The Gentleman from Indiana

The jeep that brought Sonja to the house was still there. As Maya and I sat on the front porch, the kids started gathering up stuff from the house. Sonja finally approached.

"I really want to thank you guys for all your help. I could not have done this without your help?" She was being overly gracious.

Maya wasted no time returning the thanks. "Mrs. Heard, Sarai and I can never thank you enough for all of your help. You have no need to thank me. We will be in your debt forever."

I just sat there like a dunce. All of this was going right over my head. There was that name again; Sarai. Who the hell was Sarai and what did she have to do with any of this?

"Did you enjoy yourself, Robert?" She caught me by surprise. I recovered my composure and simply said "Yes, I guess so."

"You're not sure?"

"Sonja, I never figured out why I was here and I never figured out what I was supposed to do. Since you are here, maybe I can get an explanation?"

About that time the three kids came bounding out of the house, and tossed their bags into the jeep.

"Maya, we are going over to the big island for about a week. I am going to leave you here with Robert to rest up. When we get back, we can discuss what is going to happen next, and I will give Robert an explanation." Sonja turned and got into the jeep with the kids. They all waved and a moment later they were gone.

I looked over at Maya and she had a kittenish little smile on her face. I was confused and she was grinning.

"Do you want to go in and mess around?" I couldn't believe it, but I heard it.

"Did you get your new pills?"

"No silly. I am pregnant. No sense bothering with the pills now."

We spent most of the day in bed. I sure was glad that I decided to go on this trip.

The evening meal was quiet without the kids. In fact, it was quiet between the two of us. After a whole afternoon of intimacy, we still seemed distant. There were a lot of unanswered questions. I was here with a woman, that I wanted to stay with, and have a baby with, and I knew very little about her. It was hard to explain.

"Maya. Who is Sarai?"

"My sister." She answered the question, but by not explaining further, she just complicated it.

"How does she fit into this whole picture? Besides being your sister, what was her involvement with the family?"

Maya got up from the table and got me a bottle of my precious beer. "Sarai and I both worked for Mrs. Heard. She cooked and I took care of the children and housekeeping."

"Where is she now?"

Maya went and got a beer for herself. "Robert. I am not trying to be difficult. I want to tell you everything, but it is a little complicated." I had upset her. That was not my intent. Now I felt bad, but I was also hurt that she was keeping things from me.

She used a glass to drink her beer. "Robert. What is the status of your marriage? What I am really trying to find out is, are you still going to be married when all of this is over?"

"I thought that she was going to file for a divorce when she left, but she didn't, and I don't know why. I also have no idea what the status is right now. If she doesn't file soon, I will. It's hard to do anything or know anything from here."

The beer tasted good. It could have been a little colder, but it was all right.

"Why is it that you speak perfect English with no accent if you are from Guatemala?"

"I have been in the States since I was three years old. Sarai and I learned English from Sesame Street."

We had a good give and take going. I was hoping to keep it up, but I have a knack for usually saying the wrong thing.

"Why didn't you kill Mister Heard, Robert?"

"Can I have another beer?" I handed her the empty. "Maya, I felt more hurt and humiliated than vengeful. I was mad, but not mad enough to kill."

She gave me the new bottle. "This is the last one. Enjoy it."

"Robert. Are you glad that I am going to have ababy, or are you upset?"

"I am very glad about the baby, but I am concerned about what is going to happen between us."

"That's a good answer."

There was a short lull. I am sure that she had more questions. I know that I did. It was time to put my foot in my mouth.

"Maya. What did Sarai do and why isn't she with us?"

Before I knew it, I was alone in the kitchen. Maya stormed out of the room and out of the house. I finished cleaning up from supper and went out onto the front porch. She was sitting on the top step looking out at the sunset. It was beautiful, but there were tears in her eyes. I sat beside her and said nothing.

It was at least ten minutes till the last rays of daylight disappeared below the horizon. It was a quiet ten minutes. She looked over at me and took my hand.

"Robert. Mrs. Heard didn't kill her husband, Sarai did. He was beating on the Misses and wouldn't stop. Sarai grabbed the knife and plunged it into his chest. Mrs. Heard told the police that it was her fault, so that Sarai would have time to get away. I believe that she is back in Guatemala, but I am not sure. Mrs. Heard never said that she actually killed him, just that it was her fault. That is why the police still had to prove it."

I hugged Maya close to me and kissed her on the side of her head. It wasn't a passionate kiss, just something to console her. We stayed on the porch for a few more minutes without saying anything and then went to bed. There was no sex that night.

We tried to make the next day as normal as possible, but without the kids, it didn't work. I got an e-mail from Malik. All it said was 'check the drudge report.'

I wasn't sure what I was looking for, but found it eventually.

Assistant Secretary of Agriculture, William Fromuth, was found shot to death this morning in Warrenton, Virginia. Police found his body in a hot tub along with that of Natalie Sorensen, a public relations analyst for an Alexandria consulting firm. Both victims had been shot several times at close range. The shooting was reported by Mildred Fromuth, the victim's wife, who was waiting for the police when they arrived. Mrs. Fromuth was taken into custody awaiting charges. Natalie Sorensen had also been connected with Malcolm Heard, who was killed earlier this year.

I printed out the news article and gave it to Maya to read, but did not stay to see her reaction. I guess Natalie had a thing for politicians. I just wished that she had been a little bit more discrete.

I called my parents. They told me that Natalie's folks were already on the way to get her body and bring it home. I felt sorry for them. They were good people and didn't deserve to see their daughter end up this way. I had loved Natalie at one time, and couldn't help but feel some sorrow at her demise.

Sonja was already aware of Natalie's demise when they returned to Niihau. She found the time to sit down and talk with me. It took her an hour to explain the circumstances surrounding Malcolm's death, but I still didn't find out why she sent me here. I think I asked her the question directly twice and she side-stepped it each time. I realized that she was not going to give me an answer, so I stopped trying.

They were all going back to the States. Bryan would start at MIT and Glenna got early admission to the University of Hawaii. She had convinced her mother that it was important for her to be someplace where she could surf. Chaz was the big problem for Sonja. He didn't want to leave Niihau. He didn't want to leave the house. He was only twelve, so he didn't have a choice, but his mother was willing to make a compromise. There was one hitch.

Maya and I had to agree to remain on Niihau until Chaz was ready to start college. Chaz would spend the summers and any extended vacation time with us, but had to stay with his mother the rest of the year. I didn't know what kind of salary Maya was getting, but mine was going to be adjusted from two thousand a week to a thousand dollars a month. It was a hell of a cut, but I was still going to get paid and have a free place to live for doing nothing. I was also going to get to do it with my own private little sex toy. Things were even better because the money that I had hidden in the Caymans was now available.

Sonja made supper for everyone that night while Maya and I walked down to the beach. We needed a quiet place to talk. It was a serious decision and would require great consideration. It took us at least five minutes to decide.

A week later, we were alone. We missed the kids, but they promised to keep in touch. Teddy stopped by one time. He looked a little dejected until I told him that Glenna would be starting at the University of Hawaii the next month. We didn't see him again, but he left happy.

When I sold my business, there was no a 'non-compete' clause in the contract. As long as I did not contact any of my former clients, I could continue doing business, as I had before. Bryan left me a nice little computer set-up and my new business was up and running in a week.

A month later, Malik called to let me know that Natalie had an insurance policy for five hundred thousand dollars and that I was the sole beneficiary.

Maya wants three more kids.