Chapter 4

Kathy perched on the edge of her bed, the phone clutched tightly in her hand. “I promise, I’m okay. I got here safely, but I had no reception, so I wasn’t able to call until now.”

“I was worried you’d decided to do a full bunk and drop off the face of the earth!” her friend Michael chastised.

“No, Mike, I’m fine. I’m sorry it took me so long to check in, but I promise,” she reaffirmed, “I’m fine.”

Michael breathed a heavy sigh into the phone. “Anna came by yesterday.”

The words hung in the air and Kathy felt her blood run cold. Her fingers moved to her throat and she toyed with the silver locket around her neck that had belonged to her mother. She’d give anything to have her here, she’d always known what to do in any situation.

“Are you there, Kath?” Michael asked.

“I’m here. You didn’t tell her where I was, did you?” her voice trembled like a butterfly on a breeze.

“Of course not. I didn’t even let her over the doorstep. I told her I wasn’t getting involved and to stay away from my house and from me. She knows better than to come back again.”

Kathy knew that Anna wouldn’t stop looking. It wasn’t in her nature to quit. She sighed deeply, trying to calm her breathing. How long can I keep running?

•••

On the other side of the hotel, Helen lay awake, her arms thrown across her eyes as she willed sleep to come, but she was fighting a losing battle. She loved spending time in Greece and she loved this hotel, but in years gone by, Meg would’ve been lying beside her, enjoying the experience. Their last time together was bleak, she stayed by her side in a darkened room where the smell of death hung in the air. She could still picture her wife’s hand in hers, the once youthful skin reduced to translucent, sinewy claws that clung to her. Meg’s face remained beautiful until the end, even though her cheekbones jutted beneath pale skin, her smile never faded. Helen wouldn’t have admitted it at the time. It was a strange relief when Meg took her last breath, but at the same time she couldn’t let go of her hand. It’d felt as though her own heart stopped right then and there; an overwhelming pain that radiated through her chest and escaped as an agonised roar. Everything after Meg died had become a blur. Twelve months later, the loss still clung to her, strangling her heart, making it hard to breathe.

After another hour of failed sleep, Helen rolled to the edge of the bed and pulled herself up. She had limited choices, one was to drink herself into a stupor or go for a late-night swim. With a forceful thump, she slammed her hand down on the nightstand. “Pull yourself together Kennedy, Meg wouldn’t want you to wallow in self-pity.”

Feet first, she jumped into the pool, the water cooled her hot skin and she welcomed it.

“I see I’m not the only one who couldn’t sleep,” Kathy called out from the hot tub.

She didn’t have to turn around, as she’d come accustomed to Kathy’s voice. “I would have called your room, but I thought you’d be asleep.”

“Sleep is a concept I’ve forgotten a long time ago.”

The statement was something Kathy and her shared, sleep hadn’t been a friend for a long time. “How about a few laps with me?”

“How about you join me in the hot tub and we’ll order a bottle of wine?”

The invitation caused her pulse to increase. “Wine, hot tub and a beautiful woman, boy, a girl couldn’t get any luckier.”

“Was that a yes, I couldn’t hear you?”

“Yes,” Helen called over her shoulder.

***

The sun crept into Kathy’s room, casting what looked like a flashlight upon her bed. A smile stretched across her face as she sat up. Last night with Helen was the most relaxing time she’d had in a while. The night had turned into morning before she’d realised it and before they went their separate ways, they’d agreed to meet for dinner, and from the beeping on her phone alarm, she only had an hour to get ready.

Kathy let Helen walk her back to her room that evening, after a shared dinner of squid, olives, sardines and garlic bread, though Helen declined the offer of fried marida when she realised that these were eaten whole. Helen was chivalrous in an old-fashioned, soft butch kind of way, and Kathy was surprised at how safe she felt with her, having only known her for a short time.

“Would you like to do a day trip tomorrow?”

Kathy considered her option and laughed. She had no plans. “Yeah, I think I’d like that. What did you have in mind?”

“I was thinking of a boat trip out to the island of Symi. It’s something I’ve done every year since I started coming here. It’s beautiful and I think you’ll love it. We could catch the boat out from the harbour in the morning.”

Kathy brushed her wavy hair back behind her ear, a habit she had when she was considering something. Her eyes flicked to Helen’s full lips. “Sure, that sounds great.”

Helen smiled broadly and pushed herself away from the wall she’d been leaning on “Great, be ready for seven-thirty. I’ll knock for you and we can head straight out after breakfast.”

“I’ll be ready. Thank you for a great evening, Helen, I had a good time.”

The door closed and Helen whispered a soft goodnight of her own as she ambled away down the corridor.

***

On the deck of the catamaran, Helen and Kathy sat side by side as the sun burned against the delicate skin around their necks, despite the early morning hour.

Helen shifted in her seat. Boy, she looks damned cute in that floppy straw hat and Jackie O sunglasses. It wasn’t until she was behind the closed door of her suite that it occurred to her, she’d developed a crush on Kathy. At first, she’d felt guilty, and she rationalized that it was normal since she’d just released Meg’s ashes. But, the guilt still found a home in her chest. “Your back’s starting to go red. Want some cream on it?” she asked.

Kathy looked out at the water, a small muscle twitched in the corner of her mouth, almost imperceptibly. “Is this good medical advice, Doctor?” she asked.

Helen arched an eyebrow and played along, “Absolutely. Skin cancer is a big deal, and you’re certainly more susceptible when you blast your skin with rays for a week or two after being covered up for the other fifty weeks of the year. Pass the cream, turn around and be a good patient.”

Kathy did as she was told, and gasped as Helen’s fingers touched the hot skin across her shoulders. Helen’s fingers slid beneath the thin fabric of her vest top, up over her shoulders of her neck.

“Your turn.” Kathy spun in her seat facing Helen. “Turn around.”

“I like it when your forceful,” Helen teased and let out a hardy laugh. It was funny until the delicate fingers brushed over her skin, causing a sensation to shoot between her legs. Her brain scrambled to decide whether the reaction was due to the cold cream on her hot skin, or the physical contact of an attractive woman’s hands. The one thing she was sure of, she didn’t want Kathy to stop.

The boat ride took a little over an hour before the harbour town of Gialos came into view. Kathy was rendered speechless at the beauty of the place. The red roofed houses climbed steeply up the horse shoe hill side, looking like a picture from a classical painting. She absent-mindedly reached for Helen’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “My god, it’s beautiful. I’ve seen some places but this…” her voice trailed off.

She sounds like a kid who’s just opened her best Christmas gift ever. She squeezed the hand that held hers. “Come on, time to explore.”

They found a café on the corner, right beside the dock and received a warm welcome from the waiter, who led them to comfortable upholstered seats, side by side as the young Greek took their order.

“I’ll have a red wine, please,” Helen stated.

“And for your girlfriend?” the young man asked.

The women looked at each other, awkward laughter coming from both, though, neither bothered to correct him.

“I’ll have the same, please.”

Kathy shuddered involuntarily, making Helen turn from the rail she was leaning on to observe her. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, just a thought I’d had. It’s nothing, really, just bitter-sweet memories.”

Helen didn’t believe her for a minute, but she wasn’t about to push. Kathy would talk to her if she wanted to.