by AJ Powers
Twenty yards away, Megan and Lona were hanging laundry with Hawthorne. Kelsey could see Lona’s smile from across the field as Blake took a break from chopping wood to bring her a bundle of flowers.
It was precious.
Kelsey picked up a glass of iced tea from a small table next to her chair and took a sip. Something so fresh and crisp still felt foreign to her palette.
Maya and Bethany darted out from the cornstalks, Dakota hot on their heels.
Dakota reached out and touched Maya’s arm, “Tag! You’re it!” she yelled as she did an about-face and made a mad dash back to the cornfield, laughing and giggling in between gasps of breath.
The farm was truly an oasis in the middle of a sea of devastation. A little slice of heaven. It was 15 miles from the nearest urban area, which was little more than a few abandoned shops and a single fast food restaurant. This meant unwanted visitors were few and far between. With multiple water sources and fertile soil, there was no better setup a group of survivors could ask for.
Life was different for Kelsey now. Gone were the days of scavenging and bartering just to make a scratch in her debt. Now her time was filled with taking care of the kids, cooking, cleaning, and other household chores that most women would have balked at before the eruptions. Responsibilities that would have been mere inconveniences in the past were things she looked forward to each day. Not because she enjoyed the tasks themselves or that they were a service to her family—which they were—but rather because she had the freedom to do so. She no longer had to be away for days, even weeks, at a time to try and provide for Dakota. Instead, she could spend the mornings making breakfast, afternoons playing games, and the evenings reading bedtime stories. Clay gave her that freedom. He gave her renewed hope when she had all but given up. He gave her his life, and for that, she felt there was no woman more blessed than she.
Kelsey looked down and saw her thumb fidgeting with the ring on her finger. Even though it had been three years since Clay had given it to her, it still felt strange on her hand. She still wondered how Clay could have loved her after everything she told him, everything she had done. Though she knew it was through no fault of her own when Watson attacked Clay’s family, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt for it. And she would gladly spend the rest of her life trying to make it up to him.
As she watched her daughter running through the field in the warm, fading sunlight, as Kelsey had done as a child, she was happier than she ever thought possible. It was moments like these that made life worth living. It was what Clay risked his life for when he rescued her and Dakota from Watson’s tyrannical grasp.
Kelsey gazed at the surreal colors washed across the sky, the sun dipping lower and lower, casting long, dark purple shadows across the fields. Another breeze flew across the porch, gently brushing Kelsey’s hair across her face. Her eyes lit up, her smile widened as Clay came around the side of the house holding a stringer full of fish in one hand and a little boy holding the other.
“Gorgeous evening, isn’t it?” Clay said as he started to climb the steps.
Kelsey’s smile was as beautiful as the sunset. “It really is.”
“Daddy took me fishing!” the boy said excitedly.
“He did?” Kelsey said playing along. “Well that’s because Daddy is a good provider, and we should always thank him for that,” she said as she tickled the boy’s foot. “Say ‘Thank you, Daddy,’” Kelsey instructed him.
“Kankem, Daddy!” the little boy said.
Clay chuckled with the fumbled pronunciation. “You’re welcome, Charlie,” he said as he leaned down to give Kelsey a kiss. She ignored the fishy smell and enjoyed the moment all the same.
“I’m gonna go fillet these things and fire up the grill,” Clay said holding the string of black bass up. “You want to help me, Charlie?”
“Daddy,” the boy elongated the word with a whine. “My name is Chawalls.”
“Sorry, Charles.” Clay winked at Kelsey. “So, do you wanna help?”
The little boy contemplated for a moment before replying, “Umm, Okay!”
Clay put Charlie down and held open the screen door. The toddler stumbled through in a hurry. Clay looked adoringly at Kelsey who was watching Dakota run towards the house. Within seconds, she reached the porch and zoomed up the steps, giving Clay a hug. “Hi, Daddy,” she said before stepping back from the offensive odor. She wrinkled her nose then looked over at Kelsey, then back to Clay. “You need a bath,” she said with a chuckle in her voice. “You stink!”
“What?” Clay said with an exaggerated look of shock on his face. “You don’t like the way I smell?” Clay said as he gestured for Dakota to walk into the house too. “Your mom doesn’t mind it, why do you?”
Kelsey made a similar expression as Dakota, followed with a smile. “But I love you anyway,” she said with genuine joy.
Clay returned the smile. “I love you, too,” he said before he turned and walked inside.
Kelsey stood up from the rocking chair and walked to the front of the porch. She leaned over the banister and gazed out at the large property, taking in its scenic beauty. As the sun made its final descent below the horizon, she thanked God for this new season of life, a second chance in a world so unforgiving.
Before she met Clay, she felt unworthy of true happiness. The things she had done, the life she had lived, the pain she had inflicted—these were not the character traits of a woman worthy of the love and respect of a man like Clay. As angering as it was to hear, Watson hadn’t been too off base with some of his backhanded comments about her. She was damaged goods; she was not whole. She could never give all of herself to anyone.
But Clay loved her just as she was. For some unknown, seemingly impossible reason, Clay loved her despite her dark past. And for that, she would be everlastingly grateful. She would love him until the day she died.
Because of Clay, Kelsey’s past no longer mattered to her either. She was able to forgive herself—something she had not been able to do previously.
Though memories still plagued her from time to time, Kelsey’s past no longer had the throttling grip on her it once had. The darkness that had dwelled inside her for years had disappeared. She was freed from the bondage of her past—a gift Clay hadn’t even realized he had given her. Instead, Kelsey could think about the future; a future she could be excited about; a future she could be proud of.
“Thank you.” Kelsey’s whisper was carried away by the breeze.
She was free.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
AJ Powers is an artist in the videogame industry, working with some of the biggest franchises in the world.
He currently resides in Texas with his wife Talia and their two children.
For more information on AJ, please visit ajpowers.com
Facebook.com/AuthorAJPowers
Twitter.com/aj_powers