Page 41 of Hush

Elise wanted to scream. “How can you put our lives in jeopardy like this?”

“Look,” he’d said, exasperated. “There’s two kinds of people in this world. Those who take opportunities, and those who sit on their heels and hope their fortune will just fall in their lap.” He pointed his finger at her chest. “Well, I got news for you. Fortune follows innovation. This is something the valley needs, and when it’s done, it will set us up for life. We can hire people to run the winery, handle the farming.”

“I thought you liked those things,” she said, suddenly so confused.

He shrugged. “Maybe I’ll run for mayor,” he said.

Six months later, with the project on hold due to the discovery of Native American artifacts discovered on the building site, Elise’s savings had been cut in half and the banks threatened to seize their assets to cover the debt. Then, she found out Garrett had been sleeping with an old fling from high school since a reunion earlier that summer. She had accidentally picked up his phone, thinking it was hers—they often charged them in the same place—and saw messages she didn’t understand. Until she did.

Elise climbed the porch, then knocked as the ghosts of her past swirled around her. When no one came to the door, she turned the knob and poked her head inside. “Hello?” she called. After listening for a response, she stepped inside, ears perked for sounds.

A television was on somewhere, and she thought she could hear a woman’s voice talking. “Jaden?” she called out, moving deeper into the house.

In the kitchen, Jaden sat on a stool eating from a giant bag of nacho cheese chips, his eyes glued to the small TV screen playing a cartoon of a cat and a mouse she remembered from her childhood. At the moment, the mouse was smashing the cat’s head with an oversized mallet and the cat’s eyes went spinning.

Elise stepped in front of the TV, catching Jaden’s eyes. His mouth was dusted with bright orange cheese powder, as were his fingers.

“Hi,” she said, breaking his trance.

Jaden blinked. “Can I just watch until the end?” he asked.

Elise saw the tired way his eyes moved. “Come on, let’s go home,” she said, turning off the TV. “Where’s your dad?”

Jaden dove into the bag of chips. “I dunno.”

“Is Poppy here?” Elise asked, waiting for him to take his last handful of chips from the bag before removing it from his grip. She noticed that three-quarters of the bag was empty. Had Jaden eaten that much? While rolling the bag and storing it in the cupboard, Elise began to get a bad feeling.

“Elise,” a woman’s voice said behind her.

Elise wheeled around to see a short, curvy brunette with big, brown eyes. “Hello,” Elise said to Poppy while her mind rattled off questions:Why do I always find Jaden by himself whenever I come to get him? Do you know what watching TV and eating junk food does to him?

“Sorry, I was on the phone,” Poppy said, though she didn’t look at all sorry.

Elise tried to make her face neutral, but knew she was failing miserably. “Thank you for picking up Jaden,” she said, stroking the top of his head. “We’ll get out of your hair now.”

“It’s no problem,” Poppy said.

Elise scooped up Jaden and turned to go, feeling Jaden’s hot, cheesy breath against her neck.

At the car, Elise held the door while Jaden got settled, then slid behind the wheel.

“Can we go to Ben’s house?” Jaden asked when they were halfway down the long driveway.

“No, honey.” Elise sighed.

“Why?” Jaden asked.

“We can’t just show up uninvited,” Elise replied, stopping at the intersection. The highway was bare, but the roads could still be slick, especially with night falling.

“But he’d invite us. I know he would,” Jaden asked, tapping his heel against the seat.

“Not tonight,” Elise said.

“My stomach hurts,” Jaden said, staring out the window.

Elise held the curse begging to be let loose. “I’m sorry, honey,” she said. “I can make you some ginger tea when we get home,” she added.

Once inside their house, Elise felt her blood pressure drop. Even though her tiny home was no mansion, it was cozy and safe. She turned on the heat before switching on the kettle.

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