Part 57 (1/2)
”Coot out of the car ”Anne, this is Christina Christina's mother was a very close friend of irl”
An instant warmth seemed to floeen them They touched hands first, then iht?” Anne asked
”He's fine,” Christina smiled
”Anne, look” I lifted the cover of the blanket and she saw the sleeping baby ”This is Danielle”
Anne's eyes ide ”Whose baby is she? Where did she come from?”
''Mine now, I guess You remember her father and mother Jeb Stuart and Betty May?”
She nodded ”Yes Where are they?”
It was hard saying the words It was still too new ”They're dead” She looked puzzled I could see more questions in her face ”I'll explain it later Meanwhile, I ondering if you could keep her in your house until after the wedding is over I wouldn't like toif I don't have to”
”Of course” She turned to Christina ”We'll take her up to et over to your house They have to be going crazy over there by now The wedding's due to begin any minute and your mother told everybody that you had promised to be there”
I went over the fence as I always had When I went up the steps of the back porch, I looked back They were going into the house with the baby I opened the kitchen door and went inside
Maht she would alray Then she ran to ainst her arown up an' a big , half crying ”I don't knohat all the fuss is about I said I'd come home, didn't I?”
''Yoh o fetch her”
”No Let o upstairs and wash up first I don't want to scare hell out of her”
”I pressed yoh blue suit for you,” Maed to get inside without running into anyone Fro of glasses I headed right for the bathroom and a shave and shower In less than tenI looked atto look more Hke my father than ever Carefully I tied the knot in my tie, sHpped on my jacket and went down the hall to my mother's room and knocked at the door
Mother's voice came from inside ”Who is it?”
”Your son,” I said
The wedding was at five o'clock proone and only the family and the closest friends were left My brother, Daniel, and his wife, Sally; Moses Barrington; Judge Gitlin and his wife, Zelda, and Anne's parents, the Forbeses
Daniel looked over at Moses ”Are you sure we can really spare hi up next week”
Moses went along with the joke ”You rinned ”Coot to my feet ”I'll be back in a minute” I left the room and went out the back door and over the fence I went into Anne's house and up to her roo happily Anne looked up at me ''She's really beautiful”
Christina set her back”
”Forget it,” I said ”Wrap her up We're going over to my house”
Anne held the baby while I backed the Rolls carefully out of the driveway and went around the block tothe bell
Myin astonishment She looked down at Danielle in my arms, then up at me For the first time in my life, she was speechless I carried the baby into the room and everybody went crazy The questions caot everyone to calm down
I Hked him In some ways he reminded me of my father He always carried his own bottle of whiskey with hie's drink was Scotch And, Uke et hi it into a glass while his wife, Zelda, yelled at him just as my mother had yelled at my father
”Relax Let the boy tell the story in his oay,” he said, stroking thoughtfully at his iron-gray, neatly triling”
”What's that got to do with it?” Zelda deht it was interesting” He s everybody off base ”All right, Jonathan”
I gave Danielle to ot disposable diapers out in the car if she should need the down into Danielle's face ''She has such beautiful blue eyes”
Judge Gitlin s ”Take your ti”
I looked around the roo to hurt anyone's feelings ”It all began at Father's funeral How much did any of us really know about him? Somehow all of us saw him differently Because each of us in our oay saw only anted to see in his But he was so more More than any of us saw He was hian with thethat Anne and I had picked up the truck on US 1 and finished hat had happened thisThe clock in the foyer chimed ten as I finished
I looked around at theiven the baby a name, so I did Danielle, after Father Noant to keep her She has no one else, no faot a birth certificate Jeb Stuart had never gone down to Fitchville to record her birth They planned to do it when they went down to have her baptized But it never happened”
Judge Gitlin nodded thoughtfully and took a pull at the bottle of Scotch This time Zelda didn't yell at him ”It's not as easy as you make it sound, Jonathan,” he said quietly ”First of all, you are a minor yourself andthere is no court in the land that would give you the custody of an infant child”
”Why not?” I asked ”All I have to do is file a birth certificate that I'e said ”There are al problems to surmount A search would have to be conducted for any possible relatives or family Then if there are any, consents would have to be obtained, and if not, she would be made a ward of the state until her disposition was settled”
That's stupid,” I said ”What's to stopoff with her?”
”You know better than that, Jonathan” He looked at ht be a way to keep her close to you with much less of a problem However, it would take the assistance of Jack and your mother”
”What's that?” I asked
'If they illing to adopt her, I could find ways to expedite things” He paused for a moment ”But that is a decision they would have to e on the down at Danielle and crying Jack went over to her and knelt by her side He looked up into her face, down at Danielle, then up at Mother again
He cleared his throat ”I alanted a little girl”