It was direct, right to the point. And there must’ve been something written on Grace’s face that told her there was way more to the story than that.
“Oh, sweetie.” Maria’s expression softened. Turning the burner from medium heat to simmer, she laid the wooden spoon down. She gave Grace all of her undivided attention.
“I’ve been hiding out from him for... eight months? Yeah. More than eight months now. He thinks we’re meant to be and there’s nothing I can do to change his mind... can we sit down?”
As strong as her legs were, they were suddenly weak. At Maria’s nod, she grabbed a chair and sank down in it. Maria sat down opposite from her, still clutching her dish towel.
“You don’t have to do this.”
That’s what Maria thought. Now that Grace started, it was like poison being drawn from a wound. She wouldn’t feel better until it was all out. So she told Maria. She told her everything, from the first staged date at the coffee shop by her old house, the way Tommy proposed on their one month anniversary, the abduction, button’s collar, the heart… she told Maria all of it.
There was something about her. Maria didn’t judge, and she didn’t interrupt. And, most importantly, she didn’t look at Grace as if she were crazy for turning down a Mathers’ attention and devotion the way her friends had. Her co-workers had. Her own parents. Maria watched as Grace spoke with a stone face; the only reaction she had was to reach out, taking Grace’s hand in hers, giving it a small squeeze. It said I’m here for you.
You’re not alone.
Grace clung tightly to Maria’s hand like a lifeline, only letting go when she was done. She told Maria about it all, leading up to the moment she arrived just outside of Hamlet and found the tracker. Even though she drove far enough away to cover her tracks before she got rid of it, she’d discovered the tracker too late.
Especially since the Jeffersons all but confirmed that Tommy had managed to track her down after all.
Maria absorbed it all. The only thing she said when Grace went silent was, “Did Lucas know about this?”
“Some of it. I told him and Tessa right before I decided I would have to leave my apartment in Dayton. He found me again. I couldn’t stay. I couldn’t. And that’s when they told me about Hamlet.”
“I see.” Slipping her hand out of Grace’s, leaving the dish towel on the table, Maria climbed to her feet. “Stay here.”
Okay.
Without another word, Maria got back to work in the kitchen. After turning off the right burner, she slapped a small saucepan on the open burner on the left side. She grabbed milk from the fridge, poured it in the saucepan, and added something to it. Within minutes, the soothing scent of chocolate began to fill the kitchen.
She poured the contents of the saucepan into two mugs: one for herself, one for Grace. Setting them down, she said, “Some things go better with hot cocoa, yes?”
Grace appreciated the gesture. “Thanks.”
“I know. Trust me, I know. There were times when I wanted to drown myself in the hot cocoa, I was such a mess. Lucas tried to hide me from the truth, but there are bad people out there. Bad men. And, sometimes, no matter what we do, they find their way here. We just have to be prepared when they do.”
In a flash, Grace remembered the name of the man Jefferson mentioned. How he said something about the trouble Maria had with an outsider. Maybe she did know exactly what Grace was going through.
The words slipped out on their own: “Who’s Mack Turner?”
Maria’s olive tone lightened enough to be noticeable. “Where did you hear that name?”
Watching the color drain from her hostess’s face made Grace feel worse. “When I was at Jefferson’s store. I’m sorry. You don’t have to answer that.”
“Almost two years no
w, and the gossips still like to mention that awful, awful man.” Maria raised her hand, flipping her bangs up and out of her face. “It’s okay, Grace. You’ve already been here longer than he was. You’ll learn this, too. Hamlet will protect you, but stay here long enough and you’ll never have another secret again.”
Wasn’t that the truth? She promised herself that she would handle Tommy on her own. Barely two weeks into her stay and not only did half the town know about her, but now she went and burdened Maria with her troubles.
“Besides, you trusted me with your story. It’s only fair I tell you mine. Mack Turner…” She let a husky laugh. It was raw and rough and had no humor to it. “He was the first outsider who came to stay at my Ophelia. I thought he was a nice man. Handsome, si, but different. I should’ve known better—Lucas did. Too late to change that now.”
A sour taste filled Grace’s mouth. She swallowed roughly. As big of a monster as Tommy is, he never hurt her. This Mack Turner? He hurt Maria. “You don’t have to tell me.”
“It’s fine. I’m okay. It could’ve been a lot worse. He learned very quickly that sneaking into my bed while I was sleeping wasn’t the smartest of plans. I might’ve ended up with a couple of bruises and a black eye, but I got through that night with my life. Turner didn’t.”
“He’s dead?”
Was it terrible that Grace was glad? She remembered the way the Jeffersons talked about how the outsider got what he deserved. They were right.