Chapter 44
Ella cut the engine on her wooden boat, allowing it to drift into a slip at the dock near Dypv?g Church. The boat tapped against the granite bank, rocking a little, as she reached out to grab a cleat and throw a hitch knot.
A year had passed. The June sky was a clear, periwinkle blue, the perfect day for a dual memorial service when Ella would put Hilda to rest and honor Sara’s memory.
As she stepped from the boat, a salt breeze blew in off the sapphire waters.
She breathed the sea air and found it soothing.
Her relationship with the water had changed completely since the day she arrived in Lyng?r on the ferry.
Everything had changed since last summer.
She had found her family and her future.
With Leif’s help, she’d finished renovating the store in Boulder and sold it at a profit, using it to pay off her debts.
She’d moved to Lyng?r permanently and hadn’t looked back.
Instead she’d connected with Nina and other artists in Norway, like Dalla the lighthouse keeper, who welded stunning metal sculptures.
They were all collaborating to sell their creations at Ella’s new art center at Ringpynten.
On either side of the footpath, yellow aster, fireweed, and delphinium thrived.
Ella stopped to pick some, then crossed a field of meadowsweet and collected more fragrant blooms. The headstones, which she had designed, had been erected on the west end of the sprawling, manicured property, which was dotted with gravestones and century-old pine trees.
She craned her neck to spot the markers, but the church blocked her view.
It was a striking building with a green copper spire crowned with a braided weathervane.
The stylish black-and-white diamond pattern on the doors and shutters had inspired her new line of dresses, which she’d called Dypv?g.
This place was special, particularly because her mom had been baptized there.
As Ella walked, the west end of the cemetery came into view; it was a sun-soaked spot with a hedge of orange roses.
Clutching the two bouquets she’d made, she stopped for a moment on a stone bench to rearrange them.
The platinum promise ring from Leif sparkled on her finger.
As she tied ribbon around the stems, a dog let out several happy barks; she knew without looking that it was Freya, the mutt she and Leif had adopted.
She heard Leif calling her name, and he waved at her from the headstones.
Erik, Inger, and Mia each raised an arm in greeting.
Even Mia’s cat, Bactus, was there, harnessed to a leash.
Erik wore a wide belt with Viking symbols tooled into the leather; it was part of the Leif Collection Ella had designed.
Erik had expanded his business at the marina to offer custom carving for boats, and Leif had a waiting list of clients.
He was in heaven now that he was getting paid for his art.
Inger clutched one of Ella’s handmade purses with a fun gooseberry pattern.
A cigarillo dangled from Inger’s strawberry-painted mouth. Some things never changed.
As Ella drew closer to Hilda’s headstone, she stopped for a moment to absorb it all.
The marker was stunning. The vibrant art deco urn that housed Mormor’s ashes was now encased in clear glass blocks and framed with gray granite.
Hilda’s life had been gray in many ways, Ella thought .
. . but her gift of the cottage had made Ella’s future bright and colorful.
It was a future Hilda may have dreamed for herself before tragedy came into her life.
Perhaps Hilda knew what she was doing when she told Ella to sell Ringpynten, as Ella often did the opposite of what her mormor wanted.
Hilda’s headstone stood next to Sara’s: The gorgeous rose quartz sparkled in the light, and Erik had engraved a large, fabulous bear onto the stone. The bear held the sun in its clawed paws; that sweet tribute of Erik’s, and knowing how much he loved her mom, brought tears to Ella’s eyes.
“Hey you! Joining us?” Leif called out. “We can’t do this without you.” As she walked toward him, his hand was already stretched out, waiting for hers.