pumpkin on the porch and a wreath made of colorful silk leaves on the door.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the second vehicle, the one with my brother inside. I’d convinced him to let me do this without him. Anna and I had a past, but we also had a connection of being young females in the same home.
As we came to a stop on the small concrete porch, Reid nodded.
Taking a deep breath, I lifted my hand to knock, but before I did, I saw the doorbell. When I pushed it, chimes rang from within the house.
As soon as the door opened, I recognized Anna. She’d been my manager for over a year at the motel, and while we had that connection, as our eyes met, I felt an unexpected kinship. “Anna, thank you for seeing me.”
“Lorna, I can’t believe it’s you.”
“It is.”
The woman before me had the same light-brown hair I recalled. It was shorter now, a stylish cut. Her eyes were the same gray, yet they seemed clearer. Her complexion was light and healthy, as was her body. While she had a few more curves than I did, she wasn’t overweight by any means.
Anna smiled at me and then at Reid. “Hello” —she extended her hand to my husband— “if you’re Lorna’s husband, I’m sure you’ve heard all sorts of terrible stories about me.”
“Yes,” I said, “this is my husband, Reid.”
Reid shook her hand and gracefully sidestepped addressing her comment. “I hadn’t heard much of anything until recently.”
Anna opened the door wider. “Please come in.”
The scent of vanilla filled the front living room. It was then I saw the burning candles on her mantel. The glass doors of the enclosure were closed on her fireplace, yet by the presence of the fake logs within, it appeared as if the flames worked, not unlike ours, with a push of the button. The floor was hardwood and her furniture was neither bad nor good. My first thought was that it was much cleaner than I recalled Maples’s house.
“May I take your coat?”
While this reunion was going better than I’d imagined, I hesitated, unsure how long we would stay. Finally, I shrugged the wool coat from my shoulders. Near the door was a brass hall tree. Anna hung it there. The whole incident struck me as quite possibly the first time Anna had ever done anything for me.
When she turned, she asked, “How are you doing, Lorna?”
I smiled. “I’m doing well. We’ve had a lot happening, and I wondered if you could help me learn a few things.”
“I still can’t believe you’re here.” Anna gestured toward the sofa and chairs. “Please, have a seat.” As we did, she continued, “As you can imagine, I was a bit stunned to receive the call from...” She didn’t finish the sentence.
“An associate of mine,” Reid volunteered. “You mentioned stories, and I suppose I didn’t want Lorna walking into unfriendly territory.”
Anna had taken a seat in a nearby chair. “You’re a good man.”
I reached for Reid’s hand. As his fingers encased mine, I agreed with Anna’s assessment. My husband was a good man, actually, the best man.
“If anyone should be or has the right to be unfriendly,” Anna said, “it should be you, Lorna. I think time and life have given me a bit of perspective. If you came here to hear me apologize, I will. I treated you horribly. I’m sorry.”
A lump formed in my throat. “I think we could both apologize for things in the past, but let’s move beyond that.”
She sat straighter. “What is it you want to know?”
“My mother.”
Anna flinched. “What about her?”
“What do you think we’re about to ask?” Reid questioned.
Anna’s head shook. “When we worked together, I was married to Justin. He wasn’t a bad man” —her nose wrinkled— “but I admit to having set a pretty low bar where men were concerned. Justin never balked at raising Julie. That was his best trait.”
“Your oldest?” I asked.
Anna nodded. “We had two others.” She grinned. “Julie is taking classes to be a vet tech. I’m so proud of her. And the other two are still in high school. Do the two of you have children?”
I shook my head as Reid squeezed my hand. “No, we don’t. We’ve been married for nearly ten years.”
“Congratulations. Someday I may hit that milestone. You see, I’m no longer married to Justin. I think it is my current husband, Steve, who opened my eyes to so many things. He’s a great