Free Dust and Obey by Christy Barritt Page A

our time here and for marriage in general.”
    “I understand,” Riley said.
    As we started to walk away, Dr. Turner called us back. We both paused and turned.
    “I could sense that the two of you were highly uncomfortable with our cuddle time. I do hope you’ll both give this process a chance. I know your marriage has probably weathered some difficult times. All marriages go through this. Just be open-minded.”
    Maybe the doctor was more insightful than I thought. On one hand, it had to be pretty easy to see how awkward Riley and I were with each other. But his advice for marriage was spot on. I’d never been married, but I’d seen plenty of bad marriages. I knew enough to understand it was better to stick together through tough times than to bail.
    Like Riley had done on me when he decided we needed space during the middle of his recovery.
    In the infamous words of Elsa, I had to let this go. Or even better, in the words of the Bible, I would consider this trial pure joy.
    Pure joy.
     
    ***
     
    “We better go find a ‘bird’s nest,’” I finally said after Dr. Turner walked away.
    “Where should we go?” Riley whispered.
    “I know what my vote is for. The widow’s walk.” And it wasn’t because it was the best place to spy on people. Or maybe it was. “Although, the name has always seemed a bit morbid to me. Maybe I’ll just call it The Tower.”
    “Can you imagine being a wife watching up there for your husband to return from being out to sea?” Riley gestured toward the bay.
    “I can’t. I would go crazy. Maybe patience isn’t my thing.”
    “It was a hard profession. This sea has claimed many lives.”
    “Apparently, so has this island. I mean, really . . . Cemetery Island?”
    Riley grimaced. “There are some things I wish I didn’t know. That’s one of them. This place doesn’t seem so happy with a past like that.”
    “And don’t forget the skeleton.”
    He raised his eyebrows. “How can I?”
    “I wonder what the police have found out, if anything. They were still out there last time I checked.”
    We climbed two flights of stairs and reached the spiral staircase. Before we could take the first step, we heard voices drifting downward and froze.
    Whoever was up there obviously hadn’t heard us approach because their conversation continued. We stepped into the shadows and did the polite thing: We eavesdropped.
    “I can’t go on here after what happened to Anna. It’s just not right,” a woman said. “I’m scared.”
    “There’s no reason to be scared,” the man said. “We just have to watch each other’s backs.”
    “But what if someone finds out about us?” The woman’s voice cracked.
    “They won’t. Stop worrying so much, sweetheart.”
    “What about that new couple? They don’t seem as self-absorbed as some of the others. If anyone notices what’s going on, it will be them. We’ll be ruined.”
    What? Were they talking about Riley and me?
    “We’ll just have to make sure that they don’t find out our secret. Okay?” the man whispered.
    The woman remained quiet until the conversation turned to plans for the future and other sappy subjects.
    Riley gently pulled me away. We moved quickly, silently, down the hall, only speaking once we reached the library.
    “That was Ginger and Jim, wasn’t it?” I whispered.
    “Sounds like there are definitely couples here who are hiding something. What do you think they were talking about?”
    “Maybe they know something about Anna’s death.” I nibbled on my bottom lip in thought.
    “We should see what we can discover individually. Maybe tonight back in our rooms will be a good time to casually bring up Anna in conversation. We need to find out if anyone had a grudge against her for some reason.”
    I nodded. “That sounds like a good plan. Someone here is hiding something.”
    “Then again, so are we.”
    I locked my gaze with his. “That’s right. But we’re not hiding something deadly.”
     
    ***
     
    Lo