Page 5 of Desert Wind

“No. No, I’m okay now,” she sniffed. “I’m sorry. It was just such a shock seeing Nash. It’s been almost forty years. You joined the Marines. You went off to protect our country. Ishould have stayed in touch with you, but the convent wouldn’t allow letters to males unless they were relatives.”

“I did join the Marines,” he nodded. “I became a Special Forces Marine, and I’ve thought of you so many times over the years.”

“Oh,” she smiled. “Well, that makes sense, about the Marines, I mean. You were always special, Nash, and handsome. He was the most handsome boy in school.” Nash could only shake his head at his old friend.

“Why don’t we get you two off the floor,” said Doc. “A good plate of food will make you feel much better. When you’re done, Nash can show you to your cabin on the private island where we all live. No one gets on the island or this property without us knowing about it. And no one knows where it is.”

It was a few days before Nash was able to get Jenna alone again. She’d been speaking with the legal and medical teams and trying to determine what her future might look like.

“May I join you?” asked Nash.

He’d been watching Jenna sitting near the fountain in the gardens for nearly an hour. They were all watching her, concerned that she might harm herself.

“Of course, Nash. I actually owe you an apology.”

“Me?” he frowned. “You don’t owe me an apology. You’ve done absolutely nothing wrong.”

“You reached for my hand out of friendship, and I shunned you,” she said, looking down into the fountain. Nash shook his head.

“Jenna, a man attacked you. The touch of a man will set you off for a while. I should have been more considerate. I know it wasn’t about me. It was about your attackers.”

“Thank you for saying that,” she said. “You always were the nicest boy in school. I remember when your family was transferred to Arizona. You were only in eighth grade, I think.”

“That’s right,” he smiled. “We had been at a base called The Depot. In fact, many of the people here were there.”

“Really? That seems odd,” she frowned.

“Yes,” he laughed. “I suppose it does feel odd. We’re all different, Jenna. We were exposed to something while at this strange base and now have unusual skills.”

“Like what you did at the lake when we were in high school?” she smiled. Nash’s face showed shock and disbelief.

“You remember that? You saw that?” he asked. She nodded. “I never meant for anyone to see me. If I hadn’t done what I did, Josie would have died.”

“I saw it as a miracle from God, Nash. I never thought you were strange. You lifted that water like it was nothing, and there she was, crawling her way along the bottom of the reservoir. You saved her life.”

“I can’t believe you saw me. I wish you had told me,” he said, smiling at her. “I felt alone during that time. I couldn’t tell everyone what was happening to me.”

“I’m sorry. I should have come to you. You were my friend, my dearest friend. I hated that we lost touch after I went to the convent.”

“Why did you go?” he asked. “You were one of the smartest people in school. Surely you had scholarship offers.”

“I wish that were true,” she said. “My parents were so poor at that time they didn’t even have the money to submit my college applications. I knew that I needed to go to work and help support them. But if I took a job, I wouldn’t be able tosupport them and myself, and I needed to be out of the house, not another mouth to feed. The convent seemed logical.

“I was a devout Catholic. So were my family members. The convent allowed you to live there rent-free, and when I became a nun, all of my small salary went to my parents. It was enough for a while, then everything just crumbled.”

“I’m sorry,” he said, reaching for her hand again. He hovered above her, then pulled back, but this time, Jenna reached for him.

“We shouldn’t be afraid to touch when we’re old friends,” she said. He nodded, smiling at her.

“I’m sorry about what happened to you, Jenna, but I’m so glad I’ve found you again. I’ve thought of you many times over the years.”

“Same,” she smiled. “I had a terrible crush on you when I was in high school.”

“Why didn’t you say something?” he asked.

“We were such friends, buddies almost. I didn’t want to ruin that. All the girls wanted to date you, and they were so beautiful and dressed perfectly. I was the poor girl from the wrong side of the tracks.”

“No. No, you weren’t,” he said, shaking his head. “You were my best friend, and I had a crush on you as well.” He squeezed her hand, and she smiled, nodding at him.

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