* * *
A couple of days later, Savannah was at her aunt's house. Aunt Lucy seemed very glad to put her up for a while. She offered her one of the nicest rooms in the huge two story old farmhouse, and after Savannah had unpacked they had a long talk.
Her aunt was a mixture of her mother and her uncle. She was eccentric, she loved the unusual and she lived life to the fullest. Even though her blonde hair had faded into gray a long time ago, her green eyes twinkled with mischief and merriment every time she spoke. Savannah warmed to her quickly.
"Well, I'm just glad you found out about your young man before you married him. It's unfortunate but these days things are so different." Aunt Lucy said, pouring them both a cup of hot tea.
Savannah didn't want to dwell on Chad and the wedding though, so she changed the subject. "Do you go to Europe often?"
"Land sakes no, child. A church friend of mine, in Junction wanted to go, since her husband died and I offered to go with her. We had a good time, considering she spent most of the trip talking about her Howard as though he was right there with us. Frankly, it gave me the willies. But we enjoyed Italy so much, and the food was outrageously wonderful. I'd like to go again, but with the right company." She winked.
Savannah smiled, wondering what it might be like to be married to someone she loved so much she couldn't let go of him even after death.
"So...are your folks okay with you being here?" Aunt Lucy asked, sipping her tea and eyeing her over the rim of the cup.
"I don't know..." Savannah hesitated. "I mean, I haven't talked to them since I left home. They wouldn't know I was here except for Ben. He thought it only right to contact them. You see, I took their car."
"Oh...well, surely they won't be too upset. The running out on the wedding probably shocked them more."
"I'm here because I didn't think they'd come out here. I mean, I figured this was the best place to be, and the safest."
Her aunt hung her head, a sad expression crossing her aging but beautiful face. "I see. You know this all started a long time ago. It was a silly argument we had years ago, about Mama's funeral that caused the rift between me and your mother. I miss her so. Your mother that is. What did it really matter, Mom was dead, but we continued to fight over it until we weren't speaking at all to each other. I've regretted it many times. I've almost called her several times, but I didn't want to make her angrier."
"Oh I'm sorry. I didn't know why you weren't talking to each other. Mother doesn't talk about it. It never dawned on me how you might feel about me being here. It's just that, well, when I ran, the only person I thought of was you. I remembered how kind you had been to me as a little girl, and I thought maybe this would be a place they would never dream of looking for me. If it hadn't been for Ben, they still wouldn't know where I am."
"It's probably best they do know dear." Aunt Lucy's head came up and a twinkle in her eye told Savannah they were comrades in arms at this moment.
"I can leave if I'm a bother to you," she began until her aunt shook her head. "I hadn't even thought you might not want me here."
"Nonsense, I'm glad you are here. It's very lonely living in this old house, it's so big, and so empty. I never had children of my own, you know."
"Why not?"
"I never could have children. My Henry and I tried so hard to have children. But it just wasn't meant to be. I think part of the problem was that I grew so attached to everyone else's children. In fact, I wanted you to stay with me that summer you last visited, but your mother was adamant. Your mother never understood me very well. We never got along, not even as children."
"I'm sorry you've been so alone. Maybe...I can make it up to you, Aunt Lucy. Whatever happened to Uncle Henry? Mom never told me."
"He died about eight years ago, not long after your last visit, in fact. Had a heart attack one day out in the fields. It was a hot day, he shouldn't have been out there in the first place, but he wanted to pick what was left of the corn. We were married forty-three years, come September. Anyway, I'm old enough now to know I can't hold you here. So you are welcome as long as you want to stay."
"Thanks, you might regret that invitation." Savannah laughed.
"So, what are your plans? Or do you have any yet?"
"I'm not sure. I want to photograph wild life, for one thing, and the Dude Ranch I'd been staying at provided a wealth of that for me. I thought I'd try to land a magazine layout with the pictures I've taken. Would you like to see them?"
"Of course I would, I love animals. Come sit beside me and show me what you have."
They spent well into the night, looking at the photographs and Savannah thought how wonderful it was to have someone appreciate her work. And someone she could confide in, too.
Chapter Eight