by Raven Snow
“You mean no one ever even told you about him?” Coreen’s frown deepened. “That doesn’t seem right. Everyone deserves to know who their parents are.”
“My aunts raised me. As far as I’m concerned, they are my parents,” Rowen snapped, even though she was more than a little annoyed no one had ever told her more than the bare minimum. For a long time, she had just assumed he was dead.
“I didn’t mean to offend you.”
“It’s all right. Sorry. This whole thing has me on edge.”
The corner of Coreen’s mouth rose into a smirk. “That’s understandable.”
“Do you know why he’s here?” Rowen knew it wasn’t to see her after all these years. “What does he want with my mother?”
Coreen inclined her head, cringing a little. “I’m… not sure it’s really my place to say.”
“Why not?”
“It’s probably better that you hear it from him.”
That sounded like an excuse to Rowen. Whatever Desmond wanted, Coreen clearly didn’t think that Rowen was going to like it. “Just tell me. This is all hard enough already.”
Coreen looked out the window again, as if she might see Desmond making his way inside. She even typed something into her phone, shooting Desmond a text message no doubt. The silence grew more awkward by the second as they waited for a reply. Coreen finally caved. “He wants a divorce.”
Rowen wasn’t quite sure how to take that news. It sent her thoughts spiraling in several different directions. She couldn’t follow them all. “Why?” she asked, perhaps a little dumbly. That wasn’t even the most pressing question on her mind She thought her parents were divorced, for starters.
“He wants to get remarried,” Coreen said with a shrug. “As it turns out, he’s still hitched to your mother, so… Here we are.”
If Rowen had disliked her father before, she disliked him even more now. She looked Coreen over again. It wasn’t the fact that she had to be a lot younger than her father that bothered her; it was that Coreen was the sort of person willing to be with a man like Desmond, a man who could have a kid only to immediately abandon it. “I don’t know where my mother is. No one does. I’m not sure how he thinks he’s going to get this all squared away by his coming here.”
There was a frown on Coreen’s face and something behind her eyes, something that suggested the thoughts going through her head were not particularly kind in nature. The next few seconds felt like minutes, and the next few minutes felt like hours peppered with the most banal of small talk. Through all of that, there was no sign of Desmond.
“Do you think you should give Desmond another call?” prompted Rowen, steering the subject away from the recent cold weather. She knew for a fact that the nearest coffee shop was within easy walking distance of the hotel. It was open too. She had passed it on her way here. Desmond was avoiding his daughter. If Coreen would say as much, Rowen could just leave.
Coreen shook her head. “I’m sure he’s fine.” She didn’t even glance at her phone. There was something about her expression though, something sort of impassive yet frustrated. It was like she was used to being let down like this yet still felt the need to excuse it. “He’s not as horrible as you think.”
“I wouldn’t know. I’ve never met the guy.” Rowen stood. “I guess I should get going so he can come in from the cold, huh?”
“Wait.” Coreen stood as well, before Rowen could head for the door. “Let’s swap contact info, at least.”
Rowen swapped numbers with Coreen. As soon as she had finished, she gave her a curt nod and headed for the door. There were tears stinging her eyes as soon as she was in the hallway. That came as a surprise. Rowen wiped at them quickly with the back of her hand. She didn’t want Eric seeing how upset she was by all of this. More than anything, Rowen wanted not to care about any of this. Unfortunately, it did bother her. It bothered her a lot.
Chapter Four
Rowen would have much preferred to spend her day at home. After trying and failing to meet her father, there was an extra kind of gloominess to the day. The sky was cloudy and gray again, not doing a thing to improve her dreary mood. Rowen wanted to do her work from home today, from the safe comfort of her own bed. Rose was willing to let her, too. Unfortunately, the universe had other plans for Rowen. There were certain new responsibilities that she had almost completely forgotten about.
The funeral home called Rowen a little after noon, asking if she could come by in an hour or so. There was still the matter of Bertha Trainer to deal with. The funeral director assured her that Shane Trainer would be there. What else was there to do but agree to go?
Eric offered to go instead of Rowen, but she wouldn’t have that. He could come with her, but he couldn’t go in her place. It wasn’t right. There was also the possibility that it wasn’t legal. Rowen wasn’t quite sure which. Legality got her thinking about her father, though. She gave Coreen a call. There was no answer, so she left a voice message about Bertha Trainer. Really, it should be Desmond going instead of her. Rowen was frustrated she hadn’t mentioned something earlier. It might have saved her the trip.
Getting ready to venture out into the public once more didn’t take much time at least. “Are you sure you want to do this?” Eric asked his wife for the umpteenth time on their way out the front door.
“I said I would go, didn’t I?” Rowen answered that question reflexively. It was way too tempting to stay at home for her to dare give it much consideration. “Besides, this is a good opportunity to speak with them.” It was what she had wanted. She just hadn’t expected that she would get that wish of hers this way.
“Be careful about that,” said Eric, hesitating before getting in on the driver’s side of their sedan. “We don’t know how they’re going to feel about you.”
Rowen nodded. That was something she was already thinking about. It wasn’t something that required a whole lot of critical consideration as far as she was concerned. Would they like her? Probably not. Did they already have their own opinions about the Greensmith family? Most likely.
***
There was only one funeral home in Lainswich. Rowen hadn’t been there for a while. There were a lot of bad memories tied to the place. They weren’t all her own either. Strong emotions had a tendency to soak into locations like a bad smell. The funeral home was no exception, and the negative emotions there were myriad. It wasn’t just Rowen’s own bad memories she had to worry about. With a deep breath, she headed indoors.
The foyer was empty, but it didn’t stay that way for long. A lanky man in a black suit approached, appearing from around a corner without warning. He smiled and offered Rowen a clammy hand. “Rowen Greensmith, correct?” He offered his hand next to Eric. “And…”
“Eric. Her husband.”
“That’s right. We’ve met before, briefly. I’m Hubert.” He stepped to one side and motioned for Rowen and Eric to proceed down the hall. “My office is just this way. The Trainer family is already waiting.”
Alarm stirred in Rowen as she walked. “Are we late?”
“Not at all,” Hubert assured her. “They only just arrived. Your timing is perfect.” He opened the door to his office. It was a sparse, dimly lit room. There was a desk and an assortment of chairs. Only two of the chairs were occupied.
Rowen recognized Shane and Kate from looking them up online. Neither of them looked nearly as cheerful as they had in their pictures. It wasn’t just the grief that was doing that either. There was anger they were feeling, anger directed at Rowen. It hit her hard the second she entered the room.
Rowen tried for a pained smile. It was difficult under the best of circumstances to know how to act in these situations. Following Hubert’s example was probably the way to go. “Hi, I’m Rowen Greensmith. This is my husband, Eric.”
“I’m sorry for your loss.” Eric bobbed his head in their direction. He got a curt nod from Shane in return.
Hubert went around his desk. He hesitated before sitting, motioning t
o Rowen and Eric instead. “Please, take a seat.”
Eric, thankfully, took the seat closest to Shane. No doubt he knew Rowen would have found that awkward. She took the chair on his right.
Hubert sank down into his desk chair and folded his hands in front of him. “First of all, I would like to thank everyone for coming. I know the circumstances are a bit… odd. It’s unfortunate that you should all be faced with something like this so soon after a tragedy.”
“For the record, I’m on board with whatever it is you want to do with the body,” Rowen said quickly, looking in Shane and Kate’s direction.
“That’s very generous of you,” Shane replied tersely, making what seemed like the barest of efforts to keep the hostility from his voice.
“I’m sorry,” Rowen added quickly. “Honestly, this was really unexpected. I don’t even know if I have a say in anything here. I’ve tried to contact my father. I haven’t heard anything back from him yet.”
Hubert nodded. He opened up a binder on his desk and turned it so that everyone could see. He had a real easy manner about him as he went into the details of the service. It was like he had mediated this sort of thing before. He probably had.
***
At least it was quick. Rowen said very little, letting Shane do all the planning. Kate sat there quietly, occasionally glancing out the window or down at her phone. Things were going smoothly right up until the subject of money came up. Hubert had been talking this entire time, Shane responding to him in very few words. Rowen’s mind had started to wander back to her father when she realized all eyes were on her. She perked up.
“Maybe this should be saved for later, after we get in touch with Mrs. Greensmith’s father,” Hubert suggested delicately, like he was trying to defuse the situation.
“We can’t afford to pay for all of this if we’re not the next of kin,” Shane said with a shrug.
They were talking about money. More than that, the idea that Bertha Trainer had an estate worth inheriting was finally occurring to Rowen. “I didn’t… I didn’t inherit anything.”
“Your father did,” said Hubert. “Assuming we don’t find a will.”
So that was the main source of the Trainers’ anger. Rowen wasn’t sure why she had been more worried about how they would react to being related to a Greensmith. The main point of contention here was who was getting what. She held up her hands in innocence. “I really don’t know anything about this. You’ll have to talk to my father.” Something told her they would have a better chance of getting in touch with him than she would. Something also told her that the Trainers weren’t going to be happy about that.
The daughter made a sound of disgust and stood, leaving the room with cellphone in hand. Rowen watched her go. It might have been something on her phone that upset her, but that felt unlikely. No, there was a much bigger chance that Kate was a lot less reserved than her father was about how much she disliked all this.
“I’ll be right back,” Shane said after a few awkward seconds of staring at the door. He stood and left the room as well.
It was good to finally have them gone. Rowen slouched back in her chair. Her back was aching. She hadn’t noticed how straight she had been sitting.
“Sorry about that,” said Hubert. “These things happen. Don’t blame yourself. Thank you for coming.”
“What happens if my father doesn’t pay for the funeral?” asked Rowen.
“You don’t think he’ll get in touch with us?”
“I’m sure he’ll want to know if he stands to inherit something,” Rowen said, miserably. “But I’m not sure he’ll shell out for a funeral.”
“You don’t know that he won’t,” Eric said. “Not to defend the guy or anything. Just don’t get ahead of yourself. You don’t know all that for sure. He might have a lot of fond memories of this woman. I mean, she was to him what your aunts are to you, right?”
Rowen loathed to consider that she and her father might have anything in common. Eric might be right, though. That was probably the best scenario they could hope for. “Maybe,” she conceded. She looked up to Hubert. “Give me a call if he contacts you, okay? I left him a message, but… We’ve never really been on speaking terms. We’re not close.”
Hubert nodded. “Of course. I’ll give you a call if there’s any change.”
They were done here as far as Rowen was concerned. She stood and led the way outside. She walked slowly, like maybe if she walked slowly enough she wouldn’t have to pass the Trainers on the way out. She had no such luck.
Shane and Kate were standing just outside. To make matters worse, Kate was crying. Rowen could hear loud, ugly sobs the moment she opened the door. Shane had his arms around his daughter while she sobbed into his chest. He looked up when he heard the door open. He frowned at Rowen.
Rowen put her head down and began to quicken her pace, heading for the car. She was stopped by someone calling her name. Reluctantly, she stopped and turned.
“Rowen,” Shane called again, awkwardly, like the word tasted weird in his mouth. “Can you hang on just a minute? I’d like to have a word… privately.” He glanced to Eric as he said that last part.
Eric looked down at his wife. “Are you all right with that?”
Rowen wasn’t, but she nodded anyway. “It’s fine.” She watched as Eric continued on to the car. Shane came to join her in the parking lot, far enough away from his daughter that it was doubtful she could hear either of them. Rowen shoved her hands in the pockets of her coat and did her best to keep her pulse under control. This had been a very anxiety inducing last couple of days.
“I’m sorry about… all of that.” Shane motioned vaguely back at the funeral home. Those words hadn’t been what Rowen was expecting. “This was all really sudden and everyone’s upset. Then you come in and…” Shane shook his head, like the rest didn’t need to be explained. It didn’t.
“I can keep my distance from now on, if that would make you more comfortable.”
“The whole family is taking all of this very hard.”
“That’s understandable.”
Shane bowed his head, lowering his eyes to the ground. “I swear I made sure everything was set before we left. I should have insisted she come stay the night with us. I should have insisted she stop living on her own ages ago.”
“It doesn’t sound like that sort of thing was entirely under your control,” Rowen offered. “And I’m sure you did set everything up before you left. From what I hear, this sort of thing happens from time to time with older people. It’s just… unfortunate.”
“That’s what people keep telling me.” It was difficult to tell if those words had offered Shane any comfort whatsoever. He waved a hand as if dismissing the matter entirely. “That’s beside the point. What I’m trying to get at is that I asked for you to be here today, and I’m sorry if my daughter or I reacted rudely.”
“Oh, no. Don’t think anything of it,” Rowen said reflexively. Really, she couldn’t help but wonder what Shane had hoped to achieve. Had he just wanted to meet her? Had he hoped that she would have the ability to simply pass Bertha’s estate on to him?
“I don’t have anything against your family,” Shane added. “I know you’re all infamous around here, but I try not to listen to that sort of talk. My wife agrees, I think. We’ve tried to teach our children to be accepting of others.” He motioned back in his daughter’s direction. She was huddled up against the wall of the building, staring intently at her phone. Occasionally, she brought up an arm and wiped her face on her coat sleeve. “They’re torn up about their aunt’s passing too. It’s really not anything personal. She isn’t typically like this.”
“It’s fine,” Rowen assured him. She couldn’t help but feel like he had some sort of ulterior motive here. “I just wish there was something I could do. I’ve tried reaching my father, but I haven’t had any luck.” It sounded like Shane expected something. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a whole lot that Rowen had the ability to give.
“He won’t answer his calls?”
“I don’t know his phone number.” It was more than a little awkward discussing this sort of thing with a relative stranger.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean…” Rowen hesitated before coming right out with it. “I mean, I’ve never met the man. I don’t have his number. I have the number of someone who knows him. It’s her I called.”
“Oh.” There were several emotions going on in Shane’s expression all at once. Chief among them was anger, but that was only what Rowen could feel. It wasn’t what he was displaying outwardly. To the man’s credit, he was making a real effort not to get angry with Rowen. Not that any of this was her fault, but Rowen knew how easy it was to get angry at just about everyone when you were grieving. “Do you think he’ll do the right thing? Do you think he’ll make sure the funeral expenses are paid for?”
“Um,” Rowen began. From what little she knew of the man, she doubted it. If he was someone prone to doing “the right thing” she likely would have met him by now. A thought occurred to Rowen then, a thought that had been jumping between the periphery and forefront of her mind. “You would know him better than I do, right? He’s your cousin, isn’t he? You both grew up in Lainswich, didn’t you?”
The question looked like it had taken Shane by surprise. He took a step back from Rowen, discomfort creasing his already lined face. “He was older than me and… very distant from the family. Honestly, I don’t remember much of him. No one really talked about him after he, ah… After he…”
“Married my mother?” Rowen ventured.
“They eloped. I was too young to really understand at the time. I just knew that we didn’t talk about Desmond anymore. Honestly, I haven’t seen him since before then myself. So, he’s in Lainswich again?”
“So I hear.”
“Odd that he comes just in time for this whole mess,” Shane grumbled to himself. Rowen agreed with him. She was sure he found this as suspicious as she did. Not that she actually said any of that out loud. Shane looked up suddenly after that moment of introspection. “So, I guess I’m your uncle Or like your second cousin? Something like that. We’re related, at any rate, huh?”