit to Hawaii, and knowing it had to be Thomas’s, he’d drawn a line impossible to cross.
His choice did not affect her love for him, though, because he’d found the courage to face so many of his war demons, and he’d loved Annalisa and Celia with all that he was, and he’d certainly shown his ability to forgive when she had confessed to hiding Celia from him. It was just that he saw a very clear line between Annalisa’s and Emma’s crimes, and in his eyes, his sister deserved no absolution.
She and Thomas shared their journey, but when he’d rejected the idea, she’d decided it was a personal path and that she had to go at it alone.
Annalisa looked at the huge wooden door. Emma was on the other side. Her throat went dry thinking about it. With a burst of love surging through her, she stepped out of her truck and removed a gift-wrapped box from the back seat. Praying for courage, she made the long walk across the gravel drive to the front of the house.
As she ascended the stairs, the front door cracked open, and Annalisa thought she might have a heart attack. Was it too late to change her mind?
Mrs.Barnes appeared and came out onto the porch. With sincere appreciation, she said, “Thank you for coming.”
“I’m really happy to be here and to have a chance to catch her before she leaves.”
She touched the bottoms of her shoulder-length gray hair. “How is my granddaughter?”
Annalisa came to a stop a few feet from the woman and sighed. “Celia’s very mad at her mommy for not letting her come.”
A loving smile stretched across her face. “I bet she is.”
“I told her we’d come back this weekend. I just...” Wings flapped in her stomach. “I thought I should come by myself first.”
Mrs.Barnes smiled understandingly.
The two women looked at each other, knowing today was a very important day—for both of them. Emma’s lie had hurt Mrs.Barnes, too, who was kept away from Celia for the first part of her life. Perhapseven more painful to Mrs.Barnes was the fact that her only two children hadn’t spoken to each other in so long.
Mrs.Barnes touched her heart and said with incredible sincerity, “The fact that you’re here...it means more than you’ll ever know.” With that, she invited Annalisa inside and led her to the living room.
Annalisa answered her mother-in-law’s casual questions while wrestling with her anxious emotions. No matter how many letters they’d exchanged, seeing Emma in person could dredge up all sorts of emotions that she’d thought had been dealt with, the remnants of sadness, anger, or even worse.
When she finally crossed through the open doorframe that led into the living room, Annalisa could feel her pulse throbbing in her wrists, so much so her arms felt heavy. There, on the couch, underneath the painting Annalisa had never liked, Emma waited for her. As the young woman stood, Annalisa’s eyes widened. She’d half expected the little girl she knew from years ago. Though she’d seen a more blossomed Emma in Payton Mills that time, Emma was still a child to Annalisa.
Not now.
Emma’s straight brown hair was even longer now, almost to her waist. She was barefoot and wore a long sundress and looked very pretty, the years having done her well. But her nerves showed on her face and in the way she stood almost defensively. It was in this timidity that Annalisa realized how much love she herself had in her heart, because she felt none of the feelings that she’d feared might be excavated during their reunion. No, instead, an overwhelming rush of compassion rose within her, and she smiled with everything she had, hoping her love would show and could wash all over Emma and let her know that everything was okay—even if Thomas wasn’t there.
“I’m so happy to see you,” Annalisa said warmly, meaning it deeply. She was also glad to see Emma had put on some weight and lookedmuch happier. “I don’t know what I was expecting, but wow. You’re a woman now, a beautiful woman. Twenty-four now, right?”
Emma blossomed with relief before Annalisa’s eyes. “And still kicking...”
Annalisa chuckled as she set the gift down on a nearby chair and then went to her, wrapping her arms around her, showering her as best she could with all that love she had in her heart. Emma felt much warmer, her skin and the way she hugged, and Annalisa could sense that this hug was the remedy Emma had still needed, the letters only the first part of the prescription.
Letting go, the women faced each other, and much of the awkwardness had been snuffed out by their embrace.
“Celia’s been asking about you,” Annalisa said, excited for her daughter to finally meet her aunt.
A light shined from Emma’s face. “Yeah? She’s growing up so fast. If you only knew how happy it makes me when you send me pictures and share stories. I feel like I really know her.”
“And I think it’s time you do.” Now that this was out of the way—and actually much less of a thing that Annalisa had made up in her head—she couldn’t wait to bring Celia down. “I thought we’d come back this weekend for a couple of nights.” Thomas hadn’t balked when Annalisa had suggested that if things went well with this reunion, that she bring their daughter down to Davenport. As long as he didn’t have to deal with his sister, he was fine.
Emma pressed her eyes closed for a moment. “I would love that more than anything in the world.” She looked like she might start bawling.
To save her, Annalisa said, “So the Peace Corps. You’re such an inspiration. I can’t imagine doing what you’re doing.”
Emma perked up even more, the layers falling off. “Yeah, I’d toyed with the idea during school, but then...you know, things changed.”
“Did you find out what you’d be doing yet?”
“They just informed me yesterday. I’ll be helping out at a boys’ home in Marrakech, at least at first. I’ll be over there two years, so it might change.”
