The River Widow(61)

When Mabel called everyone for dinner, Buck strode out of the living room into the kitchen without even the littlest waver, whereas Jesse excused himself and lunged for the front door. Adah peeked out of a slit in the curtains and saw Jesse retching into the front flowerbeds. She had to smile. Obviously Jesse couldn’t keep up with his father.

The door flung open again, and Jesse walked back into the house with a halting gait. His eyes met Adah’s. “What’re you staring at?”

Adah shrugged. “Nothing.”

Jesse harrumphed and nearly fell to the side. Still sloshed even after throwing up. “Funny you said ‘nothin’.’ You think you’re somethin’, but one day you’re going to be nothin’, girlie. Nothin’.”

Adah’s back went rigid. Jesse’s threats had never before felt so ominous. His eyes had never before looked so acidic. Something new was in the works; Adah knew it, but she had no clue what it was.

There was no choice except to push forward, pretending to be calm.

The family finally took a breather from the demanding farmwork one Sunday to herald the upcoming wedding at the summer church picnic. There, the engagement of Jesse Branch and Esther Heiser would be announced. Turnout for the event was expected to be large, even though it was a busy time on local tobacco farms. The weather was perfect that day, and everyone looked forward to a chance to gather after church, talk, taste others’ dishes, and watch children at play, a reprieve from grueling farmwork.

Mabel and Esther prepared side dishes, dusted off jars of homemade preserves, and dressed in their Sunday best, as did the men. Jesse had bought Esther a ring with three small diamonds set on a filigreed band, which she proudly wore on her left hand. Before they left for the church, Mabel told Adah, “This is a celebration, and we’re all happy about it. Got that?”

Adah nodded, having absolutely no intention of shattering their public fa?ade. Humiliating them would do her no good.

The picnic was held on church grounds, with tables and chairs set under spreading oaks and maples and grass underfoot as soft and green as forest moss. The scents of hay and strong coffee floated on the air, which was alive with the sounds of bees, cows, and birds. There were so many casseroles and cakes covering the tops of picnic tables, it reminded Adah of the offerings of the New York delicatessen where she used to peer in, hungry as hell.

She couldn’t help glancing around and noticing how large the crowd was getting to be. If only she had a means of transportation! She might have been able to slip away with Daisy while the Branches were otherwise engaged. Instead she and Daisy were never far from their eyes, and there was no way out.

Daisy had the rare opportunity to play with other children, and she and another girl were somehow managing to play house among the thick ropes of some gnarled tree roots. With a white pinafore over her dress, Daisy reminded Adah of a fairy. The little girl she played with, Rebecca, was much like her—a sprite with sparkling blue eyes and thick, wavy hair that could only be held in check by a ponytail.

As she did whenever they attended public events, Adah observed the wary but polite distance others typically maintained from the Branch family, even as they paid their respects and offered their congratulations about the upcoming nuptials. Watching carefully, Adah took note of the coolness with which Esther Heiser was treated as well. It was baffling. What did people have against Esther? Was it her power and position? Had it always been this way? Or was the coolness in anticipation of her soon becoming one of the Branches?

Crazy as it was, Adah’s sympathy went out to Esther. No matter how strange, she wasn’t an evil woman, and Adah couldn’t help but be concerned for her. The wedding was planned for October, and Jesse and Esther had let it be known that Esther would not be returning to her position within the school district come fall.

What would happen to Esther once her life became more and more isolated within the Branches’ stronghold? Did she really know what she was doing? Were marriage and possible children worth the price she apparently was willing to pay? Adah couldn’t get the alarms to stop ringing in her head. She spotted a single pure-white feather on the ground, picked it up carefully, and slipped it into her pocket.

The picnic crowd began to filter away, but Daisy still played contentedly. Adah helped Esther clear away dishes, utensils, and tablecloths and take them into the church communal room, where the walls had been decorated with cross-stitched Bible verses set in wooden frames and there was a sink for washing, some dusty cupboards, and old tables and chairs.

“What’s on your mind?” Esther said as she set down a stack of plates and turned to face Adah.

Today Esther’s hair wasn’t pulled back as tightly as it usually was. There had been moments during the picnic when she’d actually seemed happy, when a smile had ridden over her face like a ripple crossing a pond. Perhaps she was truly in love with Jesse Branch, as unlikely as that seemed. That or the hope of having her own child was beginning to transform Esther. But her gaze was full of trepidation when she looked at Adah. Her caginess didn’t deter Adah; Esther was one of her only contacts with the outside world, and they knew things about each other that no one else did.

“You’ve been following me around.”

Adah’s chest tightened, but she had to seize this opportunity. “I’m not following you . . . but . . .”

Esther crossed her arms over her chest. “What is it this time?”