Sunset Empire

Chapter 1: The Storm (Part 2)

She woke to the glare of red and blue lights shining through the sheer white curtains in her window. Elyse had been dreaming her bedroom was on fire. It took her a second to register that she'd been asleep and her curtains were not actually ablaze, that the lingering smell of smoke was only a remnant from her dream. She sat up and craned her neck to peek out the window. A police car was parked outside the two-story bungalow.

Someone was knocking on the front door. She got up and crept down the stairs, shrinking back against the wall when her mother appeared in the hallway below. Elyse took a seat on the cool adobe tiles of the landing.

Caroline tightened the sash on her robe and opened the door. A police officer stood at the threshold, hand raised as though she were about to knock again.

"I'm sorry to wake you, ma'am," the officer began.

"I was already awake." Caroline looked worried. "Can I help you?"

The officer shifted her feet, and retrieved a slender notebook from her back pocket. "Mrs. Puh...than?"

"Yes?" Caroline brushed her blond bangs out of her eyes.

The officer checked a page in her notebook. "Is your husband Narong Puh-than?"

"Than. The p is silent. Yes, he is. What is this all about?"

The officer nodded. "Mrs. Pthan, I'm afraid I have some bad news. May I come in?"

Elyse's mother nodded, and gestured to the arm chair in the living room. Her father's favorite chair because it reclined. The officer sat down, perched on the edge of the seat. Caroline sank into the cushions of the couch, her face pale. Elyse gripped the wrought iron banister next to the stairs, terrified to hear what the officer was about to say, and afraid she already knew.

"There's been an accident," the officer said. "We believe your husband must have hit a slick spot on the road, and his vehicle skidded. It appears he overcorrected and rolled his SUV. We found it in a wash."

"But he's okay?" Caroline asked, her voice almost a whisper. Elyse could see her gripping the arm of the couch. Her own knuckles ached from clenching the iron railing next to her. But she was afraid to let go. She needed to feel something solid, anchoring her.

"I'm very sorry, ma'am." The officer was studying her notepad, avoiding Caroline's gaze. "It's this storm—the roads are terribly hazardous tonight."

"He's dead?" Caroline shook her head in disbelief. Elyse felt her breath catch. Maybe there was a mistake. Her father couldn't be dead.

The officer nodded solemnly. "Yes, ma'am. I'm sorry."

Elyse felt a wave of dizziness overtake her. She couldn't breathe. She slumped against the plaster wall behind her, barely registering the thump as the back of her head knocked against the wall. She was suffocating. This was her fault. If she'd come home on time, her father wouldn't have gone out looking for her. Her dad wouldn't be dead.

"Elyse?"

Someone was calling her name. They sounded very far away.

And then her mother was there, cradling her in her arms. "Oh Elyse, honey..."

Through a dark haze, Elyse saw the officer standing over her. "Your daughter?" she asked Caroline.

Caroline nodded and turned her attention back to Elyse. She placed Elyse's arm around her shoulder and helped her to her feet. "Come on, honey. Let's get you back to bed."

"I'll help you," the officer said.

"Thank you," Caroline replied.

***

When Caroline entered her daughter's room the next morning, the first thing she noticed was the mango-wood jewelry box sitting on Elyse's nightstand was open. Inside, lying in trays lined with red velvet, were a number of earrings, several bangles, and a ring with pavé rhinestones. Costume jewelry, all of it, except for one item.

Coiled reverently in a tray of its own was the gold necklace Narong had given their daughter for her eighth birthday. Seeing it made Caroline's heart ache. The charm on the necklace was a chang, a Thai elephant, its trunk raised as a symbol of luck. Elyse had worn it every day for several years, but once she got into high school, the necklace had been retired in favor of more trendy accessories. Caroline wondered if Elyse had been looking at it before she finally fell asleep.

She sat on the edge of her daughter's bed. Elyse was still sleeping, but her eyes looked red and puffy, like she'd been crying. Caroline glanced at her reflection in the mirror over her daughter's dresser—her eyes looked the same, with the addition of dark circles and crow's feet in the corners.

After delivering the news about Narong, the officer had stayed at the house so Caroline could go with another officer to identify her husband's body. When she finally got home, she'd lain awake in a state of shock and grief. Finally, as dawn neared, she'd drifted off, only to awaken two hours later. She looked and felt exhausted.

She brushed strands of dark hair off Elyse's face. Her daughter and her four-year-old twin boys had straight black hair, so unlike her own blond tresses. She and Elyse shared the same petite build and wide-set eyes, but personality-wise, Elyse was more like Narong—she was a good kid, but she was strong-willed and had a bit of a temper. Her husband always put family first, and was so protective of his children. He'd been worried sick when Elyse hadn't come home on time. And then, just like that, he was gone, and how could they possibly manage without him? Caroline felt hollow. She found herself looking for him constantly; it didn't seem real that he wasn't coming home.  

Elyse stirred, and opened her eyes. "Mom?"

Caroline blinked back tears, swiping at her eyes. "Yes, I'm here." She set Elyse's phone down next to the jewelry box on the nightstand. "I wanted to give this back."

Elyse shook her head. "I don't want it."

Caroline felt a pang of hurt—Elyse was punishing herself. That was something Narong would have done—blamed himself. She took her daughter's hand. "It's not your fault, you know."

Elyse closed her eyes and turned away.

"Gabe called. I told him what happened to your dad, and said you might not feel up to talking."

Caroline saw Elyse open her eyes, but she didn't roll back over. Instead she stared at the wall. "I don't."

"Maybe you'll feel like texting him later. He said he was sorry. About last night and about your dad." Caroline squeezed her daughter's hand. "I might have been too harsh about him. He seems nice."

Elyse bit her lip and closed her eyes again.

"You might want to text your friends too. If you want Kayla to come over..."

"No."

"Okay." Caroline released her daughter's hand and stood to leave. "Elyse...I'm going to need your help today. I have a lot of calls to make. Can you get up and make breakfast for the boys?"

Her daughter's eyes flew open, and she sat up, throwing back the covers. "Do they know?"

Caroline shook her head. "I let them sleep in. Don't say anything to them. I need to be the one to tell them, but I don't know how." She sighed. "Maybe after I make some of the funeral arrangements, I'll figure it out."

Elyse got out of bed and grabbed a t-shirt and jeans from the drawers of her dresser. "Okay. I won't say anything." She started toward the bathroom to change.

"Wait." Caroline stopped her and pulled her into an embrace. Elyse hesitated a second, and then put her clothes on the dresser before returning the hug. Caroline looked at her daughter's reflection in the mirror. "I'm so sorry, honey. Things are going to be different now."

"I know."

Caroline pulled back and studied her daughter's face. "Do you? I'm going to need a lot of help. Especially with the boys. I'm going to be putting a lot of responsibility on your shoulders. It's not fair, but that's how it is."