Make Quilts Not War

chapter 6



Harriet sighed for the third time, and Carla looked at her through the curtain of dark bangs that skimmed her eyebrows. Neither woman wanted to reopen the wound that if not yet healing was at least not bleeding as profusely, so they sat in Harriet’s yellow kitchen, hands wrapped around mugs of tea, steeling themselves for what was to come; whatever that turned out to be.

A soft knock sounded on the quilt studio’s exterior door, followed by the noise of the door opening.

“Honey, are you home?” called out Mavis.

“We’re in the kitchen,” Carla replied immediately.

Harriet smiled to herself. Carla knew her too well; she probably thought Harriet would try to pretend she wasn’t there, but Mavis would have seen Carla’s car and know they were inside.

Mavis came through the connecting door, followed by Connie and Aunt Beth. Connie busied herself dumping the hot water from the kettle and refilling it before setting it on the stove to heat. Aunt Beth set her purse on the counter and started digging in the cupboards for mugs and tea. Mavis went to Harriet, sat down in the chair beside her and enclosed the younger woman in her arms. Carla got up quietly and drifted over to the sink.

“Grandpa Rod has Wendy tucked in,” Connie told her in a quiet tone

“Why don’t you let her spend the night with us so you can go back to Aiden’s to see what you can find out about Michelle? We’ll take her out for pancakes and drop her back by around eleven, if that works for you.”

“She’ll be thrilled,” Carla replied in a hushed voice. “Thank you.”

“You know we’ll be as thrilled as she is to have her stay over.”

“Should I go by the hospital?” Carla wondered.

“No,” Beth interjected. “Maybe you could call Aiden on his cell phone. Ask if there’s anything you can do. There’s no need to draw attention to the fact you went racing out into the night to clean up his…whatever this is.” She gestured toward Harriet.

“Let us know if you find anything out,” Connie added.

Carla quietly slipped into the studio then left the house.

Tears slid down Harriet’s hot cheeks. Aunt Beth went to the half-bath and got a washcloth from the cabinet, wetting it with cold water before returning to the kitchen and handing it to her.

“Here,” she said. “Wipe your face and pull yourself together, and let’s see if we can make any sense out of this mess.”

Harriet took the cloth, but she couldn’t see how a person made any sense out of being set up and humiliated.

“Carla only told us she had to go rescue you because Aiden had been called away on a Michelle emergency,” Connie said, giving her a starting point to grab on to.

Harriet was pretty sure Carla had told them exactly what she’d told her, but she appreciated her friend’s efforts to help her regain control of the situation.

“Apparently, Michelle drove to Aiden’s, parked at the end of the driveway, took a bottle of pills and then, before she passed out, called Aiden and told him what she’d done.”

“I guess that explains why he didn’t make it to dinner,” Mavis said, and before Harriet could protest, added, “But it doesn’t explain why he couldn’t call you after he called nine-one-one.”

“Or after the ambulance came,” Connie said.

“Or even from the hospital,” Aunt Beth finished.

Harriet sagged back into her chair.

“So, you all can see it. Why can’t he?”

“That girl is a master manipulator,” Mavis said. “This is a little extreme even for her, though.”

“If it was just one incident, I could get past it. Yes, he left me in a restaurant full of people who all saw me arrive in a chauffeur-driven limo and then be dumped or stood up or whatever it was that happened, but it isn’t the first time we’ve had to cancel our plans so he could run to his sister’s side. And usually, it’s yet another scheme for her to get money from him. He says he can see it, and that I’d understand if I had a sister, but it doesn’t change his behavior.”

“He needs to see a counselor,” Connie said. “That’s not a natural brother-sister relationship. She’s using him, and he’s letting her.”

“He and I have had that discussion, too. He doesn’t think their relationship is unusual, so he rejects the idea of talking to anyone. I suggested we talk to Pastor Hafer, but he won’t even do that.”

“Him leaving you without a call or anything is not acceptable,” Aunt Beth said. “I don’t care who or what that snake Michelle is to him. Or what new game she’s up to.”

Mavis got up from the table.

“This calls for something stronger than tea,” she announced. “Anyone want a cup of coffee?” She took the carafe from the coffee machine and started filling it with water.

“Sure,” Connie said. “We’re not going to sleep anytime soon, so why not?”

Aunt Beth and Harriet agreed. Connie collected the empty tea cups and took them to the sink to rinse.



The phone rang, and Harriet jumped, spilling hot coffee on her hand.

“Here, honey,” Mavis said, handing over her napkin and getting up to fetch another from the holder on the kitchen bar.

“Let the machine pick it up,” Beth ordered and went to stand by the phone. When she heard Carla’s voice, she picked up the receiver. “What’s happening?…Uh-huh…” She said several more times as Carla related her update. “Well, keep us posted, and we’ll see you tomorrow at the show.”

“What?” Harriet asked, seeing the look on her face. “Whatever it is can’t be any worse than being stood up in such a flamboyant way.”

“Anyone need a refill?” Mavis asked, allowing Beth time to get seated. Beth waited while she picked up the coffee pot and topped everyone’s drink then sat down again.

“Apparently,” she began, “this was all a ploy to get Aiden to let Michelle and her kids move in.”

“That’s what Carla said?” Harriet asked.

“Well, not in so many words, but that’s the obvious conclusion. She had her kids in the car, and it turns out she’d only taken six sleeping pills—two is the normal dose. In other words, she took just enough to be real sleepy.”

“So, she was never in any danger,” Harriet stated.

“No, she wasn’t,” her aunt confirmed. “She wanted Aiden to think she was. Carla said the kids told her their dad kicked their mom out. A nurse Aiden knows was just getting off work and offered to bring the kids back to his house. She left when Carla got back home, and the kids immediately called their dad in Seattle and asked him to come get them.”

“Diós mio,” Connie exclaimed. “What a mess.”

“It’s embarrassing, but I’ll live,” Harriet said. “You ladies have been very kind, helping me lick my wounds, but it’s really not necessary for you to stay any longer. An emergency happened, and as a result, I was stood up. Yes, it hurts that Aiden couldn’t spare two minutes to call and let me know, but I’ll live to date another day.”

“Well, aren’t we just being a grownup about all this,” Aunt Beth said in a teasing tone.

“I’m just tired,” Harriet said. “I don’t do drama well.”

“Are you going to talk to him tomorrow?” Connie asked.

“I think the real question is am I going to talk to him ever,” Harriet replied.

“That’s my girl,” Mavis said. “I was getting worried there for a minute.”

“I’m angry and hurt, and more than a little embarrassed, but I’m not going to let him keep hurting me by dwelling on it. We have a quilt show to set up tomorrow, and I’m going to concentrate on that.”

“That sounds like a plan. We’ve got a busy week coming up,” Mavis said. “Shall we meet here around one and drive over to the exhibit hall together?”

“Sure,” Harriet said. “Parking close to the building is probably going to be tight. If we take my car, we can all fit.”

“I’ll call Lauren and see if she wants to come with us,” Connie volunteered. “Robin and DeAnn are going together, and I think I heard them making arrangements with Jenny, too. I can talk to Carla tomorrow when she picks up Wendy.”

“Are you sure you’ll be okay if we leave?” Aunt Beth asked. “I can stay, if you want.”

“I’m fine, really. I appreciate the support, but I’m okay. I think I’ll read my book and then go to bed and try to pretend this day never happened.”

“I’m really sorry your big date ended the way it did,” Aunt Beth said.

“You know, it would be a little easier if you didn’t phrase it that way,” Harriet said with a tired sigh. She got up and began carrying empty cups to the sink.

Connie got her purse and coat then went to Harriet and pulled her into a warm hug.

“Just remember, we all love you,” she said.

Mavis joined them, patting Harriet on the back.

“If there’s anything I can do, I’m just a phone call away,” she said.

“That goes for me, too,” Aunt Beth added. “I know you’re tough, but even the strong need support sometimes.”