Page 10

The next couple of days kept me busy, and I got home later and later as I dealt with work, lectures and Casey’s to-do list. It was the middle of the week when I steered the car toward home in complete darkness. The roads were mostly empty, just a car here and there, and they got even sparser once the city lights disappeared in the rearview window. If it hadn’t been for the jeep’s powerful headlights, I would have missed seeing the flash of red on the far side of the road. I began slowing down.

A lone dark figure came around the vehicle, frantically waving their arms. I pulled over.

Let’s hope it’s not some ploy to rob me.

When I got out of the car, I recognised the person and the red coupe immediately. “Martha?”

Her face lit up in the shine of the jeep’s headlights. “Sam, thank god! I was about to give up and just sleep in the car!” With the agitation, the Cajun accent thickened noticeably.

“Then it’s good I found you instead. What are you doing here?”

“The tyre blew,” she huffed, giving an angry gesture to the front end. “Luckily, I wasn’t going very fast, so I just let the car roll to the side. But changing it on my own, in the dark, and with the weather being so dreadful?”

I threw a glance at the blown rubber of the tyre. Yep, that was a total write-off.

“Why didn’t you call Triple A?”

Her face turned sheepish. “Apart from the fact that I forgot to renew my membership? I left my phone on the counter this morning. It’s one of them new ones. My oldest grandson gave it to me, and I still haven’t gotten used to it.”

The older woman lifted her shoulders in apology, and I was suddenly very glad I’d been running late. There was no telling how long she would’ve been stranded at the side of the road otherwise.

At that moment, a strong wind blew more rain into our faces. Cold seeped like a saline solution into my veins. At least Martha was wearing a thick parka.

“Are you cold?” I asked, just to check. “Anything you bumped or hurt that I should know about?”

“No, no, cher. I’m fine. Just a little out of sorts.”

“Okay, how about I drive you home then, and we call one of the local car services first thing tomorrow?”

Her reassuring smile slipped. “But I promised my grandson to go to this Star Battles convention with him. It’s in Boston, you see, and we’re supposed to leave early.”

Star Battles?

I had to hide a smirk. “You mean Star Wars?”

“Yes, that film where they swing those glowing sticks around. My grandson showed me. Lots of robots, too. He likes that.”

“I bet he does.” Glowing sticks ... Oh, she’s adorable. “How early are we talking, exactly?”

“I’m supposed to pick him up at six-thirty sharp.”

It was unlikely any of the car services would come out to change a tyre before seven, and I wasn’t in the best condition to attempt it myself, seeing as I still had trouble with the bruise on my left shoulder. I scratched my head. “What if I lend you my car?”

Martha’s gaze clouded. “I’m sorry, that is such a sweet thought, but I know my car and…” She hesitated. “I don’t feel all that comfortable driving the distance with…”

“An unfamiliar bulky jeep?”

She looked embarrassed.

“I understand, you know. I could never drive that ugly stick-shift monster that Frank does.” I rolled my eyes exaggeratedly and succeeded in making the Cajun woman laugh. “Let’s get you home, and I’ll see if I can’t find someone to change that tyre in time.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, yes, don’t worry about it,” I said, guiding her to the passenger side to hurry her out of this weather.

Martha let out a relieved sigh. “Thank you, Sam.”

“Are you comfortable leaving your keys with me?”

She passed them to me when I got inside and settled contentedly into the seat. The headlights hit the rain as we pulled back onto the road, and I accelerated with care. One blown tyre was enough for today.

Getting back into the heated car helped a lot with the ice in my veins, but Martha’s presence was what really made me feel warmer. She pulled her glasses from her face and began to dry them on the hem of her shirt.

“I hope I’m not keeping you from meeting anyone?”

I laughed. “Why would I need to meet anyone if I have such good company right here?”

She chuckled before wagging her amber-ringed finger. “So the quiet, reserved impression is just a front? You’re secretly as much of a charmer as your pawpaw?”

My laugh turned embarrassed. “I don’t know about that.”

“Trust me.” Martha’s eyes twinkled. “I know the type.”

It was quiet for a few minutes while we listened to the rain pattering and the unaccompanied voice of some female indie singer crooning quietly about lost fortune and love.

Martha gestured at the radio. “Mind if I turn it up?”

“Be my guest.”

She increased the volume by about two notches, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw her lean back with a satisfied hum. We listened to the rest of the three stanzas about missed opportunities and regrets and the bittersweetness of real connection before the song ended. I turned the jeep left at the next intersection. Just two more miles and we were home.

Martha turned down the volume again. “Thank you. I really enjoy this song.”

“Even though it’s so sad?”

She nodded. “Even though. You can’t go through life with your eyes pressed closed. Even the hard truths must be talked about.”

“You know, my grandma would have agreed. Even when things got difficult … she always faced them head-on.” I paused for a beat, reluctant to continue.

Ah, what the hell.

“With my father, especially. Wasn’t always easy.”

Martha visibly hesitated, kneading her hands in her lap for a moment. “Can I ask about her?”

My lips drew into a slight smile despite the nostalgia that welled up, touched by her interest. Or was she asking because of the old man?

“Her name was Carol, and she was the most fun-loving person I’ve ever known. She and Frank were married more than forty years, had my father very young, then built up their own company from the ground up. Didn’t even borrow a single penny to do it.” I chanced a look to the side. Martha was listening intently. “Grandma really loved to sculpt. What she could do with her hands…” I shook my head, at a loss how to explain it. “Whenever she started working on a block of stone, she had a vision, knew exactly how the result would look. And while she chipped off piece after piece, it was like she revealed what had been hiding away in the stone all along. To me, it always looked like magic.” A little embarrassed, I shrugged.

“No, it makes perfect sense, cher,” Martha said a little throatily.

”She loved lighthouses. My grandfather always made fun of her obsession, but once she was gone, they’ve always been the places he seeks out the most. I think when he does, he feels closer to her.”

Martha seemed to take this in. “How long has she been gone?”

“Eight years,” I said wistfully and let the car slow as we were going up the last incline. The first lights of the Hale household became visible. Before she could ask, I added, “A heart attack. Very sudden, very unexpected. I think my grandfather never really got over it.”

Not that it was any easier for me.

“And that is how it should be.” She gave a wry grin at my surprised glance. “I lost my Albert more than twenty years ago, and not a day goes by that I do not miss him. Terrible man at times, cantankerous and stubborn, and always doing things his way. But boy, did I love that old coot. I would never want to forget him.”

At the dry recounting, I felt my lips draw into a smirk. Frank and Albert shared a few character traits. No wonder Martha got along with him so well.

“But it gets lonely, you know?” She turned to me as we stopped in front of her house. “The long winter nights and the long summer days, and I think if you get the chance not to be lonely, you shouldn’t hold on to old pain. Now, old love…” She patted my arm. “That is a different story, never you go forgetting that. But ghosts? They’re in the past. You should leave them there.”

I laid my hand on top of hers and squeezed briefly, but my forehead was wrinkled in thought. “Why are you telling me all this?”

“Just wanted you to know where I stand.” A touch of nervousness thickened the Cajun accent again. “And … well, make sure you’re okay with it.”

As the serious expression in her eyes began to register, I realised what she was really saying and that my earlier thoughts hadn’t been so far off the mark. This was no superficial fondness; she was interested in the old man. I turned the idea of Martha and Frank over in my head. Even when I’d seen them sitting on the porch, I had never seriously considered it.

My first feeling was unease. For a long time, it had only been Frank and me. And I’d always thought it would stay this way. But what if the old man was tired of being alone? What if it wasn’t just a fishing buddy that he missed?

Of course, no effort on Martha’s part could ever turn her into my grandma. But it didn’t sound like she was interested in replacing anyone or searching for a replacement herself, and just because I had resigned myself to a life of solitude didn’t mean Frank had. Nor that he should.

I drew in a breath. “I don’t know what goes through the old man’s head even on a good day, trust me, but I would never interfere. You don’t need my permission, Martha.”

“It’s not about permission, cher. But it’s obvious how important you are to each other, and I would hate for you to be unhappy.”

I leaned back in my seat, but a part of me still felt adrift as my eyes stared unfocused into the rain outside. The pitter-patter of it made the interior feel like a safe place where nothing scary could touch me, but I knew it was only an illusion. Putting your emotions into a box and throwing the key away only got you so far. The world didn’t suddenly stop turning just because you wished it to.

“Seeing you two together would make me happy.” My voice was meant to be reassuring, but my hands returned to the steering wheel to clench around it. “I guess I would just need a little time to … adjust.”

The older woman eased out of the car but turned in the open door. “You take the time you need. I don’t plan on goin’ anywhere.”

“Except to Boston in the morning, right? I promise I’ll get that sorted for you.”

“I really appreciate that. Thank you again for tonight,” she drawled before making her way along the cobbled path inside. As she vanished into the cute, shingled house, I was suddenly sure that change was just around the corner. I just wasn’t sure I was prepared to face it.

Before I got back onto the road, I drew my phone out of my pocket and dialled the number of Lillian’s brother. The most senior member of my grandfather’s crew had a big family that seemed to come up with a handyman for each specialisation, and this one I happened to know pretty well.

“Vinnie? Hey, it’s me, Sam. Quick question, how long do you need to change a tyre?”