The River Widow(29)



After she’d gotten the keys, Adah dressed both Daisy and herself in the best of their hand-me-down dresses and then drove away as Mabel labored in the kitchen, making a big pot of stew, and Buck and Jesse disappeared inside the old log curing barn. Often they went inside it for hours at a time, and Adah had no idea what they did in there, since the curing barns wouldn’t be put to use until after harvest.

Whatever it was, Adah frankly didn’t care. The more moments without them the better.

The sun was already tracking downward through a cloudless sky, but a chill in the air reminded them that winter had not completely come to an end. As Adah drove out of sight of the farm, a compulsion entered her. She could just keep driving. Past the town, out of the county, or across the river at the nearest bridge, into another state, into obscurity, and start a new life with a new name, Daisy as her daughter. Both of them away from the Branches.

But that would amount to kidnapping, a federal offense that would put even the FBI on her trail, and with that thought the urge left slowly, like a dying flame. Better to seek a legal course.

In the truck Daisy said, “Where are we going?”

Adah glanced sideways at the girl. “To town.”

“Why?” This was one of Daisy’s newest words.

“We’re going to talk to a man, but it’s kind of a secret.”

“Why?”

Adah debated with herself about what to say, but if she managed to talk to an attorney on this day, Daisy would be with her and would hear anyway. There was no way to hide it from her. Besides, she wanted to give the girl some hope. “We’re going to talk to a man about helping us go back to our old house, just you and me.”

Daisy sat up taller in the seat. “Me and you?”

“Yes. Would you like that?”

Daisy nodded and then broke into a sunshine smile. “Can I get some candy? Oh puh-lease, Mama.”

“Listen, sweetie. This is important, what I told you. For now, it’s our secret, okay?”

But Daisy was already gazing beyond the window, awed by the outside world they rarely got to see.

In town Adah parked and enacted her cover story by placing handwritten notes on church bulletin boards and grocery stores that had reopened. By then the town was in full rebuilding mode with most businesses in various stages of restoration, some already completed. The sound of hammers against nails, the scent of sawdust, stacks of lumber and glass, and plenty of men working told the story.

How were some of the businesses able to rebuild so quickly? And then came an idea. Probably these buildings had been insured by their owners. Could Lester have taken out an insurance policy on the farm? And if he had, would the other Branches know about it? And if so, would they even tell her? Doubtful.

One more thing to consult the attorney about.

Despite her spinning thoughts, she somehow noted everything around her: the way the more prosperous people in town walked using longer steps and a more languid posture, the way the purveyor of buttons touched each one he set out on his cart as if it were a precious stone, and the way the owner of a diner swept the street just outside, looking for potential customers like an eagle. All these glimpses of life beyond the Branch farm she collected like gifts.

Since she’d found the money, she had seen herself as a new shoot of spring grass beginning to emerge from the cheerless, frozen earth. She had been reborn with a new purpose. But she had to conceal her smile.

A few women whom she was acquainted with from church, wearing smart hats and street clothes, spoke to her, saying, “Sorry for your loss,” “He’s in heaven now,” “If there’s anything we can do . . . ,” and so on, all of which reminded Adah to appear solemn and move slowly. She was supposed to be mourning her husband.

At first, she had hoped for customers she could walk to, but now that she’d been allowed to borrow the truck, she was aiming to broaden her search. Being able to drive away from the farm had brought on a feeling of reprieve. After finishing her postings, she crossed Main Street, holding Daisy’s hand, and headed for an attorney’s office she had spied.

Something twitched in the far corner of her vision: a man crossing the street a discreet distance behind her. She slowed her steps, then stopped for a moment to gaze inside a dress-shop window and stare at a black evening dress with a silk overjacket, then daring a glance behind her. Yes, there was a man following her and not doing a good job of keeping himself hidden.

Jesse! He must have driven the sedan and been trailing her through town. Why? Despite having no clear answer to that question, there was no doubt that her plan had been foiled. She couldn’t be spotted going into an attorney’s office. The Branches would then know too much. They would certainly figure out at least part of what she had hoped to accomplish there. During all of the time she’d been with them, the legal ownership of Lester’s land and house had not been mentioned. Nothing since Buck had said your farm and your house .

She had to abort. Taking Daisy again by the hand, she perused more windows of recently reopened shops, feigning interest in a green dress that flared on a mannequin’s calf and pretending to be interested in the return of the veiled hat. The attorney’s office, which occupied a storefront, came into view. So close; but she had to return to the truck and get back home. Daisy never asked why they hadn’t talked to the man, and Adah assumed the girl had already forgotten what they’d spoken about only an hour or so earlier.

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