Keeping Her Love by Tiger Hill Page A

gone. The woman was gone. Tracing back through it in his mind, it was obvious—the old woman drew Tula in with a free ‘palm reading,’ made sure to direct her attention to the hand without the expensive jewelry, brought a lot of distracting people around them, and then made a quick escape. Rhett wasn’t quite sure how the woman managed to disassemble the tent so quickly, though he assumed that she had an accomplice of some kind.
    He didn’t necessarily want to cry when it all sank in. Rage coursed through his veins and he felt like he was one of the biggest jackasses on the planet. In some way, he thought that he had let his girlfriend down. She did ask if he approved of the fortune telling, and he had. They were both disarmed by the clever woman, but he felt in a paternalistic sort of way that he should have known better. What kind of provider and partner could he be to Tula if he couldn’t even spot danger lurking around the corner?
    When he saw Tula slowly approach him, the temptation to cry really hit him. She was blaming herself, he knew, and there was a sense of shame shared between them.
    “She’s gone,” said Tula in tired defeat. She was staring out at the sidewalk, holding back her feelings of sadness.
    Rhett gently took her by the shoulders. “I’ll buy you another ring, Tula. We were tricked. I mean, we can go to the police and tell them what happened.”
    “What good would that do?” She asked. “We’ll never see that woman again. We’ll never get it back. I’m such an idiot. I don’t watch what I’m doing, and things like this happen.”
    His eyes widened slightly. He wasn’t accustomed to Tula being so hard on herself, and had a deep-seated distaste for it. Whenever anything went wrong, Tula was always the one to gloss over any bumps in the road. She was his rock in a way, a comforting light in a dark world. And here she was, down in the depths of depression.
    “It’s just a ring,” said Rhett. “I can buy you another one. We’ll be more careful next time.”
    She slowly shook her head. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Bad things have been happening because of me. First it was the oven and now it’s the ring.”
    “Tula! Those weren’t your fault. First, that woman tricked us. Two, nobody knows what happened with the oven. And maybe it’s a good thing.” He took her by the hand as they walked towards the Ferry Building again. “It’s testing our love for one another, so we can see how we handle situations that are less than ideal. Chin up, Tula. This is no big deal.”
    She wiped away a tear and forced herself to put on a smile, however jagged it was. “I just feel like I let you down. That ring was beautiful. It was a symbol of our love, and I let someone snatch it away.”
    “I have money, especially after moving in with you guys. I can buy another ring.”
    She just stared at the pavement. Rhett was no mind reader, but he couldn’t help but interpret the look as her thinking, But it won’t be the same.  
    As he sighed, trying to form more optimistic thoughts, he saw it: a white van, and the fortune teller throwing something in the back of it. She was only thirty feet away, perhaps completely unaware that Rhett could see her. There was a large road separating Rhett from her with a lot of people dispersed, but if he hurried, he could sprint across traffic and get his hands on her.
    She must have thought that we would go the other way or something! Thought Rhett. Holy cow, what luck! I’ve gotta take advantage of this before she gets away!
    He dashed off, leaving Tula behind without a word. Cutting off pedestrians and leaping past a few families with toddlers, he threw himself into traffic just as the crossing light pulsed red. He ran across with only an inch to spare, some taxis taking off just as he stepped foot on the sidewalk. As soon as he got to the other side, he knew he was near. As fast as her short body could crawl up into the van, she went. Fearful that