met her gaze. "Cleo is ready to sell, aren't you?" He glanced in his sister-in-law's direction. His sister-in-law. Damn, he'd exchanged a busybody mother-in-law for an ex-con sister-in-law. It didn't matter. Protecting his wife and kids was what mattered.
Cleo glanced suspiciously from him to the mayor and shrugged. "No skin off my nose. It's Maya's dream, not mine."
Maya's dream. Axell wanted to stop the discussion for now. "We'll talk in the morning, Ralph. Everyone's nerves are shot tonight."
"I won't sell, and that's final." Maya gathered up Alexa, caught Constance's arm, and glowered at her sister. "We're going. Have a good chat."
Axell recognized the sinking feeling in his stomach as she walked away, but he was prepared for that, much more than he was prepared for the sudden urge to shout at her to come back.
He didn't want to be divided from Maya in any manner, physical or emotional or in their hopes for the future. For a little while, he'd almost felt as if they were one whole, as if their physical joining had truly brought them together in heart and soul. But that was patently ridiculous. Grown men did what they had to do, and usually got yelled at for it.
February, 1977
It's over. She's left, taking her babies with her, not even knowing why the storm broke over her innocent head. Perhaps she'll be happier with her husband's family, away from the stench of her father's cowardice and the cruelty of her mother's kin.
What difference does anything make now? I have an offer of easy money, money that can some day go to my daughter and her babies. They'll be too far away to be affected by anything I do here. Why not paint the whole damned town with tar? Helen would have loved the irony.
The Arnolds deserve to have their faces rubbed in the dirt they strive so desperately to pretend doesn't exist in their pretty little town.
* * *
Axell followed the light in the family room as he entered the house well after midnight. He hadn't expected Maya to wait up for him. She must be totally wiped by now. He certainly was.
He needed a hot shower, and a long soak, and clean sheets with Maya's sweet-smelling curves in his arms, and then he thought he could sleep for a week. Heaven was having Maya to come home to. He was aroused just thinking of her sleepy kisses. She'd forgive him for his plans to sell the school. Maya simply didn't have it in her to hold a grudge.
Prepared to scold her for waiting up, Axell stopped dead in the doorway at the sight of Sandra flipping pages of a magazine.
"Well, it's about time," she said huffily, standing up. "Constance has been crying for hours. What do you intend to do about it?"
Constance? Axell blinked and tried to rearrange his relaxing thoughts of showers and bed to this new perspective. "Where's Maya?" he asked cautiously.
"Gone, of course." Sandra threw the magazine down. "You really didn't think she'd hang around once she came into a little money of her own, did you? Those kind only think of one thing."
Gone? Axell dragged his hand through his hair, realized he was smearing soot, and grimaced. "Where did she go?" he asked in genuine puzzlement, although his stomach was telling him exactly where she'd gone and why.
"How should I know?" Sandra asked arrogantly. "I'm not a mind reader. She dropped Constance off, packed up Matty's toys and the baby's diapers, and left. She'll probably be back for the rest sometime. You can ask her then. I'm going to bed."
Icy cold numbed him as Sandra swept past. Maya would never have left Constance behind if she'd simply meant to spend the night with Cleo. He hadn't believed she would leave Constance at all. She loved Constance.
Maya had a heart full of love for everyone.
Clutching his grinding gut, Axell sank to the couch, oblivious to what his filthy clothes did to the upholstery. She'd left him. She'd walked away. Over the damned school. He knew better than to think she'd left him because of money. Maya didn't have any idea whatsoever how much those properties were worth and wouldn't care. But she was completely capable of leaving him over a principle.
Let her, dammit. She was so frigging determined to swim away at the first sign of trouble, then he'd damned well let her go. He didn't need this hassle, worrying about Constance and Alexa and Matty and Maya and that damned school and