The Widows of Braxton County (12 page)

Chapter 19

Fall 2012, Braxton County, Iowa

T
he stones cast long shadows over the newly mown grass by the time Rose made it to the cemetery. As she made her way, she noticed the headstones bearing the names of people she’d known over the years—once the last date was blank, now chiseled in. Her neighbors from down the road; they’d been a devoted couple who died within months of one another. The headstone of the young man who’d shown such promise in school, but whose life had ended in a car accident thirty years ago. He’d rested alone for so long, but his parents had finally joined him last year.

She walked past the older stones and tried not to notice the number of markers that featured angels and lambs. Too many children back then died before they had a chance to live, and it always saddened her thinking of them. Rose kept moving until she’d reached a plot in the back of the cemetery, sheltered by pine trees.

She paused before the stone bearing the names of Dr. William Krause and his wife of sixty-four years, Clara. They had been a wonderful couple, and she had fond memories of the good doctor. He’d been close to her great-grandpa Gus Winter, and had visited him often when Great-Grandpa lived with her grandmother, Essie. When she was a child, the two men had allowed her to play cards with them. She smiled. Thanks to them, she still played a mean game of pinochle. After Great-Grandpa’s passing, William’s visits continued, and her whole family felt the loss when William died.

Rose patted the top of the stone, then moved to an unpretentious stone to the left of Dr. William and Clara’s. Carved in gray granite, the stone bore only the name—
HANNAH KRAUSE
, and an epitaph. Using the stone for balance, Rose slowly lowered herself to her knees. After brushing away the grass clippings from the base of the stone, she placed a small pot of mums in its center. The dark bronze flowers looked nice against the gray granite.

“I think you’d like her, Hannah, even though she is married to Joseph’s kin,” Rose murmured, moving the pot a couple of inches to the left. “Trudy wants her gone, but if she’d quit her meddling, I think that girl could break the cycle.” She gave a long sigh. “I’d appreciate it if you kept an eye on her.”

As Rose walked away from the grave, she felt a soft whisper brush against her face and she smiled.

Chapter 20

Fall 2012, the Krause family farm

W
hen Kate pulled in the driveway, Trudy was waiting for her on the porch.

“Where have you been?” she called down to Kate as she exited the car.

Flashes of her conversation zipped through Kate’s mind and her temper spiked. “None of your business,” she answered, moving around her.

Trudy grabbed her arm and Kate yanked back. “Don’t touch me,” Kate warned.

The screen door opened and Joe stepped out between the two women. “Where have you been?”

Trudy shot Kate a smirk. “You may not have to answer me, but you do your husband.” She spun and slammed back into the house.

“You’ve been off work for hours. Where did you go?”

She couldn’t tell him she’d been at Rose’s. “Please, Joe, not now. I’m tired,” she said, trying to put off his questioning.

“Maybe if you’d come straight home, you wouldn’t be so tired.”

There was no getting around it. “I did. I was working late,” she lied.

“That’s not true,” he said, his face flushing. “When you didn’t come home, I drove into town to check on you. Your Jeep was gone and the office was closed.”

“It’s not a big deal,” she said in a tired voice. “I went for a drive.”

“With Will,” he spit out.

Great, she thought, rubbing her eyes with her fingertips. It didn’t take the rumors long to circulate.

“No, I wasn’t with Will Krause,” she replied. “Can’t we talk about this later?”

“No, we’ll talk about it now.” He towered over her. “How long have you been sneaking around with Will?”

“I’m not,” she cried.

“You were in Flint Rapids with him.”

“To get a car,” she exclaimed, pointing to her Jeep. “You weren’t any help. Will introduced me to his friend who fixes up old cars and sells them. That’s all.”

His eyes became slits as he glanced over at the Jeep. “You bought that from a friend of his? Get rid of it,” he said, not waiting for her answer.

“How am I supposed to get to work?”

“You won’t. You’re going to call Doc Adams and give him your two-week notice.”

“No,” Kate replied in a hushed voice.

He came forward. “What did you say?”

“I said ‘no.’ ” She shoved her hands on her hips. “I like my job. I like having my own money.”

“And
I
said you’re quitting. I’m not having my wife catting around and stirring up gossip.”

“Listen, Will is a friend, nothing more. And,” she said with a jerk of her head toward the house, “if anyone’s stirring up gossip, you have your mother to thank. Her and her friends have had a grand time trashing me.”

A vein began to throb on Joe’s forehead. “That’s not true.”

“Oh yes, it is,” she declared, “and I’m sick of it. You make a choice. Either you get your mother out of this house, or I’m gone.” Kate got in his face. “And don’t bother lying about the apartments. One has been vacant for months.” She stepped back and turned, reaching for the screen door, but her hand never made contact. Joe grabbed her shoulders and spun her around.

“You are not leaving me,” he said, giving her a shake. “Who do you think you are?” He gave her another shake. “You don’t tell me what to do. My mother can stay here as long as she wants.”

From the back of the house, she heard the music box begin to play.

“I’m your wife,” Kate yelled. “I’m not living in the same house with her.”

He shook her harder, jarring her head back and forth. “You will if I say so.”

Kate stood, stunned, the discordant notes of “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” seemed to surround her. She struggled, but she couldn’t loosen his grip on her shoulders. And the harder she tried, the more forcefully his fingers dug into her shoulders. She winced in pain.

“Joe,” she gasped.

He stopped, then released her. Holding his hands in front of him, he stared at them as if they were foreign objects.

The music suddenly stopped, and Kate pressed her fist to her mouth and fled. Once in the bedroom, she slammed the door and locked it. Breathing hard, she threw her back against the door and wrapped her arms around her waist.

When would she learn? Shame ran through her. She should’ve never given him an ultimatum. Bucking away from the door, her eyes widened. No. He’d lied about Trudy living with them from the beginning and she’d put up with it. Looked the other way. Tried to avoid touchy subjects with him in order to keep the peace. She’d worked hard to please him and received blessed little in return.

Enough. She’d told Rose that everyone made a choice and it was time to make hers.

She started toward the closet, then stopped when her grandmother’s voice echoed in her head.
You’ll screw it up. You can’t do anything right.

“Shut up,” she muttered to herself and returned to the door. After unlocking it, she opened it and ran down the hall to the spare room. She grabbed her suitcase from the corner and returned to the bedroom to begin emptying the closet.

When she’d finished that task, she started on the dresser, tossing things into the suitcase in no particular order. Suddenly she stopped.

Where did she think she was going? Not back to her grandmother’s. She’d rather live in a ditch. She could ask Doris to take her in, but with three adolescent boys, Doris had enough to do. A motel? She had a little money and would be able to afford a few nights, but the money wouldn’t last long. A sob escaped as her vision blurred with tears. She placed both hands on top of the dresser, leaning against it. Hot blood flooded her face and she bowed her head, letting the tears plop on its surface.

What was she going to do?

A brush of air cooled her cheeks and she raised her head. Staring in the mirror, she noticed a shadow by the door, but when she pivoted, the shadow had disappeared.

Kate inhaled slowly. She didn’t know if it had been Joe or Trudy spying on her, but she was relieved they’d left. The thought of being watched spurred her on. With her arms full of her things, she crossed to the bed and dumped them in the suitcase. Ten minutes later, she hauled the suitcase out of the room and down the stairs.

Joe waited at the bottom.

“Kate—wait—let’s talk,” he pleaded.

She skirted around him and headed for the front door.

“I suppose you’re going to Will’s?” he asked in a tight voice.

She shot him a withering glance over her shoulder and kept walking.

Kate sat at the crossroads trying to figure out which way to turn. Right, left, or straight ahead? Turning around and going back was not an option. Thoughts of Rose popped into her head unexpectedly, and as if with a will of their own, her hands turned the Jeep to the left.

As she approached Rose’s house, she saw the porch light shining like a beacon in the distance. And when she pulled in the drive, Rose was standing on the porch, waiting, as if she’d expected her. After Kate rolled to a stop, she came to the Jeep and opened Kate’s door.

“You look done in, child,” she said, drawing Kate out. Placing an arm around her shoulders, she began to guide her to the house. “I wondered if you wouldn’t be back.”

Kate, too emotionally exhausted to respond, looked at her, perplexed.

“Have you eaten?” she asked, guiding her into the house.

“No, but I’m not hungry.”

“You need to eat. I’ll make you a sandwich.”

Once in the kitchen, Rose steered her toward the chair, then busied herself making a ham sandwich while Kate gave her the short version of her fight with Joe. Rose’s face flooded with anger when Kate related the part about Joe shaking her.

“Do you need to see Doc?”

“No, the muscles in the back of my neck are stiff, but I don’t have a headache. I’ll be okay.”

After placing the food and a cup of hot tea in front of Kate, Rose took her own seat and waited silently as Kate tried to choke down the sandwich. Finally, Kate pushed her plate away.

“I’m sorry. I can’t finish it.”

“That’s okay. Drink your tea. I’ll make you a big breakfast in the morning.”

Aghast, Kate stared at her. “I can’t stay here.”

“Why not? I’ve four big bedrooms upstairs.”

“It would be an imposition.”

“Nonsense. I told you if you needed anything—”

“Bet you didn’t expect it to be this soon,” Kate broke in, blinking hard to keep the tears at bay.

“Do you want to know the truth?” Rose hooked her arm over the back of her chair. “I knew trouble was coming. I heard about you and Will.”

Kate covered her face with her hands. “Nothing—”

Rose reached over and drew her hands away. “I know it’s nothing more than a lot of talk. Will’s not going to go chasing after another man’s wife, and from what I’ve heard, you’re not the type to
let
yourself be chased.” Leaning back, she grimaced. “I knew it wouldn’t be long until Trudy got wind of the rumor and went running to Joe with it. And I’m sure she added her own spin.” She tugged on her bottom lip. “You know you didn’t deserve the way he treated you, don’t you.”

“I guess.”

Rose smacked the table, startling Kate. “There’s no guessing about it, and I hope to hell you’re not planning on going back.”

“I’m not,” she answered with a brittle smile. “I’m tired of the lying, the heartfelt apologies that only last until the next time I make him angry, and Trudy.”

“Are you moving back to your home?”

“I don’t have a home—just my grandmother’s.”

“The stingy one?” Rose asked with a faint smile.

“Yeah. I lived on her charity for eighteen years.”

“And she never let you forget it.”

“No, she didn’t and I’m not living with her again. She’s almost as bad as Trudy, only sneakier.”

Rose stood and picked up the plate. After carrying it to the counter, she placed it in the sink, then turned to Kate. “Stay here tonight. You can decide what you want to do tomorrow.”

“That’s very generous of you,” Kate said in an astonished voice. “You’ve only met me twice.”

Rose chuckled. “I’m a very good judge of character. Essie—”

“Essie?” Kate interrupted.

“My grandmother, Esther Winter Lloyd, but everyone called her Essie. She always said that I had eyes and ears too big for a child.” She lifted a shoulder. “Great-Grandpa Winter had said the same about her, so I took it as a compliment.”

“So it’s a family trait?”

“One of them, I guess.”

“There are others?”

“I’d like to think so, but that’s a long story. It’s off to bed with you.”

Rose helped Kate to her feet and gave her a quick hug. “I know you feel pretty bleak right now, but it’ll get better. I promise.”