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Gwendoline
Most of the afternoon was spent outside in the garden. At first, she simply sat and enjoyed the quiet, cuddling with her men. Then Amon asked if she would allow him to paint. He brought all his utensils out and she watched him as he added the colors with each stroke of his brush on the canvas.
“Would you be able to draw faster? I mean, as fast as if you would run?”
“I could, but I enjoy the process of it far too much to speed it up.”
“I enjoy watching you too.”
She watched as a beautiful sunset on the beach formed on the canvas, while being held by Silas and Rayen. Tears started forming as she watched Amon paint her first, then Evangeline. They were standing on the beach watching the sunset and holding each other in a hug.
“I didn’t mean to make you cry,” he said with a regretful tone.
“It’s the good kind of tears. It’s gorgeous. May I have it in my room?”
“Of course. Just let us know where you would like it and we’ll hang it up.”
When the sun started fading, they retreated into the house and settled in the bed for the evening.
The next morning she woke up early, feeling much better than the days before. The underlying sadness was still there, but it wasn’t as heavy on her heart anymore. It wasn’t that she’d stopped grieving, but rather the grief that she’d felt for the past few days felt definite in a relieving way. The struggle of justifying her decisions regarding her sister was no longer present, and the looming hope of Evangeline returning to her was no longer existing. Knowing that she’d done all she could for Evangeline’s wellbeing was now a relief rather than a burden. She sat up and stretched. As she looked around, she only saw Rayen and Silas who were leaning in to kiss her cheeks.
“Amon is downstairs taking a phone call from the funeral home.” Rayen must have seen her worried face because he quickly added, “They just wanted to call to let you know that we can pick up Evangeline’s remains.”
“Is it even possible to take her with us when we fly tomorrow?”
“Amon made sure of it, little bird.”
She sighed in relief. She’d never felt more secure, more taken care of. “I don’t think I can ever thank you three enough for everything you’ve done for me.”
“There is no need, Gwen.” Silas pulled her to his chest and kissed her head.
They had a quick breakfast before she got ready to leave for the funeral home. Amon was waiting by the door when she walked down. Rayen and Silas however, didn’t seem as if they were ready to leave the house.
“Silas suggested for the two of us to stay here,” Rayen explained.
“We will come, if you wish, but I thought you might not want a big crowd for this.”
Her heart melted. Though she never would’ve asked for either of them to stay behind, she appreciated the thought. She reached up, cupped Silas’s face, and kissed him.
“Thank you.”
Rayen gently hugged and kissed her before handing her to Amon who took her hand in his.
“Take your time,” Rayen called after her.
Sitting next to Amon, she took his hand and weaved her fingers with his. “Thank you for taking care of everything.”
He picked her hand up and kissed it, smiling down at her as he drove off. “When I lost Marianna, I was left to do all these things. It was overwhelming and I’m glad I could spare you that.”
She mirrored him and kissed the back of his hand. “Is it horrible of me to feel somewhat relieved?”
Still smiling down at her lovingly, he shook his head. “No. When Marianna died, I felt it too. She’d been in pain for far too long and I knew she was in a better place. However, it took me a long time not to feel bad for how relieved I was.”
She closed her eyes and leaned her head back. “I know she didn’t suffer but I also know that she wasn’t living the life she wanted. It was always a struggle to justify holding on to her, but now I’m glad I did. I feel like if I hadn’t visited her or left her in a bad place, I would feel guilty now.”
“You did everything right.”
She opened her eyes and gently squeezed his hand. “And so did you.”
