Chapter 5 #2
“You look like you haven't eaten carbs in a year.”
“Six months, actually.” He grinned, and for a moment she saw the little brother who used to follow her around, wanting to help with everything. “Where's Dani?”
“Getting her nails done at the Harbor Hotel.”
“She's not staying here?”
“It's complicated.”
Everything was complicated. By the time the four siblings gathered in the kitchen, Kate pretended it was like the old days.
Dani arrived with wine, Tom made coffee, James found Marcy's cookies, and for a moment it felt like childhood, the Perkins kids raiding the kitchen while their parents were busy elsewhere.
“Remember when Mom used to make us sit at this table for family meetings?” James said, dunking a cookie. “Usually when one of us was in trouble.”
“Usually when Dani was in trouble,” Tom corrected.
“I was spirited,” Dani protested.
“You were a pain,” Kate said, but with affection.
They were dancing around the reason they were here, everyone aware of the weight waiting to fall. Finally, Tom set down his coffee with his lawyer's decisiveness.
“We need to talk about Pop.”
The warmth drained from the room. Kate felt her defenses rising. “What about him?”
“He needs more care than you can provide.”
“I'm managing.”
“No, you're not.” Dani's voice was gentle but firm. “Katie, he's wandering at night. He doesn't recognize us half the time. He's forgetting medications.”
“That's why I manage them for him,” Kate answered.
“What happens when you're not here?” James asked. “When you're dealing with guests or repairs or…”
“I'm always here. That's the point.”
“That's the problem,” Tom said. “You can't do this alone anymore. Not to mention, you need a life.”
“I have a life. Just because it doesn’t look like yours doesn’t mean it isn’t a life.”
“Seriously, Katie?” Tom responded.
Kate looked at her siblings, their concerned faces, their clean clothes and stable lives. They didn't understand what it meant to be needed like this, to be the only thing standing between Pop and complete deterioration.
“So what are you suggesting? That we put him in a home?”
“That we get him professional help,” Tom said. “In-home care. Nurses who know how to handle dementia.”
“With what money?”
The siblings exchanged glances, and Kate knew what was coming.
“Lillian's offered to pay for everything,” Dani said. “Full-time care, the best doctors, whatever he needs.”
“In exchange for what?”
“Nothing,” Tom said, but he wouldn't meet her eyes.
“There's always something.”
“She wants to be part of the family,” James said quietly. “Whatever time she has left, she wants to spend it with us. With Pop.”
Kate stood abruptly, the chair scraping against the floor. Through the window, she could see Ben still working on the roof, steady and reliable. She wished she could climb up there with him, hammer nails into wood, solve problems that had actual solutions.
“Pop doesn't want her here,” Kate said.
“Pop doesn't know what he wants half the time,” Tom said, then caught himself. “I'm sorry. That was…”
“True,” Kate finished. “It was true.”
They sat with that truth for a moment, its weight settling over them like snow.
“What does Pop say?” James asked. “On his good days?”
Kate thought about this morning, Pop making eggs, teasing her about Ben. Then she thought about yesterday, Pop bleeding from broken china, calling Dani by their mother's name.
“He says different things on different days.”
“Then we have to decide for him,” Tom said. “That's what family does.”
“What Mom would want us to do,” Dani added.
Kate wanted to argue, wanted to fight, but she was so tired. Tired of holding everything together, tired of pretending things would get better, tired of being the only one who stayed.
“I need some air,” she said.
Outside, the cold was sharp and clean. She walked to the edge of the property, where the land sloped down toward the harbor. Ben appeared beside her, a tentative smile on his face.
“Family meeting not going well?”
“That obvious?”
“You look like you're planning an escape route.”
She almost smiled. “Any suggestions?”
“Well, the harbor's frozen, so can't steal a boat. Roads are clear though. Could make a run for Canada.”
“Tempting.”
They stood together, looking out at the view. The harbor was mostly frozen, ice extending from the shore like white fingers reaching for the boats moored farther out.
“My family wanted me to sell my grandfather's business,” Ben said suddenly. “After he died. Said it wasn't profitable enough, that I should take a corporate job, be sensible.”
“But you didn't.”
“No. Because some things are worth more than profit.” He turned to look at her. “But Katie, accepting help isn't the same as giving up.”
“Isn't it?”
“No. It's just admitting you're human.”
Before she could respond, her phone rang. Brian from the bank.
“Kate, I'm sorry to call on Sunday, but there's been a development. The board met in emergency session. They're accelerating the timeline.”
Her stomach dropped. “What does that mean?”
“You have two weeks. I'm so sorry. I tried to stall them, but with the missed payments...”
“Two weeks.”
“Unless you can show proof of new funding. Then they might reconsider.”
“Thanks, Brian.” Kate hung up and stood there, phone in her hand, the world tilting around her. Two weeks. The inn would be gone in two weeks.
“Kate?” Ben's voice seemed to come from far away. “What's wrong?”
“The bank. They're calling the loan. Two weeks.”
She heard the words come out of her mouth but couldn't quite connect them to reality. Two weeks to save everything or lose it all.
“Come on,” Ben said, taking her arm gently. “Let's get you inside.”
Her siblings were still in the kitchen, their conversation stopping when they saw her face.
“The bank's calling the loan,” she said. “Two weeks.”
The silence that followed was deafening. Then everyone talked at once, Tom pulling out his phone to call lawyer friends, James asking about legal options, Dani saying this proved they needed Lillian's help.
Kate sank into a chair and let their voices wash over her.
Two weeks to save the inn. Two weeks to save Pop's home. Two weeks to decide if pride was worth more than survival.
“Call her,” Kate heard herself say.
The room went quiet.
“What?” Dani asked.
“Call Lillian. Tell her...” Kate paused, the words like stones in her throat. “Tell her we'll take the money.”