Page 37 of Deep Waters
“Hmmph. In my day, wemadeour opportunities.”
“Yeah, yeah. In your day you also thought the Earth was flat.”
“Get out before I do something that will embarrass your new girlfriend.” She softened it with a smile for me, but Zach still tugged me toward the back door.
“Everyone else outside?”
“Yes,” his mom answered. “Your dad’s at the grill. We’re just waiting on Vi.”
We escaped to the backyard.
“What was that about opening your eyes?” I asked Zach.
Maybe I didn’t want to know. After all, it was Gran.
He wrinkled his nose. “This year, she’s had a family motto for each of us. One she wants us to live up to. She told me mine was to ‘wake up and open your eyes.’ But she says mysterious crap like that all the time. Last week it was that I couldn’t slap a flower in an asshole and call it a vase after I asked her how her feud with Ollie Reyes was going.” He shrugged. “She’s a little hard to read sometimes.”
I blinked.
“Hello, Rae. So glad you could make it.” Gary Fenwick looked up from the grill, a welcoming smile in place. Graying at the temples, he looked like an older version of Cole and Drew. The older man exuded a calm that I found soothing after facing the Fenwick women.
“Hey, Mr. Fenwick.”
“Gary, dear.”
We greeted Drew and Anya, who’d claimed spots at the large patio table. Anya’s smile held a hint of mischief. Between her and Vi, my secret was out.
Hana and Tae carried out dishes. Vanessa, Gran, and Vi trailed behind with their own armfuls of platters, cutlery, and cups, and I sprang up to help.
“Get your buns ready,” Vanessa said.
The kids giggled, and Gran exchanged a playful glance with them. “I like mine saucy,” she said.
“I like mine toasty,” Drew said, winking at Tae.
“I’ve got your toasty buns over here,” Gary offered.
The kids chortled, following Gran inside to prepare their plates. It eased the tightness in my chest to see them so relaxed. They’d had too much loss already in their young lives. Giving them this slice of normalcy, the support of family, felt like a gift.
If I’d brought them to my dad’s, he would have grilled too. But it wouldn’t be as fun. As silly. My family was more matter-of-fact. Eat and get on with it. Probably turn on a baseball game. Zach’s family went out of their way to make Hana and Tae feel welcome. To make them part of the fun. And I couldn’t thank them enough for that.
Chapter 17 – Zach
Hana and Tae seemed to enjoy dinner with my family, laughing and chattering as they exchanged jokes with Gran. Burbling excitedly about camp activities and their adventures with my mom. After we’d eaten and cleared everything away, my dad pulled out our Kubb game and we spent the last few hours of daylight drinking beer and lemonade and throwing batons at kubbs and the King on the back lawn.
Working in teams of five meant there was a large group of hecklers for any given thrower, but the teasing was all good-natured. When the sun finally went down around nine, we carted the kids home.
“Stay here,” I said as we pulled into the drive.
Rae’s expression lost its relaxed glow, turning grim. I hated to see the change in her, but I wasn’t willing to risk the alternative. There were no obvious signs that the Dawkins house had been broken into again, but an eerie silence settled over the property in the gathering darkness. The air felt too still, too heavy. And one of the new lights was out.
“Did you get an alert while we were out and you didn’t tell me?” Rae asked.
“No, but there’s no way I’m risking your safety either. Sit tight with the kids while I make sure we’re all clear.”
Rae grabbed for my hand, stalling me. “Please be careful. I don’t like this,” she gritted out, her expression beseeching. “I want to believe it was just someone looking for quick cash before.”
I tucked an errant curl behind her ear. Any excuse to touch her. “But we can’t assume that.”
