Rain

A Dynamic Family

I stood by the door as quietly as I could, straining to hear past the muffle of Papa and Evan’s voices. But alas; nothing could be discerned. At least the tone was not that of a heated argument—I feared Papa would be furious with Evan because of how he found us—we’d been sopping wet and breathless. I could still feel the warmth of his hand holding mine.

A flush was brought to my cheeks, and I backed away. It would not do to think of him as anything more than friend. Soon enough he would leave India forever, and then where would I be? I thought to myself. Our conversation by the village played over again. I had almost told him all about Arnold—‘twas a good thing I caught myself in time. Alarm bells began to clang the moment he mentioned my brother. A secret so guarded and maintained… My parents never spoke of it, but it was not guilt that kept them silent. The guilt was reserved for me.

Instantly I was brought back to that day. ‘Twas a summer evening; when the stifling heat cooled with the absence of the sun. Mama and Papa were sitting on the swing at the front of the house while Arnold and I played leap frog on the lawn. We’d all been laughing because I’d stood up at the wrong time, off-setting poor Arnie’s balance and sent him crashing to the ground, the most ridiculous of expressions written on his baby face. Papa put his arm around Mama and she blushed. Arnie wrapped his arms around my neck, and the cuddle erupted into a tickle fight.

That had been the last time I saw him—he was not more than four years old. Whispers of kidnapping echoed in the village after he disappeared, but I knew better than to believe that. Even at six years old, I knew the shame of what’d happened.

I pictured his little face: so full of hope and life. A halo of golden curls bobbed with every nod of his head, his big blue eyes smiled in a way his mouth could not.

The doorknob of Papa’s study jiggled, and my pulse quickened. I darted back to the hall and scrubbed furiously, cleaning faster than I probably had ever in my life.

“Liliane!” my father called as he neared my not-so-clever hiding spot. “You must not scrub any longer, my dear. If I had known Master Credel wished to see the village, I would have taken you both there myself!”

I could only blink. “Sir?”

“Your punishment has been cancelled, child! Come, come, there is so much to see and do, Credel! We must plan!”

I looked at Evan as my father paced the room, rattling off all his ideas. Evan shrugged as if to say, “I’ve gotten us out of this muck, haven’t I?” He was right; I could not complain. He winked, and I grinned back. “Papa,” I said quickly, tugging on his sleeve. “May I go now?”

Papa looked to me and placed his hand on my cheek. “Why don’t you stay awhile and help Master Credel and I plan for tomorrow?”

“I would love to, sir, but there is something I must do first.”

Evan raised an eyebrow. “What might that be?”

Fearing he might see through my excuse, I broke eye contact. “Oh, just girly things, You need not worry about it.”

Suspicion in Evan’s eyes diminished, but curiosity remained. “Might I come along?”

“Please don’t trifle yourself, Evan,” I replied calmly, backing toward the door. “Papa has much to show you.” I disappeared from the room, walking away as fast as I could. Evan was smart enough to find the waterfall by following me; but I could not allow him any advantage this time. This was a secret I could not divulge to anyone—not ever. Evan could not follow me; I had too much to lose. I glanced over my shoulder to see if Evan had snuck behind me, but I collided straight-on into my mother’s skirts.