Greenbriar Manor

Bridges

Fern's mother woke up to the sound of a whistle in the distance. She had not heard from her daughter all night. The house was cold and dark. But the phone was ringing. Louder and louder. She stumbled out of bed and went to answer it dragging the cord behind her as she sat in her chair. It was Fran. She was talking fast something about no charge for the linens and boys and cleaning services. As she went to hang up the phone she noticed a tiny piece of paper. Green and shiny in the corner of the kitchen. Maybe Fern had left a note. On the piece of paper she saw cursive scribbled carefully in one corner. The note read: 

Mother, 

I have gone for tea at my friend Mari's house.  Her mother invited me for dinner after I finished my deliveries. I came home but you were sleeping so I left this note.  Please don't worry Fran has fixed the linens and will have them returned tomorrow. She will send someone to call on you. Miss Fran sent some tea and cakes on the plate on the counter. Enjoy them. I will come home soon. Take care. 

All my love, 

Fern

Brooklyn pushed past the crowd on Fern's street he had left the letter and things that his mother had told him. He thought about Bridgette and how her mother had wept when she never came home. How that wretched doll of hers had shown up in the tree house overnight.  Like an omen. Then years later the bird cage and vanity. of cousin Vera's.  Appearing in thin air and the house would get stuffy and someone would leave and another family would come. Each object. Each gift. The house chose it's people or so the old school rhyme says. 

It was his turn to take the tea plate to Fern's mother, He knew his own was lonely. Fran was lonely. Maybe if Fran could not be moved. This woman would appreciate the gesture and would then come to return it. He would wait for her to have tea in the apartment and go back for her at dusk.

Fern had slept well in the barn loft. She awoke to the sound of a whistle like a train horn in the distance. She thought of her mother but remembered a note and a call was sent to her. There would be no panic. Fran was looking in on her. Today was the first day of Fall and she felt cold shivers pass over her shoulders. She pulled the angora shawl she had found around her tighter and tried to go back to sleep. Something puzzled her but she just could not figure out what it was. Every time she thought about her mom. She felt a strange inner calm. She thought of the tea cakes with green icing she had wrapped in paper. The yellow china cup with a rose on it that Mari had given her yesterday. How warm it was to have a friend. How she wished she could stay here away from jobs and school and sickness and be young forever. She laughed at the silly thought. This evening she would have to return home to her apartment and see how Fran was keeping mother company. The almond icing in the tea cakes still clung to her fingers and her tongue thickly. She climbed down from the loft and walked up to the tiny house. 

All the lights were off. She wondered if Mari's mother worked during the day. Cobwebs clung to the eaves and ivy too. She would help them clean today. She went back to the barn and found a feed bucket and a horse brush. As she attempted to pump water out back of the house it gurgled and spat water the color of red clay and a rancid smell like old chicken eggs came out. She thought back to last night as her Mari's mother had used this water for their tea and bath and the laundry. Maybe there was another pump or something blocking the creek. She had heard of this happening when her uncle's well went dry.  She walked through the brush line and saw a small pool of water about the size of her hand. It looked cleaner than what was coming out of the pump, so she dipped the brush in it and went to cleaning the eaves on that old house. 

By the time she was finished the windows and door looked good. She felt sleepy and was covered in dirt and grime. She knew that the Greene's had a service porch where she could wash up and maybe Fran had an extra outfit she could lend her. She opened the door and hurried to the sink. She scrubbed and scrubbed her hands. It felt nice to feel warm. She took of her apron and stockings and put them in a bucket and scrubbed them clean with soap. She hung them on a nail and went to look for Fran. She found her in the library.