Tenderly Beats the Lonely Heart Read online

  Thomas turned off the parade route and headed out to the Peyton house. Emily and Walter insisted that he and Louise stay with them while they were in town. Emily spent several days converting her sewing room back to Thomas’s childhood bedroom; complete with model airplanes retrieved from their dusty attic storage.

  “That was a lot of fun,” Louise said as they drove. “I’ve never been in a parade before. It was really exciting, all those people cheering for us.”

  “Well they couldn’t help cheering for the best car with the most beautiful woman sitting in the passenger seat.”

  “Oh, you,” she said as she gave him a friendly poke in the ribs. “I bet you say that about every female passenger you have in this car.”

  “Au contraire, mon Cheri. First of all, there have been very few women allowed to grace the passenger seat of this car. Cassy can be very jealous. Second, none of those few could hold a candle to you when it comes to beauty.”

  “You’re trying to tell me that you’ve been only dating homely women.”

  “I didn’t say that. As it turns out I once dated a runner-up in the Miss Indiana Pageant. Most of the women that have ridden shotgun with me have been attractive. I’m just saying that, of them all, you are the most beautiful.”

  “Oh, that’s so sweet.”

  “I just tell it the way I see it.”

  “Well, you can tell me romantic stuff like that anytime you want.”

  “No sweat. I intend to do just that.”

  “Not meaning to change the subject, but what’s next on the agenda?”

  “I’ve been meaning to discuss that with you. My buddy Carl asked me to officiate at the softball game. First, he asked me to pitch, but I’m too rusty for that and I know that I would wear myself out pitching even a few innings. Pitching a softball isn’t as easy as it looks, you know. It takes a lot of ball control and timing and that’s very exerting. So, I agreed to be the third base coach for the A team, instead.”

  “That’s great. Then I’ll be the head cheerleader for the A team. How would that be?”

  “Super. Between the two of us, the B team doesn’t stand a chance. Then, after the game, we can walk around and see what else is going on.”

  “That sounds great.”

  “I didn’t play in the game because I don’t want to be too tired to show off my moves out on the dance floor.”

  “You’ve got moves?” she asked, trying to hold back a laugh. “I’ve never thought of you as having moves.”

  “What’s so funny? I can be quite the hoofer out on the dance floor.”

  “Don’t get me wrong, Thomas, but from what little I’ve seen of your dancing so far, hoofer doesn’t quite fit the mold.”

  “That’s because I’ve been holding back. I don’t like to brag, but when I attended that High School over there,” he said, pointing at Owensburg

  High, “My partner and I won second prize at a

  Dance-a-thon during my senior year.”

  “Well, I can imagine that you and he must have been very excited.”

  “Very funny.”

  “Well, okay. I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt and I’ll be looking forward with breathless anticipation to seeing your moves.”

  “You do just that. Well, that’s the plan for today. There is just one thing; we have to be back by 6 o’clock. My folks are planning a light dinner for us.”

  “That’s so nice of them. They’re such nice people. In the short time that I’ve been here, they’ve made me feel like one of the family.”

  “Yes, they really are special people. I’m a lucky man to have been raised by them. I couldn’t have picked better parents.”

  “Have you ever wondered about your biological parents?”

  “Well, sure. That’s only natural. I just know that my father died in the war before he and my mother got married. She gave me his last name, but being unable to raise me as a single mom, she thought it best to give me up so I could be raised in a good home. That’s all I know about my birth mother.”

  “Well it looks like the Family Services people did a good job in finding the Peytons.”

  “Yes, they sure did. Emily and Walter can’t have children of their own and looked to Foster Care as an alternative. I was just a few months old when they took me in. Emily is a Licensed Practical Nurse which made their transition to parenthood much easier.”

  “I have great admiration for people that open their homes to children in need, especially those who adopt. You lived with the Peytons from infancy. If you don’t mind me asking, how come

  they never tried to adopt you?”

  “Actually, they did try. When I was about eight years old, they sat me down and told me that they wanted to adopt me. We went over the pros and cons and when it came to me making the final decision, I decided that I didn’t want to be adopted. It had nothing to do with the way I was being treated. Hell, I couldn’t have had it better than I had living with Emily and Walter. What seemed to bother me most at that young age was that I would be giving up my true identity; who I really was and as I saw it then, any chance of ever knowing about my birth mother.”

  Thomas got thoughtful for a few moments.

  “Emily and Walter were devastated by my decision. I could see the tears welling up in their eyes as I told them how I felt, but, you know something strange, they never changed the way they acted towards me. In fact, if anything, they were more loving after that; if that was even possible.”

  “Wow, that’s quite a story. Have you ever heard of anyone looking for you?”

  “No, I haven’t.”

  “How about searching on your own?’

  “I’ve thought about it a few times, but I wouldn’t know where to start. I guess the truth of the matter is that I’m a little scared.”

  “There are a lot of web-sites that you can use. I did a few preliminary searches a couple of years ago; nothing serious. It wasn’t too hard to do.

  They’ve got this locating people thing down to a science now and many States have begun loosening their rules regarding searching through records. A lot of laws have changed making it easier for someone to find parents and relatives so it’s not rocket science any longer.”

  “Well, if you ever decide to do a serious search, I could help you with it. Would you work on it with me?”

  “I’d love to.”

  “Well, we’re here,” he announced as he turned into the driveway of the Peyton’s house.

  “Why don’t you get out here so I can park the car over there close to the hedges? That way I won’t be blocking their driveway.”

  “Okay, I’ll see you inside,” she said, as she got out of the car and headed for the side door of the house.

  CHAPTER 9

  Miriam returned to her room at the Owensburg Inn. It wasn’t that, having been brought up in the town, she was without kinfolk to stay with, in fact she still had a cousin and an elderly aunt residing in and around Owensburg, but the nature of her trip made it ill-advised to stay with them. As it was, she hadn’t seen either of them for over twenty years and she didn’t expect to have any free time to socialize with family, especially when the conversation stood a good chance of turning to the events of twenty-three years ago.

  Her room was tastefully decorated. It was a room with double twin beds; not one she would have chosen, being used to a king–sized bed for the past eleven years, but unfortunately, because of the demand for rooms, she had not been given a choice. As it was, she was fortunate to have reserved the room considering the number of guests visiting the town for the Anniversary celebration; a point that was driven home by both the check-in clerk and the bellboy. This place is as stuffy as I remember it. I better be on my best behavior or they may toss me out.

  The shower had an abundance of hot water and she indulged herself with five minutes on the pulsating massage setting. She dried off and donned the long white robe that came with the room. Planning to r
elax for only a few minutes, she settled on the bed with three pillows propped up behind her head. She poured a glass from the complimentary bottle of Chardonnay, took a big sip and settled back on the pillows. A warm peaceful feeling settled in and after a few minutes she was sound asleep. Two hours later, awakening with a start, she looked at her watch. It was one o’clock and she wasn’t dressed for her afternoon at the park.

  As she attended to getting ready, she glanced at the mirror several times; each time giving herself a nod of approval.

  Miriam was forty-three years old. She kept her weight at one hundred and twenty-five pounds, which for her five feet-eight-inch height, gave her attractive proportions. She worked out twice a week at the “Club” to keep toned up.

  She was a pretty woman with smooth features accented by light blue eyes with brown specks. It was her eyes that her husband Nathan liked most about her, but she kept the rest in shape because she had to look at herself in the mirror every day and she wanted to be sure that she could always maintain a high level of self-approval. She could still turn heads when she took a mind to. She put on a pair of denim shorts, a red three-quarter sleeve, V neck top and a pair of name brand canvas running shoes.

  Miriam was one of those women that looked good without a lot of makeup, so she only needed to pencil a few strokes on her eyebrows and she was done. With one last approving glance, she headed off to the park.

  CHAPTER 10

  Tiecher Park was busy with fun and games everywhere one looked. The multiple committees had done themselves proud with well organized activities that made it impossible to walk more than fifty feet without coming across a booth, a contest, an exhibit or other festive activity.

  When Miriam entered the park, the pie eating contest had just begun. A long table held an assortment of homemade pies, baked by the town’s Ladies Auxiliary; fourteen in all, five different flavors. To the left of the table, twelve men and two women were lined up to participate in the contest. She walked on past several booths where jewelry, pottery and oil paintings were on sale.

  She regularly attended fairs and festivals when she was back home, but today she would not be distracted by any of the exhibits. Her destination was at the far end of the park where the Mitchell softball field was located. The field was named after Archibald Mitchell, manager of the multi-trophy winning Owensburg High soccer team during the seventies and eighties, who succumbed to a lengthy bout with cancer several years ago. Behind her she could hear the oohs and aahs from the crowd watching the pie eating contest as fourteen people plunges their faces into their pies. Never could get into that form of competition, but whatever floats your boat.

  Ahead, she could hear the noise of the crowd attending the ballgame, about hundreds of feet down the trail. As she walked past the last stand of trees, her heart skipped a beat. She could see bleachers, half-full with supporters, players on the field, a pitcher on the mound and a batter knocking mud from his cleats. Off to the side a small group of women were shouting encouragement to the batter. She made her way quickly to a seat in the bleachers where she would have an unobstructed view of the game. In her hand she held her I-Phone, camera ready, in case she spotted her son.

  One by one, she eyed each player on the field; the task made difficult by the ball caps that each wore. The scoreboard showed that the B team was at bat. They were behind by two runs but had a runner at second with no one out. She hoped that they would stay on base long enough for her to methodically check each one out. The B team had a runner on, the batter and one man in the on-deck circle, which she quickly eliminated along with the first and third base coaches. The B team’s dugout was on the opposite side of the field, too far for her to make a positive match with the picture she held tightly in her hand.

  This is going to be a lot harder than I thought it would be. I wish I had thought to bring binoculars.

  Team A was on the field except for six players in their dugout; each with their backs to her. One of the players on the field was a possible match, but she would have to wait until he came in from the left-field before making a positive identification. Miriam figured that she had enough time since they were only in the second inning of a scheduled six inning game.

  Twelve minutes later, the game was tied up and the B team had three outs. The one possibility came off the field, removed his cap and she was able to eliminate him.

  As the B team left their dugout and took up positions on the field, she eliminated them one-byone. The A team players came up to bat she eyed each one. Two of the six that had been in the dugout were now in the game; one as the first base coach and the other was coaching at third base. The first base coach was short and plump, so Miriam turned to the young man waving his arms and shouting encouragement to the batter. That could be him, but it’s so hard to tell with that ball cap shadowing most of his face.

  The B team pitcher was having control problems and walked the first two batters. With the go-ahead runner on second, Thomas crouched down and prepared for action at third base. He removed his cap to signal the batter and as he did, he turned and flashed a broad smile to Louise who was jumping up and down on the sidelines with the rest of the cheerleaders.

  Miriam let out a gasp. Oh, my god, it’s him. I’m sure of it. She raised the camera and snapped several pictures before Thomas returned his cap to his head and pulled down on the visor. Her fingers immediately went to the review feature. She enlarged the best of the pictures and held the image next to the picture of Thomas. It’s him. I’m sure.

  It’s my Thomas.

  Miriam moved over to the bleachers behind third base. She found a seat on the end of the third row that gave her an unobstructed view of Thomas. The woman seated two seats away turned to greet the newcomer. “Hi, I’m Shirley.”

  “Miriam.”

  “Pleased to meet you, Miriam. You A team or B team?”

  “Definitely A.”

  “Well then, you’re welcome to join our crowd.”

  “The third base coach looks familiar. Do you know him?”

  “Of course, everybody in town knows Tom Mortinson. He pitched for the Spartans a few years back. He was a real superstar. I sure wish he was pitching today. Why do you ask?”

  “I was just wondering. He seems so enthusiastic.” Her heart was beating overtime. It’s him; it’s my son. Miriam wanted so much to tell Shirley that Thomas was her son; wanted to shout it out to the world, but of course that wouldn’t be wise at this juncture.

  “I think part of that enthusiasm is him showing off for the girl he came to the park with. I see him sneaking looks at her every once and a while.”

  “Which one is she?’

  “Right down below there,” she said, pointing towards a cheerleader with the blue top and white shorts.

  “She’s very pretty. Is she his steady?”

  “I have no idea. I saw her for the first time today. I’m almost certain that she’s not from around here. I’ve lived in Owensburg for ten years and I think I’ve seen just about everybody in town by now. I know that Tom moved away after he graduated OH and went off to college somewhere. I have no idea where he’s living now. He’s the son of our Chief of Police, Walter Peyton; well, actually he was raised by Walter as a foster child. They did a real good job too, as far as I can see.”

  Foster child? I wonder why they didn’t adopt him. It seems odd that you would raise a child all those years and not make him one of your family. Well I guess, in a sense, that’s fortuitous. If they had changed his name, maybe Mike Tolliver wouldn’t have located him.

  “So, I guess they’re both here for the celebration.”

  “Looks that way. How about you?”

  “That’s why I’m here too. I’m an alumnus of OH. I left Owensburg over twenty years ago. It’s my first time back. I just came for the festivities and to see how the town was prospering. It isn’t every day that your home town celebrates its 200th

  Anniversary.”

  “Well wha
t do you think of the place after all these years?”

  “From what I’ve seen so far, things are a lot better. They’ve always had responsible town government. I’m looking forward to the rest of the day and the big dance tonight. I understand that they have a really spectacular show planned.”

  “That’s what I hear, but unfortunately I have two elderly aunts visiting for the weekend and they don’t want anything to do with pyrotechnics.” Shirley sighed as she added, “I’ll just have to read about it in the papers tomorrow.”

  “What a shame.”

  “Well the night won’t be a total loss. They go to bed early, so I’ll be able to see the fireworks from my backyard and hear a little of the music.

  That’s better than nothing.”

  The inning was over before Miriam could turn her attention back to Thomas. He was now sitting in the dugout again, with his back to her. The game moved along until, at the end of the fourth inning, it halted as everyone took time out to take the traditional stretch. The score was 5-3 in favor of the A team.

  Thomas headed for the cheerleading squad and embraced Louise.

  Miriam watched as they hugged, snapping pictures in such a way that Shirley wouldn’t realize that Thomas was the true focus of her interest. She could tell by the expressions on their faces that this was a special relationship. A slight feeling of jealousy crept in and it took her totally by surprise. What’s on earth is the matter with me. I want Thomas to have someone to love and share his life with. She seems like a lovely girl and they seem to be really be into each other. Maybe I can even be a part of their lives. Listen to me, I sound like a typical mother. Miriam smiled and popped out of her reverie after a few minutes.

  The game resumed and by the end of the sixth inning the A team had held onto the two run lead and that was the way the game ended. Both teams headed for the sidelines where a tub of ice cold bottles of beer had been patiently waiting for over an hour and a half. The cheer leaders and game organizers joined them as they collectively toasted the town of Owensburg’s 200th Anniversary.