His heart ached at some of the differences time had wrought, but it soared for his family’s newfound peace and security. A wedding portrait of his mother and Jared now occupied the position on the fireplace mantel where once his father’s had been displayed in his former home. He would never see again the Beata of the picture he had carried in his wallet and for whom big brother, forgetting that little sisters grow up, had brought home French dolls for her and Margie. She had long passed the stage of play house and doll buggies.

Bobby had graduated from high school and now at eighteen was a man full grown, but Brad was saddened at the loss of the scrappy kid he’d left behind. He had enrolled in the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, where he planned to study mechanical engineering. His bags were packed almost before Brad could unpack his. “I want to design power-producing things,” he said.

Jared…In Brad’s absence he’d taken over his family, which was okay with Brad, but he was left with the feeling that he wasn’t needed anymore except by Wilhelm, but his mother within minutes had taken charge of him, too. It had been the most moving moment of all when, in the bedlam of his homecoming, she had knelt before Wilhelm, the little boy pulling back against Brad’s legs, and put her hands on his shoulders. Quiet fell, and his mother said softly in German, “Welcome to my heart, Wilhelm,” and the little boy, as if in recognition of a haven he’d been seeking for a long time, had simply slipped his arms around Joanna Bukowski Hudson Cramer’s neck and let her take him into her embrace.

So Brad had thought that after a good family visit, he’d move on, get a job on a fishing boat somewhere, until Jared had offered him a job he couldn’t refuse. “I’m thinking of cutting my hours to spend more time with your mother and the family, something I’ve waited to do until you came home,” he said. “I’d like you to help me run the company, Brad, and when I retire, take over the business entirely if you’re willing.”

Brad had been willing.

CHAPTER NINETY-FOUR

CHAPTER NINETY-FOUR

Bridgette came home to a yard of groomed green grass and flower beds brimming with neatly contained peonies and dahlias, her grandmother’s prized rose trellises pruned, and the bushes trimmed. She had dreaded the appearance of the lawn after two years’ absence. Gladys! she thought.

In the house, everything was in perfect order as well: sheets on the bed, towels in the bathroom, food essentials in the refrigerator and pantry, utilities working. Even the telephone had been reconnected. Bridgette set down her luggage and picked up the receiver. She was grateful and moved, but sadly, she and Gladys could never be best friends again.