Page 25 of Stone Cold Sinner

“Not at first.” Kenzie stalled, wrapping up her food and tucking it back in the bag. “I, uh, came home because… Phew… That’s a hard question, even if it has an easy answer.”

“You were married. Something happen?”

“I came home to try and save him,” she said, looking anywhere but at Coy. “PTSD, they said. A really bad case of it. He was special ops. The rest is classified even from me. He saw a lot of bad shit, Coy. More than any human should witness. It eventually caught up to him.”

“Oh, shit.” Coy dropped his head in anticipation, already understanding where her story was likely going.

“Oh, shit is right. I tried. I tried everything. I retired early. I moved everywhere with him. I tried to get him help. Both were on active duty with specialties like we had, and there were big gaps in our marriage where we were apart. We loved each other as hard as anyone could love another, so it worked for us.” Kenzie’s tone became flat and emotionless while her gaze was somewhere far away, like she was reliving the moment from another place and another time. “We were going to work hard while we were young so we could retire young and live a whole second life after. We didn’t get the chance. Never could find the right mental health help for him.”

“Jesus, Kenz.”

“He lost his battle at his own hand.” She stared out her side window to gather herself and fight off the ghosts that were threatening to haunt her. “That’s why I moved back. I thought there was nothin’ better to heal the soul than this place. I was wrong. I don’t even stay out on the family ranch. Glen runs it. I have a small place in town.”

“He did it on the ranch –– took his life there,” Coy said as a statement, not as a question. “I am so sorry, Kenzie. I had no idea.”

Coy placed his hand on hers, quickly getting her attention as she whipped her head in his direction.

“Not many people knew. We weren’t even in town that long before I became… the Widow Gray,” she said in dramatic fashion. “I’d already retired at that point. There wasn’t much for me to go back to, so I started over. Here. First as a deputy under my uncle, then Sheriff when he retired.”

“That’s quite a story. Does it have a happy ending?”

She smiled back at Coy. “Yeah. So far. I’m pretty happy here.”

“Your turn,” she said, pulling her hand from his. “I know what brought you here this trip, but what kept you away all these years? I notice you aren’t wearin’ a ring. I don’t recall hearing anything about a Mrs. Stone, not that I asked. Your family gets real quiet when I ask how you’re doing.”

Coy stared her down, hoping she’d give up and change the subject, but she didn’t. “You ask how I’m doing, huh?”

“Sure do –– old friend. I have known you my whole life. Shoot, we were high school sweethearts. Prom King and Queen. Why, you were my first love, Coy Stone.”

“That was… a million years ago. We were both different people back then.” Coy dropped what was left of his sandwich in the box and set it up on her car dash, quickly understanding why she seemed to lose her appetite as well. “My family never said anything?”

“I’d heard whispers that you’d married when I’d call home, but then… nothing. Just that you were doing fine.”

“Fine, huh.” He shook his head. “I guess I really didn’t give them any more than fine. Though different circumstances, our stories aren’t all that different. I lost my wife to the job, too.”

“She was active duty?”

“No. Not Emery.” He almost smiled but then remembered that pain in his chest, and it quickly dimmed. “She was a bartender at a bar in a small town where I was stationed. Tough as nails. Didn’t take any shit. She was working there at night to pay for college. She was studying to be a nurse when we met.”

“Sounds like your type,” Kenzie teased, lightening the mood.

“She certainly was. Not just anyone can partner up with people like us, Kenz. You know?”

“I sure do. Takes a strong human to deal with the shit we bring home.”

“She did, though. With so much grace. She was home for me. We married right away. She finished school. I was gone a lot in those early years, but when I was home, it was like no time passed. I retired and went private sector so I could be home more, control my schedule, and work when I wanted. We were starting a family.”

“Oh wow,” she whispered.

“I don’t know how much you know about what I do, but it puts me in some pretty twisted crosshairs. I took a job. One that paid so well, I was going to be able to take quite a bit of time off, you know, for the baby. It was going to set us up nice, and when I finally went back to work, I could be choosy, ya know. It was the dream we’d been waitin’ for.”

Coy rolled his window down halfway to let the breeze flow through, propped his elbow on the door ledge, and cradled his chin on his fist.

“You don’t have to finish if…”

“Nah. You told me yours, I’ll tell you mine. Fair is fair. It’s just that I really haven’t told many people and saying it out loud… Well, it doesn’t seem real. It was a thousand lifetimes ago.”

“I understand that.” She said, resting a supportive hand on his shoulder. “Only talk about it if you’re sure. I’ll be just fine if you don’t. Not keepin’ score, Stone.”

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