Джерри Хилл: Kara’s Moon

The bell jingled again and Mr. Arnold came in carrying his poodle under his arm.

"Good morning, ladies," he said, bowing slightly at his waist.

"Why, Mr. Arnold, how are you today?" Nana greeted him and Ginny was again amazed at how Nana had taken to running the store. But then, Nana had lived most of her adult life here. These people were her people. It had taken several months for them to warm up to Ginny, despite the many summers she had spent here as a child. But now, after nearly a year, she felt almost like a local.

She gave a humorless smile to her reflection in the glass behind the counter. So far removed from Seattle, but hardly a local here. Sometimes, she did miss her fast-paced job in the city. And sometimes, she missed the people there.

Like Phil, she thought, but she didn’t want to think about him right now. He had been calling again, hinting that he was coming for a visit and she had been putting it off. He would want to talk marriage and after being away from him the last eight months, she was fairly certain that she would not marry him. Only she didn’t have the heart to tell him. Or Nana. She had hoped her absence would end things with Phil, but still, he called.

"Ginny?"

"What?" she asked, pushing her thoughts aside for the moment.

"Would you slice Mr. Arnold some ham? Just a half-pound."

"Of course.”

The day took on its familiar routine. The morning filled with locals and a handful of strangers. The afternoon would be spent catering to the tourists and vacationers who had slept in and were late getting out to enjoy the warm day. Jessica, the high school student who helped during the summer months, came in at noon and Ginny escaped for a quick lunch, taking her sandwich out to the park like she did everyday.

With elbows leaning on the table, she tossed a corner of her bread to the chipmunks that came to beg. She wondered if they waited for her every day or if they just happened to be out and about when she was eating. She sighed. Was she lonely? Not really, although she did miss her friends in Seattle. Their phone calls, like their letters, were getting less frequent as time went by. But it was her own choice to move out here. She had been closer to Nana than to her own mother and when her grandfather had passed away, only a few months after her mother, she had used her family inheritance and bought the store, feeling her grandmother would need someone to look after her. She knew now that Nana was just fine, but it was as good an excuse as any to get away from Phil. She should have just told him she wasn’t ready to get married, but after four years, it was time to do something. They couldn’t just continue dating and Phil wanted children and she dreaded telling him she had no desire to be a mother. She secretly feared she would end up like her own mother; loving one child so much, her first and scarcely noticing that she had another, waiting for her attention as well.

But she pushed those thoughts aside. She didn’t want to think about her sister. And with their mother gone, she seriously doubted she would ever see her again.

Kara applied background colors to the canvas, adding gray to soften the dark sky. She had decided on the morning scene, with deer and all and she worked right through lunch, finally stopping when her stomach demanded attention.

She took out the tofu she had brought with her from Seattle and sautéed it with vegetables and put the pasta on to boil. She opened a bottle of wine and went out on the porch while her dinner cooked. The crumbled pack of cigarettes beckoned and she lit one, inhaling deeply and letting the smoke out slowly. She needed to savor every one. She had vowed she would quit and she was down to five a day. At the rate she was going, a few more months and she would quit altogether.

"Right," she murmured. She had been stuck on five for the last month or so.

She stretched her long legs out, the wineglass hanging loosely in her hand and she gazed out at the forest. It was quiet here. No close neighbors to disturb her work.

She had come to Chiwaukum one weekend in May with a friend and had seen endless opportunities for her work. The surrounding Wenatchee National Forest was littered with small lakes and offered a wonderful view of Glacier Peak, hovering over them at more than ten thousand feet. On impulse, she had inquired about renting a place for the summer. The local real estate agent had called her barely two weeks ago about the Dobson cabin and she had snatched it up. She usually traveled during the summers, camping or staying at local resorts while she sketched, then spent the winter putting her ideas on canvas. But she had tired of that and the thought of working in solitude and the quiet of her own cabin all summer had been too tempting to pass up. She had not really closed up her cottage on Bainbridge Island, though. She was only a few hours from Seattle. She could always go back.

She finished her cigarette and brought her dinner out to the porch. The evening was cool, but clear and she ate while she watched the colors of sunset settle on the forest, her favorite time of day.

IT WASN’T UNTIL the following afternoon, after Kara had worked through lunch again, that she decided to drive into town. She had brought most of the food she would need with her. Being a vegetarian, she couldn’t always count on small town grocery stores having what she needed, but cream for her coffee was a necessity and she thought she would check out Louise’s store. Maybe they would carry enough and she wouldn’t have to make a trip into Seattle just to shop for food.

She passed through the town, which was a stretch by anyone’s imagination. A few stores, catering strictly to tourists, an old lodge that looked quite charming, and one gas station. At the edge of town, where the forest nearly swallowed it up, stood the general store. A log cabin, with porch and all, it looked as if it came right out of the last century. She parked her Land Cruiser next to a four-wheel drive Ford truck, looking like it had seen better days. She ran her hand affectionately across the hood of her Toyota, her pride and joy. It had been the first major purchase she’d made with her own money.

She glanced above her head, admiring the freshly painted sign. Ginny’s General Store. A paper flyer taped to the window of the door offered fresh coffee and espresso. Another notified locals of the monthly bingo game at the community center. She grinned. Life moved a lot slower out here than in Seattle.

Kara looked up as the bell above her head signaled her arrival and she walked into the store, glancing up to meet the friendly green eyes of the woman standing behind the counter. Kara held her gaze, the corner of her mouth lifting in a quick smile before looking away and she walked slowly down one of the rows of shelves lined with canned goods towards the cooler. She grabbed a carton of cream then turned and looked around. She spotted the espresso machine in the corner and made her way to that. A real cup of coffee with steamed milk nearly made her mouth water.

"Why, Ms. Morgan, you found us," Nana called as she saw Kara.

"Louise. Nice to see you again. I remembered you said you had coffee," Kara replied as she sipped from her cup.

"Ginny’s idea. She missed Seattle’s coffee, although I prefer just plain old roast," she said as she walked over to Kara and casually took her hand. "Come meet Ginny. "

Kara looked again into sea-green eyes. "Hello. Kara Morgan. "She extended a hand in greeting.

Ginny paused for only a moment, the slightly husky voice still vibrating in her ears. She reached out and touched her hand quickly.

"Ginny Harrison."

"I’m so glad you decided to come by," Louise said. "I told Ginny about you."