Mistwalker (7 page)

W
ith his deadline looming, Mark Larson finally left the celebration, but he'd extracted a promise from Ellen Kealoha to do a full interview the next time she visited Moku Lio Hihiu.

As the reporter departed, Darby saw Jonah stroll toward the corral of cremellos.

It was just like Jonah to be invisible until the TV crew had left. Darby couldn't blame him for not wanting a reunion—especially one this uncertain—to be shown on television.

Most people knew the Kealohas' story already. Generations of “secrets” were confided and discussed on the small island, but Jonah had spotted a place where they might still have some privacy.

Earlier, visitors had admired the herd of cream-colored horses, but now most people were leaving for home or drifting past the corral to walk on the resort's famed white-sand beach.

Megan must have seen Jonah, too, because she thrust Stormbird's halter rope at Darby and said, “He's sleepy and hungry. Could you take him back to Flight?”

Darby would have pushed the chore onto Cade, but he was nowhere in sight. All at once Darby realized the woman she had not quite recognized in the crowd could have been Cade's mother, Dee. Could Cade be with her?

Megan and Ann disappeared before Darby could ask, and since Stormbird was sucking on her fingers, underlining his need for a snack, Darby turned to her mother.

“Mom, would you like to see Stormbird's mother, Flight? And the rest of Aunt Babe's cremello horses?”

“I'd love to! I don't know anything about cremellos,” her mom said, following in her clacking heels while Darby told her all she could remember.

Aunt Babe came with them, filling in the gaps, then added, “Did you know my stubborn brother finally agreed to take the cremellos?”

“I heard him say something that made me think so,” Darby said wonderingly.

Ellen gazed at the herd of ivory horses up ahead.

“He didn't want them.” Ellen's tone was flat, but one corner of her mouth quirked up as if she weren't surprised.

“It's not that he didn't want them,” Darby spoke up. “He's just not too crazy about having tourists on the place. At least, that's what I think.”

“You're right,” Aunt Babe agreed. “And Jonah's doing me a favor by taking them.”

“No piling on,” Ellen said, holding up her hands. Her tone was amused, but her lips tightened and it was clear she felt her daughter and aunt were defending Jonah.

“Except for these two,” Aunt Babe said. Ignoring her niece's remark to talk about her horses, she rubbed the poll Flight offered for attention. “Flight and Stormbird will have a home here as long as I live.”

All at once Darby remembered the sugar cubes. She dug into her pocket and had barely flattened her palm with the cube in the center of it when the cremellos moved like a flock of gulls in her direction.

“Now what?” Darby yelped.

Her mother and great-aunt laughed and helped her share all but two of the cubes with the horses. As Darby lectured one especially pushy horse about rudeness, her mother shook her head and said, “I wish your father could be here, baby. He told me to tell you he's proud.”

“About what?” Darby asked.

“Everything! You have taken some big steps
toward growing up.” Ellen sniffed, sighed, and patted Darby's cheek before she added, “This is no time to get sentimental.”

Ellen looked across the corral and Darby saw her shiver.

Jonah shaded his eyes as if looking into the sun, but the sun was behind him. He squinted, then strode toward them from around the corral, looking proud of his daughter, too.

It's going to be okay,
Darby thought.

Jonah and Ellen mirrored each other. Their smiles were shaky. Their arms reached out. Darby saw how they'd missed each other.

But then, pride interfered. Darby saw it happen.

Pride reminded Ellen her acting career would have gotten off to an earlier start, if not for her father.

Pride took Jonah back to the lonely years after his wife died, after his daughter was gone. And pride reminded him that Ellen had run away. She'd abandoned him on purpose.

Father and daughter looked stiff, and there was hesitation as they kissed each other's cheeks. But when they hugged, their hands pressed and patted each other's backs, and Darby's hope flickered back to life.

Love was hard to snuff out.

“It's good to see you,” Ellen said.

“And you,” Jonah replied, then cleared his throat and rushed his words. “You'll—
will
you come to the house for a late lunch, and maybe a ride?”

He'd changed his demand into a request. Darby hoped her mother had noticed.

“Please, Mom!” Darby bounced up and down, then tugged at her mother's arm. Acting like a three-year-old didn't fit with the advice she'd gotten from her friends, but she couldn't help it. “You have to see Hoku. Please?”

“Yes, to the lunch—Cathy already invited me—and
maybe
to the ride,” Ellen said.

“Let's go,” Darby said. She couldn't give her mother time to change her mind, so she turned politely to Aunt Babe. “Thanks so much for everything….”

“Not just this minute,” Ellen cautioned Darby. Then she glanced to Jonah.

Why? Darby wondered. Was her mother asking for Jonah to help?

“You two work it out,” Jonah said, then turned away and headed for the parking lot.

“You know I'm staying here with Aunty Babe,” her mom said gently.

“I—no, I didn't.” Darby drew the words out, trying to overrule her panic with logic.

She reviewed beds and bedrooms at the ranch. Unless she and Mom shared her bed or they made up the couch with sheets and blankets, there was no obvious place for Ellen to sleep.

Could Ellen remember how much she loved the ranch if she only came for lunch?

“I'd love to have Darby stay here, too,” Aunt Babe urged.

Darby couldn't think of anything to say that wouldn't make her sound ungrateful.

“We'll see about that, but right now Hoku needs you. Am I right?” Ellen asked. “And Aunt Babe has some people she'd like me to meet, so we'll just split up for an hour or so. It's the least I can do, since I took a loan from Aunty and never paid her back.” Ellen turned to Aunt Babe. “Don't think I've forgotten.”

“And
you,
don't be silly! The first time I saw your face on my television screen, I was repaid. And when I saw your wedding pictures. And that adorable Mamma Mia photograph!”

Her mom laughed, then turned toward Darby. But Ellen didn't have to explain it.

“I know which picture she means,” Darby said. “That old one from the newspaper? Where you and Dad are standing in front of a big oven and Dad's holding a pizza and you're wearing a checked apron with, uh, me pooching it out?”

“That's the one!” Aunt Babe said.

“It's still on the restaurant wall,” Darby said, and suddenly she smelled the yeasty dough, thick red sauce, and gooey cheese of her father's Italian restaurant back in California.

“I miss Dad,” Darby said.

“You miss pizza,” her mom corrected her.

“
And
Dad,” Darby said. “Do you think they'd come over to visit?”

Skepticism glittered in her mom's dark eyes. Darby didn't know what it meant until Ellen asked, “Would
you
travel with five children under ten years old?”

Before anyone answered with more than a smile, Ellen gave Darby a gentle swat on the seat of her jeans. “Your grandfather's waiting for you,” she said, pointing toward the truck.

Darby leaned her head against her mother's shoulder and closed her eyes. Her mind knew she was only leaving for an hour or two, but her heart hurt at the thought of going away.

Ellen's arms closed around Darby in a hug before she kissed the top of her hair and said, “I'll be along soon.”

At last, Darby left. It was a good thing, too, since everyone else was already in the truck. Jonah and Aunty Cathy sat up front. Darby climbed into the backseat with Cade and Megan.

Aunty Cathy had plenty of compliments for Cade, Darby, and Megan on the ride home, and some for Ellen, too, but Darby hardly listened.

“It's cool that she's coming for lunch,” Megan said.

Darby was so preoccupied with planning a persuasive afternoon with her mother, she didn't hear what was on the menu.

But when they reached the ranch, Aunty Cathy touched Darby's arm to get her attention. “Why don't
you go ahead and change into riding clothes and grab a quick snack.”

“But—”

“Your aunt Babe might hang on to your mother for a while, now that she's got her hands on her.”

Darby changed into an everyday T-shirt—a newish yellow one her mom had never seen—but she left on her good jeans and boots and headed for Hoku's corral. Maybe she'd get Cade or Kit to show her that bronc stop that Jonah had mentioned. Maybe she'd be riding Hoku when her mom arrived. Mane, tail, and ponytail flowing, they'd be rocking in Hoku's smooth lope, looking so perfect together that her mom would give up dreams of city apartments.

But Kit couldn't show her the bronc stop.

He'd ridden out with Kimo to repair a watering trough that had loosened in the soggy ground, then tipped over. Jonah was riding Kona, smoothing the gelding out, Cade said, in case Ellen wanted to ride him.

It seemed to Darby that the cowboys had left Cade behind with nothing to do except give her a hard time.

“Do you want to start me and Hoku on the bronc stop?” Darby asked.

“I think you should groom her instead.”

“But I want to be riding when my mom gets here. The last time she saw Hoku, she was sick and lying in a stall.”

“Those early-morning showers made her feet muddy.
And the end of her tail, a little,” Cade pointed out.

“Okay, but the main thing is—”

“She'd enjoy the massage,” Cade said.

“What's going on? Why don't you want me to ride?” Darby studied Cade's expression, but his brown eyes gave her no hints. “Do you just want to keep your paniolo tricks to yourself?”

“You're too
pupule
just now to try bronc stoppin',” Cade said.

“What?” Darby demanded. “I'm not crazy.”

“Wound up,” Cade tried again. “Kind of hyper because…you know.”

Darby
did
know, and Cade was right. Her excitement would telegraph to her horse and, not knowing why Darby was jittery, Hoku might respond with agitation of her own.

Darby sighed. She retrieved Hoku's halter and orange-striped lead rope from the tack room and asked, “So, you think this will settle us both down?”

“Yes, ma'am.” Cade gave a perfect imitation of Kit's buckaroo drawl, and Darby guessed the intensive grooming session had probably been the foreman's idea.

“All right,” Darby conceded.

Although grooming a horse kept on rain-washed grass wasn't as important as a horse kept in a stall, Jonah had told Darby it was an important part of the gentling process for Hoku. After her injury, grooming had acted as a massage for the wild filly and helped
Darby keep dust and bugs away from her wounds.

“Come on, my beautiful girl,” Darby told Hoku.

Darby thought the filly was lowering her head for the halter until she realized the mustang was sniffing her pocket. Hoku had scented the sugar.

“You've never had this, have you?” Darby mumbled, working her fingers into her pocket. “Two left,” she said. As she withdrew the sugar, Hoku nudged her hand with loud snuffling. “One for each of us.”

Darby popped a sugar cube into her mouth, then flattened her palm. Hoku took another loud breath, lipped at the white cube, and knocked it off Darby's hand.

The sugar was melting on Darby's tongue by the time Hoku nibbled the sugar cube, raised her head, tilted it back, and crunched. For an instant, the filly's eyes closed, and then saliva dripped from her mouth to the white star on her chest.

“Pretty good, huh?” Darby asked. Hoku tossed her head up and down in agreement and Darby wished she'd given her both treats.

After Hoku was haltered, Darby led her from the corral. She concentrated on tying a quick-release knot that would please Cade's watchful eyes and keep Hoku safe.

She passed the rope through the ring, forming a sort of bow, and pulled the bow tight.

“Put that loose end through, too,” Cade reminded her.

Hoku flattened her ears, telling him to go away, but Darby just said, “So it can't be undone, I know.”

“Up to you,” Cade said with a shrug. “Kimo thinks she's figuring out how to let herself go.”

That's just what we need,
Darby thought,
for Mom to arrive and find me gone on a wild horse chase
. So she poked the loose end through, where it would be hard for fluttering lips to grab and teeth to jerk.

After that, Darby felt her way down her horse's leg, speaking gently, then picked out Hoku's feet from heel to toe. Darby smiled at the squishy sound of Hoku's tongue searching her mouth for every last grain of sugar.

With the filly's feet done, Darby faced her into the wind to use the curry comb. Hoku's winter coat was nearly gone, but she didn't want any loose hair or dust to blow into the mustang's eyes.

Last, she sprayed hair conditioner on Hoku's mane and tail and worked the milky solution through. She'd started using her fingers to untangle knots ever since she'd seen Megan do it with her rose roan Tango.

“Prevents breakage and split ends,” Megan had insisted, like a hairstylist.

Besides, Darby thought, this way didn't pull as much and Hoku didn't flinch.

“You could rub a little baby oil on her face,” Cade suggested. “It'd look real pretty.”

“How long do you plan to keep me occupied?” Darby asked.