“Hi, Daddy! This book is soooo good,” she said, waving at him and then sticking her face between the pages. Raphael found himself bordering on disappointed when she didn’t stop reading to give him a bit of morning love. It must have shown on his face.
Willow spoke up, “Karli, the book is not going anywhere. We can’t say the same for Mr. Hoyt.”
“Yes, Mommy,” she said, setting the book down carefully on the couch, walking over to Raphael, and wagging her finger for him to bend down. She planted a juicy wet kiss on his cheek, repeated her morning greeting and went back to the couch.
“Enjoy your book, Pooh Bear,” he said, looking toward the kitchen from which, he had heard the voice of correction emanate. “Good morning, Willow.”
She greeted him wearing his shirt from yesterday and a skirt made from a piece of fabric he’d spotted on the sewing table.
“Good Morning, Mr. Hoyt. Your breakfast is ready,” Willow said, pouring coffee into a large mug.
“Raphael...you can call me by my given name,” he said, reaching for the cup.
Willow pulled the cup away from his hand and extended her neck, offering her cheek for a morning kiss. Raphael took his thumb and middle finger, placing them together, and thumped her on the neck. Willow jumped and he took the cup from her hand. He took a sip of it while looking at her over the rim. She squinted her eyes at him, turning her back to pull his plate from the oven where the meal was being kept warm, sliding it onto the table.
“Would you care for a cup of juice with that meal as well, Raphael?” she asked, squinting at him again.
“I care whether or not this is going to be the longest Sunday of my life, being locked in here with you squinting at me like that,” he said, looking at the omelet. Two slices of crisp bacon and perfectly sliced even cut potatoes rested on the plate as well with a twisted slice of orange. It looked as if it came directly from a page on a magazine. “Whoa, this looks amazing. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Bon appétit,” she said, disappearing while he ate.
For some odd reason, he didn’t expect it to taste as good as it did. The eggs were fluffy and nearly evaporated on his tongue. The vegetables inside of the perfectly folded omelet were tender, and the bacon was crispy, just like he liked it. Before he knew it, he’d inhaled all the food and was looking on the stove for more.
“Shit, that’s how they get you,” he said, looking over the rim of his cup, waiting to see if either of them was watching him. He’d barely burped when Willow returned, taking his plate.
“Did you have enough?”
“Yes, thank you. It was very delicious.”
“Glad you enjoyed it.”
The silence between them filled the room. He was licked and he knew it. After a breakfast like that to get his day going, she could have a kiss on the cheek. Hell, if the woman could cook a perfect steak he would bend over and kiss her...
“Raphael, I can read your facial expression,” she said.
“As long as you can’t read my damned mind, we’re good,” he said, chuckling. “Get over here, Willow.”
“Get over there for what Raphael?”
“A warm peck on the cheek,” he said, bending down with his lips puckered. She wanted to take the bait, but couldn’t. They needed things.
Willow accepted the kiss, then cleared her throat. “I’m so sorry to bring this up, but we need things. You know women and girl things,” she said, pressing her lips together.
“My mother, God bless her soul, loved shopping and crafting, and if you look around, she was prepared for a rainy day on Noah’s Ark,” he said. “In the bedroom where you slept, check the dresser drawers and closets. She purchased items for my sister and niece thinking they were showing up with nothing but what they had on their backs. The drawers are loaded with unopened packs of underwear, socks, tees, and more.”
“Okay, what about the girls?”
“In the garage are two large bins full of clothes she was planning to make quilts out of, donate to the women’s shelter, or send to the starving children in Guatemala,” he said softly, “but she never did any of those things. There should be clothes in there to fit both girls. Let me move the bins first to make sure there are no guests hiding behind or inside of them.”
“Guests like what? Rats?”
“We’re near water, so watch where you step,” he said with a wink.
Willow hated to press, but she had to, “Raphael, what if those things don’t fit, plus shoes...I don’t mean to be a pain or seem ungrateful.”
“No worries,” he said, pulling out his wallet, selecting a credit card, and passing it to her.
“You’re giving me your credit card?”
“Well, yeah. You don’t expect me to take you and the girls to the Wal-Mart and the mall, do you?” he replied, looking as if he were absolutely disgusted by the idea. “Order online and have it shipped to the house.”
Willow blinked several times then swallowed hard.
“Honey. Husband. Raphael. Man,” she said, feeling a bit salty, “you have to try on shoes.”
“Believe it or not, my mother has a foot sizer around here as well,” he said to her shocked face. “I don’t know why. I don’t know why she bought half the shit she bought! Most of it, I have no idea what to do with and that’s why I hadn’t gotten rid of the stuff.”
Willow’s facial expression softened. “Maybe she was collecting all of that stuff because she’s been expecting us. She’s been expecting your family.”
“What?”
She winked back at him and poked him in the belly with her index finger, leaving him to stand in the floor, watching her bottom as she sauntered to the sink to wash the dishes.
“I have no idea what just happened, but I’ll be in the garage,” he said, deactivating the alarm and going down the inside stairs.
PRODERICK HYMN HANDLED his anger like most things in his world, slow, methodical, and well timed. He’d known for months of Kindred’s sniveling, sneaking, and snorting falsehoods behind his back in an effort to take over his flock. A small-minded man did that sort of thing, versus leaving the flock and starting his own herd. Why didn’t he simply leave? Now, Proderick was left with only one option—to take the man’s life in front of the few followers who remained.
The dust settled among the compound after the government agents had departed the property, no doubt in search of Proderick. Very few people knew of the cabin high in the hills. Only a chosen few were permitted on the site, and those were only his wives. None of the men in the tribe knew of its location.
He had arrived well after the government agents were gone. Only two wives remained as well as three of his 14 children. Theodore, a steadfast soldier, stood ready to report.
“Hymn, we don’t know what happened,” he said with wide eyes. “I was out all night looking for Karli, who I lost at a roadside stop...”
“What?” Hymn asked, his eyes squinted, trying to force more understanding. “Please explain to me why my daughter was not on these grounds?”
“Kindred. He told me to take her to the motel site for date night with a high roller. He said you okayed it to add money to the coffers since we had gotten so low. The man paid like 20 grand for her,” Theodore said, feeling pride in his words.