“Sit.” This to me, not the dogs. I did, feeling immediate release in my back as I took the weight off my feet. A breeze swept past, cooler under the thick shade of the tree. Surrounded by woods, we were out of view of the public, and I wondered if that was done on purpose. Was sheembarrassed to be seen with me? Or did she know I was being chastised for being seen with her? My gut told me the latter.
Sunny settled next to me and slapped my hand away as I attempted to help unpack the cooler.
I took a sip of the tea she’d given me—sweetened to perfection.
“Bon Appetit.”
I looked down at the bowl she’d placed in front of me. “Uh… what’s this?”
“Gino’s Flaming Farro salad. Try it and you’ll know why it’s worth leaving your house for.”
I glanced at Brute, who snorted. I grinned. She didn’t.
I took another sip, reminding myself I’d eatenwayworse overseas. I dug in while she did the same with her matching salad. It was delicious. Cool, flavorful, light but filling.
“Eh?”
“Not bad.” I mumbled around another bite.
Sunny broke her breadstick in half and tossed the pieces to the dogs. No gluten. I did the same.
“Do you come here a lot?” I asked.
“The park, yes. Well I used to, anyway. Sometimes after a jog I’d walk through the woods and this tree catches my eye every time.”
“You’re not the only one.” I told her about the shrine, the candles, the voodoo dolls that had covered its branches earlier that week.
“Well,” she shrugged as if were no big deal. “Good someone’s putting its beauty to use.”
“You think using this tree as a Wiccan shrine is putting it to good use?”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s vandalism.”
She laughed—at me.“Oh give me a break. Sounds like someone was peacefully honoring whatever God they choose to.”
“Exactly.”
“You’re kind of narrow-minded, you know that?”
Not lately, I thought. My decisions had been anything but on-track.
“Well, that stuff doesn’t fly in this town. Especially that it was constructed the day of Lieutenant Seagrave’s funeral.”
“You think the tree’s somehow connected?”
I surprised myself at my hesitation. “I’m trying to figure that out. That, and what feels like a million different things.”
“Well, forget it all for now. Eat. Relax. Enjoy the beauty and shade this marvelous voodoo-tree gives us.”
A few moments passed while we ate, watching the squirrels, birds, swatted at the flies.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.” She said.
“What were you like in high school?”
