Free All Roads Lead Home (Bellingwood) by Diane Greenwood Muir Page A

decorated in
rich burgundy and green. The wooden bedroom set was a beautiful
deep mahogany whic h complemented the
other colors in the room.
    "Oh my, this will be wonderful," she
exclaimed.
    "Terrific. Why don't you drop your stuff and I'm
going to go back to the kitchen to make a few calls. Come find me whenever
you're ready."
    Polly recognized that Lydia was a little distracted. While
she was welcoming and gracious, all of her extra joy and sass seemed to have
washed away. Whatever she knew about those two bodies had upset her and Polly
didn't know how to help. She sat down on the bed and dropped her bag
beside her. She opened her bag and looked inside it, then realized she had no
idea what she might be looking for. She pushed it away and flopped down.
    "Wow," she
said out loud. "That's a nice bed!"
    Polly turned over on her right side and looked around
the room. There were two abstract floral prints hanging on either side of the
mirror over the dresser. Everything seemed to be unique, yet perfectly
coordinated. She wondered if Lydia had done this or had hired someone to
decorate her home. She got back up and walked into the bathroom. Bright yellow
and cream were perfectly accented by the sunshine streaming in the window over
the sink. Mirrors on either side brightened the space as the sun glinted off
them, throwing rays all over the room.
    Then, she peeked into the adjoining bedroom. This room
was done in deep blue and ivory. The wooden bedroom suite was done in walnut
and white maple. The room was a play of striking contrasts and took Polly's
breath away. She was going to have to either hire Lydia to help her decorate
the school or find out who she’d found to
do this work .
    Polly walked back into her bedroom. She figured she
had probably spent enough time up here for Lydia to make her calls and
walked out in the hall. As she started down the stairs, she heard Lydia saying,
"I understand. We'll see you when you get here. Just don't forget to come
home, okay?" There was a slight
pause. "I love you too and I'm sorry you have to do this alone. You know ..." another slight
pause. "Alright. Tell the girls if they need me, all they have to do is ask. Good-bye."
    The sound of a chair scraping across the kitchen floor
and cupboards opening and closing accompanied Polly as she traversed the rest
of the steps and made her way into the kitchen.
    "There you are, Polly," Lydia said, turning
around from the stovetop. "Would you like some tea? I have water brewing.
Or anything else we can find in the refrigerator."
    "Tea would be great. Can I help you?"
    "No, I think I have everything out."
    Polly looked at the kitchen table. Yes, Lydia had
everything out. There was a small plate of cookies, a basket with
several different types of tea, fancy napkins and china all sitting on the table . Polly couldn't help herself. While Lydia was pouring the water into a
teapot, she flipped a plate over. "Of course it is," she thought,
then said out loud , "My mom always served on Wedgwood."
    "Oh!" said Lydia. "Th o se have been in
the family for years. I think they were my mother's wedding present."
    "My mom's too!" Polly agreed. "I have
them somewhere. They've been in storage so long, it will be good
to see them again. They were only used when company came, though."
    "Well, you're company and family all at the same
time, here," said Lydia, and she set the teapot down on the table. "Here,
sit down and we'll talk. I'm sure you are," and she looked at Polly with a
little bit of a smirk in her lips, "dying to know what's going on."
    "I'm so sorry, Lydia. Sometimes my brain and my
tongue don't seem to agree about what should be out in the world," Polly
apologized. "You obviously know who those two people were and I should
have been more sensitive."
    "Oh, don't worry about it. It's alright. The day
brought me a little shock, that’s all." Lydia said. "Actually, I
suspect it brought you a shock as well, though, it was probably
different." Her voice