The Secret Sisters Club

Chapter 6: THE SCHEMING BEGINS

 

The hen house door squeaked open, letting in the morning sun.

Ginnie blinked at the brightness.

A familiar form filled the small doorway. She grinned at her best friend. “Hi, Tillie.”

“Hey, your dad and Uncle Jake aren’t home, right?” Tillie spoke so fast her words slid into one another.

“Yeah.”

“Perfect.”

“For what?”

“My plan.”

Ginnie put an egg in her basket. “What plan?”

“The plan to make us sisters.” Tillie squatted next to her and picked up two eggs. “For real.”

Ginnie leaned back on her heels and smiled. “What are you talking about?”

“My mom, your dad. Let’s get them together.” Tillie added the eggs to Ginnie’s basket. “They get married and we can have a slumber party every night. How cool would that be?”

“Very cool.” Ginnie picked up another egg. “But I don’t think my dad knows how to date.”

Tillie rolled her eyes. “He must know something. He married your mom, didn’t he?”

“When dinosaurs roamed the earth.”

Tillie groaned. “Did you see how worried your dad was when my mom stumbled? He cares about her. They’re already friends. We just need to get them to be more than friends.”

Ginnie let Tillie’s words tumble through her mind a few times. She started to laugh and then took note of Tillie’s earnest expression. “You’re serious?”

“Of course.” A huge smile lit Tillie’s face. “Why didn’t we think of this before?”

“Because we’re talking about my dad. He’s lame.”

“He’s not lame, he’s quiet. He never yells, even when he’s mad. Jasper yelled about everything and scared me all the time. Your dad makes me feel safe.” Tillie looked her straight in the eye. “And he’s nice to my mom. Jasper was a jerk.”

The hard edge in Tillie’s voice made Ginnie wince. She could never figure out how a nice girl like Tillie had ended up with a terrible dad like Jasper Taylor.

One of Ginnie’s earliest memories of Tillie was a night during their kindergarten year when Miss Amanda and Tillie showed up in the middle of the night, begging for help. Miss Amanda’s mouth was bleeding and Tillie had a bruise on her cheek. Uncle Jake took one look at their faces and threatened to make Jasper Taylor pay for hurting them. When Daddy picked Tillie up to comfort her, Uncle Jake slammed the door on his way out.

She and Toran had held onto each other, trying to make sense of all the drama. Even now, six years after Mr. Taylor had left Tillie and her mom, Ginnie couldn’t figure out why he had been so mean. She concentrated on Tillie’s eyes, seeing something there she had never seen before. Ginnie struggled to name what she saw. Sadness? Desperation? Longing?

Tillie grabbed Ginnie’s hands. “It’s a great idea. You still want to be sisters, don’t you?”

“Of course.” Ginnie offered Tillie her most confident smile, even though she didn’t feel so confident. She did still want to be sisters … but something didn’t feel quite right and she couldn’t figure out what. She only knew she needed to help Tillie feel better. “Let’s do it.”

Tillie exhaled a breath and returned Ginnie’s smile. “How can we get your dad to take us to the mall? My mom won’t care because it’s on her way home from work.”

Before Ginnie could answer, the chicken coop door opened and Toran burst through. “Guess what?”

Both girls jumped. “What?”

“Princess had her babies. Five kittens. I just found them. Wanna see?”

“Sure.” Ginnie scanned the henhouse and picked up the last two eggs. “Let me drop the basket off. Where are the kittens?”

“In the hay barn.”

Ginnie nodded. “You two go ahead. I’ll catch up.”

“Cool! Can I name one?” Tillie asked, rushing out behind Toran.

Ginnie closed the bottom half of the door and left the top open. She hurried to the kitchen and set the basket in the sink. She found Uncle Ben in the dining room. “The eggs are soaking.”

“Thank you.” He rummaged through some boxes on the table. “Did Tillie find you?”

“Yes, and Toran just found Princess. She had her babies, so they went to see them.”

Uncle Ben smiled. “I’ll walk over with you. I found an old camera of Aunt Sadie’s. Let’s see if it still works. You three and the new kittens will make the perfect models.”

“Okay.” Ginnie peeked inside a box of knickknacks. “Is this Aunt Sadie’s stuff?”

“Most of it. Odds and ends I boxed up when we moved you and Toran into our old bedroom upstairs. I decided to clean out the boxes in my closet.” He nodded toward his bedroom, which was now through the door next to the hutch. “I couldn’t do it before, but it’s time now.”

Thinking about her mom, Ginnie sighed in sympathy. “You still miss Aunt Sadie, huh?”

“Yes. But I’ll see her again.” He picked up a camera case. “Until then, I’ll record the important events in ‘her Punkins’ lives. That’s what she called you and Toran.” He held out his hand and drew Ginnie into a firm hug. “You two meant everything to her.” He loosened his grip and smiled. “Let’s go see those kittens.”

She followed him through the hallway, out the front door and down the concrete stairs. “I wish I remembered Aunt Sadie, Uncle Ben. I try, really I do, but I just can’t.”

Uncle Ben offered her his hand. “No one expects you to. You were only two-and-a-half when Aunt Sadie passed. It’s okay if your mind doesn’t remember; your heart always will. Aunt Sadie was all about babies, most especially you and Toran. We would’ve had a dozen if we could’ve.” He winked at Ginnie. “Though your dad and Jake were a nice bonus.”

“I forget sometimes that you aren’t their dad.”

Uncle Ben smiled. “Love is wonderful like that. It doesn’t worry about who gave birth to who, just how much time and effort is invested in another person.”

Ginnie let his words sift through her mind a couple of times. “So, even though Tillie and I aren’t sisters, we can love each other like sisters just because we’re best friends and like spending time together?”

“Exactly like that. Sometimes the best family are really friends. Tillie’s a special girl. You help each other be the best people each of you can be.”

Uncle Ben’s words warmed Ginnie like a cup of hot cocoa on a chilly day. “Do you think my dad will ever get married again?”

Uncle Ben paused outside the hay barn door. “Why are you asking?” 

“No reason.” Ginnie faced straight ahead, not knowing how to answer. “Just wondering.”

(CH 7 will be up soon)