Second To Cry

‘Oh yeah, you mentioned you were going to try going there.’

‘But it was a complete joke,’ Isla said, shaking her head before taking a sip of beer.

‘Joke,’ Meegan echoed without any comprehension.

‘How so?’

‘Basically, everyone there still treats me as a pariah. After everything you’ve done for this God-awful town and still they cross the street to avoid me. It’s ridiculous.’

‘They just need time.’

‘Aid, I’ve given them time. And you’ve given them a crooked priest but still they want more! So I took Meegs to the stupid toddler group and everyone just ignored me. If she went over to play with their kids they picked their kids up and moved them. I swear to God, I almost slapped one of the stupid bitches!’

‘Language,’ Aiden berated his wife, but only lightly as he could see that she was pretty fired up about the situation.

‘I’m just sick of feeling like an outsider!’ Isla lamented, the text of the note still burning in her mind. She drank some more beer to calm herself.

‘I’m sorry it’s being so tough on you.’ And Aiden was sorry. The horrid feeling of guilt crept up his spine and pinched at the back of his neck. It was his fault they were here, his fault that Isla was so miserable.

‘Daddy, look!’ Meegan called for her father and then began to proudly blow bubbles. Aiden looked at her fondly, and then up at Isla who was now smiling at her daughter.

‘I guess she’s why I do it,’ Isla admitted. ‘It’s just so hard sometimes.’

‘I know.’ Aiden himself was still treated like an outcast who could potentially be harbouring the plague and he knew it wasn’t a nice feeling. For a town which outwardly seemed so loving and community based, the people could be very standoffish.

‘Anyway, how was your day?’ Isla changed the topic and continued to prepare dinner. She handed Meegan a bowl of baby food which the little girl promptly dunked both hands into.

‘Meegan!’

‘Don’t worry, I’ve got it,’ Aiden offered, already wetting a flannel to clean Meegan up. ‘My day was good,’ he spoke as he mopped the contents of the bowel off Meegan’s little hands. ‘I started working on my next case.’

‘Oh?’

‘You’ll never guess who it’s for.’

‘Who?’ Isla asked, intrigued.

‘Buck Fern’s brother.’

‘You’re joking!’ Aiden’s wife scoffed as she stirred the pasta. ‘Is he as much of an ass as Buck is?’

‘I’ve not met him yet but by all accounts, yes, he is.’

‘Sounds like you’re in for a good time at work then.’

‘Yeah,’ Aiden sighed, picking up his beer now that Meegan was clean and finally eating her dinner rather than trying to wear it.

‘What’s the case?’

‘Paternity suit, I think.’

‘Ooh,’ Isla’s eyes lit up at the prospect of a scandal. ‘Those are always interesting.’

‘I guess.’

‘What’s the wife like? I’m guessing he’s married?’

‘Yeah he is. I’ve not met her yet either. Apparently she was Miss September one year for Playboy.’

This last piece of information got Isla’s full attention. She turned away from dinner to face Aiden, a wooden spoon held within her hands forcefully, like a weapon.

‘She’s a Playmate?’ there was something accusing in her tone and Aiden instantly wished he’d not revealed that particular piece of information to his wife.

‘She was. Years ago.’ Aiden tried to sound dismissive, didn’t want to dwell on the topic for too long. He’d forgotten that during college, Isla had applied to be a Playmate, seeing it as a fun way to make a load of extra cash. She hadn’t been accepted and it had remained a sore point for her ever since.

‘She must look cheap as that’s what they go for there.’ Isla said bitterly, watching Aiden intently, her eyes narrowed.

‘Exactly!’ Aiden agreed. ‘Can we eat yet?’

*

‘You used to hate paternity cases,’ Isla said suddenly as they lay in bed that night, bringing Aiden back from the brink of sleep. It was only just past ten but his body was now conditioned to early nights and early mornings and so it felt much later to him.

‘Huh?’ he asked sleepily.

‘Back in Chicago, you used to hate paternity cases. You said they made you feel uneasy because you worried about the kids involved. Which I thought was noble of you.’ From the tone of Isla’s voice it was clear that she’d been lying in bed thinking, rather than trying to sleep.

‘I did hate them, still do. They’re messy,’ Aiden admitted.

‘How old is the child?’

‘Two.’

‘That sucks.’

‘Can I go back to sleep now?’ Aiden asked, his eyes feeling heavy.

‘I didn’t even know we had an ex-playmate living here,’ Isla mused half to herself, half to her tired husband.

‘Maybe you two could be friends,’ Aiden muttered dreamily.

‘What?’ Isla screeched, instantly outraged.

Sighing, Aiden pulled himself up so that he was sitting and looked at his wife. His body groaned from being pulled from the sweet release of sleep so abruptly.

‘She’s an ex-playmate. I imagine she is glamorous. I know they used to live in the city so you two would have a lot in common, that’s all.’ He planted a kiss on Isla’s forehead to further placate her.

‘She might know decent places locally to get hair and nails done,’ he added, knowing that Isla was constantly aggrieved by the lack of professional beauticians close by. Or at least ones she deemed competent.

‘Hmm,’ Isla mulled on the thought. She had to admit it wasn’t the worst idea she’d ever heard.

‘I need to get to sleep,’ Aiden pleaded.

‘Okay, fine.’

They both lay back down and settled themselves in the darkness. Isla’s mind continued to flutter ideas around her head, preventing her from sleeping, but Aiden immediately dropped off and a lazy smile pulled across his lips.

He was dreaming, as he often did, of Brandy. She was on the beach, by the edge of the sea, playfully dipping her toes into the water. Each time she did, she would squeal girlishly at the cold. Aiden was watching her from afar.

The wind caught her blonde hair and whipped it around her head. She looked messy and carefree and devastatingly beautiful. Turning, she looked over to Aiden, a sweet smile on her face, and she beckoned him to join her in the water.

‘Come on in!’ her voice still held its soft, Southern lilt. She bit her lip playfully as she watched him which set his pulse racing.

Aiden moved to oblige, his eyes taking in the curves of her petite body in the green bikini she was wearing which glistened with an ethereal glow, as though she were a mermaid.

As he walked towards her, he was enticed by her gaze, by the sound of her soft laughter. He didn’t want to just play in the ocean with her. He wanted to kiss her, to hold her, to run his hands down her almost bare body. He wanted…

Aiden woke up suddenly, his breath catching in his throat. As his senses slowly returned, he realized that he was in a full state of arousal and beside him Isla was now fast asleep. He considered waking her and then sighed to himself. He was definitely too tired for that. Shaking off the residues of the dream, Aiden headed for the bathroom, wishing that he had not woken from such a pleasant fantasy.

*

The following morning the sun was shining brightly, basking Avalon in a sumptuous golden glow. It was hard to feel anything other than happy when the weather was so nice and the air so fresh. But Isla was not happy.

‘Another day with just a two year old for company,’ she moaned as Aiden drank his morning coffee.

‘You just need to make some friends around here, that’s all.’

‘I’ve tried and no one here wants to be my friend. No one here gets me.’

‘I’m sorry, hon, I’m sure you’ll meet someone on your wavelength soon enough.’ Aiden wasn’t paying that much attention to his wife as his mind was already at the office, thinking about the working day which lay ahead of him.

‘Aid, I’m lonely.’

Aiden sighed and placed his mug of hot stimulant down and gave his wife a steady, long look. He was as tired as she was lonely of being caught in the same argument. She didn’t like Avalon, he did. She had come because of him, had sacrificed the life she knew. But in his mind it was done now and she needed to at least try and make the best of it. From where he was standing, Isla seemed reluctant to even try, preferring instead to dig in her heels and just lament about how miserable she was.

‘Just give it time,’ he told her sternly, hoping the tone of his voice would encourage her to drop the topic for at least one morning.

‘I’ve given it time!’ she exclaimed angrily, not sensing his annoyance.

‘A couple of months is nothing. It can years to settle somewhere new. Be patient.’

‘Patient! Aid, I’m wasting away here!’ Isla bunched her hands into fists as she spoke and began to pace around the kitchen.

Aiden gestured towards their daughter who was happily eating her breakfast, oblivious to their heated exchange.

‘She is the sole reason we are here,’ he said. ‘Her wellbeing matters more than our own. That’s what happens when you become a parent. So next time you feel lonely, or isolated, or frustrated because you can’t get your nails done how you like them, think of our little girl and how much she is benefitting from being around you, from living somewhere without copious amounts of air pollution.’

‘Are you calling me a bad mother?’ Isla’s hands instantly moved to her hips as she delivered the accusation, glaring at her husband.

‘Jeez, no,’ Aiden sighed, regretting having tried to even make the point about Meegan’s welfare.

‘Because it sounds like you’re calling me a bad mother!’ Isla declared again, becoming confrontational.

‘Isla, no. You’re not a bad mother; I’m just suggesting you need to get some perspective on the situation.’

He rose up and went over to his wife and, placing his hands on her shoulders, bent down and softly kissed her cheek. Her body was stiff beneath his touch but loosened slightly when he kissed her.

He needed the argument to be over, for Isla to be in a decent mood when he left so that he wouldn’t come home to further animosity.

‘Meegan loves it here and you will too,’ he whispered soothingly and Isla managed to smile slightly.

‘So you don’t think I’m a bad mother?’

‘Of course not. You can just be a little self-involved,’ he added the last part lightly, as a tease, so she wouldn’t get wound up again.

‘Whatever, get out of here. Go earn the money to put bread on this table!’ Isla’s bad mood had passed and she was now appearing almost cheerful. She always looked so much prettier when she smiled. Aiden wished her temperament would allow her to do it more often.

‘See you later! Bye, princess.’ He kissed both his wife and daughter on their foreheads before stepping out the door and into the sunshine to commence a new working day.

*

Aiden drove through Avalon with his windows down and his radio on. The station he was tuned in to was playing a country song about loving someone who was with someone else. Though the lyrics were pained, the melody was upbeat and Aiden happily tapped along on his steering wheel.

He was in a good, possibly great, mood until he saw the flash of blue lights in his rear-view mirror, which was shortly after joined by the scream of a police siren which drowned out the radio completely.

Checking his mirrors, Aiden signalled and pulled over, unsure what exactly he had done to deserve being stopped. His music wasn’t loud, he had been well within the speed limit, there hadn’t been a stop sign he had overlooked.

He was still pondering on why he had been pulled over when he saw a familiar figure emerge from the police squad car which had parked up a few feet behind him. Buck Fern stepped out into the sunshine. A large Stetson shielded his eyes from the sun but he still squinted as he strode over towards Aiden.

Buck took his time walking over, taking arrogant, deliberate steps, as though he were taking some special joy in forcing Aiden to take time out of his day for him. Eventually he reached Aiden’s car and leant down to look in through the open window.

‘Morning, Mr Connelly,’ he drawled the words out almost as slowly as he moved.

‘Good morning, Sheriff, is everything all right?’

‘You’ve got a tail light out.’ Buck glanced to the back of the car.

Of course he had. Aiden inwardly groaned at not having noticed it sooner and thus preventing this awkward encounter.

‘I have? I must not have noticed. I’ll get that sorted out later today.’ Aiden answered politely.

‘There’s a good garage up near the turn pike,’ Buck offered, shifting his weight so that he was leaning against the car, clearly in no hurry to conclude their conversation.

‘Okay, thanks, I’ll check them out.’

‘Offer good prices too. Not that you lawyer types need worry about money.’ There it was. Aiden knew the old man would struggle to last five minutes without insulting him somehow.

Buck leant away briefly to spit on the ground and his breath suggested he’d been chewing tobacco.

Aiden wanted to leave, to drive off and get away from Buck Fern and his bitterness but he felt that the old man wasn’t done with him yet. That the out tail light was merely a front for something else he wanted to discuss.

‘I hear you’re working on my brother’s case,’ Buck said lightly, as though it were common knowledge around town.

Aiden had to give the sheriff credit; he’d certainly wasted little time getting to the point.

‘How do you know about that?’ He’d only just started work on the case so he was surprised word could have got round so quickly.

‘Nothing goes on in this town that I don’t know about,’ Buck replied arrogantly.

Aiden wanted to point out that, actually, an awful lot occurred in Avalon that Buck didn’t know about. Like horrific domestic abuse or priests who were driven to murder but then tried to let someone else go down for their crime. But he managed to bite his tongue and say nothing. Let the old man have his delusions of power and knowledge.

‘Besides,’ Buck added, ‘he’s my brother. We do talk, you know.’

‘So are you two close?’

The question bristled Buck, who physically stood more alert, as though alarmed at the suggestion that he and his brother were close.

‘We’re blood,’ he explained vaguely after a brief pause. It didn’t really answer Aiden’s question but he decided it was best not to pursue it further.

‘You need to take care of him,’ Buck told Aiden, his voice firm. ‘That woman has never been no good for him. He was blinded by her beauty. Some men are fallible like that,’ he gave Aiden a long look as though he were implying something more.

He knew what the old sheriff meant. He was referring, of course, to Brandy but Aiden refused to let it get to him, knew it was best to rise above the pettiness even though Buck was doing his best to illicit a response from him.

‘Even a man of God can be weakened by a beautiful woman,’ Buck continued. ‘And my brother is no exception. She’s ruined him.’

‘Ruined him how?’ Aiden asked, sure that Samuel Fern would have had nothing but gratitude for the Playmate who agreed to share his bed.

‘He spent so much money on her.’ Buck shook his head in disapproval. ‘She’s just a whore.’

Normally Aiden might be surprised by such a venomous description of someone’s sister-in-law, but from Buck Fern such hostility was to be expected.

‘How come you’re handling the case and not Copes?’

Clearly Buck’s brother had left out the part about how he had specifically asked for Aiden to work on the case.

‘He’s too busy to take on such a big case right now,’ Aiden lied, assuming it was best not to let Buck know about Samuel’s preference of lawyer.

‘I’d be happier if it were Copes working on it,’ Buck said bluntly, not caring at all for Aiden’s feelings.

‘I’m sure you would be,’ Aiden agreed, feeling the exact same way.

‘I trust him.’

‘And you don’t trust me. Great, I get it,’ Aiden was running out of patience. ‘If we are all done here, Sheriff, I really need to get on my way.’

‘Fine, fine.’ Buck backed away from the car. ‘Make sure you get that tail light fixed.’ Even though it wasn’t, it sounded like a threat.

‘Yes, I will do.’

Aiden watched Buck return to his squad car. His movements were still slow, as though he had nothing but time on his hands. It shocked Aiden how someone could have a role as important as sheriff and have no urgency to them. Perhaps it could be attributed to the small town mentality or maybe it was unique to Buck Fern.

When the squad car had left, no doubt to harass another unsuspecting citizen, Aiden started his own vehicle up again and continued on his way to work.

But something bothered him as he drove. It just didn’t make sense for Buck to have heard straight from his brother about the case, especially as Edmond had made a point about their poor relationship.

Aiden was certain that Buck had heard the news from another source, though who exactly he wasn’t sure. A cold feeling ran down his back, making his body icy despite the pleasant morning sun. It was hard to know who to trust in Avalon and, just when Aiden hoped he’d found his footing there, he still felt like an outsider.

Chapter Two

Father to Son

Aiden knew that he needed to visit and speak directly with Samuel Fern sooner rather than later but his encounter with Buck that morning had left him a little unsure of the whole situation.

‘Buck Fern stopped me this morning,’ Aiden told Edmond before the older man could settle himself down in his office chair.

‘That must have been pleasant,’ Edmond scoffed, rolling his eyes. ‘What did our wonderful sheriff want with you?’

‘He was asking about his brother’s case.’

‘He was?’ Edmond’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

‘He claimed his brother had told him about it.’

‘Really?’ Edmond seemed genuinely shocked by this. ‘I didn’t think they spoke much, if at all.’

Aiden watched his colleague’s reaction closely, satisfied that he was telling the truth and thus could not have been Buck Fern’s informant.

‘It makes me a bit uneasy,’ Aiden admitted. ‘I don’t want Buck’s involvement in this.’

‘No, no, I completely agree.’

‘He just seems to always be all over everything.’

‘Buck Fern is Avalon’s rash. You can scratch away at him but he never goes away, if anything, he just spreads himself further!’ Edmond vented, shaking his head in annoyance. ‘Your best bet is to go straight to the source. Go see Sam Fern on his ranch, assess the situation and what he expects from the case.’

‘Yes, of course.’ Aiden agreed. ‘Is he quite easy to gain access to?’

Past experience had taught Aiden that a richer a man was, the more elusive he could be.

‘I’m not sure. Probably best to ask Betty as she would have dealt with him in the past I’m sure, through her church group for charity events.’

Edmond pressed down on the intercom on his desk and it crackled to life.

‘Betty?’

There was a brief pause and then a response came, marred by static. Aiden struggled to see the need for the intercom. They would be better served by either installing an internal phone system or by physically leaving the office and walking the minimal distance to the communal waiting area and Betty’s desk.

‘Yes, Mr Copes?’ Betty asked, her voice further aged by the poor line of communication.

‘Could you bring us two coffees and we also need to pick your brains about something.’

‘I’ll be right in.’ Betty confirmed.

Edmond would no longer ask whether Aiden wanted a coffee. Working just the two of them, in such close proximity, he had soon picked up on his preferences and now they each intuitively knew when the other would be wanting some sort of beverage or snack.

Aiden knew that if he was popping out to lunch, Edmond would also be most grateful if he picked up something sweet from the bakery across the street. And though Betty would also protest an offered Danish or doughnut, eventually she would concede and agree to eat one, simply, she stated ‘to stop it going to waste.’

There was a nice atmosphere within the office. In there at least Aiden felt accepted and a part of something. He wished those feelings extended to the rest of Avalon, he just had to keep hoping that in time they would.

Barely five minutes had passed when Betty entered with a small tray, upon which were balanced two steaming mugs of coffee.

‘Thank you, Betty,’ Edmond beamed, suddenly wishing he’d requested a snack to accompany his drink.

‘Yeah, thanks, Betty,’ Aiden said as he got up and took his mug from the tray.

‘What did you want to ask me about?’ Betty enquired after placing Edmond’s mug down, now holding the empty tray by her chest like a shield.

‘Samuel Fern,’ Edmond told her bluntly.

‘Oh?’

‘How easy is he to get hold of? I mean, does he accept visitors? Do people just make appointments to go out to the ranch?’

‘Oh, um…’ Betty pondered for a moment. ‘I’ve only dealt with him through my church group,’

Edmond glanced over at Aiden when she said this, with an expression which said, ‘see, I knew she’d know something’.

Aiden had to admit that Betty was always an invaluable source of local knowledge. If ever Edmond didn’t know something, which was rare, Betty almost definitely would. Together, Aiden wagered there was nothing the pair of them didn’t know about Avalon and its residents.

‘We never went out to his ranch; it was more to invite him to functions. I think he had a secretary who dealt with that sort of thing. I will try and find her number if you like?’

‘Yes thanks, Betty, that would be helpful.’

‘Does his secretary live out at the ranch?’ Betty had made to leave, but Aiden called her back with his question.

‘I believe so, yes.’

‘Okay, thanks.’ Aiden wasn’t sure why it mattered where Samuel Fern’s secretary was based, he was just trying to put together a clearer picture of the man.

Betty left and Edmond surreptitiously made his coffee Irish which Aiden pretended not to notice.

‘So you’ve never had to deal with Samuel Fern before?’

‘Only his will,’ Edmond reminded him. ‘And he came here to do that. I see him on the golf course and we chat. He seems a nice guy, much nicer than his brother.’

‘Okay,’ Aiden nodded.

‘Although,’ Edmond now lowered his voice, ‘if anything happens with this paternity case, he will need to re-write his will.’

‘Oh. So is his wife due to get everything?’

‘The lot.’ Edmond said dramatically. ‘Her and the sons, obviously.’

‘Yeah.’

Aiden wondered about this. How could a man go from being so certain about a woman that he would leave everything to her, to wanting a paternity test to prove he had fathered her child? It seemed extreme to change your opinion of someone so drastically.

The intercom on Edmond’s desk suddenly came to life again, with Betty’s voice echoing out of it.

‘I’ve got that number for you,’ she informed them.

If the number had been for Edmond, Betty would have dutifully brought it in, however, since it was Aiden’s case, he would be expected to go and collect it from her. Betty still regarded Aiden as a new employee and, in her eyes, had yet to earn the level of respect she reserved for Edmond and previously his late partner.

‘I’ll go get it,’ Aiden said, momentarily excusing himself.

The air in the main waiting area felt fresh and light which made Aiden assume that Betty must have had the door open for some time. Outside the sun was still shining brightly so he couldn’t blame her for wanting to capture some of that beautiful weather indoors.

‘Samuel Fern’s secretary is called Rita Moore,’ Betty told him, handing him a Post-it note upon which she had written a number in her delicate cursive writing.