When they returned to Grënfelder, they were greeted with two important items of information. First, Mart had died. Mary Beth had seen to the arrangements and Mart was given a respectable burial. Much of the Grënfelder Circle had attended.
Marty did not cry. He had tired not to think about his father as he was the last time he saw the man. It made him too sad. Sometimes when he was trying to go to sleep, however, the pallid, trembling, incoherent Mart forced its way into the boy's mind. Marty would them be extremely sad and cry himself to sleep.
Marty felt both relief and the satisfaction of knowing that his father was no longer suffering.
The second item of information could very easily put Henry back in a depression. Homer Dearing had found Mart's sister in Nashville. Henry just knew that he was about to loose his Little Bird.
Henry had to give himself a day before he called her. He had to prepare himself for what he was sure would be devastating news. No one - no one in the entire world could resist his Little Bird. As soon as this Marjorie Tolliver saw Marty she would love him and - she would take him.
Henry desperately wanted to go into meltdown. He wanted to revert to the desperation, despair and depression of his former self. He actually wanted to. He wondered at that but it made so much sense. How could one live in other than despair after losing someone as wonderful as his Little Bird?
But two things prevented him. It had been appropriate to be sad around a dying Annie. Marty, however, was a very vital, happy boy - a very intelligent boy who would read Henry's mood and pry from him the reason. Henry must wear a façade of normalcy. The second reason was Martin House. Henry knew that he would die inside when he lost Marty but he would feign living on the outside because Martin House was so worthy a cause.
Henry decided that he had to present the situation to Marjorie Tolliver in person. He flew to Nashville leaving a very angry Marty with the Friesemas. "You're just going down there to buy horses. Why can't I go with you? You love those damn horses more than me. And I ain't stayin' at Aunt Myrt's. I ain't no damn foster kid!"
Marty was a wonderful kid but he was a kid and could be a pistol occasionally. Henry knew that the profanity and poor grammar were an attempt to make Henry as upset as Marty was but why did he have to do it now? Henry's heart was about to break. He couldn't discipline the boy now. He took him down to Aunt Betje, hugged him tightly, kissed him and left quickly so the boy wouldn't see his tears.
But you couldn't fool Marty. "Why was Uncle Henry crying?"
"He's probably sad because you were naughty."
"I been naughty before and he didn't cry."
"Well, just be glad you weren't naughty here. In Holland we take a switch to a boy who acts like that."
"How do you know I was bad?"
"Larry was coming to see if you wanted to go riding. He heard you."
"Tattletale."
"You just settle down. I'm not in Holland any more but I'm still Dutch."
Marty was pretty sure she wouldn't spank him but he wasn't completely sure. He took his pique to the woods and sulked for an hour.
Henry checked into his hotel, took two shots of Scotch, a deep breath and dialed Marjorie Tolliver's phone number. He told her that he was an attorney from Jefferson, Wisconsin and had some information he needed to pass on about a Martin Morris Tolliver who, Henry understood, was Marjorie's brother. Would Ms. Tolliver be so kind as to meet him for dinner at 7:00?
"My God, I haven't heard a word about Mart for fifteen years. Is he dead?"
"I'm sorry to have to tell you, but yes he is. He has been quite ill for several months. He was a very heavy drinker and by the time we were able to get him help, his liver was irreparably damaged I think we could discuss this matter better if we were to meet. Please suggest a good restaurant convenient for you."
"You sound urbane. Better be high class, eh?"
"And you sound what I hope I am, regular people. Any place where we can have some privacy will do."
They met at a little Italian place on the south side. Marjorie was much older than Henry had expected. She was a large woman, not fat, rather handsome, in fact.
Henry stood. "Sit down, Hank. You'll find that I'm far from a southern belle. This place has good food and it won't break you. You asked me so you're paying. Hell, this is the first date I've had in my life."
Her bluntness was not offensive. It was said with a twinkle in the eyes and was meant to be wit. It was how she was and Henry liked her immediately
"So, tell me about Mart."
"Why don't you tell me about Mart first?"
"Damn lawyers. I been dealing with them all my life. Might as well do what you say. You look like a good one so I know we're going to play by your rules."
"Are you a lawyer?"
"No, I'm a cop. Actually I was. Juvenile officer for thirty years. I should have taken my retirement after twenty but I figured Nashville couldn't get along without me.
"Well, here goes. First of all as you can probably tell, I'm thirty years older than Mart. I was born when Mom was sixteen and Mart when she was forty-six. Mable and Morris thought they couldn't have anymore and Mart was not a particularly welcome addition. Our parents were hill people, Hard-Shell Baptist, and Mom was sure she was sinning by resenting little Mart so she did her penance by spoiling him rotten. He was a disgusting, selfish, arrogant little shit. You may be able to tell that we never got along. I was already living away from home when he was born. We never saw each other much and that was fine with me.
"When he went to the University of Wisconsin, we permanently lost touch. Mom would never say but I was sure he ended up in jail."
"So far as I know, he never was in jail but had became an alcoholic and, as I mentioned, was beyond help before we got his to a hospital."
"My God, he was only - what is it - thirty-two I think.
"So - did he owe you money, Hank? Is that why you're here?"
"You are a crusty old broad, aren't you?"
"I'm a crusty old dyke, Hank. Dear, sweet, pious Mable and Morris did a hell of a job with their kids - got a dyke and a drunk. Needless to say, the rest of the Tollivers don't have much to do with us."
"I like you, Marge. Your tough talk from anyone else would be offensive but from you it's - well, a façade."
"Did you say you are a lawyer or a shrink? You grow up a dyke cop in the "genteel" south, you get - I guess better said - act tough or die.
"So, why you here, Hank. I've heard nothing that couldn't have just as easily said over the phone. I'll pay for Mart's funeral if that's what you want."
"Mart had a ten year old son."
"Oh, shit. You want me to take the boy."
"You have the legal right to him."
"Hank, as you can tell I'm not the motherly type. That, however, is not the main reason I can't take the boy. You may recall that I said that I should have taken retirement after twenty years. Well, if I had, I'd have had time to do the traveling I always wanted to do. I'm dying, Hank. I have an abdominal aneurysm. They say they could operate but there's a fifty-fifty chance I'd die on the table. I'd rather take my chances and do some traveling. If I'm lucky I'll die in Tahiti or some romantic place like that.
"Look, I'll sign away any rights to the boy. Find him a good home with someone normal."
"He lives with me. I hope I'm normal." Henry told Marge the story.
Tough old Marge actually had tears in her eyes when Henry finished the story. "You do love that kid, don't you? You're a lucky man, Hank. You've had two loves in your life. A dyke in the south never can have any."
"That's a shame, Marge. I can tell that you have a lot of love to give."
Marge thought for a moment. "Well, let's try to do it this way. I don't know your Little Bird but I love him and want him to have his Uncle Henry. Marry me, Hank."
"What?"
"Look, I'm a goddam dyke. I'm not trying to rape you. You marry me, I'll exercise my right to custody as Marty's only living relative and my husband could be a hundred years old and no one would challenge his right to adopt my child.
"I'll sign a goddam prenuptial agreement if you want. Oh, my God, I never thought I'd be saying that. Nuptials were the last thing I ever thought I'd be participating in.
"You call your guy in Jefferson and get me the custody. I got a drinking buddy judge here who will marry us and grant the adoption all at one time. No one will know or care if we bend the law a little. You can probably be on your way home with a wife and a son by Friday. Oh ya, if you're worried about it, we can do an annulment as soon as the adoption thing is out of the way."
"If you stop putting yourself down, it will be an honor to be married to you."
"Don't expect me to go to Wisconsin, Hubby Dear. When I leave Nashville, it will be to some exotic place where I can die surfing or something like that and they can scatter my ashes in the blue Pacific."
"You are really a much better person that you want people to know."
"Don't get mushy, Hank. I wouldn't know how to handle it. But you know what? I do love you. Not in a romantic way but I love you because you are a good man and you love Marty."
"And I love you because behind all that bravado is a good, good, woman."
"Time to cut the bull shit, Hank. Call your judge buddy and get me custody of my nephew. I'll call Billy Joe and if he's sober, we can get married in the morning."
Billy Joe was sober and Henry was a married man and a father before the day was out. It was all done under the radar of proper legal practice but it was legal and would take a tremendous amount of litigation, money and time, to undo. Henry was sure that no one in Wisconsin would challenge the adoption and probably no one in Tennessee would ever know.
Marge, by-the-way, got her wish six months later. She died in American Samoa and her ashes were scattered in the blue Pacific.
Marty was sheepishly apologetic when Henry returned. "I'm sorry, Uncle Henry. Did you find a good horse?"
"No I didn't but I got something much, much better. I got a Little Bird."
Marty was puzzled. Henry handed the boy the adoption papers. As Marty read, his eyes widened as the import of what he was reading dawned on him. He dropped the papers, ran into Henry's embrace and cried, "Daddy!"