Chapter Five
Aunt Winnie
Penny and Ed were planning for the Fourth of July celebration.-It would be an altogether different event from the first one they had just two years earlier.-At that point, they didn’t know the house they had found belonged to Penny’s Uncle and Aunt; they didn’t even know exactly where they were; they didn’t know their neighbors; they didn’t know which direction to go to get supplies.-Everything was up in the air including the fireworks that Johnny had set off.-The same Johnny who they didn’t know existed at that time but who now was their son-in-law and more like a son.
“Let’s have hot dogs and hamburgers this year; we’ll be a little more traditional.-Although, the grilled rabbit we had two years ago that we thought had been supplied by our ghosts was delicious.”
“Hamburgers and hot dogs sound fine, but there’s something I’m thinking about doing if you like the idea.-I’d like to set a big flag pole in the front yard.-The twins do seem to be getting into this patriotic thing and I think we should encourage it.-I don’t think there’s enough flag-waving, anthem-singing and ‘I- love-my-Country’ stuff going around.-What do you think?-We can put lights on it so we don’t need to worry about taking it down and putting it back up and all that.”
“I like that idea a whole lot.-Do we have time to do it before the Fourth?”
“If I can get Johnny to help me, I think we can manage it.”
“Okay.-Let’s do it.”
Johnny was glad to help and he decided he wanted to do the same thing in the yard in front of his new house.- Moving in was scheduled for July 5, so it would put the finishing touches on their landscaping.- Bruce came down and helped, too, and both flag poles were in place before dark on July 3.
The morning of the Fourth dawned clear and hot.-It was early summer heat, though, not the sultry heat that seems to wring the juice from your body and hang you out to suffocate.-Penny felt the heat, though, as only a woman in the eighth month of a summer pregnancy does.-One hand stayed almost continually on the small of her back as she waddled through the house trying to keep up with the work that never seems to end when you have six-year-old twins.-If this pregnancy had happened three years ago, she would have had an almost grown daughter to help with the work.-But right now, Chrissy was duplicating her mother’s back-supported waddling herself.-The doctor continued to predict they were due at the same time.-Penny still felt weird about that—a child and a grandchild the same age.-Unbelievable.-
“Mama, I can’t find my—oh, never mind.-Here it is.”-Andy rushed outside to play with the dogs.
Penny smiled and shook her head and went to answer the phone that was ringing shrilly causing her head to hurt even worse than it already did.
“Hello.-This is the Wroe residence; Penny speaking.”
“I’m sorry to bother you,” a voice that sounded slightly harried said, “but I’m trying to locate a long, lost niece.-Her maiden name was Penelope Marie Langley and we’ve completely lost touch over the years.-Is there any way you can help me?”
Penny was almost in a stupor anyway, with the heat so oppressive and her distended and uncomfortably swollen body.-She hardly knew what to say at all.-“My name was Penny Langley.-Who’s calling, please?-Did you say the person you’re looking for is your niece?”
“Yes.-My name is Wilhelmina Foster, Wilhelmina Marie Foster.-Back in the eighteen hundreds, the ancestors decided there had to be one girl named Marie in each generation.-I believe if you’re the Penelope Marie I’m looking for, you were probably named after me.”
“It does seem to me I remember that my grandmother, Laura Ann, had a sister we called ‘Aunt Winnie.’-Would that be who you are?”
“Yes, yes.-I’m your Aunt Winnie.-Oh I’m so glad I’ve finally found you.-I’ve had a group of detectives looking for you for several years now.-I guess you changed your name to Parsons after your parents died and that did make it difficult to trace you down.-But we did it.-Oh, I’m so glad.”
“Where are you, Aunt Winnie?-Are you near enough to come for a visit one of these days?-I’d love to see you.”-Penny had momentarily forgotten her aching back, her throbbing head and her swollen body.
“I live near Frankfort on a horse ranch, dear.-We raise thoroughbreds.-We’re still hoping one day to see one of our horses win the Kentucky Derby.-And I’d love to see you, too.-Tell me about yourself and your family, dear, please, if you have time,” she added the last hastily.-The last thing she wanted to do was to intrude.-She started the "catching up" by telling Penny about herself.
Wilhelmina Foster had left home when she was sixteen and after running around and coming close to getting in trouble two or three times, she had lied about her age and joined the WACS a couple of years after the end of World War II.-She was stationed in France for a time and there met and fell in love with a Frenchman named Jacques Gardinier.-Although he had French citizenship, his mother had been an American from Kentucky and he had American citizenship, as well.--He had joined the U.S. Army as his father had after marrying his American wife, Jacques' mother, Eve Miller.-Wilhelmina and Jacques were engaged to be married but there had been an auto accident and Wilhelmina told Penny how Jacques had been fatally injured in the fiery crash.-Jacques had written to his mother earlier about his and Wilhelmina’s impending nuptials and after his death, Jacques’ mother had written and invited her to come to live with her on the horse farm.-Wilhelmina had stayed in the Women’s Army Corps for another twenty years but had visited Mrs. Gardinier often during those years.-Upon her retirement from the military she had gone there to care for Eve Gardinier during her final years.-Since Jacques had been an only child, his mother had no one to pass the farm on to and when she had died three years ago, she had left everything to Wilhelmina.
Penny, in turn, filled Aunt Winnie in on her life, her family and her circumstances and by the end of their nearly hour-long conversation, they felt almost like old friends.-Penny explained that she was eight months pregnant and might not be the best of hostesses but did invite her to visit at her earliest opportunity.-
“If you’re sure you would be up to my visiting, I’ll call you again in a few days and we’ll set up a time.-Oh, Penny, I’m so glad I’ll be having a chance to really get to know you.-My memories of you are as a small child, but you were pretty and bright even then.-Well, I’ll be talking to you in a few days.-Bye-bye.”
Penny hung up the phone and dropped heavily into a chair, thinking:-Well, it is a small world and full of surprises.-My Great Aunt Winnie.-Who’d ‘a’ thunk it?-She hadn’t even remembered she had an Aunt Winnie until she called.-Now, though, she remembered that Wilhelmina had always been described as “queer.”-Of course back then “queer” hadn’t had a sexual connotation as it does now.-Back then it just meant a little out of the ordinary.-Actually, back then, anyone who went all over the world in the company of other women and a lot of men would have been thought of as not ordinary.
That evening, they were waiting for Johnny to begin setting off the fireworks back up at his Grandmother Lydia’s like he had two years ago.-They were waiting also for the mess of hamburgers and hot dogs they had consumed to digest.-During the pause in activities, Penny told her family about Aunt Winnie and that she would probably be coming for a visit.-Candy wanted to know what she looked like, but Penny truly had no idea.-Then the fireworks started and there was no more talk other than the usual ooohs and aaahs that normally go with fireworks displays.-Above it all, the grand old flags flew proudly and during the fireworks finale Andy and Candy stood, saluted the flag and recited the Pledge of Allegiance.-Ed and Penny were the proudest of parents and Penny almost cried.
Not quite two weeks later, on July 16, a truck bearing the logo of the Cloverleaf Horse Farm pulled into their driveway and a little lady jumped down from the cab and started toward the house.-She walked with an easy grace almost bouncing along with her green baseball-type hat on her head and green overalls that reminded Penny of the TV hero, Mr. Green Jeans of her yout
h except he had been tall and slim and this little lady was as opposite as you could get..-She looked to be just a little over five feet tall and was round all over.-She wasn’t actually fat—well, maybe she was a little, but her rosy cheeks and easy smile had everybody else smiling back.-She had been pulling a horse trailer and she pointed to it as she reached the porch.
“I’m Aunt Winnie and you must be Ed.-Hi, All.-Ed, do you want to help me unload these animals from the trailer.-They’ve been cooped up in there way too long as it is.-And, young man,” she was nodding toward Johnny, “they’ll be needing some water, too, if you would be so kind.”-Aunt Winnie ushered the two beautiful thoroughbred horses out of the trailer and dropped their reins over the fence near the buckets of water Johnny had filled for them.
“Ohhh, they’re so big!”-Candy’s voice sounded almost like someone who had just gotten into a swimming pool and sat down too quick in cold water.-Andy was a little braver, but not much.
“Yeah!” was his only comment of the moment.
“In a little while, they’re going to need a little exercise.-I thought maybe you’d like to help me with that.”-Aunt Winnie’s blue eyes sparkled and when she chuckled at the looks on their faces, her belly jiggled.-Candy said later that she looked like Mrs. Santa Claus only in green instead of red.-She didn’t look as though she could have been around more than fifty-five of her admitted seventy-six years.
“Oh, I wish it was so I could go horseback riding.-Johnny and I went riding while we were in Ireland on our honeymoon and after I got over being scared half to death, I enjoyed it immensely.”
Ed went in the house and got ice-cold lemonade for everyone and they sat and visited on the front porch fairly comfortably for quite a while.-Andy had gradually edged out toward where the horses were eating grass and occasionally getting a drink of water.-Finally, he reached out his hand and barely touched the horse’s nose.-He had seemed drawn toward the one with the blaze down his face and that was the one he tried making friends with.-
“His name is “Fritter,” Aunt Winnie told Andy.-Rub the side of his head below his eye.-He likes that but be careful and don’t touch his eye, itself.”
“Okay, Aunt Winnie.”
Candy was still a little hesitant but she finally went to stand near the other horse.-“What’s this one’s name, Aunt Winnie.?”
“Her name is ‘Jolene.’-And she loves to be petted, too.-They’re both just big pets.”
Taking her lead from Andy, Candy was soon stroking Jolene's nose, too.-"Ooh, her hair is so soft!"-It was obvious that Candy was torn between being entranced and terrified, but Penny was pretty sure 'entranced' was winning.
“You will stay the night, won’t you, Aunt Winnie?-We’d be so happy for you to.”-Ed seemed totally enchanted with Aunt Winnie as did everybody else.
“If you’re sure I won’t be in the way, I’d love to.-Johnny, since you’ve obviously ridden before, would you like to take each of the horses for a little exercise run before we put them up for tonight?”
“Oh, yeah!-I’d love to.-Oh, Chrissy, I wish you could ride, too, but I guess you probably shouldn’t.”
“That’s fine.-I’ll get another chance one of these years.-You go on and enjoy it.”-
“Ed, you could exercise one of them while Johnny does the other.-Then when they’ve gotten rid of their high spirits, maybe one of the twins could ride with each of you before they try it on their own.”-Penny was anxious for the twins to have a chance to at least walk the horses with them at the reins.-Who knew when they might have another chance?
“Is that alright, Aunt Winnie?”-Ed was looking forward to the experience both for himself and for the twins.-It had been at least twenty-five years since he had been on a horse’s back.
“Absolutely.-Any way you want to manage it.-They’re yours.”-Ed was hopeful that the twins hadn’t heard that last remark.-He realized that Wilhelmina had intended it to mean the horses could be handled any way they chose; not that she was giving them the horses.-But the kids would assume she had meant the latter and would be so ecstatic and everybody would be embarrassed.-She couldn’t possibly have intended that the horses were to be a gift.-These were obviously well-trained, well-bred, highly prized animals.
Ed and Johnny saddled the horses carefully.-Ed watched Johnny so that he would be positive he was doing it correctly.-Then they mounted and rode them rather sedately up the road toward Johnny’s house.-Andy and Candy watched with wide eyes and bated breath as the two men rode back at a slow gallop.-Andy could hardly wait until it was his turn.-Candy was still a little frightened.-She was, by far, the more reserved of the two but Penny knew if she got up the nerve to try it at all, she would probably be more adventuresome after she got into it.
When they reined in at the fence, Ed looked at Candy.-“Do you want to try it with me or by yourself?”
“I don’t know if I want to at all,” she said after giving it some thought.-“I want to, but she’s so big!-What if I fell off?”
“You can ride with me if you want to and I’ll hold you so you can’t fall.-How about that?”
Aunt Winnie was already helping Andy to sit in front of Johnny on Fritter and Candy didn’t want to be left behind.-“Okay.-I’ll try it.-Will you help me up, too, Aunt Winnie?-This one’s name is ‘Jolene’ right?”
“That’s right, Sugar.-Up you go.”-In a moment, both of the kids were astride the animals and Ed and Johnny started off at a slow walk.-It didn’t suit the horses very well.-They had already had a taste of a gallop and they had been cooped up long enough they wanted to run.-After all, they were racehorses not ponies for babies to walk around with.-But aside from nickering and tossing their heads, they continued to let the riders set the pace.-They rode quite slowly all the way up to the trailer behind the O’Reilly’s new house.-Then the women watched as the men exchanged some words with the young ones and saw the kids take the reins and begin to urge the horses back down the road.-Andy was being extremely careful and holding Fritter to a slow walk.-Candy, true to her mother’s prediction, was allowing Jolene to do a slow trot.-They continued to watch as Candy almost automatically adjusted her bouncing body to the rise and fall of the horse and was soon trotting faster and holding her seat almost like a seasoned rider.
“Wow!-You both did fine for first-time equestrians.”-Aunt Winnie sounded impressed and happy.
“Can we go again?” Andy asked excitedly.-“Please, can we?-I feel like Shadowhawk on his horse, Cougar.”
When Wilhelmina looked at Penny questioningly, Penny explained.-“That was a character in a book the kids heard at the library Story Hour.”-She didn’t add anything about the ghosts and finding the gold and all that.-She was afraid Aunt Winnie would think she was visiting a family of absolute nuts.-“Why don’t we go in now and start on some supper?-If everybody isn’t hungry now, they will be before we can get it ready.”
“I’m thinking, maybe the children need to make one more trip on the horses tonight and then Fritter and Jolene will need rubdowns and some more water and maybe some feed.-You do have room for them in the barn, don’t you Ed?”
“Of course, Aunt Winnie.-It has seven stalls and the only animal we have is a cow.-Let’s go kids; or do you want to ride by yourselves this time?”-Ed knew if he rode much more, he would be so sore tomorrow he wouldn’t be able to move.-But Candy and Andy seemed a little nervous at trying to handle them alone yet so they rode double again.-This time, though, they rode west toward the creek so that the horses could have a good drink of running water.-On the way back, both of them let Fritter and Jolene gallop a little and Andy and Candy handled the reins all by themselves.-Ed was proud of them and he figured they were about ready to solo.-
They let the kids help with the grooming of the horses and then led them into the barn and put out feed and water for them, put their saddles up and turned them into their stalls.
Supper was almost over before the door-slamming started upstairs.-The ghosts had been strangely quiet for a while, s
o it startled even the Wroes when it began.
“Is someone else here, Penny?-I didn’t know you had someone else living here.”
“There’s not another living soul here, Aunt Winnie; the operative word being ‘living.’- That’s just our resident ghosts acting up.-They’ve been doing that ever since we came here almost three years ago.-Don’t let them frighten you.-They seem harmless enough but they do get noisy sometimes.”
“Sometimes they cry, too,” Candy added.-
“Do you know why they’re here?-Have they ever talked to you?-How many are there?-Do you know if they’re male or female?-Oh, this is exciting!!”
“Aunt Winnie!-I thought you’d be laughing at us for believing in ghosts and thinking we truly were a bunch of nuts.-Do you really believe in the paranormal?”
“I believe there are radical events that can’t be explained in logical terms.-I have actually seen surreal images that I couldn’t begin to understand.-I would love to ‘meet’ your ghosts and see if I could somehow communicate with them.-Is there some place where you hear them or feel their presence more strongly than other places?”
“Yes, I’d say probably on the third floor.-We have felt a cold wind more often than anything else and more often in the front bedroom on the west side of the hall.”
“Is there any way I could sleep in that room tonight?-Just a pallet on the floor would be fine.-Would that be possible?”-Wilhelmina seemed thoroughly excited.
“Sure, Aunt Winnie.-There are a couple of twin beds in that room.-They have clean linens and blankets, if you’re sure you want to sleep there.”
“Oh, I’m positive!”-There were three slams right together.
“Chrissy says that means they approve.-The doors slammed just like that when she and Johnny announced their engagement.”
The children were anxious to get to bed so they could go riding again in the morning; but the adults talked far into the night.-It already seemed that they and Aunt Winnie had always been a part of each other’s lives.-