by Eboni Snoe
Chapter 8
“Those new hurricane shutters have paid for themselves over and over again,” Cay said as Baltron mopped up a puddle of water near the utility room door.
“Yes, they have been a godsend,” Baltron agreed.
“I can’t imagine how people made it down here without the aid of technology.”
“I don’t know about here in the Keys, but in the islands folks managed pretty well. They knew the power of nature and they respected it. They built houses that they knew could be blown away easily, but they could be rebuilt just as easily.”
Cay leaned against the wall. “I never thought about it that way. I guess you’re right, but there had to be more fatalities.”
“Maybe. But nature will always have the right-of-way. If nature chooses, Guana Manor could be gone in a matter of seconds. That’s why you should never put your heart into bricks and mortar; you should put your heart into people, family.”
“You’ve told me that over and over again, but people don’t live forever, Baltron.”
“No, but how they touched your life lasts a lifetime. Be it good or bad.”
“It’s always puzzled me how you and Father became friends,” Cay replied.
“Friends…I don’t know if I would call us that. As you know, your father is a hard man to get along with. But I’ve been around for a long time, and things get better between us as the years go by.”
“Yes, time can do strange things to you.” Cay’s eyes clouded. “The older I get, I fear I grow more and more like my old man. I think Wally believed he was like him from the moment he understood the curse. I dealt with it by living from one extreme to the other. Maniacally to barely living at all.” Cay sighed. “But then Precious came into my life. She always reassured me that all of life was good. That life itself is a miracle. I couldn’t help but love her. She saw nothing but good in everything, and I thought she could help me learn to believe the same.”
“Yes, my niece believed in everything. Life’s tragedies, its mysteries, and its miracles. Some people are born special that way. Maybe that’s what she came to teach us.”
“I know that’s what led to her early death.” Cay’s jaw tightened.
“But I can’t imagine Precious having it any other way,” Baltron countered. “To her, life was magical. All of it. And she sprinkled a bit of it in our lives every day. Have you ever considered that maybe her time had come and she had done all she came to do?”
Cay shook his head. “All I know is she died because she couldn’t accept the truth. That the springwater couldn’t cure her.”
Baltron sat down on an old chair. “It wasn’t in her nature not to believe, Cay. She wouldn’t have been our Precious if she didn’t. Maybe we need more of that in this world today. People don’t believe in anything anymore. Precious said belief was the key.”
“It didn’t open anything for Precious,” Cay replied.
“Perhaps it did for you.”
“How?” Cay was stunned.
“Take that Ms. Townsend, for instance.”
“What about her?” Cay looked at Baltron.
“She’s come at a real interesting time. Stirring up all the emotions and memories around the Bethel property. Nobody knew there was anybody left in Hazel Bethel’s family to inherit the property. She never got married or had any children, and as far as we knew, her brother, Amos, didn’t have any, either. But here she is.”
“And so?” Cay stood inordinately still.
“I just think it is kind of interesting, don’t you?”
“Should I?” His tone held hope.
“You might not find her timing interesting” —Baltron shuffled his feet— “but you sure do find her interesting.”
“I’m like you, Baltron. I still have an eye for a good-looking woman.”
“Oh, is that all it is? I’ve seen plenty of good-looking women noticing you during these past few years and they didn’t do anything for you at all.”
“I’ll give it to her. Sasha Townsend is different from other women.”
“Is she now?” Baltron gave Cay a knowing look.
“But I’ve learned my lesson, Baltron. I’ll never jeopardize another person’s life because of what I want. In marrying Precious I thought I had a chance, but I was wrong.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Precious was special, and even she couldn’t make a difference. So who in the world could?”
“You see Sasha Townsend as different, but you say you can’t get involved with her.” Baltron leaned back and closed his eyes. “I don’t think you’ll be able to stifle what she’s stirred up in you so easily.” He paused and took a deep breath before he spoke again. “You say Precious was special, but Cay, I never saw your eyes light up for Precious the way they light up for this woman.”
Cay’s face tightened.
“I’m just telling the truth,” Baltron declared. “You met Precious when she came here to visit Olive and me. And I know exactly how you felt. It was like having an angel in the house. She was like a light that brought all kinds of warmth to Guana Manor. You’d never known anyone like her before, Cay. Precious charmed us all, and we all loved her.” He paused. “And when you married her, you looked so happy. But I never saw passion, Cay. I don’t think you ever knew it with my niece. I believe you thought there was safety in that.”
The two men looked at each other.
“There is something between us, Sasha Townsend and me. It’s hard to explain,” Cay said softly. “Somehow I feel her desire for life. It’s like a burning inside of her. It calls to me. You understand what I’m saying?”
Baltron nodded.
“I tell you. It’s almost like being out of control.” Cay began to pace. “I have never experienced this before, so I’ve got to be careful. There’s a lot at stake here.”
“I understand,” Baltron assured him.
“Yes” —Cay nodded— “it is passion that I feel for Sasha Townsend, and it is quite different from the love I had for Precious.”
“I know you loved Precious. But there’s love, Cay, and there’s…love. The kind that makes a man do things he never thought he’d do.”
“I’m nearly forty years old. I don’t think I want to learn this kind of lesson this late in life.”
“What do you mean ‘late in life’? You tell me how late thirty-six is when you’re seventy-five like me.”
Cay managed a smile.
“But listen to this old man.” Baltron leaned on the arm of the chair. “If it hits you hard enough, what you feel for this woman, there won’t be a thing you can do about it. You’ll have to go with it.”
“I didn’t expect this to happen. I wasn’t looking for it.” Cay struggled with the realization.
“Who does? But it’s been three years since Precious died. Maybe this is your chance at a real life. A full life. Don’t you let your fears mess you out of a real chance at happiness.”
“It wasn’t my fears that caused Precious’s or Wally’s death. That was real, and their graves out there in the Guana Estate cemetery prove it.”
“They died, Cay. Their deaths may not have had anything to do with the Bethel Curse. But if you believe it, they did.”
Cay wanted to accept what Baltron was saying, but what if he was wrong? The curse guaranteed him a life of sorrow. He was doomed to lose anyone he really loved. Could he chance the death of someone else he cared for to find out? The thought was out of the question.
“Precious believed that damned water was what she needed to save her life. Not antibiotics from the hospital or a doctor…but that goddamned springwater…and she died.” Cay trembled. “So don’t preach to me about belief.” He walked out of the room.
Sasha sprang to her feet. She thought she heard the sound of shattering glass. It had come from one of the rooms down the hall.
She stepped outside her bedroom and bumped into Cay. “I heard glass breaking,” she said, following him down the hallway.
“I heard it, too,” he replied.
“Oh-h! Goddammit.”
“That’s my father.” They broke into a run. When they opened the door Mr. Ellis was on the floor and rain was pouring into the room.
“What happened?” Cay asked as he helped his father up.
“I don’t know. I guess I must have been dreaming.” He looked confused. “I thought the storm was over so I opened the shutter, but a gust of wind blew a tree branch against the window and broke it.” Mr. Ellis touched his forehead and smeared it with blood. “Then, all of a sudden, the rain started up again.”
“The eye of the hurricane just passed over us,” Cay informed him. “That’s why the rain had stopped.”
“Your hand is bleeding.” Sasha watched Mr. Ellis’s blood dribble onto the floor. “If you want, Cay, I can take your father to my room and bandage his hand while you clean up in here,” she offered.
“All right.” Cay looked at his father. Sasha could see he was disturbed by the incident.
Passively, Mr. Ellis allowed Cay to pass his arm to Sasha and she led him out into the hall. Once she had settled him in a large chair in her bedroom, Sasha went into the bathroom, where she found some antiseptic and bandages.
“This might hurt a bit,” she informed him as she dabbed the injury with peroxide. Mr. Ellis didn’t seem to hear her.
“This has never happened before. I felt so confused.” He looked at Sasha, his eyes too bright.
“It’s understandable, Mr. Ellis. Cay said we had been in the eye of the storm right before you opened the shutter. So you thought the storm was over. It could happen to anyone.”
“But not to me. I’ve been living in the Keys all my life. I’m seventy years old. I’ve dealt with hurricanes before. I know how these storms work. I should have known better than to open that shutter.”
Sasha didn’t know what to say. “Cay’s got it under control now. He’ll get it cleaned up and you’ll be able to go back to your room.” She started to rise, but Mr. Ellis took hold of her arm.
“Don’t send me away, Hazel. You know I want to stay here with you. I know I was wrong—”
“I’m not Hazel, Mr. Ellis,” Sasha said softly. “I’m Sasha. Sasha Townsend.”
Mr. Ellis looked disconcerted. “I’m sorry. For a moment I thought you were—I don’t know what’s happening to me.”
“Maybe it’s the medication the doctor prescribed for you.”
“You think so?” Mr. Ellis asked, encouraged.
“It’s possible. Especially if you’re not accustomed to taking it.”
“You’re right.” He nodded too enthusiastically. “It’s probably the medication.” He looked down at his shaking hands. “You won’t tell anyone, will you?” he asked softly.
“Tell anyone?”
“You won’t tell anyone about this.”
“Not if you don’t think I should. But if I were you I’d want my doctor to know, just in case the medication is too strong. Perhaps he can give you a lighter dosage.” Sasha walked toward the bathroom.
“And Sasha,” Mr. Ellis called.
“Yes?” She stood in the doorway.
“I don’t want you to get the wrong impression. Hazel and I” —his eyes darted to the side— “we were never anything more than neighbors.”
“It doesn’t matter to me either way, Mr. Ellis.”
Suddenly, his face looked tired. “Even if I had cared for her things would never have worked out for us. Mother Ellis would not have allowed it.”
“Because of the rift between the families?” Sasha asked.
“No.” Mr. Ellis looked at her. “Because her skin was too dark.”
To hear the words spoken so bluntly numbed Sasha.
“I’ve put a couple of boards up to the window and closed the shutter,” Cay said as he entered the room. “You can go back to your own bedroom now.”
Mr. Ellis sat there nodding his head.
“Father, are you okay?”
“Okay?” Mr. Ellis’s voice was shaky. “Of course, I’m okay.” He rose from the chair and nearly fell. Cay reached out to catch him. “No, I’m fine.” Mr. Ellis moved out of his reach.
Cay stepped aside.
“Thank you, young lady,” Mr. Ellis told Sasha. “I hope I’m in better form the next time we meet.” He smiled, but there were tension lines around his mouth.
Chapter 9
“Come in,” Sasha answered the knock at her bedroom door.
It was Cay. He stepped just inside the doorway. “I wanted to thank you for helping with my father.”
“We seem to be forever trading thank-yous, don’t we?” Sasha replied, but she wondered if he’d been thinking about last night.
“I guess this kind of situation creates an environment where we have to help one another.”
“It seems that way,” Sasha replied. She noticed how stiffly Cay stood in the doorway. Almost as if he was making sure he did not enter the room.
“It’s an unnatural setup.” Cay spoke matter-of-factly. “You put people in situations like this and things are bound to happen. We’re not ourselves.”
Sasha felt Cay was making an excuse for what had happened between them in the hothouse. “I believe the opposite is true. I think the real person tends to come out under pressure.” Their eyes locked.
Cay was the first to look away. “The storm will have passed over in another hour or so. I’m going to go out and check the damage. I’ll let you know what I find out.”
“You don’t have to do me any favors,” Sasha replied, becoming annoyed at the barrier he was erecting between them—and at herself for caring.
“I know that. But as you know, I have an interest in the Bethel property. I’m just looking out for my own interest.”
“Is that all?”
“Basically.”
Sasha got up from the bed and walked over to stand in front of Cay. “I was looking out for my own interest last night, and I see I did the right thing.”
“Maybe you did.” He paused. “Maybe you didn’t.” His tone was cool.
“You’re so full of double-talk. Just like last night. You’re not making any sense at all.”
“I know what I’m doing.” Cay looked down into her face, his eyes hooded. “You’re the one who seems to be confused. Last night you were so clear about what you weren’t willing to give, now you appear to be riled because today I’m not interested.”
Sasha’s eyes glared as he spoke the truth. It stung to hear it. “Is that what you think?” She donned her sexiest smile. “I don’t think you could handle me if I offered myself to you.” She walked away. Sasha hoped her words needled him as much as his words had affected her. But her satisfaction was cut short by a pair of arms grabbing her from behind.
“Is that what you think?” Cay’s voice was hot in her ear as he squeezed his arms around her. “Be careful before you answer, Sasha. Because if I get hold of you now you won’t ever doubt my abilities again.” He held her for a moment before walking around to face her.
“I-I,” Sasha stammered.
“Nothing smart to say?” Cay baited. “Where’s that slick little tongue of yours now, huh?” He decided to find out for himself as he captured her mouth with his own. He blazed a trail of kisses from Sasha’s mouth to her neck. “Why did you tease me?” he said huskily. “I did not come here for this, but you had to see how far you could push me.” His hand roamed down her back and cupped her cheek. He held her against him, kissing her again until Sasha heard herself moan. Hearing the sound of her surrender, Cay wrapped his fingers in her hair and gently pulled her head back. His intense dark eyes pierced her large brown ones. “Do you want to see more?” He placed a succulent kiss on her chin. “Do you?”
Sasha wanted to challenge him, but instead she shook her head no. She was afraid of what it might lead to. Sasha had thought she could control herself when it came to Cay, but from the yearning she felt, Sasha knew she had been wrong.
Slowly, Cay let her go.
“I’m going to check for damage once the storm has subsided. I’ll let you know what I find out.”
Sasha could feel her insides quivering. “Fine,” she replied.
He left the room.
Sasha plopped down on the bed, her breath racing. Cay had turned the tables on her. Up to then Sasha had been playing with fire and hadn’t known it.
She walked over to the mirror and stared at herself. Sasha knew without a doubt that if Cay had wanted to he could have taken her to a place where she would not have turned back. He could have had her right then and there, and she would have been forced to think about the consequences later. The realization was unnerving.
All of a sudden Sasha felt restless. She had believed she could control her situation with the Ellises. But what was evolving between her and Cay was a whole different matter.
After all, she was a woman with experience. She had believed that if she got involved with Cay Ellis she could have used it to her advantage. But now she was forced to face the fact that, if within those few moments Cay had been able to bring her into full submission…she was the one who was vulnerable. He had touched her heart. It was the only way he could have swept her away with a kiss.
“This isn’t going to work,” she said, looking around the room. “I can’t get involved with him. I can’t afford to. The stakes are too high. If I lose, I will lose everything.”
But a small voice inside her whispered, It is already too late.
“It goes to show, you can’t be mean to people. It doesn’t pay off,” Olive Knowles said as she walked over to the library window.
“It doesn’t show that,” Baltron replied. “The way you’re talking, Mr. Ellis’s having Alzheimer’s is some kind of judgment against him.”
“You know I don’t believe that. There are too many good folks who come down with it. But I can’t help it if sometimes I feel it serves Mr. Ellis right. As the years go by I don’t know who’s worse, him or Mother Ellis. God knows she should have never had chil—” Olive stopped when she spotted Sasha. “Oh. I’m sorry. We didn’t know you were in here.”