LEGACY
Chapter Nine
The surf hit the beach with a
crash, sending chills down Cal’s spine. The day was clear, but the sky had a
tinge of bleakness, of lavender clouds hovering at the horizon.
"It’s breathtaking."
Tom smiled. "I knew you’d
like it, Mr. Hockley. There’s nothing like the Pacific." He took a deep
breath and embraced the salty, exotic scent of his childhood.
Cal and Tom were embraced by the
balmy wind, stirring the sand at their feet as they gazed into the ocean.
"Did you want to go for a
swim?" Tom asked.
"No. I don’t swim in the
ocean."
*****
The train was scheduled to leave
the station at precisely six o’clock. Cal was calmly packing his belongings
when Rose appeared in the doorway.
"Are you sure you don’t want
Jack to drive you to the station?"
"No. I’m fine. I scheduled a
driver to come pick me up in a few hours."
Rose sighed. "Would you mind
if I came in?"
"Go ahead."
She entered, perching herself at
the foot of the bed. "I want to formally thank you for taking care of Tom
when we couldn’t be there."
"I’ve already told you that
it was no problem. It was a joy for me to meet him."
"He enjoyed meeting you.
Maybe...maybe you could spend some time with him at some point. I think he’d
really like that."
"Yeah, sure. Maybe I will
see him again someday. I’d very much like that. He’s a wonderful young man. He
has a good life here."
"I’d like to think so."
"He has loving parents,
caring siblings. Good friends?"
"More than I can
count."
"Well, then, there you go.
Tom has a happy and promising life ahead of him, with or without me in
it."
Rose smiled and stood. "I’ll
leave you to your packing." Smoothly gliding to the door, she stopped and
turned. "Cal, I enjoyed seeing you again, too."
For the first time he could ever
remember, Caledon Hockley smiled a genuine smile back at her.