Birthright

at the fence line, and those voices carried as well. One of the students would give the standard lecture and answer the questions of the tourists or townspeople who stopped by.
    When a shadow fell over her, she continued to write. “You can take those pails over to the spoil pile. But don’t forget to bring them back.”
    “I’d be glad to, if I knew what a spoil pile was and where to find it.”
    Callie turned her head, shading her eyes with the flat of her hand. It was a jolt to see Suzanne in sunglasses and ball cap. It was almost like looking at an older version of herself. “Sorry. I thought you were one of the grunts.”
    “I heard you on the radio this morning.”
    “Yeah, Jake, Leo and I take shifts with the media.”
    “You made it all sound so fascinating. I thought it was time I came by and had a look for myself. I hope it’s all right.”
    “Sure.” Callie set the clipboard down, got to her feet. “So . . .” She hooked her thumbs in her pockets to keep her hands still. “What do you think?”
    “Actually”—Suzanne looked around—“it’s tidier than I imagined somehow. And more crowded.”
    “We’re able to pull in a lot of volunteers on the weekends.”
    “Yes, so I see,” she said, smiling over at where little Tyler scooped a trowel through a small pile of soil. “Starting them young.”
    “That’s Lana Campbell’s little boy. He’s a Saturday regular. We give him spoil we’ve already sieved. One of us seeds his pile with a couple of minor finds. He gets a charge out of it. The spoil’s dirt we take out of the plots, then it’s sieved so any small artifact isn’t missed.”
    “And every piece tells you something about who lived here, and how. If I understood your radio interview.”
    “That’s right. You have to find the past in order to understand the past, and understand it in order to reconstruct it.” She paused as her words echoed back to her. “I’m trying to do that, Suzanne.”
    “Yes, I know you are.” Suzanne touched a hand to Callie’s arm. “You’re uncomfortable with me, and that’s partly my fault for going to pieces the way I did in Lana’s office that day. Jay gave me a hell of a lecture over it.”
    “Well, you were understandably—”
    “No, you wouldn’t understand.” And there was quietsorrow in the words. “Jay isn’t a man who normally gives anyone hell. He’s so patient, so quiet. Just some of the reasons I fell in love with him when I was about six years old. But he laid it on the line for me the other day. It was very unexpected. And, I suppose, exactly what I needed.”
    “I guess this isn’t easy for him either.”
    “No, it’s not. That’s something I found it very convenient to forget over the years. I need to tell you before this goes any further that I’m not going to put that kind of pressure on you again.”
    She let out a little breath, a half laugh. “I’m going to try not to put that kind of pressure on you again. I want to get to know you, Callie. I want that chance. I want you to get to know me. I know you’re trying to . . .reconstruct. Betsy Poffenberger called me this morning. She heard you on the radio, too.”
    “Popular show.”
    “Apparently. She told me you’d been to see her. She said she wanted to make sure it was all right with me to give you information, but what she wanted was to pump me for it. I didn’t tell her anything, but people are starting to put things together.”
    “I know. Are you all right with that?”
    “I don’t know yet.” She pressed a hand to her stomach. “I’m jittery all the time. The idea of answering questions when everything’s still evolving is hard. Harder than I could have imagined. But I can handle it. I’m stronger than I’ve given you reason to think.”
    “I’ve read some of your letters. I think you’re one of the strongest women I’ve ever known.”
    “Oh. Well.” Eyes stinging, Suzanne looked away. “That’s a lovely thing to hear from a grown daughter. I’d really like you to tell me more about your work here. I’d really like to understand more about it, and you. I really want us to be comfortable with each other. That would be enough for right now. Just to be comfortable with each other.”
    “I’m working this section.” Needing to make the effort, Callie took Suzanne’s arm, turned her. “We’re establishingthat this area was a Neolithic settlement. And this section their cemetery. You can see here we’ve uncovered