Heart's Content

Part Fifty-Four

{'Castles of Sand' by William Henry Margetson from Wikimedia Commons}

A month passed without another incident. Lisette was careful to check any room she wished to use before she brought along Adelaide rather than solely rely on the schedule she had been given and that prevented them from having to endure another uncomfortable encounter. The following month, Lenora and Julien both journeyed to Kashal which gave Lisette and Adelaide free reign of the manor without worry over whether or not they would intrude upon an intimate moment and without concern of an accidental misstep in what was expected of her because there was really no one to disappoint. Amelia did provide an ominous presence every now and then, only really showing disapproval when Lisette and Adelaide played hide-and-seek throughout the various empty rooms, but otherwise she seemed unconcerned with their activities as she went about her own duties throughout the house.

Montgomery Landry was often at sea, but any time he was ashore, Lisette made sure to visit him and to thank him for offering her his home when she had none. He was just as amicable as Bernadette and it was easy to see why they had been together for so long. He enjoyed having Lisette come to visit with Adelaide, often with Kitke in tow, and when Lisette and Bernadette weren't busily showing them all of the various types of herbs and flowers in the garden and explaining their uses, the children would play among the flowers under Montgomery's watchful eye.

Adelaide and Kitke were busy dashing back and forth outside of the cottage while Montgomery sat in a chair in the shade watching them with a smile on his face as he held his pipe up to his lips. The children each held a cookie in their hands and ran without any real notion of a game being played, just running with the autumn sun warm on their skin and the sea breeze blowing against their faces, catching their giggles with each gust.

"Thank you for bringing the children around," Bernadette smiled gently behind her tea cup as she looked out through the small kitchen's open door, catching a glimpse of Kitke and Adelaide whenever they dashed by. They had both warmed to her and Montgomery and treated them as any child would a beloved grandparent, running to them with hugs as soon as they were within sight. Adelaide had even commented on how she loved to visit Bernadette because she smelled like all the good things and when Bernadette asked her what she meant, Adelaide listed them as flowers, cookies, and love. Bernadette had laughed, asking what love smelled like and Adelaide could only respond by telling her that love smelled like her which made everyone laugh.

The smile Lisette gave Bernadette was equally as gentle as hers and she observed the old woman in silence for several moments, wondering quietly to herself what it would have been like to be raised by her. She was such a serene and sincere soul with an undeniable spunkiness to her, something that made Lisette smile inwardly as she sipped her own tea. She felt an attachment to her that she never felt to her own mother and was fulfilled by receiving an affection she had never before benefitted from, "of course, 'tis my pleasure."

"Truly," Bernadette set her teacup down and as Lisette lowered her own, the old woman took her hand, "it has been a blessing having you here... I feel as though you were fated to join us."

Lisette's hand turned over beneath hers, grasping her fingertips gently as she smiled and nodded her head. It was true, it did feel fated that she had been saved by Montgomery only to be brought to Bernadette who cared for her every moment while she was ailing until she was well again and even then her care for Lisette didn't cease. She continued to look after her and taught her things that she would have struggled to learn otherwise, things that would be useful in the life that she had planned with Genevieve. That was it, they were all skills that were useful for her life with Genevieve, one which she hadn't planned to live on Lor. The idea that she had brought joy to Bernadette and Montgomery during her time there was bittersweet because she knew that eventually she would have to leave and while Kitke's mother was friends with the elderly couple, she couldn't guarantee that Adelaide would get to see any of them again once she was gone and the thought caused a frown to appear on her face as she glanced down at the dark tea in her cup.