Alicia's Misfortune (12 page)

“Hello?
 
I’m
here.”
 
I stood on Jake’s porch at ten
o’clock the next morning.
 
His horses
were out galloping around the field, and a flock of sheep huddled nearby in the
adjacent corral.
 
Jake appeared from the
back of the house, his hands covered in grease and his shirt coated with
dirt.
 

“One sec’, Emma.
 
I
had to fix Andy’s car.”
 
Jake hustled to
the side of the house and opened up one of the shed doors.
 
He grabbed a few rags form a wooden crate and
started to wipe off his hands, just as a huge Collie came bounding from the
yard.
 
“Hey. Queenie. Go around back so
Patty can get you fed.”
 
Jake gave the
dog a pat on the rump and she spun around on her heels and ran in the other direction.
 
I smiled at all of the commotion, glad to be
in another setting so that I could take my mind off my own worries for a bit.

“Looks like you’ve got your hands full this morning.”
 
I laughed and then sat down on the steps,
watching as Jake’s cows munched on grass and listening as his chickens squawked
in their coop.
 
Jake’s farm was one that
had reached the heights of near sustainability in all aspects.
 
He was almost completely solar powered now,
and his animals kept the family fed through the seasons. Yet Jake still had
financial problems of his own from taking out a string of loans years ago to
get the business started.
 
Now that his
oldest was getting ready for college, he would be faced with even more debt, I
was sure.

“I’ll be right there.”
 
Jake called from behind the shed door and then tossed the dirty rags
back into their bucket.
 
I smiled and got
up as he rounded the corner and met me on the steps.
 
“You ready to talk some business?”
 
He gave me a wink and then opened the porch
door and let me inside.
 
I took a deep
breath and then walked inside the house.
 
“Here, have a seat.”
 
Jake swiped
a mound of clean laundry off the couch and patted it for me to sit.
 

“I just want to tell you, Jake.
 
I’ve been kind of excited about this idea
ever since you left.”
 
I bit my lip and
then nodded my head.
 
“I mean, if this
whole thing has the potential to offer me freedom from money worries…”
 
My voice trailed off and I looked out the
window.
 
From my seat on the couch I
could still see the horses tossing their heads and flicking their tails.
 

“Emma.”
 
Jake threw
off his dirt covered shirt and grabbed a clean t-shirt from the pile.
 
Then he darted off to the kitchen and I
listened as he ran the water and clanked some glasses around.
 
“You want a coffee?
 
Or a tea?”
 
He called out and I nodded my head.

“Sure.
 
Coffee sounds
great.”
 
I rubbed my hands together and
then laid my head back on the head rest.
 
I was exhausted and the day had just begun. I thought about Ethan being
in school, sitting inside his homeroom and watching as the rest of the kids
turned in their Sun Valley permission slips.
 
Then I sighed and leaned forward.
 
I was going to follow through with Jake’s plan.
 
I had made my decision.

“Here you go.”
 
Jake
handed me a mug of steaming coffee and then sat down in the floral upholstered
chair across from me.
 

“Thanks.”
 
I took a
sip and then looked at Jake.
 
I was ready
to talk business.

“So.
 
Here’s the
deal.
 
Like I was telling you yesterday,
the guy’s name is Matthew Devine.
 
He
owns Grace Valley Ranch, which I told you is just off Fountain Highway.
 
He’s been in the news lately for all of these
big charity contributions and what-not.”
 
Jake frowned and then threw his hand up in dismissal.
 
“I don’t give a crap about any of that,
because I know the guy’s just doing it for good publicity.
 
He needs it with his track record.”
 

I looked up with suspicion.
 
“Track record?
 
Oh, geeze,
Jake.
 
What kind of guy are you trying to
set me up with?”
 
I put my hands on my
hips and then tilted my head.

“The guy’s not innocent, Emma.
 
That’s part of the hitch.
 
You see, Matthew has been married
before.
 
In fact, he’s been married three
other times.”
 
At that point Jake
chuckled and then covered his mouth.
 
“I
don’t approve at all, Emma. The guy has some history.”
 
He eyed me with apprehension.
 
“He’s a murderer, Emma.
 
And he’s kept it all under wraps.”
 
Jake took a long sip of his coffee and then
set his mug on the table.
 

My eyes were the size of saucers.
 
“Let me get this straight, Jake.”
 
I looked around his house to ensure that Andy
and Patty had left for school.
 
Then I
whispered.
 
“You want me to meet some
rancher named Matthew who killed his previous wives?
 
And pretend to fall in love with him so that
he’ll ask to marry me?”
 
I sat back on
the couch, my head swirling with anger and confusion.
 
“Are you crazy?
 
I mean, seriously.
 
Are you?”
 
All of the optimism that I had slowly nurtured over the last day
vanished.
 
I was now angry and confused.
 

“Emma, listen.”
 
Jake
leaned in and looked me square in the eyes.
 
“Ain’tnothing perfect.
 
You know
it, and I know it.
 
Life is tough, and
sometimes you gotta roll with the damn punches.
 
I’m offering this plan to you as a way for both of us to finally get
free.
 
Look at his place.
 
I got a roof that needs to be re-shingled, a
corral that needs fencing, and a kid whose three months away from college.
 
Not to mention a wife who needs a new car so
that she can still get to her teaching job all the way in Pocatello.
 
I need the cash just like you do.”
 
Jake looked serious now.
 
His playful demeanor had dissolved, and I
knew that he meant every word that she said.

“Well I never said that you didn’t have your own issues,
Jake.
 
I get it.
 
But why the hell are you roping me into
them?
 
I got enough to deal with at home
with my dilapidated house and a barn full of goats that need food.
 
Not to mention all the debt I’m in from the
truck and then the mortgage…”
 
I wanted
to ramble on but I cut myself short.
 
Jake looked at me for a second and then covered his mouth.
 

“Emma.
 
Can you trust
me?
 
For once?”
 
Jake clasped his hands and then narrowed his
gaze.
 
I wanted to trust him, but it
would take a lot of courage.
 
The horses
neighed outside and I took a deep breath.
 
Then I took a sip of my coffee and slowly nodded my head.
 

“I’ll try.”
 
I sat
back and folded my arms across my chest, feeling just as disappointed as I had
yesterday.

Jake ran his hands through his hair and then leaned in.
 
“You know, I can’t let Sue know about any of
this.
 
She’d be beside herself if she
knew what I was trying to do.”
 
He spoke
in an emphatic whisper.
 
“So, like I was
saying.
 
The guy murdered his previous
wives to get to their money.
 
They were
all ranchers’ daughters, and his goal was to get their cash.
 
He did well, because he ended up one of the
richest men in Idaho, but at what expense?”
 
Jake looked at me as if he were waiting for me to respond.
 
I simply shrugged.

“I’m not following.
 
If this guy has all the money in the world, then why the heck is he
looking for some kind of mail order bride?
 
He has the means to go wherever he wants, I’m assuming.
 
What does he want to find a woman this
way?”
 
I couldn’t quite make sense of it,
but then I figured that maybe the man was just peculiar in that way.
 
Jake threw his arms up in the air.
 

“I don’t know why, Emma.
 
But I do know that he wants to find love.
 
His story to the public is that he inherited
his uncle’s ranch.
 
You can see why all
the women he married in the past though that he was a good catch.
 
He gave them his story and the fell for
it.
 
Then they married him, and he turned
around, killed them, and then made off with all their money.
 
Now’s our chance to take this guy for what
he’s worth.”
 
Jake looked at me with
determination in his eyes.
 
I nodded my
head, trying to absorb all of what he just told me.
 

“Okay, Jake.
 
I’m done
asking questions.
 
I think it’s a crazy
idea, to be honest, and I’m not really interested in this guy’s past, or in
what the public thinks of him.
 
I have my
own problems to think about.
 
But if you
think that this guy is our ticket to freedom, then I’m willing to follow
through with your plan.”
 
I looked at
him, surprised at myself that the words had even come out.
 
A smile broke out across Jake’s face.

“Great.
 
I think we’re
both going to be happy, Emma.
 
Just wait
and see.”
 
Jake finished of his coffee
and then got up to make another cup. “You want any more?”
 
He peered from around the kitchen corner and
I shook my head.

“No.
 
I’m about to get
going, anyway, unless we have more to discuss.
 
I guess you just need to tell me what I need to do, or where I need to
go.
 
Is this man conducting
interviews?
 
Will we have any dates?
 
It all sounds quite awkward, if you ask me.”
 
I was still highly skeptical, and my previous
optimism had been squandered, but I still hung on to hope.
 
It was all I really had.

“I’ll set it all up.
 
All you have to do is be agreeable, and be ready.”
 
Jake smiled and then walked toward me, his
hands on his hips, and that wily look back in his eye.
 
I gazed outside at the horses and the cows,
and thought back to how Paul used to love watching his animals outside.
 
It sent a twinge of pain through my heart,
but I dismissed it, unwilling to let another day be marred with the heaviness
of sorrow.
 
I was ready to move on with
my life.
 
I had no other choice.
 

“I’m ready.
 
You know
where to find me.
 
Just do me a favor,
Jake?”
 
I looked at him with
concern.
 
He raised his eyebrows and
waited for my request.

“What’s that?”

“Please don’t say anything to Ethan.”
 
I eyed him with conviction.
 
He knew that when it came to Ethan, I was
highly protective.
 
He nodded his head
and then gave me a salute.

“Your wish is my command.”
 
He smiled and then walked me to the door.
 
I opened the latch and then stepped onto the
porch, looking up at the sun as its rays cut through a layer of cloud
cover.
 
I wasn’t quite sure what I had
just signed up for, but I hoped that I could trust Jake to see that we both
made out okay in the end. I was beginning to realize that without Paul by my
side, I had to man my own ship now, make my own decisions.
 
Sometimes it felt good, but most of the time
it felt scary.

“Stop by when you have more to tell me, okay?”
 
I was eager to get started.
 
I assumed that I’d be meeting Matthew soon,
and I wanted to have some time to digest what I would next.
 
Where would we get together?
 
What would I tell him about Paul?
 
Most importantly, what would I tell
Ethan?
 

My mind was reeling when I got inside the truck.
 
I backed out of the driveway and watched as
Jake entered the corral.
 
He threw a
halter over one of the horse’s heads and then led her to the barn.
 
The sky brightened as the last cluster of
clouds dissolved, and a flock of birds took residence in one of Jake’s oak
trees.
 
The truck rumbled past the sheep
and eventually onto the main road.
 
I
looked in my rearview mirror, and for the first time in almost two years, I
felt a smile form across my face.