Chapter 7 #3
She picked up her pace and, within minutes, threw herself into the arms of the man who was the grandfather she’d never met. “How did you know I needed you today? How is your hand?”
He patted her back—left-handed—then released her. “I’m not exactly pickin’ and grinnin’ yet, but I’m okay,” he said in his familiar country drawl.
“Did you have surgery?”
Isaiah shook his head. “Still too swollen. I got tired of hanging around Nashville with nothing to do, so I caught a flight up here to keep you in line, young lady.”
Ariel should have anticipated this. She’d gotten way too caught up in the excitement of her new responsibilities in the band and the nostalgia of the memory-saturated parlor. Too busy for her friend, as her relatives were apparently too busy for her today.
Regardless, Isaiah was here now, completing her band family.
“Heard about the kids’ choir you’re getting together.” He gave Ariel a fatherly pat on the head. “I’m proud of you, Sis.”
Aunt Dahlia’s smile didn’t hold its usual authenticity.
“She needs more than your approval, Isaiah. She needs you to keep an eye on her. Doreen isn’t here, which is troublesome because Caleb Kennedy is the new innkeeper at our temporary hotel, and he’s interested.
I don’t have anybody else to help me keep her safe. ”
“No need to worry. Caleb and I are just friends.” Ariel laid her hand on Isaiah’s shoulder. “I did sense some coziness this morning, though, when a petite little blonde got into a sailboat with a certain handsome white-haired gentleman.”
“What?” Aunt Dahlia’s soprano voice raised two octaves. “No, you didn’t.”
“I did, and so did—” She cut herself off, not wanting her aunt to know she’d gone to breakfast with Caleb. “Uh, I saw you get in—”
“So did who? Caleb?” At the panic in her aunt’s voice, Ariel almost wished she hadn’t invited him to breakfast.
“Auntie, don’t worry. Caleb’s grandfather was in a mood this morning, and I suggested a walk so Caleb could cool off and get a new perspective.” She appealed to Isaiah, who merely stood there with his arms crossed and his eyebrows high. “Not a date.”
Doubt etched a crease between Aunt Dahlia’s brows.
“Please make sure you keep it that way. I know you feel safe here on this little island, but men are men, no matter where they are. But for now, we have a problem—a room for Isaiah,” she said, clearly oblivious to the burn she’d just given Isaiah, lumping him in with all men.
“Island House is full, and at the moment, it’s the only hotel open on this island. ”
Oh, Ariel hadn’t thought of that.
“Don’t worry about me,” Isaiah said. “The pastor said I could borrow an air mattress and bunk down at the church.”
Aunt Dahlia shook her head, making her curls bounce. “That’s not the only problem. They double-booked the arts center, and the other party’s already using it. I started makin’ calls and pickin’ brains a little after ten this morning, but no luck.”
Ariel hesitated. What if Isaiah could stay in the parlor wing? “Don’t blow up that mattress yet. I have an idea.”
“Look out when she says that. My niece is the best problem solver I’ve ever met, so she’ll find you a place to stay.”
“And to rehearse,” Ariel called over her shoulder, starting for the inn.
She headed up Main just as Harry and his grandfather, wearing their black pants and red coats, came down the cross street in an empty carriage. She waved and beckoned them to stop.
“Ariel, is that you in those sunglasses?” Harry asked as he pulled over to the side of the street.
“Yes, and since it’s just me, can I sit on the bench with you?”
“Sure, for an extra dollar.”
She should have expected that. She climbed the three steps to the bench. “I need a fast ride to the inn.”
“Nothin’s fast in this town. If I speed in my carriage, the cops will flag me down and give me a fifty-dollar fine.” Harry turned the carriage onto Main and clucked to the horses. “I’ll take a chance for you, though, for an extra five.”
“Oh no, you won’t, or I’ll take those reins.” His grandfather’s accent turned heavy.
Ariel agreed. “Slow them down, Harry. I’m not here to contribute to your delinquency.”
He pulled back slightly on the reins, and the horses responded. “Can I have the five anyway?”
She laughed. “You can have the five for entertaining me on the way.”
“No, ma’am. You’re the star.”
It seemed the tourist population had doubled since they got to town. And from the looks of this street, every one of them must have just discovered the Fudge Shop on the Corner, Miller Antiques, and the souvenir shop.
Harry had to slow the carriage to a near stop as shoppers and sightseers meandered across Main. “Business picked up since you got here. People are pouring in, looking for you and Miss Dahlia.”
“That’s impossible. Island House has no vacancies. Where do all these people stay?”
“On the mainland. I get a lot of business, hauling them from the ferry to Main Street or wherever they want to go. Big tips too, especially since I tell them where to find you.”
Ariel couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up. “How do you know where we are?”
“Because I know where you’re staying. When I tell them that, they pay me to take them there.” He pointed behind him. “My sign in the back doesn’t hurt either. ‘Ride with Miss Dahlia and Ariel’s Personal Driver. Catch a Carriage to Their Hotel. Get Tips on Their Whereabouts.’”
Oh, this child. “Is that honest? It’s the only hotel open.”
“And I know how to get them there. Besides, I need the money.”
Sure he did. She should get this boy onstage.
“I heard the arts center double-booked. What’cha gonna do?”
“Not sure, but I have an idea. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll call you for advice.” Actually, it might be a smart move, if it came to that.
Harry stopped the carriage in front of Island House Inn. Ariel pulled her phone from her jacket’s zippered pocket, slid a wad of cash from her phone case, and gave the boy his fare, a nice tip, and the extra dollar for the front-seat ride.
Inside, she found Caleb in his office, engrossed in his computer screen. Since the door stood open, she thought to come in and plop right down in the chair on the other side of the desk. But seeing his frown and his concentration, she backed away.
“Come in, Ariel.” He kept his focus on the screen.
She remembered her first evening here, when she’d tried to sneak away from the reception desk. He’d known she was there then too. Either he had an uncanny talent of noticing all his surroundings while concentrating on work, or he’d expected her.
“I just talked to your aunt.” He clicked the mouse a few times then looked up, pushed away his keyboard. “She told me about Isaiah, but we’re booked through Sunday night. I can’t put him with the band or writers either, since all those rooms are at capacity.”
“What about the parlor wing?”
“Remember when Granddad warned me not to make him get out of that wheelchair? That would do it.”
“But didn’t he put you in charge? That proves he trusts you, no matter how grumpy he is about his limitations.”
He drew a huge breath and let it out audibly. “I could also let the Grand know we can take more guests.”
“And post it on social media to fill more rooms.”
He stood and pulled the giant key ring from his top desk drawer. “You have a lot to do to get ready for tonight, but I’d like to get your opinion on the rooms.”
“A chance to hang out in the parlor wing again? Absolutely.”
Minutes later, Ariel and Caleb stepped into the parlor on their way to the guest rooms. She wandered to the piano and played a few notes, their tones clear in the room’s perfect acoustics. “Did your family design this room for music?”
“According to family legend, yes.”
“Your ancestors were musicians?” She eased herself onto the bench and played a few bars she remembered from a song she and Caleb played last night.
“On both sides.” He sat on the end of the bench beside her and played some bass notes, accompanying her. “You and I have music in our genes.”
“Aunt Dahlia said I was a child prodigy. My brother and sister can sing too, maybe better than I can. So why did she choose me? I’ve struggled with that question ever since she and Mom decided I’d live with her and learn the trade.”
“Your mom and aunt decided? What about your dad?”
She hesitated, letting the tune trail away. “He wanted me to go too.”
Didn’t he?
Ariel thought back through the years, suddenly unsure what part her father had played in sending her off with Aunt Dahlia. Did he encourage her to move to Nashville? Or had he merely gone along with the women’s plan? Or fought it and lost?
“I always assumed…”
A dim memory passed through her mind like fog in the night—one she’d forgotten until this moment.
Practicing her guitar the night before she left home.
Dad’s voice piercing through the closed door of her parents’ second-floor room, his strained words clear and his anger unmistakable.
She’s too young, Mary. I won’t let you and Dahlia—
Then murmured words from her mother, words Ariel couldn’t understand. Her father storming out, the door slamming behind him.
Then silence. The kind that made you want to cough or hum or drop your guitar on the hardwood floor just to make sure you could still hear.
Then another night, another voice. This one bolder, twangy. Insistent. She’s different, Bryan. She won’t make it on this little island. I can give her a life, a future.
Were Aunt Dahlia’s words true? Was Ariel different?
A touch on her knee brought her back to this night, this place.
“Are you okay?”
She laid her hand on Caleb’s. Looked up at those unpretentious, honest eyes. “Caleb, do you think I’m different?”
His smile came slowly, his nearness somehow comforting, reassuring. “You’re different. I’ve known dozens of successful musicians but none as intuitive or smart or caring as you.”
“But do you think I could have succeeded in a different career?”
“You could do anything you put your mind to.”
Ariel let her gaze travel the room—this room she loved as much as her Nashville ranch—and gathered courage to tell him. “You don’t know how I got started working with Aunt Dahlia.”
“By inheriting the same talent she has?”
“How I wish. No, our music teacher found out Aunt Dahlia planned to visit us over Christmas when I was in second grade, so Mrs. Petry asked her to perform at our concert. But my aunt discovered that the teacher had chosen another girl to sing ‘Mary, Did You Know?’ and she didn’t like the teacher choosing her over me. ”
He grinned. “I can imagine.”
“It wasn’t the teacher’s fault. I was so shy, I always held back and never let her hear my best. So Aunt Dahlia agreed to sing but asked to let me sing a duet with her.
Then she taught me to use the gift the Lord gave me.
I got to perform, and I got to go with her and sing at her annual Christmas tours the next year.
But I’ve lived in her shadow ever since, feeling second-best to her and to the girl who sang the solo. ”
“I hope you don’t think Miss Dahlia is more talented than you.”
Ariel faced him on the piano bench, trying to determine whether he meant that or just wanted to make her feel better. “My aunt is more talented than everybody.”
“That’s true, with one exception.”
She turned away. “Please don’t say things that aren’t true just because you think I want to hear them.”
“Never. You have everything it takes to succeed in this business. When you’re Miss Dahlia’s age, you’ll be more successful than she is.”
If Ariel could believe that, she’d record another demo today.
She drew a deep breath, looked him in the eyes. “I made a record.”
Caleb met her gaze. “Solo?”
“Nobody knows except our manager and Ned Overton, our producer. I didn’t even tell the musicians. It bombed.”
“How could I not have known you released a record? The media must have been all over it.”
“I didn’t say I sold a record. I made a record, and Ned said no thanks.”
Caleb dropped his gaze to the floor for a moment. “I’m sorry. Did he say why?”
“He liked the record and thinks we have a great band—when we play together. But Ariel Sullivan doesn’t bring anything to the table that Miss Dahlia and Ariel don’t already give him.”
Or so he’d said.
But now, in this room, this parlor, the past melding with the present, she somehow felt safe enough, accepted enough to face the disappointment that drilled deeper than a mere career failure.
The man sitting next to her had a lot to do with her comfort here too. For the first time, Ariel wanted to tell him her true struggle. She shifted on the bench to gauge his reaction. “Looking back, I realize Ned was right. I bring nothing fresh to the table.”
“No, it was just a career mistake, not an artistic one. It won’t hurt your future success.” He looked straight into her eyes. “I’m sorry about the rejection and the way it affected you. It’s a hazard of the trade.”
“Caleb, when Dani told me she was arranging festivals all year to increase tourism and save the island, I came up with the idea of this concert, and I convinced Aunt Dahlia to spend a month here before the gig.” In the comfortable silence, she gave thanks that the Lord had orchestrated this time.
“I did it because I thought here, on this island where I was born, I could discover whether or not I can make it in the music biz on my own.”
His close presence and comfortable silence felt like a gift from the Lord.
In an industry of sound, clatter, sometimes downright racket, peaceful silence was rare.
“I appreciate you, Caleb. A musician who creates sound for a living yet values the quiet of a meaningful moment with a friend, of hearing nothing but a mockingbird’s song outside the window and hoofbeats in the street clopping past the inn, is rare. ”
“Jesus comes to us in the silence.” His voice, whisper-low, speaking truth she knew but sometimes forgot, seemed to usher in that heavenly Presence she’d learned to love as a child.
The sense of the Savior she knew and loved making Himself and His love known in ways intangible took her by surprise, as it often did.
Let her know He had not forgotten her. That He’d been there with her, during the worst of times, sitting with her and watching with her in her deepest pain.
She closed her eyes and basked in that Presence until it lifted a little.
“Thank you, Caleb.”
He wrapped his warm fingers around her hand. She wished for more. For reassurance of her talent, but not from Caleb. From the Lord.
But for now, she’d take the Presence and leave the rest to Him.