Page 49 of A Hero Comes Home

“The eye and leg injuries could have happened when he landed or crashed or in any number of circumstances. But the nails . . .”

“I know.”

“Do you want me to talk with him?”

“Oh, my goodness, no!” She suspected that Jake had been told of her dating Kevin. What would he think—how would he react if Kevin approached him? “He has all the help he needs, I think. Tons of appointments coming up, doctors, hospitals, therapists, rehab, and he’s on the phone every day with someone at the Pentagon.”

“The Pentagon?” Kevin arched his brows at her. “Seriously? The Pentagon?”

“Yeah, a Major Durand.”

“Do you want me to look him up for you?”

She thought about his offer and was tempted, but then shook her head. No, Jake would not appreciate her going behind his back.

Kevin had to be wondering why she didn’t just ask Jake herself. Hah! He clammed up at the least questions about his experiences of the last few years. Somehow, it seemed traitorous of her to mention this to someone who was a stranger to Jake. And it was embarrassing to her, as well.

“Anyway, how’s the treasure hunt going?” she asked, going for a change of subject.

“Slow. We’re just setting up the new site. Farther out in the ocean than the last one. About seventy-five miles.”

“Is it still the Three Saints that you’re looking for?”

“Yep.”

There was a reason why the Atlantic Ocean off the Outer Banks was known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic. Because of the treacherous shoals and frequents storms, some hurricane strength, thousands of ships had gone down out there. Among them were the Three Saints, a Portuguese convoy that sunk in the 1850s. Their cargo was worth millions. The Three Saints had been the initial target of the salvaging company Kevin worked for. The treasure they found belonged to an entirely different shipwreck, which left the Three Saints still undiscovered.

Just then she heard the swish of the door to the shop and there stood Jake. Despite the cane he held in his one hand, he looked almost like his old self, wearing running shorts and a white T-shirt. He was still too thin, but she could swear he’d already regained some of his old weight. He even had some color from being outdoors with the boys so much. The happy expression on his face, something that had been absent since his return, faded suddenly to questioning, then grim.

It was obvious what he was seeing and what he was thinking.

“Jake,” she called out, but he’d already turned and was going back through the shop.

She followed after him, but Nancy Dreyer, one of the planners for the Lollypalooza festivities, wanted to talk with her about an order involving a cake in the shape of a treasure chest with gold coin cookies. By the time Sally was able to get away, Jake was gone.

“Oh, shit!” Kevin said, joining her on the sidewalk outside the shop. “This is my fault. I shouldn’t have come by here. Let me go catch up with him and straighten him out about what he saw—or thought he saw.”

“No, it’s not your fault. Don’t worry. I’ll clear it up myself. No biggie.”

But was it?

After Kevin left, she finished up her work at the shop and told José that she would be in that evening to prepare all the bread doughs for tomorrow morning, thus relieving him to spend time with his visiting daughter, who lived in Nags Head with his divorced wife and her new husband.

When she got home, she was surprised to see that Jake’s truck was missing. Still, as she went inside, she called out an idiotically hopeful “Honey, I’m home.” He was hopeful that, after calming down, he wasn’t as upset by what he’d seen with her and Kevin as she expected. But a quick look around showed that he hadn’t returned after his trip to town. His laptop, various notebooks, and a calendar were strewn about the kitchen table where he must have been working this morning.

She called Jake’s cell number, but it went directly to voice mail. It was three o’clock, and the kids didn’t need to be picked up in the school parking lot until five; so, she decided to make a special dinner, one Jake used to love in the old days. He’d ordered it every time they went out to eat in a restaurant. Back then, Sally hadn’t been much of a cook. It was linguine with white clam sauce and a crusty baguette she’d brought home from the bakery for dipping in the rich, garlicky juice. Joe had given her a bag of fresh clams last night.

While she prepared the meal, stopping every few minutes to make notes on a tablet sitting on the counter for Lollypalooza monster cookie ideas, she kept calling Jake’s cell. To no avail.

Finally, around four, she got a text from him. I’ll pick up the boys.

Immediately, she texted back, Where are you? I’ve been worried.

She got no return text. Instead, Recipient Unavailable.

Was Jake out of the area, so soon after texting her?

Or had he blocked her?