Free Something to Believe In by Kimberly Van Meter Page B

clearing for her.
He’d gladly do it if he knew Celly needed it. Lilah made a mental note to ask
him herself.
    She knocked on the weathered front door and waited. It was
several minutes before the door opened a crack and Celly peered out from behind
the door. Her eyes registered surprise until a frown quickly formed. “What are
yah doing here?” she queried.
    “Celly, I just found out about what happened at Larimar. Or,
actually, I don’t really know what happened but whatever it was, I hope we can
make it better because we need you.”
    “Bah, yah don’t need an old woman like me. Lora made that
perfectly clear,” Celly said.
    “Can I come in for a minute?” Lilah asked, perplexed by the way
Celly was acting. Celly hesitated but finally relented. “All yah Bells de same.
Stubborn and nosy,” she muttered, opening the door and walking away.
    Lilah followed Celly into the musty house, her nose tingling at
the mildly damp smell, and wondered how Celly lived in these conditions but she
kept any comment to herself for fear of offending the older woman.
    Lilah took a seat on an aged sofa while Celly settled herself
into an equally old and threadbare chair. “What happened?” Lilah asked, getting
right to the point. When Celly remained stubbornly silent, Lilah pressed gently.
“Listen, I know Lora can be as prickly as a sea urchin sometimes but she’s just
under a lot of pressure. I’m sure she didn’t mean whatever she said to offend
you.”
    Celly harrumphed and looked away. “Dat woman is worse than sea
urchin.”
    Lilah sighed. “Celly, I’m sorry that she’s difficult to get to
know but she’s trying to make everything work and sometimes she gets so focused
on the problems, she forgets about the people. But her intentions are good. You
know that, right?”
    Celly shrugged but Lilah sensed she was gaining some ground.
“Please come back. I’m sure Lora is sorry.”
    Celly pinned Lilah with a sharp look. “If she so sorry, why are
yah here saying it instead of her?”
    Lilah squirmed a little. Good point. “Deep down Lora is sorry,
but she’s stubborn...like you. Give her time. She’ll come around.”
    “No.”
    “Celly,” Lilah implored, unable to believe how obstinate the
older woman was being. “Come on...please?”
    At that Celly’s hard gaze softened a little and she said,
“Lilah girl, yah good soul. Yah spend yah time and energy caring for everyone
but yahself. It’s time for yah to worry about yah own pretty skin. Lora is a big
girl. If she so sorry...she can find me. Until then...I stay here.”
    Lilah couldn’t help but cast a dubious glance around the
dilapidated home and Celly stiffened. “Keep yah eyes in yah head. Nothing wrong
with my home. I’ve lived here since I was a chile and my parents lived here
before dat.”
    “Oh, gosh, I’m sorry, Celly,” Lilah said, immediately chastised
for being so transparently appalled at her living conditions. “I didn’t mean to
offend you. I’m sure it’s a great place, but it seems that it’s fallen...apart.”
She bit her lip. “I’m sorry. Why haven’t you asked Heath to come and help you
out with some of these repairs? You know he would.”
    Celly lifted her birdlike chin. “I don’t need charity. I work
for whatever goes into my pocket.”
    “Of course, Celly. It’s not charity when you help out family.”
She reached over and grasped Celly’s hand. “And you are family. Just as much as
Heath is, you know that, right?”
    Celly blinked away the sudden shine in her eyes and murmured,
“Yah a sweet chile, girl. But not everyone feels as yah do. That’s just the way
of tings as dey are.”
    Lilah stifled a sigh. Celly needed to hear the words from Lora,
not her. And likely, Lora would rather eat a Japanese pufferfish than apologize.
Lilah rose. “Celly, your job is waiting for you. I promise. Come back when
you’re ready.” She walked to the door, then turned. “Also, I’m sending Heath
over to do some repairs. And