The Amber Stone (28 page)

Teresa went into the master bedroom, grabbed the phone and took it into the closet. She hit speed dial, desperate to talk to Jessie.

Michelle’s voice came on the line. “Hello?”

She silently swore. She’d hit the wrong number.

“Hello? ”

She took a deep breath. “Michelle…it’s me.”

Her sister’s tone instantly changed. “What’s wrong?”

She hadn’t said anything, so how did her sister know? Because she just did, her heart replied. Michelle had always been someone she could depend on. She bit back tears, sorry that she’d hurt her.

“Is he there with you,” Michelle said. “Is that why you can’t talk? Is he cruel? Wait don’t answer that, I’ll—”

“No, no,” Teresa quickly said. “It’s nothing like that.”

“Then what’s wrong? Do you want me to come and get you?”

“Part of me wants you to,” she admitted. “His family just showed up and they don’t like me.”

Michelle delicately cleared her throat. “Remember we aren’t too fond of Sean either.”

“I wish you’d give him a chance. He’s not as bad as you think.”

“Which is why you’re talking to me instead of him. If you want me to say something nice, you’re talking to the wrong sister. But—” she said in a rush before Teresa could speak. “If you want a place to stay, you know you always have one.”

“Thanks. I’m sorry about—”

“Don’t. I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

Teresa switched the phone to her other ear. “There are a lot of things you don’t want to talk about. It started when you left James—”

“Or when he left me,” she said with a laugh that held no humor.

“He left you? You never said—”

“Because there’s nothing to say. There’s no mystery. No story. It was a marriage that ended. That’s all.”

“And more you’re not telling us. How come you’re the only one allowed to have secrets?”

“Why did you marry Sean without telling us? What drove you to buy a store and live with Louisa?” Michelle sighed. “Let’s not fight, okay? If you need me and want a place to stay, you have one,” she said, then disconnected.

Teresa hung up the phone, feeling drained. She drew her knees to her chest and rested her head. She’d never had a tense relationship with Michelle and didn’t know how to handle it. She thought of calling Bertha but knew there wasn’t much she could do to help. She opened the closet door. The first thing she saw was Mist, sitting staring up at her. Behind the cat were a pair of worn jeans. She didn’t need to look up to know who they belonged to. She sighed and came out of the closet, pretending it was nothing out of the ordinary. She placed the phone on the nightstand.

“Now you know why I left them,” he said.

“Your family doesn’t like me.”

“They don’t know you well enough not to, they just don’t trust you.”

“Dislike and distrust feel the same. Now I know how you feel,” she said putting on a brave face. “Quick, tell me more about them.”

“There’s not much to say. Evan and Robert own a private investigation firm. Patrick’s in high school and loves tennis. Darcy owns a fitness spa.”

Teresa looked down and tugged on her loose top. “Oh dear, no wonder she’s disappointed,” she said with a laugh. “Maybe I should start eating more carrots.”

Sean didn’t smile. “That’s not funny.”

Teresa thought so, but decided to change the subject. “How long are they planning to stay?”

“Probably until I can get rid of them. I’ll try to make that as soon as possible.”

***

“What are you cooking?” Darcy asked Teresa the next morning as Teresa stood next to the stove cooking a mixture of sliced potatoes, scrambled eggs and red peppers.

Darcy looked at the mixture and shook her head. “Sean doesn’t like that.”

“He usually eats it.”

“He is probably being polite. He usually doesn’t like his vegetables mixed with his main meal.”

“But—”

“Sean’s not here anyway. He left you a note to say he’s running some errands, so you can keep that for yourself. I’ll make something for the rest of us.”

“But—”

“No worries, I’ll be careful.”

Teresa finished her cooking, storing some in the fridge just in case Sean wanted it later. She ate alone in the dining room while the Caseys took over the kitchen. Once she’d finished, she sat in the living room and hemmed a shirt Sean had bought, Mist curled up at her feet.

“What have you got there?” Robert asked, taking a seat in front of her.

“I’m just hemming.”

“I hope that’s not Sean’s shirt you’re fussing over, he hates a woman who bothers his things.”

“But he—”

“Won’t tell you of course, but he likes being independent.”

“I see.” Teresa smiled, trying to keep her temper, annoyed that Sean hadn’t taken her with him. She decided to work in her garden. They could fill up the house, but at least nature gave her space and the warm summer wind could warm the coldness of worry creeping over her heart.

That space closed when Patrick walked up to her and said, “We’ve been hard on you.”

She didn’t reply. He sat down, chewing on a pear.
Did the kid ever stop eating?

“You’re just so different than Renee it’s hard to get used to. She was—”

“Awful. I know.”

His brows shot up. “Is that was Sean told you?”

“Yes.” She paused. “You mean that’s not true?”

“Not the Renee we knew. She was beautiful, fun and charming. She was the kind of woman you wanted to be around because she just glowed.”

“Oh,” Teresa said feeling her heart sink. She’d believed Sean saying
she
was his second chance. But had he chosen her only because she was so different than his first wife? Had he lied to her?

“No,” Patrick said as if reading her thoughts. “I know why Sean likes you. You’re nice too. I like you.”

“One of the few.”

He shrugged, then took another bite of his pear. “Sean wasn’t himself after Chloe.” He paused. “He told you about Chloe, right?” he asked suddenly looking anxious.

“Yes.”

He visibly relaxed. “Yes, that tore us all up, especially him but then when Renee died…” He let his words trail away. “Maybe that’s what he wants to believe, that she was awful, because she hurt him so much. I think he has to be angry with her.”

“For dying?”

“No, for killing herself.”

Teresa could barely focus over the next few days. Renee had killed herself? Why hadn’t Sean told her? She wasn’t ready to ask him. She didn’t want to deal with his lingering feelings for her. But she didn’t think Patrick was lying. Why would the Caseys see Renee in one way and Sean see her in another? Even Pernelle had liked her. What had caused her to take her life? Did Sean blame himself? Was that why he thought he saw her?

“Ask him,” Bertha told her as they sat on her porch drinking mint lemonade they’d made; Bertha provided the freshly squeezed lemons and Teresa did the rest.

“I’m afraid to.”

“Why?”

“Because I don’t want to hear him lie to me or say what he wants me to hear.”

“Which is?”

“That he’s happier with me than he was with her. You’re the one who told me he had a deep sorrow.”

“Teresa, I need you to trust Sean more than you’ve ever trusted anyone. If you can’t handle this, then leave him now.”

“Why would I leave him?” Teresa asked, surprised by her friend’s words.

“Because maybe you don’t love him enough. Staying by his side may cost you and you might resent it.”

“Bertha, what are you saying?”

“I’m saying that Sean loves you, but it comes with a price. He knows it and I’ve tried to help him, but…” She shook her head. “I’ve told you, I see something shadowy around him. He sees it too, images of his wife.”

“I know. He’s told me.”

“Then if you truly love him, you won’t doubt him. You’ll be able to ask him questions and face whatever he has to say. Be careful about listening to others and hearing what you want to hear.”

“I do love him,” Teresa said, a little offended that Bertha casted doubt on her feelings.

“It’s not enough to say the words,” Bertha said, then tapped Teresa’s chest with her forefinger, “if you don’t feel that certainty with all your heart.”

“You’re right,” Teresa said, then finished off her drink. “This was delicious. I’ll have to take some back to Sean.” Bertha poured what was left of the lemonade into a thermos. Teresa was not eager to return home, at least not yet, so she went to Second Chances hoping Pernelle could fill in some gaps about Renee.

But Pernelle seemed reticent as they sat in the back of the bookstore.

“Is it true she killed herself?” Teresa asked. “You said that he left her or vice versa.”

“Yes, well from what I know they had a major argument and then the accident happened. They ruled it a suicide because there were no skid marks at the crash site and mechanical error was ruled out. What’s that?” Pernelle asked, looking at the thermos.

“Oh, just some extra mint lemonade for Sean. It’s his favorite.”

Pernelle grinned, her expression strangely brighter than usual. “You must make him happy. I knew you’d be good for him. Didn’t I tell you?” She stood up. “Well, come with me I have a new selection of romances and fantasies that just came in. You can just leave your things here and get them later.”

A half hour later, Teresa left the bookstore with five more exciting reads and feeling more relaxed. Pernelle was right. She did make Sean happy and she knew he wasn’t lying about that. They were meant to be together. Her good mood rose higher when she got home and the house was empty. Sean sat alone in the kitchen. “Are they gone for good?” she asked.

He gave her a sad smile. “I wish. They’ll be back later, but at least we have some time alone.”

She poured the lemonade from the thermos and handed him the glass. “Here. I just came back from Bertha, we made a fresh batch.”

He finished the drink in one gulp then set it down. “Hmm…delicious as always.” He stood up and kissed her. “Thanks.”

“Can I ask you something?”

His phone rang. He checked the number. “Sorry, darling I have to get this then I have some papers I have to look over. But we’ll talk later, okay?”

“Okay,” Teresa said, watching him dash out the room.

***

To Sean’s relief, the call didn’t last long, but his family had returned so he knew his plan to skip looking over the papers and be with Teresa were dashed. He hoped to quickly look through some of his financials then have some time to talk to Teresa or at least take her for a drive. He didn’t like leaving her alone with his family for too long. As Sean climbed the stairs to his study, the steps seemed to lengthen and shorten. He shook his head trying to orient himself. When he reached the top of the stairs, he felt dizzy and a sharp pain hit him in the stomach—like someone had grabbed his inside and was trying to rip out his intestines. He fell to the ground in agony. He heard the front door open and close, but couldn’t cry out...his throat was tightening and his tongue felt like it was covered in paste. He heard the sound of a cane against the steps and his brother’s heavy footsteps. The cane dropped to the floor and someone was holding him, calling his name. The pain tore through him then darkness descended.

Downstairs, Teresa emptied the thermos then noticed that their birdbath was empty. She filled the thermos with some tap water and refilled the bath. She watched a robin and two cardinals go up to the bath and take a sip. Then the birds began to convulse and all three fell down dead.

Teresa didn’t realize she was screaming until Darcy and Robert were by her side, holding her up.

“What’s wrong?” Darcy asked.

“They died...the birds...died.”

“These things happen.”

She shook her head, frantic. “No, you don’t understand. They drank the water and—”

She wasn’t able to finish because Patrick came rushing out, his eyes wide behind his glasses.

“Come quick! Something’s wrong with Sean.”