Where had he been these past few months? Wandering, he’d said on the phone. Had he stayed in one place long enough to develop any friendships—any ties with other people, other women? She hoped he hadn’t been alone, but she stopped short of hoping that he’d loved anyone as deeply as she knew he loved her. Or that some other woman was packing to be with him right now—packing and planning to bring him comfort and strength.
She studied the pictures on her bulletin board, then began plucking some of them from the cork to take with her. First, the fountain, which stood now in the park—newly named Cabrio Park—next to Chris’s office. Chris had installed the plumbing system necessary to turn her design into a functioning fountain, and the dedication ceremony last week had drawn a spectacularly huge, spectacularly happy crowd.
She slipped a few recent pictures of Blackwell into the suitcase, but she didn’t pack the pictures she’d taken of the federal agents as they snooped around the warehouse, as they studied the rain machine. They hadn’t dared to touch the equipment, however, as if they knew that despite its solid look and flawless operation, an inexperienced, incautious touch could destroy it all too easily.
Jeff had been no different from the rest of them, she thought, as she closed the flap on the suitcase. No different from Chris or Carmen or herself. She had come to think of herself as something of a freak, much the same way that Chris had seen I himself as useless without a ball and glove, and Carmen had perceived the softness in herself as a failing. All of their self-images had been based on a twisted reality conjured up out of hurt and insecurity, out of the damage they’d suffered. And Jeff had been no different. But he knew better now, as they all did. His phone call had told her that. Whatever lessons they’d learned from him, he’d taught himself as well.
She imagined seeing him, holding him, sleeping with him. She should not allow her optimism such free reign. Maybe they wouldn’t be able to help him at all.
We’ll do our best, Chris had said as she’d left the adobe. We’ll pay him back in whatever way we can.
She was ready to zip the suitcase closed when she remembered one last thing she needed to pack. Opening her top dresser drawer, she dug to the bottom of the stack of underwear and nightshirts and pulled out the green satin chemise. Folding it carefully, she rested it on the other clothes in the suitcase, hoping she would have the chance to show Jeff that she was, indeed, very much alive.
The Story behind the Story
I grew up on the east coast of the United States—which is where I still live—but for a twelve year period, I was a Californian through and through. I lived in San Diego, where I received my bachelor’s and master’s degrees, worked as a clinical social worker, and started my writing career. I adored California, but the east coast was always calling me home. The wonderful thing about writing is that you can live in one place and almost live in another by setting a book there. The setting for Fire and Rain was borne of a bout of California homesickness.
You can’t live in the southern part of California for long without experiencing drought and fire. I recall waking up some mornings with my house surrounded by red air and ash falling from the sky like snow. Remembering those mornings, I decided that drought and fire would form the backdrop for my story. Research for Fire and Rain began with a trip to San Diego County, of course! I stayed with my best friend, Cher, and we walked her property while I took notes about the flora she described and drank in the dry heat I’d nearly forgotten about during my years In Virginia, where I was living at the time.
I decided to focus the story on a man who had the ability to save the town, but who also had secrets to protect. To heighten the conflict, I brought in Carmen, a woman who was losing a career that could only be saved if she uncovered those secrets. Mia and Chris, with the difficult turns their lives had taken, added complications of their own.
Every writer finds herself visiting the same themes over and over again, whether she means to or not. I’m no exception. My stories tend to deal with forgiveness and sacrifice, often among people I’ve thrown together in tight quarters. Fire and Rain certainly covers all those bases. By creating Carmen’s house and her three small rental cottages, I forced four people, all of whom had their own reasons for wanting to be alone, to interact with one another. They hid their secrets, nursed their wounds, and fell in love. They forgave and they sacrificed. Carmen, for example, learned to forgive Chris and ultimately sacrificed her own career goals for the sake of Jeff’s welfare. There are other examples where these themes played out in the story, but I won’t go into them here. Instead, I’ll tell you more about the research that went into the story.
How was I going to make it rain? I had a long conversation with a guy at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado as I tried to figure out how Jeff could pull off his miracle. The guy I spoke with gave me enough information to make my brain hurt, but the bottom line was that I was looking for the impossible. So I had to invent the “trans-hydrators” myself, and the machinery and the way it works is as much a mystery to me as it is to the townspeople of Valle Rosa.
I knew I wanted Jeff to be a larger-than-life character, someone whose light was hard to hide even though he tried his best not to draw attention to himself. I decided to make him a real problem solver, a man who couldn’t help but be noticed. I found a Readers’ Digest book titled Practical Problem Solver. In the pages of that book, I learned ‘how to catch a mouse in an umbrella’, ‘how to pick up broken glass with a slice of bread’ and a few other Jeff-isms. Remember all this research was done without the Internet! I’m not sure I’d know how to begin today.
Mia was a challenging character to create. Having worked as a medical social worker, I knew all too well that breast cancer doesn’t care whether you’re young or old and the toll it can take on a woman as she’s just beginning her life adds an extra dose of cruelty to an already cruel disease. I interviewed a couple of women who were kind enough to talk with me about the emotional devastation they endured as they fought their cancer. I wanted Mia to have a gift, though, something she could lose herself in as she healed, so that is why I made her an artist. To complete my research on her, I visited a local sculptor who helped me understand not only how Mia would make her creations but how her art could feed and sustain her as well.
To understand Carmen’s world a bit better, I wrangled an invitation to sit in the newsroom of a Washington, DC television station both before and during a broadcast to observe what went on behind the scenes. It never fails to amaze me how generous people can be when I ask for help with my research.
Finally, a word about the dedication in the beginning of this book. While I was writing the story, my twenty-year marriage fell apart in one of those sudden, shocking, soul-searing ways you hear about but can barely believe. The man I’d considered my best friend was gone, but my women friends—wow. They rallied around me, each offering her own brand of support. They taught me so many lessons about friendship and I am forever grateful to all of them. Without them, I never would have been able to finish this book.
Thanks for reading this peek into the creation of Fire and Rain. Except for some very minor changes, this e-book version is identical to the original print novel. I hope you’ve enjoyed it.
—Diane Chamberlain, 2011
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am indebted to the following people for generously sharing themselves and their expertise with me:
Sharon Brooks, Jeff Doranz, Elizabeth Falk, Virginia Herrmann, Mo Javins, Julia Mitchell, Jed Nitzberg, Rhonda Roberts, Craig Ross, and Pam Saunders;
To my former agent, Adele Leone, and my former editor, Karen Solem, for their unflagging confidence;
And, as always, to Cher Johnson, Mary Kirk, Peter Porosky, and Suzanne Schmidt, as well as to the Mount Vernon Writer’s Group. Thank you all.
Bio
Diane Chamberlain is the author of 21 novels. A former medical social worker and psychotherapist, she lives in North Carolina with photographer Joh
n Pagliuca and their two Shelties, Keeper and Jet. You can visit her website and her blog, and she is active with her readers on her Facebook page. Join her there!
Other Novels by Diane Chamberlain
I maintain a printable booklist on the Books Page of my website to help my readers keep up with both my new and reissued novels. A few of my books are linked and the list can help you read them in order. Also, some books have other titles in the United Kingdom and Australia, and the list will help you keep them straight. UK and Australian readers will find more help on my International Page. Here is a list of my novels available in both print and as e-books.
The Good Father (coming in May 2012)
The Midwife’s Confession
The Lies We Told
The Shadow Wife (originally Cypress Point)
Secrets She Left Behind
Before the Storm
The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes
The Bay at Midnight
Breaking the Silence
Summer’s Child
Her Mother’s Shadow
Kiss River
Keeper of the Light
The Courage Tree
Backlist Available as e-books
Secret Lives
Reflection
The Escape Artist
Brass Ring
Fire and Rain
Lovers and Strangers (coming in 2012)
Private Relations (coming in 2012)
Diane Chamberlain, Fire and Rain
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