Wade Talks to His Sisters

Wade led the gray dappled pony into the sunshine from the dimness of the barn. Katie was waiting for him, her big dark eyes uncharacteristically solemn. "Where is your sister? Doesn't she want to ride this fine morning?"

Katie looked up at him. He bent to check her stirrups, and the girth on her saddle; no one in his family ever took the girls pony rides casually, not after what happened to Bonnie. When he was satisfied, he extended his hand to help her mount. To his dismay, her eyes filled with tears; even as he watched, they welled over and began to drip down her face.

"Aw, Katie, what's the matter, Princess?" he crooned. With a complete disregard for his sartorial elegance, he seated himself on the ground and took her on his lap.

"Lanie went into Jonesboro," Katie whispered. "With mama. And him."

And she buried her face in the crook of his shoulder, and sobbed as if her heart would break.

Wade held her, rocking her just a little, stroking her hair and waiting until she had calmed down. "Oh, Katie," he murmured. "What's the matter? Didn't they ask you to go?"

"Th-they did," she hiccupped. "But I didn't want to go."

"Why not, baby?" he asked.

"Because he was there," Katie said. "He's always going to be there from now on. Mama's going to m-m-marry him, Wade!"

"Do you hate him, Katie?"

"No! I don't hate him, but I don't love him, either. And I don't want him to be always part of us. I liked it to be me and Lanie and Mama, and now he's going to push his way in and change things."

"Ah. I see what you mean, darlin'. I'm afraid I have no answers for you there, except to say that, in my experience, everything is always changing. Nothing stays the same for very long."

"I don't want him to be my daddy, Wade. I already had a daddy. He died, but that doesn't mean I should just go out and get a new one!"

"No..." he said thoughtfully. "I think you're right, that one person can't replace another. But it's too bad that you don't like him, Katie, because I was hoping that you could help him." She turned her face up to look at him.

"He doesn't need help. He's big; big people don't need children to help them."

"Actually, I thought children might help him more than anything," Wade said, seriously. "Because just like your daddy died, Uncle Rhett had a little girl who died."

Katie's eyes widened.

"He did? What happened to her?"

"His little girl was our sister Bonnie. You remember, we talked about her?"

"Yes. She fell off a horse and got broken." Katie appeared to think about matters very seriously. "I bet he does feel bad," she whispered. "Oh, Wade! I bet I made him feel worse! I told him I was going to stay home and go riding, and he looked like a bee stung him, and Wade, I was glad! But I didn't know it was about Bonnie, really I didn't."

"I believe you, baby. You're not bad. A little thoughtless sometimes, but not bad."

"So what should I do? Should I tell him I'm sorry?"

"No, I don't think so. Just be a little nicer too him, from now on, maybe. 'Cause I bet it makes him sad when you scowl all the time."

"Okay." Katie stood up and gave him that quick, gleaming smile that reminded him so much of Mama.

"Now, do you want to go riding, before Mama and Uncle Rhett get back?"

"Yes, please," she said, and they turned towards the placidly waiting pony.

Later that afternoon, after everyone was back from Jonesboro, and the twins were down for a nap, Wade sat on the front porch, hoping futilely for a stray breeze. But it was August, in Georgia, and breezes were fairly rare.

He had been there for only a few minutes when he heard a small sound beside him. Turning, he was unsurprised to see that Lanie had crept out of her bedroom and was standing beside him, a mischievous grin on her face. "Hey, Li'l Bit," he said, patting the seat beside him. "What are you doing this afternoon? Aren't you supposed to be napping with Katie, and your cousins?"

"Naps are for babies, and I'm not sleepy, anyway," she said, nestling contentedly beside him. "Besides, I wanted to ask you something. It's about Uncle Rhett."

"So what is it, sweetheart?"

"Well, Katie told me what you said, about Bonnie being our sister, and Cap'n Rhett's baby, too. I thought about that, and it seems -" she yawned, and he hid a grin. No, she wasn't sleepy. "Seems like if he was Bonnie's daddy, he must have known Mama before. Before us, even before daddy. Katie and I talked about it. She didn't know – Katie never knows anything – but she said we could ask you. Because you're from before, too, aren't you?"

"Yes, I suppose I am," he said. She laid her head in his lap, and he stroked her fine dark hair and wondered how men who didn't have sisters ever figured out what was going on in girl's heads. Because he was constantly being taken by surprise by the twins, and they were only six.

"So? Did Cap'n Rhett know Mama before?"

"Yes, yes he did," Wade said. If Mama hadn't wanted the girls to know what was the simple truth, she should have said so. "Cap'n Rhett, as you call him, was around when I was a little boy, Lanie, so I've known him a long time."

"Okay, good," Lanie said, her voice drowsy. "So you wouldn't let him stay around if he was going to hurt us, or Mama, or anything, would you? We'll be okay?"

Wade stroked her hair some more. He remembered the house on Peachtree Street, and how after Bonnie had died, it had become a place where it was painful to breathe, where he and his sister felt that the mere fact of their existence reminded the adults of things to painful to bear, where they had slipped around corners and struggled to stay out of sight, had in fact wished that they could just disappear until things got better. He remembered the way Uncle Rhett had spoken to their mother, his voice flat and indifferent, and he remembered the way their mother had looked so anguished, so alone. He had yearned to comfort her, and the hardest thing he had ever had to face in his life up to that point was that he had nothing to offer. It wasn't him she wanted.

But that wasn't Mama's fault, he reminded himself. Or Uncle Rhett's, either. It's just a bad thing that happened, and there's no way it will happen again. Lanie and Katie are safe from that.

"Yes, Lanie, you'll be okay," he whispered at last. "I'll make sure you are."

So what do you think? Is this an idea worth pursuing, for awhile, at least? This is a very short chapter; future ones can be as long as it takes to tell the particular story, and each chapter would be complete in itself. Possible ideas for future chapters: Scarlett's wedding, birth of Ella's first child, any future children for Scarlett and Rhett. Ideas would be welcomed!

Review and let me know what you think!