MISS CALVERT
Chapter Four

A long time had passed before Sarah finally got up to leave.

"I will tell my mother."

"I’d like that. I wonder if she’ll want to see me. After all we put each other through. But I suppose so much time has passed…it doesn’t matter anymore."

Sarah nodded and turned the knob of the door. Then she paused and turned toward Ruth.

"Once Charlie asked her what happened to her family. Dad has a pretty big one. He was five and he kept insisting that he know where her family was. She broke down in tears…" Sarah paused. "Funny. My father’s name isn’t his real name either."

"Oh. It isn’t?"

"My grandfather was born in Poland, moved to England, and when went to America he wanted a job real quick and to live in a better neighborhood, so he gave himself an English name."

"So what is your name supposed to be?"

"Meisels. So I guess I should be a DeWitt Bukater-Meisels product instead of a Dawson-Calvert." She laughed.

"You are your parents’ child." She reached up and clasped her hands around the girl’s face. "And you are my granddaughter."

Sarah smiled. "…just out of curiosity…whatever happened to Cal?"

Ruth sighed. "He married another young woman a year or so older than your mother. Had five girls. And then there was a little boy born after he died…the crash was just one more thing the pitiful bastard couldn’t take. Shot himself. Youngest found him. The girl I mean. She’s about your age now. Doesn’t remember a blessed thing. She and her mother come by every now and then. Shy, nervous thing. I don’t think I’ll forgive him for that either."

"Oh God." Sarah covered her hand with her mouth.

"It’s all right now."

"…I’ll come by tomorrow. First thing."

"No, no. Sleep in, get some rest."

"Okay, okay."

Ruth sighed with relief. "I feel like something has been lifted, Sarah. Like a great weight has been taken away. I’m excited to see my daughter again. I’m glad to have met you. But now it’s as if for the first time since I was a little girl I can relax. I feel calm." Sarah hugged her grandmother. "Time to get going now. You’ll be late for your friend."

"Okay then. I’ll see you tomorrow."

*****

Sarah hurried to Ann’s house. Ann and her mother were waiting for her. She was two hours late and soaking wet. They weren’t angry with her, mostly worried. After dinner Sarah went to bed, but did not fall asleep soon. She lay awake staring at the ceiling. It was so cold that night. My mother was there. She was on that thing.

"Sarah? Sarah? Hey Calvertstein!"

Sarah turned to see Ann on the bed across from her.

"Mmm?"

"Are you all right? You’ve been acting funny." Sarah was quieter than usual. She was not the bright, energetic, if not a little cocky Sarah Calvert she was used to. Sarah had a think time before games where she kept to herself and looked to be contemplating something, but this was different.

"I’ve got a lot on my mind. It’s been one weird day."

"Tell me tomorrow?"

"I’ll tell you, I promise, but it might take a little longer than tomorrow."

"Okay, but go to sleep already. You keep tossing and turning. It’s annoying the crap out of me." The girls laughed.

"’Night Ann."

"’Night Sarah."

*****

"Listen. You guys have to come out here right away. Just get on the train and come down here it’s really important."

"Peaches, calm down. What is it?"

"I can’t tell you now. It’s too hard." There was a silence on the other end of the telephone. "I’m not pregnant and nobody’s dying."

"I didn’t say anything."

"Exactly."

"Please, Mom, please. You need to come. Please, please. I can’t explain now, but I promise it’s not something stupid, but I can’t tell you over the phone. Please understand…please."

"All right," said the voice sensing the urgency in her daughter’s voice, "we’ll work something out. It’ll be fine."

"Okay. Call me when you and Dad get everything together. I gotta go now."

"Okay then. We’ll get down there as soon as we can. Hang in there. It’ll be okay."

"Bye Mom."

"Bye Sarah. I love you, sweetie."

"I love you too, Mom. Bye."

"Bye."

*****

Sarah took the bus most of the way to the Bukater Mansion. The sun was out today, but it was colder. She decided to dress nice for her grandmother. She wore a navy blue coatdress with a large matching fedora. Stepping off the bus she caught the attention of thirteen year-old boy. He squinted to see her face at first, but it was hidden by her hat. After touching her foot to the ground she looked up, revealing her face.

The boy still stared at her and smiled timidly at the pretty blond. She smiled back brightly and hurried her way to her grandmother’s home.

Sarah shook her head in disbelief. A day ago this woman had just been some faceless, dead relative. Everything can happen in a few days. And anything can happen it a matter of seconds. Her life had changed yesterday. It took less then a day to turn her whole world upside down, but like her mother had done all life Sarah was going to take it as it came at her.

Sarah thought of how innocent she had been along. She more of a child at twenty-one than her mother had been at seventeen. But she supposed that was how Rose had wanted it. She was not sheltered from the world, but she didn’t know such despair as her mother had known.

She wasn’t sure how her mother would react or what would happen when Ruth and Rose saw each other again or if she’d even witness it, but she knew she would make it so. It must happen.

The house was not quiet as it had been yesterday. There were cars and people outside. Not many, but they were there. It didn’t look right.

"Hey, what’s going on here?" Sarah asked the policeman.

"Oh you shouldn’t be here, Miss."

Sarah pushed him aside and continued. She had to get in that house and find Ruth NOW. "Miss! Miss! You can’t go in there!"

Sarah not turning around to look at him gave him the finger as she walked to porch. She passed Suzanne sitting in an open car and another girl just exiting in the house.

The girl looked to be about her age, maybe younger. She was so skinny and so pale she couldn’t tell. She was shorter than Sarah, black-haired and sad-eyed.

The other girl’s mother called to her. Startled at shrill yell of the mother’s voice the girl fell over.

Sarah helped her to her feet. "You all right?"

"Fine, fine." said the girl softly.

"What?" Sarah tried to question the girl, but she had already run to her mother. Sarah followed her.

"Who are you?" asked the mother.

"I’m Sarah Calvert. Please, my grand--" She stopped herself realizing they wouldn’t understand.

The older woman looked at her curiously. Sarah guessed she must have known the late Rose DeWitt Bukater.

"She went quietly." said the woman. "Very peaceful."

Sarah shook her head frantically. "No no no." she squeaked.

Sarah turned to see a stretcher with an occupant being wheeled out of the house.

No. No, this couldn’t be happening. She had just met her. This was her grandmother. A day ago she hadn’t known her. She saw this woman find a long lost happiness right before her eyes. Only to be gone hours later.

She felt faint. She felt the blood leave her cheeks and the ground wobble beneath. The ground she stood on seemed to sink beneath her, toppling her as if someone had pulled up a carpet out from under her.

"No." she sobbed.

She ran after her grandmother. "No!" She fell to her knees on the cold, wet driveway as the car with Ruth pulled away. "Come back. Come back! COME BACK! COME BACK!"

The End.

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