Chapter 13

                   Chapter Thirteen

“Kate!”  Kenzie poked Kate in the back. “Kate wake up. Mr. Dougall keeps looking your way!”

Kate raised her head off the desk and planted it on her palm. Mr. Dougall had indeed been looking at her. She pried her eyes open. She was so sleepy. She had trouble falling asleep last night. Between fighting Chili for a soft spot in her temporary bed and waiting for her mother to come home, she had lost hours of precious sleep. Every little sound the flat made, Kate imagined it was her mother coming through the door. She would sit up and look, then crawl to the window to look out. She had finally given up on worrying about her mother in the wee hours of the morning. She tossed and turned through a seemingly endless night. She wished for a nice dreamless sleep, which never came.

She studied the board wondering what all the letters and numbers were and remembered she was in Math class. She looked around the room noting the pages other students had turned to were not the pages she was on. She frantically began to flip through her book to the correct page. No wonder Mr. Dougall was watching her. She felt drugged. Mr. Dougall was definitely looking at her as she fought to concentrate on what was on the board. She hazarded a glance at him. He was tall and had what hinted at a former muscular physique, nice soft brown hair and a full beard, very distinguished looking. She felt her eyes droop again. Just let me close them for one moment, one small moment wouldn't hurt, would it?

“Ms. Thorn?” Kate jumped and her eyes popped open, Mr. Dougall was standing right next to her. He leaned down to whisper to her. “Are you feeling ill?  Do you need to go to the nurse’s office?” he asked.

“Um. No, I am fine,” she lied.

“You don’t seem fine to me. Are you sure you do not need to see the nurse?” he asked again.

“I apologize Mr. Dougall, I am just really sleepy. My grandparents are here and we stayed up way too late.” She paused, covering her mouth as she stifled a large yawn. “I’m sorry for disrupting your class. If you want me to leave I will, but I really would like to stay and learn this because if I miss class I have a hard time catching up.” She paused again. His eyes are really deep brown. “I promise I will be good,” she felt punch drunk.

He studied her for a moment, then nodded his head.

“Aye, you can stay. And,” turning to Kenzie, “you may continue to poke her to keep her awake,” he said.

Kate stifled another yawn as the rest of the class laughed and Kate’s head sank in embarrassment. Kate managed to remain awake through the rest of the class. She promised herself that she would nap at lunch.

The bell sounded and Kate, escorted by Kenzie, found herself amidst the crowd, her nose following the smell of food wafting through the halls. They purchased their food and approached the usual table. Boyd and Mairi were already there.

“Kate, oh my, what happened to you?” Mairi said. “Are you sick?”

“My grandparents kept me up late, then I was waiting up for my mom, who came in so late I missed her. I couldn’t sleep. The floor was hard. Then it was raining this morning. I love to sleep when it rains. And I was late and ran all the way here. Ugh, I just want to go back to bed. Wait! It's your birthday today. Happy birthday, Mairi.”

Gavin claimed the seat beside her and whipped out the birthday card for Mairi, whose smile said all the thanks she couldn't get out verbally. Eagerly she claimed the card and carefully opened the envelope. Her face fell when she saw all the signatures on the inside. Kate knew she had thought it was only from Gavin, but then her smile returned as she read all the well wishes written there. At one point her head popped up and she scanned the lunch room, her gaze stopping at Tavey and Frazier's table. Kate's stomach clenched as Tavey looked up and smiled. But then he poked Frazier and pointed across the room. Frazier smiled bashfully as his face turned red. He waved to Mairi and pointed toward an empty table at the other end of the room. She stood up, taking her tray and bag with her.

“Thanks for the card. I hope you don't mind, have to go, excuse me.” She walked quickly toward Frazier who was holding out a chair for her.

“Would you look at that,” whistled Boyd. “I wouldn't have put those two together in a million years.” They watched as Frazier held out a small wrapped package. Mairi opened it and took out a small figurine. “What is that?” Boyd asked.

“I think it's a tiny gargoyle,” Kate said. Mairi was all smiles as she turned it over in her hands.

She looked up at Frazier and they could make out the words 'thank you' before Gavin said, “I think we should stop spying.” He turned to Kate. “By the way, where were you this morning? I stopped by to walk with you. It started to rain and you never came out. Wow, you do look ghastly.”

Kate put her head down on her arms and wanted to die.

“Tact, Gavin. It’s called tact,” Boyd scolded him.

“Kate had a rough night on the floor and couldn’t sleep. She is a bit off today.” Kenzie filled him in.

He put his hand on her back. His nice, warm, hands massaged between her shoulder blades.

“I'm sorry, Kate, I didn't mean to be so rude,” he said.

“Not rude,” she mumbled from her arms. “Telling the truth is not rude.”

He finished kneading her shoulders.

“No, don't stop,” she said. “Feels good.”

The rest of the table laughed.

“She is having trouble forming long sentences,” Kenzie offered. “You better do as she asks or she'll be in a full on coma before lunch is over.”

She smiled and slept through the rest of lunch enjoying Gavin's warm hands on her back.

The rest of the day passed by in a blur. When the final bell rang she could only think about getting home and taking a nap. As she walked down the hall, Gavin caught up to her.

“Need someone to walk you home?” he offered.

“Carry me there?” she asked.

“I see you haven't made it out of the two and three word sentences yet?”

“No,” she smiled.

He reached over and took her backpack from her. Then he took her arm and put it through his. They walked arm and arm out the door and up the street. The rain had stopped and the sun was peeking through the clouds making everything wet, shiny and a bit surreal. She put her head on Gavin’s bicep and closed her eyes. Trusting him to guide her. She took in the smells and sounds. She enjoyed walking arm and arm, stride for stride, not worrying about anything. She imagined this was what it was like to sleepwalk.

“Here we are,” he said.          

“Aww. Can we go round again?” she asked not opening her eyes.

He laughed standing her upright, “No, I think you should go in for a nap,” he said waiting for her to open her eyes before he handed her the backpack.

She reached for the pack but her arms felt heavy, her hands numb and she watched as it just fell to the ground.

“I can’t,” she whined, while pretending to reach for the pack. “Can’t-get-pack. Won’t-come,” she whined some more.

Gavin grabbed the pack off the ground and slung it over his shoulder. Then, placing his hands on her shoulders, he turned her around and marched her towards the door.

“Looks like I'll have to be the one to make sure you get inside, don't want you stuck out here in the courtyard,” he said.

Gavin reached around her and opened the door and guided her down the outer hallway to her flat. A somber Chili met them at the door. She wondered if anyone was home. Then she heard her dad’s voice coming from his room at the back of the flat.

“Damn it Meg, you can’t treat people like this!” she heard his voice thunder down the hall.

Kate’s grandmother poked her head around the doorway from the kitchen.

“I thought I heard someone come in,” she said in a cheery voice. “Oh, I see you have brought Gavin in with you. Do you want a snack? Your father has been baking all day.”  Kate's heart fell when saw the mountain of food, recognizing the warning sign that the day had not been a good one for her father. Her grandmother tried to cover for him.

“I think he feels bad that we found a hotel and wants to make sure we always have something on hand so we won’t have to go out to get something to eat. He is such a worrier,” she said while quietly laughing and gesturing to the counter that was piled high with cookies, croissants, and little quiches.

Gavin gawked at all the food.

“Go ahead and have some,” Grandmother said smiling at them both. “I won’t tell and he will never know.”

Kate grabbed some cookies and poured two glasses of milk. They sat at the small table with her grandmother.

“Where is Grandpa?” Kate asked.

“He is here, just indisposed.” She winked at Gavin, who snickered as he dunked his cookies in his milk.

“What’s going on?” Kate asked.

“Good question,” Grandmother answered. “Oh, here we can get some news,” she said as Grandpa rounded the corner.

“I was wondering when you would get home,” he said as he kissed the top of her head. “Nice to see you again, Gavin. So tell me, how was school?”

Gavin snickered again. Grandpa raised an eyebrow at him as Gavin ratted her out, “Kate slept through most of it.”

“I just didn’t sleep too well last night. I was trying to wait up for Mom to get home. She must have been really late. I never heard her come in and I am a very light sleeper.” She saw a glance pass between her grandparents. “She did come home didn’t she?” Kate asked.

“I was thinking that maybe we could go up to that castle of yours. The one you had written us about. It sounds so interesting and you know its right up my alley,” her grandpa said, changing the subject quickly.

Kate noted her grandfather's nod toward Gavin and realized that she had made him uncomfortable talking about family matters in front of him. She caught the hint and changed subjects with her grandpa.

“I would love to take you, Grandpa, but I need to get refreshed before we go. Could you give me about twenty minutes?” Kate said.  

“I guess I should get going then. I don't want to intrude into you time with yer family,” Gavin said.

“No, no don't be silly, stay,” her grandmother said. “It is not just Kate that wants to see us, but we want to see her and get to know the people who are part of her life here. It makes her emails, scarce as they have been, more alive. Now, when she talks about you, I will have a face and personality to go along with her stories.” She smiled and put a hand on his arm. “We have really enjoyed getting to know you and your friends. It is very important to us that Kate and Bruce have friends they can trust and share their lives with in the months and years ahead.”

“Oh there you go again, being all cryptic and such. Just tell the boy we enjoy his company and so does Katie,” her grandpa added.

“Good, I will head home, give you time to spruce up,” Gavin said as he stood and smiled at Kate, “and meet you at the Castle gates in thirty.”

“Sounds good,” Kate said.

She walked Gavin to the door. He stopped in the doorway and leaned over to whisper in her ear. “I think your grandmother has a thing for me.”

“I do not,” her grandmother’s voice floated from the kitchen.

Gavin grimaced, “Nothing wrong with her hearing.”

Kate smiled, amused at the easy interplay between her family and Gavin.

“Thirty minutes,” he said as he bounded down the stairs.

“Better make it forty-five,” Grandmother called after him.

Kate hurried to her room to grab some clothes, noting the absence of her grandparents' things. Standing alone by her bed, she could really hear the anger in her dad's voice but she couldn’t hear her mom. Quietly she approached the end of the hall, and peeked through the crack in the door. Her father was sitting on the bed, the phone receiver clenched in his hand.

“Meg, this has gone too far, my time for being a doormat is over. It’s either him or me! I don’t want to hear your lies... Look, just come home, they have already moved to a hotel... No! No, I accept no excuses this time...Fine.”

Shaken, Kate backed away from his room, went to the bathroom and locked the door behind her. She turned on the shower stepped in and stood under the warm running water and tried to forget what she had heard, but her dad’s infuriated voice played over and over in her head. It sounded like he was accusing her mom of having an affair. Him or me. That just couldn’t be. She knew her mom loved her dad. Him or me. She wouldn’t lie to him and as excruciatingly blunt as she was, she had always been truthful with Kate. Him or me. Him or me. His words echoed. Who was he talking about? Steam clouded the bathroom; it swirled around the shower head toward the light above. The water beat on the back of her neck and she bowed her head to watch the water drip off her nose to disappear down the drain with a sort of vertigo clarity.

“CHAD GEORGE!”

Clear as a bell she heard it. Chad George. The way her mom had acted that morning on the phone. The way she had fixed her hair before she took the receiver. No, no, no. It couldn’t be. She was letting her imagination run away with her. Kate replayed the morning with Monkey and Kenzie. She saw her Mom spraying perfume on her scarf, putting on lipstick? Click, click, click, her heels echoing off the sidewalk. No, it couldn’t be true. Her mom always dressed nice every day she worked. Tears mingled with the soap on her face. Even when she was home, hadn't she? What had Monkey said? “Sometimes things aren't what they seem.” And then he had added, “But sometimes they are.” He had warned her. He had come right out and said, “She has the look of someone who hides things, hides truths.” She hadn't wanted to believe him. She had defended her mom, but she knew something wasn't right, hadn't been right in a long time. Her legs felt weak and she sank to the floor of the shower, a sob escaping her lips. No, no, no!

“Kate, honey, you all right?” she heard her dad ask through the door. She pulled herself together and stood. Took a couple of deep breaths to steady her voice and answered.

“Ya, I’ll be right out.”

She was not only awake now but also more alert. She wanted to catch any hint of what truths had been hidden from her. She found her dad and grandparents in the kitchen talking in hushed tones.

“She comes,” she heard her grandmother say.

Kate peeked around the corner.

“I’m ready if you are?” she asked, directed mostly to her grandpa. She looked at her dad searching his face for anything. Searching for a clue to confirm what she had overheard. His face betrayed nothing.

“Let’s get going,” her grandpa said.

“Would you just look at this place?” her grandpa said. “I thought it looked big on the outside. But it is like a small city in here. Would you look at the craftsmanship. What an accomplishment.”

“Grandpa, this is just the whisky tasting area. There is more to see out there.” Kate took his arm and led him out of the shop.

Kate loved the way she felt transported back in time when she was around the castle. She watched Gavin and her grandmother, walking arm in arm ahead of them. Every now and then they would burst out laughing and Gavin would turn around and look at her. Obviously, they were talking about her, and she was surprised to find that she didn’t mind. Her grandmother loved her and Kate knew she would never tell Gavin something to make him see her in a bad light. Embarrassing, yes, bad, no.

“Grandpa, come over here and look at this view.”  Kate steered her grandpa over to the battlements.

The day was clear after the rain in the morning. The view was the best she had seen. Of course, she had other reasons for getting her grandpa alone.

“Grandpa, I know something big is going on between Dad and Mom. Why else would Dad give me some lame excuse why he couldn’t come with us and why he was yelling at Mom on the phone?”

“Kate, I’m sure you weren’t supposed to be listening in on that telephone conversation and I really don’t know what is going on with your parents.”

“Bull!” she challenged.

He exhaled slowly and looked down at the wall he was leaning on.

“You get it from your grandmother, you know.”

“What? This sixth sense?”

“No, your language,” he said.

“Don’t you try to change the subject. I heard him. He gave her an ultimatum over the phone. He said ‘it’s either him or me.’ Come on Grandpa, you and I have an understanding. When things get weird, we stick together. So give it up, old man.”

He looked from his hands to her face. Then he looked out at the view without really seeing.

“Kate, something is going on. I know you know that.” He looked back at her. “What you don’t know, is that this started a long time before you were even born.”

“You mean about what Grandmother said when Dad and Mom got engaged, the whole ‘it’s not the truth and it will break her heart’ thing?” He pursed his lips and raised his eyebrows.

“Okay. So you do know. And that is the reason we came to visit,” he said, as if explaining everything.

“What? That is the reason for the trip? What is the reason for the trip? Now you are starting to sound like Grandmother.”

“Katie, last week your grandmother came to me and said it was time. Time to come here. Time that we would be needed. Like I said, I have lived with that woman many years and I have learned not to second guess her.” He leaned in conspiratorially, “She’s a witch you know.” Kate smiled. Her grandpa always knew how to lighten the mood. “Katie, I don’t know what all that ‘it's not the truth’ junk is. I just nod and go where your grandmother says to go.”

“You would tell me, wouldn’t you?” she asked.

He studied her for a long moment. Then he closed his eyes and nodded.

“You do realize that I am always the last to know anything. So, if you hear something before I do, will you tell me?” he asked.

“Yes, Grandpa. I will tell you. Now you tell me where you and Grandmother have moved to?” she asked.

“We have moved to that nice hotel across from the Italian restaurant on the Royal Mile. It's by that church that’s built over some street that they are excavating.”

“Wow, Grandpa.  That is a really expensive hotel.  Are you sure you want to do that?” she asked.

“We won’t be there for long. Your grandmother wants to go up to Loch Ness and hang out with her own kind. You’ve heard of Nessie?”

“Grandpa! I’m telling Grandmother.”

“Oh, you know what I mean. If anyone can find Nessie, it’s your grandmother. Besides, hasn’t your dad told you? We’re loaded.” He raised his eyebrows. “Really loaded.”

Kate didn’t know what to say. She knew that her grandparents were comfortable but she didn’t know or really care, how comfortable. It was interesting that he chose now to share this.

“I can’t believe I fell for that. You changed the subject again.”

“You can’t believe it? I can’t believe it. Katie, you are so easy.”

Gavin and her grandmother appeared around the corner.

“Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but they are going to close the front gates soon,” Gavin said. “I should have thought of that sooner. If you were here in the summer you could have stayed longer.”

“Don’t worry about it son, I think I might come back tomorrow while you and Katie are in school. I would really like to explore this place from top to bottom.”

“I hope you can get your money’s worth. I think maybe if we talk to the people at the gate we might get some sort of discount for you,” Gavin offered.

“Oh, don’t worry about the money, Grandpa just told me he is loaded.”

Her grandparents shared a laugh and left the castle.