Heavenstone 01 - The Heavenstone Secrets

won’t be here for Uncle Perry,” I said.
    “Hardly,” Cassie said. “Don’t give it a second thought.”
    She smiled and walked off with that Cassie confidence that she wore like a dress. I had to conclude that she was probably right, because when Uncle Perry arrived, he was surprised that neither Daddy nor Cassie was home.
    “I left a message for Teddy that I’d see him this weekend. He never called back to tell me about any trip to Lexington, or I would have stayed home and joined him.” He thought a moment and then added, “But I imagine he had a lot on his mind.”
    I had prepared us a nice lunch, and because it was late spring, I had set the table on the patio. Uncle Perry was genuinely delighted and insisted on helping me bring everything out.
    “This is a terrific shrimp salad, Sam,” he remarked as soon as he tasted it. “I had no idea you were so clever in the kitchen.”
    “I hadn’t been until recently, but we’re doing everything we can to help Daddy cope.”

    “That’s good.”
    I told him about Daddy’s drinking and how it worried me.
    “I’m concerned, too, but I’m sure he’ll be all right in time.”
    I almost expected him to add,
We’re Heavenstones, after all,
but he stopped short of that.
    “So, how did you learn to be a gourmet cook overnight?” he asked.
    “Cassie’s been tutoring me. There isn’t much I can’t make that she can anymore.”
    “Oh?”
    “Actually, I do most of the cooking now, Uncle Perry.”
    “Really?”
    He nodded and looked away for a moment to sip his iced tea.
    “I notice Cassie has made a number of changes,” he said, not looking at me, and then he turned quickly to see my reaction. “She’s wearing different clothing, jewelry, makeup. Has she found a boyfriend?”
    “I don’t think so. She doesn’t go anywhere at night.”
    “Hmmm.” He sipped some more tea and ate. “Do you like this home-schooling thing, Sam?”
    “It’s okay for now, but I do miss being with other kids my age.”
    “Yes, I would think you would. To be frank, Sam, I don’t understand why my brother agreed to such an arrangement. Did you want this?”
    “I did for a while. It was going to be difficult at school for us.”

    “I’m even more surprised that your scholar sister took this hiatus, but then again, there’s little Cassie does that doesn’t surprise me. I guess she’s good for my brother right now. I have to admit, she’s everywhere in the offices and the stores. I never thought she would take to it. She was never very excited about the stores, the merchandise, customers. But everyone responds differently to personal tragedy. This might just be her reaction. Perhaps it won’t last, and she’ll return to being the Cassie we know, huh?”
    “I don’t think so,” I said, and he raised his eyebrows.
    “Oh?”
    “That would be like admitting she had been doing something wrong, and Cassie never does anything wrong.”
    Uncle Perry roared with laughter.“I always wondered how you two came from the same parents. I still do,” he said.
    After lunch, we took a walk around the property, and he told me he thought he hoped I was not going to continue the home-schooling much longer.
    “You do need to be with young people, Sam. I know you do a lot here, but you need a normal life as soon as possible. Your father should hire some household help, too. I’ll bug him about it.”
    “Please don’t, Uncle Perry.”
    “Why not?”
    “Cassie would think I put you up to it.”
    He stopped and stared at me.“You shouldn’t be so intimidated by her, Semantha. I think she bullies you too much. From what I’ve seen, at least.”

    “She only means well, Uncle Perry. She’s very worried about Daddy.”
    “Um. So am I. So am I,” he said.
    At his car, he hugged me and took my hand in his.
    “You’re weathering a terrible time quite well, Sam. I can see how much you’ve grown, how it’s rushed you out of your adolescence. I’m sorry about that, but I’m proud of you, proud of what a support you are for your father, too.”
    “Thank you, Uncle Perry.”
    “I’ll call you soon,” he promised. “Thank you for a wonderful lunch.”
    I watched him drive away. As his car disappeared around the turn at the base of the driveway, an overwhelming sadness rushed over me, and I just started sobbing. I cried so hard my chest ached. Never had our house and our property looked so empty, so depressing, even in the sunlight. It was as if Mother’s death