“He’ll be gone for weeks or possibly months with no communication,” Shabina said.
“I’m aware of that. It’s not like I go out on dates or have anyone as it is now,” Vienna said. “I’ll worry about him. I can’t help that, but he’s my choice. I’ve never been with anyone else who interests me the way he does. He makes me laugh. He loves the outdoors the way I do. He listens to me when I give my opinion on any subject and actually hears what I say and doesn’t treat me like I’m not quite bright because of the way I look. I love being with him.”
“You’re certain he was coming to you after this assignment?” Raine asked.
Vienna nodded. “Yes. It took quite a bit of convincing. I didn’t believe him at first, but he managed to convince me that he had been trying to find a way to make it all work. He told me quite a bit about his past. We talked for hours. I didn’t just fall into his arms, although to be honest, I wanted to. I made it clear it wasn’t going to happen. I was honest with him and told him I had been really hurt and didn’t want to go through that again. I told him there was an entire hotel full of women who would be willing and to find one of them.”
“Ouch,” Zahra said. “That must have hurt you even to suggest that.”
“It did. I know it would have killed me to see him with another woman, but I couldn’t have gone there again with him and have him leave me like he did. I had to really think a long time before I made the decision to start all over again with him. He made it clear he wanted to make it a permanent relationship.”
She had braided her hair and wound the thick braid up on top of her head for the kayaking trip, but out of habit, she pushed at the sides as if she could shove hair behind her ears. “I still hear Avril’s voice warning me that men say whatever a woman wants to hear in order to get their way, but that they’re lying. I wanted him to tell me he wanted to be with me permanently, but then I’d get squirrelly on him, thinking he’s just saying that to appease me. It’s my issue and I’ve been honest with him about it. I’m fortunate in that he’s extremely patient with me.”
“I’m happy for you, Vienna,” Harlow said. “Especially that he’s patient. Have you told him about your birth mother?”
She shook her head. “Not yet, but I will.”
“Raine, you haven’t found anything at all on Vienna’s father?” Shabina asked.
Raine frowned. “In my original search, nothing showed up at all. He was the big mystery man. I’m not surprised. Avril clearly didn’t want Mitzi or the authorities to identify him. She also didn’t want him to find Mitzi. Mitzi was a school friend but didn’t run in the same social circle. She didn’t have money, and the kids at school suspected her of being a lesbian. They were rather cruel. Avril was gorgeous and popular. She was also very compassionate and sweet. She stood up for Mitzi, befriending her. That friendship was genuine. She didn’t ask anything in return.”
Vienna liked hearing that about her birth mother. It also explained quite a bit about why Mitzi was so fiercely loyal to Avril.
“Avril clearly liked Mitzi and hung out with her, uncaring that anyone might think she preferred women to men. Since Avril was so popular, eventually Mitzi was accepted in her circle of friends as well, and no one dared say anything cruel to Mitzi, or they liked her once they got to know her, just as Avril did.”
“That makes me happy,” Vienna said. “Mitzi doesn’t have a mean bone in her body. I hate the idea that anyone would be cruel to her. I’m grateful Avril made her childhood easier.”
“It only seems fair that Mitzi made Avril’s life easier at the end,” Harlow said.
“It’s funny how life can come full circle,” Zahra agreed.
Vienna stifled a yawn and Stella laughed, catching it as she glanced in the rearview mirror. “Don’t think I didn’t see Zale sneaking out of your room this morning.”
“Is that why she keeps yawning?” Zahra demanded. “I can’t believe you, you little hussy.”
“That’s exactly why she keeps yawning,” Stella said. “And she’s your partner on the river. She’s riding tandem with you in the kayak.”
“What? I thought you were my partner, Stella,” Zahra protested.
“Not on your life. I’m not that good, and neither are you. We’d be so far behind everyone else we’d get lost.”
Zahra laughed. “That’s probably true. I paddle in circles and Stella’s worse. She paddles backward.”
“That was only after you bashed me in the head with the paddle because I didn’t pass you back the chocolate bar.”
“That was an accident and you know it. I was trying to reach the dry pack and the dumb paddle kind of got away from me and swung around and smacked you in the head. You should have just given me a chocolate bar instead of hogging them all for yourself.”
“Did you swing that paddle or let go of it and it swung on its own?” Stella posed the question in a demanding voice.
“You’ll never know for certain, will you?” Zahra asked, her nose in the air.
“Yikes,” Vienna said. “I’m not certain I want you in the kayak behind me. You probably should be up front, where I can keep an eye on you at all times.”
“That’s the only place for her,” Stella said. “Right where you can see her.”
“Clearly, that bash in the head wasn’t nearly as hard as you pretended.” Zahra’s dark eyes narrowed. “All this time you’ve made me feel guilty and you weren’t that hurt at all.”
“It did allow me to go first and pick my favorite person every time we played Clue,” Stella said.
“Is that why you always got to go first and we didn’t roll to see who would go first?” Harlow asked. “Zahra always backed you no matter what.”
Stella laughed. “Guilt. Better than blackmail.”
“Lovely,” Harlow said. “So, you’re with me, Stella. And Raine and Shabina are together. Raine has tons of experience and Shabina is strong. They’ll do well together.”
“The Hoover Dam Lodge and Casino is coming up,” Stella announced. “Everyone had better have their IDs with them. The vans won’t wait. Apparently, there are two companies taking out groups today on the river, so there will be one launching right behind us. They want us to hustle.”
Vienna was shocked to see Benny Dobsin checking everyone in. He was clearly marked as the guide for their group, along with another man identified as Clay Fontaine for River Adventures, the company they had booked. Benny had a clipboard and was meticulously checking every ID. The second guide was clearly handling all the gear.
Just the sight of Benny put Vienna on edge. First, she’d seen him at the Blue Diamond overnight parking lot where Zale’s rental truck had been left before they had started out on the biking trail. Now he was here at the lot where they would be leaving Stella’s 4Runner. That seemed like a huge coincidence to her.