The Homecoming
“Cora, is it really you? Are these old eyes playing
tricks on me?” Sophia said as she gazed into the eyes of the
daughter she hadn't seen in six years.
“It's me Mama, I'm so sorry I left you and Papa. I
hope you will forgive me.”
“Oh my darling girl. There is nothing to forgive.
I'm just glad you are here. What kept you away for so long? Oh
never mind that. Come in. Let me pour you a cup of tea. You must
be hungry, I'll heat up some nice vegetable soup for you. Oh Cora, I
don't know what to say. I can't believe you are standing here in my
kitchen. Are you ill child?”
“I'm well Mama. I don't know where to start. Audrey
came to see me. I don't remember the town we were in but I heard her
call my old name. I had forgotten my name was Cora it had been so
long since anyone called me that. I'm Sister Charity now. At least
I think that's my name.”
“Cora, I'm going to call Doc Bailey. I want to make
sure you are alright.” Sophia picked up the receiver of the
telephone that was installed just a week ago. She gave the number
for Doc Bailey's office to the operator and was connected. Doc's
nurse told her he would be over to check on Cora.
“Doc says not to let her leave Mrs. Lynch. He is on
his way.”
Doc arrived and was very gentle with Cora. He
determined she was in good shape physically but wondered about her
mental state. He called Sophia aside and said “I don't know much
about emotional wellness. Cora seems to be in a bit of a daze. From
just talking to her I don't think she was abused physically in any
way. The way she describes this fellow, Brother Jeremiah, he has
cast a spell over her. She has a desire to come home and be a part
of her family again. I don't want to alarm you but I think Brother
Jeremiah will be anxious to have Cora back. You may want to keep
your doors locked for a while.”
“Thank you Doc. Mr. Lynch should be home soon. In the
meantime, I think I'll load his old shotgun. Nobody is going to take
my darling girl away from me again.”
Cora had gone upstairs to her old room. Her mother left
it just the way it was the day Cora disappeared. She came down in
one of her old dresses. The ring of flowers she had in her hair had
been replaced by shiny barrettes.
“Cora, do you want to talk about what happened to
you?”
“Yes, Mama, I think I'd like to talk about it but I'm
not sure of all the details.”
“Let me fix you another cup of tea.”
“I remember seeing the men putting up the big tent one
afternoon. A man was walking around shouting that we were all
sinners and we needed to be saved. Audrey laughed and said the man
was a con artist and was trying to take people's money. Sally and
Maizy thought it was funny too. Audrey had to be home that night but
Sally and Maizy wanted to go to the revival meeting and I said I'd go
with them.
“We walked into the tent that evening and people were
singing and music was playing. It was very loud and it sounded
wonderful to me. Brother Jeremiah walked out on stage and he looked
like an angel with his white flowing gown. When he spoke his voice
was like a voice from heaven. I saw him make a man see who was blind
and then he made a little boy in a wheelchair walk. I thought I was
seeing miracles. He called all of us sinners up to the stage. I
couldn't help myself, I got into the line and we were all singing
Onward Christian Soldiers. That
was always one of my very favorite hymns. As I walked by Brother
Jeremiah he stopped me and told me to step aside. Sister Maude took
my hand and walked me to another tent on the grounds.
“I was a little frightened but I couldn't seem to move
to get back to Sally and Maizy. After the music quieted down,
Brother Jeremiah came to me and asked if I would like to be one of
his disciples. He said if I did become his disciple I would surely
have a place in heaven through all eternity. He had such piercing
eyes and I believed every word he spoke. I told him I would have to
ask you and he said he already did and you said I should go with him.
“From then on, every time I asked about you and why
you hadn't tried to see me he would look at me with those eyes and
tell me you were happy I was with him and I should forget my earthly
family because he was my family now. I thought you and Papa had
given up on me and didn't want me anymore.
“Before long, he asked me to pretend to be mute and
when he pushed my head and I fell down I was suppose to get up and
sing. I didn't feel right about lying but he said it was what the
Lord wanted me to do.
“Every few days we would move to another town. During
the winter we went south where it was warmer and in the spring we
would head back up north. This went on for a long time. I thought I
was happy living that way because Brother Jeremiah told me I was.
“Then one day, I heard a familiar voice. She said she
was my cousin Audrey. I was in Brother Jeremiah's tent that night
after he pushed on my head and made me sing. She kept telling me
stories about when we were children and our families and all the good
times we had. I started to remember them but I didn't speak because
Brother Jeremiah told me not to talk when other people were around.
The big men who were always nearby made Audrey leave. I didn't want
her to go because I wanted to hear more stories.
“I kept remembering the things she told me and then I
started remembering other things. I remembered how you always had
tea in the afternoon. How you would call me your darling girl. How
Papa would light his pipe and read the newspaper after he got home
from work. All these memories came back to me. I knew I had to see
you again and when the train pulled into the station in Buffalo I got
off and hid in the janitor's closet until the train pulled out again.
I hitched a ride with a farmer who was delivering fresh eggs. He
stopped at Carson's Market and I walked home from there.”
Sophia wanted to take that shotgun and hunt down Brother
Jeremiah. She knew she wouldn't do such a thing but it did sound
like a good idea.
Just then Burt Lynch walked in the door. He couldn't
believe his eyes that his daughter was sitting at the kitchen table
sipping tea.
After hugging her and breathing a sigh of relief, he
listened as Sophia repeated the story she had heard.
“I'm getting the sheriff. We will track this man down
and have him put away for the rest of his sorry life.”
“As much as I'd like that to happen Burt, Cora was 18
when she went with the man. In the eyes of the law she was an adult.
He hasn't hurt her physically and I'm not sure mental anguish is
punishable although maybe it should be.”
At that moment in the town of Lexington just outside of
Buffalo, Brother Jeremiah was berating Sister Maude for letting
Sister Charity slip away from them.
“Listen Jerry, I'm not her keeper. She is a grown
woman and if she wants to get away from you I don't blame her. If I
wasn't your wife I'd leave too. I'm getting sick and tired of
traveling around with this group of hangers on. Charity was one of
the nice ones. If you hadn't played games with her head she would
probably be back in Buffalo married to some farm boy and surrounded
by 3 or 4 children by now. Just let her go.”
“Charity is my golden goose. Do you have any idea how
much money she can raise with that voice? Those suckers out there
can't wait to part with their money once she starts singing.”
“How much is enough money. We could go live on an
island somewhere and never work again. We have plenty of money.
Your greed is going to get you in trouble. Well, I've got my own
nest egg and if you insist on tracking Charity down, I am leaving
you.”
“Go ahead and leave because I'm calling the boys in
right now. I know exactly where she lives and I'm going to make sure
I get my singing angel back. With you out of the picture, I might
just make her the second Mrs. Jeremiah Hershey.”
Maude walked out of the room. She knew she wouldn't
leave and she knew her husband wouldn't ever be unfaithful to her.
He liked to say things just to rile her up. She wished he would
listen to her and get out of the con business. She wondered if they
hadn't gone too far. She knew people were donating their life
savings. They had more money than they would ever be able to use.
Maude was still young enough to become a mother. She wanted nothing
more than to settle down in a nice little town and raise a couple of
kids with Jerry.
Brother Jeremiah called in two of his thugs. He gave
them the address where they could find Sister Charity with an order
to bring her back to him.
Ace and Buck found the house where Charity was. They
walked up to the door and knocked. They were met with two shotguns
aimed directly at their faces. Charity was holding one of the guns
and an older lady was holding the other.
“Ace get out of here and take Buck with you. I'm not
going back and you can tell your boss to get himself another sinner.
This one has been saved. The sheriff and my father are on their way
to the big tent. I'm sure the sheriff can find some reason to put
that man behind bars.”
“We're leavin' Charity. Don't shoot.”
“Ace, I'm tired of travelin' how about we see if we
can get a factory job here in Buffalo. I understand the winters are
pretty nice here.”
“I'm with you Buck. Let's let old Jerry face that
sheriff by himself.”
The most the sheriff could do was convince Brother
Jeremiah that it would be more pleasant for him to move on.
Jeremiah told his crew to start packing up. He wondered
where Ace and Buck were with Charity and had a bad feeling when night
fell and they still weren't back. Maybe Maude had a point. They
could find a little place where it was warm all year. A couple of
kids would be nice too. Anyway, he was getting tired of tambourine
music.
Audrey Mackenzie picked up her mail at the post office.
There was a letter from Cora. She couldn't wait to open it.
Dear Cousin Audrey,
How can I ever thank you for coming to see me at the
revival meeting a few weeks ago. If you hadn't reminded me of all
the wonderful times we had when we were young and the happy days with
our families, I would still be traveling with Brother Jeremiah.
I am still trying to sort out the way my life took a
turn but I do believe everything will be alright in the end.
Do you remember Elroy Perkins? He was that skinny
boy who always followed me home from school. The years have been
very kind to him. He is still unmarried. He said he was waiting for
me to return. He is the local pharmacist now. He has asked me to
marry him and I said yes. Doc Bailey thinks I should settle back
into my life before I make any drastic changes. Elroy says he has
waited for me this long and he can wait a few months longer. I hope
you will plan to come to the wedding. I am anxious to meet your new
husband.
Thank you again Audrey. Thank you for giving me back
my life.
With Love and Affection, Your Cousin Cora
“Oh Mr. Parker,”
Audrey said to Jackson on her way out the door. “isn't life just
wonderful?”
