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“So, are you related to the family who owns this property?”
“I actually own this property now. I bought it from my cousin a few years ago,” I replied. “Why are you crying?”
“My dog passed away; he’d been with me for fifteen years. He wandered into the forest and passed away. I guess I always thought he’d be with me, even though he’d been slowing down lately. Can you please help me bury him?” Carly said, wiping her eyes on the back of her sleeve.
“Of course, I can,” I replied, wrapping my arm around Carly. I helped her to stand, and she turned and started walking uphill to her little cottage. I knew it was at the top of the mountain. “Why do you live all the way up here by yourself?” I asked as the path widened, and I moved up beside her.
“I lived here with Jim; he was my husband. He died a couple of years ago, so this is my home. I’m sorry for being so emotional; Toby, my dog, was given to me by a friend I loved so much. I thought he loved me as much as I loved him, but I was wrong. Now, with Toby gone, I have nothing and no one.”
“Do you have any family nearby?”
“Lord, yes, I have tons of family members around here. But they all stopped talking to me when Jim and I got married. No one on the mountain liked Jim; they thought he was mean and wanted me to leave him,” Carly explained, avoiding eye contact. It seemed her family’s concerns might have been justified.
“Was he really mean?” I asked.
“Yes, he was,” Carly admitted. “Most of the time, when he was drunk. When he was sober, I wasn’t afraid because he didn’t hurt me physically. He shouted all the time if I knew he was drinking. I hid in the forest, and my biggest fear was he would hurt Toby, I don’t know what to do now that Toby is gone?”
“I don’t mean to be blunt, but you’re fortunate your husband died. I know it sounds harsh, but my sister’s boyfriend killed her when she was only seventeen. That was when I decided I’d never fall in love. Of course, Jackie didn’t love that monster; she went out with him once, and that was all she wanted of him.”
“You just haven’t met the right man yet,” Carly suggested. “But I like the way you think. I thought I had found the right man too,” she continued. “His name was Ryan Reed, and I thought we were deeply in love. But when he left to travel the world freelancing without telling me, my world crumbled.”
“When he returned, I ran to his house as fast as my legs could run, I swear I missed that man so much. It was a foolish move,” she said. “There I stood, a forlorn hillbilly with no shoes, wearing my little brother’s overalls, with all my stringy hair hanging down my back in a loose braid I’d hastily put together that morning. I looked more like a child than a nineteen-year-old woman.”
“When I saw the man I loved, standing next to the most beautiful woman I had ever seen, I realized I was nothing but a mountain-dwelling hillbilly.”
“They were together; I could tell by the way his hand rested on her hip. I greeted him, and then, with a heart shattered into a million pieces, I turned and ran home, crying like a child.”
“Ryan came to see me, but I wouldn’t let him in my room; he spoke through the door. He apologized, said he never meant to hurt me, and I was too young to be tied down to one man. But in my heart, there was only Ryan Reed. I know I’m pitiful.”
“Can I share a secret?” I raised my eyebrows, I thought that’s what she was doing, telling me her secrets.
“Of course, you can trust me. I won’t repeat anything you say.”
“I never wanted to be intimate with Jim, and I despised it when he forced me. Ryan was the man I truly loved, and Jim knew it. When he died, I cried, not out of sorrow, but because I no longer had to worry about him hurting me again.”
“I cried because I no longer had to hide in the forest at night, just me and Toby. I know God will never forgive me for saying that. That’s why I stay up here on this mountain all alone. My conscience won’t let me forget I felt relief when a man died.”
“God isn’t angry with you; maybe He removed your husband to give you another chance at happiness. So, what’s Ryan up to these days?”
“Ryan is out of my life for good. He’s with someone else. I don’t know if he’s happy, but it doesn’t matter because he hurt me too much for me to forgive him. Besides, look at me. Who would want to be with someone like me?”
I looked at her and said, “Are you kidding? You’re beautiful. Just take a look in the mirror. I’m sure if guys knew you were available, they’d be lining up at your door.”
“Thank you, but I really don’t want to date anyone.”
As we walked, I noticed Carly’s house, a familiar sight from my runs on the mountain. My favorite spot was the natural spring water pool.
We walked to where Toby lay covered with a baby blanket. “Where do you want to bury Toby?”
“Perhaps next to my flowers. It was his favorite place to sleep.”
Together, we dug out the hole for Toby. I fashioned a cross with some wood I found, and then we placed Toby in the grave, covered it with dirt, and secured the cross into the ground.
“Can you say something for him?” Carly asked.
“Don’t you think it would be better coming from you? You’re the one who knew and loved him. Yes, it should come from you,” I suggested.
“Alright, but keep in mind, God might be angry with me.” I shook my head, and Carly began her heartfelt prayer. “Dear God, please take care of Toby now that he is with you. Please protect him from that mean Jim Harlow if he’s up there, because you know how much he hated Toby. Toby, I’ll miss you dearly. I love you, Toby. Amen.”
