Page 7 of Twenty-Three Years of Longing

I told Kathy about my fears, and she reminded me that there is no such thing as a safe place. Every small town who suffers from a tragedy learns that lesson the hard way.

“I’m glad.” Hearing the fact that the local law enforcement was no longer corrupt too helped. It eased my mind a little about bringing Joey here. I’d never intentionally put him in danger. He was my world. The only good thing that came out of my marriage.

“Now, is there anything else you want to talk about or share with me before I go?” Reesa asked.

I shook my head. “I am glad you understand and accept my situation.”

“I don’t see anything that needs acceptance. You were hired based on your qualifications. Marital status or parenthood does not change anything for me. But I will respect your request and I will not say anything to anyone without your permission.”

“Thank you. I would like people to get to know me professionally first,” I explained.

“I felt the same way when I met my husband, Finn. He’s not from Tabiq. And as president, I was concerned that they wouldn’t accept him or have faith in me any longer. You know, believe that I’m not capable of putting Tabiq first. That Finn would pull my focus from Tabiq and place it on his homeland, Ireland.”

“That’s ridiculous. From what I know, you’ve always put our people first,” I stated firmly.

“I try, but it is not always received that way. Thankfully, neither was an issue. I have a feeling, in time you’ll feel the same way,” Reesa said. She got up and added, “I am going to head home. It’s not easy, but I’m trying to keep my son on a schedule. Dinner, bath, story time, and bed by eight. If it is not my job, then it is Finn’s that has us working late. But we keep trying. Right now, we’ve managed three out of seven nights a week to achieve our goal.”

“I remember those days. Many sleepless nights before I managed to get a routine that worked for both Joey and me.” I was positive that no matter what Kathy said or promised, Joey was not in bed when he was supposed to be.

“So, it gets easier?” she asked.

I followed her to the door and said, “I’d like to tell you that is the case as they get older, but that hasn’t been my experience. Joey is nine going on thirty. At times I feel as though time is slipping away and my little boy will have his own life and not need me.”

“My fear as well. And that’s why I have some personal decisions to make too.” That piqued my interest, but I refrained from asking about something that was none of my business. We all have things we want to keep private. Before leaving, Reesa added, “Welcome back to Tabiq, and please, don’t hesitate to call me with any questions or concerns. I’m here for you. And I meant what I said. Alex and Ziva are wonderful, and they would be very happy to help.”

Smiling, I replied, “I guess I’ll take you up on the offer. I’d love their help in finding a place to live. Not that I don’t appreciate you putting me up at this resort, but I want to make a routine for me and Joey too.”

Reesa nodded and said, “I’ll reach out to them tonight, and you’ll probably hear from them in the morning. Good night, Raya.”

“Good night.”

When she was gone, I walked over and grabbed my cell phone. It was the middle of the night where Joey was. Kathy would be sleeping as well. Even though the sun was still out, and it would be hours before it set, I had no problem with calling it a night too. From the sounds of it, I was going to need my rest for the morning.

After speaking with Reesa, I felt as though a huge weight had been lifted. If she could accept everything, I told her, then I was sure others would as well. And she also reminded me that it’s not like I was going to be on my own. The former administrator would be available for any questions I had. I might be confident in my skills, but not ignorant of the fact that there still was going to be plenty of things to learn. Hopefully, he wasn’t going to grow tired of all my questions.

CHAPTER 3

Orion

Not that I kept a lot of personal belongings in my office, but what I did have was now packed in a box and sitting on top of my desk. Or my former desk. Still hadn’t gotten used to the fact that someone was replacing me.

I looked at my watch for the third time. Ms. Raya Davison was now fifteen minutes late. This was not a way to make a good first impression. If I had any say in the matter, I’d fire her. She obviously didn’t take this role seriously. It wasn’t just my time that she was wasting, but the staff and students needed to be able to count on her.

Not that I had any dislike for foreigners, but no matter how much they wanted to, they could never truly understand what Tabiq had been through, and how seriously we take the responsibility of building it back up.

She might have been born here, but she’s been in the USA too long. She doesn’t know Tabiq anymore.

Reesa needed to be made aware of who she hired. Someone...unreliable. But I had a feeling that no matter what I said, she wasn’t going to send Raya back to where she came from.

We were stuck with Raya… for now. Reesa had made it clear that I was going to replace her. Even though it was only going to be temporary until another election took place, it still meant that I was going to have the authority to hire someone I felt was the best person for the job. Not sure who that would be at the moment, but it would be someone who valued punctuality and more importantly… Tabiq.

There was a knock on the door, and I called out, “It’s open. Come in.” The door opened, but it wasn’t Raya. It was Jay Patal, someone I counted on to provide meals for the students each day.

“Sorry to bother you, but I thought you might want to know we have visitors.”

Visitors? I had been expecting one.

“Who is it?” I asked.