On Divit Island...Love Over Forgiveness

Chapter Thirteen

      The two-and-a-half-hour ferry ride the next morning seemed to drag on. Cans anticipation to get home had reached its peak. 

      The tiny island of Antikythera was getting near, but they still had a while before they would reach their own island home. The kids were always excited to see the island come into view on their trips home from Chania. " Look daddy, there is our island." Tana said as she peered through bars of the railing on the ferry boat. Can smiled, " Well that's not our island, but we have to go there to get to our island." He explained to her almost everytime they made the trip.

      Sanem took a deep breath and closed her eyes, feeling a huge sense of relief to be getting home. Can't reached for her hand, " Hey, you ok? You're not getting sick are you?" He asked, giving her hand a little kiss.

      " No, I'm just glad to be home, well almost home." She replied, snuggling in closer to him. She loved to visit Chania and even their trips to Kythera on the mainland, but getting home to Divit Island was always the best part for her. The thought of the boat ran through her mind, she just hoped that there was nothing more than just the destruction of the leather name plaque. 

      They had quite the load as they made their way from the ferry. Each one of them had to carry a load. The rolling suitcases were left to her and Deniz and Can carried the multiple bags of supplies and groceries. 

      They drudged their way through the small town toward the pier. Can seemed to be holding his breath as they got closer to the pier and their boat. As the boat came into view Can felt that weight being lifted from his shoulders. The boat was intact....

      Ares came out from the little shack that sat near the pier, " Welcome back Divit. See just the padded plaque with the name on it was all that was damaged." He stated, as he helped Can load the bags onto the boat. Sanem looked around the boat, inspecting every inch, surprised that nothing was missing.

      Can patted the elderly gentleman on the back, " Thanks Ares, I'm glad that nothing else was harmed. Are you sure you didn't see anyone messing around here." Can asked, eager to get some answers. Ares shook his head, " No I didn't, but you might ask around. There weren't many tourist on Friday so maybe someone might remember something." He explained.

      They finished loading the bags onto the boat and he helped the children and Sanem aboard. His mind was becoming more at ease and he could feel his body start to relax as he fired up the boat. 

      Can eased the boat away from the pier and headed out into the channel. He waved at Ares and gave him a thumbs up, signaling that the boat was running fine. With everyone settled in their seats he pushed down on the throttle and maneuvered the boat toward home, Divit Island.

      The water was a little choppy, as it could be at times, but he cut through the white capped waves with ease. Their boat was larger than the normal boat. It was more the size of a cabin cruiser. So it was able to withstand the unexpected shift in the weather. 

      The wind, the clouds and the sudden rain were just part of living on this island. Most of the time these happenings were brief and only lasted for a few minutes. By the time Can spotted their island in the distance the wind had already died down and the waves were nothing more than ripples On the sea.

      " There it is dad, there's the island." Deniz yelled out above the noise of the motor and sound of the wind. Can smiled, giving his son a nod. He motioned for his son to join him at the wheel. It seemed to be the routine, when the island came into view, Deniz would take his place behind the wheel with his dad. Deniz was eager to learn the operating of the boat, so Can would let him take over for the last of the boat ride home.

      He was quickly becoming quite the captain. Deniz eased back on the throttle as they drifted into the dock. The boat gently kissed the side of the dock as Can jumped over the side of the boat, grabbing the rope and tying it securely to the post at the stern of the boat, the doing the same at the bow.

      He smiled, giving Deniz a high five, " Well done son. It won't be long before I can lean back and relax on the way home." He said praising his son for a job well done. Sanem loved the relationship that the two most important men in her life had. Deniz idolized his father in every way, wanting to be just like him.

        With the last of the bags in the house and the boat taken care of, Sanem took time to sit and relax. She flipped the button on the kettle to heat the water. All she wanted was a nice cup of tea and to put her feet up. 

     " Can would you like a cup of tea, I'm brewing some right now." She called out to Can in the bedroom. " Sounds great babe. I'll be right there." He answered as he stared at her scarf that laid crumpled on the floor next to his side of the bed. He knew for a fact that the scarf had been tied to the lamp on his side table. That's where it always was, he kept it there at all times. So how did it get on the floor? His mind was grasping at all possibilities, but none seemed to make sense.

     He quickly picked it up from the floor and returned it back to its place on the lamp. Sanem's voice brought him from his thoughts, " Tea is ready my love." She said, slipping her arms around his body from behind. He stiffened slightly, " Sorry hon, I didn't hear you come in." He answered.

      Sanem moved around to the front looking him in the face, " What's wrong, do you not feel well. You are a little pale." She said with concern. " What were you doing with the scarf? " She asked.  He shook his head, " Nothing, I guess it had came untied and it was on the floor so I was just putting it back where it belonged." He replied, smoothing down her hair and kissing her on the forehead.

     " Let's go have that tea." Can said, giving her a long hug. She knew there was more to his actions but she also knew this wasn't the time to ask about it. Her husband was made up of many layers, so she would wait until he was ready to talk. 

      The tea had hit the spot. Her tea was the best he had ever tasted, even from the beginning, when they first met, it was the best. 

       The tea had relaxed him some but he really needed to take a swim before dark. The damage to the boat, the scarf on the floor and the unsettling feeling that something had been wrong all weekend had taken a toll on him.

      " My love, I think I will take a swim before dinner. Do you mind?" He asked, pulling her over against him. She knew he was on edge about something but he wasn't ready to talk about it yet. " Not at all, but please be careful, don't go out to far. And dinner will be ready soon, so don't stay out too long." She answered, kissing his chest.

      He pulled his t-shirt off over his head and reached for the sliding glass door to open it. But it was partially open already. The door was ajar, an opening of about 2 inches...." Sanem have you been out the back door?" Can said, trying to keep the panic from his voice.

      " No, I haven't, why... is it open." She asked.

Can turned to her, " Did you lock the door before we left?" He asked.. She thought for a second...

" No, I thought you did." She answered....But the look on his face told her that he hadn't.....