The Finding Tree

Chapter 2 - The Event

"I'm allowed to go out, you of all people have no right to lecture me about my habits, Tom. You hit me, you bastard. I can't believe you hit me," Marcie screamed.

"I'll do it again, if you don't get out of my face, bitch."

Janey slammed open the door and raced to the kitchen to see the chair broken on the floor, her mother huddled against a wall, protecting her face with her arms.  Her father was holding a broken chair leg threatening the woman against the wall.

"Daddy, no!" She tugged on her father's shirt and wrapped her arms around him pulling him away. Tom stumbled back as Marcie stood and fled to the bedroom, locking the door behind her and leaving Janey to her own fate without saying another word.

"Janey, what the hell are you doing here. Get away from me."

"Don't hurt mama!" Janey wailed. "Just let her go."

Tom whirled and slapped Janey across the face with his open hand, sending her sprawling. Janey sobbed scrabbling to her feet, and ran out the open door. She knew her mom was safe for the moment, and by the look in the drunk's eyes...he was close to the endgame.

They were bloodshot and twitchy. He couldn't focus, but he knew he'd done something unforgivable. He dropped the chair leg and grabbed the bottle, took a long swig and stumbled to the open door.

"Janey you better get your ass back here!"

*****

Tears drying on her face, the late afternoon sun warmed her shoulders. Janey continued to wander around the edges of the lake house property, staying unseen in the treeline. She walked behind the old caretaker's cabin, that was only lived in from September thru April. It was empty now, and as she peeked in the windows she saw it was sparsely furnished and void of personal effects.

There was an old chicken coop behind the cabin, and another shed that smelled like goats. Janey smiled. She hoped maybe the old man who stayed here in the winter had goats and chickens. She liked to imagine the animals here. She wished they were still here.

Behind the goat shed, there was a trail she hadn't seen before. Instead of sorrow, Janey's sense of adventure kicked in and she smiled a little as she followed the small track. It was narrow, overgrown and covered in thick vines, blackberry briars and underbrush, but it was definitely a trail.

Deeper into the forest she followed the trail as it wound around the edge of the shore on the far end of the lake house property. She felt pulled the further she went, but didn't really understand why. The temperature cooled, the foliage grew thicker, and the smell was green and dense.

Janey brushed her arms in front of her pulling apart the leaves and almost fell over at what she saw. It was a clearing. A huge clearing completely hidden from the shore, except for a small break that faced the lake, and in the middle of the clearing was the biggest tree she had ever seen.

The trunk was almost as thick as a car. When she looked up, she couldn't see the sky, and the branches seemed to reach forever. Most of it was covered in a thick green carpet of moss, and on the far side she saw a small bench that had almost grown into the tree. It was tilted and leaning, but it was there.

Janey gasped and laughed, and danced into the clearing. This was it! She knew this was it. This was great grandma Mabel's tree. She had found it! She had actually found it.

Dad had told her about this place since she was little. He loved the story of how Mabel had tricked her son and her nurses and escaped into the forest. It had taken a team of dogs, and the local sheriff to find her three days later at the base of a huge tree near the lake. Mabel was "deader than a door nail" as daddy had said.

Grandpa Pat was furious at the staff, but the funny thing was that Mabel's will stipulated that no punishment would be enforced against her assistant or nurse for not being available to find her, should she disappear. She left them both with sizable monetary amounts. Enough to last several years, or pay for a full secondary education. Patrick was livid. Tom had laughed so hard when he told Janey that story.

Tom was still bitter against his father for forcing him to enlist or face jail time when he was younger. He adored that his grandmother got one over on her son. It was the best kind of revenge.

Janey walked around the tree, touching the moss and running her hands over the small scars and twists she saw on the trunk.

"Hello tree," she said. "I've been looking for you. It's nice to meet you. Were you a friend to my great grandma? I hope we can be friends, too."

Janey cleared the leaves and dirt from the small bench and sat down. The wind rustled and the peace she felt here lifted the weight of the day from her heart. She smiled and leaned back, watching the late afternoon sun glint off the rippling lake like sparkling gems.

Her eyes closed and she must have dozed off. A small branch dropped on the bench next to her and startled her awake. It was evening now and the sun was close to setting. She knew that if she went home, mom would have dinner started and the door to the living room would be closed for the night. The drunk wouldn't stir.

Janey looked over on the bench, and reached for the branch to clear it off the seat. Underneath something caught her eye. Had that always been there? Her heart leapt in her chest. A small wooden box lay on the seat next to her. The surface was adorned with a deep intricate carving of a tree. She reached out and picked it up knowing this was the start of something wonderful.