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In the six months since Jacob's death at his own hands, Hayden hadn't left her little farm unless Amanda called a meeting and transported her to Baltimore. The others might've thought she was mourning her partner, but she wasn't. She was mad. There was no love lost between her and Jacob, but he'd been the way for her to heal. Even coked up, he could hold a focus for as much power as she could generate. The focused power redirected could literally change lives. Without him, she was still as strong but could do little more than spread unfocused good vibes.
The bright spots were David's frequent visits, Charlie's dopey antics, and the grocery in town starting home delivery.
She knew she should get out and do things again, but her farm being as self sufficient as it was gave her the perfect excuse to stay home. Once the grocery store began test deliveries, she signed up for a biweekly delivery of coffee, sugar and other items she couldn't grown herself.
In the seedling green house all morning, she hummed quietly as she re-potted plants and prepared them for outside planting later that week. Charlie sprawled on an old rug in the corner His ears perked first. Then he was gone, heading for gate.
The bright spots were David's frequent visits, Charlie's dopey antics, and the grocery in town starting home delivery.
She knew she should get out and do things again, but her farm being as self sufficient as it was gave her the perfect excuse to stay home. Once the grocery store began test deliveries, she signed up for a biweekly delivery of coffee, sugar and other items she couldn't grown herself.
In the seedling green house all morning, she hummed quietly as she re-potted plants and prepared them for outside planting later that week. Charlie sprawled on an old rug in the corner His ears perked first. Then he was gone, heading for gate.
"Thanks. You must be the new employee. The clerk called this morning to say you were coming and I wouldn't be alarmed by a stranger. She held out her hand. "I'm Hayden. It's nice to meet a friend of Charlie's."
Inside the big, homey kitchen with its attached family room and hearth, she motioned for Shen to put the bag on the counter and opened the cookie jar. The first one went to Charlie. Then she held it out to Shen. "Take as many as you want. It gives me a great reason to make more."
Once inside the kitchen he set the bag of groceries on a counter. "One is good. Thank you," he said as he removed one cookie from the jar.
She gave Charlie another cookie. "Would you do me a favor, Shen?"
It was time to line up summer help for the farm. No matter how carefully she planned her plantings, it was inevitable that she would be overloaded with produce and she couldn't stand anything to go to waste. A good portion of it was donated but her freezer and pantry saw quite a bit as well. She just loved to grow things and feed people. Her firm belief was that most health complaints could be resolved with a healthy diet and exercise.
"It would save me a trip into town."
She opened another jar shaped like a barrel and pulled out several one dollar bills to tip him. "Here you go. We'll see you again in two weeks."
He glanced down at the card. She was looking for someone to help around the farm if he was reading this correctly. English was a language he was still learning. "You looking for help? Farm?" he asked.
She put the cash back in the ceramic barrel and turned around to lean against the counter with her arms crossed. He looked pretty strong for size, but it wasn't strength that was needed. It was the ability to hunch over a hoe or be down on the knees for hours at a time going from plant to plant to pick ripe produce. Her extensive herb garden needed special care. But if he really had worked on a farm in Japan, he would need little direction and only with those things she did out of choice because she thought it was better.
And David would probably insist on meeting the boy, sweetheart that he was. She would ask him for his opinion on what she felt from Shen. If the boy has some sort of power, it wouldn't hurt to encourage him to develop it.
She reached for the index card. "I say we give this a shot. I'm good for another week or so on my own, but if you'd like to come out in your free time to see how I do things and play with Charlie, it's fine with me."
His smile grew. "Charlie is a nice dog. Would like to play with him."