Yes, she had lost her husband. Yes, Kimo was the best of men.
But he was still just a man. Just one person.
Dawn had a whole family of people who loved her, an entire community out there ready to care for her, and yet she was choosing to cut herself off from all of it.
“You can’t just hide out in your room forever. You’ve got grandkids downstairs.”
Dawn blinked up at her, a look of annoyance flickering through her eyes. Good. Anger was good – or at least it was better than the lifeless lump that she had converted to these past few months.
“Go take a shower,” Halia ordered. “You’ll feel better. Then come down and get some food. I’ll save you a bowl of coconut soup.”
Slowly, Dawn uncurled herself from the chair. Moving with the pained frailty of a much older woman, she shuffled off towards the master bathroom.
Carrying a strange mixture of satisfaction and guilt, Halia headed back downstairs.
She had indulged Dawn’s grief for a long time, just like everyone else. Kimo had been taken from them far too young. It was a harsh blow, and a hard loss.
But she still had so much to live for, and Dawn was done watching her waste away.
A man had killed her first mother.
She’d be damned if she let the lack of one kill her second.
5
Akemi
Pulling up to her childhood home for the first time since her dad’s funeral, Akemi felt every emotion all at once. Grief and joy were at the forefront, each so strong that they canceled each other out, leaving her almost numb.
It had been a long, grueling couple of months – and then an exhausting couple of days getting here. Her budget-friendly route from Florence to Hilo had taken more than thirty hours. On the plus side, her transatlantic flight had been in a seat that laid completely flat. Thank goodness for credit card points – but even those were dwindling these days. Not unlike her bank account.
It seemed like this entire up and coming generation wanted to be influencers. The travel blog and audience that she had spent years growing just wasn’t pulling in the same deals that it used to, and openings for travel writing jobs were few and far between.
“You okay?” the driver asked, and Akemi realized that they had been parked in front of the house for a while. “This the right place?”
“Yes. Fine. Thank you.” She smiled apologetically, grabbed her backpack, and hauled it out of the back seat.
Halia’s car was parked out front, and that made her feel a bit better.
Akemi wasn’t ready to face Dawn on her own, not today. Ever since they’d lost Kimo, talking to their mom was like approaching a black hole of despair. Stay too long, and it was sure to suck you in.
She spotted Oakley’s van in the car port and grinned at the prospect of seeing two of her nieces. Missing out on huge chunks of their lives was the hardest part of her itinerant lifestyle, and she loved them like they were her own.
At least… she thought she did.
She’d find out the truth of that soon enough.
The wood of the lanai echoed hollowly as she tromped up the steps, carrying most everything she owned on her shoulders.
She still had a few things stored at the house, but mostly she had distilled all of her worldly possessions into a single carry-on sized backpack. And she liked it that way… but she wasn’t fool enough to think that she’d be able to keep going like that for much longer.
The house was filled with the warm smells oftom kha gaiand fried spring rolls. Akemi was surprised to see two redheads at the table; she’d had no idea that Anne was home from the mainland. Seeing Halia, Anne, and Oakley all together was simultaneously comforting and overwhelming.
There was a moment of quiet surprise when she first walked in, and then she was surrounded. The kids got to her first, nearly toppling her and her heavy backpack. She let it fall from her shoulders, then threw her arms around the two nearestkids. Anne and Oakley piled on, turning the whole thing into a massive group hug.
When they finally released her, Halia was waiting with a bowl full of white rice and green curry. Akemi had made it through the assault of affection just fine, but that one small act of care brought tears to her eyes.
“Welcome home, baby sister.” Halia’s eyes creased with affection.
