a deadly storm, an unsolved disappearance, and a small town brimming with secrecy;
an outcast girl, a boy who only knows how to hide, and the world against them;
what could go wrong?
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As a teenager, when Boo found herself in times of hardship, Martha would remind her of the importance of a brave facade. "Never show what you're feeling," she chided. "People will take any emotion they see and interpret it as weakness. Weakness will run you into the ground in a place like this."
Again, that was one of those tidbits Boo never quite grasped. Memories of Martha often ignited a chain reaction in her brain; floodgates would open and the past would push into her vision, hazy like a dream. Barely a moment would pass before the face of her beloved father, Russell, would fade in like the morning light.
Despite being gone for many years, he always managed to resurface in her mind's eye at the right moments, usually when she needed sound advice. Russell's wisdom was always there in the back of her mind, ready to make sense of the world around her.
He'd taught her something quite opposite to Martha: "Emotion is what makes us human; sets us apart from the rest of the world. Whatever feelings you feel at any moment are meant to be there, so don't fight them, darling. Use them; follow them; trust them. Your capacity to feel is your greatest strength."
For many years, Boo had grown up in a shell of uncertainty and learned from a young age not to question her instincts. They were the one thing in this world she could count on; she could thank Russell for that. In those moments of sorrow, which she was all too familiar with nowadays, she'd rely on his advice more than ever.
Beneath the sad still remains the lingering doubt she's been struggling to quell for days. What if it wasn't the hurricane that killed Martha? The conversation she had with Harry on the cliff only made that terrible thought more powerful. At night her dreams were plagued with images of shattering windows and a faceless woman screaming in the distance.
The doubts would too summon her father's face into her mind, if only for the briefest of moments. Boo could practically hear him telling her what to do.
"Truth is a great pursuit, but there is always more than one truth. Doing the right thing is an admirable intention, but there are many right things to do. Your truths are not always those of another, Melita. Remember that."
Hearing his voice in her memory made it easier to keep his face from the changes of time-deep brown eyes that matched her own, weathered cheeks, a smile that was always ready to welcome to her. No matter how her day was going or how he was feeling, Russell was always ready to greet his daughter with a grin and a hug. "I've got you now," he used to say. "You're safe now."
That sense of security had long flown from her life, following his untimely death. Martha did her best to restore some normalcy to Boo, a stark contrast to the turbulence caused by having Lori as her temporary caregiver. It wasn't the same as having her father around, but at least Boo knew she could count on Martha for most things.
