The Wife He Thought He Buried

y came

fore pushing open the gate. Nothing about the morning looked different from the Saturdays before it. The same wide compound stretched before her, the same neatly tri

her things down w

hl

quickly. "Goo

ed. "You c

clock on the wall. "I

at the cleaning bag in Chlo

re lowering it onto

you

s,

did yo

d and

ws rose. "That

l shrug, and Derb

with

he dining room. Derby pul

it

here to

kno

ng until Derby pointe

, Ch

ed hersel

ned with a plate of food and a glass of juic

everything," Derby said. "

k you

being treated differently. Derby had always been kind to her, but this was more than kindness. She looked down at

allway, Gr

dn't know he was coming. He stood partially hidden behind the wal

was ho

ether Chloe's quiet manner was genuine or simply another way of making people lower their guard. He ha

"After you eat, don't sta

ooked u

handle

ut

argu

used around the fo

ch the heavy b

carry

by smiled. "That does

omething, but the words never came. She si

eyes na

the way she had looked at him when he told her she had a good eye. He remembered seeing her again at his mother's

hloe admiring it. Now she was sitting at his mother's table, accepting

y before Derby

ating and carried the d

em," Derb

ed. "I can

d leav

hen at Derby, and reluctantly

and lightly on her shoulder. "Co

the sitting room. Grey

small jewelry box. She opened it on the table,

ard slightly. "Th

ck

ely straighten

hy

're y

I'm not asking y

oe's fingers curled tog

u c

ed her gaze

elet and held it toward her. "T

acelet, then at Derby.

now

t, Chloe instinctively pulled i

ld out her hand. Derby fastened

ee

ingers moved carefully over th

aw the smile that briefly touched Ch

shouldn'

still wearing it

the bracelet. "I don

d on her. The word

least, that was what

. Now she had accepted her jewelry. Each time she hesitated, each

tion only made it l

rned

rning followed muc

ndows, cleaned the tables, and carefully returned everything to its place. Whenever she passed Derby, Derby found another reason to stop her.

time, Derby waved her objections away.

she didn't understand why someone was being generous to

that. He saw on

m the doorway of his mother's sitting room. He said nothing. H

loe carried a baske