17. Aiden
Ihave no idea what’s going on, only that Anna is not happy to see Penny’s favorite Sunday School teacher. Then it hits me like a ton of bricks. Gretchen’s last name was Jones until she married a deacon in our church five years ago. Now, her last name is Wilson.
I remember the first day that I met Gretchen almost nine years ago. She was sitting in the back of the church looking broken and haggard. When I asked her what was wrong, she cursed, spit at me, and demanded that I leave her alone. Instead of doing what she wanted, I sat down beside her and prayed. She didn’t appreciate it and muttered a few more curses before leaving.
It was a year later when I saw her again, and it wasn’t at church. It was at the local homeless shelter, where I often volunteer during the off-season. I would always sit with her whether she wanted me to or not. Over time, we eventually became friends. Occasionally, Gretchen was brave and shared with me how wretchedly she had treated her daughter and how the life she was living was her penance for being such an awful mother. Of course, I told her it was never too late to make amends and ask for forgiveness. She scoffed and told me that she didn’t deserve forgiveness after all the vile things she had done.
Gretchen never mentioned her daughter’s name to me nor told me any details of her misdeeds, and I never pushed for anything more than she was willing to give. I had quite a few chats with our pastor and eventually secured Gretchen a job at the church. It didn’t pay much, but it came with a small stipend and living space the size of a small studio apartment. She worked with Pastor Steven and his wife daily, doing odd jobs like dusting and vacuuming the sanctuary, washing dishes after an event, stuffing envelopes, and creating bulletins for the Sunday services.
The transformation in Gretchen from the day I first met her until now has been extraordinary and a miracle unto itself.
Gretchen’s eyes widen in disbelief when they connect with Anna’s. “Savannah, you’ve returned!”
Penny tugs on Gretchen’s shirt. “No, Mrs. Gretchen, this is An-na, my new nanny. She’s the best!”
Gretchen smiles warmly at my Penny, “My apologies, sweet child. I’ve missed my daughter so much that I must be imagining things.”
Anna mutters under her breath, and I barely make out the words, “More like misses the money.”
Thankfully, Penny doesn’t hear Anna, although Gretchen does. Gretchen hangs her head, and I can see how Anna’s words have hurt her. I want to comfort the older woman, who is very special to our family; but at the same time, Anna’s still reeling from Gretchen’s actions from so long ago.
“Are you coming over for our Easter barbeque, Mrs. Gretchen?” Penny asks, oblivious to the mounting tension in the room.
Gretchen sneaks a glance at Anna before answering Penny. “I don’t think so, Honey. Maybe another time? Mr. Wilson and I need a quiet night together this evening.”
Penny frowns, “But you come every year.”
With my daughter’s words still echoing like a cannon in a canyon, it dawns on Anna that Gretchen is more to our family than just being Penny’s Sunday school teacher. Gretchen is a friend. When Anna’s eyes lock with mine, I see the same hollowness I had noticed in the picture Swank had shown me, and her voice is devoid of any emotion when she speaks in a low and deadly tone, “I need to leave now before I say or do anything I might regret. I’ll be out front when you’re ready to go.”
“Anna…” I plead, grabbing her arm to stop her, hoping she’ll understand that I had no idea that Gretchen was her mother until now.
“Don’t, Aiden. Whatever you plan on saying, don’t. Let. Me. Go.”
I don’t think Anna simply means not letting her walk out of the room. She’s warning me not to pursue her at all. I release her arm and watch her hurry out the door, just shy of running. Penny tries to chase after Anna—confused by why her newest friend is visibly upset—only to be stopped by my dad, who blocks her path.
Gretchen sniffles, and her voice catches in her throat. “Savannah has every right to hate me, Aiden. But don’t give her the opportunity to close herself off to you. Savannah has so much love to give, but I never showed her how to give it.”
I wrap Gretchen in my arms, “Your daughter doesn’t know the woman you are now, Gretchen. She only knows the woman you were. I’ll do what I can to help her see the change.”
“Aiden, Dear, forgiveness cannot be forced. It has to be given freely. When the time is right, God will provide the opportunity for me to ask my beautiful daughter for forgiveness. It will be up to Savannah to choose whether or not she’ll grant it. Be there for my girl, and trust me, don’t push.” Gretchen pats my arm as she heads to another table to help a child finish up an art project.
“Are you ready to go, Sir?” Scott asks.
I glance over my shoulder and see my family waiting by the door alongside Jack and Jeremy. “I am. Do you think Anna will still be here?”
“Yes, Sir, I do. What transpired might have been very upsetting for her, but she removed herself from the situation in order to calm down enough to do her job. She’s a professional.”
Scott and I meet everyone else and head toward the church foyer, where we find Anna on the phone. She notices our arrival and puts on one of her pageant smiles before hanging up with whomever she is talking to.
She claps her hands enthusiastically, but I don’t miss the sarcasm that comes next. “Well, that was fun! Shall we get home in time to greet Patricia?”
Anna gives me the silent treatment the entire ride home, but she engages with Penny, who talks nonstop about the scavenger hunt that would happen later in the day. Anna acts excited and hangs on to my daughter’s every word, but I take her actions for what they are—a defense mechanism and front to hide her pain. It’s a pain I desperately want to take away.
Scott pulls into the driveway and opens the passenger door closest to the house, and I tell Penny to hurry on ahead and get changed into play clothes if she doesn’t want to ruin her dress.
Penny jumps up the steps to the landing by the front door and then twirls around. “But Dad, I want to wear my dress. It’s pretty!”
Anna waits for my response, and her slightly narrowed eyes warn me that my answer matters to her.
“That’s okay, Honey. If wearing the dress makes you happy, then go for it.” Anna’s shoulder relaxes a fraction, giving me a hint of a real smile. I’ll take that over a false one any day.
Penny, my parents, Jeremy, and Jack go inside, and I step in front of Anna to prevent her from following. Scott moves several yards down the driveway to give us a little privacy.
I gesture between Anna and the front door that’s now closed. “Anna, what was that?”
“What was what?”
She knows what I’m referring to, but I clarify just in case. “Why did my asking Penny to change her clothes upset you? When she said she wanted to wear the dress, why did my answer matter to you?”
She blows at the strand of hair that has fallen in her face, exasperated. “It didn’t.”
I close the distance between us and gently tuck the loose hair behind her ear, surprised when she flinches at my touch. “Anna, you said you would never lie to me. Why are you lying now?”
“You may as well call me Savannah now that the reason for hiding my name is welcome in your home,” she says instead of answering my question.
“I’ve become rather fond of calling you Anna. As for Gretchen, I promise you that I had no idea she was your mother. She never once mentioned your name, only her regret for how she had treated her daughter.”
Anna laughs acerbically, “Regret? For 22 years, that woman controlled every aspect of my life from what I ate to what I wore. Did she ever tell you that she would lock me in my room if I ruined my clothes? I didn’t have ‘play’ clothes to change into, so I never played, Aiden. I had the nicest things money could buy, often at the expense of having food on the table or electricity running through our house.”
“I didn’t know, Anna.”
“Of course you didn’t, Aiden. Gretchen is very adept at hiding her true nature, and you’ve fallen for her act. What I just shared with you is the tip of the iceberg of what that woman is capable of.”
“She’s changed, Anna. I’ve watched her transformation over the years. I got a glimpse of the woman you knew, but Gretchen isn’t that person anymore, and neither are you. I’m not asking you to reconcile with your mother, but I am asking you to give her a chance to apologize to you. But only when you’re ready.”
A tear runs down Anna’s cheek and I wipe it away for her. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready, Aiden.”
Just as I’m about to lean forward and brush my lips against hers in a tender and comforting kiss, our phones chime with an alert that someone has passed through the front gate. When I check to see who it is, I don’t recognize the burgundy-colored Suburban coming up the driveway, but neither Anna nor Scott appear to be troubled. In fact, Anna looks positively ecstatic and is bouncing on her toes with excitement.
A man about my age with shock white hair and crystalline blue eyes emerges from the front passenger side of the vehicle and opens his arms wide to embrace Anna.
“How’s my favorite girl doing?” he asks.
A small, petite woman with short black hair slides out of the back seat, “What am I, chopped liver? You said that I was your favorite last week!”
“You were my favorite last week, Jessie. This week, it’s Savvy,” he jests, and I’m a little jealous by the way Anna lights up around him. I want her to light up that way around me.
A distinguished-looking gentleman with salt-and-pepper hair walks around from the driver’s side of the vehicle. “Don’t worry, Jessie. You’ll always have a special place in my heart.”
Jessie gives the man a lop-sided grin, “Thank you, Roger. It’s nice to know I’m someone’s favorite.”
“I didn’t say that, Jessie. Your special place is right beside my pacemaker, ever-present and something I’ve learned to live with,” Roger teases.
Jessie wraps her arm around Roger’s waist and looks up at him adoringly. “Aw. That’s the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me.”
I continue to stand there and watch the four of them banter back and forth, realizing that these people are not only part of Anna’s team from Shining Knight, but they’re also her “family.”
Anna waves me over, “Aiden Shaw, this is Roger Cavanaugh, Jerry Reynolds, and Jessie Andrews. Y’all, this is Aiden Shaw.”
I shake each of their hands, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, and thank you for coming on such short notice. That man standing over there, all stoic and aloof, is Scott. You’ll get to meet Jack and Jeremy once we’re inside.”
Anna steps forward, “As you know, two of you will help guard Penny while one of you will be assigned to fill in for David and protect Aiden. We don’t have much time to debrief before you’re in the thick of it. Aiden’s ex-wife should be showing up any minute and is a possible suspect. A party planning company is expected to arrive shortly after—around noon—for a barbeque that starts at 1:00 p.m. Nearly 60 people are expected to be in attendance.”
Roger turns to me, “If you don’t mind me asking, Mr. Shaw, why would you have so many unknown variables at your home when your life and the life of your daughter are being threatened?”
I understand why he asked the question and appreciate that he didn’t do it condescendingly. “With the exception of the party planning company, the variables aren’t unknown to me.”
Roger merely raises an eyebrow, and Jerry grunts in displeasure, but it’s Jessie who retorts, “Well, let’s not just stand around here looking cute! Let’s get this party started!”
I shake my head as I follow them inside, Scott trailing behind me and entering last. Scott talks in a quiet tone, which is meant just for me. “Sir, forgive me for sounding cliché, but you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. I’ve heard exceptional things about the agents at Shining Knight Protective Services. They may seem like a rag-tag bunch that doesn’t take anything seriously, but I assure you that they’ll get the job done.”