Stranded

by Chance Carter

  Amy nodded in agreement, tears streaming down her cheeks.

  The waitress approached us with a tray of food. My father coughed, sat up, and smiled.

  “Now,” he said. “Let’s eat!”

  * * *

  When we returned home later that evening, Marshall Harrison, my father’s lawyer, was waiting for us in the foyer. When he saw us come in, he swung toward us, looking impatient.

  “Mr. Rittsman.” He nodded curtly at my father. “I’ve been waiting for hours. We had an appointment.”

  “I tried calling,” my father said, as he waved his hand dismissively. “I went out with my family. Come back tomorrow, I’m tired now. Goodnight, Marshall. Goodnight, Amy. Derek, walk with me?”

  Marshall was furious, but didn’t say anything. I took my father’s arm and turned to Amy.

  “I’ll be right up, beautiful,” I said. Amy smiled and kissed my cheek, but I noticed her glancing nervously toward Marshall, who was picking up his bags and heading toward the door.

  I followed my father out of the room and helped him up the stairs, carrying his oxygen tank for him. While we walked, he chatted. I noticed his breathing was a little heavier, having exerted himself more than usual that day.

  “She’s wonderful, you know,” he told me.

  “I do know,” I said, smiling. “I really got lucky, meeting her.”

  “Tell me,” my father said, something in his voice shifting. “And be honest with me. Is she someone you can see yourself spending the rest of your life with?”

  I hesitated. “I…”

  “Derek, think about it. Not just through the good times. The bad times. The average times, too. Relationships are never an easy ride. Love is a choice. You have to be able to make the conscious decision to put forth the effort. A lot of times, it comes down to asking yourself, is she worth it? For me, the answer was never yes. I want things to be different for you. So really, really think before answering. Do you think that Amy is a woman that you can spend the rest of your life loving?”

  And I did think about it. The question seemed important to him, and I was tired of lying. I owed him some honesty.

  Amy. I imagined growing old with her. I imagined starting a family with her. I imagined coming home to her after a long day of work. I imagined fighting with her, and making up with her, and never giving up on her.

  And it wasn’t hard.

  “Yes,” I said, truthfully. It felt like I was finally admitting something obvious to myself. “Yeah. I could.”

  “Then marry her,” my father said, then shrugged with a smile.

  * * *

  Once I had helped my father to bed and said goodnight, I went to my bedroom, but Amy wasn’t there. Concerned, I went downstairs, toward the foyer. I paused before opening the door when I heard voices on the other side. It was Amy and Marshall.

  He should have been gone by now. What was he up to?

  “How’s the pregnancy going, Miss Parker?” the lawyer asked her, but his tone was far from friendly. There were layers of suspicion and malice in his voice.

  “Very well, thank you.” To my surprise, Amy also sounded resentful, something I’d never heard from her. It caused a rise in me. I wanted to burst into the room and pull her away from him, but I resisted the urge. I had to find out what was going on first.

  “Glad to hear.” He sounded anything but.

  “Why are you here?” All fake pleasantry dropped.

  “To talk to Mr. Rittsman about his will.”

  “Well, he went to bed,” Amy said. “You can come back tomorrow. Unless you’re here for something else.”

  “And whatever would that be?”

  “You tell me.”

  They were quiet for a few moments, sizing each other up. I heard Marshall finally exhale.

  “Your charade isn’t going to last for long, Miss Parker.”

  “You’re insane. I don’t have any charade.”

  “You’re a liar,” Marshall snarled. “And so is your boyfriend. I don’t know why Mr. Rittsman even puts up with him.”

  I half-expected shy, quiet Amy to bow her head, to back down. But, instead, she snapped back at him.

  “I don’t know you,” she said. “And you don’t know me. Frankly, I would prefer to keep it that way. I understand that you believe I have some great scheme to get rich. Which is fine. With your job, you’ve probably worked with lots of greedy, selfish people, so I get it. But you can’t keep accusing me of something for which you have no evidence. That’s called harassment. I’m pretty sure that’s illegal.”

  “Oh, it’s only a matter of time before the truth comes to the surface,” Marshall said. “Whatever you’re hiding, I’ll find it.”

  “You’re going on a wild goose chase,” Amy responded. “That’s the truth. I’m trying to help you, here. Don’t waste your time. I have absolutely no interest in anyone’s money.”

  “Then why are you here?”

  “For Derek. That’s all.”

  “Tell me, Amy.” The smugness was audible in Marshall’s voice. “Do you love him?”

  “Excuse me?”

  “I want to hear you say, in complete honesty, that you love Derek. If everything is as you claim it is, that should be obvious. It should be easy. So, go ahead.”

  That caught Amy off guard. “Of… of course,” she stuttered. “He’s wonderful. He’s a better man than you.”

  Marshall laughed, a harsh, barking sound. “That wasn’t what I was asking, Miss Parker.”

  “I don’t have to tell you anything,” Amy said, her voice wavering.

  “You’re right,” Marshall said. “But you will have to speak in front of a judge, and a jury, and a whole court. I’m sure they’ll be very interested in what you have to say.”

  “What?” There was panic in Amy’s voice.

  “As soon as I find what I’m looking for, I’m positive that Mr. Rittsman will press charges. The stress of a trial, along with your betrayal— that’ll kill him before the cancer does, I’m sure. Unless you tell me now, and we can deal with it much, much more discreetly. Wouldn’t that be better? For him, and for you.”

  “I…” Amy hesitated. “No. I’m here for Derek. I don’t have anything to hide. I don’t have anything to tell.”

  “If that’s what you’re sticking with.” His voice dropped. “Miss Parker, I’m going to tear your life apart. You are going down.”

  “Why?” She sounded nearly defeated, which crushed me. “Mr. Harrison, please. I have done nothing against you, or Walter, or Derek.”

  I decided it was time to intervene. I opened the door, glaring coldly at Marshall.

  “Marshall,” I said. “I thought you were leaving.”

  “Just having a few words with Miss Parker,” he said, a fake smile on his thin, dry lips. “She had a few questions regarding legal matters.”

  “Right,” I said, my voice flat. “Goodnight, sir.”

  He took the cue, and left quickly.

  I looked at Amy. She was as pale as a ghost, sweaty and trembling. I had half a mind to follow Marshall and hit the smirk off his lips for harassing Amy like this.

  “How much of that did you hear?” Amy asked, looking like she was about to cry.

  “Enough to gather the tone of the conversation. I’m so sorry, Amy. He’s a snake. He’s always been despicable. He’s envious, I think, of anyone who gets close to my father.”

  “Derek,” she said, “I know we’ve talked a lot about what we’re doing. And I finally decided that it’s the right thing. But is it the legal thing?”

  “You won’t end up in jail,” I said, hoping that was comforting. “You won’t end up in court, either. Marshall is just trying to scare you into confessing something. He won’t be happy until he hears what he wants to hear.”

  “If you’re sure,” Amy said.

  I pulled her into a tight hug, showing more confidence than I felt.

  “I am.”

  Chapter 22

  Derek


  Saturday. Our final day in my father’s home.

  “What do you want to do today?” I asked Amy, after spending a leisurely morning in bed. We sat out on the back porch, on a swing that faced the large courtyard and garden. “Anything you want. It’s our last day here.”

  “Hmm.” Amy kicked her feet out, thinking. “I don’t know. You know, I’m not sure I’ll know how to return to real life after all this.”

  I laughed. “No? Why not?”

  “Uh, because, look at this.” She gestured her hand around. “This never existed in my life before. I don’t know how I’m going to go back to my boring old life, having experienced so much of this one.” She shrugged. “I’m not complaining. Just saying. This was amazing. I can’t thank you enough for letting me into your life this week.”

  I wanted nothing more than to fall to my knees and tell her, beg her, to stay. Explain that she didn’t have to go back. That I never wanted to let her go.

  “Of course,” I said. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me and my father.”

  We fell back into silence. There was some tension between us. It was caused by the uncertainty of our future. Questions loomed. What are we? What will we be?.

  “Want to take a walk in the garden?”

  “That sounds lovely.”

  I stood up, and took her hand in mine. Holding her hand had become so natural. It wasn’t an act. It was genuine.

  We headed into the garden, which was set up like a maze. Easy to get lost in.

  “What’s your favorite flower?” I asked her, in an attempt to lighten the mood.

  “Hmm.” She thought for several moments. “Daffodils.”

  “Which one are those again?”

  “They’re small and yellow. What about you?”

  “What about me?”

  “You’re favorite flower, duh.”

  I laughed. “I don’t have one.”

  She clicked her tongue. “Well, why not?”

  I shrugged. “Guess I never really thought about it.”

  We were quiet for a few moments, before Amy sighed.

  “I really love it here,” she said. “It’s grand.”

  “You’ve helped me to see it through new eyes,” I told her. “I appreciate it a lot more than I used to.”

  “That’s good.” She smiled. “And we had a hell of a week, didn’t we? I feel like I lived a lifetime in a few days. I’m going to need a recovery period.”

  I chuckled. “It was an extraordinary week for me, too. And not a single fight with my father. That’s a first.”

  “You two really seem to be getting along now.”

  “Much better. I have you to thank for that.”

  “I don’t know what I did. You two just needed a little push. Besides, I think he’s wonderful. A little grumpy, but once you get past that, he’s basically the most lovable old man ever.”

  “I don’t know what you did either,” I admitted. “But a complete change has come over him, I can assure you. He used to be pretty nasty, to almost everyone that came here. But you show up, and poof! I can’t explain it.”

  “I mean, I know that a big part of is it that he thinks we’ve made him a grandfather.” Amy’s voice suddenly changed, like it always did whenever we talked about this subject. “His final wish came true. His fear of his family not carrying on after him has been fixed. He believes we’re going to live happily ever after.”

  “Amy,” I said, sensing her mood dropping. “You don’t know how miserable he was before. You really did save him a great deal of pain.”

  “If you say so,” she said, but she didn’t sound sure.

  “I’ll transfer the money tonight,” I said. It was the only thing I could think to say. The words escaped awkwardly, forced.

  Amy looked at me strangely. “What?”

  “The fifty grand I promised you. A deal is a deal. You did what I asked.”

  “No, Derek. I don’t want your money.”

  “I’m a man of my word.” I shrugged, turning away. “I know you didn’t do this for money, Amy. But I still want you to have it. I want to help you.”

  “What the hell?” She grabbed my arm. “What’s wrong with you? You’re acting really weird all of a sudden.”

  “I’m not.” My shoulders rose defensively. “I just don’t want you to think that I’m stiffing you. I told you I’d pay you, and I’m going to.”

  “And I’m telling you not to. I don’t want it. And I’m not trying to be ungrateful.” She shook her head. “What the fuck would I even do with that much money?”

  “Christ, Amy. I don’t care. Pay for college, or rent, or go on a shopping spree. Money is money. It’s meant to make you more comfortable. So do whatever makes you happy.” I was suddenly angry—but not at her.

  “Listen. I’m a businessman. I offered this money for your help. I’m going to pay you. I don’t want it to come back and bite me in the ass.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” her eyes narrowed. “Are you saying that you think I’m going to come sue you or something?”

  “What?” My voice rose, incredulous.

  “How else would it ‘bite you in the ass?’ Do you really think I’d be like, oh, he said he was gonna pay me, but he didn’t, blah blah blah… is that what you think of me?”

  “No,” I said. “All I mean is…” I wasn’t sure what I meant. “Not that. I know you wouldn’t do that.”

  “Then why is this such a big deal?”

  I took a deep breath. “It’s not. So you should just take the fucking money.”

  “I don’t know how many times I have to repeat myself.” She looked away. “And you don’t have to be so rude.”

  “Rude? I’m not trying to be rude.”

  “Yeah, well, you are. So lay off.”

  “Amy…” Guilt pierced me when I recognized the hurt in her eyes.

  She was angry now. “No. You know how much I struggled with this. How much I went back and forth trying to decide if we were doing the right thing. I finally thought, yeah. I’m helping you. I’m helping your father. Because I wanted to. If I take your money, all this becomes about that. It becomes wrong.”

  “I don’t understand why.”

  “Because,” she said. “Doing something for money and doing something because it’s the right thing are two very different things.”

  “But no one is saying you’re doing it for the money,” I explained. “No one. You helped me out, so I’m trying to help you. That’s all.”

  “Yeah, well, thank you, Derek. But you’ve already helped me in ways more valuable than money.” She looked at me, sighed, and managed a small smile. “I don’t want to argue with you anymore, okay? It’s pointless. I just want to enjoy the day with you.”

  I studied her, then nodded. “Okay.”

  My phone rang. I glanced at it. It was work.

  “I have to take this,” I said.

  Amy pretended to pout. “Alright. But be quick.”

  ‘It wasn’t quick. Almost half an hour later, I hung up, and returned to her.

  “What’s wrong?” she frowned, seeing the unhappy expression on my face.

  “The firm. They say they need me. Apparently it’s an emergency.”

  Amy’s face fell, crushing me. “Oh.”

  “Yeah. There was a business trip to Maine, which I didn’t go on because I thought they’d be able to cope without me. Someone said something to the press and ticked a bunch of people off. Now I have to go set it straight. I have to fly out and I won’t be back until tomorrow morning. I tried to tell them I couldn’t make it, but they wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

  “Okay,” Amy said, her voice quiet. I could tell that things were still a little tense between us.

  “I messaged Adam. He’s going to pick me up. I should get ready.”

  Amy nodded, but didn’t say anything more. She followed me back into the house, and up the stairs to my bedroom, where she sat on the bed and watched me pack my work clothes.r />
  My frustration had built. What I wouldn’t do to forget about work, to stay here, to comfort Amy, to make everything good between us. Now that our week together was coming to an end, something had changed between us, and I wasn’t sure how to remedy it. Voicing my feelings would only make it worse. The right course of action was to just let her go.

  “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” I told Amy, once I had everything ready and Adam had messaged me that he was at the door. “Tomorrow morning. We’ll do something together, just you and me, before we leave, okay?”

  Amy nodded, a polite smile on her face. “Yeah. That sounds good.” But her words fell flat.

  I walked over, and kissed her on the lips, hard. She responded, wrapping her fingers in my shirt and pulling me into her. We kissed for several seconds, before I pulled away, using all of my willpower. For the first time in my life, I truly hated my job. All I wanted to do was crawl into bed with this woman, to live whatever time I had left with her to the fullest.

  “Tomorrow,” I said. The word sounded like a promise.

  “Tomorrow,” she said, as I opened the door and left her.

  That evening, in the backseat of Adam’s vehicle on the way to the airport, I transferred the money to Amy. I thought it might make me feel better, but for some reason, it left me unsettled.

  Chapter 23

  Amy

  The rest of the day drew out. I found a book in Derek’s room that he recently had finished. It was a crime mystery novel that I never would have picked up myself, but once I got into it, I found myself enjoying the story. It distracted me, at least, from the unhappiness that had settled into my chest.

  I’d had the most amazing week. I wasn’t ready to leave.

  I heard the back door open, and glanced up from my book.

  It was Walter, but something was wrong. He looked infuriated. He was followed by a smirking Marshall Harrison, and two large men that I hadn’t seen before, wearing vests that had “SECURITY” printed in bold letters on the front.

  Setting the book down on the small, glass table by the chair, I stood up, frowning. “Is something wrong?”

  “We have a couple of questions to ask you, Amy,” Walter said, his voice pained. “It’s in your best interest to answer them honestly.”