Heartsong (Logan 2)

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He laughed.

"Nothing," he said with a wave of his hand.

"She wants to have a picnic tomorrow. She's coming to pick me up at eleven," I said quickly to see if he would disapprove. He just looked surprised.

"Really? What are you going to tell Jacob?"

"I'll take care of it," I said firmly. He widened his smile and lifted his eyebrows.

"I see. Holly wouldn't have given you any ideas on what to say to Jacob now, would she?"

"Maybe."

He shook his head.

"I thought so. It doesn't take Holly long to get right into the heat of battle when she sees an emotional conflict," he said.

"She's interesting," I offered cautiously. He laughed.

"Interesting? She's like a rain storm in Technicolor, psychedelic clouds, neon lightning with the wind playing tunes from the Zen Buddhists. Wait until she reads you some of her poetry," he continued.

"Don't you like her?" I asked, confused. It sounded as if he were making fun of her.

"Of course. She's fresh air. There's not a phony bone in her solar and lunar body. Come on, let's finish this," he said and nodded at the papier-mache wave. I pulled off my sweatshirt and then took my position quickly. Maybe it was because I had done it before and the shock and excitement were over, or maybe it was because of some of the things Holly Brooks had said, but whatever the reason, my nervousness and inhibition were gone. I felt as if I had done this often.

"How long have you known her?" I asked after I'd gotten myself comfortable.

"A long time."

"Did you meet her here in Provincetown or in Greenwich Village?"

He paused.

"Melody, you know I can't talk and work at the same time," he said.

"Sorry."

"Just lift your chin a little and turn slightly to the right. Good. "

"Could you just answer one question?" I begged. "Okay. I cart see if I don't, I won't have any peace anyway. What is it?"

"Do you believe in all this--the power of the crystals, the energies in the universe?"

He stared at me a moment.

"I don't believe in anything but my art," he said, but he didn't sound proud of that. He said it with an underlying tone of sadness and defeat. "Let's work."

I could tell by his tone that he was in no mood to continue the conversation, so I resigned myself to silence so Kenneth could begin.

When we were finished, I hurried out to see if Holly had fallen asleep on the beach. She was in the house, however, and greeted me as I passed through to pick up the doll and wait for Kenneth at the jeep.

"I have something else for you," she said, holding a large paper bag. She dipped into it and brought out some sticks of incense. "Burn these in your room while you're meditating. It will help relax you," she said. Then she reached in again and pulled out a roll of yellow material. "You can wear it tomorrow when I come for you."

"Wear it? I don't understand. How do you wear it? What is it?"

"It's called a sari. It's traditionally worn by Hindu women. Here, let me show you how to put it on," she said. She wrapped it around me and even draped it over my head. Then she stepped back and bowed with her hands together.