26
Gavin chopped carrots with a vengeance before dropping them into a simmering skillet of onions and mushrooms. He and the men had been out on a call since midafternoon, and it was past eight. Everyone was hungry, and four men were making dinner while the others tended to the equipment.
His mind returned to the debt threatening to ruin his credit and take the home his parents had built together. He had continued taking Sapphira’s house apart, and next week surveyors were lined up to survey the property and break it into two lots. But unless a miracle happened, despite selling off parts of Sapphira’s home to the highest bidder and breaking the land into two lots, he’d still be short by at least two hundred thousand dollars, maybe three. Hopefully not four.
“Lieutenant!” Bryan ran inside, a grin a mile wide on his face. “She’s here.”
“Yeah?” Gavin wiped his hands on the towel-turned-apron draping from the waist of his blue pants. “Your mom arrived early? We could set an extra pl—”
“Not what I meant.”
Gavin plunked celery onto the cutting board and slid a knife across it. Several men flocked to the kitchen window, and murmurs rumbled. Seconds later ghostly sounds filled the air, the same ones the men had played off and on since his encounter with Mary at the beach.
“This again?” Gavin asked.
The men elbowed each other and chuckled.
“Lieutenant.” Bryan leaned in. “It’s her. I’m sure of it.”
Something in the boy’s eyes said he wasn’t teasing.
Jimmy waved his hands slowly through the air, making spooky noises. “It’s Maaaarrrryyyy.”
“Here?” Gavin set the knife down. “At the station?”
“On the driveway near the road.” Bryan’s eyes were wide. “Should I ask her in?”
Gavin went to the window, and the men made room for him. The sun had set, and the night sky had a hazy purple glow. He skimmed the landscape.
Tara…
Her feet were on the ground, straddling the bike he rode as a teen. She had on the white dress, and a breeze tousled her blond hair. The sight was unforgettable.
“No.” Gavin turned. “I’ll go to her.”
Jimmy clasped his shoulder. “Did you hire someone to prove to us Mary existed?”
The men chortled.
“Look.” Derrick pointed. “Your mamas are at the corner near the stop sign, watching her.”
The men broke into laughter.
“Do you think they’ve become ghost chasers?” someone asked.
Gavin held up one hand. “Someone man the stir-fry on the stove. I’ll go see what’s up, but let this one be, okay, guys? Turn off the haunted sounds, and act like men with good sense for just a few minutes. Is that too much to ask?” He strode out the front door and walked toward her, his heart pounding like crazy. What was with that?
The Glynn Girls were staying a couple hundred feet back. Did Tara know they were there?
“Hey.” He smiled. “Out for a last evening ride?”
Her focus seemed glued to the open bays of the fire station. “I…need to stay here…on the island.”
She needed to? He glanced at his mamas. “I don’t think—”
Tara looked him directly in the eyes, and even in the growing darkness he could see tears glistening. “Please.”
Beyond her grief he could feel her displeasure at having to be here, her dislike of him. He was a thorn in her flesh. Why couldn’t she see that it was in her best interest to leave with Hadley and Elliott? His mamas’ hearts were in the right place, no doubt. But they were often scattered and forgetful and absolute mischief magnets.
As he thought about her request, he turned a bit, positioning himself so he could see his mamas, the firehouse, and Tara simultaneously. The recording of the “ghost sounds” grew louder, and the raggedy ghost figure they’d dangled over Gavin’s bed now hung out the window, dancing in the wind. Gavin moved again, going to the other side of her, causing her to turn toward the road and away from the station. Would that keep her from becoming aware of the nonsense? “Listen, Tara, I really do think it would be better for you to go back. Give yourself some time to heal physically. Then you could return here in a few months.”
The music grew louder, and the waving of the Mary ghost intensified. If he wasn’t trying to distract Tara’s attention, he’d turn and issue an order—a loud one.
The Glynn Girls rode past Gavin and Tara on bicycles.
“Pardon us.” His mom’s voice was polite, but her face said she was about to have a conniption.
Tara didn’t seem to notice.
Luella and Dell rode into an open bay. His mom and Sue Beth dumped their bikes outside the bay. A moment later he saw Luella pointing a finger at Jimmy, and it took a lot to make Luella lose her cool. Ten seconds later all ghost noises stopped, and soon after, the ghost figure was pulled inside. The bay closed, and he imagined his coworkers were being chewed out by the Glynn Girls.
Hell had no fury like four mama hens…
She stared at the sidewalk. “It’s peak season, and you don’t like that I won’t be able to find a place other than staying with one of your mamas.”
“That’s not the issue.” How could he explain that her willingness to live with strangers in order to stay on an island she had no connections to was indicative of her condition? Or explain that his mamas were scattered and busy? In her condition it wasn’t a safe or healthy way to live. She needed someone looking after her emotional and physical health, and she wasn’t choosing the people who could give her the best care.
“Tara, the best situation for healing and recovery is at home with your friends.”
She put her fist against her chest. “I don’t know why I felt such a need to come to St. Simons after the funeral, but whatever the reason, I’m not finished here. I know that much. Maybe I only need a week or two, but now’s not the right time for me to leave.”
Part of him—the illogical, emotional part—wanted her to stay. He inhaled. “Okay.” What else could he say? It’s a free country, but you can’t stay on my island because…Because what? He had no real reason that would work in her mind, only his.
“Good.” A hint of a smile lifted her lips. “I have to go back and tell Hadley and Elliott as gently and positively as I can that I’m staying, and even so they’ll need to talk to you and the Glynn Girls.”
“Okay, but any of us can reassure them only a certain amount.”
“My promises to them and your word on it to them will be enough.”
What was Gavin agreeing to? And why?
He stifled a sigh. “You’ve got your phone with you, right?”
She nodded.
“I need to see it for a minute.”
“You’re going to track me?”
“I’ll only use that function if no one knows where you are and you aren’t answering texts or calls.”
Her face mirrored disgust with him and maybe hurt. He understood both sentiments. It was an unfair position to be in. She’d gone from being an independent woman, a successful leader of a home, to yielding to a stranger she neither liked nor worked for. There were few things people liked less than having their freedoms curtailed.
“Come on.” She gestured to the bikes near the bay. So she had seen them pass. Had she also been aware of the ghost nonsense and teasing? “Seriously? With the Glynn Girls on watch, I’ll do well to be allowed to shower alone.”
Gavin sighed. “I get it. Still…” He held out his hand. The Glynn Girls worked long hours most days.
She reached into her bra, pulled out the phone, and slapped it against his palm. He went into Settings and allowed her phone to share locations with his so he could ping her phone easily and know right where she was…or at least where her phone was. If she chose to be difficult, he couldn’t do a lot about it.
“You done?” Her voice had an edge to it.
“Almost.” He needed to go into the App Store and download the Find My Friends phone app. He sent a ping from his phone to hers, and then he sent a text from her phone to his and responded to it. Both worked. “All done.” He passed her the phone. “As I said, I’ll only use the Find My Friends feature if all other ways have failed.”
“Then why do I suddenly feel like I’m a child?”
He imagined it was because she felt powerless, but she was in no state of mind to recognize that it wouldn’t always be this way.
Tara hugged and kissed May and Isla as she buckled each girl into her car seat. The streetlamp and overhead car lights cast a golden glow on the baby’s and the children’s faces. They didn’t look sleepy, but Tara imagined once the lights were off and the car was in motion, they’d be asleep in short order. “I’ll send a picture of somewhere on the island each day to your mom’s phone, so you ask her about it.”
“Are you going to do selfies, Aunt T?” May asked.
Tara couldn’t imagine pasting on a smile and posing long enough to do a selfie. “I think I should stick to nature, and when you look at the picture, you try to figure out where on the island I was when I took it.”
May smiled and wrapped her little arms around Tara’s neck. “I’m glad you’re better.”
“Me too.” She winked at Isla and waved one more time before closing the door.
Hadley, Elliott, and the Glynn Girls were on the driveway. Tara had asked the Glynn Girls to stand on the driveway with her to reinforce to Hadley and Elliott that she would be well watched this time. Her sister-friends needed all the encouragement they could get in order to drive away without her.
Hadley tackled her with a hug. “I’m praying you find what you’re looking for.”
“Thanks. But either way I’ll be fine this time, Hads.”
Hadley sniffled. “Yeah,” she sighed. “You will.” A minute later Hadley released her. “We love you, T.”
“I know. Who else but sisters, blood related or chosen, would use vacation days to nurse me back to health? And maybe one day I’ll be emotionally strong enough to make it up to you.”
“Just get strong for us, okay?” Hadley took Tara by the shoulders. “You do it for you and all God wants for you in this life, not because you owe us anything.”
Tara nodded. “Thanks.”
Elliott embraced Tara, holding her so tight she could hardly breathe. “I don’t understand your need to stay, but you’ll explain it to me when you get it figured out, right?”
“I will.” Tara held her. Finally she let go. She stood in the driveway, waving until the vehicle was out of sight.
Julep, Luella, Dell, and Sue Beth moved in close to Tara, waving too. It could be a heartwarming snapshot, except she was void of any warmth.
Would this be her life from now on, going through the motions of love for others’ sakes while feeling only sadness and a desire to be left alone?