Chapter Six

    Classes were beginning to wrap up for the day, and traffic was beginning to pick up at the Campus Cup.  Lots of students and professors stopped in for an afternoon pick-me-up.  Even though the little brass bell was jingling away at a steady pace, it was not yet hectic.  The other girls were keeping things moving without her assistance, so April stood at the counter quietly watching.
    The comings and going of the coffee shop patrons were truly a study in modern anthropology.  Everything about this microcosm of campus culture could be observed from behind the counter.  Countless times April had watched as young campus bucks wooed the girl of their choice.  They'd come back as couples for a while, and then perform the full drama of the break up.  She had seen alliances form in order to complete a project and dissolve as soon as the work was done.  A few times April had the honor to witness those rare friendships that would take shape and hold strong and true well past graduation.
    She smiled to herself as she realized that over the years she'd observed enough to write a master's thesis.  If she did ever attempt to further her education, it would have to include a study on the technological mediation of communication.  The progression from pagers to cell phones was just the first step.  By the time she was managing the Cup, she was lobbying the owner to set up wireless internet access.  She took some pride in the fact that she had been able to become a wireless hot spot before the university could institute Wi-fi campus wide.  She was beginning to ponder how social networking sites like MySpace were changing things yet again, when Kylie interrupted her reverie.
    "It's for you," Kylie said as she handed April the cordless phone.
    "Campus Cup, this is April," she said to the handset.
    "Hey, April, it's Sandy.  Listen, I've got something you've got to see right away."
    April glanced up at the clock.  "I've got to wait until Jamie gets here.  That should be in about 15 minutes."
    "Well, okay, but get over here as fast as you can."
    "Sure thing, Sandy.  See you in a bit," April responded and then turned off the phone.
    Her mind raced with possibilities as she set about closing out her day.  All the cards and letters contained in that chest had turned out to be a real treasure trove.  Along with her grandparents' letters, there had been writings from several generations of her family.  There were letters about family members who had died during the influenza epidemic at the beginning of the last century.  Other letters detailed how some of the family moved west after the Civil War.
    The most touching of the recent discoveries were letters describing life in Civil War Charleston.  Martha Pruitt, one of April's great-grandmothers several times over, had just married John Pruitt a few weeks before the battle at Ft. Sumpter.  John was not a very political man, and was not particularly in favor of secession, but when the South Carolina Legislature called for volunteers to serve, he could not say no.  Martha spent two dreadful years in Charleston without John.  Months at a time would go by before she would receive a letter or any word of him or his regiment.  When the news finally came she was told John had lost a leg at Gettysburg.  Rather than wait for him to recover and return home, Martha spent a year with him in a hospital in Pennsylvania.  Once he recovered, they spent a year away in Europe before returning to their home in Charleston.
    It was stories like those that had increased April's fascination with her family history.  As letters were restored and preserved, April would research who these people were.  It quickly became clear that the chest had been handed down from mother to daughter several times.  Each time the successive generation would add those letters and memories that were most precious to them.
    Sandy was getting close to the bottom of the chest, and hopefully, close to the original owner of the chest.  But April could not have guessed where the latest discovery would lead.  She only knew that she'd better pick up her pace and get herself across campus.
    Within minutes she had crossed the threshold of the documents lab and was greeted by Sandy.
    "I swear you have to most interesting family history of any one I've ever met," Sandy quipped as she led April through the locker rooms of the lab.  "As soon as we've got you all suited up, I'll show you what I've found."
    April had never been in the lab itself before.  They maintained a constant humidity and temperature level, and strictly controlled dust, hair, and other debris that could damage delicate old paper.  Before she could visit Sandy's workstation, April had to put on a set of cover-ups, booties on her shoes, and a pair of archival gloves.  By the time she was properly out-fitted, her auburn pony tail was the only thing that distinguished her from Sandy.
    "You go through this rig-a-marole every day?"
    "A minimum of twice a day.  I don't eat lunch here in the lab," Sandy smiled.
    "Now that's dedication."
    "That's how much I love what I do.  And I love doing this because of the wonderful treasures like yours," Sandy beamed as they reached her station.  "There are several bound sets of letters from the same time period.  What's truly remarkable is that there seems to be both sides of most of the correspondence," she explained as she handed April a very old sheet of what looked like parchment.

        12 June 1714

        My Dearest Rachel,
       
        Your overwhelming kindness sand generosity are bearing fruit.  I
        write you today from Boston.  The journey by coach from Charles
        Towne has been long and tiring, but most worthy of the effort.  After
        a day of rest, I made inquiries and have found a ship bound for New
        Providence in the Bahamas.  It is a very busy port and I should be
        able to find some news of my dear Thomas.

        My heart still breaks at being separated from you.  But my heart also
        soars with happiness that you will soon marry your dearest John. 
        Pray, dear sister, that I will succeed in finding Thomas and join
        you in wedded bliss.

        Your Grateful Sister,
        Mary Anne

    "1714," April gasped.
    "I swear Dr. Clayborne is a clairvoyant.  It's just freaky that he would come up with the right time period and the right place.  I would be amazed if you failed to have some very high-born family members," Sandy mused.
    "Why would a lady be traveling away from her sister at such an important time in her life," April wondered aloud.
    "I'm not sure, yet.  I'm still trying to put things in chronological order.  But, I knew the dates would interest you.  I still have to pinch myself and remember I really am handling documents from early colonial America."
    "Can I stay and read a while?"
    "I was hoping you'd want to," Sandy smiled again.
    April began to sort through the documents laying out on the work table as Sandy began to carefully remove another sheet from the chest.  Most of what she saw were all in the same handwriting and all addressed to Rachel.  Near the bottom of the pile a neat little note caught her eye.  The handwriting was very neat, anyway.  It seemed to have been written on a scrap of paper salvaged for the purpose.  The tidings in the note brought tears to April's eyes.

        Dear Mrs. Bellemy

        I write you with tears in my eyes and my heart heavy as stone.  I
        write to tell you that your sister, Mary Anne, lost her fight against
        illness and passed on in her sleep.

        When she came to us she was very weak and tired.  My dear father
        was afraid our sultry weather would not suit her.  But she told us
        why she had left home and could not return.  It broke the heart of my
        dear father.  He asked her to stay and be a part of our family until
        Captain Lodge returned for her. 

        She tried so hard to be a part of our family.  She started working
        along with us as soon as she could.  But she never fully regained her
        health.  In time she grew very weak and got a fever.  We did
        everything we could for her.

        I weep, because she became a sister to me.  If not for Mary Anne,
        Mrs. Bellemy, I would not have the skill to write you this letter. 
        Even when she was forced to her bed, she still taught me to read and
        write.  It was her last gift to us all.

        I have included all that belonged to her inside her little chest.  May
        her words and hopes bring you peace.  I know that the Father in
        Heaven has finally given her peace.

        Respectfully
        Elena Salizar

    April laid the note back on the table and stepped back.  She did not want to risk the tears welling up in her eyes falling on the documents.
    Reacting to April's sniffling, Sandy looked up and asked, "What's the matter?"
    "She never found her dear Thomas."
    "What?"
    "She never found him.  She died before she could."
    "Let me see."
    Sandy skimmed the note and looked up at April, her eyes beginning to well up.  "So, did you see anything that would hint at who this 'Thomas' was?"
    "Not in anything you've processed so far."
    "It looks like a lot of this next batch are from Rachel to Mary Anne.  I guess Mary Anne had been keeping them and Elena Salizar sent them back with everything else."
    "So it would seem.  We need to find out who Thomas was."
    "Then I need to keep getting these out of this box," Sandy declared with new resolve.
    Much of what they recovered was very mundane.  There were accounts of Mary Anne's travels and Rachel's wedding.  One letter was just a short note thanking Rachel for a new journal.  As they continued to work, the girls conversation moved back to the here and now.
    "Is Mark coming with you to dinner tomorrow," April asked.
    "Yes, he is.  He finally decided last night.  I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner.  I got all excited about these latest letters . . ."
    "Oh no, it's fine.  I just now remembered to even ask you," April giggled.
    "How is your mom doing, by the way?"
    "She's fine.  She thinks she's found a buyer for Grandma's house."
    "Oh that's good news."
    "She wanted me to take a look at all the paperwork the realtor gave her.  I told here I had to be at work, so she decided to come here for a change."
    "Well, I think that all of us getting together for dinner was a great idea and I'm looking forward to it.  We will certainly have lots to talk about," Sandy smiled as she looked back down at the documents spread across the workstation.
    "I certainly want to know more about Grandma's family in Charleston."
    "Did you ask Patrick to join us," Sandy couldn't resist asking.
    "Yeah, he said he'd love to visit with my mom again.  Of all the people I know, he's the only one that honestly likes her."
    "Maybe its a sign," Sandy winked.
    "Oh, will you please stop that," April exclaimed.  "There is not, nor has there ever been anything more than friendship between Patrick and me.  And you need to keep your match-making nose out of my business."
    "Alright, alright," Sandy laughed, "but you two would be so perfect together."
    "Sandy," April growled.
    "Okay, okay, moving on.  We need to start wrapping this up anyway."