The Widow of Papina

by Katie Hamstead

  A few minutes passed, and Paul emerged with Nova, a tracker around her ankle. I stared at it, my jaw hanging, and Paul said, “She’s on house arrest. She’s considered high risk of flight . . . with her history.”

  I sighed and stood, resting my hand on her shoulder. “Nova?”

  She stared at her feet.

  I stroked her hair. “Nova, I know you didn’t hurt Forrest, so please, please tell them what happened.”

  Her body quivered as tears streamed down her face.

  I tucked her hair behind her ear. “Oh Nova, let’s go home.”

  The ride home was dead silent.

  Paul pulled into our driveway, and Nova rushed straight inside. I watched her go and rubbed my eyes. “I think I’ll call it a day.”

  He nodded. “I have to set up the perimeter monitors.”

  We climbed out and I hurried inside. The stroller was gone, and so were my parents. Nova’s music blared down the stairs, so I walked up and tapped on her door. “Nova?”

  The door flew open and she stared up at me.

  “Can we talk?”

  She shook her head and slammed the door in my face. She turned up the music, but I still heard her sobs. My heart ached for her, but if I pressed her, I’d only make matters worse. She’d spent days being interrogated, she didn’t need me to do it, too.

  I plodded down the stairs, discouraged and heavyhearted. Exhausted, I collapsed on the couch in the front room and saw a missed call on my phone. Megan. I called. “Hey, did you wanna talk?”

  “I’m out right now with my arms a bit full,” she said in a bright voice. “I can drop by in about an hour. Is that okay?”

  “That’s fine,” I sighed, not really wanting the company right then anyway.

  “How did it go?” she asked, the brightness in her voice dimming.

  “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Okay. Well, if you need some time I can visit tomorrow instead?”

  “Maybe. That wouldn’t upset you?”

  “No, hon. I understand. If you do need something I’m just a phone call away.”

  “Thanks, Megan. Bye.” I hung up and let my arm fall on the couch. My head throbbed and Nova’s loud music didn’t help.

  The door clicked, and Paul poked his head in. “Hey, you should know where her perimeter is.”

  I nodded and slipped off the couch.

  He led me to the four corners of the yard and explained she would get three beeps for warning if she crossed over, before an alarm would sound and he or Clint would be called in, soon followed by the Feds.

  “I guess no trips to the store or Megan’s for her anymore.” I plodded up onto the back porch, sinking down into the armchair.

  “You look exhausted.” He sat in the chair beside me.

  I scoffed. “I’m worn out. Today just feels like it’s been one thing after another, and the worst part is, I feel guilty I haven’t been putting something together for Jackson’s birthday next month. What kind of person does that, worries about a birthday party when her husband’s a victim of an unsolved murder and she’s housing his prime suspect?”

  My head fell into my hands. “Most of my friends are all still partying their lives away, while I’m here living like this.”

  His hand rested on the back of my head, and his fingers ran through my hair. To my surprise, his touch made me shudder. I turned my head to look at him.

  He smiled, and brushed my hair back from my face. “You worry because you’re the kind of person who cares with your whole heart. You want what’s best for your son, and you know Forrest would want that too. You still want to do things that make Forrest happy, so you want to raise his son for him while also continuing his work with Nova. There aren’t many people who love others that much and fight so hard for them.”

  He smiled and leaned toward me, brushing his knuckles against my cheek. “You’re so strong, and such a fighter, and I just love you so much.”

  I gasped and leaned back. “What?”

  His gaze dropped. “I love you, Bray. I know I probably shouldn’t, but I do. I’m not going to expect anything from you. I know you’re still grieving and dealing with everything, but I wanted you to know that I’m helping you not because I feel I owe it to Forrest, but because I want to spend time with you.”

  He stood and slipped his hat on, staring across the yard. “If you have any questions about the perimeter, just give me a call.” And, just like that, he walked off the porch and out the side gate.

  I sat staring at the gate, my jaw gaping. I couldn’t move, I couldn’t even think properly. Had he really just confessed that he loved me?

  I didn’t know how long I sat there, but when the gate opened again I jumped, my heart fluttering for a moment, before Mom pushed the stroller through.

  She smiled across at me and nodded upstairs. “You got Nova back then.”

  I blushed, wondering why I’d hoped Paul had returned. “Yes, sort of. She’s under house arrest so can’t leave.” I hurried to help Mom and Dad while explaining the details to them.

  Chapter 16

  The teachers at the boarding school organized a day of sports and recreation on the abandoned campus. I wished I could bring Nova; she hadn’t left her room for more than a few moments for meals and showers.

  Mom and Dad left again, as they could no longer take time off work, and promised to fly up for the weekend of Jackson’s birthday. That was several weeks ago, and now Jackson’s birthday was only a week away. The summer flew by, and I couldn’t believe it when my one-year anniversary of living in Papina passed.

  I stood with Megan while our boys played with a ball in front of us. The whole town was out on the fields playing soccer, Frisbee, softball, basketball, track and field, and on a lower level, the archery had been set up.

  “Is this a regular thing?” I asked Megan.

  She nodded. “It’s a little later this year, but why do you think they were so efficient at dividing us all into teams?”

  I smirked, thinking about the five minutes it took to divide the whole town into four teams.

  “Do you want to do anything?” she asked. “I can watch Jackson for a few minutes.”

  “No, it’s okay.”

  Paul ran to second base. When he reached it and pulled to a halt, he glanced across at me.

  I averted my eyes. I’d been avoiding him for weeks, but although he’d given me space, he was never far away to help me when I needed it.

  “Well, to be honest, I want to force Clint to do the three-legged race with me in about an hour, so I was hoping you’d say yes so I wouldn’t feel guilty about dumping Donny on you.”

  Looking at Megan, I laughed. “Fine. I’ll go find something to do.”

  I wandered off, not really sure what I felt like doing. I gave shot put a try, but ended up feeling like an idiot with my lack of technique, so moved on. Eventually, I found myself looking down at the archery. Yes, archery. Forrest taught me with his handmade bow, and I could actually do it. It would be nice to do something he’d done with me.

  I hurried down the stairs and grabbed a bow. There were only two other people down there, a retired couple, so the peace and quiet helped with my confidence.

  I raised the bow, lined up the arrow and shot. Second ring. Not good enough. I shot again and hit the edge of the target. I grunted, annoyed. I shot all six of the arrows, and didn’t bull’s eye once. I huffed and waited for the couple to finish their arrows so I could retrieve mine.

  “Bray?”

  Paul stepped up beside me, holding a bow. “Hey, Sheriff.”

  His eyebrow twitched as he turned toward the target and lined up his first arrow. “I’m not much of a bow and arrow guy myself,” he said and released the arrow. It flew through the air and hit the
bull’s eye.

  I grunted in disgust.

  “I prefer guns actually.” He plucked up another arrow and it landed right up against the first one.

  “Looks like your aim is good either way,” I muttered.

  He grinned and embedded a third arrow right along with the others. “It just takes a good eye and some practice.”

  We fell silent as he fired the last few, all of them somehow squishing together in the bull’s eye. The couple had finished by then, so we all walked over to pull out our arrows. One of mine dug itself deeply in, and I struggled and tugged at it to get it out. Paul watched me with a smirk.

  “Stop it,” I grumbled.

  He chuckled and stepped forward, yanking it out like a knife in butter. I glared at him and snatched it out of his hand. I looked back at the target to grab my last arrow and paused. The hole looked like the holes in Forrest’s back. I winced and jumped back as his battered body filled my mind.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I’m just seeing things. The hole from the arrow reminded me of the holes in . . . ” I bit my lip.

  He stepped forward and looked at it, before looking at the arrows in his hand. “They took Forrest’s bow and arrows, didn’t they?”

  “Yes . . . ” I glanced down at the arrows in my hand and tossed them down. “Argh, you don’t think . . . ?”

  He leaned over and picked them up. “There’s nothing that connects any of the students here to it, except your ex’s cousin, but that was cleared up quickly.”

  He looked the arrows over. “But, several tribes’ people own them, for cultural purposes. We could suggest the detective look around and see if maybe one of Nova’s previous foster families owns one, or one of his other students.”

  We walked back while he pulled out his phone and spoke to the detective. By the time he finished, the couple left, leaving us alone. I turned away, plucking up an arrow. But, I couldn’t shoot it. I sighed, slumping.

  He stepped up beside me and shot an arrow into the bull’s eye again. “Get back on the horse, Bray.”

  “Huh?”

  He looked at me with a smile. “Don’t let the connection bother you. It may not even be what happened.”

  I stared down at the bow hanging loosely at my side. He stepped closer and rested his hand over mine. My breath caught as I froze, but my heartbeat sped up.

  “You’ve been avoiding me.”

  I swung away from him. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “I get that, but can’t you at least let me back in? I thought we were friends.”

  I gnawed on my lip, turning back to him. His eyes widened slightly, before I dropped my gaze to the ground. “I don’t know how I feel about what you told me. It feels so soon, so fast.”

  “I’m not expecting anything from you—”

  “Then, why did you tell me?”

  He sighed. “Because, I wanted you to know how much I care about you, and like I said, I wanted you to know I’m helping you for you.”

  My cheeks burned. “I can’t, I don’t . . . ”

  He touched my cheek. “I know, Bray.”

  I looked up into his eyes, butterflies filling my belly. I couldn’t feel that way! What about Forrest?

  As he caressed my face I took a deep breath, enjoying his tender touch. His other hand rested on my hip, pulling me closer. “Don’t push me away,” he whispered as he leaned closer to my ear. “I’m patient and I know how much you love Forrest. You need time, and I want to be here when you’re ready.”

  My heart pounded so hard I thought it would leap from my chest. My hand involuntarily lifted and rested on his pecs, slowly moving up his neck onto his cheek. I looked into his face and he smiled with hope in his eyes. I pushed away from him. “You shouldn’t . . . who knows if I’ll ever be ready? I have so much baggage. I just . . . no. I can’t let you wait for me.”

  I spun and hurried up the hill.

  At the top, Megan met me, with Donny and Jackson in a small cart. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you. Did you have to choose archery where you were so hidden away?”

  “Sorry. I’m not very athletic, so I didn’t want people watching me make an idiot of myself.” I grabbed the handle.

  She rolled her eyes, but smiled. “Come on, with looks like yours, you must have been a cheerleader or a dancer.”

  I snorted. “No, I wasn’t considered attractive until college. I was a huge nerd.”

  A wide grin spread across her face. “No way.”

  I shrugged. “Glasses and everything.”

  She chuckled, then glanced over my shoulder. Her eyebrows shot up and she looked back at me.

  I glanced back as Paul stepped up onto the last stair, his gaze fixed on me. I swung back around, feeling a flush coming on.

  “Bray,” she said in a low voice. “Did something happen between you two?”

  “No.” I pulled at the cart.

  “Something did happen!” She grasped my arm. “Come on, you have to tell me. I know you’ve been avoiding him. He complains to Clint about it all the time.”

  I grunted and pulled free of her arm so I could hurry away.

  She followed. “He told you, didn’t he? I told him not to tell you too soon, but—”

  “Don’t you need to be somewhere?”

  She grinned. “Yes. We’ll finish this when I’m done.”

  She trotted away.

  I groaned and made my way to the bleachers. Sarah met me along the way with a wide smile. “This is fun, isn’t it?”

  I forced a smile. “Yeah.”

  We reached the bleachers. She plucked Donny up so we could climb the stairs. “I was on the track team in High School, so it’s fun to still be able to experience these things. I was always best at high jump and hurdles.”

  “I can see them going hand in hand,” I replied as I lifted Jackson up onto my hip.

  We walked up a few levels and sat together.

  “Have you done anything?” she asked.

  “Just some archery.”

  “Really? I totally had you pegged as a powder puff girl.”

  I snorted. “Gross.”

  She giggled, then cut herself off as she sat up. “Paul’s coming this way. We usually do the three-legged race together.”

  I clung tighter to Jackson, hoping that was the only reason he was heading right for us.

  “Sarah?”

  “Yeah?” She turned and smiled at me.

  “Have you ever liked anyone other than Paul? I was told you’ve liked him since high school.”

  She blushed and giggled. “No. I’ve loved him since . . . ” She trailed off as her eyes lifted and she smiled. “Paul, are we . . . ?”

  He grabbed my arm and gave me a sharp tug.

  “Ouch!”

  “Sarah, watch Jackson for her?” he asked.

  Sarah’s jaw hung open. “But, we usually—”

  “Bray needs some cheering up.”

  I spun back to him. “But . . . ”

  He pulled me down the stairs behind him.

  We dashed across the field where we stopped beside Megan and Clint. She winked at me. I glared at her, knowing this had to be her idea. I looked up at Paul. “You know, I’m not much of a runner.”

  “So?” He wrapped his arm around my shoulder as a rope was tied around our ankle and another around our knees, joining us together.

  “So? I have the coordination of a . . . something bad . . . ”

  He laughed.

  “And, I could probably be outrun by a sloth.”

  He lifted me under my arm and I yelped with surprise. “I’ll carry you if I need to.”

  Megan giggled, and Clint elbowed her, cutting her off.<
br />
  Paul took me to the start line and set me down, with Megan and Clint to our right.

  Glancing toward the bleachers, I saw Sarah with the two boys on her lap. I felt awful. She just said she’s been in love with him for . . . well, she didn’t say how long, but she would have said a long time. Either way, she said love.

  But then, he’d said that to me.

  He squeezed my waist. “Are you ready?”

  I looked up at him. “No.”

  He grinned.

  A moment later, the starter gun fired.

  He tugged me off the line and I yelped. Megan and Clint flew ahead in perfect sync while I snarled. “Why are you making me do this?”

  He grinned, holding my arm firmly. “Come on, Bray. Just enjoy it.”

  “I just . . . argh!” I tripped and grabbed onto him.

  He laughed. “Okay, one step at a time. Inside leg.” He tapped on my leg joined to his.

  I lifted it and let him guide it. I let out a quick laugh as we took several steps. He held onto me, helping me get into a rhythm. Finally, we made progress, even though most people had finished.

  “I’m doing it!” I laughed. “I can’t believe I’m doing this!”

  He held me firmly around my shoulders as I let him guide my leg. “All you had to do was trust me.”

  I smiled. “Trust you won’t . . . ” I hesitated with my joined leg and I tripped.

  He scrambled to get hold of me, but I slipped out of his grip. I hit the ground and he landed on top of me. “Ouch.” But, I laughed. “You weigh a lot.”

  He chuckled. “Let’s just finish this race.”

  His arms wrapped around me and he lifted me. He carried me to the finish line where we came in dead last.

  He bent over to untie us as Megan rushed over. “Second! Best yet!”

  Clint stepped up beside her. “It helped that the usual winners didn’t compete.”