A soft chuckle escaped between the tears drying on her cheeks. “Praise the good Lord, no. I sure enough didn’t need any other complications in this life.”
“Then how?”
She shrugged. “How does the monarch know its yearly pilgrimage? God made us all mysterious creatures—magic or not.”
This time, it was my fingers that entwined with hers. The same peace fell over me as when she prayed.
Her fingers tightened, and I felt her look over at me. “Has something changed? You weren’t here last night. Has something happened to him? I almost went back inside, but I couldn’t. I was too afraid. Why weren’t you here?”
“No. Nothing changed.” I probably didn’t need to disclose drugged-up fairy sex. Sitting next to Beverly made me feel dirtier than ever. “Beverly, I don’t know where Brett is. The night after we were here, he left me, and I haven’t heard from him since.” I meant to stop there. Meant to be strong for her, hold her while she worried over her missing grandson. My mouth had other plans, apparently. “I’ve been so lost. I don’t understand why he left. How he could leave… I love him so much, and, Beverly, I know he loves me. I was planning my entire life with him.” I couldn’t hold back the bitter snort, even as the tears leisurely began to fall once more. “I know I sound like a fool, but he’s the one. He has to be. I’ve never been happier or more content with anyone than when I’m with him. I know he felt the same. He said he did.” I pulled my hand from hers and wiped my eyes. “I’m such a fool. I gave him my heart too soon, and I am a fool for still sitting around crying for someone who doesn’t love me anymore.”
Her hand joined mine, wiping at the tears.
“Oh, Beverly, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t be crying to you. You’re the one who just got her grandson back and is without him again. I’m sorry I’m so selfish, so weak that I can’t seem to—”
“Now, you cut that out, young man. No more!” Her voice was stern enough that it caused me to look up into her lovely, sagging face. “I’m serious. Your heart is hurt enough. The last thing it needs is more abuse from you!”
“But it’s just that I—”
“No! I don’t need to hear it. It won’t change anything. I know what I’m talking about. You’re not the only one to lose the love of your life, you know.”
I’d forgotten. How selfish. “You’re right. To have your husband die. I can’t imagine what I’d—”
She cut me off again with a wave of her hand. “Not that. You know better. I lost Marvin as soon as I told him about being pregnant with Jessica. Not that I can blame the man. What’s a man supposed to do when he returns to find his wife pregnant and claiming to be raped by an evil creature on the beach? Believe me, my boy, I know what it’s like to have the love of your life leave you, even when you live in the same house as him for the rest of his life. I never saw him again after that day, not really.”
We sat in silence, the waves again filling the void. Each lost in our thoughts, our own sorrow.
My hand reached for hers. “Do you think Brett will come back?”
She waited so long I decided she wasn’t going to answer. “Yes, he’ll come back. If he can, he’ll return.”
My heart took a tentative leap, as if deciding whether it was safe to soar. “Will he still love me?”
Beverly’s other hand joined ours in her lap, covering mine in a warm nest of grandmotherly love. “My lovely boy, I cannot promise that his heart will still be yours any more than you could promise him that your heart will be his.”
“But it is. My heart will always be his.”
“Maybe so, dear. Goodness knows, my heart never wavered from Marvin.” Her eyes traveled to the horizon, losing their focus. “At times, I wonder if his ever really wavered from mine. I know it never opened up to me either, but I think maybe it was why he stayed all those years when no one would have blamed him for leaving anunfaithfulwife.”
My heart decided its hopeful leap was premature and returned to its gloom. “But you think he’ll return.”
“Yes. I can’t imagine what he is doing or where he is, or even what pain and confusion he must be facing to leave in the manner he did, but yes. We will see him again.”
A small ache departed. Not much, but enough that I noticed. “I’ll trust you. You seem to know more than anyone else I know. For crying out loud, other witches can’t even tell when I’m around if I’m invisible.”
She cocked an eyebrow in my direction. “A witch? It that what you are? I’d wondered.”
I’d forgotten that Brett and I hadn’t brought up that subject last time. There’d been too many other revelations. “Uh-huh. A warlock, actually, but the same thing.” I thought of her prayers. “Does that bother you?”
Another quiet, sad laugh. “Lord, no. Not anymore. I’ve seen too much. God is bigger than our little narrow minds can conceive. Maybe if I’d accepted that earlier, I could have convinced Marvin, and we wouldn’t have lost those years with Brett.” She shook her head and squeezed my hands. “No, that doesn’t…” Her eyes rose to mine. “You don’t bother me at all. After all, you love my grandson and he loves you. Not to mention, I imagine that it’s partly due to you I got to see him that night.”
If I never cried again, it would be too soon. I couldn’t even be sure which reason I was crying about now. Not that it mattered. At this point, they were all one melted mess of shit anyway.
“Finn, I’m assuming part of the reason you’ve been coming is to make sure I’m safe. You and Brett told me about the vampire. Are you worried about him coming here?”
I considered lying. I didn’t want to scare her or give her more cause to worry. However, she seemed to know everything anyway. “Yes, I am.”
She gave another nod, not an ounce of fear in her face. “That makes sense. If he were after Brett and couldn’t find him, he might come after me to use against Brett.”
