Blood Claim

Chapter Two

"Hello?" Her voice was soft and thick with sleep, and I instantly felt bad about not calling her earlier. I wished, at least for a split second, that I was curled up beside her in bed, my arm under her pillow, her ass pressed against me. Because I missed her, and in all ours years of being married, we had never been this far apart before.

"Abbi, it's Mike," I said, cupping the phone closer to my ear as a group of noisy people arrived at the hotel and began checking in. I swatted at some flies that were circling above my head and stared at the wall in front of me where two more had landed. Goddamned country was swarming with the filthy things.

"You arrived okay then?" she finally asked, the tone of her voice subtly different than usual.

The last time I'd seen her, we had argued. She had found out exactly how much of our future—her future—was at stake with this trip, and she had been furious with me. I couldn't blame her; not really. Being the wife of a goldminer wasn't for everyone, and she certainly wouldn't have chosen this life for herself if she had truly ever had the choice.

She wanted certainty, not the shaky foundations of a good claim land and a quick buck. I could understand that. But at the same time, I hadn't chosen this life either—this life had chosen me.

"Mike?" Abbi's voice sung down the receiver to me. "Are you still there?"

I swallowed before speaking. "I'm sorry, Abbi."

Silence. Thick and inevitable after our parting words.

"I'll make it right between us, I promise." I closed my eyes, trying to imagine her sitting on the edge of the bed, her eyes filling with tears as I spoke. "But listen, this is it—the big one I've always told you about. I'll be coming home a millionaire, and then I promise you we'll put this life behind us. I'll get a normal job—hell, I won't even need to work ever again, and neither will you. I'm going to make you the happiest woman ever."

I was stumbling over my words, trying to get them out as quickly as I could in case she hung up on me. In case she never gave me the chance to make it up to her. To prove to her that I wasn't useless, that I could provide for her the life that we had always wanted.

"I'm sorry too," she said finally. "I trust you to do what you think is best."

I finally allowed myself to breathe at the sound of her words. "Thank you, that's exactly what I needed to hear right now. I won't let you down, Abbi. I promise you."

A chill ran over my scalp, the hairs prickling like they were being plucked one by one, and I turned to look behind me, the feeling of being watched draping itself over me like a heavy cloak. The lobby was quiet, with not even the front desk clerk in sight. I swallowed and turned back around before running a hand through my sweat-riddled hair and disturbing a fly which had landed there. I shuddered and watched it uneasily as it flew back up to circle my head.

"I miss you," I added on, checking behind me to make sure none of the boys had followed me into the lobby. "I miss you something fierce."

Abbi laughed lightly, the soft spin of her laugh traveling down the phone and filling me with hope. "I miss you too. Just do us proud and come home soon. Okay?"

"I will." I leaned against the wall, the palm of my hand taking my weight as I lowered my head, feeling relieved. Everything was falling into place, finally.

"How's the old man coping?"

I laughed. "He complained the entire flight over here. He hated the turbulence, the food on the plane, his seat, and he started to complain the moment the plane landed."