Chapter 16
The next day, in the privacy of James’s beachfront cottage, Pamela got her wish to skinny dip in the ocean outside of Rahjah Island. A day later, Saul drove to the Blue Mountain and James’s uncle drove them to their boat.
A few minutes before they docked on the island, Saul cut the engine for her to see how beautiful her home was.
She looked up at him and smiled. “Thank you. It is a very beautiful place.”
“You have to stop thanking me. I did this as much for you as me. A little bit of you at a time is better than none at all.”
She looked into his beautiful eyes and didn’t know what to say. Jamaica was very beautiful, but he’d reminded her of how precious and beautiful her island was.
But when he offered to take her to her village, she refused.
“Pam, we’ve been with each other for a week. Your mother knows you were with me, my mother knows we were together, and now you don’t want me to take you home?” His earnest eyes sought hers. “Pam, we’re adults. We have a right to live our lives as we see fit.”
“And we are.” She glanced down at her clothes. She’d purposely chosen a palazzo pants outfit to wear back home because it wasn’t form-fitting.
He laughed. “You’re turning back into a Rahjah.”
“Did I seem to change?”
“Oh, yes,” he growled, pulling her to him with a big grin on his face.
She laughed and blushed under her dark skin.
Saul pulled the boat up to her side of the island and anchored close to the other boats. She picked up her bag and he guided her out of the boat. “I loved every minute of being with you. I wouldn’t change a thing even if I could,” she said.
“I love you.” He pulled her into his arms and kept her there.
“I love you. Saul, let’s keep this a secret a little while longer, please. You changed me a little this week. You awakened something inside of me that I didn’t think existed anymore. You pulled me into you and showed me that I don’t have to be afraid of anything.” She hugged him then gave him a long and promising kiss.
He touched her cheek in a profound gesture. “I’ll do anything for you. Although I’m sure your friend Mary has her suspicions, I’ll try to keep our relationship a secret a while longer. I’ll walk half of the way with you.”
She nodded. They walked until they got to the path leading up to the village. She whistled for her horse and he laughed.
“When will I see you again?” he asked.
“You know you can always visit me in the village, right?”
“Oh.” She certainly knew how to confuse him. “Yes, right.”
“But I still want to keep our relationship a secret.”
He laughed and shook his head. “Won’t they guess what’s going on if I show up at your door every day?”
Surprised that her horse wore a saddle, she smiled, took hold of the reins and jumped onto his back. Saul placed her bag in front of her. “I love you,” she said, then urged her horse into a gallop.
He watched until she was out of sight, then shook his head and chuckled. “You’re doing it again, but as long as I have you I’m not complaining.” He walked back to the boat and got in.
Pamela reined her horse in when she saw the children riding towards her. She got off when they got close and gathered Gracie in her arms as she jumped from her horse.
“I missed you. Did you have a good time? Did you see Uncle Saul? We knew you were coming back today so we made sure your horse had his straps on.” She hugged her mother’s neck and wouldn’t let go even when Ruth, David and Shaela hugged her.
“Yes, thank you. I had a wonderful time but I missed you a lot.” She looked at the other children. “I missed all of you.”
“Did you see our dada?” Ruth said. “He went to Jamaica, too.”
She couldn’t lie. “I know. And yes, I did see him. As a matter of fact we came home together.”
Eight little eyes seemed to stare at her at once. “You did?” Gracie said, laughing.
“Yes. What’s so funny?”
Gracie glanced at her friends and they all shook their heads together.
Then Ruth said in a quiet tone, “Our mama is still in our village.”
Pamela’s heart leapt to her throat and she swallowed and slowly stood up. She smiled nervously. “She is?” She looked at the twins. “You guys should go and welcome your father home.”
“Yes,” the twins said in unison. They got up onto their horses. “We’ll see you later.” They waved, then galloped away.
Pamela, Gracie and Shaela rode their horses into the village, then took them into the barn. Pamela had not said anything much about the fact that Raquel was still in the village, but she wondered how she would react when Saul revealed her secret.
“I love your new bag, Mama. Did you bring me anything from Jamaica?”
Pamela laughed. “Yes, I got something for you and Shaela.
“I’ll take your bag in for you.”
Mary stood on her verandah grinning as Pamela walked up to her. Both women hugged, but Mary still grinned.
“What’s so funny?” Pamela asked.
“Seeing you back here safe and sound. Apparently the Jamaicans didn’t gobble you up.”
“Yes. You are funny.”
“What are you wearing?” Mary asked.
“Do you like it?” Pamela spun around, showing off her new attire.
“Yes, I do, and I want one like that.”
“It’s very easy to make.” Both women walked into Mary’s cottage.
She followed Mary into her small kitchen and watched as she brewed tea.
Mary placed two cups and a pot of tea on a tray with a few slices of banana bread, then walked back to the living room.
Pamela sat down and took the cup offered to her.
“Okay,” Mary said, sitting opposite Pamela. “I want to hear everything about your little escape with the gorgeous Saul. Did he sweep you off your feet? Did you fall in love? Did he sweep the cobwebs from your heart?”
Pamela laughed. “You sure are nosy. But yes, and yes.” She kept the cup to her face a bit longer.
“He didn’t sweep the cobwebs from your heart?” Mary seemed a bit disappointed.
“I think he did, but...”
Mary giggled and made a face. “Why the hesitation? Ahhh, let me guess. The children told you that the lady never left the island.”
Pamela nodded. “Mary, I really don’t want her to be here any longer.” She sighed and lowered the cup to the floor.
“I know. No one wants her here. We are all aware that she’s trying to push herself back into his life, but it’s not going to happen. And before I go any farther, Myah suspects that her brother is sweet on you. Actually she has her fingers crossed that something will develop between you two.”
“Mary!” Pamela gasped.
Mary placed her cup on the floor and held up her hands. “I have not said anything to anyone. I swear. But come on, Pammy. He’s not hiding his feelings for you. I would go as far as to say he cannot hide his feelings for you. They’re right there in his eyes, the way he looks at you when he thinks no one is looking.” She shook her head. “My dear friend, I wish my husband would look at me like that.”
Pamela sighed. “I don’t feel comfortable with her there in his home.”
Mary offered her a piece of banana bread. “I know how you feel, but when the woman gets intoxicated she spills everything and doesn’t remember a thing the next day. Of course no one reminds her of what she’s said...”
Pamela shook her head. “What are you talking about?”
“She got married to someone else.” She looked at Pamela, thinking she’d be shocked at the news.
Pamela nodded. “I know.”
“You know? Who told you? Does Saul know?”
She nodded. “Of course. As soon as Raquel showed up in the village, James and Devin put their spies to work and found out what she’d been up to all those years,” Pamela said.
“What do you think Saul is going to do?”
Pamela shook her head. “Your guess is as good as mine. I know he’s a very sweet and gentle human being, but...” She hated thinking of Raquel with Saul in the same room. She’d seen firsthand what the woman could do. But knowing what he knew, how was Saul going to handle her still being there?
Mary touched Pamela’s knee. “Hey, are you here or back in Jamaica?”
“Why?”
“I’ve been talking to you for the last few minutes and you haven’t responded. You just had this spacey look on your face.”
“Sorry, what were you saying?”
“What exactly did you do in Jamaica?”
Pamela smiled. “I went to the movies and to a pantomime in Kingston. Then Saul took me to a place called Bluefields Bay.” She had a dreamy look in her eyes. “It was beautiful.”
“So you really had a good time then?”
“Up to now. How’s my mother?” Pamela asked.
“She’s been a little down since you left. She won’t say why.”
Pamela finished her tea and got to her feet. “I’ll go see her.”
“Aren’t you going to change first?”
She laughed. “Oh, yes. Come with me. I brought you a new hair comb.” She fished into her bag and gave the pearl comb set to Mary, then proceeded to change her clothes. “I think after a certain age, the grown-ups should stop dressing like the children, don’t you agree?”
“Ummm, absolutely,” Mary murmured, sticking the comb into her hair. “Judiah will love me in this.” She touched the comb and looked back at Pamela.
“I’m sure he will,” Pamela said.
“You’re right. This is only for special occasions.”
They both walked outside together. Pamela made the short walk to her mother’s cottage and quickly embraced her when she came to the door. “I missed you,” she said, noting her mother’s smile.
“So why didn’t you come here first?” Esther held her daughter by the hand and led her to the living room.
“Oh, Mama. Anyway, I hear you’ve not been yourself since I left. Why?”
Esther sat down on a cushion and shrugged. “I don’t know.” She looked at Pamela. “Yes, I do. I know we raised our children to be independent of us, but when your...you know...”
“Please say it, Mama.” Pamela’s eyes pleaded with her mother.
She nodded and held her daughter’s hand. “When your husband left, you were heartbroken for a very long time and I don’t ever want to see you like that again.”
“Mama, Saul is healthy and gentle and so loving. He’s not going anywhere. He’s not going to die. Not for now, anyway.”
“We all die sometime, dear.”
“I know, but I have a feeling you’re not really fearing his death. You’re fearing his life, my life, our life together. What’s really bothering you?”
Esther heaved a very big sigh. “Does he seem to be very taken with you, Pammy? Did you have a good time with him?”
Pamela laughed. Thinking about Saul in that loving way did something for and to her. “Oh, Mama, he’s wonderful and attentive. He allows me to be myself. He never tells me what to do. Actually, he went along with everything I wanted to do. He loves me, Mama.”
“He told you so?”
“Yes.”
“So I suppose at this point he can do no wrong.”
“Oh, Mama.” She wrinkled her nose and squeezed her eyes shut.
“And you?”
“It didn’t take long for me to realize that I love him.”
“It never does, my dear. I’ve always said you can’t try to love or like someone. Either you do or you don’t. They turn you off or they turn you on. It goes for a lover or a friend.”
Pamela laughed. “You are hip, aren’t you?”
“You got that word from that Angel.”
“It’s not a bad word.”
“No, it’s not.”
“I know Mary told you that Raquel is still in the village.”
Pamela nodded woodenly and looked down at her fingers laced in front of her.
“Don’t worry. His mother and I had tea a few days ago. He’s a very smart man. He’s all you said he is and more, so don’t worry, he’ll make himself properly available for you.”
Pamela looked up at her mother with a quizzical smile on her face. “Is this the woman who was once so doubtful of us?”
Esther shrugged. “Well, you know, a mother never stops being a mother. Even when you’re ninety, if I’m still alive I’ll still worry about you, and it has absolutely nothing to do with trust.”
Pamela leaned her head against her mother’s shoulder. “Thanks, Mama. I love you, too.”
The women got to their feet and walked to the verandah. “So what did you think of Jamaica?”
“It’s not as warm and beautiful as here.”
“No place is, dear.”
Saul had just stepped onto his verandah when he heard his children call, “Dada, Dada.” He laughed and gathered them in his arms. “You’re home. We heard you had a good time in Jamaica,” Ruth said.
He wrinkled his brow and laughed, then kissed her cheek. “Now where did you hear that?”
“We saw Auntie Pam and she said she came back to the island with you.” David shot his sister a conspiratorial look.
“Oh, right,” she said.
“So tell me, how have you both been behaving?”
“Grangran said it was all right to stay with Gracie’s grangran until you came home, so we did. Mama didn’t come for us,” Ruth said.
His brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”
“Mama is still here,” David said.
“Oh.” His smile was tight. “I brought something for you kids, it’s in my bag.” He handed them the bag. “You can carry it into the library and search for your gifts. You’ll know them when you see them. I have to speak with your grandmother. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” He stood up, took a deep breath and went straight to his mother’s cottage. She wasn’t there, so he went to the kitchen.
Nanuk rushed out of the kitchen to welcome him as soon as she glimpsed his head through the kitchen window. “Son, how are you? I’m glad you’re back.” She wiped her hands on her apron and walked away from the kitchen with him. “So was it all you expected it to be? Does she feel the same way about you that you feel about her?”
“I have a feeling she’s being asked that same question at this very moment,” he said, smiling. “Yes, it was, and more.” His attitude changed. “Why is she still here?”
They stopped under a shade tree. “I don’t know, son. She keeps saying you owe her something and you’re still her husband. Unfortunately, she doesn’t realize that we all know her secret.”
“So everyone knows?”
“My dear son, when she drinks she talks and we listen.”
“So she still doesn’t know that we know she’s married to another man?”
Nanuk shook her head.
“I can’t deal with her anymore, Mama. I’ve asked her to leave as nicely as I can.”
“And as a gentleman you’re not allowed to lose your temper.”
“I’m at the edge. I really am.”
“I know you are, my son.”
He left his mother, walked inside his home and sighed loudly at the mess before him. Raquel’s clothes were thrown all over the place. The kitchen was filthy with wine bottles in the sink. He wondered if she had brought a suitcase of wine with her. He feared to look in the bedroom. This time, he would not pick up after her. He walked into the library, which was the only place untouched by Raquel’s mess. He sat and talked with the children. “Is Mama sick again?” Ruth asked.
“I think so,” he said, not sure what to tell them this time. He kissed the children. “I’ll be back soon.” He walked outside and stood on his verandah, remembering the wonderful time he’d had with Pamela. Lost in his thoughts he walked to the stables and got onto his horse. He was angry with Raquel for bringing her lifestyle into the village, into the home of his children.
He didn’t know where he was going until the horse walked across the bridge toward Pamela’s home. He reined the horse in outside of the village and sat there for a while. He needed Pamela. He allowed the horse to take him to her home, then dismounted.
Pamela saw him. The look on his face was the look of a beaten man. She opened the door and he walked through. He sat down and she sat beside him. She didn’t say anything. He looked into her eyes and smiled. “You’re so beautiful.”
“You didn’t come here to tell me how beautiful I am. What’s going on?”
He sighed, shook his head and explained the mess he’d seen in his home.
Pamela leaned back and scoured the paintings on her walls. “Put her in the hospital.”
He looked at her with furrowed brows.
“She’s sick, Saul. There is an area in the hospital that deals with these things. It hasn’t been used for a while, but it’s there and so are the means to help her.”
He knew what she was talking about. Detox. That area of the cave hospital was once used to help people work through anger issues. There had been a few Rahjahs that had gone into the outside world and come back addicted to alcohol and asked for help. They had a 100 percent cure rate. The men and women who’d helped these people get over their addiction were still there in the village and would be very willing to help even Raquel.
“I’m glad I came to you,” he said, smiling. “Do you think they’ll be ready after supper?”
“I don’t see why not. Can you get her there?”
That was the other thing. If Raquel wasn’t willing to go on her own, they’d have to force her, which was not the best thing to do.
“I’ll get her there. Have the practitioners standing by.” He got to his feet. “Where’s your little one?”
“At your sister’s.”
He pulled her to him and kissed her hungrily, then hugged her. “Thank you.” He walked out of the cottage, then stopped and turned before he mounted his horse. “Thank you.” Then he got on his horse and rode away.
She should have told him that there were practitioners in his village, too, but knew he would find that out once he made his intentions known. Myah was one of the practitioners, and Pamela wondered if she would be willing to help Raquel for Saul and the twins’ sake. She walked over to Myah and told her of Saul’s intentions.
Myah looked at her with resentment in her eyes. “I don’t know, Pammy.”
“Myah, you took an oath when you became a practitioner to help everyone who needed your help.”
“I know, but my heart will not be in my work this time.”
“For your brother and his children, Myah, please. Help her to get better so that she can leave the island a healthy person.”
Myah was still hesitant, but she nodded. “When?”
“After supper.”
“We need four people to work in shifts. She has to have someone there all the time.” She took a deep breath. “I’ll tell Tiney.”
Pamela hugged her. “Thank you, Myah. You’re a good person. I’ll help Samuel with Isha.”
“I know you will.”
It was more difficult on Saul’s end. When he told his mother of his plans to get Raquel into detox, she got the two practitioners in the village ready to go to the hospital. But getting Raquel to agree to do this was something else entirely.
When Saul went back to the cottage, Raquel was up and searching through all the drawers for her wine. Saul stood at the kitchen door watching her. “I threw them away,” he said.
She turned and glared at him. “You threw away what?” she shouted.
“The wine. I will not allow you to submit these children to your drunkenness any more. You need to go to the hospital for at least a week to get the liquor out of your system.”
She laughed in his face. “And if I refuse?”
“Then I will take you bodily.”
For the first time in her life she saw coldness and contempt in his eyes. But still, she advanced toward him and raised her hand. He grabbed her hand and shook his head.
“No more, Raquel. Your reign of terror is over. I will not allow you to hit me, degrade me, or degrade yourself in front of the children.”
She spat in his face and turned to leave. He calmly wiped his face, reached out and swung her around to face him. “That will be the last time you do that.” He glared at her. “Get dressed. Either you do this willingly or I will send for your husband and allow him to see you as you are.”
Shocked, she gasped and closed her mouth.
He let go of her. She stood with her chest heaving. She was angry, but seemingly afraid of her husband and maybe a little bit afraid of Saul at the moment. “How did you find out?” Her voice shook.
“You have no idea who we are, do you?” His eyes bore into her.
Raquel now saw the side of her husband she had never taken the time to notice before. He stood intimidating and strong with his shoulders pulled back and his eyes cold.
“Before you go, clean up this place. I will be back for you in an hour.” Saul strode to the library, got the children and went to supper.
Sitting with his children, he ate very little. He smiled as he thought of Pamela. She could have told him to just ship the woman off the island. Knowing what they all knew, it would have taken no effort at all. Instead of being vindictive, Pam had unselfishly thrown Raquel a lifeline and him his self-respect.
His mother touched his shoulder. “Will she be ready, son?”
He nodded.
Nanuk was skeptical, but she trusted her son.
After supper, John and Lila escorted Raquel out of the village toward the caves. They would meet Myah and Tiney there. Raquel would be required to eat with everyone else in the hospital and could not see the children or Saul until she was well.