The Road to Nowhere

Revelations of the Past

     Mitch pulled into the driveway of his home reluctantly. He fought hard not to check in on his new neighbor. Knowing she was grieving and dealing with some heavy stuff did not help matters much. As he slid out of his Jimmy, he had to stuff his concerns to the side as his eleven-year-old daughter, Hayleigh, greeted him.

    The skinny, little brown-haired girl ran up to him with a bright smile and infectious giggle shouting "DADDY!!!" as she launched herself up to him.

    "Hey there, Cutie. How was your day?" he said as he caught her and lifted her to hug her tightly.

    "It was great. Gramma and me went to the market and then we came back to finish the chores before l finished my assignments for the online school," she said with a smile. "Then we went out for lunch, and we saw you in town with a pretty lady in your truck. Did she do something wrong?" she rambled, as her brow furrowed her thin eyebrows together. Hayleigh's warm brown eyes engaged with his and waited for an answer.

   "Oh no, Hayle's, she had a couple of flat tires, and I was helping her get to her new home in time," he replied with a smile. "She lives right across the road from us," he stated as he pointed over to Jesalyn's house from their vantage point was bare to the top of the roof.

     While her son explained his day to her granddaughter, Ruby Walker had come out to greet her son. She noticed a certain pleasantness in his voice she had not heard in years. She swiped a strand of her flame-colored hair away from her face as she looked across the road. "That's Harlan's old place. Who is the girl?"

"His daughter, Jesalyn," he said as he looked at his mother.

    Ruby had known Harlan Masters for years. They grew up together, had graduation together, got into tons of mischief together, and even found love for a fleeting moment with each other. Even back then, Harlan Masters was a man hard not to love, but he was harder to hold on to. Ruby Walker knew this better than anyone because she tried. His place was out in the world as he defended the country and fought the good fight. Her place was in Nowhere to tend to her ailing mother. 

    In the end, it was bittersweet to watch the boy go, but the man that came back was inspiring. She, of course, had married by then and so had he, but what grew from a lifetime of knowing him came a solid, enduring friendship. Ruby recalled watching his boy, Kristopher, frequently throughout the years. Ruby had met Madeline when he brought her here for their honeymoon, even though she thought it an odd thing to do. She even celebrated Jesalyn's birth by crocheting a baby blanket for the child. "She's all grown up," she stated with a reverent tone, which was followed by a deep pit in her stomach. "Harlan has passed, hasn't he?" she asked.

    Mitch looked at his mother for a moment, then set Hayleigh down. "Hey, Kiddo, go get washed up for dinner for me, please." he requested.

    "Sure Daddy!" the little girl replied, then pranced off into the house.

    He took his mother in his arms and hugged her. He had known for a long time that there was something between the two of them. It was more than friendship, but never to be more than that. Harlan had shown up after his father had died from cancer. Doing things for his mother without question or reward. It was just their way. "Yeah, Mom, he died with Kris on a mission," he answered softly.

    She was going to cry but when her son said Harlan died with his son, her thoughts immediately went to Jesalyn and how much pain she must be going through. Jesalyn was barely a year old when they all left, so Ruby did not know her at all. Harlan had come back several times over the years, the last being three years ago. Ruby had seen pictures of the children throughout that time and knew he was proud of them." She can't be okay after losing both of them," she stated as she pulled back from Mitch.