Welsh.
Seeing the father of her dead brother-in-law, Vinny, shocked her into silence. Jordan seemed much older, and his weathered features reminded her of the pain he’d suffered when Vinny and Angie died. She never saw him after the accident, but she heard he had taken their deaths very hard. She dreaded facing him now.
The veiled look in his eyes made her squirm under his gaze. He tilted his head and spoke.
“Well, Martha. This is a surprise. Now I know where you disappeared to. I heard you moved away and didn’t tell anyone where you were going. ‘Course, I moved too and sort of lost touch with everybody there in Carson.”
Marti stood still, not knowing what to say. Finally, the silence made her uncomfortable. “Mr. Welsh. It’s good to see you. I hope you’ve been well.”
Jordan nodded. “As well as could be.”
“What are you doing in Tennessee?”
“I . . . uh, still travel around for the quarter horse competitions, and I decided to attend the one in Vick.”
“Oh.”
“Are you living here now, Martha?”
She nodded. “For the past year. I’ve been working at an art gallery here in the city.”
“I see.”
The pause that followed was uncomfortable for Marti, so she backed up a little and said, “I guess I better be getting back. I ran over to get the mail for my boss. It was good to see you again, Mr. Welsh.”
Mr. Welsh put his hand on Marti’s arm. “Wait, Martha.”
She stopped and half-turned toward him. The hand on her arm gave her an uneasy feeling.
“I just wanted to say that . . . I don’t hold any ill feelings toward you.” His eyes shifted to stare at the ground.
The breath she was holding came out quickly in a relieved sigh. “Thank you, Mr. Welsh.”
“I know things happen sometimes that are out of our control, and . . . well, I just wanted you to know.” The smile he gave her was strained but she hoped it was sincere.
Marti turned toward him then and fingered the chain around her neck. “Thank you, Mr. Welsh. I know it was hard losing Vinny, especially right after your wife died. I’m just sorry it had to happen.”
For a second, his eyes met hers, and then he shifted, and his gaze spiraled downward. “Yeah, same here.” His voice was so soft she could hardly hear the words. He squared his shoulders and spoke. “I’ll let you go now, Martha.” He nodded and turned away.
She stood still and watched him cross the street to the courthouse. His lanky figure looked strong, but his legs were still tall and painfully thin. A small twinge started in her stomach and spread to her heart. Reminders of that accident always popped up somewhere. She wished there was a pill to take so she could forget everything in her past.
She shook her head and flipped through the mail while she walked in the other direction but froze when she saw a familiar address label.
Carson, Texas.
A pain hit her in the chest so hard it made her dizzy. Who would be writing her from Daniel’s address? How did they know where she was?
She stared at the letter, torn between two decisions. Should she open it? Should she throw it in the sidewalk trash can and not give it another thought?
What if it was important?
She ripped open the envelope before she could talk herself out of it.
Gerald’s scribbling popped off the page. Suddenly, her legs wouldn’t hold her up. She collapsed on the post office steps. The rest of the mail slipped from her hand to the ground as she stared at the words on the white piece of paper.
“Daniel is dying. Please come back so he can see you before it’s too late.”
The first three words were the only words she saw, and they pulsed inside her brain with each heartbeat.
Daniel is dying. Daniel is dying. Daniel is dying .
A burning pain twisted in her heart, and she struggled to breathe.
“No. Please, no.” The words came out in a whisper. She closed her eyes—daring the words to remain on the page when she opened them again. Even though she’d decided to
Seeing the father of her dead brother-in-law, Vinny, shocked her into silence. Jordan seemed much older, and his weathered features reminded her of the pain he’d suffered when Vinny and Angie died. She never saw him after the accident, but she heard he had taken their deaths very hard. She dreaded facing him now.
The veiled look in his eyes made her squirm under his gaze. He tilted his head and spoke.
“Well, Martha. This is a surprise. Now I know where you disappeared to. I heard you moved away and didn’t tell anyone where you were going. ‘Course, I moved too and sort of lost touch with everybody there in Carson.”
Marti stood still, not knowing what to say. Finally, the silence made her uncomfortable. “Mr. Welsh. It’s good to see you. I hope you’ve been well.”
Jordan nodded. “As well as could be.”
“What are you doing in Tennessee?”
“I . . . uh, still travel around for the quarter horse competitions, and I decided to attend the one in Vick.”
“Oh.”
“Are you living here now, Martha?”
She nodded. “For the past year. I’ve been working at an art gallery here in the city.”
“I see.”
The pause that followed was uncomfortable for Marti, so she backed up a little and said, “I guess I better be getting back. I ran over to get the mail for my boss. It was good to see you again, Mr. Welsh.”
Mr. Welsh put his hand on Marti’s arm. “Wait, Martha.”
She stopped and half-turned toward him. The hand on her arm gave her an uneasy feeling.
“I just wanted to say that . . . I don’t hold any ill feelings toward you.” His eyes shifted to stare at the ground.
The breath she was holding came out quickly in a relieved sigh. “Thank you, Mr. Welsh.”
“I know things happen sometimes that are out of our control, and . . . well, I just wanted you to know.” The smile he gave her was strained but she hoped it was sincere.
Marti turned toward him then and fingered the chain around her neck. “Thank you, Mr. Welsh. I know it was hard losing Vinny, especially right after your wife died. I’m just sorry it had to happen.”
For a second, his eyes met hers, and then he shifted, and his gaze spiraled downward. “Yeah, same here.” His voice was so soft she could hardly hear the words. He squared his shoulders and spoke. “I’ll let you go now, Martha.” He nodded and turned away.
She stood still and watched him cross the street to the courthouse. His lanky figure looked strong, but his legs were still tall and painfully thin. A small twinge started in her stomach and spread to her heart. Reminders of that accident always popped up somewhere. She wished there was a pill to take so she could forget everything in her past.
She shook her head and flipped through the mail while she walked in the other direction but froze when she saw a familiar address label.
Carson, Texas.
A pain hit her in the chest so hard it made her dizzy. Who would be writing her from Daniel’s address? How did they know where she was?
She stared at the letter, torn between two decisions. Should she open it? Should she throw it in the sidewalk trash can and not give it another thought?
What if it was important?
She ripped open the envelope before she could talk herself out of it.
Gerald’s scribbling popped off the page. Suddenly, her legs wouldn’t hold her up. She collapsed on the post office steps. The rest of the mail slipped from her hand to the ground as she stared at the words on the white piece of paper.
“Daniel is dying. Please come back so he can see you before it’s too late.”
The first three words were the only words she saw, and they pulsed inside her brain with each heartbeat.
Daniel is dying. Daniel is dying. Daniel is dying .
A burning pain twisted in her heart, and she struggled to breathe.
“No. Please, no.” The words came out in a whisper. She closed her eyes—daring the words to remain on the page when she opened them again. Even though she’d decided to
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