CHAPTER 6
Over the next few weeks, the shop continued to flourish and Beth fell into an easy routine of
working during the day and spending the evenings either baking with Esperanza or hanging out at
Joe's with Richie, Duncan and a few of the regulars.
Duncan and Richie fixed the back fence so Barkley could be outside alone without worry, and
along with Joe, they had been rewarded with several home cooked meals at Beth's. Sometimes
Esperanza joined them, but she was wary of these men … there was something she couldn't
quite put her finger on about them … Maybe she was reading too much into it because they
seemed nice, but there was an aura of danger about them …
The pain of what she had lost was still with her … and probably always would be, but the simple
routine of her new life was comfortable … and her new friends seemed to genuinely care about
her. They'd been respectful so far of her wish to keep her past private … they seemed to
understand her silence. A few times they'd each tried to get her to open up … Esperanza
especially … but she wasn't ready just yet to talk about that awful night … what she'd been forced
to give up … and what she'd done recently that she prayed had not been a mistake.
Beth knew that she would have to tell them at least part of her secret soon … time was going to
catch up with her … and she hoped they would understand why she did what she did and be
there for her.
One Sunday morning Joe called to invite Beth to drive down the coast with the three of them to
see the Giants play the Dodgers in San Francisco. He knew she loved baseball from the nights
she kept an eye on the screen above the bar.
Mac and Richie were finishing a work out at the dojo when she and Joe arrived. Beth had
insisted they take her car since it was the roomier vehicle. She dropped Joe off at the door and
parked around the corner before going in.
"Do you guys know what time it is?" Joe was barking impatiently as she walked in the door.
Beth froze in the entryway. She had expected to see them lifting weights or going through some
karate type moves … the last thing she expected was to witness something that took her back to
the night her life had been ripped apart. They were sparring … sparring with swords.
She felt like she couldn't breathe and none of them noticed as she shrank against the doorframe,
her face pale and her eyes wide.
"The next time you spend a few months in Paris … you should take time out from the ladies to get
in some practice." Ritchie laughed as he taunted his teacher.
"You think I'm rusty?" Mac retorted with a grin as his steel blade struck Ritchie's in a flurry of
aggressive moves.
"Would you two hurry up. We were supposed to be leaving … " Joe reminded them, still not
realizing how upset Beth was behind him.
"Ok … ok … I was just making sure Ritchie hadn't forgotten anything."
"Me?" Ritchie's tone was part humor and part annoyance. He'd seen Beth out of the corner of
his eye, but knew better than to turn his attention there. The last thing he wanted was for Mac to
make him look silly in front of her. He took the opportunity to lunge at Duncan just as the bigger
man crossed with his blade. On a less formidable opponent, the move would have taken him off
balance, but Mac was too experienced and turned the move to his advantage. With a gleam in
his eye he spun and before Richie could react, swept his blade around and let it freeze against
the back of the young man's neck.
The sound of Beth's scream and the sight of her sliding into unconsciousness as she fell to the
floor against the doorframe caused both of them to drop their blades where they stood and rush
over to her.
When she didn't come around immediately, Mac carefully picked her up and moved to the
elevator with Richie and Joe behind him. He laid her gently on the sofa and removed her jacket
as Richie retrieved a cold cloth to bathe her face.
"What do you think happened?" Richie asked as they tried to rouse her.
"I think it was the swords … she must have thought I was going to hurt you." Duncan replied
"But she knew you had a dojo … where people trained. And she knows you and Richie are
friends." Joe said as he worried over the young woman.
"I saw the look in her eyes before she hit the floor." Duncan replied. "She was petrified."
Beth began to show signs of coming around, and Duncan moved back just a little … keeping the
cool cloth and his hand on her forehead.
When her eyes focused, she took in a quick almost startled breath … but he calmed her with his
voice, reassuring her she was all right … letting her know that he and Joe and Richie were there
and she was safe.
Beth's eyes scanned the room and moved from one face to the other … and kept moving as she
seemed to be searching for something. Her eyes locked on the sword mounted on the wall
across the room and then back to Duncan's face. The movement was almost undetectable, but
he saw it and it confirmed what he'd suspected … it was the swords.
"Beth it's all right. No one is going to hurt you." He reassured.
"I'm sorry … I don't know what got into me." She tried to sit up, but he held her in place for a
minute longer until Richie returned with a glass of water.
"Sip this slowly … you'll feel better in a minute … "
Beth nodded. Her heart was still racing from what she'd witnessed … and what she'd been
forced to remember. And she was embarrassed that she hadn't been able to hold herself better
in check. When he finally let her sit completely up, she had to face the three pairs of eyes that
were locked on her with concern.
"I'm fine … I'm sorry I scared you … I guess I overreacted."
"I think we're the ones who should be apologizing." Duncan replied. "It looks like we're the ones
who scared you … but the thing is … we don't know why. Didn't you know we were just
sparring?"
Beth didn't know what she knew. She'd seen the swords … she'd been frozen in place with her
memories as well as what she was seeing … and then she saw the blade against Richie's neck
and she lost it. She knew they were waiting for some kind of explanation … but she didn't know
how she could say what she'd been keeping inside for so long.
"I'm fine … really … and I'm making us all late."
"Don't worry about the game. We can go another time." Richie offered, but Beth wouldn't hear of
it.
"No … I'm not going to mess this up for everyone. It's the last week of the season … Please …
let's go."
Richie started to protest, but Duncan saw the desparation in her eyes. "Hey Richie … why don't
we get cleaned up … maybe we can still make that first pitch … and maybe on the long drive
Beth will feel more like telling us what scared her?" he looked hopefully.
"Maybe." Beth's voice was almost undetectable.
"Why don't we fix you a little something to eat while we wait … it will help you get your strength
back." Joe said as they waited. Beth nodded. She hadn't eaten much of anything that morning
… she hadn't felt like it … and that was probably why she hadn't been able to keep herself from
blacking out.
Duncan offered to drive her SUV and Beth was happy to oblige. She didn't feel up to doing it
herself. Joe sat up front with Mac and a very concerned Richie sat in the back with her. For
about half an hour they made small talk, but then the vehicle fell into an uncomfortable silence.
Beth knew they were waiting for her to be ready to talk … and she realized that she needed to
share at least part of the secret she carried.
Over the next few weeks, the shop continued to flourish and Beth fell into an easy routine of
working during the day and spending the evenings either baking with Esperanza or hanging out at
Joe's with Richie, Duncan and a few of the regulars.
Duncan and Richie fixed the back fence so Barkley could be outside alone without worry, and
along with Joe, they had been rewarded with several home cooked meals at Beth's. Sometimes
Esperanza joined them, but she was wary of these men … there was something she couldn't
quite put her finger on about them … Maybe she was reading too much into it because they
seemed nice, but there was an aura of danger about them …
The pain of what she had lost was still with her … and probably always would be, but the simple
routine of her new life was comfortable … and her new friends seemed to genuinely care about
her. They'd been respectful so far of her wish to keep her past private … they seemed to
understand her silence. A few times they'd each tried to get her to open up … Esperanza
especially … but she wasn't ready just yet to talk about that awful night … what she'd been forced
to give up … and what she'd done recently that she prayed had not been a mistake.
Beth knew that she would have to tell them at least part of her secret soon … time was going to
catch up with her … and she hoped they would understand why she did what she did and be
there for her.
One Sunday morning Joe called to invite Beth to drive down the coast with the three of them to
see the Giants play the Dodgers in San Francisco. He knew she loved baseball from the nights
she kept an eye on the screen above the bar.
Mac and Richie were finishing a work out at the dojo when she and Joe arrived. Beth had
insisted they take her car since it was the roomier vehicle. She dropped Joe off at the door and
parked around the corner before going in.
"Do you guys know what time it is?" Joe was barking impatiently as she walked in the door.
Beth froze in the entryway. She had expected to see them lifting weights or going through some
karate type moves … the last thing she expected was to witness something that took her back to
the night her life had been ripped apart. They were sparring … sparring with swords.
She felt like she couldn't breathe and none of them noticed as she shrank against the doorframe,
her face pale and her eyes wide.
"The next time you spend a few months in Paris … you should take time out from the ladies to get
in some practice." Ritchie laughed as he taunted his teacher.
"You think I'm rusty?" Mac retorted with a grin as his steel blade struck Ritchie's in a flurry of
aggressive moves.
"Would you two hurry up. We were supposed to be leaving … " Joe reminded them, still not
realizing how upset Beth was behind him.
"Ok … ok … I was just making sure Ritchie hadn't forgotten anything."
"Me?" Ritchie's tone was part humor and part annoyance. He'd seen Beth out of the corner of
his eye, but knew better than to turn his attention there. The last thing he wanted was for Mac to
make him look silly in front of her. He took the opportunity to lunge at Duncan just as the bigger
man crossed with his blade. On a less formidable opponent, the move would have taken him off
balance, but Mac was too experienced and turned the move to his advantage. With a gleam in
his eye he spun and before Richie could react, swept his blade around and let it freeze against
the back of the young man's neck.
The sound of Beth's scream and the sight of her sliding into unconsciousness as she fell to the
floor against the doorframe caused both of them to drop their blades where they stood and rush
over to her.
When she didn't come around immediately, Mac carefully picked her up and moved to the
elevator with Richie and Joe behind him. He laid her gently on the sofa and removed her jacket
as Richie retrieved a cold cloth to bathe her face.
"What do you think happened?" Richie asked as they tried to rouse her.
"I think it was the swords … she must have thought I was going to hurt you." Duncan replied
"But she knew you had a dojo … where people trained. And she knows you and Richie are
friends." Joe said as he worried over the young woman.
"I saw the look in her eyes before she hit the floor." Duncan replied. "She was petrified."
Beth began to show signs of coming around, and Duncan moved back just a little … keeping the
cool cloth and his hand on her forehead.
When her eyes focused, she took in a quick almost startled breath … but he calmed her with his
voice, reassuring her she was all right … letting her know that he and Joe and Richie were there
and she was safe.
Beth's eyes scanned the room and moved from one face to the other … and kept moving as she
seemed to be searching for something. Her eyes locked on the sword mounted on the wall
across the room and then back to Duncan's face. The movement was almost undetectable, but
he saw it and it confirmed what he'd suspected … it was the swords.
"Beth it's all right. No one is going to hurt you." He reassured.
"I'm sorry … I don't know what got into me." She tried to sit up, but he held her in place for a
minute longer until Richie returned with a glass of water.
"Sip this slowly … you'll feel better in a minute … "
Beth nodded. Her heart was still racing from what she'd witnessed … and what she'd been
forced to remember. And she was embarrassed that she hadn't been able to hold herself better
in check. When he finally let her sit completely up, she had to face the three pairs of eyes that
were locked on her with concern.
"I'm fine … I'm sorry I scared you … I guess I overreacted."
"I think we're the ones who should be apologizing." Duncan replied. "It looks like we're the ones
who scared you … but the thing is … we don't know why. Didn't you know we were just
sparring?"
Beth didn't know what she knew. She'd seen the swords … she'd been frozen in place with her
memories as well as what she was seeing … and then she saw the blade against Richie's neck
and she lost it. She knew they were waiting for some kind of explanation … but she didn't know
how she could say what she'd been keeping inside for so long.
"I'm fine … really … and I'm making us all late."
"Don't worry about the game. We can go another time." Richie offered, but Beth wouldn't hear of
it.
"No … I'm not going to mess this up for everyone. It's the last week of the season … Please …
let's go."
Richie started to protest, but Duncan saw the desparation in her eyes. "Hey Richie … why don't
we get cleaned up … maybe we can still make that first pitch … and maybe on the long drive
Beth will feel more like telling us what scared her?" he looked hopefully.
"Maybe." Beth's voice was almost undetectable.
"Why don't we fix you a little something to eat while we wait … it will help you get your strength
back." Joe said as they waited. Beth nodded. She hadn't eaten much of anything that morning
… she hadn't felt like it … and that was probably why she hadn't been able to keep herself from
blacking out.
Duncan offered to drive her SUV and Beth was happy to oblige. She didn't feel up to doing it
herself. Joe sat up front with Mac and a very concerned Richie sat in the back with her. For
about half an hour they made small talk, but then the vehicle fell into an uncomfortable silence.
Beth knew they were waiting for her to be ready to talk … and she realized that she needed to
share at least part of the secret she carried.