This is one of two alternate endings for the series of stories: The Sun, the Moon and Stars, This Could B Us, and Roadhouse Garden.
Whichever ending you choose, or both, I hope you continue to enjoy the relationship of Prince and Dana
I manage keeping my trip to the bank a secret for a whole day, but I find I'm bursting with excitement to share what was in the box. There's an overwhelming sense of relief when Tyka touches on the subject when she arrives at my house the next afternoon.
"I went yesterday," the words rush out, my body almost vibrating with delight.
"You're kidding?!" Her eyes get big with astonishment.
"Hold on, let me grab the stuff," I disappear into my bedroom to retrieve the zippered bag and return in seconds.
I lay out the gloves, then the ear cuffs, and finally the necklace on the sofa cushion between us. Tyka picks up and handles each item while I stay silent, I know these things are very personal, and her eyes confirm that when they well up with tears.
"But these," I wave the folded papers, "are the real surprise." I lay out the building plans first. It's obvious it's designed to look like a miniature version of my Tennessee home on the outside, but the interior plans reveal its actual design is to be a working recording studio. Now, I'm not sure if this plan was drawn up in case I wouldn't relocate to Minnesota, or what exactly his thought process was. I do know, however, that I don't have a place for all the instruments he had left for Anastasia, and this mini version of my house just may be the space I'm needing and that she'll need to practice.
"That's cute, but where?" Tyka looks up from the plans.
"Here," I grin, handing her the next set of papers. Her eyes scan them, but I can tell she's confused even though it's an obvious gifted land deed. "He purchased an acre of the farmland directly behind my house in Tennessee!" I show her on the diagram where my house sits in relation to the land listed on the deed.
"So, you could build this?" She waves the plans.
"I could, but I'll have to think about that. I'm not sure I actually need a recording studio." I wave my hand, "I'll worry about that later." I hold up the next set of papers, biting my lip as tears well in my eyes, I hand it over.
It takes no time for a Tyka to realize the significance of this gifted deed. "The Galpin Boulevard property! We wondered where the documentation went for this, now we know," she looks genuinely thrilled to see it. Her voice turns sentimental, "This property was very special to him."
"I felt that from him. He took me there several times, it was like the one place he felt comfortable enough to share. We went there after I miscarried, and several times after. We would go there together and pray to be blessed with a child."
Now we're both wiping away tears. Anastasia stops playing with her activity center, crawls to me and pulls herself up. "Hey, there, baby girl," I pull her onto my lap. Anastasia is instantly interested in the sparkling jewelry laid out on the couch cushions and reaches for an ear cuff. She struggles to grasp the small object and it falls back to the sofa before it can make it to her mouth. Since Tyka has two free hands, she starts collecting the items back into the safety of the bag.
"So, I'll need to find out where I can get the key that goes to the lock on the gate," I ponder out loud.
Tyka raises an eyebrow and laughs, "Oh, Honey, if I know my brother, you already have that key in your possession."
My jaw drops, she's right, she has to be. I look up at her, "Our house here and his private quarters were keyed alike, maybe I do have the key," I wonder out loud. I stop to adjust Anastasia on my lap while I continue to think, "There was a key in the box, but it's the one I gave him when he started coming to my place in Tennessee."
A grin stretches across Tyka's face and she laughs, "Then I would suggest you start with that one."
"Let's go," I wrap my arms around Anastasia and stand.
"Now?" Tyka looks shocked.
"Yes, I would've went yesterday if I thought I had the key to the gate. We have to test that theory!" I excitedly move across the room and sling Anastasia's diaper bag over my shoulder.
Tyka stands and laughs, "Okay, sure."
In the car, it's all I can do to obey the speed limit on the way to the property, I've felt a need to go there as soon as I had laid eyes on the deed. Butterflies dance in my stomach when I pull up in front of the gate and remove my keys from the ignition. "Here we go," I breathe. I leave Tyka waiting in the car as I approach the gate, pulling out the key that was in the safe deposit box, and glance back for reassurance, Tyka raises both hands, fingers crossed. I return my gaze to the lock, slipping the key in without any resistance, I hesitate, then twist the key. The padlock springs open.
"I'll be damned," I mutter out loud, rushing to remove the heavy chain and swing open the gate, I see Tyka bouncing, clapping her hands and wiping away tears in the car.
"See, I told you," she beams when I climb back into the car to pull through the gates.
So, as not to have any unwanted company, I do as Prince had done every time we had visited, I close and replace the lock on the gate before driving any further.
It's been awhile since I had been here, any indication of our previous tracks no longer exist, but I carefully creep the car along the familiar, overgrown, paved route. When I pass the location where the house had once stood, Tyka flashes me a puzzled look.
"We always went up by where the windmill used to be," I explain as I continue along the narrower stretch of pavement.
When I reach the spot, I ease the car to a stop and cut the engine. Stepping out of the car, I'm immediately enveloped in that sense of calm peacefulness I always felt here, again Prince's absence feels overwhelming. I take a second to compose myself then reach for the back door to retrieve Anastasia.
"Aren't you coming?" I ask Tyka softly when she makes no move to exit the vehicle.
"I will," she says knowingly, "in a little bit." She seems to sense my need for some privacy.
I start walking from memory, carrying Anastasia over to our favorite sitting spot. A rusty, metal, daisy garden stake sits among the field of yellow dandelions, I smile, knowing I've reached the right spot. I sit down beside this new addition, as if it were Prince, and hold Anastasia on my lap.
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Anastasia looks around in wonder at the sea of yellow before us, and suddenly I don't feel so alone. I glance behind us to make sure Tyka isn't the reason for this feeling, and verify she is not.
"Sugar" the word arrives as a whisper in my mind. My eyes close and an anguished noise escapes my lips when the faint scent of his cologne seems to waft through the breeze.
Through tears, I begin to whisper to Anastasia, "Let me tell you about your father..."
