that means.”
Beth flinched. The anger in his voice was impossible to miss. But he wasn’t the only one who’d felt hurt and betrayed.
“I didn’t want to go!” she yelled, and then groaned. She hadn’t meant to say that out loud. “I thought you would fight for me. But you didn’t. I thought you would come get me. But you didn’t. No one wrote back to me no matter how many letters I sent. No one called. After that, I got the message. There wasn’t anything to come back for.”
Ryal stomped on the brakes and slammed the pickup into Park. The morning sun coming through the windshield highlighted the dust motes in the air between them, but the heat was nothing compared to the heat of the anger between them.
“I didn’t know I needed to fight for you until it was too late. I woke up one morning and you were gone. All of you. No one even knew which direction you’d gone until months later, when Lou finally got a letter from your dad. I begged for the address. I wrote a dozen letters to you in one month’s time and every one of them came back unopened.”
Ryal’s face began to blur. Beth swiped at the tears running down her face. If what he was saying was true, then that meant her parents had lied to her a thousand times over, blocking both her letters and his.
“I don’t believe you!” she screamed.
He reeled as if she’d just slapped him, then took a deep breath, put the pickup in gear and started driving.
The silence between them was painful, but the longer it stretched, the less likely it became that it was going to end on a good note.
Beth took a slow, shuddering breath and swallowed back tears, refusing to let him see her cry. She made herself focus on the view and started recognizing houses tucked back in the woods, roads cut into the hills that wound upward before they disappeared from sight. She’d been gone ten years, and yet nothing here had really changed. The only industry in this part of Kentucky was the mines. A majority of the population lived below the poverty line, and it showed—in the run-down houses and in the ramshackle cars parked in front, some with wheels, some without.
When she realized they were near his old family home, she began to get nervous. Surely she wasn’t going to have to face all of them now. He took the turn she remembered and resisted the urge to argue.
The road was shaded by trees on both sides, but the underbrush was gone. It looked neat and well cared for. When the house she remembered suddenly appeared in front of them, she felt sick. The one-story clapboard house was still there, but it appeared that they’d added on a room, a wraparound porch, narrow gray shutters and a fresh coat of white paint. But all she could remember was the last time she’d been here with him, when they’d made love beneath the waterfall in the woods below the house.
Ryal slammed on the brakes and killed the engine, but he wouldn’t look at her.
“I need to pick up my stuff. Would you like to come in and use the bathroom before we head up? It’s about an hour’s drive to Grandpa’s cabin.”
Beth wanted to say no, but she knew better. “I guess I should.” But when she reached for the door, he stopped her.
“I’ll get that. The door sticks, and you’ll hurt your hands.”
He bounded out of of the truck and around to the passenger side before she could disagree, opened the door and put a hand under her elbow to steady her as she slid down from the seat.
She started to say thank-you, but he turned his back on her and walked away. She followed him up the stone walk to the front porch.
He unlocked the door, and then stepped aside.
“After you.”
The hair rose on the back of Beth’s neck as she walked past him and into the house, only to be greeted by silence.
“The bathroom is still down that hall and to the left,” he said, and left her standing in the living room.
It took a few moments before she could make herself move. She didn’t recognize anything about the place. Not
Beth flinched. The anger in his voice was impossible to miss. But he wasn’t the only one who’d felt hurt and betrayed.
“I didn’t want to go!” she yelled, and then groaned. She hadn’t meant to say that out loud. “I thought you would fight for me. But you didn’t. I thought you would come get me. But you didn’t. No one wrote back to me no matter how many letters I sent. No one called. After that, I got the message. There wasn’t anything to come back for.”
Ryal stomped on the brakes and slammed the pickup into Park. The morning sun coming through the windshield highlighted the dust motes in the air between them, but the heat was nothing compared to the heat of the anger between them.
“I didn’t know I needed to fight for you until it was too late. I woke up one morning and you were gone. All of you. No one even knew which direction you’d gone until months later, when Lou finally got a letter from your dad. I begged for the address. I wrote a dozen letters to you in one month’s time and every one of them came back unopened.”
Ryal’s face began to blur. Beth swiped at the tears running down her face. If what he was saying was true, then that meant her parents had lied to her a thousand times over, blocking both her letters and his.
“I don’t believe you!” she screamed.
He reeled as if she’d just slapped him, then took a deep breath, put the pickup in gear and started driving.
The silence between them was painful, but the longer it stretched, the less likely it became that it was going to end on a good note.
Beth took a slow, shuddering breath and swallowed back tears, refusing to let him see her cry. She made herself focus on the view and started recognizing houses tucked back in the woods, roads cut into the hills that wound upward before they disappeared from sight. She’d been gone ten years, and yet nothing here had really changed. The only industry in this part of Kentucky was the mines. A majority of the population lived below the poverty line, and it showed—in the run-down houses and in the ramshackle cars parked in front, some with wheels, some without.
When she realized they were near his old family home, she began to get nervous. Surely she wasn’t going to have to face all of them now. He took the turn she remembered and resisted the urge to argue.
The road was shaded by trees on both sides, but the underbrush was gone. It looked neat and well cared for. When the house she remembered suddenly appeared in front of them, she felt sick. The one-story clapboard house was still there, but it appeared that they’d added on a room, a wraparound porch, narrow gray shutters and a fresh coat of white paint. But all she could remember was the last time she’d been here with him, when they’d made love beneath the waterfall in the woods below the house.
Ryal slammed on the brakes and killed the engine, but he wouldn’t look at her.
“I need to pick up my stuff. Would you like to come in and use the bathroom before we head up? It’s about an hour’s drive to Grandpa’s cabin.”
Beth wanted to say no, but she knew better. “I guess I should.” But when she reached for the door, he stopped her.
“I’ll get that. The door sticks, and you’ll hurt your hands.”
He bounded out of of the truck and around to the passenger side before she could disagree, opened the door and put a hand under her elbow to steady her as she slid down from the seat.
She started to say thank-you, but he turned his back on her and walked away. She followed him up the stone walk to the front porch.
He unlocked the door, and then stepped aside.
“After you.”
The hair rose on the back of Beth’s neck as she walked past him and into the house, only to be greeted by silence.
“The bathroom is still down that hall and to the left,” he said, and left her standing in the living room.
It took a few moments before she could make herself move. She didn’t recognize anything about the place. Not
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