Part 6

Her smile wavered. “What’s wrong with you now?”

Jonah leaned forward, elbows on his knees, hands knotted together at his chin. “What’s in the bag, Salem?”

She rolled her eyes, turning away to hang her coat. “Supplies. Things we need. Don’t start.”

“‘Supplies?’ What supplies?” His voice was low and strained.

She turned with her lips pressed into a thin smile. “You don’t need to know everything. Just trust me.”

Jonah let out a long, shaky breath. “That’s the problem. I can’t trust you anymore. Not with what I’ve been seeing here. The fake bellies showing up on the porch, the imaginary farm deal we can’t pay for, the lies on the phone… Salem, it’s all spiraling. There is a legal letter on the counter from Leland,” he pointed to the kitchen. “And now this…” he gestured at the shopping bag “…whatever the hell it is. Something mad. Something evil.”

She crossed her arms. “It’s not ‘mad’. It’s preparation. For our future. For our family.”

“Family?” His voice cracked. “What family? We don’t have a family. You can’t…” He stopped, pressing his palms to his face. When he spoke again, his voice was raw. “You’re going to get yourself in trouble. Real trouble. You’re talking about money that isn’t there, about land you don’t own. And if that realtor pushes, or the cops get involved…” he looked up at her, eyes wet and furious. “You could go to prison, Salem.”

Her eyes flickered. “Prison? Don’t be ridiculous. You think the law cares about me? About us? They don’t. They never have. People like us…”

“No, you listen to me,” he cut her off, voice rising. “You start messing with contracts, with banks, with lies about money… that’s fraud. That’s jail. And if there’s more you’re hiding, if there’s something in that bag that gets somebody hurt…” His voice broke again, lower now. “They’ll lock you away.”

Salem stared at him, unmoved. “You think I’d ever let that happen? You think I’d ever get caught?”

Jonah rubbed the back of his neck. “Everyone behind bars thinks that way. They all think they’re too clever. Too special. And then the cuffs go on, and it’s too late.”

Her face hardened, a cold mask settling in. “You sound like them. Like all the people who told me I’d never be anything. You’re just scared because you’re small, and because you have no vision. But I do. I see what’s waiting for us. And if you loved me, you’d see it too.”

Jonah’s eyes dropped to the duffel bag. His hand found the strap and fingers curled around it. He stood slowly, his voice trembling. “If what’s waiting means prison… or worse… then I can’t follow you there. I can’t watch you destroy yourself and take me with you.” Her voice cut sharp. “You’d walk out? Just like that? After everything I’ve given you?”

Jonah’s jaw worked. He stood up, shouldered the bag, his tired frame heavy under its weight. “I’ve loved you more than anybody. But I can’t stay if you’re set on – on whatever this is. If you don’t stop now, Salem… you’re going to lose more than me. You’ll lose it all.”

They stood staring at one another frozen in the moment. The room hummed with the sound of the refrigerator and the faint tick of the wall clock.

She didn’t answer. She just stared as Jonah turned, opened the door, and stepped into the night, leaving her alone in the dim living room, the silence louder than any screams of the past.