have been killed when Eddie lost control.
An ache settled in the pit of Thea’s stomach. She might have let Eileen down but she’d make up for it, raise her sister’s baby as her own. Which meant getting the baby back.
Thea pushed away from the tree and scanned the Daniels’s front yard as people lingered along the makeshift aisle, following the path the newly remarried couple had taken just moments ago. She wobbled forward and instantly yearned for the sturdy comfort of her army boots, the new heels she’d bought this morning shifting on the unlevel ground. Omaha Beach hadn’t given her as much trouble as these silly shoes.
“Thea Miller?”
Thea felt her shoulders stiffen. Any hope of getting through the day unnoticed vanished. It had been a foolish hope, anyway. Nothing ever stayed hidden in Marietta. Her mother and sister had taught her that. Thea turned, her skirts whispering softly around her legs, making her long for the confidence she’d always felt in her army greens or nursing whites. An auburn-haired woman waddled toward her, the loose pleats of her dress floating over her swollen belly as she slowly moved down the row.
Thea’s mouth turned up in an unexpected smile. “Maggie Daniels?”
“I thought that was you! How are you?” Maggie smiled as if she was truly happy to see her. “It’s Maggie Hicks now.” She caressed a loving hand against the swell of her stomach. “This here’s Peanut.”
“Family name?”
Maggie’s smile widened. “On my husband’s side.”
The soft chuckles that rasped against her throat startled Thea. How long had it been since she’d truly laughed? Not since before the war, maybe even longer. “Congratulations, Maggie.”
“Thank you, but what about you? Last time I talked to your mother, you were in nursing school in Memphis.”
Thea nodded. So her mother hadn’t told anyone in town she’d joined the Army Nurse Corps. At least she’d read Thea’s letters and knew where her daughter had gone. She’d never written back, so Thea had wondered if the letters had been thrown away, her mother still holding a grudge about the way Thea had left home. Though, what had her mother expected after what she’d done, giving Eileen’s first baby to a total stranger? “I joined the Army Nurse Corps a year after graduation.”
“Where were you stationed?”
“Stateside at first, then I was sent to Sheffield, England.”
“Really?” Her friend’s green eyes warmed. “My husband’s grandfather owned an airfield outside York for many years but he’s been in the States for a while now.”
“It must have been lovely then.” Before the army barracks and field hospitals had filled the lush green fields surrounding the quaint buildings that formed the town’s center. Thea closed her eyes. So much damage to that lovely land and the people who lived there. So many families torn apart, extinguished, never to be together again in this life. The need to see her own family had driven her these last few weeks, across the Atlantic then down the East Coast.
But where was home now, and who could she count as family since her baby sister was gone and her mother seemed to be a shell of herself? But then look at what Momma had lost in the past few months, her daughter and grandchild. Who could blame her for being quiet and withdrawn?
“I was so sorry to hear about Eileen.”
Thea swallowed against the lump in her throat. Condolences weren’t easy to hear. “Me, too.”
“I didn’t even know she was in town until I heard about the accident.”
That little piece of news surprised Thea. “Where else would she be?”
Maggie frowned in confusion. “Didn’t you know? She left for Atlanta right about the time you took off for school. This past summer was the first time she’d been back since then.”
What had Eileen been doing in Atlanta? Why had she come back here to have her baby? “She must have been visiting Momma.”
“Your momma must treasure that time now.”
Thea drew in a deep sigh. “She doesn’t talk about it much.”
“I couldn’t imagine, losing my child like that. It must be hard to talk about it with the pain still fresh.” Maggie rubbed her hand over her swollen middle as if holding her unborn child close.
“Maybe.” Or maybe not. Momma had never shown much emotion or warmth toward either her or her sister, especially after their father had died in a farming accident when she’d been only four and Eileen no more than three. Thea had taken over mothering Eileen then, rocking her back to sleep when she woke up from a bad dream, making sure Eileen was fed before she’d head off to school in the morning. As she grew older, Eileen and their mother had started to fight. When Eileen’s wild ways blossomed in her early teens and proved to be embarrassing, the arguments had grown worse. Thea could only imagine how bad things had gotten after Momma had given Eileen’s baby away. Maybe it wasn’t that surprising that Eileen had decided to leave town. Why had she come home to deliver her second baby? Maybe she and Momma had made things right between them.
“They’re ready to cut the cake!”
Both women turned to where a boy of about twelve stood on the porch at the top of the stairs, a wooden cane bearing the weight of his lean frame. Scowling, he fidgeted with his tie, leaving it slightly off center. His dark coat sat precariously on his shoulders, as if the boy hadn’t decided whether to fling it off or not.
“He looks happy to be here,” Thea commented.
Maggie’s warm laughter coaxed another rare smile from her. “Billy’s not quite sure about this wedding stuff, but give him a plate of Aunt Merrilee’s cooking and he’s happier than a puppy with two tails.”
Thea relaxed a bit. She’d always liked Maggie, liked her plain talk and friendly way of treating everyone the same, no matter their social status. “Please tell your aunt congratulations from me.”
“You can tell her yourself.” Before Thea had a chance to respond, Maggie tucked her hand into Thea’s arm and pulled her out of the shadows.
Thea glanced around, praying no one else would notice her. “I’m not exactly dressed for a wedding.”
“You look fine, and I refuse to let a woman who served our boys overseas get away without a piece of Merrilee’s wedding cake. It’s the first time she’s baked anything since they stopped rationing sugar and eggs.”
The thought of such a sweet delight after four long years was almost too much for Thea to bear. But staying for the reception felt too awkward. She’d approach Ms. Aurora another time, maybe get up the nerve to go to her door and ask about Eileen’s baby. She may not know the woman personally, but she’d heard enough about her kindness and generosity to the children she’d taken in to her home, disabled children who’d been abandoned, to hope that this had all been a simple misunderstanding. One they could resolve easily...after which, she’d be able to bring Eileen’s baby home.
A screen door slapped shut in front of her, and she found herself staring into the dark wool of a man’s suit coat. She lifted her gaze and admired the taut muscles of the man’s
