Bonds of Matrimony

by A C J McKechnie

  “None of them,” Pauline said as she shook her head, and Zach sighed once more while glancing wistfully at his rapidly cooling breakfast. As his gaze skimmed the windows he had another thought.

  “I think I know where she is,” he said and watched as Pauline sighed in relief.

  “You do? Thank goodness. Well, I’ll leave you to it then, Mr McCormack,” she said and bustled away before he could hand the responsibility of finding his wife back to his housekeeper.

  With another reluctant sigh, and a growl of frustration at the delay in starting his day, he marched downstairs, grabbed up his heavy coat and gloves, and headed out of the back door to the bench that he’d seen Ellie sitting on the day before.

  As he neared the area he slowed his steps and approached more slowly. She was there. Sitting as still as a statue in the cold November air with the snow falling around her, but she didn’t seem to be aware of her surroundings at all.

  He had no idea how long she might have been there, but guessed it was a fairly long time judging by the red nose and cheeks, as well as the layer of snow that was covering her in places. Concerned over why she wasn’t moving, even when he was standing next to her, Zach squatted down in front of her and took in her appearance more closely.

  As beautiful as his wife was, she looked terrible. Her luminous green eyes were red-rimmed, her cheeks tear-streaked, her nose was running, she had dark circles under her eyes as well, and her mass of curls were in even more disarray than usual for her. She looked like she hadn’t slept a wink. And she also looked like something had upset her terribly.

  Reaching for her hands, he noticed that she wasn’t wearing her gloves, scarf, or hat that she’d had on the day before. He could also feel how cold they were even through his own gloves and sucked in a sharp breath at the contact.

  Taking off his gloves quickly, he held her hands between his and tried to rub some warmth back into them. He had no idea what had happened, but he couldn’t let her sit outside and freeze to death like this.

  “Ellie?” he tried gently and watched as her eyes flickered towards him briefly, before focusing back on the gardens around her. “Ellie, honey, what’s happened?” he asked gently and watched as she looked at him in surprise and confusion before she shook her head slowly.

  Pulling her ice cold hands from his, she wiped at her face and quietly said, “Nothing.”

  “Clearly something has happened,” he tried but she just shook her head.

  “It’s nothing, Zachary,” she said, and he found himself surprised that she’d actually used his name for once when nobody else was around. Whenever they were alone she generally referred to him as Mr McCormack, so the term took him by surprise.

  “You can tell me,” he tried, and she just shook herself before looking around and then back down at him.

  “What are you doing out here?” she asked in confusion.

  “Pauline was worried that you weren’t in your bed,” he supplied and watched as she took in her surroundings once again.

  “What’s the time?”

  “A little after seven,” he answered and watched as her eyes widened.

  “I didn’t realize that it had gotten so late,” she said as she stood up, and Zach stopped her as she did so. When she’d changed position her coat had gaped open, and he slowly unbuttoned it, ignoring her attempts to push his hands away.

  “Ellie?” he asked in confusion and concern. “Why are you out here in just your pajamas, coat, and boots?” he tried, and she hastily redid the buttons on her coat.

  “I couldn’t sleep. I came out in the hope that I’d get tired enough to go back to bed,” she said quickly without looking at him.

  “How long have you been out here?” he asked more firmly, and she just shrugged.

  “I’m not sure. A few hours,” she finally replied, and he found himself getting angry at her.

  “Are you trying to make yourself ill?!” he yelled and watched as her back straightened and her lips pinched tightly together. “What were you thinking?!”

  “What do you care?” she gritted out at him with blazing eyes. “You’d probably be glad to see me dead!” she yelled, and Zach found himself taken by surprise at the pure venom behind the accusation. The venom and the absolute belief in her own words. “Sorry to disappoint you though, Mr McCormack, but this is one Kincaid you can’t get rid of that easily!” she snapped before storming off down the path, leaving Zach staring after her form in total confusion and shock.

  He had a feeling that there was some sort of clue in her words about what had upset her, but he had no idea what it was. And to be honest, he had enough to worry about without adding an understanding of his wife to his list.

  What the hell. He had over two years stuck with the woman, he was bound to figure her out somewhen in that time. It wasn’t important right now. It could wait.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “Are you alright?” a voice said, and Ellie looked up in surprise to her left to see the figure of a man standing there staring down at her in concern. Judging by his attire he was here to work in the garden, and she smiled at him as best that she could.

  “Just enjoying the peace and quiet. It’s a beautiful spot,” she explained and watched as the man smiled in return.

  “I shall take that as a compliment then.”

  “The gardener or the landscaper?” she asked in interest.

  “Landscaper,” he replied before indicating the space on the bench next to her. Nodding at him and shifting over slightly, Ellie waited for him to sit before she spoke again.

  “It’s so serene and beautiful. As soon as I spotted the bench I knew that I’d found my own personal haven,” she confessed wistfully.

  “Should I leave you to enjoy it in solitude?” he asked, and she shook her head.

  “No, it’s fine. Sometimes you can be on your own for too long, you know?” she asked and watched as he scrutinized her.

  “You’re all alone?” he queried, and she shrugged.

  “Feels like it at times,” she said sadly, and he studied her more closely.

  “You are Ellie though, aren’t you? The new Mrs McCormack?” he asked, and she smiled ruefully at that.

  “That’s me,” she said matter-of-factly.

  “Your husband is a busy man,” he said, and she nodded in agreement. “But I don’t think that’s what’s making you so sad, is it?” he inquired, and she shook her head. It had been almost a week since her father had died, died alone in his apartment, and she was still grieving. The police were still investigating, and she wished that they would just hurry up and answer the questions they had so that she could get on with it all.

  Unfortunately, Black Friday had meant that they’d been understaffed and all of the labs had been shut, unable to be opened for a simple case of suspected suicide. Then it had been the weekend. Now it was Tuesday, and she was hoping for any sort of information from the detective to ease her mind on it all. A whole five days since he’d died and she still didn’t have the answers which she wanted.

  Had her dad killed himself? Overdosed on prescription painkillers that they’d found in the apartment? Had he really taken his own life? And if so, why? Was it because he was alone? Was it her fault for leaving him? Was it because he’d had no way of supporting himself? Was she ultimately to blame for it all?

  As her thoughts of self-recrimination started up again so did the tears that accompanied them and she couldn’t help the sniffle that escaped as they started to flow more freely. Feeling a strong arm around her shoulders, Ellie instinctively turned into the chest of the man that had bothered to try to comfort and understand her, letting it all pour out.

  When she’d cried herself dry, she gently pushed away and found herself immediately released from the hold he’d had on her.

  “I’m sorry,” she said apologetically as she fished a tissue out of her pocket and wiped her face dry before blowing her nose.

  “Do you think you might tell me what happened?” he aske
d, and she inhaled a shuddering breath before answering him.

  “My dad died,” she said bluntly and felt his arm around her again.

  “I’m so sorry,” he said, and she could hear the sincerity in his words. “When?”

  “Thanksgiving,” she answered. “I spoke to him in the morning. Told him to come ‘round for the day but he refused. Said he’d made other plans with friends of ours. I should have insisted. If I had maybe he’d still be here,” she said and tried to blink back the tears again.

  “What happened?” he asked, and she shook her head.

  “They’re not sure. The neighbors called the police out when his TV was still on at one o’clock in the morning, and they found him dead. They haven’t determined the cause yet, but they’re investigating.”

  “Oh, Ellie,” he said with compassion, and she shrugged. “That’s what you meant about feeling alone, huh?” he inquired, and she shrugged again. “I take it that your mom died years ago?”

  “Yeah. She’d had a heart condition for all of her life though, so although it was sudden it wasn’t unexpected. In fact, she lived for a heck of a lot longer than anyone had ever predicted that she would. And she made the most out of her life as well, never knowing when it would be over. But Papa. He was always so strong. Always so able. Always so capable. And always there for me. He’d do anything for me. And he was all alone,” she said as the tears started again.

  “He’d lied to me,” she explained. “Lied that he had other plans. He didn’t. The neighbors thought that he was with me, I thought that he was with them. He wasn’t with anybody though. Didn’t want to be a burden. Didn’t want to be an unwanted guest. Didn’t want to intrude on anybody’s day. He thought that he wouldn’t be welcome,” she said quietly and looked over to see the confused look on the man’s face.

  “Zachary and my dad didn’t get on,” she elaborated. “Papa thought that he wouldn’t be welcome in the house for the holidays.”

  “He was wrong, Ellie. Zach wouldn’t have deprived you of your family.”

  “Zachary was supposed to be working anyway, but Papa still refused. Still wouldn’t come. Then when he said that the Lowensteins were expecting him and he couldn’t pull out last minute on them, I didn’t push it. I should have. I should have insisted that he come here. Or I should have gone there. Or something.”

  “You know, there’s a good chance that he still would have died, Ellie,” he said gently.

  “I don’t know, I don’t even know what killed him. Maybe he wouldn’t have. Maybe he would have been strong, or things would have been different. Maybe he wouldn’t have –,” she said before cutting herself off, not really wanting to voice out loud the possibility that her dad really had taken his own life. Shaking her head, she instead said, “All I do know is that he wouldn’t have been alone.”

  “He’d have known you loved him. I’ve only just met you and I know how much you love him, he was bound to know. It’s obvious to anybody how much you care. He might have been physically alone, but he’d have known how much you cared. That would have made a difference, knowing that you’re loved.”

  “I hope so,” she said quietly and felt him pull her closer against his side as he wrapped his other arm around her. Ellie stayed there, accepting comfort from a complete stranger as she ran everything through her mind again. She’d come to terms with the fact that her father was gone, but she needed to know why before she could completely settle everything in her mind.

  She wasn’t allowed to sort through the apartment until they’d gotten a definite answer on the cause of death. She couldn’t make any funeral arrangements. She couldn’t put him to rest. And she couldn’t stop her mind from wondering about it all.

  As the warmth of the man’s body warmed her, and the secure feel of his arms comforted her, Ellie found herself starting to drift off where she was. She hadn’t slept properly since she’d had the phone call from the police, her brain too busy sorting through all of her questions and regrets, and suddenly she felt so incredibly tired.

  When her eyes started to drift closed and her head lolled against his shoulder she knew that she should get up, but for the first time since she’d gotten married she felt comfortable, she felt safe and cared for, and she wasn’t going to give that up. Not when she needed it so much. And not when she didn’t have any hope of having it again anytime soon.

  * * *

  Something was definitely going on with his wife. As distant as Ellie had been since they’d gotten married, ever since the Friday after Thanksgiving there had been something even more going on with her. There was distant and then there was completely removed from her surroundings like she had been lately.

  Which was why Zach was actually home early for once. He needed to figure out what was going on with the woman. Not knowing what it meant was distracting him and driving him mad. He didn’t know if she had some sort of nefarious scheme in mind, or if there was something going on with her that he needed to get to the bottom of, but he did know that he couldn’t keep ignoring the situation.

  Making his way through his house, he searched for his wife. Stopping in her room and taking in the surroundings, he realized that she was most likely in her favorite place, the bench out back.

  Peering through the window to make sure that his hypothesis was correct, he found his jaw and fists clenching in anger. She was there alright. There and wrapped in the arms of another man. Suddenly her distance made a hell of a lot of sense. History was repeating itself, but this time he wouldn’t let the McCormack name be dragged through the wringer because of a cheating wife.

  Storming down the stairs and out of the back door, Zach marched towards his wife’s illicit rendezvous spot and found his steps faltering as he neared.

  “Josh?” he asked in stunned surprise. “What the hell?!” he roared as he stepped forward, but stopped suddenly when his friend raised an imperial hand at him, accompanied by a loud ‘shh!’.

  Taking in the scene in front of him, Zach noticed that although Ellie was wrapped in his closest friend’s arms it wasn’t lover-like at all. In fact, if he had to describe it he’d say that it looked more like the embrace you’d give a child. An upset child who needed comfort.

  Confused, he looked towards the other man in question and hoped that he’d explain the situation to him a bit more clearly. What the hell was going on?

  “She’s sleeping,” Josh supplied, and Zach snorted at that.

  “I can see that,” Zach replied. “Want to tell me why my wife is asleep in your arms?”

  “She was upset. I was just trying to comfort her. She looked so alone, buddy, I couldn’t just walk away and leave her like that. You wouldn’t have wanted me to, Zach. Next thing I knew she was sobbing her heart out and telling me all of this stuff about her dad.

  “When I gave her another hug she just kinda drifted off,” he said and waved at the woman’s form where she was still nestled against his side. “I’ve been sitting here for ages, too afraid to move and wake her. I’ve gotta say, I’m glad to see you, buddy, my legs and butt have gone numb. I didn’t know how much longer I should leave her out here in the cold for as well.”

  “She doesn’t feel it,” Zach replied, thinking back to when he’d first approached his wife on her bench five days ago. “She can sit here for hours if she’s lost in her thoughts.”

  “Well good for her, but I can’t,” Josh said with a grimace, and Zach couldn’t help but smile at him.

  “Serves you right for trying to be a knight in shining armor, my friend.”

  “Yeah, well, Prince Charming, your turn,” he retorted as he gestured at the woman. “Take care of your own wife.”

  With Josh’s instructions in his ear, Zach squatted down to focus on the angelic face framed by those fiery curls of hers.

  “Ellie,” he said as he gently shook her shoulder, earning nothing more than a slight moan before she burrowed herself more firmly into his friend’s embrace. The move set Zach’s teeth on edge and he couldn�
��t help but be firmer with his instructions.

  “Ellie!” he said roughly as he grabbed her shoulder. He heard the shocked inhalations of both his wife and his friend but ignored them and kept his eyes focused on Ellie as she turned her face towards his with wide open eyes.

  At the realization of where she was and the positon that she was in, she scrambled up into an upright position and attempted to smooth down her coat and hair.

  “I fell asleep,” she explained lamely, and he just continued to glare at her.

  “May I suggest that the next time you feel tired you find a bed to do so in. Preferably your own,” he stressed and watched as she stiffened under his reprimand before blushing bright red.

  “I’m sor–,” she started to say to Josh but Zach cut her off.

  “Get inside, Ellie,” he said firmly and watched as she clenched her jaw and her lips pinched together. She didn’t argue, however. Instead she just rose gracefully and marched back to the house, slamming the door behind her as she entered.

  When she’d disappeared he focused back on his friend who was looking at him in disapproval.

  “What?” Zach asked.

  “What?! Seriously?! You don’t see anything wrong with your behavior just then?” Josh asked as he waved at the path that Ellie had taken back to the house, and Zach just raised an eyebrow at that, waiting for the inevitable lecture.

  “Geez, man, no wonder she won’t sleep with you,” he said, and Zach stiffened at that.

  “What’s that mean?” he demanded.

  “Oh come on, Zach, if my spouse treated me like you do her I wouldn’t sleep with them either.”

  “Who says we don’t sleep together?” he asked. He may have told his friend that nothing had happened that first day, but he didn’t need rumors abounding from everyone else about his personal life with his wife. Especially not with Oscar’s accusations and assertions making the rounds as well.