“I just wondered.”
Margaret continued to section Lydia’s hair. She sensed there was more coming.
“Do fathers usually do things with their daughters?”
“Some do.”
“What else did your father do with you?”
“He taught me to roller skate and to jump rope.”
“He did?”
Margaret laughed. “He had my uncles turn the jump rope and he showed me how to jump double time. Right out in the middle of the park, where everyone could see him. He’s very tall. Now that I think about it, it must have looked pretty odd, a tall, distinguished lawyer in that park jumping rope.” She smiled at the memory and wondered what her dad was doing right then. If he knew yet about the ship.
“He’s a lawyer, too?”
Margaret nodded. “And he’s a state supreme court judge.”
“What else did he teach you?”
“He took me skating at the roller rink once and fractured his arm. He taught me to ride a horse, and when I was thirteen, he taught me to shoot a pistol.”
Lydia was quiet. “My papa was a botanist. Mama said his work was important so we had to understand that he couldn’t be with us much.”
“I don’t think that’s unusual, Lydia. My dad and I, well, we only had each other after my mother died.”
After a few minutes Lydia asked, “Can you still remember what your mother looked like?”
Margaret paused. “She was tall, like I am. And she had dark hair and eyes and the most beautiful smile.” She looked at the braid and realized she’d lost count. It was falling out. She brushed it out and started again. “What did your mother look like?”
“She had red hair like Theo and Annabelle and blue eyes.”
“Like yours.”
Lydia leaned her head back and looked at Margaret. “I think so. I don’t remember.” She was quiet, then she asked, “When people die, do they become angels?”
“I don’t know.”
They were both pensive.
“Do you believe in heaven?”
“Yes.”
“Do you think people in heaven can see us?”
“I’d like to think that my mother can see me and that your mother and father can see you. We’re the part of them that’s still here. Perhaps they’re keeping an eye on us.”
“Like guardian angels?”
“Um-hmm.” Margaret stopped, then said, “I’ll tell you something I’ve never told anyone, but I’d like to keep it between us. Our secret, okay?”
Lydia turned around and nodded.
“I remember once when I was about your age I was playing with some other children at a birthday party, and we were chasing after a barrel hoop. It went down the hillside, and the kids wanted me to run after it. I was always running, racing the boys and winning, so I ran after that hoop. It rolled and rolled down through some trees and over a few grassy hills. I ran faster and faster, because it was rolling toward the cliffs at the edge of the bay.
“The hoop finally stopped rolling right at a high cliff. I slowed down to a walk when I saw that I wasn’t going to lose it after all. When I was a few feet away, I took a step toward it, and someone grabbed my arm and pulled me back. It happened so suddenly that I was scared. I looked up, but there was no one there. I turned around. I was all alone. Not a soul anywhere.
