There they found a table near the railing, within eyeshot of the sea lapping on the nearby rocks. Once they sat down, Kiah continued the conversation.
“Apparently he’s asked her to marry him.”
“I’m a little surprised. Wasn’t he the local Romeo?”
Kiah chuckled. “Once Jimmy met Sharon, that was it. You can tell from just seeing them together how in love with her he is.”
Mina turned her gaze toward the water, a pensive expression flitting over her face for an instant, making him wonder what she was thinking. But before he could ask, she faced him again and said, “Charm was asking me about Karlene last night, after dinner.”
His heart rate kicked up in reaction to her words, and he scrubbed his palm along his cheek, getting his emotions under control, before asking, “What did she say?”
“Just asked me what I meant when I said she reminded me of her mother. Wanted to know if I liked Karlene. Things like that. She said neither you nor Miss Pearl like to talk about her, and I think she needs you to.”
The weight in his heart increased, grew almost unbearable for a moment. Then he took a deep breath, trying to regain his equilibrium. When Mina reached across the table to take his hand in hers, Kiah hung on to it, as though it were a lifeline.
“We used to, when she first came to us, but every time we mentioned Karlene’s name or said something about her, Charm shut down. Granny and I agreed to stop, figuring when Charm was ready to talk about her mother, she’d let us know. Ask questions. I think, somewhere along the line, not talking about her turned into a habit.”
She squeezed his fingers a little tighter.
“Well, discuss it with Miss Pearl, and the two of you come up with a plan. It’s been five years since Karlene and Roy died. Maybe Charm has questions she needs answered. Not just about her mom, but about what happened.”
He shook his head, unable to help it. The last thing he wanted was to have to discuss her parents’ murder-suicide with Charm, but in his gut he knew he’d have to.
“She needs to know why it happened, Kiah. Charm probably hates her father, which is only natural under the circumstances. No doubt you do, too, in some ways. But the difference is, half of her comes from Roy. She needs to understand what happened.”
“I still don’t fully understand it, Mina.” His throat felt raw, just as it had the night after the phone had rung, and a police constable had called from Canada to inform him Karlene and Roy were dead. Then, though, it was because he’d roared in anguish, unable to restrain himself, mindless with grief. Now it was because he knew he’d have to relive it, sometime soon, for Charm’s sake.
Mina stroked the back of his hand with her thumb, as though trying to soothe him as best she could. It helped, but not enough to make the conversation palatable.
“Roy was suffering from PTSD. You know that.”
“But how do you explain that to a twelve-year-old?”
“Charm is more than mature enough to hear the truth. That her father went off to war one man and came back another. That he tried to get help, but it wasn’t enough.”
Now anger edged the fear and sadness aside, and he welcomed it. “Do I tell her that her grandmother, who’s a bitter, controlling woman, couldn’t stop stirring up trouble? Tell her that her poor father, already fighting the demons in his head, couldn’t take any more of his mother-in-law’s nagging and bickering? Does she get to hear that part, too? Because I can’t even say it without feeling ill.”
“No,” Mina said softly, her eyes full of gentle wisdom and care. “She doesn’t need to know that part. That’s more than is necessary right now. But she does need to know her father wasn’t a monster, which means she’s not half monster too, if you see what I mean?”
“I do see what you mean,” he said, the reluctance clear in his tone. He, better than anyone else, recognized the effect knowing you had a monstrous parent could have on a child. Then he shook his head, his lips twisting to the side for an instant. “But why is everything so difficult, Mina? Why can’t life be simple?”
“I wish I knew, Kiah. I really do.”
Just then the waiter approached and Mina let go of his hand, leaving him suddenly hollow and bereft.
CHAPTER SEVEN
SHE’D WANTED A change of subject, away from American Jimmy and his new girlfriend, but going from that to Karlene and Roy, and Kiah having to talk to Charm about them, left her raw. Both were subjects that made her heartache all the harder to bear, albeit in different ways.
Not that she was bitter, really; she wished nothing but the best for Jimmy and his lady. But hearing about them falling in love was a reminder of how unlikely it was that she’d ever be in a similar situation. Warren and his ugly truths had put paid to that.
Then talking about Karlene and Roy... Ouch.
She’d been the one Kiah called, after hearing from the cops, and it was Mina who’d gone to the police station to be with Charm. The memory was one that haunted her still, and she could only imagine how Kiah felt about having to relive that time with his niece.
So, having the waiter come to take their drink orders was something of a relief.
“Rum punch?” Kiah questioned, after the waiter left. “You remember how strong those are, right?”
Mina gave him a grin and nodded. “Yep, but I feel like celebrating, and I know you’ll take care of me if I get a little tipsy.”
The club started filling up, and people gravitated to their table. A couple
