“I know about the photos and why they're gone, but nobody talks about your mom, either,” Eamon said. “What was she like?”
Another question with no easy answer. “I guess she was a regular mom. She did normal mom stuff like make us school lunches and helped with our homework. She worked at the flower shop in town.”And she tried to fold us into the life she wanted with a man who wasn't our dad.
“Nice.” Eamon began fishing things out of the box, coats and old ratty mittens. At the bottom was a pair of pink fleece-lined rubber boots that had once belonged to me. “These?”
“Oh. Wow. These were mine.” I took one of them in my hand. They were a lighter color than I'd remembered, but perhaps the years had faded them. I should've been wearing them the day of the accident. If I'd gone to school that morning, they would’ve been on my feet. But I was home sick with a high fever, half delirious. When Mom made me get in the car so we could get Amy from school, I couldn't find my boots, and she told me there was no time to look for them. She'd told me to wear sneakers, with my pajamas no less, because she didn't want to wait for me to get dressed in proper clothes. If I'd had those boots on, I wouldn't have come so perilously close to getting frostbite on my toes from all those hours in the car, stuck at the bottom of an embankment, begging God to let Amy and me live. Why Dad had kept these boots was beyond me. But at least they hadn't been with us in the car that day. I would've been sick to my stomach right now.
“Sure,” I said. “I was ten when I wore them, but Fiona's much taller than I was at her age. Her feet might be bigger.”
“The MacWards are known for their big feet.” Eamon chuckled and tossed the box back into place. “That's settled then.”
We climbed down the rickety wood ladder and he closed up the hatch. Amy and Fiona were downstairs already bundled up, Fiona standing there in her socks.
“These are Katherine's. Take good care of them.” Eamon handed over the boots.
“Don't be silly. Get them as dirty and wet as you like. You can trash them for all I care.”
Fiona worked her feet into the boots while I grabbed my coat, mittens, hat and scarf. Amy headed out into the front yard with the dogs, which were starting to get hyper.
Eamon pecked Fiona on the cheek, but saved a real kiss for me, right on the lips. “You lasses have fun. Be safe.”
“We will. Don't let my dad drive you crazy. Maybe you and Luke can watch TV or something.”
“No way. This is my chance to pepper your dad with questions you never want to answer.”
Great.“Try to keep things light. He doesn't do well with serious.”
Eamon nodded and shoved his hands into his pockets. “Something tells me we'll be fine.”
If only I could be so certain. Out Fiona and I went into the cold. It was a beautiful day—clear and bright with not much wind, but this was not typical Thanksgiving weather. “God, it's freezing,” I said.
Fiona grabbed my hand. “That's why we need to go exploring. It'll keep us warm. Come on.” She let go of me and ran ahead, Tilly and Sadie following her and leaving paw prints in the snow.
Amy and I brought up the rear, keeping tabs on Fiona. “Stay on the path,” Amy shouted.
Fiona tossed back her head and yelled, “Okay!”
“She's so great,” Amy said. “She makes me want to have kids. Like right away. That wasn't even on my radar, to be honest. Marriage seemed like enough for right now, but she's so sweet and fun.”
“I know. She makes me want to have kids, too. Or maybe just spend more time with her.”
“How are things with her mom? Is it awkward?”
“Surprisingly, it’s not that weird. I mean, I’m pretty sure Rachel still has a thing for Eamon, but maybe that's me being paranoid. And it’s not like it’s a problem. She seems happily married.”
“It'd be hard not to carry a torch for a guy like Eamon. I don't know how you walk around without your tongue dragging on the floor.”
“Very funny. I manage.” Fiona was into the woods now, but was doing a good job staying on the path. The snow we rarely had at Thanksgiving was ankle-deep, and with the sun on its afternoon fall, the shadows of the thousands of trees around us began to shift and swell. It was like being in a carnival fun house. Your eyes could deceive you. The dogs were bounding, nipping at each other, darting off into the trees and rolling in the snow.
“Just stay on the path,” I called to Fiona.
She turned and flashed her bright blue eyes at me. “I’ll be fine.”
And your father will kill me if anything happens to you.“Let's catch up to her,” I said to Amy. “It makes me nervous when she's so far ahead.”
Amy agreed and we walked double-time to close the gap. “What do you think, Fiona? Is this anything like Ireland?”
“There are woods next to Dad's house. I like to explore them, but he doesn't let me go by myself and we don't have any dogs.” Tilly stopped and rounded back to her, endeavoring to stick her nose right in Fiona's face. “I wish Dad would let me get a dog.”
