nearly.”
“She’ll know you’re here. She’ll see your car. You can’t ignore her.”
“Fine, Julia. I’ll go see her. But you stay here until Maisy comes to rescue you. For once, let me be her father without your help.”
“Bard…”
“Save it.”
A cool breeze fanned her side where he had been sitting, and leaves crackled under his feet. “Tell you what, if you can think of any reason to see me again, you know where to reach me. I’ll wait for instructions.”
She heard his footsteps on the cobblestone path. She lowered her chin and stared sightlessly at the ground.
Maisy watched her granddaughter run to her father, then stop several feet away, as if she was aware he might not want to see her.
“Hi, Daddy.”
“Callie.” He nodded his head. He didn’t reach for her, but he didn’t move away, either. “Your mother said you were checking on Feather Foot. She’s doing all right in there?”
“It’s so neat. Jake works there every day, and he can keep her company while I’m in school. She has everything she needs.”
Bard looked at Maisy. “Sounds like you have my family all tucked in here.”
Maisy didn’t take the bait. “We’re glad to lend a hand.”
“I made a B on my history report.” Callie moved a little closer. “The one about Mosby’s Rangers.”
“That’s good.” He sounded neither critical nor enthused. Clearly his mind wasn’t on the conversation.
Callie tried again. “A B is good. It’s better than last time, right?”
“That’s not the way to look at it, Callie. A B is okay. An A would be better.”
Callie didn’t seem surprised. She made a face. “You mean I’m not supposed to be happy?”
“You can be happy.” He seemed to focus on her. “A B is good enough to be happy about.”
“Did you always get As?”
“Pretty nearly all the time.”
Her face fell. “Maybe I’m not that smart.”
Maisy was angry enough at this exchange to intervene, but his next words stopped her. “You’re smart enough to make me happy.”
Callie giggled. He stepped forward and smoothed her hair. “Walk me to my car.”
“Where’s Mommy?”
Maisy frowned. Where was Julia?
Bard turned to her. “Julia’s sitting in the garden. It’s getting colder. She’ll need some help getting back inside.” He started toward the black BMW, which was parked near the barn, and Callie tagged along beside him.
“He looks like he ran into a hornet’s nest,” Maisy said when Jake joined her. “He left Julia in my garden.”
“He’s a man with a number of strengths. Dealing with feelings isn’t one of them.”
“I want to slap him when he makes Callie ashamed of herself.”
“Maisy, he struggles. Anyone can see that.”
She felt reprimanded, and it wasn’t the first time. Lately she had felt the subtle sting of Jake’s disapproval more and more. “She’s just a little girl.”
“She’s a lot stronger than you give her credit for. They have to work out their own relationship.”
“I know that.” She sounded hurt, although she had hoped not to.
“Do you? You protect everyone you love. Some people would say you smother them.”
“Do I smother you, Jake?” The hurt was still there.
“Only when I let you.”
She knew there was nothing else she could say. He squeezed her arm, as if to comfort her. “I’ll get Julia. I know you’ll want to help Callie get ready for bed.”
Maisy watched him walk away. Finally she drew a deep breath and realized it was the first she had taken since his answer.
8
“Mommy, when I shut my eyes, I can still see light. Can you see light?”
“I don’t think so. Turn me toward the lamp.”
From the noise she made, Callie thought that was funny. She stood on the bed and put her small hands on Julia’s shoulders; then she guided her. “Can you see it?”
“When you close your eyes, you’re still getting light through your eyelids. Whatever is wrong with my eyes, the light doesn’t penetrate.”
“Daddy says something’s wrong with your head. But not because you hit it.”
Julia was glad Bard had reassured Callie of that much, at least. “It’s hard to understand.”
“If you just try real hard, maybe you can see.”
Julia heard Bard in her daughter’s words. She positioned herself to sit on the bed. “Remember when you were learning to read, and no matter how hard you tried, you still couldn’t make any sense out of all those letters? Remember how you had to have a special teacher who knew what your problem was and how to help you with it?”
“I’m not even nine yet, Mommy,” Callie said with exaggerated patience. “I remember.”
Julia put her arms around her daughter, or rather, she put her arms around empty space until Callie snuggled against her. “Well, it’s the same way for me. No matter how hard I struggle to see, I can’t. I’m going to need a special teacher to help me see again, somebody who knows what my problem is.”
“A seeing teacher?”
Julia wished it were that easy. “A psychologist. A counselor.”
“I’m learning to read. Maybe you’ll learn to see, too.”
“You’re doing very well with your reading. And because it’s harder for you, it’ll mean more.”
“I had to read out loud in class yesterday.”
Julia had an agreement with Callie’s teacher that this would never happen. “Why?”
“We had a substitute. Mrs. Quinn was at a meeting. I just told her it was hard for me, so she let me stop. But the other kids laughed.”
“What
