Miss Brigham set Mr. Delgado in the shade of the church's front steps. In part she did this to keep him cool, but also because it allowed her to sit on the step and talk to him. "How did you come to be on Eternity, Mr. Delgado?"
"Hector, please."
"Yes, of course. Hector." She savored each syllable of his name. The Bible said it was wrong to lust after anyone, but after five years surrounded by only children, Miss Brigham couldn't help herself. On top of that, Hector was so handsome: his rugged face, his rippling chest, his bulging muscles. Not even Reverend Crane had been so handsome, or so strong.
The only imperfection was that awful tube in his mouth. Her stomach churned as some of the smoke blew into her face. She fought down the nausea; she knew it would not be ladylike to vomit in front of him. How could he enjoy something so vile?
He blew out another cloud of smoke and then said, "I was fishing when that storm hit. Blew me all the way here, onto the beach."
"Oh dear. Your family must be so worried about you." She didn't see a wedding ring on his finger, but he might have lost that in the storm.
"I don't have any family left. Except for Lucy."
"Lucy? Is that your wife?"
He laughed at this and shook his head. "No, I ain't the marrying kind, trust me. Lucy is my niece. The one you call Samantha."
"Samantha is your niece?"
"That's right. I'd given up all hope of ever seeing her again and then I wake up on my boat and there she is. Damnedest thing I ever saw."
"It's the Lord at work. He has brought you together." Miss Brigham smiled. "Now I see the purpose of the storm. He wanted to bring you here to be reunited with your niece."
"He could have done that without destroying your town, couldn't he?"
"Yes, but perhaps He has something else in mind. Perhaps it is time for us to leave this place, to go to the mainland with you."
"That's a good thought. My house is a bit small for all of you, though."
"I'm sure we can manage."
"Don't any of you have family back on the mainland?"
Miss Brigham shook her head. "Our families have been dead for quite some time. Except for Samantha, of course."
"You mean all these kids are orphans?"
"I'm afraid so, Hector. I'm all they have now that Reverend Crane and Mr. Pryde are dead."
"That's awful." He blew another cloud of smoke that nearly made her gag. "Social services will have a bitch of a time finding foster homes for all of them."