Quilt As Desired

Grandmother's Flower Garden project,” she said, effectively ending the discussion of Harold.

Harriet chose several dark blues, a cream-colored tone-on-tone print and a red print. She decided to make things easy for herself and bought a bag of pre-cut hexagonal papers. In only a few minutes, she was seated at the big table cutting pieces of her new fabric among a group of middle-aged women she'd never met before today. Mavis made the appropriate introductions, and Harriet was grateful when the women went back to their stitching without asking her any more about the recent events in her life.

She had just stitched her first complete flower when Mavis stood up and rubbed her back.

'I don't know about you, honey, but I'm starving. What do you say we go find us some lunch?'

'Sounds great.” Aunt Beth would have a cow if she saw how often Harriet was eating out in her absence. She was trying to make good choices, but she knew it didn't compare to the “all salad all the time” diet Aunt Beth had put her on when she arrived.

'I been feeling like Mexican food,” Mavis said. “What do you think?'

Harriet's heart skipped a beat. She reminded herself there was probably more than one Mexican restaurant in Foggy Point.

'I like Mexican food,” she said, her voice sounding strange in her ears.

'Anyone else want to join us?” Mavis asked. She was thanked for her offer, but Harriet was relieved when, one by one, they declined.

'Shall we walk over to Tico's Tacos?'

'Can we stop by the car first and drop off my new wardrobe?'

'That can be arranged.” Mavis looked out the shop window and pulled a plastic rain hat from her pocket. “Looks like it's going to be a wet walk. Did you buy anything waterproof?'

Harriet was already pulling the green jacket from her bag. “I hope I don't run into the person who donated this to the thrift store,” she said with a smile.

'The same people own another store in Port Angeles. I'm pretty sure they swap the stuff between the stores for that very reason.'

A light mist filled the air as Harriet and Mavis said their goodbyes and stepped out onto the sidewalk. Harriet's new jacket didn't have a hood, and by the time they had walked to the car to deposit her bags and then on to Tico's her hair was damp.

A young woman with thick black hair pulled back into a neat braid showed them to a booth by the window. Harriet got up immediately and went to the restroom to use the hand dryer on her hair. When she returned, Mavis was dipping a blue corn chip into a stone bowl overflowing with guacamole. Harriet grabbed a chip and had just dipped it into the bowl when a pair of hands covered her eyes.

'Guess who?” Aiden said.

It was all she could do to not scream. She pried his hands off her eyes and turned around.

'What happened to your eyes?” she asked, and felt the color drain from her face.

'What do you mean?” he asked. “Oh, these?'

He pointed to his eye then cupped his hand in front of his face and pinched his eye surface with his thumb and forefinger. A brown sliver of plastic fell into his hand. He held it out for her to see. His eye was now its normal pale color. The other one remained dark brown.

'Mom got me dark contacts the first time we traveled out of the country. When I was in Africa, I had to wear them all the time-my eye color freaked out the locals. I still have a bunch of them, and frankly, it's easier sometimes to blend in.'

'It's amazing how different they make you look,” she said.

'They look natural,” Mavis said. “Sarah wears colored lenses that make her eyes a color of green never before seen in nature.'

'I'd be happy to have normal brown or blue eyes like everyone else,” he confessed.

'Don't try and tell me you didn't use your looks to your advantage with the girls when you were in high school,” Mavis said. “I was here, remember.'

He had the grace to blush. “Are you ladies having lunch?'

'Would you care to join us?” Mavis invited him.

'I thought you'd never ask,” he said and sat next to Harriet, his leg pressed against hers.

Harriet was distracted during lunch in spite of the delicious tomatillo enchiladas and Spanish rice she ate. Aiden was at his charming best, making Mavis smile throughout the meal, but there was something about this brown-eyed Aiden that bothered her.

'Are you about done?” Mavis asked her.

'So soon?” Aiden protested.

'Almost,” Mavis said. “I'm going to powder my nose, then I think I need to get Harriet home for some rest. We've had a busy morning, and she's looking a bit peaky.'

'I wish people wouldn't talk about me as if I weren't here.” She found this one of the less charming aspects of life in Foggy Point. Perhaps it was inevitable when most of your friends were old enough to be your mother.

Mavis patted her arm, got up and went to the restroom.

'So, what's wrong? And don't tell me you're just tired,” Aiden demanded.

'I am tired, but not like Mavis means. I'm tired of being in limbo.” She looked at the sleeve of her green coat. “I can't even wear my own clothes.'

He put his arm around her and pulled her to his chest. “This is bound to be over soon.'

'Have you heard something? Do they know who killed your mother?” She looked into his brown eyes.

He slumped. “No. I stopped by the police station on my way here. They have no idea. They're still going on the belief that she came back to work after dinner and startled a thief in the process of robbing the factory.'

'You still don't believe it?'

'No, and don't try to tell me you do, either. I don't know who did it, but I'll bet it's not some stranger. It's going to be someone we know.'

Mavis cleared her throat as she approached the table. Harriet straightened up, buttoned her coat and slid out of the booth.

'Can I come by and see you later?” Aiden asked.

She hesitated.

'We'll take a rain check,” Mavis answered for her. “We're going to Tacoma tomorrow and need to rest up.'

'Thank you,” Harriet said when they were outside again.

'I may be old, but I can catch a hint with the best of them.'

'I can't deal with Aiden and Harold right now on top of everything else. They're both trying to be so helpful, but I'm not sure I completely trust either one of them.'

'We can agree to disagree about Aiden, and I don't know Harold well enough to have an opinion, but you don't need any more pressure right now.'

'That we can agree about.'

Chapter Thirty-two

Harriet waited until Mavis had fallen asleep in her chair before she went out to the potting shed in the woods.

'Misty,” she called quietly. “Misty.'

'Hush, little baby, don't say a word…'

Harriet opened the door slowly. “Misty? It's Harriet. I have your medicine.'

It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dark room. She couldn't see Misty at first, but finally spotted her cowering in the corner on what looked like a pile of rags. She stepped closer and could see the woman was methodically tearing a baby quilt into small strips.

'I brought you your medicine,” she said, and held out a pill and a bottle of water-she wasn't sure Misty had heard her.