An Inheritance

Chapter 26

This was the second straight day Lauren had spent reading her mother’s letters.  After they had gone to live with the Judge and his wife, the turmoil as a family began to subside.  The Judge had put a restraining order on their father to keep him away from them, and to Lauren’s knowledge, he had never tried to see them again.  Their mother was granted a divorce fairly quickly, their property sold and they were able to move into a small house nearer to where her mother worked.

The life as her mother now described it was something Lauren could remember vividly.  These were all normal, everyday things including how Danielle and Lauren were doing in school, boyfriends they had, dances they attended, proms, graduations, and college. And then of course, their marriages and Danielle’s growing family. 

“… Lauren has decided to marry Randy.  He is nice enough and seems to love her very much, but I’m not sure she really feels the same way.  It’s as though she is going through the motions or doing something she feels is expected of her.  I’ve mentioned that maybe she should hold off for a few months, but she is such a stubborn young woman.  I don’t give that marriage much of a chance.”

Lauren laughed, boy, did her mother get that right.  In retrospect, she now realized she probably had never really loved Randy and that was why his cheating hadn’t bothered her.  It had actually been her way out of the marriage.  Poor Randy.  She knew he had really loved her in the beginning, but she could never reciprocate the way he really wanted and needed.

She continued reading where her mother wrote about her own job, and the move to Trenton when the Judge became part of the NJ State Supreme Court. The illness and death of his wife, Natalie, had devastated her; they had become so very close.  But later the love and marriage to the Judge brought her only joy and contentment, something Lauren knew she deserved more than anyone else.

Throughout those years, there was never any direct reference to Lauren’s abilities, although some mentions of her dreams were hinted at. 

 Whenever Lauren felt her energy had been depleted and she couldn’t read any more, she went to the green house and immersed herself in the daily activities of tending to the plants.  They gave her solace and purpose, something she could put her hands into without the emotional drain of the letters.  Abby was especially attentive during this time and unusually complacent when her meals or treats weren’t on time.  She would find a good napping place in the green house or lie by Lauren’s leg on the cot when she read the letters.  Abby just seemed to know that her presence was a comfort and she willingly complied.

Putting down the last letter from a batch she had been reading, Lauren reached out and stroked her friend’s back.  “Abby, I’m not ready to read the remainder of these right now … they’re all from the year before Mom died, I’ll save them until later … let’s go get a snack, it’s still too early for dinner.”

 Abby was down from the cot and headed towards the kitchen before Lauren could put away the last letters.  Finding Abby seated expectantly on one of the kitchen chairs, she laughed, the first real laugh she’d had in a couple of days.  “I can always count on you to keep things normal.  How does ‘people’ tuna sound to you?  I’ll give you some then make some tuna salad for myself.  Tuna salad on crackers sounds good to me, and maybe some tea.”  Lauren looked on the shelves.  “Blackberry tea this time.”  She smiled knowingly at Abby.