35. Rex
THIRTY-FIVE
REX
All was quiet at the station when I first arrived—with the exception of the crew hollering at the TV. Football was on the box, and the game was close. Just as I was settling in, we got a call. Someone’s fire alarm system had gone off, and no one was home.
We rushed downstairs, got into our gear, and loaded into the truck. The anticipation of what was to come was just the distraction I needed. Between my conversation with Donny, my lingering guilt about snapping at my mom, and everything that had happened with Abigail, I’d had a hard time tuning out my thoughts.
The call turned out to be a false alarm, which was a good thing. At the same time, it left me to my thoughts again as we loaded back in and headed back for the station. We were only a few blocks from the house we’d just left when we got another call .
“What’s the situation?” I asked the dispatcher over the radio.
“Someone’s cat is stuck in a tree. It’s nearby. Can you stop over and help ’em out?”
A cat stuck in a tree. How cute was that. I smiled and glanced at the guys. “You guys up for it?” They all shrugged and said why not? We were already out anyway.
“What’s the address?” I asked, then listened as she rattled off an address on Persimmon Road.
Wait a second. That was Abigail’s house. And that had to mean it was Winston stuck in a tree. My stomach tightened thinking about how distraught Abigail must’ve been. And then it tightened some more at the thought of seeing her.
My lungs constricted, and even the familiar steel-and-rubber scent of the fire engine couldn’t calm my nerves. My girl needed me, even though she might not agree with the fact that she was my girl or that she needed me. I sounded the sirens and hit the gas with my heavy boot. In less than four minutes, we’d pulled up to the scene. Sophie waited at the curb and waved us over. “Where’s Winston?” I called out, running toward her.
She blinked at me. “Rex? I thought you’d be taking time off after this weekend.”
“Where’s Winston? Is Abigail okay? Do I smell smoke?”
“Maybe you should get back in the fire truck,” Sophie said, shoving at my shoulder.
“Hang on. Stop. You called us about a cat. It’s Winston, isn’t it?”
She sighed, then pointed over to the old oak tree. “He’s up there and he won’t come down. I think he’s scared.”
I looked ahead. The scene glowed in the streetlight. Abigail stood at the base of the trunk, her arms folded in, looking really shaken up. “Thanks, Sophie.”
My heart stuttered. Abigail looked drawn and tired, like she hadn’t slept in a week. Squinting against the bright headlights shining from the fire truck, Abigail recognized me and scowled. “Rex? What are you doing here?”
“Got the call about your cat.” I pointed up.
“Of course you did,” she mumbled. “Here to save the day again, huh.” Her face was red and blotchy like she’d been crying. I hated seeing her like that. I wanted to pull her into my arms and comfort her, let her know I was here and it would be okay.
But I didn’t have that right. I’d turned my back on her when Gabe showed up here and asked me to leave, and then again when I’d run off to try to save Donny’s future. I’d lost the privilege of holding her in my arms. My chest felt hollow, my fingers twitching with the need to go to her.
I cleared my throat and asked, “How long’s he been up there?”
“Not long,” she answered, not looking at me. The light shone on her jaw, her neck. She was so beautiful it hurt to look at her, so I shifted my gaze to the leafy tree. Abigail’s voice was small when she said, “He won’t come down. I don’t know what to do.”
I looked up, spotting his glowing cat eyes in the dark.
Behind me, the guys carried the ladder, but I couldn’t wait. I got up on a stepladder the girls had placed by the tree and jumped as high as I could, latching on to the lowest branch. “Don’t worry. I got him,” I called below, scraping my boots against the trunk to get more leverage. I hoisted myself up on the branch and climbed up toward the cat.
He groaned at me, balancing on his furry little feet.
“C’mere, Winston,” I said softly. “Abigail’s worried about you.”
Winston meowed back as if he understood exactly what I was saying. Only, I couldn’t totally interpret his communication. He took two steps toward me and I reached for him.
“Ladder’s here, Rex!” one of the guys called up. Winston and I looked down, and the cat yowled and backed off toward the edge of the high branch, way out of arm’s reach.
“No ladder!” I called down, and they backed off. “Okay, no ladders,” I said, turning back to Winston. “Now, c’mon. Let’s get you back home.”
The cat glanced at the ground then back at me. He didn’t move an inch, just glared.
Of course he wasn’t going to make this easy. He wasn’t exactly my biggest fan—and he was Abigail’s cat. She’d choose a pet just like her. Hard on the outside, but sensitive underneath. I settled back, eyed the cat, and in a calm voice, I said, “So I guess you know what happened between me and Abigail, huh?”
Winston replied with a low groan.
“I messed up. I know I did. I put everyone ahead of her. I tried to fix mistakes that had nothing to do with me. Instead of taking care of the one person who mattered, I ran around trying to take care of everyone else.”
Winston settled in and licked his paw like he couldn’t care less about getting out of that tree.
Glancing down, I met Abigail’s gaze. “I should have stood up for Abigail because that’s what she deserves, and she shouldn’t have to put on a brave face on her own all the time. I wish I could go back in time and change the way I acted so she knew just how much she means to me.”
Her eyes were dark, and she hugged herself at the base of the tree. For a moment, I thought she was hearing me. Really hearing me. Then she dropped her gaze and closed her eyes, and my ribs tightened.
Maybe there really was no way to come back from this. Maybe Abigail and I were done as quickly as we’d come together. The thought made me want to scream.
But I had a cat to save. I turned back to Winston and took a deep breath. I’d been around him enough to know that the real way to his heart was through his stomach. So I called down to Abigail. “Abigail, do you still have my duffel bag?”
She paused. “Uhm. Yes?”
I peered down through the branches. “I bought cat treats and stashed them in the side pocket. Can you get them?”
Without a word, she ran toward the side gate. Odd. Not the fastest way to get in the house, but okay.
I settled in on the branch. “Winston, your mama’s going to get your favorite treats.” He looked up like he was listening for a moment before he began licking his other paw. He seemed aloof now, but once I opened that bag, I was sure he’d come running.
“Got ’em!” Abigail called up. Abigail’s tongue stuck out of the side of her mouth as she bent her knees and sprang up, using the momentum to heave the treats upward.
I reached out and caught them, the foil packaging crinkled in my fist. “Got it, thanks!”
“Rex, you gotta get him down!” she cried.
“I will. I promise.” Abigail deserved for me to do the right thing, for once, even if it was only for her cat. “Okay, Mr. Winston. How would you like a little snack? I know you’re hungry.” That cat was always hungry. I opened the bag and offered a soft, triangle-shaped treat.
He tiptoed forward, leading with his nose. Even in the dark, I could see his whiskers vibrating. Oh yeah, I had him. He’d be eating out of the palm of my hand in no time.
Expecting him to jump into my arms, I watched him stop just short of my reach. Uh-oh, if food wouldn’t work, then what would? His branch was small, and I was worried if I ventured onto it, a bad situation would turn into a terrible situation. For both of us.
“Come on. You’ll love these treats. They’re salmon flavored,” I said, and he let out a soft meow. “She’s worried about you down there because she loves you. You love her too, right?” He meowed again. I dropped my voice low enough that the only one to hear me would be the cat. “Yeah, I love her too.” My throat tightened. The words hurt to say, because I knew I’d never get over them. I’d fallen hard for Abigail, and then I’d ruined it. But I wouldn’t ruin this. I smiled at Winston. “So what do you say? Can we go back to her now?” I offered the entire bag of treats because I’d tried everything else.
He stared at me for another moment, and I was sure he was going to stand his ground. Or rather, his branch. But he put one paw in front of the other and walked over, sticking his head in the open bag. I grabbed him and held him close, breathing a sigh of relief. He kept his head tucked in the foil bag, and I felt it move as he gobbled up the treats.
Some of the tension inside me eased, relief sweeping through me. I chuckled. Winston was a funny guy—when he wasn’t pooping in my shoes or peeing on my blanket.
“Got him!” I secured him in one arm and used my other to track back. “Send up the ladder.”
Moments later, the top of the ladder was just below my feet. I held him tight and proceeded carefully down. The second my boot touched the dry ground, Abigail grabbed him out of my arms and pressed him firmly to her chest. She ripped the treat bag off his head and ignored his angry yowl.
“Winston! I thought I lost you forever!”
My heart swelled seeing Abigail reunited with her cat. She snuggled with him, in her own world, and I watched the way her fingers sank into his fur and the lines on her face relaxed.
I wished I could do that for her. I wished I still had the right to touch her, to tell her how special she was, to make her feel good again.
But when she looked up and straightened, her eyes shuttering, I knew that what had once existed between us was still broken—maybe beyond repair.