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Silence descended and with her mother’s eyes, which she knew were upon her, she considered opening the back door and jumping to her death. Her hand slid toward the silver handle, the pain of the last few days spinning in her mind.
“Donja,” Frankie said, “you can have my room and I’ll sleep on the couch.”
Silence, the worst yet.
Donja raised a tremulous hand from the door to her brow. She glanced to Frankie, so young yet so much like their father. She eyed his bruised and swelling nose, evidence of his love. She fought for composure and forced a smile which really wasn’t a smile at all. “That’s okay, bro.” She sniffled. “You and Maestro deserve your own room. I’ll be fine,” she said with a maniacal glare to her mother. “Right Mom?”
“Honey, I promise you, it won’t be long, your room will be our top priority, actually the entire top floor takes precedence, I swear it, right, Carson?”
“Absolutely,” he retorted.
Donja spun, staring out the window. The miles flew by in silence and though she couldn’t be certain; she thought she heard her mom sniffle.
“Mom, you said the top floor. How many floors are there?”
Without looking, Lisa replied. “Three, but this is a very old home and the third floor has not been used in over a hundred years, so we’ll need plumbing installed for the baths, heating ducts, insulation and new drywall.”
You were crying, I can tell by your voice.
“A hundred years,” Donja said, tucking her hair behind her ears. “Gosh, how old is this place?”
Lisa’s demeanor shifted, the pain in her voice fading. “Old. It’s actually listed in the historical documents as early 1800’s and it’s so charming. Carson and I fell in love the minute we saw it.”
“Oh…my…God!” Donja shrieked.
“Don’t think badly until you see it,” Carson chimed in with a quick glance to the back seat. “And just so you know, Makayla is just as upset about moving as you are, but your mother and I thought a fresh start for the entire family would be best and,” he took a breath, “sharing a room will give you and Makayla time alone to get to know each other.”
Donja exhaled and she could all but feel the blood drain from her face. She cowered into the seat, her mind spinning.
How much more can I take?
She bit at her lip, emotions rolling like thunder.
Keep your mouth shut, just count, like the counselor said. This too will pass.
Hours later, jerked from slumber by her mother’s voice, Donja sat up and realized first that she had fallen asleep and second that the day was near gone with the sun sinking toward the horizon.
“Look!” her mom said excitedly. “It’s the Mackinaw Bridge.”
Donja jumped to attention, gripping the front seat while pulling herself forward. Her heart hammered, my God, she had for many years, dreamed of visiting Mackinaw Island so that she could see, first hand, the ‘Grand Hotel’ from “Somewhere in Time” with Christopher Reeves and Jane Seymour. The movie which was her mom’s favorite and hers as well, always left her in tears, yet each time her mom had it on, she fell in beside her on the sofa, a box of tissues and a bag of Hershey’s kisses in hand. She pulled herself snug to the front seat, and though it wasn’t the island, it was close enough. Gazing between her mother and Carson, the bridge which was quite impressive, unfolded before her eyes. It reminded her of pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge and she fumbled in her backpack and found her android. She took pictures of the lake, hundreds of feet below them, several sail boats and a tug in the distance. The passage took forever, and she was totally amazed by the cabled structure.
“It’s bigger than I imagined,” she said with her misery, if even for the moment, fading.
“It’s five miles long,” Carson said, more than double the Golden Gate Bridge and the winds across these straits are so fierce at times that the bridge is monitored by the hour and wind conditions are issued for safe passage.
“Wow, that’s a long way down!” Frankie gushed excitedly.
“Indeed, it is my son, it’s nigh on two hundred feet,” Carson said, “and, it’s the 3rd longest suspension in world.”
“Cool,” Frankie gushed.
Donja cocked her head and zeroed in on Carson. A feverish heat spread up her chest to her jaw which she realized was tightly clenched.
He called him son.
Donja glanced to Frankie who was absolutely glowing. She released her jaw and the tightness in her chest subsided.
Frankie leaned forward, hanging on Carson’s every word as he explained that five men had met their death building this bridge. Donja watched the twinkle in Frankie’s eyes and in that moment, she realized that her brother who was only nine years old needed a father. She exhaled, a bit tremulous, but satisfied for if there was to be a substitute, Carson was by far the best man for the job.
