The end of Camelot

Chapter 11

The days after Uncle Jack's funeral go by slowly, but quickly at the same time. However, not much changes. Daddy is still numb, I can see it in his eyes and when I watch him crumble against the dinner table in the evening with Momma holding him. How could anybody blame him? Uncle Jack was more than Daddy's big brother, he was his best friend. Uncle Jack was irreplaceable. There was no way Daddy would truly be whole ever again.  Our next main concern was Aunt Jackie. We made sure to keep a close eye on her, but she wouldn't truly be whole again ether. Our family was crumbling beneath us and we couldn't stop it.

The days continued to come and go and soon, it had been a week since the funeral. Daddy was doing a little bit better. At least, better than I had expected. It was as normal of a Friday as there had been recently; Joe took Bobby, David and Michael out to play football while Kathleen played with Courtney and I stayed cuddled with Daddy. After much discussion, Daddy had decided that Aunt Jackie, Caroline and John needed a break from the White House, which he knew held so many memories of Uncle Jack to all of them, and needed to get out. After being on the phone with the Secret Service for several heated minutes filled with yelling, it was settled: Aunt Jackie, Caroline and John would be joining us for dinner and spending the night with us. Everyone was happy about it.

Around five that evening, Momma had me, Courtney and Kathleen go into the kitchen and help her as she made her fried chicken that everyone loved so much. When the four of us worked together, we had a nice assembly line going. I was in charge of getting the piece of chicken from the bowl that soaked in an egg, milk, salt and pepper and handing it to Courtney. Courtney then took the fork and rolled it around in flour and passed it to Kathleen. Kathleen took it, stuck it in same mixture of egg, milk, salt and pepper in her own bowl and then rolled it in flour one more time for a better batter. She then handed it to Momma who put it in the skillet and fried it. Not only did it get done quicker, but it was a lot of fun and we could all talk about whatever we wanted to.

"Momma," Kathleen says as she hands her fork with the chicken to Momma. "What exactly is going to happen tonight?" Momma takes the fork and puts the chicken into the skillet as it roars with its pops and crackles as it begins to cook the chicken and hands the fork back to Kathleen. "Nothing major, honey. Your Aunt Jackie and Caroline and John are just coming over to spend the night with us to get out of the White House. Daddy talked to the Secret Service and Mr. Hill allowed it, thankfully. We're just giving them a little break to hopefully make them feel better.

I stab another piece of chicken and pass it to Courtney. "But Momma," Courtney says as she begins to coat the chicken. "Where are they all gonna sleep?" Momma smiles softly. "Now Courtney, that's not a problem at all. I'm sure Caroline will want to sleep with you girls and if she does, you'll sleep in Kathleen's bed with her and let Caroline take yours. I'm sure John will want to sleep with the boys and they'll all end up in one room with sleeping bags and blankets thrown everywhere." She smiles brightly as she takes the next piece of chicken and lays it in the skillet. "And we have the guest room across from Kerry's room set up with Daddy and I's old bed that Jackie can sleep in. We'll all be just fine, I promise."

I look up to her as I hand Courtney another piece of chicken. "Momma, what do we say? How do we make them feel better? Especially Aunt Jackie." Momma puts a piece of chicken in the skillet and smiles to me. "The key is to be as normal as possible. Maybe you talk to Caroline about school, perhaps play dress up with her. For John, ask him about the helicopters and airplanes he's seen lately. And for Aunt Jackie..." Momma looks down to the skillet and takes a deep breath. "You just love on her. You hug her, sit with her and let her know that we love her. You don't have to say much if you don't want to, but let her know that she's loved. And I know that all three of my girls are very good at loving on other people. And each other, especially."

The doorbell rings through our conversation and I gasp. "They're here!" I cry nervously, yet excitedly. Momma smiles brightly. "We're okay. Come on Ker, let's go let them in. Girls, can you handle this?" Kathleen nods as Momma wipes her hands on her apron and walks over to me, gently pulling me from my step stool as she places me on the ground. "Yes ma'am." Kathleen replies. Momma nods with a smile and then takes my hand, leading me into the entryway where we're met by Daddy, Joe, Bobby, David, Michael and Chris on Joe's hip. Daddy looks to Momma and then opens the door.

Aunt Jackie stands on the front porch, holding Caroline's hand while Mr. Hill holds John and Mr. Foster, one of the kid's Secret Service Agents, holds three suitcases. I take note of Aunt Jackie's black dress, Caroline's dark blue dress and John's dark red shirt. All of their clothes were dark, like at the funeral. Aunt Jackie weakly smiles. "Hello, Bob. Ethel, children." I smile softly as Daddy wraps her in a hug and Caroline waves at me. "Hi Kerry!" I wave back. "Hi Caro! Welcome!"

Momma gently pulls me back and waves the boys back. "Children, let Mr. Foster and Mr. Hill inside, please." Mr. Hill smiles as he leads Mr. Foster inside. "Thank you, Mrs. Kennedy." Mr. Hill says as Mr. Foster walks past him and places the suitcases in the living room. Momma nods as John's face lights up and he gasps with a wave. "Hi, Aunt Ethel!" Momma smiles brightly, but it was a sad smile. "Hi, Buddy. Come here." John reaches his arms out and Momma takes him into her arms then smiles. "Thank you, Clint." Mr. Hill nods and I look to Daddy as he takes Aunt Jackie's hand into his as he picks up Caroline. "How are you, Jackie?" Aunt Jackie smiles very weakly. "I'm alright. Thank you for letting us come over."

I watch as Mr. Hill steps outside and Mr. Foster looks to Aunt Jackie. "Mrs. Kennedy, I wasn't sure where you and the children would be sleeping, so I just places the suitcases in the living room." Aunt Jackie smiles and I look up to her black pillbox hat on her head, noticing the jewels on it, seeing them shine as the rest of the sun in the sky bounced off of it. "That's perfectly fine. Thank you, Mr. Foster. And Mr. Hill."

Mr. Hill nods as Daddy puts Caroline on the ground and Aunt Jackie follows him inside. I watch Daddy step up to Mr. Hill. "How is she really?" Mr. Hill sighs. "She's alright, just as she said. She's keeping her composure very well. I'm proud of her. She's very strong." Daddy nods. "Well, thank you for letting them come." Mr. Hill nods and Daddy steps inside and closes the door.

"Hi, Kerry." I look up to see Aunt Jackie, looking at me with a soft smile. I stare at her for a little bit as a wave of emotions rolls over me. Suddenly, I feel myself lift up my arms to her as I long to be in her arms. Aunt Jackie's smile never fades as she bends down and picks me up. I wrap my arms around her neck and lay my head on her shoulder, looking up to her as she kisses my forehead. I slowly look up to her eyes and hold her gaze for a little bit. "I love you." The words come flying out of my mouth and I was unable to stop them. It's like I'm not even inside of my body and it's just doing all of the work. I feel numb.

Aunt Jackie's smile fades as tears fill her eyes. She leans her head closer to mine, her nose touching my forehead as she ruffles my hair and I close my eyes for a little bit. "I love you too, baby girl. More than you will ever know." I smile faintly and nuzzle closer. "Jackie," Momma say sin a shaky voice. "Come into the kitchen, the girls and I are cooking and we would love to have your company."

Aunt Jackie nods and I turn to look to Momma as she hurries into the kitchen, wiping her eyes. Aunt Jackie then walks into the kitchen and sits down in the chair, moving me to her lap and holding me close. Kathleen turns from her work with a wide smile. "Hi Aunt Jackie!" Courtney turns around shortly afterwards and grins. "Hey Aunt Jackie. I'm glad you're staying with us!"

Aunt Jackie smiles and gently pats my thigh. "Hello girls. I'm excited to be here. Thank you all for having us. Caroline and John were certainly excited." Courtney smiles as she passes a piece of chicken to Kathleen. "We're excited too! It's been a while since you've been over."

Kathleen gently elbows Courtney as she shrugs. I look to Aunt Jackie as she sighs softly and looks down, but she wasn't looking at me. For a moment, she left the dining room, but left her body behind. "Yes, sweet girl," she says softly. "It has been."

I look over to the chair beside Aunt Jackie as I lay my head against her chest, holding on to her. It just really didn't seem real. The last time Aunt Jackie sat in this chair and I sat with her, Uncle Jack was beside her. He was looking at the picture I drew for him with a wide smile. He was about to go to Texas, he was going to win over Texas. He was going to be President again and run for another thousand days. But, the chair beside her was empty. Uncle Jack was laying in the ground in the cemetery because somebody was evil enough to take him from us. I snuggle a little closer to Aunt Jackie and close my eyes with a sigh. Why did they have to be so evil?