AllFreeNovel
Share Us
We see two more humpbacks as we make our way back to the bay—to a small coastal city called Homer, which we’ve now called home for the last couple of weeks.
“So, you didn’t get sick on a smaller boat, but you were terrible on that big boat when we left California,” Raffi recalls as we drive home in an old Suburban, which I’ve borrowed from a local.
“I know. It’s weird, right?”
“It is!”
“Maybe I was nervous then,” I justify.
Our house is a twenty-minute drive from the wharf. After moving from place to place, having this modest but beautiful spot to settle in is a nice welcome. Every transaction I make is cash, and I’m lucky that I can pay my landlord under the table.
We share the two-bedroom house with a girl from Seattle who, just like a lot of people in Alaska at this time, is a seasonal worker who earns her keeps from tourism activities. The twenty-year-old has been here since early spring, and she’ll be returning home around mid-fall. I really hope my life will be back to normal by then—wherever it may be.
“Did you enjoy the cruise?” I put my arm around Raffi as we step into the living room. This kind of excursion usually gets his mind off things, especially since there’s been no school for him since we left California. I homeschool him a couple of days a week, but without his friends and his basketball, I know it feels like an exile for him.
“The whales were so cool. I enjoyed it. Thanks, Mom.” He gives me a peck on the cheek.
This sweet child. What would I do without him?
“Fancy seeing some bears next week?” I suggest.
A smile paints his tired face. “I wish Matty was here.” Raffi looks out the window. It’s an overgrown garden, but with the mountain surrounding us, it’s actually not a bad view. “Imagine if there’s a bear that looks like Bjork. He’ll go crazy!”
“I know, baby.” I put my arm around his shoulder.
“Mom…”
“Yes, Raffi?”
“Why are we here?”
I study him. “Come, sit down with me.”
We sit on the old leather couch.
“You’re a big boy,” I say. “So I’m going to tell you the truth. We’re running from Uncle Don. He was going to hurt us, and Clayton too, if we stayed.”
Raffi shifts himself gingerly. “Really? Is Thomas going to hurt us, too?”
“He’s good, he’s on our side, but he can’t do anything.”
“How long are we going to be here?”
“I’m hoping only for a few more weeks.”
“Then we’ll go back to California?”
“Maybe.”
“I will protect you, Mom. I’m strong now.” He shakes my arm as if trying to prove his case.
“I know, baby, but we can’t risk it. Uncle Don is a powerful man.”
“So… that night… when we… when we lost baby Caili, Uncle Don wasn’t helping us?”
We haven’t talked about it since the Grim Reaper took us under his robe. It hurts that my son still remembers. “No, he wasn’t.”
“We need to go back to Clayton. Yeah. We must!” His head nods furiously.
