Page 19 of Wandering Souls

While she waited, she spotted Hollywood’s friend, Magnus, across the street. He strolled casually with a dark-haired woman, their arms linked, their bodies close, but she saw the unmistakable military posture he carried. She’d seen it every day for almost five years and was sure she could spot it a mile away.

As she watched the pair share a joke and stare at each other with love in their eyes, she noticed others with the same rigid carriage around them. Only when Magnus turned and said something to a man with a deep, gnarled scar on his face, could she be certain that they were friends.

It was then Magnus saw her. He stopped and waved, which drew the attention of those around him. Everyone turned, including the woman, Scarface, and a very muscular man, with brown curly hair. All those eyes on her made her squirm and the feeling of being analyzed tingled down her spine. Scarface studied her intensely until Magnus slapped him on the shoulder. He spun away but the way he looked at her felt too familiar. There was no other word to describe the expression in his eyes. It was as if he’d seen her before.

“Everything okay?”

Ray’s return startled her and her body jumped in response. He looked across the street to where the others stood, smiled and waved.

“You know them?”

He set a hand on her shoulder. “Hollywood’s fellow soldiers. The blond is Magnus and the woman by his side is his fiancé, Julie. The other men with them are Riley and Gabe.” He sighed and glanced around. “I wonder where the others are.”

“There are more?”

“Riley’s wife, Stevie and Gabe’s wife, Kate. Maybe they’re at home with the kids. I’m surprised big Ben isn’t with them. It’s rare to see them separated.”

“Were they in the Army too?”

“Gabe’s wife was, not Stevie.” Ray sat and frowned at her. “Sorry if I startled you.”

Abi shook herself, trying to dislodge the worry that gripped her. “I was distracted. I noticed Magnus and then suddenly they were all looking at me.”

His head tilted as he looked at her questioningly. “Did it bother you?”

She scanned the street again but found them gone. It wasn’t that they saw her, it was the way the scarred man looked at her. Like he’d seen her before. She could practically see the cogs in his mind turning, trying to place her. There was surprise in his eyes and a desire to know her identity.

“Actually, come to think of it,” Ray squeezed her shoulder and then let her go. “You bear a striking resemblance to his wife. You don’t have a sister, do you?”

Abi felt her heart sink as history rushed through her mind and her thoughts turned to the locket, tucked safely under her shirt. Of the three pictures it contained, one was missing. It had never been given to her but it was of an older sister she’d never known, who disappeared after their father was killed. With the speculation he’d been murdered, Margery suspected she’d been taken into protective custody for her safety.

Abi never heard anything more until a routine internet search uncovered an obituary three years ago, reporting her sister’s death. Even now, the thought of losing a family member she’d never known sucked the air from her lungs. The unfairness of it evoked sadness so strong it bled into every corner of her being.

~

“Idid,” she whispered, her voice so full of sorrow he wanted to pull her into his arms. “She died.”

He’d only meant to infer how much she looked like Riley’s wife, Stevie, but he’d dragged up something tragic and upset her. Without another thought, he set his hand over her shoulder and gave what he hoped was a sympathetic squeeze. At her feet, Bruce’s head rose and turned to look up at her.

“I’m sorry, Abigail.”

“You weren’t to know.” She shot him a tight smile but wild emotions raged in her pale blue-gray eyes. “It’s okay.”

How much heartbreak had she experienced? “Do you want to talk about it?”

Her shoulders rose and fell. “There’s not much to say. I didn’t know her. I didn’t know any of my family until they were all gone.”

Ray didn’t know where to look. Words turned to ash in his mouth. “What happened?”

She sipped from her mug, her eyes gazing off into the distance. “I was given up for adoption not long after I was born. My biological mother feared for my safety, so she gave me away.” With a blink, she focused on him. “My adopted mother told me everything she knew. Never kept any secrets.”

He couldn’t imagine giving a child to someone else. “Your father?”

“He was killed in a random shooting when I was just ten.”

Ray imagined the heartache she harbored weighed a ton. To have so much disaster rip her family apart seemed a cruel twist of fate for someone so young. His heart grieved for her. Shifting his chair closer, he laid his arm across her shoulders to comfort her. Abigail stiffened at the contact, but soon relaxed as she lifted her face to his.

“I think it would be worse if I’d been there for all it, you know? If I’d known them. Strangers dying half a world away is sad but not devastating, even if they are my family. Does that make sense?”

---