The Heart of the Matter

By Moira Leigh MacLeod

It's 1953, and big changes are in store for Mabel and those she loves. A life-changing decision, a surprise encounter, a jaw-dropping discovery, and a tragic death set the stage for this riveting narrative of life in a gritty coal-mining town, where secrets are hard to keep and rumours hard to contain.

In this, the sixth instalment in the popular Bread Maker series, the author once again takes you back to a time when the prevailing attitudes, expectations, and social norms of the day often conflicted with the desire for personal happiness. Sacrifices will have to be made, but by whom and at what cost.

While the MacDonald family has finally come together, the Toth family has fallen apart. Difficult decisions will need to be made as Luke leaves everything he ever loved behind and struggles to make a new life for himself in Halifax.

As she has in her previous works, the author places you at the kitchen table with a rich cast of memorable characters coping with the everyday challenges of life in the early fifties. You'll sit with them as they share their joys, their pains, their dreams and their fears. And like them, you will laugh and cry, and hope for a happy outcome. Sometimes you'll get your wish, and sometimes you won't. After all, The Heart of the Matter is a story about life, and life, as we all know, is totally unpredictable.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tellwell Talent
• Release date: May 26, 2022
• ISBN: 9780228878964

Moira Leigh MacLeod

Moira Leigh MacLeod was born in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, and currently lives near the ocean outside of Halifax. To learn more about her previous work, or to leave a review/comment, please visit www.moiramacleod.com

Book preview

A Brief Recap

As Fate Would Have It

The Baxters, MacDonalds and Donnelys

Victoria Donnely, given up as a child by Lily MacDonald, and later adopted by Amour and Michael Donnely, comes across an older couple in distress. Ed Baxter, who is a good friend of Lily’s and now dating Amour, soon discoveries the couple, Hector and Jeanne MacDonald, are Lily’s parents and Victoria’s grandparents. After agonizing over whether to tell Amour that Lily is Victoria’s birth mother, Ed finally reveals the long held secret, bringing Lily and her family together, but putting his relationship with Amour in jeopardy.

Meanwhile, Hector, who is feeling the weight of growing old and the guilt of putting his pregnant teenage daughter (Lily) out nineteen years earlier, meets Tipper O’Dell, a precocious twelve-year-old boy who lives with his nearly blind grandmother, and aunt. Hector hires Tipper to help with chores around the house and the two form a close bond. Jeanne’s suspicious nature, however, sees her wrongly accuse Tipper of stealing; putting her already strained marriage at risk.

As Hector spends more time with his daughter and grandchildren, Tipper feels abandoned.

After initially refusing Ed’s proposals, first, because she was suspicious of his relationship with Lily, and, then, because she couldn’t give him a child of his own, Amour eventually relents and they get married at Mabel and Stanley’s property in Pleasant Bay.

The Toth Brothers

Mark surprises everyone when he returns home with his pregnant girlfriend, Toni. Toni later loses the baby and eventually undergoes a hysterectomy. Emotionally distraught and devastated she can no longer give Mark a child, Toni abruptly leaves town.

Struggling with his mounting guilt over sleeping with Alice, betraying his brother, and his failure to be more supportive of Toni, Mark gets drunk and joins his brothers at the store. Luke overhears Mark tell Matthew he is his father. With the secret now revealed, the two Toth brothers get into a bloody brawl, then Luke angrily confronts Alice.

Luke eventually leaves Alice and Matthew and ends up in Halifax. Desperate for work, he is about to take a job at the port, but walks away after learning his brother was hired just weeks before.

Alice, now the subject of town gossip, discovers she is pregnant with her second child.

As always, Mabel and Stanley are there to support their troubled friends deal with their heartbreaking dilemmas.

The Cast of The Bread Maker Series

Leading Roles

Mabel (Adshade) MacIntyre – As a young girl, Mabel survived the tragic loss of her mother (Ellie) and spent her teen years with an alcoholic, abusive man (Johnnie Adshade) whom she assumed was her father. Poor and uneducated, she landed her dream job baking bread at Cameron’s Store. After a series of traumatic events, including almost freezing to death in a coal shed, her rape at the hands of Johnnie’s friends, and a corrupt murder investigation led by a dirty cop and an ambitious prosecutor, Mabel eventually discovers her mother’s secrets. Smart, strong, and resilient, she marries Stanley McIntyre, has three children (JC, Mary Margaret and Liv) and turns a small, neighbourhood bakery into one of the town’s most successful enterprises.

Stanley MacIntyre – A former boxer, coal-hauler, and long-time friend of James and Margaret Cameron, Stanley found Mabel near frozen to death at the bottom of a coal shed. Charged with the death of Johnnie Adshade, Stanley was prepared to face the death penalty rather than expose a secret he knew would bring Mabel shame. After being rebuffed on numerous occasions, he eventually convinces Mabel to marry him and opens a successful construction company where he employs Dirty Willie, a man he accidentally left brain damaged after a sparring match. He also hires, Lily, a young mother down on her luck, who later robs him and flees town. Despite being urged to do so, he refused to involve the police.

James and Margaret Cameron. James Cameron and Percy MacPherson were childhood friends of Mabel’s mother, Ellie, whom they lost touch with when they served overseas during WWI. Ellie, knowing she was dying and that she couldn’t trust her husband, Johnnie, to do right by her young daughter, contacted James to ask that he manage a small sum of money she set aside for Mabel and that he keep an eye out for her wellbeing. Years later, James, feeling guilty for breaking his promise to his dying friend, hires Mabel over his angry wife’s objections, causing more friction in their already troubled marriage. Margaret, bitter over the loss of their only child, was initially suspicious and jealous of Mabel, but eventually warms to her and the young Toth boys left orphaned after their father jumped to his death. Margaret would later die of a stroke, and her devastated husband, of a bad heart.

Dan McInnes (AKA Barry Sheppard) – A corrupt, ambitious Sergeant who went to jail for trying to frame Stanley for the murder of Johnnie Adshade. McInnes was later sentenced a second time for brutally attacking Mabel. After his release from Dorchester, he returns home to live with his aunt, Gladys Ferguson, who, along with his late uncle, raised him as a boy. Seeking revenge on Stanley, whom he blamed for ruining his life, McInnes engages a former cellmate, Lenny Slade to kidnap Mabel and Stanley’s young son. After Lenny and his sister, Sylvie Sheppard, are discovered to have taken the child, McInnes flees to Quidi Vidi, Newfoundland. Broke, bitter, and with a mangled hand, he once again returns home, where he attacks Mabel’s neighbour, Myrtle Munroe; skipping town as the police began to close in on him. He meets Lily in a bus station on the mainland and soon discovers that, like him, she is on the lam, and with a pile of stolen cash. Posing as Sylvie’s dead brother, Barry Sheppard, he holds her and her three, young children captive at the Roachville Pines Motel in New Brunswick, until Ed Baxter and Gordon Dunphy discover his true identity. Once again on the run, McInnes is tracked down by the aggrieved father of a young Mi’Kmaw girl he tried to rape. He was found tied to a tree with his genitals cut off.

Amour Donnely – Johnnie Adshade’s sister, married her first husband, Roddy, as a young girl and moved to Boston. Their cold, sexless marriage ended with Roddy killing himself while awaiting trial for a sexual assault against a colleague’s young son and suspicions he was responsible for the murder of David Greene, the homosexual son of a Jewish cobbler. Amour then married, Michael Donnely. After adopting Victoria, Amour and Michael spend time in London, England, before returning home. In 1948, Michael was tragically killed in a mine accident while investigating complaints the mine was unsafe.

Victoria Donnely – Adopted daughter of Amour and Michael. Victoria and John Toth formed a special friendship after the unexpected death of her father, Michael. Victoria frequently babysits the MacIntyre children.

Luke, Mark and John Toth – three brothers orphaned as children. Mabel and Mary Catherine both babysat the boys before their father committed suicide. James and Margaret Cameron, who lost their only child, James Jr., to the flu, would form a special bond with the boys. Luke, who served as a gunner in WWII, suffers post-war trauma. He married, Alice, the former girlfriend of his younger, skirt-chasing brother, Mark.

Alice – Hired to help in the bakery after her father, Corliss, lost his leg in a mine accident, Alice marries Luke after he returns from the war and gives birth to Matthew. A one-time sexual encounter with Mark, before her marriage to Luke later led to questions about if Luke or Mark is the father.

Lily – turned out of her home as a pregnant teenager by her strict Catholic parents, Hector and Jeanne MacDonald, Lily gave up her child and married, Chester, nine years her senior. Suspicious of Lily’s relationship with Father Gregory, Chester beats the popular, young priest to death in a fit of jealous rage. Rumoured to have been romantically involved with Father Gregory, Lily is also blamed for his death and she and her children become the target of the town’s wrath. Scorned and broke, Stanley hires Lily to work at his construction company. Lily, trying to protect her tormented children, betrays him and cleans out the company’s bank account. She meets Dan McInnes (Barry Sheppard) while she and the kids are fleeing town. McInnes soon discovers she is on the run and holds her captive with the threat he will report her to the authorities if she refuses to do his bidding. She meets, Ed Baxter, the man who eventually helps her and her children escape their captor, while living at the Roachville Pines and working as a chambermaid.

Ed Baxter – A civilian member of the RCMP and a regular visitor to the Roachville Pines, Ed misplaces his glasses and returns to his motel room where he discovers Lily sobbing. After another chance meeting, Ed is convinced Lily is in an abusive relationship. After meeting Barry Sheppard, he enlists the aid of Frank Miller, a colleague with the RCMP, to investigate Sheppard’s background. With the help of Gordon Dunphy, they soon confirm Barry Sheppard is Dan McInnes, a suspect wanted for the assault of Myrtle Munroe. Ed then moves to Cape Breton where he takes a job with the city, becomes close friends with Gordon and his wife, Charlotte, and where he develops a relationship with Amour Donnely.

Kenny Ludlow – Known for getting into mischief and easily finding trouble, Kenny is head over heels in love with Victoria Donnely. After their very brief relationship ends, Kenny, has two primary objectives to get laid and to make a success of himself. Along with his fellow Blackheads and long-time friends,

Tommy Simms and Harley Woodward, best friends of Kenny Ludlow, the trio was falsely accused of the assault on Myrtle Munroe that the authorities later determined was the work of Dan McInnes. As a kid, Kenny and his friends ruthlessly tormented Myrtle Munroe as she peddled her preserves around town.

Hector and Jeanne MacDonald - Lily’s parents. Nineteen years after throwing their pregnant teenager out of the house, a chance encounter with Victoria Donnely reveals she is Lily’s daughter, and the their granddaughter.

Tipper O’Dell – a precocious twelve-year-old boy who lives with his grandmother and aunt. After a rocky start with Jeanne, including false accusations that he stole from them, Jeanne begins to warm up to him and he soon becomes like a son to the MacDonalds.

Toni (Antoinette) Moody – Mark’s Toth’s latest girlfriend. Pregnant and new to town, Toni has a still birth, suffers complications, and has a hysterectomy. Heartbroken she cannot have children, she breaks off her relationship with Mark and returns to Halifax.

Supporting Roles

Bea – Best friend of Victoria Donnely and a babysitter to Mabel and Stanley’s three children.

Bessie – An older, big-busted widow who works at Cameron’s bakery.

Billy Guthro and Eddie Lynch – Johnnie’s drinking buddies. Billy rapes Mabel, and he and his simple-minded friend, Eddie, set fire to Stanley’s barn killing his ponies. They later allege they heard Stanley threaten to kill Johnnie.

Chester – Lily’s much older abusive husband. Jealous of Lily’s relationship with Father Gregory he killed the popular priest in a fit of rage. He died of cancer shortly after being released from Dorchester Penitentiary.

Clair Romano – Stanley’s first love. Engaged to be married, Clair’s father put a stop to the wedding believing Stanley was not good enough for his daughter. After many years of living away, Clair returns to Cape Breton at a time when Stanley’s and Mabel’s marriage is in crisis. Although Clair is anxious to rekindle their romance, she eventually realizes Stanley will never leave Mabel. She goes back to Halifax, returning briefly, where she attended the opening of Michael’s Manor and met Owen, Michael Donnely’s brother-in-law. Clair and Owen married soon afterward and live in Halifax.

Constable MacEwan – A friend of Dan McInnes and incompetent cop, MacEwan temporarily served as the acting chief of the Glace Bay Police Department.

Corliss – Alice’s father, Corliss lost a leg in the mine. Worked at Cameron’s Store and a bit of a character around town.

Dirty Willie (Willie Morrison) – As a young boxer vying for a national title, Willie suffered a serious brain injury during a sparring match with Stanley. He now works for Stanley at S&M Construction.

Dr. Cohen – town doctor and friend to JameHs and Margaret Cameron, he treated Mabel after Stanley found her in the coal shed.

Father Gregory – A handsome, young priest, bludgeoned to death by, Chester, Lily’s jealous husband.

Gladys Ferguson – She and her late husband raised Dan McInnes from the time he was a young boy. Gladys defended her corrupt nephew against every charge until it was clear he robbed her. She had an intense dislike for Mabel and Stanley, blaming Mabel for taking a job at Cameron’s store she felt she was entitled to, and blaming Stanley for McInnes’ fall from grace.

Gordon and Charlotte Dunphy - A captain with the Glace Bay Police Department, Gordon moved up the ranks despite the corrupt efforts of the local police commission and Crown Prosecutor. One of the good cops, he was prepared to testify on behave of Stanley during his murder trial, and stuck up for Kenny and his friends when they were wrongfully charged with attacking Myrtle Munroe. Despite having strong feelings for Mabel, Gordon married Charlotte, a nurse at one of the local hospitals. They have one child, Faith.

Henri Gehue –A giant of a man who lives with his daughter, Anne, and his elderly mother, Nukumi. After learning McInnes tried to rape Anne, he tracks him down and kills him. He begins to date Lily, but never tells her he killed McInnes, or that he was the one who sent the note telling her where to find the money McInnes had taken from her.

Johnnie Adshade - The alcoholic, abusive man who married Mabel’s mother, Ellie. Found dead in a ditch under suspicious circumstances, Johnnie’s death led to Stanley being charged with his murder, and James Cameron being charged as an accomplice. Johnnie, who hated his wife’s childhood friend, James Cameron, died before learning James was his half-brother.

Lenny Slade and Sylvie Sheppard – Lenny, an ex con, was enlisted by Dan McInnes to kidnap JC, Mabel and Stanley’s two-year-old son. Lenny’s mentally disturbed sister, Sylvie, is happy to welcome the child into their home, believing her husband, Barry Sheppard, who has been missing for years, will return home and they will be a family. She is unaware Lenny shot her husband and that he is buried not far from her home.

Lizzie MacNeil – A well-known spinster and busy-body, Lizzie is always plastered in gaudy makeup and traipsing about in skin-tight clothes and six-inch heels looking for a man. A friend of Gladys Ferguson, she had a one-time sexual encounter with Dan McInnes, Glady’s nephew, that further eroded her fragile self-esteem. A clerk with the town’s Records Department, her insatiable curiosity led to the discovery James Cameron and Johnnie Adshade were half-brothers.

Mannie Chernin – A corrupt, politically-ambitious Crown Prosecutor and wannabe politician.

Mary Catherine – Mabel’s long-time friend, Mary Catherine converted to Judaism and married Sam Friedman, a lawyer who defended Stanley during Johnnie Adshade’s murder trial. She and Sam have three children, Irwin, Lydia, and Judith Devorah. Myrtle Munroe – Mabel’s bald, eccentric neighbour is like a second mother to Mabel’s and Stanley’s children. She used to sell preserves around town, but recently found considerable success selling her watercolours. She was viciously attacked by Dan McInnes during a botched robbery.

Mary Mack – a clumsy, young employee at Cameron’s Bakery who is always late for work.

Mother and Father – Kenny Ludlow’s exasperated parents.

Rosie – A rough-around-the edges fixture behind the Woolworth’s lunch counter, Rosie was let go to make way for the manager’s niece. On the day of the opening of Michael’s Manor, Rosie offers to help in the kitchen when the whistle blows, signalling there is an accident at the mine. Her husband, Bernie, was one of the victims. Amour later hires Rosie and Dirty Willie’s sister, Sandra, who also lost her husband in the mine accident, to work at the manor.

Ted Collins – A retired officer with The Glace Bay Police Force, Ted was instrumental in proving Stanley’s innocence during the Adshade trail, and later helped Stanley and Mabel reunite with their kidnapped son. He lost his first wife, Muriel, to cancer. He later married Judge Kennedy’s widow, Gloria.

Ten-After-Six (Peter Boyd) - A former trapper boy who worked with the pit ponies, Peter Boyd can’t stand up straight. He walks at an awkward angle with his head down, earning him the nickname of Ten-after-Six. Peter, who works part-time for Stanley, supplements his wages with the money he finds while on his walks.

The Chief – a wise, Mi’kmaw elder who tended to Dan McInnes’ stab wounds after his sons found McInnes passed out in his truck.

Yvonne and Giles LeBlanc- Friends of Ed Baxter and owners of The Roachville Pines, they hired Lily as a chambermaid and let her, her kids, and Dan McInnes live in the motel in exchange for a reduced wage. Childless, the couple formed a deep bond with Lily and her children.

Cameo Appearances

Big Dick and Little Dick – Two Glace Bay police offers with the same first and last names; one very large in stature, the other very small.

Curtis – Son of the late Judge Kennedy and his wife, Gloria, Curtis is a law student at Dalhousie.

Dr. MacLellan – A handsome town doctor who works at the local hospital.

Doreen – Friend of Tommy and Sally who almost dated Kenny. Her budding relationship with Kenny was doomed after Kenny backed into her crazy brother Vinny’s new car.

Dot – Friend and neighbour of Hector and Jeanne MacDonald.

Geezer – The town drunk. While not from Glace Bay, Geezer practically lives at the town jail, where Gordon Dunphy and his fellow officers make sure he has something to eat and a place to sleep.

Judge Cummings – An old friend of Ed Baxter’s, Lily discovered a young man leaving the judge’s motel unit in the middle of the night. His marriage fell apart after it came to light his wife, Wanda, was cheating on him.

Mackie (Michael MacIntosh) – Friend of Stanley who trained Mark and other boxers at The Y.

Mr. Bruffatto - Local landlord who rented to Mark and Toni.

Sally – Tommy Simms’ girlfriend

Vinny – A macho, car fanatic and scary brother of Doreen, Kenny Ludlow’s ex-girlfriend.

The Heart of the Matter

Friday, June 14, 1953

He turned the key, heard the click, and removed the large padlock that secured the heavy chain to the high wrought iron fence. He gathered up the long, loose chain; the clanking sound of the links dragging over the horizontal bar of the heavy door, dispelling the quiet of the early hour. He never tired of the sound. It meant he’d soon be in his oasis, with his hands buried under the cool, moist earth, and his mind turned to one of the few things that brought him joy; if only temporarily. He put his hand around one of the metal bars of the gate, pulled the large door open, and fastened it to the side of the fence. It wouldn’t be long before young, hand-holding couples would be crowding the pathways, and the not-so-young would gather around the ponds, tearing off bits of stale bread for their grandchildren to feed the ducks. He secured the second door to the opposite side of the entrance and bent down to gather up his long-handled tools. There was a loud bang, then another. He dropped to his knees and looked skyward to the flashes of light popping overhead, covering his ears to silence the shrill sounds of bombs whistling to earth. Chunks of wet earth erupted all around. He heard a shout, then the rat-a-tat-tat of gunfire. Then nothing. It became deadly quiet; the only sound, the rapid pounding of his heart. He put his head down and dabbed at his burning eyes. There were muffled voices in the distance. They were getting louder, coming toward him. He got down on his belly and scurried along on his elbows through the wet, furrowed field of rotten potatoes and cow dung, and hid behind a small knoll. He could see his plane in the distance, nose down with black smoke billowing from its cracked shell. The others? Where are the others? The voices were no longer muffled. They were clear, almost over him. He grabbed his rifle, crouched down and began running through the field to the edge of the forest. He stumbled forward and fell headfirst; his boots sucked down by the thick, unforgiving muck. He frantically pushed himself up off the soft, dry mound beneath him, reeling at the sight of his legless navigator’s vacant eyes. He scrambled to his knees and bent over with his muddy hands on his face. Please! Please! Make it quick. I don’t want to suffer, he cried, rocking back and forth.

A cop nudged his way through the bystanders gathered to witness the young man in distress. Whoa! Hey, bud! Nobody’s gonna hurt you. He put his hands up to indicate he meant no harm and inched closer. Everything is all right. I just want to help you. How about putting the shovel down?

An older man with a scraggly beard stepped forward. It’s shell shock. He pointed to the damaged cars. Crash musta set him off.

The cop nodded and turned to the growing crowd of curious onlookers. Everybody step back. Give us some space. He then turned his attention back to the young man holding the shovel over his shoulder as if standing at home plate, waiting for the perfect pitch. You’re in Halifax…just outside the Public Gardens. He pointed. Look, it’s beautiful in there. All sorts of trees and flowers. The young man’s eyes darted wildly from one unfamiliar face to another. You’re okay, the cop calmly repeated. No one wants to hurt you. We’re here to help. Come on now, I know you don’t want to hurt anybody. You had a flashback, that’s all. Just pass me the shovel.

I still can’t believe you’re going through with this, Stanley said.

Mabel sighed. Me, either. Don’t forget to pick up the wine for supper. Oh, and try and be home by four.

I know…I know. Don’t worry. He leaned over and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Good luck.

Mabel entered the store. Morning, John.

Good morning. Haven’t changed your mind, have you?

No. The girls here?

All but Mary Mack.

Mabel laughed. No surprise there. She pushed open the door to the bakery. Bessie was flouring her kneading board, and Alice was holding four-month-old Nora. Oh, look who’s here, she said cheerily, taking the baby from Alice and sitting down.

Alice walked to her station. Sorry, the sitter wasn’t feeling the best and she didn’t think she could handle both Matthew and the baby. I’m hoping she won’t be any trouble.

Mabel smiled down at the baby. "Trouble? Trouble? What is your silly mama talking about? You’re no trouble, are you? She placed the baby in her bassinette and looked up at the dark circles under Alice’s eyes. She’s still not sleeping through the night?"

No, and neither am I.

Bessie slid a pan of rolls into the oven. None of mine slept well, either. I’d be up all hours of the day and night. Singing, rocking…feeding. Nothing seemed to work. But just you wait. As soon as she starts eating solid foods, she’ll settle down and sleep…just like a baby, she laughed.

Great! Just two more months to go, Alice moaned.

Mabel reached for her apron. All babies are different. It may not take that long. So, ladies, I have a meeting in town this afternoon, and Amour and Ed are coming for supper, so I’ll be leaving at noon and I won’t be back. She smiled at Bessie. I know you don’t like to say no to anyone, but don’t take any new orders after I leave. She tied her apron in the back. Come to think of it, why don’t we all take the afternoon off…get an early start on the weekend? We’ll fill the orders we have and that will be that!

"Really?" Alice said, thinking she’d be able to get a jump on the growing pile of laundry taking over the cramped bedroom her father made available to her and the kids after she moved out of the apartment above the store.

"Really! Mabel said with enthusiasm. In fact, let’s close the bakery tomorrow. Alice, you and Mary Mack can have the day off…with pay, of course."

Bessie pressed her palms together as if in prayer and raised her fingers to her mouth. How wonderful. That’s so kind of you, she beamed.

Mabel smiled, thinking what a beautiful and generous soul Bessie was. She wasn’t scheduled to work the next day, but she didn’t begrudge her co-workers their good fortune. In fact, she was genuinely happy for them. Mabel put her head down, the immediate joy of the moment overtaken by a sharp pang of guilt.

Alice beamed. You won’t get any argument from me.

Mary Mack charged in. I’m here!

Bessie glanced at the clock. I didn’t expect to see you for another fifteen minutes.

Then I’m early, Mary Mack said, laughing. She looked at Mabel and grinned. Sorry, I’m just not a morning person. But I’m trying.

Mabel smiled and shook her head. I know you are.

Mary Mack, Bessie said excitedly, guess what? Mabel said we can have the afternoon off, and that you and Alice can take tomorrow off…with pay. Isn’t that sweet of her?

Mary Mack flung her purse on top of her work station. Sure is. But I’m not surprised. We got the best boss, ever.

Mabel closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. You have no idea.

Toni watched the ambulance sail past and pointed up South Street to the damaged cars blocking the intersection to Spring Garden Road. Let’s hope no one is seriously hurt, she said to Eunice. They quickened their pace and crossed at the corner, watching the police direct traffic, and an ambulance attendant help a shaken driver from her car.

Eunice nudged her. What’s going on over there? she said, nodding to the entrance to the Public Gardens. C’mon.

Toni chased after her cousin. A man was sitting on the ground with his head down and a shovel resting on his outstretched legs. He put the shovel aside and slowly lifted his head. Toni’s eyes widened. Oh, my God, she whispered. I think that’s Luke.

Luke who? Eunice asked.

Luke Toth. Mark’s brother. God, it is Luke…I’m sure of it.

What’s wrong with him?

Toni shrugged. I don’t know.

The man beside her leaned in. Pretty sure it’s shell shock. Probably heard the crash and thought he was back on the battlefield.

Luke slowly got to his feet, keeping his eyes fixed to the ground. He gripped his right hand to keep it from shaking and fought to settle his breathing.

The cop stood face-to-face with the troubled young man to block the prying eyes of the onlookers. You work in there? he asked, nodding inside the high gate.

I’m a groundskeeper, Luke whispered, praying his heart would stop pounding.

So, Harvey’s your boss?

Luke nodded.

So, here’s the deal, the cop said, pointing to his fellow officers at the scene of the accident. I’m gonna have one of the guys take you to the hospital…have a doctor take a look at you. And I’ll let Harvey know you’re not feeling the best and that you won’t be in today. How’s that?

Luke was too ashamed and too weak to protest. I’m sorry, he said meekly.

Toni turned and walked away. Eunice caught up to her. Aren’t you gonna say something to him?

Of course not! Now, c’mon, or we’ll be late.

But why not? Eunice protested.

Because he’s probably mortified.

But, don’t you want to ask about Mark?

Are you serious! Toni hissed. No! Come on, let’s go.

Oh, bullshit! Don’t give me that nonsense. I know you want to. Let’s just go back and –

No! Absolutely not! Now, c’mon, before we get in trouble, Toni insisted. She dashed across the street and up the stone steps of the imposing brick building that catered to those of more prosperous means.

A red-capped bellboy in a toy soldier uniform raced past her and pulled the door open. Madame, he said, bowing deeply, with one arm across his stomach, and the other stretched in the air.

Toni laughed. Thank you, Alan, she said with a grin, before entering the posh lobby with its white marble floor, forty-foot high ceiling, and ornate plaster coving. She waved goodbye to Eunice. See you later, she said, heading toward the small office tucked behind a reception desk that stretched almost the full length of the spacious foyer. She entered and draped her cardigan over the back of her chair, wondering what Luke was doing in the city. He looked like he might be a groundskeeper. Maybe he and Alice sold the store. I wonder if Mark’s back in the city, too. Oh, what difference does it make? It’s all water under the bridge, anyway. Mark’s probably got a new girlfriend by now. She picked up a stack of invoices, carefully entered the amounts into the ledger, and began preparing cheques for her boss’ signature. She realized she entered the wrong amount on two of the cheques and slammed her pen down. Dammit, Mark. Now, I can’t stop thinking about you! She walked to the window and looked across the street. It’s a beautiful day. Maybe I should have lunch in the gardens.

Luke ached from head to toe. He didn’t want to come to the hospital, but felt the officer left him no choice. It was either spend the morning in The Infirmary, or the night in jail. He fidgeted in the uncomfortable wooden chair the nurse assigned him, wondering if the terrifying images that took over his mind would strike again. I didn’t see it coming. I felt good. Jesus, maybe I’m going mad. He jumped when the door suddenly opened.

The doctor smiled. Sorry about that. He stretched his hand out. Robert Layton.

Luke stood and shook his hand. Luke Toth.

Where are you from, Luke? he asked in a casual, breezy way.

Glace Bay.

Dr. Layton nodded. "Been in the city long?’

Almost a year.

So, want to tell me what happened this morning?

Luke told him he heard a loud bang and that it was like he was back on the battlefield, describing the horrifying images that took him back in time.

Have you had similar experiences in the past? Dr. Layton asked.

Luke sat back down and nodded. Occasionally, but not nearly so bad. And not recently. This one was different…more vivid… terrifying. I was taking phenobarbital to keep my nerves under control, but I ran out a couple of months ago…and well…I figured I–

You figured you didn’t need them anymore? Dr. Layton said.

Luke dropped his head. Yes.

Dr. Layton leaned against his examination table, clutching his chart to his chest. So, apart from what happened this morning, how have you been feeling? Have you been feeling unusually stressed of late?

Luke shrugged. Not really, he said, thinking things were pretty rough after he left Alice, but that he was finally beginning to adjust to his new life. He got a job he liked, a small apartment, and with each passing day, a bit more accustomed to living in the city.

Sleeping okay?

Not bad.

Dr. Layton patted the examination table. Jump up and let’s check you out. He shone the penlight in Luke’s eyes, took his pulse, and checked his blood pressure. Heart rate and pressure are higher than I’d like, but understandable under the circumstances. So you saw action overseas?

I was a rear gunner.

Then I guess you’re used to taking orders.

Luke turned down his mouth and shrugged. I guess.

Dr. Layton grinned. Good, because I’m a doctor and I like giving them. He pointed to the scale. Okay, let’s see how much you weigh. He waited for Luke to step on the pedestal, then slid the weights back and forth. You’re a little on the thin side for a man of your height, he said, tapping the smaller weight until the indicator bar levelled off. Eating okay?

Two or three times a day.

Who does the cooking?

I do…when I don’t eat out.

Not married?

Luke looked down. Not anymore.

Dr. Layton gave a sympathetic nod. Any kids?

No, Luke said, more firmly than he intended.

Any other family in the area? Brother or sister? Someone you feel you can turn to if you…I don’t know…feel the need to talk to someone about what you’re experiencing…someone to remind you to keep up with your medications, for example?

No. I have a younger brother in Cape Breton, but other than that, there’s no one, he lied, having long ago decided Mark was dead to him. I haven’t really gotten to know too many folks outside of work. And most of the guys I work with are older…with families. I mean we might go out for the odd beer after work, but that’s about it.

Dr. Layton smiled, sensing the tormented young man was a powder keg ready to explode. Do you like your work?

Yes. Especially when I’m assigned the gardens. I find it…calming.

Dr. Layton scratched something out on a small notepad and tore the page free. I want you to go home for now and get some rest. Maybe soak in the tub for a while. Your body didn’t escape the trauma that played out in your mind. It needs time to heal. He handed him the prescription. And take this to Rexall’s…it’s just up the street on Spring Garden. Take one every eight hours. He wagged his finger. "And don’t skip a single pill. I’ll need to see you again next week… my office on the second floor. You