The Widow of Papina

by Katie Hamstead

  My hand wrapped around the bar of the cell as my jaw tightened. “I know about my husband’s past, Sheriff, if you’re implying I don’t.”

  He shook his head. “No, I just—”

  “His ‘kidnapping’ was taking his sisters and running away because his stepfather sexually abused them. His stepfather pressed the charges, and his drunk mother let it happen because she had no idea.

  “When they were all forced to return home, Forrest moved into his sisters’ room. So, his stepfather beat him. Forrest fought back, and when he knocked him unconscious, Forrest took his sisters and ran again.

  “That time, they weren’t forced to go back because his sisters spoke out and said Forrest defended them, so they were moved into a foster home off the Reservation.

  “Since then, Forrest has been very protective of women, and the only time I’ve ever seen him snap was when some moron groped me. You probably saw those assault charges, too.”

  The sheriff leaned back and sighed. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”

  “Well, you did.” I folded my arms, scowling as I looked back at the girl curled up in the cell. “Forrest is a good man. He wouldn’t hurt her.”

  “The other thing we’ve been thinking is she did something to him.”

  I huffed. “I doubt that. Look at the size of her. Forrest is a strong man.”

  “All the evidence is pointing to something happening between them before they both disappeared. But, without her talking, we have nothing to go with unless we find something else.”

  “Something else?” My stomach tightened, knowing what he meant. Forrest’s body.

  “We’re going to have to keep her in custody.”

  I turned to him. “No. There’s no way she did anything to him, and there’s no way he did anything to her. There has to be some other explanation.”

  The sheriff raised his eyebrows. “Mrs. Miller—”

  “She can stay with me. I know she’s in need of a safe home, so she could—”

  “No.” He folded his arms. “You’re vulnerable right now, with a baby and the pain of your missing husband. She could take advantage of you. Steal your money and run off, anything. She doesn’t have a good track record.”

  “I need someone else around the house, and I know Forrest would want me to help her. She’s not a criminal.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “You want to pay bail when the tribe refuses to?”

  “I’ll pay it.”

  He shook his head. “All right. It’s $25,000.”

  I took in a sharp breath. I didn’t have that. “I’ll need to work out a loan.”

  “Mrs. Miller—”

  “I could probably refinance the house . . . ”

  “Braydon . . . ”

  “Or, I could sell the car—”

  “Bray!” He caught my arms, making me look at him. “You’re not getting a loan.”

  “I won’t let her—”

  He grabbed his keys. “Take her home and pay me off when you can.” He unlocked the door and swung it open. “I can’t believe I’m doing this.”

  He walked across and stood over her. She didn’t flinch. He spoke firmly to her in the tribe’s language, but she still didn’t move. He reached down and tugged her to her feet. “She’s paying your bail so you better be nice to her. No stealing, you hear?”

  She shot him a filthy look before dropping her gaze back to her feet.

  He led her past me and into the office area. “Mrs. Miller, this girl’s name is Nova Garcia. Her criminal record consists of eight counts of theft and two of robbery, one armed. Are you sure you want to take her home?”

  “She’s not carrying now, is she?”

  “No.”

  “Then, she’ll be fine. We don’t keep guns in our house.”

  He paused and raised an eyebrow. “You should get one now.”

  “No.”

  He rolled his eyes. “You’re one of those types.”

  I scowled. “The type that believes violence breeds violence?”

  He shoved Nova into a chair. “This is not a debate I want to have with you. I’m telling you now that you should invest in a handgun to keep with you, because I know that if she gets her hand on one, she’ll gladly use it to rob you.”

  I glanced down at her as she stared blankly ahead. “I won’t have guns in my house, Sheriff, and that goes for you, too, Nova.”

  She raised her eyebrow but didn’t say a word or look up at me.

  He grunted and pulled out some papers. “Fill this out, Mrs. Miller.”

  I leaned over the desk to fill out the form.

  He slipped a second one beside it. “This form will make you her legal guardian. I’d recommend thinking about it for a few days first, to make sure she’s not—”

  I snatched the paper from him and filled it out, signing at the bottom.

  “Braydon, I don’t think you should be so impulsive about this.”

  “Forrest would want me to take care of her until she’s back to normal.”

  “Forrest?” He straightened. “Mrs. Miller, I think your emotional state is affecting your reasonability.”

  I glared at him and slid the paper across. “File it.”

  He grabbed it. “I won’t file it with the tribe or state for a few days, just in case you change your mind.”

  “I won’t change my mind.”

  He grunted and turned away from me, slipping the papers into a folder.

  I turned to Nova. “Let’s go home.”

  She folded her arms and pursed her lips.

  “Nova, I’ll give you your own room, all I expect from you is to help with some chores.”

  She rolled her eyes.

  The sheriff came around and pulled her to her feet. “You better behave for Mrs. Miller. If you so much as put a toe out of line I’ll bring you back in and lock you away again.”

  I frowned at him. “Where’s the Res school?”

  His brow twitched. “They don’t want her back at the school until this is solved. She’s considered a risk to the others.”

  I groaned, pressing on my temple. “I’m going to have to home school her. I’m glad I live in a town full of teachers.”

  He rubbed his eyes. “Let’s get you home.”

  We drove back in silence, and he walked us inside.

  Sarah jumped at the sight of Nova and gasped. “What’s going on?”

  “Mrs. Miller is taking Nova here in for a while,” he said, his tone curt and irritated.

  I ignored him. “Nova, I’ll show you to your room.”

  The four rooms were all being used—one as a nursery, one the office, and one the master bedroom—so the only one left, Sarah had been using.

  I rushed in and gathered up her things, then moved them into the office. I gestured for Nova to go in.

  She stepped in and looked around, scowling.

  “It’s not much,” I said. “The whole place is still being fixed up, but you can decorate it how you like, and tomorrow we can go get your—”

  She slammed the door in my face and locked it.

  “Things,” I finished. I turned and walked down the hallway, and paused to peek in on Jackson to make sure he was safe. He lay sound asleep.

  I headed down the stairs, my heart heavy, when the sheriff talking to Sarah caught my attention.

  “Take this,” he whispered. “I don’t want any surprises. Watch them closely, especially the baby. If she’s hiding Forrest somewhere, she might want to take the baby, too. Or, if they ran off together, he might have sent her to get the baby. The whole thing is suspicious, especially with her just showing up.”

  I leaned over the rail to see into the kitchen.

  Sarah stood wit
h a gun in her hand. “I’ll take care of them, I promise.”

  “Thank you. I don’t want more missing people on my hands, and Braydon is not acting rationally right now.”

  Sarah tucked the gun into her jeans and pulled her shirt out to cover it. “I won’t let Bray know I have it.”

  “You’ve been a real life-saver through all this. I really appreciate it.”

  She stepped forward and touched his hand. “Paul . . . ”

  He stepped back. “I need to get back to the station.”

  He turned toward the door.

  I hurried to look like I was just making my way down.

  He jumped when he saw me, but pulled on his hat. “I’ll keep in touch.”

  “Thank you.”

  He rushed out the door.

  I rested my hands on my hips and glared after him, furious he would go against my wishes and give Sarah a gun in my house. I marched into the kitchen where I flopped onto a chair.

  “You all right?” she asked, sitting beside me.

  “No.” I groaned. “I just want Forrest back. When he gets back, everything will go back to normal.”

  She grabbed my hand and squeezed it. “Why did you bring the girl home?”

  A bubble of anger popped in my chest. “Her name is Nova, and she is my only link to Forrest, so I’m going to do everything I can to help her. She’s not a criminal; she’s just a confused young girl who’s lived a rough life, just like Forrest did.” I shot to my feet. “I’m going to bed.”

  “Bray . . . ”

  I ignored her and marched back up the stairs. But, at the top, I stopped. The sheriff’s words ate at me; she might want to take the baby.

  I slipped into the nursery and picked up Jackson. I hurried back into my room and set him in the bassinette, then locked the door.

  It didn’t show Nova that I trusted her at all, but I didn’t want to risk Jackson disappearing, too. As much as I didn’t want to admit it to myself—because I believed my relationship with Forrest to be strong—if he had run off with someone else, then he would eventually come back for Jackson.

  I forced those thoughts aside. I couldn’t think like that. Forrest was going to come back, and Nova was my key.

  Chapter 7

  I woke to the sounds of Jackson fussing. Leaning over, I pulled the bassinette closer, then slid him in bed beside me. I dozed as he nursed, until Sarah screamed. I sat up, which caused Jackson to cry as she pounded on my door. “Bray!”

  I covered myself and hurried over to let her in. “What—?”

  “That horrible girl left us a surprise in the bathroom.” She grabbed my arm and tugged me down the hallway.

  I gasped as I stepped in. The walls were covered in swearing and racial slurs about whites, all written in . . . “Is that poop?’

  “Yes!” Sarah exclaimed as she squirmed. “She reached into the toilet, and cussed us out in her own sh—”

  “Sarah, don’t lower yourself to that level.” I stepped in to assess the situation. “Well, I guess she’s cleaning the bathroom today.”

  “She’s gone.”

  I swung around to her. “What do you mean?”

  “She split during the night. It looks like she climbed out the window and down the tree in the front yard.”

  “Oh no she didn’t.”

  I hurried back to my room and plucked up Jackson.

  “I have some pumped milk in the freezer. He’s about halfway through a feed.” I handed him to her, then rushed down the stairs.

  “Bray, where are you going?”

  I pulled open the closet by the door, and plucked out my coat. “To get Nova back.”

  I slammed the door shut behind me.

  It didn’t take me long to find her, I just followed the trail of irritated people into the grocery store. I burst in to find her slipping a packet of jerky under her sweater. Grabbing her wrist, I pulled the jerky free. “If you want this, you have to earn it.”

  She glared at me.

  “Do you have anything else?”

  She pursed her lips, so I frisked her. She slapped me across the head.

  Patrick yelled, “Hey! You treat her with some respect, you little brat.”

  I pulled out a packet of gum and my wallet. “This is ending today,” I said, waving my wallet in her face. “You’re going to clean up that mess in my bathroom, and you’re going to start learning some respect.”

  She rolled her eyes.

  “Don’t you dare roll your eyes at me!” I opened my wallet and shoved the picture of Forrest in her face. “I know you have a giant crush on my husband, so why don’t you show him some respect.”

  She flinched and pulled back.

  “Do you know where he is?”

  She pursed her lips as her chin quivered.

  I grabbed her arm. “Come on, you have work to do.”

  Back at the house, we stood by the bathroom door staring in. “You’re cleaning the whole thing, including scrubbing the toilet and the shower. This place will be spotless.”

  She made a strange strangled sound as she fought to suppress what she wanted to say.

  “Say it,” I snapped. “You wrote it all over the walls with perfect spelling, so just say it.”

  She glared at me and pulled the bucket of cleaning supplies from my hands, then slammed the door in my face.

  I bubbled with rage and yelled, “Next time you slam a door I’ll, I’ll . . .” I paused to think. “I’ll buy cloth diapers and make you wash them all by hand.”

  She punched the door.

  “If you break anything, including that door, you’ll be cleaning up the yard until I’m satisfied you’ve paid it off.”

  She snarled before I heard the water running.

  I folded my arms. There was no way she would trash my house and get away with it. I marched down the stairs. Sarah sat in the kitchen with Jackson on a blanket having tummy time. I huffed as I sunk into the chair. “I don’t know how Forrest does it.”

  Sarah shuffled up beside me, handing me a mug of hot chocolate. “Next best thing to coffee while nursing.”

  “Thank you.” I sipped at it, letting the warmth relax me. “She’ll bring Forrest back, I just know it.” I dropped my head onto the small table.

  She stroked my hair. “I hope so.”

  ~ ~ ~

  The next few weeks an endless battle ensued. Nova’s defiance knew no bounds, but I lost it when she stole all the pictures of Forrest around the house and stashed them away.

  Sarah and I searched everywhere for them, until we finally found them buried in the back corner of the backyard. We dug them out and cleaned them off.

  While Sarah replaced them on the walls, I charged into Nova’s room. “Why would you do that?”

  She covered her face with her pillow.

  “Nova, answer me.” I pulled the pillow away. “Why did you do that? There were wedding photos. You could have destroyed them.”

  She scoffed.

  “This is getting ridiculous.” I sunk into the armchair by the window. “I’m going to sit here until you communicate with me in some way other than surly looks.”

  She shrugged and rolled over.

  Hours passed as I sat there and we both dozed in and out of sleep. Finally, she woke me and handed me a piece of paper. I opened it and read the bold letters, “I hate you.”

  She sank onto the bed beside me and folded her arms.

  I looked at her. “Is that it? All you can say is that you hate me?”

  She gave a sharp nod.

  “But, you think you’re in love with my husband.”

  She tensed as her gaze shot to me.

  “I’m not an idiot.” I stood and tossed the paper on h
er bed. “You couldn’t look at those photos because it was me with him and you couldn’t bear it.”

  Her chin quivered.

  “You hate me because he loves me.”

  Her glare shot to me the moment before she leapt at me, screaming. I grabbed her wrists as she went for my eyes and kicked out at me. I pushed her back onto the bed and pinned her down. She struggled underneath me, screaming her lungs out.

  Sarah burst in and gasped. “What’s going on?”

  Nova spat at her.

  I grabbed her mouth. “Enough! I’m done with this. Do you really want to go back into the system? Do you really want Sheriff Davis to come take you back and stick you in the Res’ juvie? Because, all of this tells me that you would prefer that to here. But, let me tell you something, Nova, I believe in what Forrest is working to do. I know he sees something in you worth saving, so I don’t want to let Sheriff Davis take you in. I know you asked Forrest to come live with us, so here you are.”

  Her struggling came to an abrupt halt. She stared up at me, her eyes narrowing. Her body relaxed as she looked away.

  I climbed off and sat beside her. “I don’t want to fight with you. Can we find some way to get along?”

  A tear escaped from her eye, but she wiped it away, rolling to face the wall.

  I sighed, knowing I’d made some progress with her. “We’re going to have dinner at six if you want to join us.”

  I stood and nodded to Sarah as I passed through the door.

  That night, for the first time, Nova joined us for dinner.

  ~ ~ ~

  Banging on the door snapped me out of my sleep. I rushed downstairs and opened it. “Mom?”

  “Oh Bray!” She threw her arms around me, sobbing. “You haven’t answered my emails or calls in weeks. I’ve been so worried, so I called the sheriff and he told me about Forrest and I caught the first flight up here.”