Eudora

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned or distributed in any form, including digital and electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written consent of the Publisher, except for brief quotes for use in reviews.

This book is a work of fiction. Characters, names, places and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Things have a funny way of working out. The irony is that no matter what one does, how hard someone tries to become something, to make something of oneself, those forces at large have a way of putting things back the way they were, the way they were meant to be. Eudora was no exception.

It was a balmy day. The sun was setting. Eudora, with her abnormally large teeth, thick rimmed black glasses, pasty white skin, stringy, black hair pulled back tightly-save the bangs; they hung loosely to either side of her face-she was not the image of beauty. Her big, blue braces moved up and down as she spoke. Maybe it was the braces, or the big, fake teeth in the front, but she spoke like her tongue was too big for her mouth.

They sat on the hood of the old, gray Cadillac, Eudora and her friends. They weren't her friends of course, but she didn't understand the difference. They were Charlie's friends. He was her younger brother. They were quite a few years apart.

"You should just go ask him, Eudora", Patty said. She was a tall, strawberry blonde with a light tan. "He's been giving you the eye all day."

"I can't do that. I never even said hello to him before. He'll just laugh at me."

Eudora's response was more out of knowledge and certainty than sadness. Sadness held no real meaning for her.

"Well, whatever, it's not like he's got anyone anyway. Larry ain't exactly prince charmin', is he?" Joe sniped.

He was Patty's boyfriend, but not in the traditional way of family values. This time it was the 70's, but before it was the 70's it was just a dark basement with nothing to do, but scratch at the walls. People in the 70's were a concept Eudora was unable to grasp-Eudora isn't from this time; she isn't from anytime, really....

Charlie was coming home from work. He was trying to make enough money over the summer to apply at the local, community college come winter. His grandfather helped him get a job at the mill, and Charlie was learning all sorts of things; how to work the lathe, the planer; he smoothed boards like it was no one's business, but these things didn't interest him. He, like his sister, was born in one life, but was learning to become someone else.

College was his ticket. He'd turn from a sweet, country boy to a calculating businessman, or that was the goal anyway. Unlike his sister, he was dark and fair haired. Most people never guessed they were family, except they shared their grandfather's features; slim nose, big eyes, blue, all three of them.

Charlie pulled up in his Ford pick-up alongside the Cadillac. Dust kicked up. Joe and Patty covered their eyes and patted themselves off. Not Eudora, maybe it was her glasses, maybe it was something else; she never made an effort to dust herself off either. She just looked at her brother. Her oversized pearly whites and blue braces showed as she grinned.

"Hello Charlie, " she spoke with that chunky tongue.

"Heya', Dora, " he replied and smiled back. "I saw Larry leaving. Did you say hello?"

"No, Charlie, maybe I see him tomorrow."

"Well, " he was pensive. "Maybe we should have him over for dinner tomorrow. You and Gramps can whip up something nice."

They all ate in silence that evening, much like every evening. Night came quickly and they all went to bed. Charlie remained awake, staring at the ceiling. It must have been a full moon as he saw inside quite well-the dresser in the corner, the old chair and desk. He relaxed and closed his eyes. He let that old country road take him away.

That's how it was for Charlie; life was a beaten country road, always bright and sunny gold. The grass in the center worn and browning, and high walls of thick, verdant grass beside it. He felt as though he was slowly drifting along, all the while thinking back about his life.

Charlie didn't remember his parents. There weren't any pictures of them either. Come to think of it, there were no pictures of Eudora as a little girl or a baby. All Charlie knew was there had been some kind of accident, and his grandparents took him and his sister and moved a few towns away. He had asked his grandfather, but Richard never said a word. He had asked his grandmother, Evelyn, when she was still alive, but she didn't say either.

Would she say something now? Charlie wondered. He had asked Eudora, but she said didn't remember. How could that be? She was eight years older than him.

Eudora was awake, too. For her, sleeping in a bed was still foreign. Most nights, she rolled onto the floor, but the old wood wasn't hard enough, and it was too dry. It didn't scratch the same either, but she had to scratch something, not as often as she used too, but it helped her sleep.

Scratch-Scritch-Scratch-Scritch.

It was rhythmical, melodic, to her. Sometimes she'd grunt along to it. Not tonight, though, the bed was okay. She let her mind drift off, not to remember her life, but because there was no alternative.

Hers was not a golden country road. It was the basement wall, gray and colorless. It was probably why she liked the old Cadillac.

It was intact now, the wall, but as she drifted back, it crumbled. The scratches were nearly invisible at first, but they, like the cracks, soon became apparent. She drifted along, parts of the wall were broken often now, the scratches more evident. It was always after that, that she heard it.

She was back in school. Little Eudora, much like she was now with her big, fake, front teeth with the big, blue braces, she sat there smiling. She saw them dancing around her. Eudora never understood what they meant. These were small people like herself. They called them classmates. She almost enjoyed herself, but these classmates were not meaning to entertain her. It didn't matter. She liked the chanting; it was rhythmical, melodic.

"Dora-Eudora-You-Dufus. Dora-Eudora-You-Dufus."

She just smiled. It was all brand new to her. Her name was Eudora, they told her; the tall older people. They were her grandparents. The baby was a boy. His name was Charlie. He was her brother. They were going to raise him to take care of her one day. Every day, she was going to go to a place that was full of people her age. She could make friends and forget all about who she was. She was going to learn to be somebody new. She was learning to be Eudora.

"Dora-Eudora-You-Dufus. Dora-Eudora-You-Dufus."

She just smiled, but the kids got angry. They bared their teeth and chanted with a malevolent slant.

"She's just stupid."

"Look at her, she doesn't get it."

"We don't like you, Eudora, You Dufus."

Eventually sleep came.

****

Everyone rose when the roosters cackled. Their grandfather made breakfast. Charlie went off to work for the day. Patty and Joe usually came around during lunch. They didn't mind helping out old man Rick, he always had some sandwiches ready for them, and they did a little farm work; Patty and Joe from well-to-do families. Eudora wasn't sure what that meant, but they didn't have to work summer jobs to pay for college.

Soon, those two and Charlie were going off to school to learn how to be what they were supposed to be. Eudora was not going to college. She already learned how to be Eudora after all. Besides, Charlie is raised now. He will take care of her.

"So, Charlie says Larry's comin over for dinner tonight. You gonna' say hello to him now?" Joe was not smiling when he spoke.

He was indifferent towards Eudora. She was like a shaggy mutt. You don't kick them of course, but you don't feed and pet them, either.

"Be nice, Joe, " Patty was smiling.

She liked Eudora. Eudora was like a stray that was taken in, cleaned, fed, refined. It wasn't quite pity, more like intrigue. There was always something off about the girl, though Patty never quite put her finger on what it may have been.

"I will say hello. Gramps and I cook him dinner tonight. For him and Charlie...and us, too, " Eudora said.

The day progressed. As normal, Patty and Joe cleaned the horse stalls, the chicken coops, and checked the crops. There hadn't been much rain lately, but it was normal for the time of year. The day dragged on, and they found themselves by the Cadillac again. Larry was on his way. He was a bit of an under achiever and liked mischief, too; nothing too serious, though, just staying out late, having a few beers.

He was two years older than Charlie, Patty, and Joe, but they all graduated last year together. Larry lived just two houses over, so it was natural for him to be a friend of the family. He wasn't much to look at, a bit pudgy, already losing some of his long, curly, brown hair. He didn't care much about Eudora, but Patty was taken, and there weren't many other girls around to give him a second look, so while the three of them-Patty, Joe, and Eudora-waited, they spoke, and they joked about how it was going to play out.

"See, in your case, you just gotta' talk to him, you know, let him know he's interesting" Patty encouraged.

"He's not" Joe retorted.

Patty sighed, "Don't listen to Joe, just be yourself. Larry said he's coming, so you'll be fine."

"And then you can show him your mouse, " Joe said.

"My mouse?"

"Ew, Joe. Eudora isn't like that, right?" Patty giggled.

"What do you mean?"

"He means that after tonight, Larry will be your boyfriend, and, you know...soon you two will...well? Come on, do I have to spell it out?"

Eudora still didn't get it. "Spell what?"

Joe laughed and Patty sighed. "Goodness, Eudora, sometimes I think you don't get anything. I mean once you two are together, you'll have sex."

Joe nearly lost it. He fell off the Cadillac's hood and held his sides as he laughed and choked. Eudora wasn't sure about having sex. She learned about it when she was learning how to be Eudora, and just being herself didn't make much since either. After all, she learned to be Eudora, not herself; that was the whole point of going to school.

The hours rolled on and as evening drew near, Patty and Joe went home. Eudora and her grandfather prepared pork chops, potatoes, and a green bean casserole. The casserole was a family recipe, which her grandmother taught her how to make. By the time the table was set, and dinner was ready, Charlie rode home with Larry. They spoke on the porch for a few minutes before going inside.

"So, you're really gonna have dinner with my sister?" Charlie was partly in disbelief.

"Sure thing, man. She seems alright to me. She don't talk much, but a fella' could get used to that, and if she cooks, I'm set for life" Larry was already making plans.

"Just take it slow, okay? Dora's always been a little shy. I need to know she'll be taken care of while I'm gone."

"You always gotta throw that college shit in my face don't ya, Chuck, " Larry snapped.

"Dammit, Larry, this isn't about you. It's about my sister."

"I'll behave. Can we eat?"

They went inside. Charlie wasn't sure if Larry was a good fit for his sister, but she likely wasn't going to meet anyone else. Having Larry as her husband was better than no one. Besides, he thought, it's just dinner and maybe nothing will happen.

Dinner went pretty much as imagined. Most of the conversation was surrounding Charlie's work and what he had planned to do in college. Richard asked Larry what kind of plans he had for the next few years, which Larry shrugged off.

"I'll probably be an electrician like my old man."

I hope you're not like your old man, Richard thought. The last thing I want for Eudora is a wife beater. Then again, Larry had never been violent.

Richard smiled. They ate. Eudora said hello. Eventually Larry came over for dinner on a regular basis. Eudora enjoyed cooking, and when she went to bed that old wall become cleaner and smoother. After a wonderful meal and actually asking Larry how his day went she lay in bed, drifted along that wall, but she was going forwards. She had never gone forwards before.

The wall raced along, and the scratches disappeared. Soon, there was no wall at all. She wasn't used to this. This was different.

She didn't know if this was being Eudora, so she drifted backwards. She found it difficult that night, so she lied face down on the floor. It was a good night, dark and lifeless. That was familiar. She began to scratch at the floor. She found some familiar grooves she had created over the years and let the broken wall come back.

Scratch-Scritch-Scratch-Scritch.

She found the same familiar grooves in the wall. Eventually, it began to break, to crumble. The grooves wore deeper.

Scratch-Scritch-Scratch-Scritch.

It had been a long time since she took it all the way back. You see, there was a reason for the lack of pictures in the house. There was a reason no one spoke of Charlie's and Eudora's parents. There was a reason their grandparents took them away. Eudora took the wall there.

By then, she had drifted along where many pieces of the wall were completely gone. The scratched grooves were deep and blood-soaked. Eudora's parents were simple country people. They got together young, and her mother became pregnant. She died soon after giving birth, and her father never meant to raise her.

She was an accident, after all, and without that damned whore of a wife, there was no one to look after her. Her father decided that once she was old enough to eat on her own, and move around on her own, he was done with her. He figured, he had to work, and who had time to raise an unwanted child?

The solution was simple enough; lock her in the basement and throw some food down there once a day. He was gone most of the time, working, so Eudora screamed, and screamed, and cried, but there were no yields. She learned that sometimes there were things to eat. She learned that when she was tired she had to lie down and sleep. She learned that when she was hungry, and sleep didn't come, that there was a wall to scratch. She didn't usually see it; it was too dark, but sometimes when she got fed, enough light bled through that she saw shades of gray. The wall's gray was most comforting. When it was dark she went to it and scratched it.

It was not long before she'd scratched it so often that the sound grew into something rhythmical. She learned to make the same sounds without scratching at all, and she groaned and grunted.

She found it was melodic. Of course, she didn't understand any of those concepts. Eudora didn't know words. She didn't know her name. She didn't have a name. Sometimes, she heard voices. When there were voices, there was no food. She just scratched and grunted.

That was a bit far to go along the wall, but that was herself. She wasn't supposed to be herself anymore; that was what the older, taller people said. They cleaned her. They taught her words. They taught her how to ask, please, how to answer, thank you. They had a baby boy. His name was Charlie. Her name was Eudora. She was going to go to school, but first they fix her teeth, fix her nails, get her glasses to see good. In a few years' time, and further along the wall, where it wasn't so broken, only a little crumbled, and where the scratched in grooves were less worn, she went to school to learn. That's where she heard the chants, rhythmical, melodic.

"Dora-Eudora-You-Dufus. Dora-Eudora-You-Dufus."

She liked it. Later, she learned it was mean, but those were just words to her. She never really understood.

"Dora-Eudora-You-Dufus. Dora-Eudora-You-Dufus."

She fell asleep. Charlie, on the other hand, did not sleep. He was uneasy with a man like Larry taking such an interest in his sister, but she was never going to be with anyone better. His country road came along soon enough.

He let it drift forwards. It was fun, exciting, as it soon turned into a paved highway. There, he had a real education. Summer was coming to an end, and he had already made more than enough money. Fatigue set in. It was black. Charlie was asleep.

Weeks went by. Charlie went to college. Larry and Eudora became a couple. A year later, he got a job as an electrician, and they moved in together. Things went smoothly for everyone. They even got married. Charlie came home on weekends. On occasion, either he or their grandfather went to visit Larry and Eudora.

During Charlie's second year of college Grandpa Richard got sick. Eudora, Larry, and Charlie took him to the hospital by the college. It was a nice place, small and comforting.

"They'll take care of you, Gramps, until you get better. Soon as I finish school, and get a good job, you can move in with me, " Charlie was optimistic.

Larry, on the other hand, was tired of Charlie and Richard constantly checking up on him and his wife. A few weeks went by. Richard's health continued to decline.

"It's his heart, I'm afraid, " the doctor told Charlie.

He was alone now. Larry didn't bring Eudora to visit him.

"He won't have long. I advise you get all of his affairs in order. He may not make it through the week. I'm sorry, " the doctor said to Charlie before she walked off.

He entered the room and looked at his grandfather. The once strong man who raised two grandchildren was weak and old. He came close to the bed and sat next to Richard. The hospital chair was uncomfortable. His grandfather's bed was probably worse.

"Heya', Gramps, how do you feel?"

"I hear I won't be around much longer." His eyes had lost their determined shine. "Where is your sister?"

Charlie answered was scorned. "Lazy ass Larry won't come by."

"There is something you need to know. You have to look after Eudora. When her mom died, she was left alone. She spent six years in a basement. Your grandmother and I didn't know about it. Word got around to us that you were born.

"You see, Eudora is your half-sister. Her mother was my daughter. I'm afraid Larry reminds me of her husband. He was a good-for-nothing drunk, who beat her. Soon after Eudora was born, my daughter died. We went to check on our granddaughter a few times when she was a baby, but your father moved out of town, and it would seem he just stopped taking care of her.

"Some friends of ours found out that he had another child with some other woman. She, your mother, left you in his care. Our friends told us that you were looking great, so we asked about our granddaughter. He doesn't have one, they replied. Naturally we rushed to find out where your father had moved. When we got there, we had the police escort us to his house.

"There, we found a drunk good-for-nothing, a cute, little toddler, and no one else. I raised Hell, and your father denied knowing me, but the officers heard something. It was a rhythmical scratching.

"They opened the basement door, and there it was, a white, stringy haired monster of a child. Naked, fingernails wore to bloody stumps, teeth all rotted out; she couldn't stand the light. She was immediately hospitalized, and your father was arrested. That's when Evelyn and I took you in. We raised you to take care of her when we couldn't. That time is now. You have to go see her. Make sure she's okay."

The strain of the story, the emotional pain, was too much for Richard to bear. He closed his eyes. There was no road for Richard. It was black. He was dead. Charlie was numb. He and his grandfather weren't even related. He sat for hours. The nurse came. She placed a hand on his shoulder.

"It's alright, darling. He lived a full life. You should go home."

There was no home, not really. He had to go find Eudora. He rushed to Larry's place that night.

His heart sank. There was no vehicle in the dusty, dirt driveway. There were no lights on in the house. There was no Larry. There was no Eudora.

Over the next few days, Charlie spoke to Patty and Joe then to Mr. Thomas, the mill boss. It wasn't until Tuesday, when the hardware store opened, that he was able to get an answer. It turned out that Larry's father had died of liver cancer, from too much drinking no doubt. Larry quickly liquidated his father's assets and moved into the city.

Charlie set off on his golden country road, but it did not become the paved highway he envisioned. On the other hand, Eudora had become accustomed to Larry's increasingly vulgar behavior.