Secret Whispers (Heavenstone 2)

“As far as that goes, Teddy,” Lucille said, “I have a surprise for you to add to the excitement.”

“More?” He raised his arms. “I don’t know if I can stand it. What?”

“The governor’s office called. He and his wife will definitely attend.”

“Well, I’ll be. What do you say to that, Semantha?”

“He should attend, Daddy. You bring a lot of tax money into the state.”

“What? Hear that, Lucille? Is she a Heaven-stone after all or not?”

“She’s definitely a Heaven-stone,” Lucille said, looking at me and smiling.

If I hadn’t had my hands on the table, I think I might have risen and floated with new pride, but when I looked across the table at where Cassie used to sit, I saw her looking as angry as I had ever seen her.

She wasn’t angry at my increasing friendship with Lucille or my embrace of their wedding. She was angry that I was finally beginning to replace her.

“You’ll be sorry,” she mouthed, and disappeared.

“What’s that on your wrist?” Daddy asked, finally noticing the Rolex.

“A graduation present from Uncle Perry.”

“Really? That sneak. He wasn’t supposed to beat me to the punch.”

We heard the doorbell.

“Well, now, here’s the punch,” Daddy said. “Mrs. Dobson,” he called. “We’ll get the door. Hold back serving for a little while,” he told her when she appeared. She nodded as though she already knew.

“What is it?”

“Just follow me,” he said. I looked at Lucille, but her face betrayed no knowledge. In fact, she looked more surprised than I was. He and she rose, and I went with them to the front door, now more curious and excited. A young man waited with a large manila envelope.

“All the paperwork is in here, Mr. Heaven-stone, and the keys, of course.”

“Thank you, George.”

I stood back, waiting nervously. Before Lucille, Daddy rarely pulled off surprises. He had always lectured about the importance of a foundation, preparation, for anything.

“Well, come on, Semantha,” Daddy said. “Your graduation gift is impatient.”

I stepped up to the doorway and looked out at a red Aston Martin convertible with a huge yellow ribbon tied around it. Daddy reached into the manila envelope and handed me a set of keys.

“Congratulations,” he said.

“My God, Teddy, that’s almost a two-hundred-thousand-dollar automobile!” Lucille said.

I turned to her, now really surprised that she hadn’t known what he was giving me and that she was so overwhelmed, perhaps even more than I was, because I didn’t know that much about cars.

“What of it? She’s the only Heaven-stone left to spoil,” Daddy told her. He looked intently at me. “And besides, we’re very proud of her accomplishments, considering what she has been through.”

“Of course we are,” Lucille said quickly, and hugged me. “Good luck with it, Semantha. You’re certainly going to turn heads when you’re driving that.”

We all went down the steps to look more closely at the car. Daddy undid the ribbon and had Lucille and me sit in it so he could take a quick digital photo.

“I hope you understand that this is more than just any car. It’s a work of art, Semantha,” Lucille said, running her hand over the fine leather. There was a note of real envy, even anger, in her voice, but then she quickly smiled and added, “I’m sure you do. You’re far from too spoiled to appreciate nice things.”

“Now that you said how much it cost, I think I’m going to be afraid to drive it. It will attract lots of attention.”