Willow House Chapter 27

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 A Few Answers to a Few Questions

     

      Mom picks Tommy up at 4:00, when he’s done napping. Mrs. Hallovich ushers the rest of us outside, where she gives my friends a grand tour of the yard, the carriage house, and the greenhouse. We don’t go down to the pond. 

     After the tour, we set up the croquet game. Melanie loves it.

     “Not too bad for a game made for 80-year-old grandmas, is it?,” I ask, as I step on my yellow ball placed right next to hers, and send her green one flying into the next county.

     She rolls her eyes at me. 

     Then, she goes to chase after her ball.

     Just before 6:00, we stop to help Mrs. Hallovich put things away. Mandy’s dad arrives shortly after that to pick up her and Melanie.

     As Daleni, Mrs. H., and I are waving goodbye, Mrs. H. heaves a big sigh and says, “I bet you girls have a lot of questions.”

     That’s the understatement of the century.

     The three of us move to the iron table under the giant willow tree.

     Mrs. Hallovich starts. “I never, in a million years, thought that my daughter presented any kind of danger to you or your brother, Ella. I didn’t realize that she had become so . . . so present. I’m very sorry.” She pats my hand.

     “Then, that really was your daughter Gertrude?”

     Mrs. H. nods. 

     “So, she didn’t die like you said?”

     “Yes, Ella. She died when she was seventeen.”

     “Then . . . she’s a ghost?”

     "Something like that.”

     Daleni speaks up. “Is that why she wouldn’t let Ella or Tommy touch her?”

     “Yes.” Mrs. H. nods. “She has a physical presence, but it’s not quite the same as ours. You would have recognized something was different.”

     “Why did she take Tommy?” I ask.

     “I think she was terribly tired of being alone.”

     “But she has you! She’s not alone.”

     “It’s not quite the same, Dear. Trudy is on a different plane than us. Do you know what I mean by that?”

      Daleni and I both nod because we’ve spent a lot of time watching the sci-fi channel. It means she’s not all the way part of this world.

     “How did she get there?” I ask.

     “That’s the million dollar question!” she says. “All of those willows that Sam planted around the pond, were enchanted. I don’t know much about how it all works, but the magic they carried was the same magic that has kept Sam looking so young when everyone else aged. They created a kind of fountain of youth. Sam had planted them to give that gift to my father and his family.”

     I hate to ask my next question because I hear it’s not polite to ask a lady about her age. I’m pretty sure that this situation is different though. “Are you really 130 years old?”

     Mrs. H. nods. “131 actually. But, I stopped swimming in that terrible pond years ago.

     “Did your parents stay young?” I asked.

     “Well, the magic doesn’t reverse your age, only preserves you where you are. So, no, they didn’t stay young. Besides that, my parents simply didn’t swim. You see, you have to spend time in the water. I never understood why, but Sam had a strict rule that the children were not allowed to swim in the pond. I thought maybe it was because the pond was too deep, or too cold. I didn’t truly know about the enchantment until Gertrude got sick.” She paused.

     “What happened?”

     “Sam thought the willows would save her when the doctors were failing. He checked her out of the sanitarium and brought her home. He carried her out into the water of the pond. She died in his arms.”

     “So, the magic couldn’t save her?”

     “No, Dear. But, it did something. It made her unable to pass over to where we all need to go when when we die.”

     “Couldn’t Sam do something?”

     “He didn’t want to do anything. He wanted to keep Gertrude close to us.”

     “It was Sam who rescued Tommy, wasn’t it?”

     “Yes,” Mrs. Hallovich said. “That was Sam.”

      I think about that for a moment. “What now?” I finally ask.

     “I’m not sure. Sam and I have some things to discuss.”

     I have a few more questions and then I need to go home and sleep for a couple of days because I’m pretty sure my brain is starting to smoke. “Is it Sam who’s been cleaning up the place?”

     Mrs. Hallovich laughed. “That’s partly correct. You see, Sam was so delighted when you and your brother arrived that, yes, he put his green thumb to work and began doing things to bring the lawn and gardens back to their former glory.”

     “What’s the other part?” I ask.

     “The house itself. Sam only helped. He couldn’t have done it all alone. I believe that the whole house is enchanted, and in some way has been very happy to have you home.”

     Daleni and I look at each other. Wow.

     Mrs. H. continues. “Your presence here may also be what pulled Trudy further onto this plane.” She looks down at her lap. “I hope that wherever she is now, she’s happy, and that I will be with her again someday.”

     I take a deep breath. Here comes, for me, the real million dollar question. “Mrs. Hallovich?” I have trouble getting the words out. “I guess you’re my . . . “ I look to Daleni for help and she gives me a little nod. She knows what I’m afraid to ask out loud, but Mrs. H. saves me. 

     “Yes, my dear. I am your great-great grandmother.”

     Tears fill all six of our eyes. Then, the three of us jump when we hear a car horn blast from the curb. My mom is here to pick Daleni and me up. Daleni is spending the night at my house tonight.

     “What do I tell my parents? Do they know about all of this?” I ask as we head around to the front of the house.

     Mrs. Hallovich stops me and places her hands on my shoulders. “They don’t know anything yet. We’ll have to put our heads together and come up with as much of the truth as we can without scaring them. For now, just tell them about the tea party.”