Chapter Fifteen #2
Isabel shivered, then sidestepped an icy patch in the parking lot of the warehouse in Anchorage.
When they’d moved her to Oasis, they had intentionally kept most of her valuables in Evergreen at Mom and Dad’s house.
There wasn’t much of value in her tiny apartment, so Grammie’s paranoia didn’t make any sense.
Beside her, Jovi pushed the shopping cart across the lot, carefully navigating the snowpacked ground in the semidarkness.
Bright lights from the overhead poles cast a silver-blue glow over their path.
The crisp air swirled around them, carrying a hint of car exhaust. Isabel walked beside her sister, carrying two disposable cups full of soda.
They’d just eaten pizza at the food court before they’d shopped, and then she had rushed Jovi out of the store, eager to get back to Evergreen.
Fatigue dogged her steps, and a headache pressed against her temples.
She wasn’t sure she could stay awake for the next two hours.
Hopefully the caffeine in Jovi’s soda would keep her alert.
“Good call buying vanilla extract and sugar here,” Isabel said. “Jerry’s right. It’s much cheaper than our usual supplier.”
“Really?” Jovi squeezed the button on the key fob to open the vehicle’s hatch.
Isabel nodded as she handed Jovi one of the soda cups. “Yeah, and we’re running low on both, so it’s perfect timing. Like I said, we try to stick with locally sourced ingredients whenever possible, but for staples like this, we can’t beat the competitive pricing of a wholesale place.”
Jovi nodded as they loaded the groceries into the back of their SUV, their breath fogging in the cold air. As they got back into the car, Jovi turned up the heat and rubbed her hands together.
“Are you okay to drive?” Isabel asked, noticing the exhaustion in Jovi’s eyes.
“Yeah, I’ll be fine.” Jovi took a long sip of the soda. “I can’t get over what Grammie said about people stealing from her. Especially the part about how it’s been happening for years. Who do you think she’s referring to?”
Isabel shrugged. “Who knows? She’s been saying ridiculous things since Grandpa died. Unless she proves that something specific is missing, I’m going to ignore it.”
Jovi sucked in a breath. “How can you say that? She was…distraught.”
Oh, here we go. Isabel took a sip of her drink and then shifted in her seat.
“Jovi, you’ve been away for almost ten years.
We’re the ones who’ve been here caring for Grammie, running the business, and watching her slip away an inch at a time.
Trust me, we can’t just drop everything and chase a wild story every time Grammie concocts something new. ”
Heavy silence filled the car. Lights from the dash illuminated Jovi’s crinkled brow. Isabel sensed she’d gone too far. But she wasn’t about to apologize either. Sometimes her sister needed a hard dose of reality.
Jovi’s grip on the steering wheel tightened, and she pressed her lips into a thin line.
Isabel had always admired that Jovi had been the sensitive one, the one who cared deeply about others and their feelings.
But Isabel was too exhausted to fall into the trap of letting Grammie’s dementia ruin her day.
She had enough issues of her own to deal with.
“I know you’re trying to protect Grammie,” Jovi said finally, her voice tight. “But I can’t just ignore her. She was genuinely upset. Doesn’t that bother you?”
“We’re not ignoring her,” Isabel said, trying to soften her tone.
“This is what dementia is like. I’m sure you’ve worked with patients who suffer from this condition.
Later tonight, or tomorrow, or next week—whenever you see her again—she won’t remember what she said.
So for the sake of your own mental health, don’t let her paranoia consume you. ”
Jovi sighed and shook her head. “I guess you’re right. It’s just hard to see her like this. And I can’t help but wonder if this is all linked to that missing recipe and her falling-out with Mac and Lois. I’m going to have breakfast with Walker tomorrow. Allegedly he has a juicy story to share.”
“Oh, dear. Well, Walker has always had a knack for exaggerating his stories, and he’s probably not real happy with us right now. You know Jerry had to let his grandson go, right?”
“Why?”
“He wouldn’t show up for work. Kept coming in two hours late or not at all.” Isabel reached over and squeezed Jovi’s shoulder. “I know you want to get to the bottom of what happened between our families. We’d all like to hear the truth. But…”
Her phone chimed in her purse. Isabel shoved her soda into the cup holder. “What if that’s Mason?”
She dug through her bag until she found her phone, pulled it out and scanned the screen.
Hey. I came home to do some laundry and let you know that I’m switching to night shift effective immediately. 7pm to 4am Tuesdays through Saturdays. See you around.
See you around ? Around where? They weren’t casually dating. He was her husband. Anger and confusion surged through her veins.
“Any news?” Jovi asked.
Isabel’s hands shook as she reread the message. “He’s switching to nights without asking me.”
Jovi eased the car out of the crowded parking lot. “Mason?”
“Yes.” Isabel blinked back tears and dropped her phone in her lap. “He sent me a text saying he’s going to start working nights, and he only came home to do some laundry. No I love you or I’m sorry about our fight … It’s like we’re roommates or something. How could he do this?”
“Maybe there’s more to the story. We won’t know anything until you talk to him. What if there’s a good reason for this? Is the Department of Transportation short-staffed? They might need more people to work nights to keep up with snow removal or something.”
Isabel wiped away a stray tear. “I—I don’t understand. We fought, but is this his way of punishing me? Or is he just so selfish that he didn’t even think to discuss this with me? We’re supposed to be a team, and yet here I am, completely in the dark.”
Jovi nodded. “I get that it doesn’t make sense now. Maybe he’s just going through something and doesn’t know how to put it into words.”
“Night shift.” Isabel shook her head, still in shock. “That means he’s going to sleep when I’m at work. We’ll hardly see each other. Maybe that’s why he did it.”
“Isabel.” Jovi’s voice carried a note of warning. “Don’t do this.”
“Don’t do what?”
“Assume the worst when you haven’t even talked to him yet.”
Isabel sighed. Jovi was right. But it was hard not to. Making a major change in his work schedule without asking her was a caution flag. A giant warning sign that they’d grown further apart. Was Mason trying to tell her that he had given up?
* * *
Early Saturday morning, Burke circled the crowded lot at the elementary school, searching for a place to park.
Darby Jane sat up straighter, trying to see over the dashboard. “There isn’t school today. Why is it so crowded?”
“Folks want to see the dogsled race, I guess. It’s a big deal.
The teams are on their way through town, racing as fast as they can to get to Nome.
” Burke slowed to a crawl, scanning the rows of cars on his left and right.
“Evergreen is an important checkpoint for the mushers. It means they’re halfway to the finish line. ”
At least that was what he’d gleaned from a quick internet search. Other than a brief glimpse of the race on the news over the years, he’d never paid attention to dogsledding.
“Oh, look, Daddy, there’s a spot.” She pointed. “Get it. Quick!”
Had she heard anything he’d said about the dogsled race?
Squelching his irritation, he followed her tip. Sure enough, one open spot remained at the end of a row in the farthest corner of the parking lot. It would be a cold walk to the place designated to watch the race, but if he didn’t park soon, he was afraid they’d miss meeting up with Jovi.
And he wasn’t about to let that happen.
Besides, he’d planned for this. They’d bundled up and put on three layers of clothing to combat the subzero temperatures.
“I’ve seen pictures, and I think dogs are scary,” Darby Jane said emphatically. “But I still want to see the race.”
He paused, eased the truck into the opening between two SUVs, then cut the engine. “Make sure you have your hat and your gloves and those hand-warmer things I bought online for us.”
“Yep, got it.” She opened the squeaky door and hopped to the ground.
He pocketed his keys, grabbed his insulated mug filled with coffee, then slid his aviator sunglasses into place and climbed out of the cab.
Winter sunlight reflected off the snow. A brilliant blue sky stretched overhead.
In the distance, the snow-covered peaks of the Alaska range filled the horizon.
Cold air nipped at his cheeks. He set his coffee on the hood of his truck and tugged his beanie down over his ears.
Darby Jane hopped up and down, singing a song he couldn’t identify.
The fringe of her pink and purple scarf flopped against her jacket.
If only he could harness half of her energy.
Maybe he wouldn’t feel like death warmed-over.
Staying up writing until the wee hours of the morning, desperate to meet his deadline, had robbed him of too much sleep.
Burke snatched his mug from the hood, then angled his head toward the line of people trekking across the parking lot toward the street. “Come on, sweetie. Let’s go.”
“What about Miss Jovi? Is she still coming?”
“She said she would.” Burke braced his hand on her back and guided her around a slick spot. “I’m sure she’ll keep her word.”
“How many dogs will we see? Aren’t they going to get hungry? Who feeds them?”
Darby Jane kept firing off questions faster than he could answer. He tried to listen patiently, but his mind kept wandering to Jovi and how she’d react when they met Walker for breakfast later at the diner.
“Daddy, there she is.” Darby Jane tugged on his jacket sleeve. “I see her.”