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As days pressed toward that horrific end of September time limit— at which point the blackmailer would supposedly demand three million dollars, Oriana found herself working diligently, just like always. She sold three paintings to high rollers, then called several clients worldwide with information about additional works, about artists they would surely be interested in. And she played the part of a kind and compassionate grandmother and mother, frequently playing on the floor with Benny, laughing with Alexa, and cooking up grand dinners that had Alexa and Reese groaning with fullness.
“You’ve been running yourself ragged the past few weeks,” Reese pointed out, watching her as she slid another tray of chocolate chip cookies into the oven.
Oriana clipped the door closed and wiped her hands on a kitchen towel. “You know how I get when I slow down.”
Reese chuckled and kissed her, frowning gently. “Just promise me you’ll take a break one of these days. Maybe we can take a drive out to the new Aquinnah Cliffside Overlook Hotel, book a room, and pretend we’re on vacation.”
“It does look amazing over there,” Oriana admitted, trying to imagine herself falling upon a perfectly made California King bed in a suite overlooking the Sound. The image failed her, as it had no relation to her current, anxious mind. “But anyway. This Saturday, I invited the entire Coleman family over for a little bonfire and barbecue. I hope you don’t mind?”
Reese rubbed his temples. “All right. Tell me what you need me to buy at the store.”
“You’re wonderful,” Oriana said, fetching a notepad to make a list. “What would I do without you?”
On Saturday morning at eleven, the first of the party guests arrived. Nora appeared through the trees lining Oriana and Alan’s homes, her arms laden with beer, wine, and potato salad, and her smile serene.
“Nora! You’re early!” Oriana was in the backyard, setting up tables and chairs. The Coleman guests weren’t officially set to arrive until one.
“I figured you’d need some help,” Nora said. “Alan will be over soon, too. Alan?” She called through the trees until Alan popped out, his forehead slightly burnt from his hours of gardening the very last assortment of zucchini, radishes, and corn before they closed the garden for the season. “Oriana needs you!”
Oriana laughed and glanced around the backyard. It seemed there was always something else to do, more yard tasks, more things to clean. Ultimately, she asked Alan to chop firewood for the afternoon and evening ahead, which he gladly did, even removing his shirt so that his back glistened as he swung the ax over and over again, splintering the wood. As Nora stirred up iced tea on the back porch, she watched him unabashedly and told Oriana, “I never thought I’d fall in love again. And now, look at this man I’m dating! He’s like Paul Newman!”
Oriana had never once compared Alan to Paul Newman, not in all the years she’d lived beside him. But beauty was in the eye of the beholder, she knew. And it warmed her heart to watch Nora fall deeper in love, especially this late in life.
“How did it go with meeting Roland and Grant?” Nora asked finally, escaping her reverie.
“It was lovely,” Oriana admitted. “I was really nervous. But they opened their arms to us, stuffed us with delicious food, and let us stay the night, even. When we woke up, Roland’s wife, Estelle, fed us again with pancakes, bacon, and eggs. I was surprised Derek’s boat didn’t sink when he brought us back home.”
Nora cackled. She, too, had a complicated history with the Colemans. Her only son, Marcus, had been best friends with Charlie as teenagers, but had died in a car accident at seventeen. Charlie had been driving.
That single moment changed Nora’s life forever. Still, that summer had brought healing for all of them, especially after Nora’s great-nephew, Jax, had wrecked a car Charlie’s daughter had been in. Forgiveness had become paramount. Nora and Charlie had finally begun to speak again.
Because they’d taken a ferry all together, the Nantucket Colemans arrived all at once: Roland and Estelle, Sam, her boyfriend, Derek, and her daughters, Rachelle and Darcy; Hilary, her boyfriend, Marc, and her daughter, Aria; Charlie, his wife, Shawna, and their two daughters and son; plus Grant, Katrina, their daughter, Sophie, and her boyfriend Patrick; along with their other daughter, Ida, and her husband Rick, whose daughters were away at college.
As they streamed through the backyard, Alexa, Benny, and Reese came out the backdoor, all dressed in flannel and autumn jackets, wearing vibrant smiles. Reese clapped the backs of Grant and Roland happily and asked if they wanted a beer to go with this autumn breeze. They agreed and soon gathered around the flickering bonfire, chatting about baseball.
“Hilary! I’m so glad to see you!” Oriana hugged Hilary, who wore sunglasses over her eyes to protect them after her recent surgery.
“And you!” Hilary laughed. “Everything’s still a little blurry for me, but I should be in the all-clear by November or so.”
“And Aria? How’s the interior design work coming along?” Oriana asked.
“We just wrapped a job out in San Francisco,” Aria explained, linking her fingers with her mother’s.
“Aria finished it, actually,” Hilary bragged. “You should have seen her save me a few times the past couple of months, as my eyes were failing me.”
“I don’t know how we got so lucky with our daughters,” Oriana said, watching as Alexa lifted Benny against her chest and twirled in the grass.
“Oh, Meghan’s here!” Sam called, bouncing toward the backyard gate to hug Oriana’s sister, who led their father, Chuck, her husband, Hugo, their children, Eva and Theo, and Eva’s boyfriend, Finn.
With a terrible jolt in her stomach, Oriana realized that she hadn’t seen Meghan in perhaps seven days, maybe eight. She knew this was her fault. She’d fought to make herself feel busy, to fill her head with work, and on the way, she’d lost track of Meghan. There had been ignored text messages and missed calls. And now, as Meghan approached her, her smile waned, as though she was afraid to see Oriana. This broke her heart.
“Hi, Meghan.” Oriana cupped her sister’s elbow.
Under her breath, Meghan whispered, “Are you doing okay, sis?”
Oriana’s smile faltered. “I’m really good. I’m so glad everyone could come out to the party.”
Meghan nodded stiffly and gave Oriana a strange look. Oriana knew better than to try to escape Meghan’s watchful eye. Looking back, it was bizarre that she’d ever been able to get away with the original crime, as Meghan had been directly beside her, watching the events surrounding it play out. Perhaps Meghan knew what Oriana had done. Perhaps Meghan was the blackmailer?
