Page 21 of Nomad

“How’d you learn to do laundry?”

Cann’s good humor died a death as sudden as a balloon pricked by a pin.

Bud not only saw it. She felt it, too. The atmosphere in the cab of the truck became heavy, pregnant with something. Sorrow maybe.

“Tell me what happened, Johns.” He said nothing, just stared ahead at the ribbon of blacktop illuminated solely by his own headlights. “I’m stumbling all over your landmines. If we’re going to be together for a week, I need to know where they’re located.”

He sucked in a big breath suddenly, almost like he’d forgotten to breathe until his body went into survival and overrode his brain.

“It’s not a kid story, sugar. It’s a grown up story.”

“You got away with that I’m-so-much-older-than-you thing when you were hidin’ under that big red beard, but I can see your face now. You’re not that much older than me.” He opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off. “I can see you’re gearin’ up to repeat the whole I’m-an-old-man-in-a-young-man’s-body thing. I may not have the same experiences as you, but I’ve been taking care of myself and running a household for most of my life. Not hanging out at the mall. That doesn’t make me ancient, but it does mean I’m responsible.”

He glanced over at his passenger and noticed her fingertips were lightly petting her belly, like she was trying to soothe the tiny person growing inside her.

Christ, he thought.Life really is a miracle.

“Okay. I hear you. I’ll make a deal. It’s not a pretty story. Hell to live. Hell to tell. I’ll tell you what happened. You can ask questions if you want, but only until we get to the safe house. That’s my deal. After that, I don’t ever want to hear anything about it again.”

“Okay,” she said quietly.

“I had a girl. Her name was Molly. She was just like her name sounds. Pretty. Optimistic. Good heart through and through. Met her when I was fifteen and that was it for me. Pretty soon after high school she turned up pregnant. I can’t say I was sorry. I was too busy bein’ happy to be sorry.

“I had a little business that was taking off. I told you about it before. Matchmaking. Online parts.” Bud nodded. “We got married and, by the time the baby came, I had enough money to make a down payment on a house. She picked it out. Austin stone is what they call it. It wasn’t huge, but we didn’t have a big family. Just Molly, me and the baby.”

Cann stopped talking for a while. Bud supposed he’d gotten lost in thought, like mentally turning through the pages of a photo album located in his memories.

“Boy or girl?” Bud gently prompted to get him to come back to the conversation.

“Girl. Kiley Marie.”

“Pretty name.”

“Yeah. Molly and I both had reddish hair. Kiley’s was flaming.” He chuckled. “Eyes so big and blue I used to say she looked like a cartoon.

“I had a pickup I used for bad weather days. Molly never drove it, but maybe her car didn’t start. She got in the truck and it was rigged with explosives that…” When Cann didn’t finish the sentence, Bud knew he was trying to steady his voice. “It was meant for me. Both cars blew. House caught fire.”

Bud looked out the passenger window feeling a little bit sick at her stomach and wishing she hadn’t pressed him to tell her. “Oh God.”

It had been a couple of hours since the last time they’d seen another car. He looked at his watch. “We’ll be there in an hour. After that, you’re never gonna mention this again.”

“That’s why you’ve been… nomad.” He nodded.

“Why were you coming back now?”

That was the one question he hadn’t expected her to ask. And it was the one question he wasn’t prepared to answer. At least not fully.

“I wanted to take care of some business.”

“And then what?”

She wasn’t going to let it go as easily as he’d hoped.

“I’ve told you everything pertinent. The rest is my business.”

“Pertinent?”

“Yes,Bud. Pertinent.”

---