“Do you like it?”
Scott stands behind me, his arms around my middle, his head nuzzling on my neck.
“It’s wonderful.”
The same goes for our bedroom, the guest bedroom, and the two bathrooms. I tried the taps and they work. Real water is flowing out. So do the light switches. No longer carrying water in buckets from the pump in the garden, no longer roaming the house at night by candlelight.
“Come, you have to see the backyard. I have another surprise for you.”
He pulls me down the stairs, through the laundry—oh, a nice laundry—and out the back door. I’m curious. We had nothing planned for the back garden, it was supposed to be our wild bit, so Rena and Prince have space to be carefree without having to look out for flower or vegetable beds.
Oh yes, the backyard was beautiful. The new extension had a large wet room and a bathroom fit for kings. They tore the old shed down and built a new one, housing two stables, and space for whatever sheds are supposed to be for.
Yes, I said stables. We found Scott’s trusted old Brandy about a month after the fire twenty miles down the road at a farm. Next to Brandy stood a small black and white pony looking out over his pen-door.
“Rena, come down and look at the surprise dad has for you.”
We didn’t have to call her twice. She comes running down the stairs and stands speechless at the pen. She lifts on her toes and tries to reach the horse. Scott helps her up and gives her a carrot to feed the pony.
“Her name is Magpie and she likes apples and carrots best. You hold your hand flat out so she won’t mistake your fingers for a carrot.
Rena giggles as her pony nibbles on her hand.
“Mum, may I ride this?”
“Of course, darling. I’m not a good rider but dad is. He’ll teach you.”
Scott nods. “Not today though.” He turns to me.
“But you haven’t seen the piece de resistance yet.”
He takes my hand and walks up to the giant tree in the back. Our tree. From deep within me comes a sigh of many souls. They will never forget the tree. It’ll always be the model for our tree house, the most beautiful, safe, and peaceful place in the world.
Scott is pointing up into the crown. I swallow. Unable to talk, I choke. Tears are flowing down my cheeks.
“Scott!”
How can I ever thank him?
“Yes, darling.” He comes to stand next to me, a satisfied smile on his face. Rightfully so. This is a perfect surprise. Better than the renovated house. There, halfway hidden in the vast branches of the old tree, three yards above the ground, is the most amazing tree house I’ve ever seen. It has small windows, ropes to swing on, curtains, a small veranda, and a banister. A ladder was fastened to the tree to give whoever wanted to climb up a safe footing.
I make my way up the ladder, one step at the time. My entire body vibrates with joy and anticipation. I have to stop every second rung to wipe the tears out of my eyes. My hands are shaking. It’s as if every one of the Tribe is with me. Nothing will ever replace the tree house I used to have inside my mind but this is the second-best tree house ever.
Reaching the small veranda, I look down into the smiling faces of my family. Never before has a woman been as happy as I am now. Inside the hut, I let out a big gasp. I have to hold on to the doorframe. A small writing table with an old oil lamp—Ama’s lamp, he didn’t throw it away—stood next to a window. On it are notebooks and pens and a vase filled with margarita flowers. I pull the wicker chair to me. My legs are shaking. I have to sit down.
Scott is coming up the stairs.
“Are you okay, darling?”
I sniff. The surprise is perfect. It’s as if he looked into my soul and saw what I needed. I was devastated when our tree house shrunk, lost rooms, and in the end, it only existed in my memory. Nobody climbs up the stairs into the common room anymore because it disappeared. Together with the Tribe, it had faded out, as if it had been a movie that ended. They all have a place in my heart now.
When I feel angry, I remember Amadeus, my trusted knight who fought for me. I sense Ama when I cook, and Luke when I drive the car. I know they are close, but more like an energy, not in the physical way they’d been with me for over forty years.
Do I miss them? I do. And every time I hear the murmuring of a choir in the back of my mind I pause, excited. They are there, watching over this body, as I do. There is no difference between us. We are all soldiers serving the one and only innocent child that forty-something years ago gave that body into our trusting hands.
A hand is resting on my shoulder. This time it’s Scott’s.
I lean my head against him, lean into his warmth and strength and whisper, “Thank you.”
THE END
Thank You
for reading BEYOND THE TREE HOUSE. I hope you enjoyed the story of Elise and the Tribe. It has been a labor of love. Every hour at the computer felt like an adventure where I found out what the characters had in mind for the story.
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