Footprints in the Sand

* * *

AT LONG MEADOWS, the children went to school in town, and soon Bryn’s life became a blur—meeting new people, learning new things, writing exams. Years slipped by, happy, fulfilled years. Bryn came to see that there was much more of his mother in him than he’d thought. Animals and painting became his passions, one as important as the other.

He’d explore the woods around Long Meadows, sometimes bringing back injured creatures. Mrs. Evans allowed him to keep the animals in a shed at the far end of the garden. There he would care for them religiously until they either recovered enough to be freed again in the sprawling forest, or died and were buried beneath his favorite tree. Mrs. Evans encouraged him to take out library books and find websites about how to feed and treat wild animals. The local vet, Mike Barber, was always ready to help. “We don’t charge for wild animals,” he would say when Bryn asked how much the treatment cost.

* * *

WHEN BRYN HAD BEEN AT Long Meadows for about a year, his solitary wanderings eventually led him through the woodland and the fields beyond to the coast, where the sea glistened in a silver strip.

He would sit there for hours, watching the seabirds and painting their glorious flight across the changeable sky—sometimes gray, wild and angry, and sometimes so calm and starkly beautiful that it hurt his heart.

When Bronwen Evans first saw his paintings, she stared at them for a while, then she recited some lines from a poem.

A sight so wide it fills the eyes, its vast

horizon meets a sky that stretches to infinity.

That holds my heart. That sets me free.

Timeless echoes in my ears; a haunting melody, ten thousand sea birds cry their tears to a wild and restless sea.

* * *

Bryn listened to the words in awe.

“That’s lovely,” he said. “Do you know any more?”

She pursed her lips, frowning slightly.

“I can’t remember all of it, but let me think...”

For a moment, she furrowed her brow, concentrating, then her face lit up and she looked at him in triumph.

But when it sparkles, shimmering sands,

its transient beauty a promised land, it sings another song to me, of peacefulness and harmony.

Her voice trailed off, and she sighed.

“That’s all I can remember, I’m afraid. It’s beautiful, isn’t it? I’ll see if I can find a copy of it for you.”

Bryn nodded earnestly. “Would you like to keep one of my paintings?” he asked on impulse.

She smiled, touching his cheek. “I would be proud to have one of your paintings. When you’re famous, I’ll be able to say I was the first person to own a Bryn Evans.”

* * *

WHERE DID THE TIME GO? Suddenly, Bryn was fifteen. Sometimes, he felt a surge of guilt that he was so contented. Three years had rolled by in a moment—years filled with joy, years when Elsa May Malone remained securely stored in the back of his mind, a promise he had yet to fulfill. At night, when memories lurked closest, he’d ache with fear for her. What if she’d slipped so far into her tormented world that she could never return to him? He shuddered, gulping in air. No! He would never believe that.

Bryn was down by the shore, sitting on a rock at the edge of the ocean, mesmerized by the sunlight sparkling on the water. His hands were idle, his sheet of paper blank and untouched. For once, he was unable to concentrate, so eventually he stood up with a sigh and wandered slowly homeward.

As he crossed the lawn beside the house, where other children played and gamboled, he saw a car pull up to the front door. He sidetracked toward the shed, where a baby rabbit was recovering from a foot injury. The last thing Bryn felt like doing was making conversation with a new kid. Anyway, it was Tom’s turn to give the tour—he’d done it last time, when that awful, bossy Wilbur Simms had descended on Long Meadows. Fortunately, he had only stayed two weeks.

Bryn kept to the edge of the lawn, screened by the trees that led directly into the woods, his footsteps slowing as curiosity took over. Would the new arrival be a boy or a girl? he wondered. He’d forgotten to ask Mrs. Evans.

The social worker, Dermot, clambered out of the car first. Bryn liked Dermot—he was funny and nice, and he took the time to talk to you.

The new kid got out of the car on the far side, so Bryn only saw the back of her head. There was something familiar about her, though.... Tightness came into his chest, and he stopped in his tracks. She flicked her mane of golden-brown hair and the breath fled from his body. He wanted to run to her, but his legs refused to move. She was walking away toward the open front door where Mrs. Evans stood beaming.

“Elsa?”

The word was a croak in his throat, but she heard it—if he’d been a million miles away, he was sure she would have heard it. Slowly, oh, so slowly, she turned her face toward him.... Tanned skin, clear amber eyes, delicate, perfect features...the same and yet not the same—older and so much more beautiful.

His Elsa was here at last. She was calm and serene now, with none of the lion cub showing. But then, with a sense of relief, he saw it—behind her green and gold-flecked eyes, the sleeping lion cub was waiting to get out.

“Hello,” she said with a smile, slipping her hand neatly into his, as if they hadn’t been torn apart all that time ago.

“Hello,” he replied.

CHAPTER EIGHT

I FELT AS IF I WAS IN A dream. Bryn was here, my Bryn, the only person in the whole wide world I truly cared for, and who truly cared for me. A feeling of safety washed over me as he closed his fingers around mine. I was home at last, and now I could make him proud.

A plump-cheeked, kind-eyed woman stood on the steps and called out to me. “I see that you already know someone here, Elsa. Perhaps he can show you around.” I glanced at Bryn, my cheeks burning.

“I’d be glad to,” he said with a smile.

Oh, how well I remembered that easygoing smile. What was he doing here? Why had no one told me? So many questions jostled inside my head but only one thing really mattered. Bryn really was here. At last, I had found him.

I didn’t notice, at first, how much he’d changed. I couldn’t see any further than the comfort of his friendly brown eyes. His essence filled my soul and made me whole. Did he feel like that, too? Or was it just sad and lonely me? Then I really looked at him, and for a moment I saw a stranger.

His shoulders were broader, his voice had deepened and he no longer rubbed his nose across his sleeve. I moved away from him, suddenly nervous around this confident, handsome young man. But then my eyes met his again, and I saw the same kind, open expression I remembered so well. I knew, with no shadow of a doubt, that however much he’d grown, he was still my Bryn.

That was when the warning bells began to ring inside my head. Stay back, keep your distance. Because everyone I loved went away. My father, Daffyd, Mrs. Mac...even Bryn. But he had come back to me, and I didn’t want to lose him again. I hadn’t needed those warning bells for three years because I hadn’t gotten close to anyone else. Now the ferocity of my feelings scared me. I felt the knot of anger press against my rib cage, like an alien being clawing at me. I pulled my hand away from him, and I saw the disappointment in his eyes.

“Come on,” he said, his voice determinedly bright. “I’ll show you my rabbit. He’s almost ready to be set free.”

I felt as if I had been set free. And now I had to prove myself.

I wanted to ask about the rabbit. I wanted to ask if Bryn had a yellow dog yet. I wanted to ask if he was happy, but I said nothing.

At Braymore, I’d been quiet. I’d kept to myself, speaking only when spoken to and getting on with my work, independent and self-assured. Suddenly, I was six years old again. What had they labeled me then? Disturbed and antisocial? I felt all of that now, and more.

“Come on,” Bryn repeated, holding out his hand. It was just like that first day at Appletree, when he asked if I wanted to have ice cream with him. I didn’t take his hand then, and I couldn’t take it now, so I followed him, just like before.

“You can sit beside me if you like.” He smiled, remembering.

From the outside, the shed looked as if it was about to fall down. The door swung on crooked hinges, and it creaked when Bryn opened it. I held back, suddenly unsure, but he urged me forward.