Kin (8 page)

“I'm too heavy!” she laughed.

“You're as light as a feather.”

For the first time she really looked at Ewan. Up close he had nice brown eyes and he needed to shave. His hair was brown, cut shorter than the other boys, and he smelled like hay and horses.

Lila invited him into the house to take a breather, but he said he had to get home to do his chores. He tipped his cap and disappeared into the woods. Lila and Aunt Eunie watched him go.

“Ewan is a dependable young man, and a very hard worker,” Aunt Eunie said. “His mother says she'd be lost without him.”

“He doesn't have many friends.”

Aunt Eunie poured tea into two cups. “He has nothing in common with boys his age. He's been doing a man's work for years now.”

A few days later there was a terrible snowstorm. The wind howled and the snow blew from every direction. Needless to say, no one was going anywhere that day, be it school or work. It was strange to have Uncle Joe around for breakfast on a school day.

“Little snow, big snow,” Uncle Joe said as he slathered strawberry preserves on his plum loaf.

“What does that mean?” Lila asked.

“It means that when the snowflake itself is very small, you usually get a lot of snow. Big snow, little snow means if the snowflakes are big, you tend to get a little snow.

“The old folk have all kinds of sayings,” Uncle Joe continued with his mouth full. “Like a mackerel sky, or a ring around the moon, means bad weather's coming; red sky at night, sailor's delight, red sky in the morning, sailors take warning. Did you know that if wasps build their nests high off the ground we're in for a bad winter?”

“A warm winter means a full graveyard,” Aunt Eunie added.

“I never liked that one,” Uncle Joe admitted.

Lila, amused at being inundated with Cape Breton wisdom, became aware of Freddy whining at the back door. She got up from the table and tried to open the door without the wind taking it and banging it against the house. “Freddy, just pee and come back in,” she hollered as he bolted into the swirling snow.

“I'm sure he heard you,” Uncle Joe laughed.

“You watch. He does exactly what I say. He'll be back in a minute.”

But he wasn't. Lila shouted out the door until she was hoarse. Aunt Eunie made her come in.

“But where could he be?” she fretted.

“He's a dog,” Uncle Joe said. “He likely got the scent of a rabbit and took off after it.”

“He's never done this before. He's never this late.”

As the afternoon and the storm dragged on, Lila was frantic. So frantic that Uncle Joe and Aunt Eunie bundled up and walked around the yard yelling into the woods. Lila didn't obey them and went out too. She called and called and called Freddy, but there was only silence.

They had to drag her inside; she was wet through. For the first time ever, Aunt Eunie got annoyed with her.

“If you die of pneumonia, how do you think we'd feel? Is it asking too much for you to listen to us for once?”

Lila apologized to them both, and then sat on the rocking chair in the parlour, covered her face with her hands, and burst into tears. They tried to comfort her, but she was distraught.

“Dogs aren't like humans,” Uncle Joe reassured her. “They can survive out in the wild. He'll curl up and wait till the storm is over. He can hunt for food. Dogs are very smart; you just see if Freddy doesn't come home soon.

Lila jumped up from the rocking chair. “What's Ewan's number? Maybe Freddy's gone over there.”

Aunt Eunie got it for her and Lila dialled the phone. His mother answered.

“Mrs. Spencer, is Ewan there?”

“Who's this?”

“It's Lila Phillips.”

“Lila, how are you, dear?”

Ewan must have grabbed the phone from his mother's hand. “What's wrong?”

“It's Freddy!” she cried. “I let him out hours ago and he hasn't come home. You know that's not like him. He always comes when I call. You didn't see him in your yard, did you?”

“I'll go out and look.”

“No, don't you dare! But if you see him out the window, could you let me know?”

“I will.”

“Thanks, Ewan.”

Lila hung up the phone.

Aunt Eunie and Uncle Joe sat in front of the fire and listened to the mantel clock tick off the hours. Lila paced through the house, looking out every window for Freddy to show up. As twilight fell it became unbearable. Just when she was losing hope, Lila spotted Ewan coming through the snow, with Freddy in his arms.

“Ewan's found him!” She ran to the door and held it open. “I told you not to go outside! Is Freddy okay?”

Ewan didn't answer her. His face was bright red with cold, his clothes frozen to his body. He pushed past Lila and went right into the parlour in front of the fire. He put the whimpering Freddy on the rug. “He was caught in a rabbit snare. His paw is pretty bad.”

Joe and Eunie quickly ran to get bandages, scissors, hot water, ointment, and blankets. Ewan knelt by the hearth catching his breath. Lila crouched down and nuzzled Freddy's nose. “You're all right now, Freddy.” He licked her face.

“That is one smart dog,” Ewan said. “He stayed still the entire time it took me to get that snare off him.”

Aunt Eunie and Uncle Joe took care of the dog. Lila, still on her knees, reached over and embraced Ewan, wet clothes and all. She held him tight, his frozen cheek against her warm one. He stayed very still, with his arms at his sides. Lila leaned back and held his face in her hands.

“No one else could've saved him. No one. I think you're wonderful!”

She kissed him on the cheek.

Then she focused her attention on her injured dog. Aunt Eunie took her turn kissing Ewan. “You have got to get out of these clothes, or you'll catch your death. I've got some hot soup on the stove. Call your mom and tell her you'll spend the night here.”

“I can't leave her alone. The power may go off.”

“Are you sure?”

He nodded.

“Well, you're going to have something warm in your stomach before you leave.”

Ewan sat at the kitchen table and had two big bowls of Scotch broth with flaky hot biscuits smothered in butter. He drank two cups of tea and said he'd better go. Lila ran to get him a dry woollen hat and scarf and mitts. She wrapped the scarf around his neck.

“Do you need a light to see?” she asked.

For the first time that night, he smiled. “I don't need a light. I know where I'm going.”

Aunt Eunie peered out the kitchen window. “It looks like it's letting up.”

As Ewan turned to leave, Lila said, “I'll never be able to repay you.”

“You don't have to.”

“Oh, but I do. Someday I'll pay you back. Call me when you get home so I know you're okay.”

* * *

Walking along the silent white road, as the snow continued to drift thanks to the gusts of wind, Ewan couldn't keep the smile off his face. He was still wet and uncomfortable, but none of that mattered. Lila had kissed him and told him he'd done what no one else could.

For a while he had despaired of ever finding Freddy, but he hadn't given up. Lila loved that dog, and since Ewan loved Lila, he'd known he had to bring Freddy home or die trying.

Lila wasn't like the other girls in school. She was quiet and had a sense of loneliness about her that Ewan recognized. Lila was a kindred spirit.

And when she laughed, she lit up the room. She was the only girl who looked past his old clothes and worn out shoes, and she was the only friend who'd ever come to the farm, wanting to know all about the animals and how he took care of them.

Everyone thought his life was lonely and dull and at times it was, but for the most part he loved the land, the fields that ran down to the rocky beach and the water of Mira Bay constantly moving and changing colour with the weather. He'd be out in the barn before the sun came up, but he'd always go to the door and watch the pink light of the sunrise become gradually golden. Ewan also loved the warmth of the cows' bulk against his face when he milked them. His cows, Daisy and Bossy, were patient and kind, the chickens were funny and energetic, and his two horses, Queenie and Prince, were loyal and hard working. The saucy barn cats, Popeye and Olive Oil and Priscilla and Sylvester, kept the rats and mice down to manageable numbers. And he had a border collie, Scamp. He considered all of them his friends.

Now that his brothers were older, they were helping him, but every time Ewan mentioned buying more livestock, both of them talked about getting away from the farm and getting jobs in town. Ewan knew that one day they would leave and not look back.

His mother, Bess, looked older than her years. She was quiet and not very outgoing. The farm had been her life and she didn't see much beyond it, but the older she got the more she complained of vague aches and pains. Dinner conversation usually revolved around her ailments. Ewan and his brothers always cleaned their plates quickly and left the table with various excuses. She'd sigh and wash up after them.

When he had grabbed the phone from his mother and started to get dressed to go out in the storm, she was upset. “What's going on? Why are you going outside?”

“Lila's dog is missing.”

“And she expects you to go out in this?”

“Of course not. I'm just going to have a look around. I'll be fine.” He shut the door in her face.

As he approached the farmhouse, he saw that his mother had left the light on for him. The house was plain, but well looked after. Ewan always painted the shingles when the paint started peeling off them. He didn't want any of the neighbours thinking he couldn't do his job.

His mom was at the kitchen table when he walked in the door. She stood up. “I was sick with worry! I almost sent your brothers out to look for you. What's going on?”

“Lila's dog was caught in a rabbit snare. I found him and took him home.”

“You could've gotten lost out there in that weather. What were you thinking?”

Ewan started to peel off his outer clothes. “My friend's dog was missing and I wanted to help her.”

“You must be starving. I kept your supper in the oven.”

“Mrs. Johnson fed me.”

“Well, I should hope so. Don't do that again. You have no idea how a mother worries.”

Ewan went to the phone and cranked it.

“Who are you calling?”

“Lila. She wanted to know that I got home safely.”

“You'll call her, but not me to say you're safe at Eunie's? That's just fine and dandy.” His mom went to the stove and opened the oven. She took out his plate and dumped the contents in the dog's dish. Then she left the kitchen.

The war was everywhere. When Annie and her mother went shopping they had to use coupon books, since sugar, butter, tea, and meat were rationed. The grocer used to regularly slip an extra pound of butter to Annie's mom and sometimes even a jar of strawberry jam.

The first time it happened, Annie asked her about it on their walk home.

“I don't know why he does it. He's just a nice man.”

“I think he likes you.”

“Maybe he does.”

“There were a couple of women behind us who weren't impressed. If looks could kill you'd be dead.”

“They should smile more, and scowl less.”

Then there were Victory stamps, savings bonds for the war, stickers to turn in for the war effort. Saving aluminum foil was routine, as were the newsreels showing the boys fighting overseas before the start of a film. Aunt Muriel said she could see the convoy ships heading for England from her back porch in Glace Bay. In town they had blackout curtains and an air warden who would knock at the door if so much as a speck of light was seen, but in Louisbourg they only had to keep their shades down if there was a scare.

There were army barracks throughout the local communities, smoke bombs dropped at the Port Morien sandbar as training exercises. And it was quite a thrill for the locals when training planes, the Hurricanes, would zoom right down the Mira River, fly underneath the old car bridge, and instantly soar up and over the train bridge out into the skies of Mira Bay. There were boys training at the airport with Harvard and Hudson bombers, a Canso flying boat, anything that might be useful to them someday.

Every radio newscast had the latest news from the front and the
Glace Bay Gazette
and
Sydney Post Record
routinely showed pictures of the boys from home who'd been killed.

And then one day in 1942 an open truckload of soldiers went right over the bank and the railway track at the end of Horne's Road in Mira Gut because they were going too fast to make the turn. Most of them died on impact after being thrown from the truck.

It was a terrible shock. Everyone talked about it around their supper tables, including the Macdonalds.

Annie's mother was quiet and kept forgetting what she was doing when she got up from the table. She even put a plate of food back in the oven instead of passing it to Annie. Then she sat down and fiddled with her meal rather than eat it.

David didn't notice. He was still talking about the soldiers. “The boys were saying the soldiers were zombies.”

“Zombies?” Annie said.

“That's what they call soldiers from Quebec who dress up like soldiers but don't have to go to war.”

Before Dad could open his mouth, Mom slammed her hand hard on the table, rattling the dishes.

“Don't you dare speak of them like that! Those boys had families. They had mothers who will never see them again!”

Mom got up from the table and ran upstairs. David looked shocked. “I'm sorry. The guys were only talking.”

Their father leaned back in his chair. “Some things should never be repeated.”

Annie didn't feel like eating anymore.

“She knows I want to join the air force,” David said. “I'll be eligible soon.”

“Yes. Your mother is aware of that.”

“You went to war, Dad. You trained as a pilot in Texas.”

He nodded.

“And your brothers, they fought too.”

“What happened to them?” Annie asked.

Her dad was quiet a long time. Annie thought he'd forgotten the question and was about to ask him again when he spoke.

“We lost both my brothers in the same year, one in March of 1919 and one in December. My brother John, we called him Jack, was the youngest Lieutenant Commander in the United States Navy. But he died under mysterious circumstances in Liverpool, England, either murdered or an accidental drowning. They couldn't tell us for sure. They never found his body.”

Annie looked at Davy, but he kept his eyes on their father.

“My older brother, Coll, was poisoned with mustard gas in the trenches of France and was hospitalized in England, in Lennon Heath. When we got word, my sister Margaret sailed alone over the Atlantic in a convoy to nurse him, against the wishes of the family, knowing she wouldn't be able to return until after the war. He died the day before she got there. She went on to nurse other wounded soldiers.”

Annie bit the inside of her lip.

“I know you're ready to fight for your country, David. I know as a young man you think of it as an adventure and that nothing will happen to you, but your mother and I know different. I want you to be considerate of your mother's feelings and of the people you'll leave behind. We are the ones who will wait for your return.”

David got up from the table and went upstairs. Annie heard him knock on the door of their parents' room. The door opened and closed again.

She looked at her father. “Someday I'm going to be as brave as Aunt Margaret.”

“I don't doubt that for a second.”

* * *

The following year, David signed up. Lila heard about it almost instantly because Annie called to say he was leaving soon. Lila said she'd come over and say goodbye. Annie would need her.

But she didn't have to go and see him. The sound of a car engine came up the driveway. Lila thought it was Aunt Eunie and Uncle Joe coming home from a day's shopping, but Freddy knew better. He started to bark, so Lila got up and looked out the window. David was getting out of the car. She assumed Annie would be right behind him so she went to the back door to let them in.

But only David was standing there, with his blue eyes and thick brown hair. He seemed much older all of a sudden, and ridiculously cute.

“Hi, David. Annie didn't come?”

“No, she's busy bossing people around. She wants to put on a play and raise money for orphans.”

Lila laughed. “Come on in.”

David hesitated. “If it's all right with you, I thought we could take a walk, my last look at Round Island before I go.”

“I'll get my sweater.”

It was a golden September day, but the chill of fall was in the air. The shadows were long as they strolled with Freddy through the woods and then into the field. Leaves on the trees had a yellowy tinge, and some were curled as if to protect themselves against that last gust of wind that would blow them away. Goldenrod speckled the landscape and clumps of purple thistles lined the pathway, along with hidden rosehips in the rose bushes.

They sat on the fallen tree trunk at the edge of the beach and looked out at the water. The sound of the surf was soothing and familiar.

“I'll hear these waves in my mind,” David said. “Someday when I'm on the other side of the world I'll close my eyes and this will come back to me.”

They watched Freddy run around with a piece of seaweed in his mouth. He tossed it up in the air and chased it.

“Silly dog,” Lila smiled.

“Lila, I want to ask you something. Would you write to me while I'm away?”

“Of course, letters from home will make it less lonely.”

“I want you to write for a different reason.”

She looked at him. “Oh?”

“I'll miss you.”

Lila was aware of her heart beating. “You will?”

“Is this a complete surprise to you?”

“I'm…”

David looked away. “I'm an idiot.”

“No, you're not. I just never imagined…I've always been the boring friend of your little sister. I assumed you didn't give me a second thought.”

He took her hands. “I think of you every day. I'm afraid I might die over there and I couldn't go to my death without letting you know that I think you're wonderful.”

And then he kissed her. It was soft and warm. His breath mingled with hers and he tasted sweet and salty all at the same time. When he pulled away, he took her in with his eyes. “I'll miss you so much, Lila. Will you miss me?”

“Kiss me again.”

He obliged.

Lila was overwhelmed with the feelings that coursed through her. She wanted him to hold her even closer. Eventually he pulled her up by the hands and put his arms around her to kiss her properly. To be that close to a boy made her giddy. She didn't recognize herself.

Eventually they strolled back to the house, David holding her hand. At the car he hugged her again.

“Wait!” She ran back to the house and went into Aunt Eunie's bedroom. Lila knew Eunie had kept a few locks of Lila's hair in a small jewellery box. She took out a curl and folded it up in a small piece of paper. Then she ran back outside and put it in David's shirt pocket before he had a chance to look at it. She put her arms around his neck.

“Take this with you, it will keep you safe. I'll pray for you every night.”

“I'm coming back for you, Lila.” Another kiss and then he quickly released her, got in the car, and drove away. He didn't look back.

Lila went up to her room and lay on the bed. Freddy joined her, as her thoughts swirled around her head. She loved David as a friend, as a brother even, but this? To be in love with David was to betray Annie and her parents. They were the special family who had taken her in. Lila felt that they would be disappointed with her somehow, that she was taking advantage of the situation. This was something she had to keep from Annie. She wasn't prepared to lose her best friend over it.

Dawn was almost breaking before Lila fell asleep.

When Annie called and asked if she wanted to come to Louisbourg for the weekend, Lila said she couldn't, that she was helping Aunt Eunie with the last of the preserves. After she hung up Lila went into the kitchen. Aunt Eunie was at the sink.

“You're helping me with preserves?”

“I'm sorry. I know I lied.”

“I'm surprised. Why don't you want to see her?”

She shrugged. “No reason. I'm a little tired and Annie must get sick of me saying that all the time, so I thought up an excuse.”

Lila needed to escape that kitchen, but before she got to the door Aunt Eunie said, “If there's anything bothering you, Lila, you know you can talk to me, don't you?”

“Of course.”

Lila went upstairs.

It was only a few weeks later that Aunt Eunie found out from Ewan's mother that he had joined up. Because he was a farmer, he didn't have to go to war, but he said he couldn't live with himself if he didn't do his part. His younger brothers were old enough to keep the farm going in his absence, but his mother confessed to Eunie that she would miss him terribly.

When Lila heard the news it didn't surprise her, but she selfishly wished he weren't going. She felt safe knowing that Ewan was just down the road. Sometimes she worried about what she would do if something happened to Uncle Joe and Aunt Eunie.

That night she stayed up late making a gift for her friend. The next day she saw Ewan standing at the edge of the woods, looking at the house. She thought he was going to come to the door, but he turned and walked away. Lila grabbed the card and the first sweater she could find and ran outside.

“Ewan!”

He turned around. He'd had a haircut, which made him look younger, and instead of his overalls he wore a white shirt that was too tight for him, with dark pants and his old boots.

“When do you leave?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Everyone will miss you. I'll keep you in my prayers.”

“Lila, could you visit my mother from time to time? She gets mighty lonely.”

“Of course, I'll be glad to.”

He lowered his head. “And would you mind if I wrote to you?

“Not at all.”

He looked at her then. “I'll write home, but I won't want to worry my mother and I thought if I had someone to talk to, it wouldn't be so bad.”

“I'll write and let you know what Freddy and I are up to.”

“Don't let that dog out in a snowstorm,” he smiled. “Tie him on a rope to do his business and haul him back in.”

“I will. I made something for you to take with you, to remind you of home.” She handed him the small card and he opened it. It was a picture of the front of his barn, with all his animals looking out the barn doors. “I even put myself in there. I'm on Queenie in the back.”

“Thank you. This is…” He couldn't finish.

“I'll miss you, Ewan. Stay safe.”

She gave him a hug and pressed her cheek against his chest. When she let him go, she saw tears in his eyes but pretended she didn't.

Ewan raised his hand in farewell. “Goodbye, Lila.”

“Goodbye, Ewan.”

He walked into the woods and was gone.

Lila finished grade ten in the Round Island School and then drove into Glace Bay every morning with Uncle Joe to finish high school. Annie had asked if she wanted to stay at her house and commute into Sydney with her, but Lila declined. She felt better coming home to her own bed every night.

A small wooden bridge crossed a stream near the school. Every lunch hour for two years she threw pebbles into the water and said a prayer for Ewan and David that God would see them safely home.

She wrote to both of them faithfully.

David trained in Calgary and Vancouver. His rank was Flying Officer. He went to Bournemouth, England, before picking up a convoy to Northern Scotland, sailing through Gibraltar on a twenty-eight day journey to an area outside of Bombay, India. He was with the 99th Squadron and flew in Liberator airplanes belonging to the RAF in 1945. David would navigate the flight over the ocean, keeping track of the trail and making corrections until they reached the target areas in Siam—oil fields, supply ships in the harbour, and railway lines, to prevent the Japanese troops from retreating. David said the missions were often fourteen hours long, and that they would take off in the dark and land in the dark. It was tricky flying because of an inter-tropical front that snaked along the equator. The Liberator couldn't fly over it so they flew under it, where there were tremendous squalls.