“That’s exactly what it was.”
“Then maybe you should finish it.”
“I did finish it. I told you everything that happened.”
“But you didn’t talk about what didn’t happen.” She tugged on his hand to pull him back down to the bench. “You didn’t get to confront Brendan and ask him why he did what he did. You didn’t get to ask Melissa all the questions you think you have answers to but want to hear her say that you’re right. You are so angry that they both died before they could fess up.”
He sighed and leaned against the back of the bench, his hands in her lap since she held both of them.
“You may not want to hear this, but it’s something that I have to say. And remember that you opened the door for it with what you just told me.”
“Go on.”
“Sometimes people do things that hurt us so deeply, we’re certain that we’re never going to be right inside again. We want justice for the wrong that’s been done to us, but we can’t always make that happen. So then we have a choice. We can hold on to those questions that can never be answered and those feelings that hurt us so much, and we can make them a part of our lives forever. Of course, if we do that, we’ll always hurt, and we’ll always be looking for answers that we’ll never get.”
“Or…?”
“Or we can put them aside, and make them not matter anymore.”
“Excuse me, but are you the same woman who wanted to do a happy dance when I told her that her ex-husband was dead?”
“That would be me. But here’s the thing. I started to put him behind me the day I put him in prison. Yes, I still have scars, inside and out, but they remind me to never let anyone else take charge of my life ever again. And yes, I have issues, but I don’t let them define me. I’ve made a life for myself, and I’m very happy here. I could make having been abused the most important thing in my life, but I’ve chosen to put it aside and focus on what I’ve done to take control of my life.”
“What’s your point?”
“My point is, that you might want to think about what it’s costing you to hold on to the anger you feel toward your brother and your wife. You can’t change what happened in either of those relationships. You will never know what motivated either of them. Do you know that you can’t seem to mention your brother without your jaw going tight?” Before he could respond, she added, “And why do you stay in that house, Grady? Your wife was murdered there. Why would you want to stay?”
The bells from the church two blocks away began to chime.
“It’s seven,” he told her after all the bells had rung. “We’re supposed to meet Hal and Maggie now.” He stood and took her hand.
“All right,” she told him. “I’m sorry if I went too far.”
He held up a hand as if to stop her from saying anything further. “No need to apologize.”
They walked hand in hand to Walt’s at the end of the pier. When they were almost to the door, Grady said, “So I’m guessing this whole leave-the-anger-behind thing doesn’t apply to Maggie?”
“Well, of course not. That only applies to old stuff that you have no chance of resolving.” She swung the restaurant door open. “Maggie’s going to be a thorn in my butt for a long, long time…”
“There they are.” Maggie elbowed Hal. “They’re just coming in the door now.”
“I see them.” Hal patted her arm. “I want you to calm down, now. Take a deep breath.”
Maggie inhaled deeply several times.
“One more for good measure,” Hal whispered as Vanessa and Grady approached the table.
“Are you all right, Maggie?” Vanessa asked as she hung her bag over the back of the chair next to Hal’s.
“I just…” Maggie paused. “I just had the hiccups.”
“Oh, I hate it when I get those.” Vanessa turned to Hal. “So what happened to your cruise around the Bay?”
“Aborted.” Hal smiled. “Old Carter was having trouble docking that whaler of his, so I had to give him a hand. Then we started talking, one thing led to another, and the next thing I knew, we were seated out there at the bar having a cold one.”
“How is Carter?” Vanessa took a sip of water from the glass the attentive waiter poured for her.
“He’s doing better. Misses the wife, of course, but he’s keeping it together.”
“Glad to hear it. I always liked him.”
The waiter handed Grady and Vanessa menus.
“Did you two already order?” Vanessa asked.
“We were waiting for you,” Hal replied. “The specials are on the board there by the door. They have one of your favorites, Ness.”
Vanessa turned and looked over her shoulder.
“Yum. We know what I’m having.” She closed her menu.
“I’ll join you there,” Hal said, and closed his as well. “No one does a better grilled tuna than the man Walt has working in his kitchen.”
“That sounds great. I’ll have that as well.” Maggie added her menu to the pile.
“Grady?” Hal asked.
“I’m going with the swordfish.”
Hal signaled for the waiter and gave the orders.
“So how did you two spend the rest of the afternoon?” Hal asked.
“We just walked around a bit, then sat and watched the sun float down onto the Bay,” Vanessa told him. “That’s how we knew you never made it out of your slip.”
“Well, now, you know how old men are once they get talking about their boats.” Hal turned to Maggie. “I guess we bored you to death.”
“Not at all,” Maggie assured him. She took a deep breath and asked Grady, “Are you planning on staying in St. Dennis for a while?”
“I’m not sure,” he replied. “I’m playing it by ear.”
Hal took that to mean Grady would hang around until they figured out who was targeting Vanessa and why. He liked that about the young man, that he’d been concerned enough about Ness not to be so quick to leave when no one was really sure how serious the threat was. A man would be a fool not to know when two young people were circling around each other the way these two were over the past four days. Hal had been hoping the circling hadn’t been all on Vanessa’s part. Knowing that Grady was willing to change his plans to keep an eye on her… well, Hal couldn’t help but approve of that.
“Hal tells me you live in Montana,” Maggie said.
Grady nodded. “Not too far from Great Falls, if you know where that is.”
“I do.” She nodded. “I was in that airport once, when my flight to Fargo got redirected due to bad weather.”
“How do you like North Dakota?” Grady asked.
“I like some things-I like all the space, and the scenery is beautiful. But it’s so cold, and the summer’s so short. But of course, you could say the same thing. We probably have similar seasons.”
“Yeah. Winter and July.”
Maggie laughed. “Yes, that’s it exactly.”
“What part of the state do you live in, Mrs. Turner?”
“Oh, call me Maggie. Everyone does. Even my children.” Maggie slanted a look at Vanessa. “I live a little southwest of Fargo.”
“Did Vanessa tell me you raised sheep?”
“Oh, no, no.” Maggie laughed again. “No, that was my late husband’s deal. He raised Cotswold sheep. They produce a very nice, long wool fleece. They tell me that people who spin their own wool like it, but since I don’t spin and I don’t knit, I wouldn’t know.”
“Who’s minding the ranch while you’re here, Maggie?” Vanessa asked.
“Oh, my late husband’s sons have been working the ranch for the past several years, since he-Carl Senior, that is-got sick. Wayne and the Carls have-”
“The Carls?” Vanessa raised an eyebrow.
“Carl Junior, and his son, Carl the third.” Maggie turned to Grady. “Yes, I know, the Turners were in a bit of a rut when it came to naming their children. Anyway, Carl’s boys have been taking care of the ranch and they say they’re staying on. This year they started raising turkeys as well, so I guess they’re determined to keep it going.”