Chapter 18 Home Again
Home Again
Nyree arrived back at Grytviken almost two hours later with dusk about to fall. She’d taken her camera with her and snapped photos of craggy mountain peaks and hidden bays to show Carolyn and Keith if they asked questions.
They’d expressed concern after her ordeal and pondered the wiseness of exploring tonight. She’d assured them she was well but needed time alone to recover and regain her serenity. Photography always calmed her. Although she was back on time, she’d prepared if either of them interrogated her.
“There you are,” Carolyn said, concern and relief shimmering in her voice. She brushed a dark brown curl away from her eyes as she studied Nyree. What she saw must’ve reassured her. “I wondered if you and your scientist would like to come for dinner tomorrow night.”
Nyree grimaced and sought a credible lie. “We argued. It turns out he has a wife back in New Zealand he didn’t tell me about.”
Renewed concern filled Carolyn’s face. “Nyree, I’m so sorry. After everything that happened today with your ex-boyfriend too.”
“I don’t seem to have much luck with men.”
“Come to dinner anyway. The captain of the cruise ship sent us three bottles of wine. We might open one to have with dinner.”
Nyree hesitated before deciding to agree to the suggestion. At least Carolyn and Keith would stop her moping. “Thanks. That sounds lovely. Do you want me to bring anything?”
“Just yourself,” Carolyn said, patting her hand. “I thought we’d change the museum displays tomorrow morning since we don’t have a ship in port until one in the afternoon. Are you up for that?”
“I prefer to keep busy.”
“See you bright and early in the morning. We’ll start at eight. Good night. Oh, before I forget. Keith said the Falklands police want to talk to you about Ari. Keith will organize the call for tomorrow.”
Nyree shuddered. “What did they do with his body?”
“They took him to the morgue on board the cruise ship. They’ll drop him at the Falkland Islands en route to South America.”
Nyree nodded. “See you in the morning.”
She wandered to her quarters and unlocked the door.
Inside, the place seemed empty without Tāwera, but his presence remained.
His clothes still hung in the wardrobe. The books he’d been reading sat in a haphazard pile beside his favorite chair.
He’d find New Zealand very different from his memories. He’d meet people.
Women.
She sank into a chair with a sigh. Tāwera’s chair, and it smelled like him. Masculine with a hint of green and the outdoors.
Two months to go before she returned to New Zealand. Plenty of time for Tāwera to meet other women. More attractive women who didn’t possess the same flaws as her.
The tears she’d been holding back since she’d said goodbye to Tāwera escaped and flowed down her cheeks. A sob echoed in the air. None of this was fair, yet she couldn’t fault Tāwera. It was her.
She’d informed him their time together was temporary—a friend with benefits deal—so she had no one to blame but herself.
Perhaps he wouldn’t hook up with a woman?
Nyree discarded that idea straightaway. Tāwera was a handsome and memorable man. He was strong and masculine, but he listened to others. He was a protector. A warrior. He also bore a curiosity that would compel him to explore his new world.
Yes, there was no way he wouldn’t meet other women, most of them without her baggage and way more attractive. He had the type of mana that would draw others to him, and she could see him making a success of whatever he tried.
And she was making this worse.
She had to treat her time with Tāwera as a gift, and if he still wanted to see her on her return, she could count herself lucky to have scored a friend.
The two months passed slowly without Tāwera. Nyree had her usual busy, full-on days when they had lots of cruise passengers ashore, and as the days crept toward the end of the season, the number of visiting ships decreased.
At first, she received a weekly email from Tāwera detailing everything he was doing.
His excitement came through when he discovered his official relationship with Ari through Tāwera’s half-brother.
He’d met Eve, Ari’s sister, and liked her very much, and she was talking about taking Tāwera to Australia to introduce him to her parents. Eve intended to move to Australia.
Nyree’s stomach fell at this news.
That bombshell was in the latest email she’d received almost three weeks ago. Other emails contained info about the people he’d met and the places he’d visited. Manu and Jessalyn had driven him around Auckland, and Tāwera had spent time with Hone at George Taniwha & Sons.
“I can’t believe the season has almost ended,” Carolyn said, dragging Nyree from her morbid thoughts.
“We’ve had lots of excitement,” Nyree agreed. “Do you think the big iceberg will hit South Georgia?”
“I don’t know. You heard the scientists who are studying the iceberg mention that the evidence points to this happening before. It’s a bit of a waiting game. We’ll pray the ocean current veers it off its present trajectory.”
“I recognize some of the penguins that hang around the station. I hate to think of them dying or having to move elsewhere because of the iceberg affecting their food source.”
Carolyn shrugged. “It’s nature.”
“That doesn’t make it any easier. What’s on the schedule this morning?” Nyree asked, changing the subject.
“We need to do a stocktake. Basically, we’ll note everything we have, look to see what isn’t selling, and offer a discount to move the remaining units.
Normally, we don’t do this, but they’re talking about selling different things next year.
Are you coming back next season? Keith and I would love to have you as part of our team. ”
“To be honest, I have thought little about next year. When is the last day for applications?”
“I’ll check with Keith. I think you enjoy living here, though. Many people find it too isolated.”
“I’ll give it some thought. The principal reason I took the job was to escape my ex. That didn’t work out too well for me.”
“He’s in the past. You’re a lovely girl, and any man would be lucky to win your loyalty.”
“Huh! That’s the problem. My judgment is lousy.”
“I thought that until I met Keith. You’re still young. You have time to find a husband and have children.”
“Hmm,” Nyree said. “Do you have a special way of doing a stocktake?”
She and Carolyn settled into work and soon had the stock sorted and counted.
Nyree used the last weeks to explore the island and take lots of photos. She’d heard from her mother and Hana. Jessalyn had hired her mother as a housekeeper while Hana helped a local vineyard during the weekends, now that she was older.
They seemed much happier and were following more outside interests, which made Nyree smile. It also made her realize how domineering Ari had been over their lives and hers. No longer.
Her mother and Hana were thriving under Manu and Jessalyn’s care.
The moment she woke, Nyree checked her email, hoping for one from Tāwera.
There was nothing, and fear licked through her veins.
She made a cup of tea and dressed. There was a noticeable chill in the wind now, and when she walked outside, she noted the higher mountains on the horizon had a fresh coating of snow.
Winter was on its way.
She made her way past the penguin colony. Most of the chicks were fully-fledged now, their feathers resembling an adult’s and waterproof instead of their previous wooly brown coats. She snapped several photos, thought of home and Tāwera, and issued her usual sigh.
Tāwera had a different life now, and she was turning into a miserable, whining cow. What she needed was a plan for her return home. She had a few days in Ushuaia before she flew to Buenos Aires. After three days of sightseeing, she was catching a direct flight to New Zealand.
She had a job waiting for her back at George Taniwha & Sons but wondered if she shouldn’t try a fresh start. Maybe do a little traveling in New Zealand now that her mother and sister had settled. She could learn to make coffee and work in a cafe or take a job in a bar while seeing the country.
She’d catch up with Tāwera to make certain he was happy before she moved on with her new life. During the ten-hour flight back to New Zealand, she’d make a list and decide her future.
Late March, Auckland, New Zealand
Nyree’s plane ended up delayed for eight hours, and it was late afternoon by the time her Air New Zealand flight landed. With the packed aircraft, it took ages for her to deplane and collect her luggage.
Of course, the lines through immigration and customs were long and full of rude, snappish men and women who wanted to leave the airport as desperately as her.
An hour and a half later, she plodded into the public part of the airport, dragging her single bag after her. She’d emailed her arrival time to her mother and expected her mum or Hana to greet her.
Not a single welcoming face stood waiting in the terminal.
She checked her phone to find a text from her sister. Both she and her mother were working. Could she grab a cab home?
Sighing, Nyree threaded through the now smiling passengers greeting their friends and family. Outside, it was raining in the way it often did in Auckland, making the buildings appear dull and dingy. She joined the line for the cabs, also long. Go figure.
“Nyree!” a masculine voice called. “The traffic was terrible. We almost missed you.”