My breath caught.Mommy?
I looked behind me.
Was someone there?
I felt as if I had never heard that voice before,was it a dream?But the voice felt familiar, like it came from deep within my heart — more like a memory. I wanted to listen to it again, but a second later, I couldn’t recall it. I was desperate to recall it. I wanted to be there again hearing it, wherever it was…
But it was gone, I was just, as Torin said, unsettled.
I looked back, he was walking along the woods on the south side of my land.
I sippedfrom my glass of Diet Coke and thought about the letter. I should read the letter,shouldn’t I read the letter?
I went back and forth, nothing good came ofnotreading it.
Except peace of mind.
Nothing good came of reading it.
Except knowledge.
I sighed and left my perch to go to the table where there was the stack, the prayer book, the family Bible, and the letter on top.
I looked down at it, feeling very sad.
8
ALEXANDRIA
JULY 8TH, 2004 - LAUREL RIDGE
Ireturned to the couch and watched Torin finish his circle of the yard and enter the house.
I asked, “Everything safe?”
“Aye, seems that way, but ye hae the letter in yer lap.”
I joked, “Oh do I? I hadn’t noticed.” Then I said, “You know what we ought to do?”
“Read yer letter?”
“No, we ought to do anything else but — I’m wondering if we should…” I sighed. “I can’t think of anything, but…”
He cocked his head watching me.
I continued, “I am pretty hungry, I might need some rest first, and look, my love, it’ssealed.What am I supposed to do with that?”
He said simply, “Ye break the seal.”
“I feel like that’s too important to do here in just the front room in the middle of late afternoon in North Carolina. Like, shouldn’t I do this in a boardroom with a lawyer?”
“A lawyer? Och, ye mean a man who twists words for coin? I’d sooner trust a fox in the henhouse. I daena think anyonewould ever need a lawyer for something as simple as a letter, ye just read it. Ye can read, canna ye read?”
“Yes, I can read. You’ve seen me read.”
“Ye daena need anyone tae read it for ye, then. Ye are overthinkin’ it.”
“What about we go out to a fine restaurant, you can wear a suit, I’ll put on an evening gown. We could go to a restaurant in New York.” I looked around the front room. “This room hasn’t been redecorated in years, I haven’t dusted… Doesn’t seem right.”
