Marley's Quest

She stepped out of her red 1968 Mustang convertible feeling edgy. The excitement Marley Jamison felt when she left Chicago for a long visit to her New England home town had nearly turned to dread.  In the years since her brother’s drowning, what little family connections were left, had completely unraveled.  The rift that emerged between her parents had never mended, sending them off in separate directions, and they found it easy to ignore the fact that they had a daughter who still needed them.  Words didn’t come easy, and the communication eventually stopped altogether.

Now at 32, with two failed relationships behind her, Marley knew it was time to revisit her childhood home and try to mend the hole that had settled in her heart.  Intuitively, she knew it was important to find closure to the past in order to gain the freedom to explore the future.  She had taken a month’s leave of absence from the Tribune, and felt safe knowing she could come back if things didn’t work out. But God was she scared!  It was like starting over in a place that was only remotely familiar.

She filled the tank with gas, and ran inside the mini mart to grab a bottled water.  It was only a ten minute drive from here to her mother’s house in Attleboro.  The city of Providence looked to have gone through a lot of development—she would definitely make a point of taking a closer look when time allowed.  Cities always excited her, but Providence always struck her as being boring and dirty.  What she could see of it now made her smile.  Revitalized…it seemed to breathe life.  As she drove toward the state line, Marley made a mental note to do a little research on the changes that had taken place there in recent years.

The wind, warm and inviting, whipped through her dark shoulder-length hair as she maneuvered onto the highway heading toward Massachusetts.  She swore softly as she navigated the heavy traffic and road construction.  What should have taken less than ten minutes took nearly twenty.  Finally, she crossed the state line; the exit for Attleboro just minutes away.  Her anxiety seemed to be getting the best of her so she concentrated on taking slow, deep breaths.  Finally able to process her surroundings, she found herself surprised that everything looked the same. Trees still lined the walkways, just bigger than she remembered.  Everything was more mature…a bit more crowded, but generally the same. 

Her hands started shaking as she made the left turn onto Roland Drive.  Wishing now that she had called and told her mother she was coming, Marley felt a shiver of fear she didn’t know how to define.  She pulled into the driveway and threw the car into park.  She had few ties to this house; it was very different from the house she and Jack grew up in on the water in Warwick.  Her mother had lived here since her divorce eight years prior.  The house had not changed.  A two-story boxed colonial with beige siding and hunter green trim, the yard was loaded with azaleas in bloom and the rhododendron blossoms were soon to follow.  She ignored the weeds she saw growing in the flower beds.

Combing her fingers through her hair, she took another sip of water.  It didn’t help.  Stoically, Marley grabbed her purse, got out of the car and marched up to the front door.  She clasped her hands together to stop the shaking…then bravely rang the doorbell.