it? Goddamned Ray. She wanted to throw her phone against the wall and never see that asshole again. If not for all the medical bills, she would have left him years ago. But the kids still loved him. And she knew that Katie would take it hard if the day ever came when she had to kick him out of the house. The effect it might have on Raisin’s health also concerned her. Best to keep the status quo for the time being.
She paced the kitchen, adrenaline fueling her worry. Something had to be done. If tomorrow came and Katie had still not returned home, she’d form a search group and look for her. The members of her church, Our Lady of Lourdes, would gladly help her look for Katie. She bit her thumbnail and began to strategize, in the event that happened. No time for tears, because she knew she had to stay strong if she was to bring Katie home safe and sound.
The salon. She’d need to go downtown and hang a CLOSED sign on the window. Her clients would understand—she hoped. Many of them came from the wealthy part of town, and her prices reflected the new demographics. Secretly, she gave her grandfather’s old clients a deep discount. But they seemed to be dwindling down lately because of their age and the changing socioeconomic conditions of the downtown area.
Her mind returned to Ray, mainly because she didn’t want to consider the worst-case scenario, like that James kid, who had disappeared over three months ago. She stomped out to where Ray’s art studio sat along the edge of their property. He’d built it himself. His man cave, he called it, as if being away from home all the time wasn’t enough privacy. It was off limits to everyone—unless Ray invited you in, and he rarely, if ever, invited anyone inside. It was where he worked on his schemes, patents, and harebrained ideas. It was also where he brushed his oils and acrylic onto canvas. He created stunning paintings of Shepherd’s Bay, filled with tugboats, lighthouses, and lobster boats cruising through the water. She had to admit that he could make a decent living were he to persevere in his art and take it more seriously. It frustrated her that the man she married had so much talent and let it all go to waste.
He’d put a cheap lock on the door. She tugged at in frustration, having no reason to invade his space. But now she wanted to hurt him like he’d hurt her all these years. Violating his space would help her vent, though she knew that nothing she did now would bring Katie home. Angry, she returned to the basement of the house, found the rusty spare key on the nail, and made her way to his art studio.
She undid the lock and went inside, flicking on the switch. Dust floated through the light. Clutter was piled high everywhere she looked. Gadgets and tools of every shape and size lay in various places. Over in the corner she saw copper tubing and knotted two-by-fours that he’d pilfered from various job sites. At the far end of the studio stood an easel with a half-finished painting on it: a harbor with two sailboats. Below it, stacked up against the wall, she noticed a collection of paintings. After walking over, she began to flip through them. She saw scenes depicting the water, mountains, and open fields. But about halfway through, she saw one canvas that shocked her. She pulled it out. It was a graphic painting of a nude woman lying on her back—a woman she knew.
The painting shocked her. Had Ray slept with the woman in this picture? Of course he’d deny it if asked, claiming artistic license. But she knew of no portrait models in Shepherd’s Bay who would choose to pose in such a lewd fashion.
Ray’s portrait paintings, while skillfully done, veered toward the pedestrian: sports stars, celebrities, actors and actresses. Every once in a while a wealthy banker or lawyer would commission him to paint their portrait. One local judge had even hired him for his services, and the painting now hung in his chambers. She remembered seeing it and feeling slightly put off by the judge’s weird dimensions.
She wondered if the woman’s husband knew that she’d posed naked for Ray, not that it mattered now.
It made her want to cry. She so badly wanted to love Ray and have him love her in