Page 9 of Shielding Maya

"So, I'm up here this morning to see if any of the residents saw the senator around." Jasiah cocked his head, and she continued. "The man we saw murdered yesterday. Maybe someone spoke to him. Noticed him hiding or doing anything. We need to find out if he had a phone, there wasn't one on his body. We're trying to figure out how the killer knew he was here."

Jasiah nodded and took a deep breath. His impressive chest expanded and the plaid woolen shirt he wore couldn't hide his muscular build. "Yeah. A couple of the women saw him. Let's go see if we can speak to them.

She walked alongside him as they crossed the common area and headed to the south side of the mountain. It was pretty up here, and their cabins were nestled in where there was a flat spot. But, they were surrounded by trees and plants. Formal gardens were set up at the edge of the common area in neat rectangle patches. Chicken wire was wrapped around posts on the ends to keep the rabbits from eating everything they worked so hard to grow.

"Your gardens look lush."

His head turned to view the gardens. As fall approached, the pumpkins, gourds, squash, and other fall foods were plentiful.

"They do a good job up here for us. We have a few of the women dedicated to the gardens. They've kept us all fed up here for years."

She blanched a bit at the use of 'women' as in it was woman's work. But, she said nothing. It was likely that's just the way he'd always thought of it.

But she had to ask, "What do the men do?"

He halted and turned toward her. His lips curved up slightly, his eyes were clear and dark brown and very pretty. He'd likely hate hearing she thought his eyes were pretty, but they were.

"They hunt. Fish down below. They've built each of these homes. They chop the firewood that keep us all warm. They help till the gardens in the spring and basically anything else that needs to be done. We all just pitch in up here. But some of that work is back breaking. To be honest, I wouldn't care if a woman wanted to swing an axe to cut firewood, but it'd make me sad to see her have to work so hard when there is so much other work she could likely do."

Maya swallowed the lump that grew in her throat. She'd offended him and didn't mean to. Not really. She'd worked her entire life proving she could do anything her male counterparts could do. Addy did as well and actually so did her mom before her. But, being able to shoot a gun, learn to investigate criminals, learn skills that enabled her to do her job weren't nearly as physically hard as swinging an axe and lifting logs to build a home.

"Of course."

He nodded and continued walking toward a little home nestled between two large oak trees. It almost looked as though the cabin was built into the trees it was such a perfect fit. The door was darker wood than the rest of the home, one window looked out onto the common area. It was impossible to see the back of the home or see how big it was.

Jasiah knocked on the door and waited. The small stoop in front of the door wasn't large enough for both of them, so he stepped down and stood next to her.

A woman, who looked to be in her late forties, opened the door. Her eyes landed on Jasiah and rounded.

"Your father?"

"No, April. Not yet."

She let out a breath and whispered, "Thank goodness." Then her eyes landed on Maya.

Jasiah motioned to her. "April, this is Maya Sager from Glen Hollow. She's one of the special operatives living in the old sewing factory."

"Oh. Good morning." The woman was rather pretty. She had sparkling blue eyes and her light hair was pulled back behind a scarf on her head. Small blonde tendrils escaped the scarf.

Maya smiled at her, hoping she looked friendly. "Good morning, April."

"April, Maya is investigating the man who was killed up here yesterday. You mentioned you'd seen him around here. Can you tell Maya what you saw?"

April's eyes watered. "I'm so sorry he's dead. I hope he wasn't family to you."

Maya shook her head. "No. We were trying to help him. He snuck away from our home and ended up out here. We don't know how he got up here and what he did while he was up here. He’d been missing from our compound for three days."

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April swallowed. "I'm so sorry I didn't say anything before. I've apologized to Jasiah. I was scared and didn't know if he was dangerous. He seemed hungry and scared mostly so I just let him be. But, if I'd said something, maybe he'd be alive..." Her eyes watered and Jasiah reached for her hand.

"April, we've discussed this. You aren't responsible for his actions or decisions."

April nodded and pulled a handkerchief from her apron pocket and swiped at her nose.

Maya's voice softened and her smile was genuine. The little lines at the corners of her eyes were attractive. She was tough. He could tell that just by how she carried herself. She didn't seem afraid of much. She'd followed a man who she knew was a killer without hesitation. She walked with confidence, her back straight and her head held high. She was of Hispanic heritage, that showed in her coloring. He'd seen her a few times in town, and every time he'd seen her, her long dark hair was pulled into a ponytail on the top of her head. He wondered what she'd look like with her hair down, flowing around her shoulders.

"April. Would you like to sit near the fire?" Jasiah asked.

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