Secrets of the Spiral Tower (13 page)

“I certainly have to admit she is a chip off the old block.”

Looking up ahead and to her left, Willow pointed to a two story chalet-looking house. “Woody do you know the owner of that house? It is very interesting and unique.”

“Yes. I’ve known the owner of that house for at least forty years. The lady is widowed and rolling in money.”

“Is there any possibility she would sell it?”

“Not in the least. I think she is perfectly happy living there. But, we could probably get the house plans and you could have one custom built over on my side of the lake.”

“That’s a good idea.”

“Willow, that would be fabulous if we can find a lot for sale near us.”

“Well then, that’s our next mission. It’s getting kind of late now, but maybe tomorrow, if Connor shows up, we could all go searching.” 

Willow was getting anxious and a bit agitated that she hadn’t heard anything from Connor in the last couple of hours. She thought,
why is he being such a jerk?
 
I’m going
to call him and chew his butt out
.

Walking out to the end of the pier for some privacy, Willow called Connor on her cell phone. He answered after the 4
^th
ring.

“Hello. Is that you Willow?”

“Yes, darling. I was just wondering where you are? What time can we expect to see you?”

Hesitating, Connor said, “I’m still in Vicksburg. I had some last minute ends to tie up. I should be there in about an hour or so.”

Relieved to hear that, Willow said, “Good. We’re going to dine on grilled steak, shrimp, roasted vegetables, and mashed potatoes. How does that sound?”

“Super. How about some sweet iced tea, yeast rolls and lemon meringue pie for dessert?

“We can do it all. Mamie is here with us and I’m sure she can fix whatever your heart desires. And, Woody is going to do all of the grilling.”

“Aw, Woody! Always the perfect host.”

Noting a bit of sarcasm in Connor’s voice, Willow said, “You know he is a good cook.”

“Yeah, I know. I’ve heard it many times what a great chef he is.”  

Not wanting to cause any more smart ass remarks from Connor, Willow said,” I’m anxious to see you. I want to have another love making session with you.”

“Willow, that would be great. Why don’t you leave there and come back to Vicksburg? I could cook for you at my house.”

“Connor, I can’t do that. I don’t want to leave Woody and Daddy. This is like a small family reunion for me.”

“Okay, have it your way. I’ll see you later.”

“Hurry on over. We’ll have supper ready when you get here.”

Willow’s phone went silent without a good-bye from Connor. She felt a sudden sting of coldness.
What’s up with Connor? This is really strange. Is he jealous of Cousin
Woody? Does he not want to see Daddy?
Is
he feeling guilty of some sort and doesn’t want to see
Daddy in our presence
?

The piece of paper she uncovered at Connor’s house relating to the land transfer flashed through her mind.
Was he having guilty feelings about
some of the wheeling and dealings
at McKenzie Towing? This is perplexing!!

Feeling the vibrations from someone walking on the pier, Willow turned to see Anne running toward her.

“Aunt Willow, Daddy wants to know if you want something to drink.”

Extending her arms out to Anne, Willow said, “A glass of Mamie’s sweet tea would be great, but I want you to sit with me. And, I think it is wonderful that you’re calling me Aunt Willow. That makes me feel so good.”

“Okay, I’ll be back in a minute.”

Anne ran up the pier toward the house and called to Woody saying, “Daddy, two glasses of tea will do. Will you fix them for us?”

 “Anne, I’m working on the grill. Go inside and tell your Mother.”

A couple of minutes later, Anne passed by Woody with two cups of tea. “Daddy, don’t come down on the pier. Aunt Willow and I are going to talk.”

“Oh, okay. Don’t tell Aunt Willow any of our secrets.”

“We’re doing girl talk Daddy. We’re not going to talk about you. But, if she asks, I’m going to tell her all.”

Holding onto the cup handles tightly, Anne hurried down the pier trying not to spill a drop.

Taking one cup from Anne, Willow said,” Thank you so much. Don’t you like to come over here, Anne?”

“Oh yes Ma’am. This is a wonderful place. I want to live here, but Daddy said we couldn’t do that because of his work and school for me. I told him that he could drive to work every day and Mama could home-school me. But he didn’t go for that either.”

“Yes, I can see where he wouldn’t want to drive two hours a day. That would get old, especially in the winter months, driving before day break and after night fall.”

“Aunt Willow, are you going to stay with us?”

“No, Anne. I’m going to build my own house in Vicksburg, but you can visit me whenever you want. We could have girl parties, and sleep overs with your friends.”

“Oh, that would be fun. When can we do that?”

“I don’t have a house yet. I guess we could do it at my father’s house, though. How many friends would you want to have for a sleep over?”

“About ten.”

“Ten?”

“Yes ma’am. I’ve got lots of friends, but ten really good ones.”

“Okay. When do you want to have our first party?”

“Next week?”

“Anne, I can see that you are a McKenzie. That’s the way we are. We have ideas and take immediate action. Did you know your Daddy is the same way?”

“Oh, yes. Daddy comes up with things to do out of the clear blue and Mama goes along with him.”

“I’m so glad to hear you call Olga Mama. It is wonderful that she came into your life.”

“Aunt Willow, I didn’t know my real mother very long, but Olga takes very good care of me and Daddy.”

“I can see that. And the two of you take very good care of her.”

“You know, I wish they would have a baby brother or sister for me.”

“Have you told them that?” 

“Well, I mentioned it once. Daddy and Mama turned all red and changed the subject.”

“Maybe I should ask them. What do you think about that?”

“Aunt Willow, would you? That would be so much fun for me.”

“Well, maybe if I have an opportunity. I’ll ask them.”

“Aunt Willow, did you know Mama taught me to speak Russian?”

“No, I didn’t know that. But I think it is wonderful. You know, I’ve traveled the world over and to be successful in business, it is important to be bilingual.”

“That’s what Mama told me. We’re both learning Spanish together.”

Willow looked toward the western sky as the sun’s rays danced across the rippling water.

“Anne, this is a beautiful time of day. I hope you recognize that. It is a good place to grow up.”

“I know. I want to have children one of these days and raise them here as Mama and Daddy are doing for me. Daddy kids me ever so often, telling me he’s going to sell, but I let out such a scream, he just laughs. I know he is kidding and he knows what reaction he’ll get from me.”

As the sun sank below the horizon, Willow closed her eyes as her thoughts drifted back in time to a night when she and Conner had to be rescued by another couple.

It was a beautiful clear, moonlit night. The water was as smooth as silk and a slight southwesterly breeze cooled the otherwise hot, humid night air. Connor carefully backed the barge away from the dock and out into the open lake.

 “How far are we going?”

“Let’s go up the lake and around the bend.”

“That’s good. I’ve got another idea. When we get away from the dock, I want to go skinny dipping.”

 “Oh my God, Willow,” Connor said. “Don’t you ever think about setting on a course and
sticking to it for at least thirty minutes?” 

As Connor carefully backed the barge away from the dock and out into the open lake, Willow watched with interest.

“How far are we going?”

“Oh I would guess about four miles as the crow flies.”

“Now, Connor. How long has it been since you went skinny dipping?”

“I’ll have to say it has been many years. The last time was with you in the swimming
pool at Redwood.”

“Really? Are you telling me that you, Woody, and your friends never stripped over here during some of your beer parties?”

“Let me put it this way. I haven’t, but some of Woody’s friends get a little bit tanked up and can’t seem to stay in their clothes.”

“And you aren’t party to any of that?”

“Willow, I don’t think you understand what I’m saying. I said I didn’t go skinny dipping. I didn’t say I didn’t enjoy watching some of the others strip, especially the girls.”

“That’s more like it, Connor. I believe when you’re in a crowd, you’re a little prudish.”

 “Look at it this way. I’ve saved myself for you.”

“ I like that.”

By now, the party barge was a mile off shore headed down the lake.

 “I want us to strip and jump in.”

 “Do you see those boats over there? What if one decides to come by?”

“It won’t bother me. If I had to guess, I would say they’re having the same thoughts as me. Stop the engine and drop anchor.”

“Drop anchor? Do you not realize that this lake is 80 feet deep? That anchor line is probably no more than twenty feet long.”

“That’s all right. Unhook the anchor and tie the rope to this inner tube. We can hold onto it while we’re swimming.”

Before Connor could say anything, Willow stripped her clothes off and did a black flip over the rail into the water.

 “Hurry up. The water feels wonderful,” she said once she had surfaced.

Being as meticulous as ever, Connor stripped, carefully folded his clothes and with a loud
‘Geronimo’ hit the water. When he surfaced Willow was all over him.

 “Ever make love in the water?”

“Yes, once at the Redwood pool. Don’t you remember?”

“Sure, I remember. I was just testing your memory. Isn’t this wonderful? I haven’t felt this good in many years. It’s me and you together, no stress, no strain, and no pain.”

 “I must admit, it is wonderful but I wish you could slow down a bit. Let’s take it slow and easy. I want it to last.”

“Connor, are you telling me you’re caught up after our interlude earlier today? I’m ready for a repeat. I wonder if Woody has the ‘
AFTERNOON DELIGHT
’ CD at his house.”

 “Oh yes, he does. He sings that song all the time. Frequently he will burst out with lyrics like:

Thinking of you’s workin’ up my appetite

 Looking forward to a little afternoon delight

Rubbing sticks and stones together makes the sparks ignite

And the thought of rubbin’ you is getting so exciting

 Sky rockets in flight

“Connor, that’s good. You and Woody both have very good voices. I remember him going to karaoke and singing some of Elvis, too.”

“Woody is quite a character. I don’t know how he keeps all of his activities going. He had a rough time with that Lawrence Wilson affair and I’m amazed he isn’t scarred for life. If it were not for his optimistic view of life, he would have gone off the deep end by now. Do you remember that picture of two old vultures  sitting in a tree snag with the
caption under it that read, ‘Patience hell?  Let’s kill someone’?”

“Yes, I remember that one. Seems like it surfaced about the time Lawrance Wilson was Woody’s main focus.”

“That’s right and do you remember the inscription on the backside of his desk name plate?”

“I can’t remember. What did it say?”

“It read, ‘Tomorrow will be a better day’. That is something his Mother taught him.”

“Oh, gosh. Do I ever remember his mother? She was a tough cookie.”

Willow
and Connor were so engrossed in the conversation that neither one realized the other wasn’t holding onto the tube. That southerly breeze they enjoyed earlier had pushed the party barge about ten yards out of their reach.

 “Oh, God! We’re in trouble now.”

And at that moment Connor, saw a boat approaching from the north.