The next thing she knew, someone was knocking at her door. She got up, smoothing her hair as she went, and opened the door.
“Donna, I apologize for stopping by without calling first. Is it okay if I come in a moment?” Ruby asked.
“Of course,” Donna said. “Please come in. I’m just passing the time here in the living room, waiting for my sister to call. Have a seat.”
Ruby sat, then leaned forward, her elbows on her knees as Donna sat back down in her chair.
“I want you to know how sorry I am for what happened to Arnold. You have my deepest sympathies,” Ruby said.
Donna nodded. “Thank you, Ruby.”
“Of course,” Ruby said. “But I’m here about you as well. Chief Pittman called me about your situation…about wanting to go home, and I want you to tell me, in your own words, what you need for us to get you there.”
Donna’s eyes welled. “I honestly don’t know, except that I’m not burying Arnold here.”
Ruby nodded. “Then you intend to wait until the coroner releases the body and have it transported to West Virginia?”
“We always said we didn’t want to be buried, so I reckon I’ll take his ashes back with me,” Donna said.
Ruby’s focus shifted. “You do know that funeral homes can ship ashes to you?”
Donna wiped her eyes, then shook her head. “No, I don’t think I did.”
“Well, they can, so don’t let the unknown of when his body is released be the deciding factor in your decision of when and how you want to leave, okay? Just so you know, the funeral home here can receive Arnold’s body from the coroner, follow your wishes, and ship the ashes at a later date to your new address. Chief Pittman also told me about Dub’s phone call, but there’s no way to know when any of that will go into effect, so we want to have a couple of fund-raisers here in Blessings to give you the freedom to make your own choices…if that’s all right with you?”
Donna covered her face and burst into tears.
Ruby jumped up and went to her. Within moments she was down on her knees in front of Donna’s chair, patting her arm.
“I’m so sorry, sugar. I’m so, so sorry. Cry all you want. I’m a good listener, and we’ll get this figured out together, okay?”
Donna nodded. But the relief was huge. She was no longer trying to figure this out alone.
* * *
Junior was at the pharmacy when he heard about Birdie and the fire. At first he was shocked, and then sad no one in the family bothered to tell him. Then when he found out Arnold Hollis had died in that fire, he was sad all over again.
Arnold had always been friendly to Junior and had even taken him home one night during a downpour when his car wouldn’t start. Junior remembered the man’s kindness and his gentle spirit, and now he was gone.
Junior left the pharmacy with full intention of going home, but the thought of going back to nothing was suddenly more than he could bear. In a spur-of-the-moment decision, he made a U-turn in the street and drove out to Grey Goose Lake, then parked and got out.
Back when he was little, Hunt used to bring him and Ray out here to fish. Hunt had always baited their hooks and taken the fish off the lines. He was a good big brother, and what they’d done was unforgivable.
He walked down to the edge of the water, then paused, staring out across the water and watching the sunlight sparkling on the surface. A flock of Canada geese was swimming in the middle of the lake, and there was a big, gray crane standing in the edge of the water just down shore from where Junior was standing. There was so much beauty here…and such peace. Junior squatted down at the water’s edge, picked up a couple of rocks, and gave them a toss.
The ripples spread out from the point of contact like an echo…going farther and farther…growing bigger and bigger, like the lies that had destroyed his family. If he could do it over, he would never have kept the secret. Even though the consequences would have taken them down, Hunt would not have felt so betrayed. Instead, he’d paid the price for their sins.
Junior was still watching the geese when his phone suddenly rang. When he saw it was Ray, he answered.
“Yeah, what’s up?”
“Hello to you, too,” Ray said. “Did you hear about Birdie?”
“Yes, I heard about Birdie, but not from any of the family. Thank you for calling,” he said, and hung up.
Ray called back.
Junior answered angrily. “What?”
“What the hell’s wrong with you?” Ray asked. “Where are you?”
“Grey Goose Lake.”
There was a long pause, and then Ray asked, “What are you doing out there?”
“Remembering how Hunt used to bring us fishing when we were kids. He was a good big brother. What we did to him was bad.”
Ray sighed. “I know, but there’s no going back. What’s done is done.”
“I don’t like myself,” Junior said. “I am a loser. We failed Hunt. Then we failed ourselves. And we failed Mama. I don’t even matter enough to any of you to let me know Birdie escaped a fire today. I disgust me.”
“Come by the house,” Ray said. “We’ll talk.”
“I don’t want to talk, and I don’t want to get blind, stinking drunk again tonight,” Junior said.
“Then what do you want?” Ray asked.
“Just for all this to be over. For Hunt to leave town so I don’t have to remember what we did to him.”
“Come back into town,” Ray said.
“I’m not ready to come back into town,” Junior said. And the more he talked, the louder he got until he was shouting. “What do you think I’m going to do out here? You’re talking like I’m going to do myself in or something, and that’s not gonna happen because I’m also a coward. I’m out here because it’s beautiful and quiet and I don’t want to talk to anybody. Just leave me the hell alone.”
He disconnected, then dropped his phone in his pocket. Even though it rang again and again, he ignored it.
* * *
Emma was beginning the preparations for their supper when her doorbell rang. She wiped her hands and went to the door.
“Hi, Ray. Come in.”
“Emma, I just talked to Junior. He’s out at the lake and talking all crazy. I’m worried.”
Emma frowned. “What do you mean, talking all crazy? And what is he doing at the lake?”
“I don’t know…but he said he was remembering how Hunt used to take me and him fishing and what a good big brother he was. Then he said he hated himself, and what we did was a bad thing. He’s hurt because none of us called him about Birdie, either.”