“I swear to you, Jewelann, I’m going to take care of you and Eli. And you’re going to take care of me. Right? That’s how it’ll be.”

“Of course I’ll take care of you.”

He burrows deeper, his breathing slowing, and I wonder how he could possibly fall asleep in the midst of all this drama. Then he snores, and I push him gently away from me so I can turn on my side with my back to him.

I’m going to take care of him all right.

“The money will be there later this week,” Ken told me when I asked him again about the direct deposit that hasn’t shown up. Again. “I’m on it, honey. Trust me.”

I’m not sure I can.

He’s home for two days before he tells me he’s going back out on the road. We fight in low whispers about calling a plumber again to fix the drains that backed up again after Ken did several loads of laundry in a row, although I’d warned him not to. The basement stinks. The dryer thump-thumps with his clothes in it. There’s still a load in the washer.

“The last guy said it was probably tree roots growing into them,” I tell him.

“So hire someone to yank them out. Dig up the whole stupid system back there.” Ken puts his hands on his hips. I see Christian in that stance. “Call the city, find out what it takes to get hooked up to the city sewer, for the love of Pete, Jewelann.”

“With what? You haven’t been paid in two months!” I shoot back at him. I’m no longer worried about mollifying him. Shit, as they say, has been getting real. Literally.

“My bonus—”

“They want fifteen grand to hook us up,” I cut in, voice flat. “Anyway, the bonus is almost gone. You need to get your paycheck.”

His eyes narrow. “What happened to it?”

“A giant television set.” My phone catches in my jeans pocket, but I tug it free. I pull up the credit card app and bring up the most recent charges. I hold up the phone to face him. “Going to corn mazes? Pumpkin patches? Haunted hayrides? With who, Ken? If you’re supposed to be on the road, traveling, who are you taking to all these places?”

His look of utter disdain is meant to knock me back, put me in my place, but I won’t let it.

“All of those places need point-of-sale systems, Jewelann. They need someone who knows how to set them up and maintain them, just like any other business.” He shakes his head, eyes sad, lower lip almost trembling. “To think you didn’t have faith in me. Your husband. I told you I’d always take care of you and Eli. Didn’t I?”

I let him embrace me, although my body stays stiff and unyielding. “But you’re not taking care of us.”

A long silence fills the space between us as Ken stares at me. Slowly at his sides, his fingers curl and press into his palms, making fists. He draws in a breath.