Chapter Six #2
After they'd gone, his dad looked at his armchair before looking down at himself. He made an attempt to dust off some more of the glitter, then removed his denim shirt to reveal a white T-shirt underneath. Giving Reaves a rueful smile, he lowered himself stiffly into the chair.
"I was hoping not to spread this stuff around everywhere, but I'm afraid my need for comfort is greater than my desire for a glitter-free armchair."
Reaves chuckled. "Are you okay? You didn't spend the whole time on the floor, did you?"
"I did, and I'll pay for it. But it was worth every moment. That child…" He shook his head with a smile. "She's quite a character." His smile faded. "How did it go?"
Reaves went to sit in the other armchair. "I really don't know."
His dad frowned. "She didn't tell you anything?"
"All she said is that she had to have some bloodwork done, and she'll need to go back in a week."
His dad nodded. "That sounds fairly standard, doesn't it? Where did you take her?"
"You're not going to believe this. It wasn't my suggestion. She chose herself, from the doctors in her network. And she chose Henry."
His dad smiled. "Really? That's good. Henry will take good care of her." He nodded. "I'll have a word and make sure he does."
"Do you think you should? I mean…"
His dad sat back in his chair. "I was about to say, of course I should, but…
no. Perhaps you're right. We're doing all that we can for her, but I understand.
A young woman in her position needs to feel as though she has her autonomy.
" He paused. "How did she feel about him being a friend of the family? "
"I didn't mention it."
"Why not?"
"I don't know, Dad. I think I felt the same way you did. I didn't want her to feel as though we're overshadowing everything she does."
"But isn't that all the more reason to tell her? I think she'd feel… a little betrayed. If she were to find out, and we weren't the ones to tell her."
"You're right." Reaves's shoulders sagged. He prided himself on being honest and straightforward. And yet here he was, caught in—perhaps not another white lie, but something that would no doubt feel like a lie to Alara, even if it was only by omission.
"You should tell her as soon as possible."
He glanced back toward the door. He could hardly go and tell her now.
"I'm sure tomorrow will be soon enough. Zia said that the three of you are going over to Ollie's place."
"Yeah, that's right. Do you have any plans for the weekend?"
His dad gave him a wry smile. "Henry and I are having drinks at the club on Sunday. I feel as though I should let Alara know that before I go."
"Yeah, probably. Hopefully she won't feel too weird about it."
"Perhaps she'll find it reassuring that she chose well. Henry's a good man, and we can vouch for him."
Reaves nodded, hoping that she would see it that way.
"And she didn't give you any indication of what the tests were for?"
He shook his head. "I think she was about to, but then… our food came. And…" He rubbed a hand over his face. "I thought she wanted to come back here so she wasn't leaving Zia with you for too long. But then…"
His dad shook his head slowly. "She needed to be with her daughter."
"Yeah. I figured that out." He met his dad's gaze. "And did you see Zia with her when we got back?"
His dad let out a breath. "I did. That little girl may appear to be a small whirlwind of mischief and glitter much of the time. But she's wise beyond her years. She wants to care for her mom."
"Yeah. But the thing that gets me is that she's just as afraid as Alara is."
"I saw that too. I was hoping you hadn't."
"I saw it. It was hard to miss."
His dad was quiet for a moment. "Let's just hope it turns out that there's nothing to be so afraid of."
~ ~ ~
Zia stepped out of the shower, and Alara wrapped her in a towel, hugging her to her chest.
Zia snuggled against her. "Aren't these the softest, fluffiest towels in all the world?"
"They sure are." Alara had noticed it too. It seemed like everything here at the estate was doing its best to make them both feel comfortable and at home.
She closed her eyes briefly. This wasn't home, and she needed to remember it. Sooner or later, she and Zia would need to move on.
A thought flashed into her mind that made her hold on to Zia a little tighter. She'd gladly go back to living in the camper if she just got to go on living.
Zia wriggled away from her. "Are you okay, Mom? Are you ready to take a nap now?"
Alara pulled herself together. She couldn't start thinking about not being around anymore.
She wouldn't. It was just fear talking. On the drive home, she'd replayed her conversation with Dr. Ambrose over and over in her head.
He hadn't said there was anything wrong with her.
She knew she was doing it to herself. She was dreading the worst-case scenario.
"Let's get you dried first, okay? Then we'll see how we feel about a nap. Although—did you and Grandpa Grape have lunch?"
"We did. Mrs. Faye made us these cute little sandwiches. And we had strawberries and blueberries for dessert." Her little smile faded. "Did you eat, Mom?"
"No, but we got some lunch and brought it home. And Grady sent something for you."
"That was kind. I like him. He's a good daddy to Ava." She paused. "Did you know he's not really her daddy?"
"Oh, that's right." Her voice caught as she remembered. "He's her uncle. But he adopted her so that he can be her dad."
She had to turn away and squeeze her eyes shut against the sting behind them. Becca had told her that Grady adopted his niece after her mom—his sister—died.
"Are you okay, Mom? Should we go and get you the lunch you brought home?"
She inhaled deeply before blowing it out slowly. "Yeah, we should." She forced a smile. "And we'll see what Grady sent for you as well."
"Maybe I can go and play with Ava again one day soon."
"Yeah. We'll figure something out."