Deliver Us from Evil, Ch. 9 "My Cup Runneth Over"

Kitty sighed as she watched little Lillie Mae flit around the backyard like a butterfly, bare footed once more, dirt smeared on her freckled face, dress grass-stained.  She sank down on a bench next to Virgil who smiled shyly at her.  He murmured softly, “She thinks you’re somethin’ special, Kitty.”

“Did you at least get to see her when she was still clean, Virgil?” she asked in feigned exasperation.  Looking over at him sternly, she couldn’t suppress her grin for long.  “I think she’s awful special, too.”  Kitty looked at the high-spirited little red-head longingly and repeated, “Awful special, Virgil.”

He smiled knowingly at Kitty, then chuckled.  “Sorry ‘bout her getting’ all dirty again.  She does love to have a rollickin’ good time in the great outdoors.”  Virgil straightened his hat and added, “She’d never seen too many trees or even grass until she boarded that orphan train.  It’s a whole new world out here for her.  She can’t get enough of it. ”   He pointed and laughed in delight as she did a somersault, dress flying in the air like the petals of a flower.  “Me and Isom have to drag her kickin’ and screamin’ into the house at night.”

Kitty watched the child dancing round and round with her kitten cradled in her arms and said with conviction, “It’s a good thing you’ve done for her.  You saved her.  Who knows what would have happened to her in the city.  Probably the same thing that happened to her sister...”  Kitty’s voice died out and her eyes stung with unshed tears at the thought of that poor lost girl still on the streets with no way of making a living except by selling her young body. 

Virgil placed a warm hand on her arm.  “I’ve told them to keep looking.  For Geneva, I mean.  She’s only fourteen.  I told the Children’s Aid Society to contact me if they find her because I’ll adopt her, too.  Lillie misses her sister.”

Kitty deftly wiped a tiny tear from the corner of her eye and cleared her throat.  “I know.  She told me.  I think she misses her somethin’ awful.  I understand that.”

“She’s lonely, Kitty.”

“She’s got you.  And Isom.”

“She’s needs a woman’s touch…”

“Oh…Virgil, I…”

Lillie Mae dashed up and plopped down in the small space between her father and Kitty.  She sang out, “I love my family, my family, my family,” squeezing Kitty and Virgil’s arms tightly in her grasp the whole time.

They both laughed at her sheer joyfulness and exuberance.  Lillie jumped up, draped Petunia over her shoulder and grabbed Virgil’s hand. 

“Daddy, will you ask her?  Will you?”

Kitty felt suddenly wary.

Virgil shook his head, “No, now, Lillie Mae, we’ve discussed this…”

“I know we ‘scussed this, but you ain’t asked her yet.  Ask her to stay, perty please with sugar on top?  I want her to stay.”

Virgil’s face flushed and he looked ruefully at the beautiful woman sitting gracefully beside him on the bench, “I think Miss Kitty here knows you want her to stay.”

“You ask her, too.  I’m just a li’l girl.  A grownup has to ask ‘er.” 

“Miss Kitty knows she’s always welcome to stay for as long as she wants.”

Lillie Mae transferred her attentions to Kitty, grasping her hand while her kitten tangled in her hair, purring in her ear.  “See, Miss Kitty, Daddy wants you to stay, too, I tole ya’!  Lillie Mae stretched her neck and planted a damp kiss on Kitty’s cheek, then skipped away around a large oak tree singing, “Staying, staying, Miss Kitty is staying…!”

Kitty looked helplessly at her friend.  “Virgil…!”

“Yes?” he smiled innocently.

“You’re not helping!  She thinks I’m staying forever now!”

Virgil took a fortifying breath and looked earnestly into her eyes.  “You know you can stay for as long as you want.  You could stay forever if you wanted.”

Kitty released a tiny gasp. 

“I know…”  Virgil ducked his head self-consciously.  “I know you love Matt Dillon.  I like Matt, too, and respect him even more, but…”

Her voice came out in a whisper, “But what?”

“But you’re a fine woman, Kitty.  I think you’d make a fine wife.”

Her eyes widened.

“I think you want children.”

“But…”

“Is Matt Dillon willing to give that to you?”

“I…I…just don’t know…  I mean, it’s not for me to say...”

“Exactly.”  Virgil took her hand and lowered his eyes nervously.  “If…if you ever get tired of waiting for Matt Dillon to give you those things...  I’d be willing to give them to you.”

“Oh, Virgil, I…”

Virgil raised her hand to his face and brushed his lips gently over her skin.  “I’d be willing to give you anything, Kitty.”

Lillie Mae squealed as she ran up and grabbed their hands, soundly kissing both of them.  “Come play with me, Miss Kitty, come play with me.”  She pulled Kitty up off the bench and let the child lead her by the hand toward he the tree, looking over her shoulder wordlessly at Virgil in wonder at what he’d just proposed to her.  

“Watch me climb.  I can climb high,” the small imp declared.  Then she put her hands on her hips and wrinkled her freckled nose.  “But I need a little boost gettin’ started up though.”

Kitty burst out laughing and picked Lillie Mae up to place her on the lowest limb.  A sudden pain struck her chest.  She felt overwhelmingly dizzy and crumpled to her knees.  The last thing she remembered was Lillie Mae screaming and Virgil’s voice hollering for Isom to ride to town and wire Doc Adams quick.  Virgil was holding her when everything went black.

tbc

ljljljljlj