Thanks to his early start, Adam got to Winchester Harbor just after Jake and Amanda pulled in aboard the Chinook. “Wow, you seem anxious,” Jake commented when he saw Adam get out of the pickup.

“I just figured I’d rather be up here dealing with the boat rather than down at home wishing I were,” Adam grinned.

“Yep, sounds like a new boat owner, all right,” Jake laughed. “Let’s see how enthusiastic you are next fall.”

“With any kind of luck I’ll be enthusiastic about selling this one and finding a boat I plan on keeping for a while.”

“Oh, this is going to be fun,” Jake sighed. “I can see it now, both you and Amanda with boats I’ll have to work on this winter. I might get so busy I have to spend my time down here rather than drinking coffee with the regulars at the Channel Stop.”

“Dad,” Amanda piped up. “Somehow I don’t think you’d mind that. Besides, you may have to leave yourself in the rotation down here so I can put in more time on the new boat, whatever it is.”

“Yeah, and I can see just how that’s going to work,” Jake said. “If I don’t watch out you’re going to be buying some old beater that’s going to take roughly half a million hours to get back into shape.”

“Well, I hope not,” Amanda grinned. “But the odds are I’ll have to work on it anyway. And maybe I can buy a boat in Florida so I can kill two birds with one stone – work on the boat and stay warm at the same time.”

“That might not be the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard,” Jake acknowledged. “But Adam, I’m not minding my manners.” He nodded toward a woman standing in the cockpit of the Chinook. “You remember my sister Carolyn, don’t you?”

“We’ve met, but it’s been a while,” Adam replied. He did indeed remember Carolyn; she was Jake and Lisa’s oldest sister, a schoolteacher from downstate somewhere. Like Lisa, she’d known Brittany as a kid, but was enough older that she hadn’t been a close friend growing up. She was, at a guess, three or four years older than Adam was, based on the fact that he knew that he was younger than Jake by a year or two. That meant she had to be a couple years over fifty, give or take a little, but frankly, she didn’t look quite that old – early forties, maybe; slender and on the plain side, with straight-cut brown hair hanging to her shoulders.

Adam remembered some discussion back last Christmas, or maybe the one before that, to the effect that Carolyn had never been married. In fact, it might have come from Lisa, or even from Brittany, but the story lodged in his mind that she’d had several unhappy and ultimately unsuccessful romances, to the point where she’d just given up looking ten or fifteen years before. He didn’t remember the details and was a little surprised that he remembered that much.

“It’s been a long time, Adam,” she said. “Jake tells me you’re getting along pretty well.”

“Can’t complain,” he said, resolving to be careful about bringing up the subject of Brittany; it could be a sensitive topic around her and there was no way of telling. “The last few years have had their ups and downs, but things are slowly getting straightened out.”

“I heard about that, and I was very sorry to hear about Matthew.”

“I’m slowly coming to grips with it,” he replied, the word “Matthew” ringing an alarm bell in his mind. Brittany – and her friends – were the only ones who used his full name; virtually everyone else had known him as “Matt,” right since babyhood. It could well be that she was in contact with Brittany, and he’d have to be pretty careful about what he said to her about Mary and Matty. But then, he hadn’t said much to her younger sister Lisa about Mary and Matty, either. On the other hand, if she was in contact with Brittany, she might be able to tell him a little about what was really going on with her. But how much did she know? And what had come from Jake, and what had come from Brittany?

“It hasn’t been easy,” he continued. “He and I knew for years that he could have a relapse, and he tried to live his life like it could happen. I don’t want to say it makes things easier, but it does make things more understandable.” Now was not the time to get into the subject very deeply with her, so he changed the subject. “So what brings you up here? I thought school was still in session.”

“I had a few days comp time I had to take before the end of the year or I’d lose them. It’s in our contract, so I decided to come up and see Jake for a few days. I should be back in time to prep the kids for finals.”

“Let’s see, you’re still teaching, well, somewhere. I don’t remember.”

“Amherst, about thirty miles from our old home town of Wychbold,” she replied. “I have a small house there. It beats driving back and forth every day, and I can keep an eye on the folks that way. I usually get over there a couple times a week.”

If Brittany really were moving back to Wychbold, then Carolyn probably knew about it, Adam thought. Brittany’s parents lived just up the street from the Lewis family, so she’d just about have to. “How are they getting along?” he asked, not wanting to talk about Brittany with her that way just now, either.

“Not badly,” she said. “They’re slowing down a little, but then, you have to expect that when they’re getting close to eighty.”

“We’re all getting older, I guess,” he replied noncommittally. “Just thinking about it, you’ve got to be getting close to retiring yourself.”

“I could retire in two more years, but I haven’t made up my mind if I want to just yet. I’m not sure what I would do with myself.”

“Let’s get this wrapped up,” Jake broke in. “We can go up to the snack bar after we’re done.”

Adam was glad of the break; he needed to organize his thoughts about what he was going to say to Carolyn. She could be an information source, and might likely be – but information could flow both ways. “Sure, I’ll be glad to help,” he said.

It only took a few minutes to get the Chinook buttoned up for the night. Carolyn had driven down to the dock separately from Jake and Amanda, and they let her go ahead. As soon as her tail lights were heading for the Channel Stop, Jake sidled over to Adam. “I know this is awkward,” he said. “But she showed up out of nowhere this morning. We haven’t told her how close in touch with Mary and Matty we’ve been, and she doesn’t know you were up to see them last week.”

“Good, I was wondering about that.”

“She’s got an earful of Brittany’s party line about them,” Amanda put in. “But we figured it was best if we didn’t say anything.”

“You’re probably right,” Adam replied. “I guess there’s not much we can do but be careful and keep our mouths closed about it.”

Being that it was May, the snack bar was open until nine on the weekends, and it had a number of customers sitting around having dinner. Without the full summer staff on hand, the place was busy; Amanda headed right back to the kitchen to help out, while Jake, Carolyn, and Adam settled down at one of the outside tables on the deck. “So, Adam,” Jake asked, “how long are you up here for?”

“Mostly I came up to pick up the Knick-Knack. I can head back in the morning, but I thought I might like to stay over a day and take it out while I’m here, just to make sure on any questions you and Amanda can answer right away.”

“No reason why not.” He turned to Carolyn and explained, “That’s the boat Amanda bought last winter and decided she didn’t like, and Adam was nice enough to take it off her hands.” He turned back to Adam and said, “We haven’t buttoned it up for towing or anything since we wanted to show you how to do it. But we’re going to be busy in the morning, we’ve got both boats scheduled full and the snack bar is going to be busy, so there won’t be anyone around to go with you. But you shouldn’t have any problems with it. When we get in tomorrow night, we can turn right to getting it on the trailer.”

“I don’t really have any problems with taking it out by myself, but it would be nice to have an extra pair of hands the first time or two.”

“Well, if you’d like, I could go with you,” Carolyn said. “Jake has had me out sailing a few times and I like to think I know at least a little bit about what I’m doing.”

“Just so you have warning, that’s about where I’m at,” Adam told her.

“You shouldn’t have any problems,” Jake said. “Tomorrow is supposed to be pretty calm. It’ll be a good day to get a little familiar with it.”

“Well, Carolyn,” Adam smiled. “If you want to go along, it’s fine with me.”

“Great. I’m sure if I didn’t have some excuse Jake or Rachel would put me to work. It’ll beat making up motel rooms or working the fuel dock.”

“Been there, done that. It actually makes for a nice break for a while.”

“So, Adam,” she said, “I didn’t know you were interested in sailing.”

“Until recently I wasn’t, but Matt got me interested in it. I’m not exactly planning on going out and sailing around the world or something, but I’ve learned that it’s nice to go out and putz around some. Jake and I took the Pixie over to the North Channel for a week last fall, and it was a nice break, and made me decide I want to do a little more of it.”

“Are you still at Caldwell-Deerfield? I wouldn’t think you’d have time to get out much.”

“Well, yes, but since Dad died I’m rearranging things a little so I can have some more free time. I’ve got a lot of vacation time I never took, and I want to catch up a little. The Knick-Knack isn’t a boat I’d want to go cruising in, but I’m thinking that after I get a little more comfortable with sailing I might buy something like the Pixie and go somewhere with it. Last fall Jake and I hardly touched some of the neat places there are to go in Georgian Bay and the North Channel.”

“It’d be nice to do something like that sometime,” she agreed. “It helps to have something like that to look forward to. Are you going to be keeping the boat up here?”

“No, I want to have it close enough that I could go out in the evening sometimes. I’ve arranged for a slip down at Frenchtown Harbor. I’m hoping the Knick-Knack will keep me a little busier in the evenings than I’ve been.”

“Things have been a little dull for you, then?”

“Not terrifyingly so,” he said, recognizing a probe – but a probe of what, he didn’t know. Oh, well, there was one subject he was sure she knew about, and although uncomfortable it was safe to talk with her about it. “It’s taken some time to adjust to life after Brittany, but it’s coming along.”

“So are you seeing anyone?”

Again, an obvious probe, but what was behind it could have been several things. “Not at the moment,” he replied tentatively. “There are some things I’ve had to work out and that’s one of them. Look, Carolyn. I know you’ve probably been talking with Brittany at least a little, but this is something that should stay between you and me. The last few years with her were, well, trying, to say the least. I’m afraid it’s made me a little gun shy about wanting to get into a new relationship. I’m not saying it won’t happen, but it most likely won’t happen soon.”

“I’ve had relationships go bad, so I know how that works,” she sighed. “So I think you’re probably wise to take your time. Just between us, I think Jake would agree with me that Brittany was a pain in the neck when she was a kid, and from what I’ve seen of her recently it’s only gotten worse.”

“I think I can agree with you on that.”

Carolyn must have realized that she was getting near a touchy subject, so she was the one to change the subject. “So what do you think of Amanda’s plan to buy a boat and go sailing in Florida in the winter?”

“I’d say go for it, and I’ve told her that much. There’s an advantage to doing things like that when you’re young and don’t have many responsibilities. Matt was wise enough to take advantage of it, but then he realized he might not have a long life so that gave him a little more reason to do it. I’m glad he did, and I hope things work out half as well for Amanda.”

They sat and talked on the deck for some time, the subject never nearing Brittany again, and never even getting close to Mary and Matty; it was obvious that Carolyn was avoiding the subject. It seemed to Adam that she was as aware that she had to be as careful about what she said as he did, but other than that it was a pleasant conversation.

It was Amanda’s turn to cook in the snack bar the next morning, and she seemed a little grumpy about it when Adam and Carolyn showed up for breakfast. “It’s going to be a nice day,” she said. “I don’t mind working in the kitchen when it’s cold and rainy and blowing like hell, but it sure is a bummer when it’s going to be as nice a day as it is today. Carolyn, I don’t suppose I could get you to cook so I could go out with Adam?”

“Not a chance,” Carolyn grinned. “You get out on the lake all the time, and I don’t get to very often. Besides, I want to see just how bad you took Adam on this boat deal.”

“I didn’t take him on it,” Amanda sniffed. “It’ll be a good boat for what he wants it for, but I’ll be surprised if he keeps it more than a year or two.”

After breakfast, Adam and Carolyn got in the pickup and drove down to the slip where the Knick-Knack was waiting. “It sure doesn’t seem like you to be driving a pickup,” she said conversationally.

“Well, it’s not mine,” he replied, technically not lying; the paperwork was actually in Chuck’s name, the guy that provided taxi service between storage sheds. “I just borrowed it to take the boat south.”

“Yeah, but still, seeing you driving a pickup, wearing jeans and a flannel shirt – well, that’s not exactly the Adam I remember.”

“I’ve changed a bit,” he said, and let it go at that.

Given a choice, Adam would just as soon not have agreed to take Carolyn with him on the Knick-Knack because of the chance of slipping up and revealing something about Mary and Matty that he shouldn’t, but he’d made the agreement and that was that. Besides, Carolyn appeared to understand that there were sensitive areas, and the evening before had done a good job of avoiding them. Maybe that would hold up. Besides, she was a pleasant woman to be with, which had some undeniable attractions by itself.

Apparently Carolyn hadn’t seen the boat before, but it proved that she knew something about sailing. It took them a few minutes to get the sail cover off the main, and to get the jib hanked on, and do a few other things that needed to be done before they could head out. Soon, Adam was warming up the Honda, which started easily; Carolyn hopped up on the dock, tossed the lines on deck, then got back aboard and coiled them up. As she was doing that, Adam put the outboard into reverse and slowly backed out of the slip.

Even with just that preparation, Adam realized a difference between Carolyn and Brittany. If his ex-wife had ever agreed to go sailing at all – unlikely, at best – she would have sat there like a bump on a log and would have expected him to do everything. At least Carolyn was a participant, not a passenger, and seemed to enjoy being part of the experience.

The breeze was light out of the west; it seemed to Adam that if he’d been a little more familiar with the boat he possibly could have sailed it right down the channel without using the motor. He didn’t want to risk his limited experience in the narrow channel though, so he let the Honda do the work. Once outside the jetties, he shut off the engine and raised the sails. Even though the Knick-Knack moved easily in the light air, they were only slowly making progress. “Where are we going?” Carolyn asked.

“Does it matter?”

“No, not really. I was just curious.”

“Well, the answer is nowhere in particular. I suppose we’ll just go down the coast a ways until it’s time to turn around and head back.”

“Sounds like a plan to me.”

While it was a bright, sunny day for late May, it was cool out on the water, and having jackets on felt good. The boat loped along in the gentle breeze and the nearly flat waves with little fuss. Occasionally Adam made a few adjustments to the sail trim, without it seeming to make much difference. After a while they broke out a Thermos of coffee Amanda had given to them and sat in the cockpit drinking it. Mostly they talked about the boat and about sailing.

Eventually, it got to be around noon – Adam wasn’t exactly keeping track of the time. Carolyn went down into the cabin and returned with sandwiches that Amanda had provided, and they sat in the warmth of the sun eating them and drinking the pop that had come with them. Eventually, it was time to be heading back; they wanted to be back early so they wouldn’t be late in getting the boat on the trailer.

The run back to Winchester Harbor was a little livelier. The boat was now on a heading that was more into the wind, so the breeze seemed stronger and the waves a little bigger. By the middle of the afternoon the breakwaters were in sight, and the pleasant day on the lake would soon be coming to an end.

Adam was grateful that they hadn’t gotten close to any subjects that would have been awkward, but realized that this was an opportunity to learn a little more about what was going on with Brittany. While he hated to bring the subject up he didn’t want to pass up the chance, either. Finally he decided he had no choice but to ask. “Carolyn,” he said, “I get the impression you’ve talked to Brittany from time to time.”

“Not very often,” she replied. “But I see her now and then, and my folks talk with her folks a lot.”

“I don’t hear much about her. How’s she getting along?”

“About all I can say is that she’s getting along. I don’t want to say good. She’s trying to buy a house down in Wychbold so she can be closer to her folks. That may give her something to keep her busy.”

“I’ve heard that much but not any details. I try to keep my distance from her, Carolyn. I don’t want to get involved with her again, but I feel a little responsible for her, so I just want to know if she’s all right.”

“I understand, Adam. She’s not always the most pleasant person to be around. They’ve got her on medication that is keeping her a little, well, subdued. She’s still very curious about her grandson, and wants to see him.” She let out a sigh and continued, “In fact, I think if she were given the chance she’d take him in, no matter what his mother wants. I don’t think it would be very good all the way around.”

“I don’t either. Even while we were together, she never accepted the reality of Matt’s wife. To her, she was a nonentity at best, a roadblock keeping Matt from what she thought he ought to be doing. I’m afraid she still sees Mary as a roadblock to keep her from her grandson.”

“I’m afraid you’re right. She doesn’t have a good word to say about the boy’s mother. As far as I know she knows nothing about who she is, or what she’s like, but she’s absolutely convinced that the boy is being mistreated just by being with his mother. According to Brittany, he should be where he belongs, with his grandmother. Like I said, that would be a disaster.”

“That’s about how I understand it,” Adam agreed, and reminded himself to take care about what he was saying. “I don’t know that much about it, but I’m convinced that Mary is going to be a good mother, and she will take good care of the boy. I wish I knew more, but I don’t doubt what little I do know.”

“You’ll never convince Brittany of that,” Carolyn sighed. “Look, Adam. I don’t doubt that you know more than you’re telling me, and I understand why you don’t want to say anything about it. I know that Brittany doesn’t have a clue of where to find the boy or she’d be making trouble trying to get her hands on him. I know she’s had detectives looking for him, but they haven’t turned up anything, and as far as I know she’s given up on that angle, at least for now. If she had something to go on, she might give it a try again.”

“You know,” he said, weighing his words, “if the situation were a little different I wouldn’t be opposed to the two of them getting together, at least for a visit or something. In an ideal world, the boy should know his grandmother, and the other way around. But Brittany’s world is not ideal, and I have my doubts about how reasonable Brittany would be in that situation.”

“I suspect you’re right,” she nodded, “at least for now. I think Brittany is slowly coming to understand the reality of the situation, and it’s going to take some time. But she’s going to be a long time coming to terms with the boy’s mother.”

“It would help if Brittany could realize she brought that situation on herself. She only met Mary twice, and both times she either ignored her entirely or she was incredibly rude to her. I think I can say it told Mary what she needed to know about Brittany.”

“Like you said, Mary is a roadblock to what Brittany wants,” Carolyn said. “Look, Adam, as a teacher I see situations sort of like this every now and then. Sometimes there never is any healing. Don’t be surprised if it doesn’t happen in this case.”

“It wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest.”

They rode along silently for a few minutes, each with their own thoughts, until it was time to drop the sails and fire up the Honda for the run up the channel. Once they were back in the harbor, it was easy to see the Chinook wasn’t back yet, and soon they were tied up in the slip. “I don’t know what all we’re going to have to do to get this on the trailer,” Adam said. “But I suspect the sails are going to have to come off and be bagged up entirely. I suppose we could get started on that.”

“Might as well,” she agreed, “and Adam, thanks for taking me out today. I really enjoyed it, and I wouldn’t mind doing it again sometime. School will be out soon, and if you decide you need an extra pair of hands sometime, give me a call. It might be best if Brittany doesn’t find out we’ve been out sailing, though.”

“You’re probably right on that,” he agreed. “But I’d love it if we could get together to go sailing again sometime.”

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