Jowls

5 - Advice About Men

Rylee relaxed in her bathtub, the warm water easing her tired muscles and lightening her load by providing some buoyancy to her pregnant weight. The day had been one of her worst and most stressful. She had been yelled at, first by Kurt when she got called away in the morning, then by Mayor Green, then by angry campers, and finally by irate townsfolk.

After leaving Mayor Green, she returned to the park to implement the curfew and closure of the campgrounds. It did not sit well when she and the park rangers circulated to let campers know they were being ejected from the park. Many of them refused to believe the danger and flat out resisted. Once Rylee showed how serious she was by issuing citations, they grudgingly began packing up.

The editor for The Verity Times town newspaper demanded an interview, and it didn't take long until a reporter from the local TV station started calling her cellphone every ten minutes. She guessed Mayor Green had been the one to put the bug in their ears just to pressure her.

Her press release had been necessarily vague. A camper had been attacked and killed in the forest surrounding the park by a wild animal. Until the threat can be more thoroughly assessed and neutralized, nighttime access to the Verity State Park will be closed in the interest of public safety.

All calls she answered with, "No Comment." She had no further information to provide. Director Leary was supposedly tracking down outside expertise, and Rylee hoped help would arrive soon.

On the way home she took two calls, one from the owners of the Verity Bed & Breakfast complaining about how her action caused cancellations. The other call came from the owner of the local diner who berated her about how her action was hurting their business.

Despite the push back, Rylee knew she was doing the right thing.

Another casualty of the day had been dinner. Rylee got home too late. Both Kurt and her sister, Layla, had given her accusatory stares when she entered the house.

"I don't want to hear it," she said before either of them could speak. She marched into the bedroom, closed the door, and had prepared her bath.

There would be a reckoning, Rylee knew. Her husband and sister were owed an explanation, and she needed to be careful not to take out her frustrations on them.

After drying off from her bath, she slipped into loose-fitting sweatpants and a long T-shirt. She took a breath and prepared to face the music. The scent of pizza wafted from the kitchen where she found Kurt and Layla sitting beside each other on stools at the breakfast bar and eating.

Layla smiled, "Hey, sis, let me pull up a stool for you. We have two pies so there's plenty for the three of us." She got up and slid an empty stool around from the opposite side of the bar. Layla took the middle stool and squeezed in close to Kurt.

Rylee sat and grabbed a slice of pizza from the box. She was starving. "I'm sorry about breaking my promise to make dinner. It's been a bitch of a day."

"It's okay." Layla rested a hand on her shoulder. "I'll be here for as long as you need me. I have all summer."

Kurt said nothing, ignored her, and chewed his pizza.

"Thank you, sis. You're the only person today who is showing me any sympathy, and I appreciate it." She reconsidered and mumbled, "Trooper Vince Bartoli was nice to me too." She knew it was a dig at Kurt, bringing up her ex-lover. She watched him for a reaction, hoping he would care enough to say something. He remained silent.

Layla perked up. "I remember Vinnie from high school. A cute guy. The two of you were quite an item. Would you mind if I hooked up with him? That would give me something to do this week."