Sis

By Edna Romero

A very special novel written for a sister by her sister about sisters. I have mixed our lives and families in fictious ways strictly for entertainment and pleasure.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Aug 15, 2000
• ISBN: 9781469723365

Edna Romero

Edna Lucille Wallage grew up in Coos Bay, Oregon then married and moved to Seattle, Washington to raise seven children. She wrote and illustrated a children's book for her first granddaughter. Even though she always preferred the west coast, she concedes, there are many wonderful places on the east coast, after traveling with her husband for the past two years while writing this novel.

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

Hostility vibrated through Bill Knight as he ran his long narrow fingers through his dark wavy hair. Dressed only in briefs, he angrily paced back and forth at the foot of the old brass bed. He moved in front of the six windows that overlooked the Pacific Ocean and the mouth of the Rogue River in Oregon. The converted honeymoon suite of the Bay View Castle was quickly becoming his prison.

Clinging to a satin-covered pillow, Lori huddled as close to the top of the brass bed as she could to ward off his anger. She tried to recapture her feelings of being transported in time by reciting the history of the castle to herself without much success. No longer able to see through her tears, the beautiful antique chandelier became a glowing blob and the lace curtains lost their pattern. The beauty she had found upon their arrival was lost and gone forever in her eyes.

Turning from the windows, Bill made the situation worse by asking demanding questions and never leaving time for Lori to answer the questions. He yelled, How in the hell could you do this to me? With raging anger he continued, Damn it, you said you loved me, you don’t lie to the person you claim to love and you should have told me about this before tonight.

Bill continued up one side of the bed and the questions just kept coming, How in the hell can you say you love me and not tell me that you were still a virgin? I could have been gentler if I had known and made your first experience a memorable one. But oh no, not me, instead I take you like a goddamned animal in heat. Do you have any idea how that makes me feel or do you even care?

Lori could feel the vibrations of anger and see the pure disgust and loathing on his handsome face. Not realizing the anger was focused at himself, she cried out, Please, I can explain if you will just listen to me.

As though not hearing her plea, Bill demanded in a raging voice, How in the hell can a virgin have a daughter? I’ll bet you’ve got a good answer for that one! No man would have you, so you stole a child, is that it? Where did you get Rachel? Did you kidnap her? And how much ransom money are you asking? He was asking irrational questions to which he couldn’t really fathom any logical answers.

Lori squeezed the pillow tighter to her breast crying, No, over and over as her plea went unheard and ignored.

There is no way she can be your daughter, Bill continued yelling while kicking the bed side to get her attention, Virgins do not give birth to babies!

If you could just calm down and listen to me and try to understand, Lori sobbed harder and started raising her voice. Damn you, I can’t have children because I’m a freak, do you hear me? A freak that can’t bear children, and how do you think it makes me feel? I didn’t want you treating me any differently, I want to be a whole woman.

As Bill returned to the side of the bed where Lori was huddling, he grabbed her by the shoulders and gave her a firm shake while yelling, What do you mean, you can’t have children? Answer me, damn you! How is it that you have Rachel?

Not waiting for an answer, Bill pushed her away and started gathering his discarded clothing that lay scattered around the room. To his horror he had wanted to hit her, to make her feel the pain that he was feeling. With sad desperation in his voice, he said, I have to get out of here. I’m going for a walk to clear my head before I do something that we will both regret. It was already after midnight when he stormed out

of the room.

He was thankful for the darkness that covered the tears in his eyes as he walked along the sandy beach. The moon and stars were shining in their full glory, yet Bill was completely unaware of the beauty that surrounded him. He asked himself the same questions repeatedly, How could she do this to me and what am I going to do about it? Exhausted physically after walking several miles, he lowered himself to sitting upon a piece of damp driftwood and started doing some real soul searching.

Thinking more rationally, Bill slowly accepted part of this nightmare as his own for rushing her as he had. How can anyone expect to know another person in only seven days? Transporting himself in time, Bill closed his eyes and remembered the way he saw Lori on that first night. She had entered the old fashioned barn dance that was being held in the gymnasium up at the Powers Middle School. While trying to remain unnoticed, Lori had shyly stepped to one side to avoid the flow of people entering. There was a little girl clinging to her hand who was a miniature replica of herself. They both wore matching outfits, flashed big brown cautious eyes, and each were adorned with haloes of long auburn brown hair. The child had bangs cut straight across her forehead and Lori’s hair was parted neatly down the center and tucked behind dainty ears.

Of course Bill knew instantly that she was the teacher from Bancroft and thought he might have learned more ifhis own teachers had looked like her. Lori had been on the grapevine gossip line for months now and he knew that the Board of Education was trying to figure out a way to get rid of her. The members of the board thought it was a reflection of their mismanagement to hire such an irresponsible person to teach their children. They felt she had deliberately deceived them by not disclosing the fact that she was an unwed mother.

What Bill had seen that night was a wounded deer trying to protect her fawn and he fell in love with them instantly. He knew that she was the woman he had been looking for and all of his fantasies and dreams seemed to whirl through his mind, making him dizzy with excitement.

As Bill approached Lori, he stopped and knelt on one knee before the little girl and said, My, you are the most beautiful little girl I have ever seen and you look just like your mommy. I’ll bet that a pretty little girl like you has a really pretty name like Rachel. Reflections of amazement and uncertainty flashed from Rachel’s eyes. She looked up at her mom, awaiting confirmation as to whether she was allowed to respond to this stranger. When Lori nodded her head, giving an okay signal, Rachel smiled back at Bill, shaking her head in agreement. He then added, And, I’ll bet your mommy’s name is Lori. She shook her head in agreement again and Bill did his little magic trick of pulling a quarter from behind her ear.

While clapping her hands with delight and bouncing up and down, Rachel squealed, Again, please, again! He produced another quarter from behind her other ear and declared it was to buy punch for the two prettiest ladies at the dance.

As Bill rose he stepped between them taking Rachel’s little hand on one side and joining his other hand with Lori’s while saying, Shall we, Lori? He then led them in the direction of the refreshments. As they walked slowly, hand in hand, Lori asked him his name and did not question the fact that he knew who they were. She accepted the fact that she was the talk of the town once they found out that she was an unwed mother.

Bill wanted to run away with her right then and there but knew he had to slow down before he scared her off forever. He had made a blundering mistake of saying, I do believe that we are all going to live happily ever after. To avoid the weary looks that Lori was giving him, Bill picked up little Rachel and danced away with her before Lori could chastise him.

Bill swirled and twirled little Rachel around the dance floor in his arms as he sang, If You Knew Susie, Like I Know Susie, only he was changing Rachel’s name for Susie’s. He told her that he was going to be her new daddy and that it was to be just their secret and suggested how much more fun they could have if her mommy would dance with them.

At the end of the song they returned to where Lori was sitting on one of the many bales of hay that decorated the gym. She was watching his every move as if he might disappear with her little girl. Holding out his hand, Bill asked, Will you please come dance with us, Lori?

Rachel was delighted with the idea and said, Mommy come dance too, and the three of them danced away to, New York, New York.

When the song ended Bill whispered, Someday I will take you there. It was hard to keep her to himself and he introduced her to friends with great reluctance whenever they approached them, which seemed like every other minute. As his friends chatted briefly with them, he clearly noticed his single male friends paying very close attention to Lori because she was so beautiful.

Toward the end of the evening, Bill invited them to accompany him to church the next morning. He asked if they would like to attend the potluck picnic following the service at the Powers County Park and feed the baby ducks that swam in the old log pond. Lori hesitated answering while Rachel pleaded. Mommy, please? Can we feed the ducks?

They both knew that Lori’s indecision was due to the fact that there would be school board members attending. Bill put his arm around Lori and squeezed her lightly while softly saying, We can face the devil himself as long as we are together. He didn’t have the heart to tell her that his own mother was on the very same school board that was trying to get rid of her. Lori hesitantly accepted his invitation and asked what kind of food she should bring.

Pretending to think over her question, Bill lifted Rachel and said, Let’s see, I like chocolate chip cookies, my dad likes chocolate chip cookies, my brothers and sisters like chocolate chip cookies, all children like chocolate chip cookies and my aunts and uncles like choco—.

Lori interrupted saying All right, all right, I can take a hint, chocolate chip cookies it is. Rachel joined in saying that she and the ducks liked chocolate chip cookies too.

At the end of the evening, Bill found himself deep in thought driving up Salmon Creek Road. He nearly missed the little dirt turn off to his cabin, better known as, The Shack. His parents disapproved of his moving there just like they disapproved of everything else he did. He assumed they would disapprove of Lori also, but that would not change his mind about marrying her. Maybe Rachel will be the one to win them over, he pondered, since they have been bugging me about settling down and giving them some grandchildren.

The next day after the church service was over, they had walked to the park with all three of them hand in hand singing, Yes, Jesus Loves Me. Lori was nervous and on guard with each new introduction to Bill’s friends and relatives. From the time he introduced his mother to Lori, the battle started. For the entire hour of the picnic, Bill’s mom and Lori seemed to be playing some sort of war game with words as to whom was protecting whose child. Lori understood Mrs. Knight was only trying to protect her beloved son from this sinful woman she was depicted as, but she was not about to let that happen at her daughter’s expense.

Bill, Lori and Rachel excused themselves from the crowd and went for a walk around the old log pond to feed the ducks. They sat in the shade of a large fir tree while watching Rachel run through the grass trying to catch butterflies. Bill told Lori of dreams that he had never shared with another living soul.

He told Lori about working in logging camps since 1956, when he hired on as a landing gopher and water boy at the age of twelve. He worked every chance he could and opened his very first bank account at the age of fourteen, continually saving for his dreams.

Bill talked about his childhood, of constantly moving around the state until his dad went to work for the local logging company. He explained about working for gyppo logging outfits and doing any job he could from setting chokers to driving trucks. I’ve planted trees, branded logs, helped build roads and worked on the river. I’m a hard worker and a fast learner and I have seen what happens to forest-dependent communities. This is not the way I want to support a family.

There are so many people that have taken this beautiful land for granted, but not Lori. She loved the history of the region. She was so enthusiastic, inquisitive and eager to share her own knowledge of the land. Bill thought to himself that it was like they were on the same wavelength.

Bill told Lori about waiting for her to come along, Don’t get me wrong, I have dated. But I also knew none of them was the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life growing old with. He explained how friends and relatives made fun of him for becoming a hermit and living all alone in his little cabin up in the hills. With the help of the inheritance left by his uncle and his frugal lifestyle, he had now saved enough money to afford the ranch of his dreams.

Time was creeping by while Bill was sitting on the hard, damp piece of driftwood. He stared lifelessly out to sea trying to remember all Lori had told him. She had explained that she only attended the barn dance in Powers out of community duty. She was the teacher of the one room school house in Bancroft. Trying to be accepted by coming to the fourth of July celebration was not an easy task, even in 1970, if you were an unmarried woman with a daughter two years old, not to mention a teacher. Bill let her explain things that he already knew about her because it was apparent she was in need of adult companionship and understanding.

Lori discovered that Oregonians try to help each other in any way they can. She had applied for the teaching position straight out of Oregon State University, meeting all of the requirements. Born in North Bend and a graduate of Marshfield High, she attended Southwestern Oregon Community College for a start on her many qualifications. It was a shock and a disgrace to the community to discover that they had hired an unwed mother to teach their children. The application never asked if she had a daughter and they neglected to ask during the interviews. It was a problem the School Board was trying to rectify. And Lori was just as determined to show them that she was a good teacher, regardless of her social position.

For the past year Lori had become a 4-H leader to develop a closer relationship with her students. She divided the children into small groups and took them on field trips exploring the history of Coos County every other Saturday. With Lori’s guidance the students discovered a wide variety of plants and animals in their natural environment. The children took pride in their new-found knowledge and shared it with their families with great satisfaction.

After that day spent talking, Lori had led Bill to believe that she felt the same as he did and that everything was meant to be this way by accepting his proposal of marriage and setting the date for the tenth of July. She had rationalized that they were waiting twice as long as her grandparents, who had met Friday and married the following Monday. Lori said that she wanted to be married at the Coos County Court House in Coquille to avoid any problems or waiting. She had no desire for a large church wedding and said that none of her family would attend anyway because they didn’t approve of her situation with Rachel.

Lori planned the honeymoon to coincide with research for her classroom by requesting that they go to Gold Beach and take the mail boat cruise to Agness. She also arranged to have lunch with Mrs. Jones, the teacher of the one-room school in Agness. It was important to her that she compare techniques and problems with another teacher of her status. Everything Lori ever did showed how much she loved and cared about everything around her.

Images ofLori crying for the chance to explain and remembering the scene he had run from, Bill asked himself if he had ever given her the opportunity to explain anything in his whirlwind courtship. Berating himself for assuming she was experienced just because she had Rachel was no excuse for the way he took her. Only his need and desire for her mattered as he slammed into her like a Mack truck. Realizing she was crying out for him to slow down because she was still a virgin was enough to stop him dead in his tracks only momentarily. When he had tried to pull out slowly, she clung to him, pleading to be made whole, which took away all remaining rational thoughts. His body had complete control over his brain until he climaxed. As his brain started functioning again, not being able to cope with the image of himself, he had undeservingly dumped all of the blame on Lori.

A foghorn sounding in the distance brought Bill back into the present as the twilight turned to dawn. The stiffness he felt in his bones was nothing compared to the way he felt about himself. As he walked back, the visual impressions of Lori crying that she was a freak because she couldn’t have children and wanting to be a whole woman came back to him over and over again. Bill knew with all his heart that he loved Lori and for better or worse they were husband and wife. They would work their problems out somehow.

He let himself quietly back into their suite and knelt next to the bed. Lori lay quietly with her eyes swollen from crying and she was still beautiful to him. She whimpered in her sleep and Bill gently brushed her hair back while kissing her on the forehead and whispering, I’m sorry for all of the things I said, and we will work this out somehow, I promise.

Hearing his words, Lori awoke then and started crying in earnest. She threw her arms around him while crying, I was afraid you would never come back. I’m so sorry that I deceived you, but I never really meant to. I believed you when you said that we could face the devil as long as we are together, and I was living in a hell of my own until you came along. Please forgive me.

Bill held her tightly in his arms trying to quiet her, with his mind going one direction and his words going another. While thinking about the children he had always wanted and would never have now, he said, "Hush now, it is all over with for now and you can tell me about it

someday when you are ready. Bill took her by the hand and lifted her from the bed and cheerfully said, We have just enough time for a quick shower before we meet the boat and start one hell-of-a honeymoon."

CHAPTER 2

As Bill and Lori emerged from the castle’s side entrance, they huddled together trying to keep the drizzling coastal fog at bay while they ran to the car. Bill unlocked the passenger door ofhis 1965 Mustang GT hardtop and helped Lori into the bucket seat before climbing in on his own side and starting the engine. The high performance V-8 engine revved to life as Bill turned the key in the ignition, then he shifted the four- speed stick shift into first gear and peeled out of the driveway.

They had made plans to walk to the dock but ran out of time due to their lovemaking that had started in the shower and ended back in the beautiful old-fashioned brass bed. They had talked of skipping the trip up the Rogue River altogether, and they would have if it had not been for the luncheon date with Mrs. Jones. They knew without a doubt that they belonged together, but they wanted and needed time to get to know each other alone, and now they had the rest of their lives.

The fog was so thick that Bill could barely see the Rogue River Bridge as he drove them to the mail boat office and docks. After parking in the designated area they made their way up the cement walkway to the well- lit white building trimmed in red and blue. Under three large billboard lights was a large sign on top of the building that read, Mail Boats. A smaller sign below informed passengers, White Water Trips. They took time to grab a quick cup of coffee from the gift shop before heading to the boats that were also red, white and blue.

Bill asked the nearest person onboard to hold their coffee cups. Then to everyone’s surprise he scooped Lori up in his arms and carried her onboard saying, I was in such a hurry that I forgot to carry her across the threshold last night and she hasn’t forgiven me. The other passengers stared at them as Bill set Lori down and dropped to his knees begging for forgiveness.

Lori pretended to think over his proposal, then shook her head no while saying, Keep it up, darling, this is good practice for when you find a real threshold. She then leaned over and kissed Bill while their fellow passengers laughed and cheered them on.

Ok, you two lovebirds, have a seat and let me get this here show on the road. I’m Tom Jones, Tom introduced himself, your pilot and tour guide. Tom patted the side of his boat and continued, If you try to stand up in this here sCopper Canyon’ mail boat, I may even become your savior. Let’s not forget that the mail must get through, and if it takes too long to pull ya out of the water then maybe we’ll pick ya up on the way back down river. That is, if you’re still there. Sliding his hand over the many layers of blue paint, Tom said, Now folks, this here is the sCopper Canyon,’ and it was built in 1960. We are being powered by three engines and three jets and we’re licensed to leave here with forty- nine passengers, but there is nothin’ that says we have to arrive in Agness with forty-nine. I’ll try not to bore ya to death with too much history or too many details. But if’n ya’ll are really interested in the past seventy-five years, then ya’ll can buy a book all about that there history in the gift shop.

Tom started the engines of the blue mail boat and pulled away from the dock, saying, Well folks, if ya’ll were planning to go further then the 64-mile round-trip to Agness, then that’s just too bad because the 80- mile whitewater trip left at 8:15 a.m. Looking at his wristwatch he continued, And the 104-mile wilderness trip to Blossom Bar left at 8:00 a.m. and it’s now 8:35 a.m. So ya’ll are just stuck with me. The pilot put the boat in high gear and headed downstream for the Pacific Ocean. He slowed as they approached the bridge and said, I’m bringing ya’ll down here to see if we can see this here Rogue River Bridge any better from under the fog then we can see it through the fog. Sometimes it looks to be moving with the fog, but I’ve been assured that it’s still 1,898 feet long and that it hasn’t moved from the mouth of this here river since 1932. Then Tom turned the boat around heading against the current and started the tour up the river with the wind lightly slapping the faces of his passengers.

A lady in her early fifties asked, Tom, are you any relation to Hathaway Jones, the great storyteller of tall tales who delivered mail between Agness and Illahe on pack mules? She didn’t wait for an answer before continuing on, He gave me my very first lunch pail for school when I was only six years old, the lady bragged, it was a basket painted red and white and he used it to keep his plugs of tobacco in, but he took them out before he gave it to me.

Tom never answered whether he was related, he just agreed, Yes ma’am, he sure was a great teller of tall tales. He slowed the boat to a snail’s pace at Mail Boat Island to watch the sea lions fish for their breakfast. Waving his arm toward the island, Tom said, If the sun wasn’t playing hide-and-seek with this here fog, up yonder there you could see some of the nesting sites for the American bald eagle.

A mile up river the fog had completely disappeared as they approached Elephant Rock, the home of the great blue heron. Bill and Lori sat huddled together, and it had nothing to do with the cold fog anymore. They made an attempt at looking interested in what Tom was saying about the large variety of plants, birds, fish and wildlife to be found along the Rogue. When they stopped at the mouth of Squaw Creek, named for an Indian woman who had drowned there, they took their cameras out to take pictures of a doe and her two fawns.

Seeing the family of deer brought back the painful memory of not being able to have children of their own and the problems that still awaited them at the end of this trip. Bill asked the man sitting on the far end of their bench to take a picture of them together. They managed to move far enough apart to take pictures of each other at the same time because neither would lower their camera first. The space temporarily given allowed them to refocus on their trip up the river.

Even though Bill and Lori were wrapped up in each other, they could no longer ignore the natural beauty of the environment. While passing under the Lobster Creek Bridge into the recreational section of the Rogue River Canyon, Tom told everyone to lift their feet to help get the boat over Shallow Riffle. The only sounds to be heard were the faint humming of the engines and its echo vibrating off the high canyon walls as the river narrowed.

Tom pointed to an osprey nest and informed the passengers, The osprey is an endangered species. It is sometimes referred to as a fish hawk. A mature osprey has a wing span of six feet. They mate for life while returning to the same nest each year to rebuild or add on as necessary. In the osprey family, each member knows its place. The female will usually lay three eggs. The male supplies all the fish for the young chicks and the female breaks the fish up for the young until they are five or six weeks old. At this age they will start setting on the fish while using their talons to feed themselves, and if these here birds leave before late September, it means we river folk can count on a very cold winter. Anyone listening to Tom could hear the love and concern that he had for these magnificent birds. Bill and Lori had been listening and squeezed lightly on their clasped hands while imagining and hoping their bond would be as wonderful as the osprey.

Isn’t this delightful! Tom yelled to entertain his passengers with the tale of Rachel’s Delight. Many years ago a young Englishwoman named Rachel and her father came to the Rogue on a fishing trip. Every time she caught a Chinook salmon at this particular riffle of the river, Rachel squealed, Isn’t this delightful! Tom mimicked, And now it’s known as Rachel’s Delight."

Lori whispered to her husband, Our Rachel is going to love hearing about this place having the same name as her.

As the boat slowed, Tom gave a friendly wave to a passing boat and informed his passengers, That’s Jerry’s Rogue River Jet Boats. They have been under family management since 1960, and they are a couple of bucks cheaper. Their tours are about the same as ours except they don’t deliver the mail. They drifted close to shore for the passengers to get a closer look at a bank beaver’s lodge on their left. To their right they watched little brown otters playing tag and then rolling on their backs and returning the stares of the people with equal interest. As Bill watched the curious otters having fun, his thoughts drifted to the picnic at Powers where he had played with Rachel in a similar fashion. Tom was a great narrator telling about Little Canyon being the narrowest section of their trip. He told all about the water rising 100 feet during the 1964 flood and showing them the cement truck that had been washed off of the Illinois Bridge and deposited on a gravel bar down-river. There was a sign hanging on the truck that read, We deliver anywhere.

As Tom guided the boat below the four-hundred foot cliffs he said, This here place is called the Copper Canyon, same name as our boat. The water is at least sixty feet deep and a good refuge for the slow- growing Rogue River sturgeon. They are a hundred years old by the time they reach six feet in length and they don’t reproduce until they are fifteen years old because they’re as ugly as sin. Lori shivered from her own knowledge of knowing that a full-grown sturgeon could weigh a thousand pounds and reach a length of twenty feet.

Just before they were to take the ninety-degree bend at Crooked Riffle, Lori looked back downstream over her shoulder at the two identical twin rocks that Tom had called the Twin Sisters. She hoped that her own sister could find this peace and happiness, love and joy that she was experiencing now.

As they pulled into the Singing Springs dock at Agness, Tom made his usual announcement to the passengers. Now don’t none of ya go gettin’ yourselves lost. Enjoy your lunch and be back onboard in two hours, or I’ll leave without ya. Bill and Lori were the last to depart and in no hurry. They had made arrangements to stay in Agness and catch the afternoon boat trip back to Gold Beach. Bill collected their jackets they had shed as the morning warmed and asked, Which way? As he helped Lori from the boat.

Looking around, Lori answered, I don’t know, Mrs. Jones said to meet her under the Heidelberg tree at the Cougar Lane store on the corner of Cougar Lane and Rattlesnake Avenue across from the post office. Catching her breath after the long explanation, Lori laughed, She said to ask any of the locals if we get lost. Bill gave her a smile and a wink of amusement at her response before giving her a quick peck on the tip of her slightly sunburned nose.

They knew the town was small, so they just started following the crowd along the path toward Singing Springs Lodge and asked directions. Continuing up the hill they turned and looked across the river at Cougar Lane Lodge before turning left to walk up Rattlesnake Avenue. The first building they came to was the store and across the street was the post office. As they turned right at the corner of Cougar Lane, they saw the tree they were looking for with an attractive young woman sitting with her legs curled under her smock-type jumper, reading a book. She was so absorbed in her reading, she looked a little startled when Bill said, Excuse me, are you Mrs. Jones?

She shaded her eyes with her book and smiled while holding out her other hand to greet them, Yes, but please call me Cathy. Mrs. Jones is my mother-in-law and could you give me a hand up, please? When Cathy was standing upright it was clearly visible as to why she required assistance. As the saying goes, she was as big as a barn and very, very pregnant, and there was a special glow in her eyes.

Lori held out her hand and said, I am Lori Knight and this is my husband Bill, thank you for making time to meet with me on such short notice. Bill looked at his wife with concern, wondering if it bothered her being around pregnant women, knowing that she would never look that way herself.

Cathy asked them to follow her and led the way on down the street toward the little school while telling them how excited she had been since the arrangements had been made over the phone. You see, I don’t get much company living way up here. Don’t get me wrong, I love it up here, but it gets a little lonely sometimes. While patting her tummy, Cathy continued, I will have my very own permanent companion after next week. That is when our baby is due. She led them past the school and community center, then turned right up a narrow lane just past the library across from Lucas Lodge. As they all walked, a little story-book cottage came into view. Upon entering, Cathy showed them where to wash-up for lunch and said to meet her in the kitchen.

Bill and Lori squeezed into the bathroom together whispering about the aromas of the food and how hungry they were because passion had won over hunger that morning. Bill wrapped his arms around Lori from behind while his eyes met hers’ in the mirror. He nibbled on her neck and then whispered in her ear, Man cannot live on love alone. I need food to give me energy to make mad passionate love to my very sexy wife when we return to our room. He then turned her in his arms while hesitatingly asking, Does it bother you to be around other women like Cathy, in her condition? Lori was honest with her answer of sad acceptance. Yes, but I can’t blame her for my problem, it is a fact that I have been learning to live with since I was sixteen years old. Having Rachel with me has truly helped over the past two years. Lori reluctantly turned to leave the room while saying, Give me today and I promise to tell you everything tomorrow. We shouldn’t keep Cathy waiting after all the trouble she has gone to.

Upon entering through an arched doorway into the kitchen, they could see that this room was well used-and the heart of the house. The mixture of old and new blended well. There was an old potbelly stove, complete with a built-in wood box. On the right was a modern greenhouse window over old double sinks with ample counter space to each side. Modern appliances were scattered here and there. There was a butcher block table on wheels in the center that Cathy was loading with delicious-looking food.

They asked if they could be of any help and Cathy told them to go have a seat, that she was right behind them. They turned to their left and there was a roll-top desk tucked in the corner under the stairs. They stopped to admire all of the pictures that were thumb-tacked to each stair. Upon seeing their interest, Cathy began explaining, Those are from my students. It’s all a small part of our river study program. As a class we make a list of anything that pertains to our river and then each child picks from the list something they want to draw on the class mural. The mural takes up an entire wall at school and we are very proud of it. These are their practice drawings before we started the mural. I’ll show it to you after lunch. Now come sit down before the food gets cold.

As they were sitting down to the beautifully set table, the back door opened and in walked Tom, the boat pilot. He stopped to wash his hands at the sink, then went to Cathy’s side. He stooped to kiss her on the forehead while patting her on the tummy and asked, How are my girls doing today?

Cathy’s response was, Your son and I are doing just fine, thank you. Now could you please sit down before your lunch gets any colder. She started to introduce their company but quickly learned they had already met on the mail boat on their trip to Agness. The lunch was a delicious pot roast with potatoes, carrots, baby onions, and bell peppers, all cooked together, with the drippings being used for the gravy. There was homemade bread, butter and jam, and Bill and Lori both commented on how good the meal was, but that they were concerned about the work and expense of such a meal. Cathy assured them, This is one of the simplest meals I make.

Tom inserted his two cents by saying, Other than tomorrow, when she dumps all the leftovers into one pot and calls it stew. The more you eat, the less stew she can make, so please have some more, for my sake.

Cathy started removing their dishes, telling them to save room for the berry cobbler á la-mode for dessert. Lori picked up her and Bill’s plates, then followed Cathy to the sink. Returning to the table with the dessert, Cathy told them about the river people being one big family. "Tom has saved more than one life on this river, and I teach the children. In return we receive more meat, poultry, fish, vegetables, and dairy products