Chapter 6
Richy may have got on her nerves, but he didn’t let anything happen to her. He pulled her to safety and got her out of the way. The noise sounded like an explosion more than a crash. That was probably the most excitement the town had seen in a while.
“You said you want the truth,” Willow said. “I’m telling you the truth. I don’t know anything other than what you’ve told me. At this point, I wish I knew something!”
“Call your family. Call his family. Call whoever it is you need to call. Find out what you can and then report back to me.”
“Report back to you? You’re a kid!”
“Yes. Report back to me. You wanna know why? Because I believe I’m the only one who can help you. Or at least would be willing to. If the town found out about who you are, they’d have no mercy on you. They’d swear you were in on it. I don”t, however, feel that way. Unless there’s something you’re hiding from me. Is there?”
“For the millionth time. No. I’m not. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to get home so I can make dinner and drink wine with my best friend.”
He moved out of her way and watched her walk to her car.
On her drive back to the cottage, Willow shook the strange conversation with Richy from her mind, and instead thought about the random charming men she had met in Sanibel. But their charm made her wonder. If Charlie was from Sanibel, how many others were just like him? Lying, deceitful, yet handsome and soft.
There were too many variables at play and Willow couldn’t figure it out. She didn’t want to give up so easily though. Because she still hadn’t heard from Charlie.
How can a man who said he loved me just disappear without a trace?
Instead of wallowing in her shame, Willow decided to do something for herself.
She needed answers. She knew there was one person she could call to help sort things out. Regardless of whatever was going on between her and Charlie, she could always get the truth from them. But before she called them, she decided she needed to call the Sheriff back home to see what they had to say to her.
“Can I speak to the Sheriff, please?”
“This is him.”
“Oh, great.”
“Mrs. Shorts? Is that you?”
“Sure is.”
“What can I do for ya?”
“Well, it seems I got myself into quite a pickle with my darling husband. I haven’t heard from him in a while and I’m just wondering if you could do me a kindness and do a wellness check on him?”
“Well, funny you should say that.” The Sheriff chuckled. “We haven’t seen him the past few Sundays. No one has filed a missing person’s report, so we haven’t officially gone looking for him yet. Do you want to do that?”
“Um, no. Not really. I think it’s just a work trip or something. You see, I’m out visiting a girlfriend of mine down south and I’m not at home right now… so I just thought maybe I’d ask and see if you had heard from him.”
“No dice, ma’am. But if we do, we’ll give you a call.”
Willow hung up the phone. She wasn’t sure if she did or said the right thing or not. She figured if they were looking for him because of his past, then hopefully, they didn’t think she was in on it. But even if they did, after that phone call, they probably didn’t anymore. At least, that was what she hoped for.
She dialed another number after her call to the sheriff and waited patiently.
“Hello?”
“Hey Mark… I…this is Willow.”
“Hey Willow. How are you?”
Mark sounded like he was in great spirits. It was a long way from the way he sounded the other day when he first mentioned the money Charlie owed him.
“I’ve actually been better. But I called because I was wondering if you have heard from your brother yet?”
The question echoed through the phone. There was an awkward silence.
“Look,” he sighed. “Charlie, he’s always been a little different, you know? He loves you. He definitely does. But he—I think you should just stay where you’re at.”
“Wait,” Willow frowned. “What? But we’re married!”
“Yeah, I realize that. I’m just saying, I think what you’re doing out there is good for you. Sanibel, the beach and stuff. You sound more alive than before and that’s important these days. You know, truly being happy.”
Something didn’t add up. How could he just tell her to basically move on from her husband like that? Unless, of course...
Does Mark know something?
“I was truly happy with your brother until he started being distant. Or don’t you remember that?”
“I do. I just… things seemed way more complicated when you guys were here. I don’t know. I just want you both to be happy. Is that too much for me to want?”
“Did he tell you he wasn’t happy with me anymore?”
“That’s not what I said, Willow. Look, I don’t want to get too caught up in this but if I hear from him, I’ll give you a call.”
“Wait! Don’t go yet. Do you think it’s worth fighting for or not?”
“I think that’s a question for my brother and not me. I think deep down you know exactly what to do. You have a keen understanding and intuition. Use it. I don’t know where he is, but I can assure you that if he went through all this trouble to disappear, he doesn’t want to be found just yet. Or even at all.”
Willow took note of how different Mark’s behavior toward her was. He was a lot nicer than the first time they spoke. That was the way Willow felt, anyway. Their last interaction felt more like a threat, whereas this phone call was the polar opposite.
“I can’t speak for Charlie,” he said. “If he’s willing to let things be how they are, that should probably be a hint to you, though.”
Before she could even respond, Mark had hung up the phone. What was he hiding? Was Charlie there? Was Mark’s real name even Mark? Was he in on whatever Charlie was doing? It wasn’t making any sense. And the way he just ended the call abruptly really made Willow question even more.
She shook herself and went inside to make dinner. After all, she went through all that trouble to get all the ingredients together. She remembered a time when her grandmother taught her how to make their special sauce. How she talked to her about the importance of unity and connection and used the sauce and its ingredients as an example.
Her grandmother talked about alchemy and how things should always have balance and chemistry. Otherwise, it wouldn’t work out. Willow wished she could figure out what it was that was imbalanced in her marriage.
She finished the sauce, added in the pasta and chicken with 6 different cheeses, and the entire kitchen smelled like heaven. By the time Brandi got to the cottage, everything was ready. Brandi even brought the wine Willow forgot to snag. It was like they had their own chemistry. She didn’t have to tell Brandi what she needed. Ever. She instinctively knew.
“Something smells amazing! Is that your special sauce? The one that takes you like 5 hours to make?” Brandi squealed.
“That would be the very one.”
“I looooooveee when you cook. Honestly, it’s my all time favorite thing. You do it so well. I don’t know why you never thought of culinary school. I think you’d have been amazing at it.”
“Would I? No way.”
“Way. It smells so good in here. After a long day, this is the kind of thing I need. Ya know? A good meal and some friendship. A glass of wine. A movie on the couch. And dessert.”
“Oh! There’s also dessert.” Willow smiled.
“No way. There’s really dessert?”
“Yep. I started it early this morning before I went out into the world. Baked Alaska. Homemade at that. With homemade strawberry ice cream.”
“There’s no way you had time to do all of this and still go into town today. No way.”
“Time management has always been my thing.”
“So, what did you do today?”
“I went to town to grab what I needed. Hit a bar. Came back. Talked to the Sheriff in Tally. Cooked this meal. Called Mark and now, here I am talking to you,” she explained as she fixed plates for them both. Brandi loved a good portion of food. It amazed her that Willow could do so much in a day’s time. She was really flabbergasted as she took her first bite of the pasta. So much so that she closed her eyes tight and inhaled as she partook in the best dinner she had in a long time.
“Wait,” she snapped back to reality. “Mark? Like, Charlie’s older brother Mark?”
“That would be the one.”
“So, are you trying to be a detective now? You had to figure it out?”
“I’m so lost in all of this,” Willow said. “He still hasn’t called. He’s just disappeared and while I know everything points to him as being a scumbag, I can’t help but worry about him too. What if something is wrong? What if someone hurt him? It’s not like him to go complete radio silence.”
“But, it is,” Brandi reminded me. “Let’s be honest about things, shall we? He has been growing more and more distant over the years. You deserve so much more than that. Consistency. You deserve someone who consistently chooses you. Always. Not just when it’s convenient for them. And while it’s none of my business, you are every bit of my business as my best friend. I don’t try to overstep my boundaries, but listen… I’m ready to take a look into this guy.”
“Do you think he even loved me?”
“I don’t think he loves anyone. Anyone who loves you wouldn’t put you through this just for the sake of doing it. It’s a sick, twisted game he’s playing, and you’re letting him win. Don’t let him win. Love yourself enough to let yourself win. Always. And I mean always. This shouldn’t even have to be a conversation.”
Willow knew Brandi was right but she just couldn’t shake how she felt. She wanted to know if her Charlie was okay.
As they continued dinner, a call came through to Brandi.
“Yeah—yeah! Yeah! Okay. I’ll be on my way in a few.”
Brandi jumped to her feet. Willow looked over at her and cocked her head to the side, puzzled.
“If this weren’t something important, I’d stay,” Brandi said. “But trust me, you want me to go handle this, okay?” she said as she rushed out of the door.