by Sharon Sala
Bonnie was still asleep, and Laurel needed to get rid of the carcass before she woke up. So she grabbed a pair of gloves and got a shovel from the back porch and hurried to the front yard.
It didn’t take long to ascertain the dog had been dead longer than twenty-four hours, and since it wasn’t there when they’d left for the fall festival, someone had to have dumped the carcass here. The ground was still soft enough for the last rain to make digging easy, and so she quickly dug a shallow grave near the bar ditch. She ran back, grabbed the carcass by the tail, dragged it into the hole, and then covered it up. By the time she was finished, she was nauseous and shaking, but the deed was hidden from Bonnie, and that’s all that mattered.
She went back inside to clean up and make Bonnie some breakfast. After this, putting food in her mouth and keeping it down was pretty much impossible. Maybe she’d feel better after church, but it was a horrible way to begin the day.
* * *
Adele Payne spent the night at the hospital in Blessings. Her daughter, Beverly, and her son David and his wife, Trisha, had been with her until daybreak. At that point, they’d gone to Beverly’s house to sort out all of the children who’d been left with Beverly’s husband, Garrett.
Luke and Melanie had three boys, ranging in age from ten to fifteen. Beverly decided to keep the youngest one with her three children, and David and Trisha were taking the two older ones home to stay with their two.
Once Luke came out of surgery and they learned he was going to live, their relief was huge. But Melanie, who seemed at first to be the least injured, had fallen into a coma around midnight and had yet to wake up. She had a brain bleed, and her prognosis wasn’t good.
Adele had led them in prayer all night, convinced that God would answer her prayers because she considered herself a true and faithful servant. It was only after they were gone, and she was alone, that the doubts crept in. First Adam, now Luke and Melanie. It seemed as if her family was being punished, but for what?
And their biggest question—the one thing they had talked about all night and had yet to understand—why were Luke and Melanie even on that road? They hadn’t gone to the festival, and their home was on the other side of Blessings. Yet something had led them to a place that brought them to such harm. Maybe when she was able to talk to Luke, she would find out. For now, the only thing she could do was keep praying.
* * *
Jake woke up before daylight, took a cup of coffee onto the back porch, and waited for sunrise. He took a sip and then held it between his hands to keep them warm.
The sky was gray.
The air was still.
Every time he exhaled, a tiny cloud of condensation lingered around his chin just long enough to mark the chill of the day. He took another sip of coffee and thought of what lay ahead.
Going to Joaquin DeSosa’s funeral would be walking back into the past. But that was a selfish thought, and this wasn’t about him. It was about paying a debt. He owed DeSosa more than five dollars. He owed him his life.
He finished his coffee just as the sun sent a spray of violet hues above the horizon, followed by a wash of colors in a thousand shades of pink. He lifted his cup to the display and toasted the angels heralding the day set aside for God.
“You have outdone yourselves,” he said, and then waited for the sun to remind him there was a whole new day on the way with the opportunity to do something new—something better.
The sun came up like always, and Jake thought how the sunrise on his land was so much better than the sun rising on a land at war. Now that the ceremony was over, he went back inside.
The bottle of tequila mocked him. Drink me. I’ll make you forget.
But DeSosa’s intent was a gesture of remembrance—to remember he had lived—and Jake knew it. So he bypassed the tequila for the pantry, got a box of cereal and then milk from the refrigerator, and ate standing up.
He was debating about going to church or putting the brush hog on the tractor and clearing some brush between the barn and the creek when his cell phone rang. It was Laurel.
“Hello, neighbor, what’s up?” Jake said.
Laurel’s voice was shaking a little, which alerted him it wasn’t just a neighborly call.
“I hate to ask, but do you have a gun?”
His belly knotted. “Dad’s rifle is here, why?”
“Bonnie went out to feed Lavonne this morning and came running back inside crying. She said there was a big possum that scared her, but when I went out to look I saw a raccoon instead, and it’s sick, Jake. I think it has rabies, and I don’t have a gun or anyone who lives close enough to call for help.”
He frowned. A rabid animal was nothing to take lightly.
“I’ll be right there,” he said.
He thought of the handgun he’d brought home, but he had no intention of ever buying ammo. Then he ran to his dad’s room. He’d seen the old rifle when he was cleaning out the closet and was pretty sure there was a box of ammo on the floor beside it, and there was.
He grabbed it all and headed out the door. He kept thinking about the fear in her voice and told himself whatever hell he might fall into from shooting a gun again, it was nothing to leaving her or Bonnie in this kind of danger.
She was standing on the front porch when he drove up. He got out on the run, loading the gun as he went. “Where is it?” he asked.
She pointed. “See that old shed past the chicken house?”
He nodded.
“It went in there, and I think it’s still there because there’s no back door out.”
“Stay here,” he said, and took off at a lope.
“Be careful!” she cried, and then ran back into the trailer and out onto the back porch just as Jake reached the shed.
“Mommy, I wanna see,” Bonnie said.
Laurel turned around. Bonnie was standing in the doorway.
“No, baby. Go back to your room. Get Brave Bear, and say a prayer for Jake to stay safe.”
“Okay, Mommy,” Bonnie said, and disappeared.
Laurel closed the back door. The less Bonnie heard, the better. She saw Jake hesitate in the doorway, and then he walked inside. Her heart was pounding.
Be okay, be okay, please be okay.
All of a sudden, she heard a loud thud, and then a big commotion sounded inside the shed. She was imagining the worst when she heard two gunshots. And then nothing.
“Jake?”
He didn’t answer.
“Jake, are you alright?”
He still didn’t answer.
She couldn’t stand the suspense any longer and ran down the steps and out across the yard. She was afraid of what she would see and yet she had to face it. It was her fault that he was even here.
She reached the doorway, hesitated just a moment to let her eyes adjust to the darker view, and then saw Jake leaning against the wall. The boar raccoon was huge, and it was dead. She breathed a sigh of relief, and then saw the expression on Jake’s face and her heart sank. She’d seen Adam zone out like that more than once and had not known at the time what was happening. She knew now, and the gunfire was probably responsible.
She looked for a few moments until she saw the rifle. It was lying on a worktable beside him.
Oh God, please help me do this right.
“Jake, it’s Laurel. Can you hear me?”
He hadn’t moved and she was afraid to touch him.
“Jake! The raccoon is dead. Come out into the light.”
* * *
Jake saw the raccoon the moment he stepped into the shed. It was one of the biggest boars he’d ever seen, and Laurel had been right to call. He’d seen animals with rabies before, and he would bet money this one had it.
The raccoon reacted to his presence with a hissing growl and then came at him, knocking over a large stack of wooden crat
es. His first shot was on target. The raccoon dropped, but was still kicking when Jake shot again. He knew it was dead.
Then the raccoon disappeared, and the jumble of trash inside the shed became a bombed out village. He was waiting for more bombs to fall when he heard someone calling his name.
He looked around for DeSosa and then saw someone standing in the doorway. At first, all he saw was a silhouette, and then when his name was called again, he knew the voice.
Laurel? Is that you?
“Jake, please look at me,” Laurel said.
And so he did. Reality came back with her presence. He took a deep, shuddering breath and then pointed at the carcass.
“Don’t touch it. Rabies.”
“Oh my God, I just knew it,” Laurel said, and walked into the shed, took him by the hand. “Let’s go out into the light, okay? I’ll call the veterinarian and find out who to call to come get it.”
He picked up his rifle, and by the time he was out of the shed, his focus was settling. Sunlight caught in Laurel’s hair, turning the auburn highlights into streaks of fire. He started to touch it—just to see if it was as hot as it looked, but he did not, and then she stopped and turned to face him.
“I know what it cost you to fire that gun. You are a man above most, Jacob Lorde, and while I continue to thank you, somehow it doesn’t feel like enough.”
“Let it go, Laurel. It’s dead and you and Bonnie are safe, and that’s all that matters.”
Laurel’s eyes suddenly welled.
Jake saw the tears and groaned. He laid the gun in the grass and took her into his arms. “It’s okay. Really,” he said, and just held her.
It had been a long time since Laurel had let a man touch her, and the fact that he was just as big a risk to love as Adam didn’t seem to matter. Not now. Not when she was so tired of being the only one in charge.
The back door banged. Bonnie was standing on the porch. “Mommy, are you okay?”
“She’s okay, honey,” Jake called. “She just got scared. Come here. She needs more hugs to feel good again.”
Bonnie flew down the steps, ran to where they were standing, threw her arms around Laurel’s legs, and hugged her tight. “It’s okay, Mommy. Brave Bear took care of me, and Jake took care of you.” She looked toward the shed apprehensively. “Is that big possum dead now?”
Laurel wiped her eyes and then picked Bonnie up in her arms. “It was a raccoon, and yes, it’s dead now. It was sick, and so we can’t go anywhere near it. Let’s go inside so Mommy can call someone to come get it, okay?”
“Okay,” Bonnie said, and wiggled out of Laurel’s arms and ran back toward the house.
Laurel couldn’t face Jake, but he didn’t care. He tilted her head up to meet his gaze.
“I’m leaving Tuesday for L.A. I’ll be back sometime Thursday. Just wanted you to know, in case you wondered where I’d gone.”
“Is everything okay?” she asked.
He sighed. “Going to a memorial service for a buddy who didn’t make it home. It’s a long story, but the bottom line is, it was an invitation I couldn’t turn down.”
“I am so sorry,” Laurel said.
“Yes, so am I,” Jake said. “So, I was thinking about church earlier, but I’m not in the mind-set for sitting still. However, I don’t want to spend the day alone at the house. I think I’m going to have Sunday dinner at Granny’s. I don’t suppose you and Bonnie would like to go with me?”
A thousand reasons why she shouldn’t went through her head, but she heard the need for company in his voice. “That would be a treat,” she said. “What time?”
“How about I pick you up about eleven thirty? We won’t be too early, but we will still beat the church crowd.”
“Okay. We’ll be ready,” she said, and then she put a hand on his arm. “Thank you again for coming to help.”
“That’s what friends are for,” he said. He picked up the gun and walked away.
Laurel watched him drive away with a knot in her stomach. She’d just agreed to go to Sunday dinner with him. Granted, Bonnie would be along, but that didn’t change the fact that it felt like a date. Then she sighed. He’d come when she’d called. The least she could do was reciprocate. He’d lost a friend and was sad. He didn’t want to be alone. So when he’d asked her a favor, there was no way on God’s earth she could have refused. Right?
“Mommy! Lavonne is scared. Come inside, and call someone to get that possum.”
Laurel grinned at the little sprite standing on the back porch. “Yes, I’m coming,” she said, and ran back to the house.
* * *
Luke Payne woke up an hour after his wife, Melanie, died.
Adele was bordering on hysterics and had called the family back in. Melanie’s people all lived in Florida, and it would take at least a day before they could get here. She was sitting at Luke’s bedside, waiting for David and Beverly to return and help her make decisions. She didn’t think it was a good idea to tell Luke anything about his wife until he was more stable.
She’d heard the nurses talking about the driver of the other car. He’d broken his back in the wreck and would live out his life in a wheelchair.
Adele and the family had already been told that the vehicles hit head-on coming over a hill, so both drivers were obviously at fault. There would be no blame to lay except upon themselves.
She was watching the clock and listening to every breath that Luke took when he began to stir. He’d already awakened once, enough to answer a couple of the nurse’s questions. Now that he was coming to again, Adele hoped he would answer some of hers.
He groaned.
Adele got up and leaned over the bed to pat his arm. “Mama’s here, Luke. You are going to be okay.”
His eyelids fluttered. “Mel’nie,” he mumbled.
Adele fought back tears. Bless his heart. He was asking for his woman. He was a widower and didn’t know it.
“Luke, it’s Mama. I’m here, Son. I’m right here.”
He took a slow breath and then groaned as he exhaled. “Hurt.”
“I’ll call the nurse,” Adele said, and pressed the Call button.
“Yes, ma’am. How can I help you?” the nurse said.
“My son is awake and in pain. Do you have something to help him?”
“I’ll check his chart,” the nurse said.
Adele patted Luke’s arm. “Rest easy, Son. They’ll be here shortly.”
“Mama?” he mumbled.
She smiled. “Yes, honey. It’s Mama,” she answered, and took him by the hand. He squeezed her fingers so hard that it actually hurt. “Easy, Son,” Adele said.
“I went,” he mumbled.
She frowned. “Went where?”
“…bother the bitch.”
The skin crawled on the back of Adele’s neck. “What do you mean?” she asked.
“You said…bother. I went.”
And then it hit her! The road where they had the wreck—it was the road where Laurel still lived. Even after Beverly told her what Laurel had said, Adele told her boys to keep bothering her, that Paynes got revenge for their own.
“What did you do?” she asked.
“Dead dog…yard.”
Her heart began to pound, and she broke out in a sick sweat. “No, no, no.” She moaned and dropped back into the chair with a thump.
She covered her face with her hands and began rocking back and forth. She started to pray and then stopped. What exactly should she pray for first? Forgiveness for harassing her daughter-in-law, or forgiveness for sending her son on a mission that ended in such tragedy? If she hadn’t been so self-righteous, Luke would not be crippled, Melanie would not be dead, and the driver of the other car would not be facing life in a wheelchair.
“Is this it, Lord? Is this my punishment for what we did to my Adam�
�s wife?” Adele whispered.
She held her breath, waiting for the iron fist of God to strike her dead, but she kept breathing. At that point, she began to reassess what she knew against what she would be able to live with and, slowly, convinced herself that God didn’t have any hand in this, so it must have been the Devil. That was something she could live with. There was the very thing she needed to live with herself.
None of this was her fault after all. By the time the nurse came in with pain meds to inject into Luke’s IV, Adele was back to her self-righteous self.
* * *
Bonnie held court from the backseat of Jake’s truck, talking all the way to Blessings. Laurel had dressed her in gray knit pants and a red sweater that she’d picked up at a yard sale. Bonnie had insisted on adding her “diamond necklace” and bringing Brave Bear, so she and the bear shared the backseat. Laurel took comfort in the distraction of her daughter to keep from focusing on the fact that Jake Lorde smelled almost as good as he looked.
It had been so long since she’d cared what she looked like that she’d been a nervous wreck trying to find something to put on. One of the nicest things she had was a navy-blue pantsuit, and so she’d worn it with a white turtleneck sweater. The makeup she was wearing seemed overdone, although it was nothing but mascara and lipstick. She’d left her hair down without thought, unaware that it was driving Jake to distraction. And all the while she was worrying about how she looked, and Jake was thinking about tunneling his fingers through her hair.
Bonnie continued to inform. “…and then I told him he couldn’t get in front of me. It’s a rule, right, Mommy? If the teacher puts you in line, you have to stay where she put you, right?”
“Right,” Laurel answered, and then glanced at Jake, relieved that he was smiling. “Yes, this is normal, and no, she never stops.”
Jake laughed. “Truthfully, this is the best medicine for what ails me.”
Laurel relaxed. “I know what you mean. I can have the worst day, and then this one comes home, and my troubles are gone. My ear gets a little tired, but it’s so much better than being hassled.”
