Chapter 8 #2
“No, I know him better than anyone. I know when he’s lying. It’s not like he doesn’t have opportunity—all those out-of-town trips…events. He’s gone at least a couple of nights a month. Paige, he lied to my face. And now he’s hurt and…I just don’t know what to do.”
“So what happened, how did all this lead to the accident?”
“I said I didn’t want to see him until he was ready to be honest with me. He slept in the living room. I barely slept, but I must have eventually passed out, because I woke up to Shayne calling me.”
“Shayne? What did he have to do with it?” How does Shayne have his fingers in every flipping pot in town?
“He’s the one who found him. After I fell asleep, Andy must have gone down to the barn, had a few beers and then took one of the new stallions out. We think the horse stomped him. Shayne called the ambulance. I have no idea what Andy was thinking, training alone and in the middle of the night.”
A nurse walks up to us just then, and Jo gently hands Kody to me so she can step aside for the update. Kody sits up, groggily rubbing her eyes.
“Where’s Mommy going?” she asks.
“She’s going to talk to the doctors about Daddy, sweet girl. She’ll be back in minute.” I tuck Kody against my side on the chair next to me and try to process everything Jo just said.
I can’t help but think of a moment Andy and I had on their wedding day. Jo had asked me to run inside and grab a blanket for Kody, who was barely a month old at the time. I found Andy in the kitchen, leaning up against the sink, his shoulders shaking.
“Everything okay, Andy?” I asked.
He slowly turned and faced me. A massive smile creased his face as tears flowed freely down his cheeks.
“Pinch me, Paige.”
“Why should I do that?”
“I need to make sure I’m not dreaming. I’ve wanted Jo to be my wife for as long as I can remember.” He chuckled dryly and wiped his eyes on his sleeve. “Took her long enough to feel the same way though, right? I can’t believe it’s finally happening.”
My heart filled with warmth, knowing that my best friend had married someone who clearly loved her as deeply as Andy did. I crossed the kitchen and lightly pinched him on the arm. “Happy now? You should wipe off your face and go and join your family.”
I’m drawn back to the present by the sound of pounding footsteps. A gurney, surrounded on all sides by host of EMTs, is rushed through the automatic doors. A pair of nurses meet them at the double doors that separate the waiting room from the rest of the hospital. The group disappears inside.
Jo emerges seconds later from the same set of doors. She’s wiping her eyes, so I brace myself for whatever news might be coming.
“His collar bone is broken along with several ribs. He’s got a ruptured spleen and he has a bad concussion, but they’ve got him stable, and I’ll be able to see him soon. He’s going to be alright,” she says, and a relieved breath whooshes from my body. I stand and hug her fiercely.
“Mommy, can I see Daddy?” Kody asks, standing up on the chair so she can wrap her tiny arms around us.
“Not yet sweetie, the doctors are finishing up on his surgery, and then he’ll have to sleep for a while to make sure everything heals up. But tomorrow I’m sure you can visit,” Jo says, picking Kody up to sit on her hip.
“Paige, do you think you could take Kody? I know you have to work, but she’d love to hang out in the store. Then you can stay at the ranch together for a couple of days so I can be here? I just want to be nearby in case anything changes.”
“Of course—whatever you need.”
“Kody, Aunt Paige is going to take you back with her.” Kody looks up at me, and the relief on her small face is plain to see. I squeeze her hand reassuringly. No one wants to be stuck in a hospital.
“Let me know if there’s anything else I can do,” I say as Jo stands back up. She scrubs at her face again, the stress of the last several hours evident in the lines etched around her eyes.
“Thank you. I will. I’ll call you when I get any updates.
If you see Shayne at the ranch, please thank him again for me,” Jo says, her breath catching in her throat.
She pulls me to her again for one final hug and whispers in my ear so as not to scare Kody, “Andy wouldn’t have made it if Shayne hadn’t found him. ”
As Kody and I leave the hospital waiting room, I can’t keep my mind from wandering back to what Jo said about the mystery note. Nobody in their right mind actually sends a card like that in the mail. That type of stuff doesn’t happen in real life; it’s something you’d see on television.
Thankfully, the roads have cleared, and the fog has dissipated, despite the sky remaining grey and overcast. My mind runs in circles the entire drive back. By the time I’m parking in front of Pages, an unease has settled into my gut that I can’t shake.
I glance at Kody in the rear-view mirror.
She remained unnaturally quiet for the duration of the trip, and I know the poor girl is overwhelmed beyond belief.
She stares back at me, her giant green eyes haunted and filled with worry.
I cross my eyes and blow out my cheeks, aiming for a smile from her.
I make a conscious effort to swallow down my own worries—I’ll obsess over them later.
Right now, Kody needs Crazy Auntie Paige to distract her with sugar, too much tv, and all the things parents say no to.
“Hey Kody, I’ve got to work at the store for a bit today, but you can hang out in the loft or the backroom and watch as much Bluey as you want today, okay? We’ll get a special treat on the way home.”
“Can I pick what treat it is?” she asks, her voice perking up slightly.
“Absolutely.”
* * *
I situate Kody up in the loft, surrounded by a pile of books for her to lose herself in while I finish tidying up the mess from last night.
It takes me the better part of an hour to get everything sorted, but I finish and officially open the store.
The day flies by thanks to a surprisingly steady stream of customers.
Kody eventually comes down from the loft and even though the offer of unlimited television is tempting, I can see she’d rather not be alone.
I order us pizza for lunch, closing the store for thirty minutes while we eat and play a couple mad dash games of hide and seek. Watching a child is exhausting.
Kody spends the rest of the afternoon glued to my side. Jo FaceTimes to check in just as I’m shutting down the store for the day. They talk for a minute while I finish closing up, and then we make plans for me to drive Kody to the hospital for a visit tomorrow afternoon.
“I’ve got meatballs frozen in the freezer and a boatload of pasta and sauce in the pantry,” Jo says, making an exaggerated face at Kody. Kody giggles, then jumps off the stool she was sitting on to run around screaming nonsense about a pasta boat.
Jo laughs, bolstered by the sound of her kid going ape for noodles.
“How’s Andy holding up?” I ask, quietly.
“He woke up in a lot of pain, but they have him adequately doped up now,” Jo replies, stifling a yawn.
“Well, don’t worry about us. We’re going to make dinner and then paint our toenails. Try to get some sleep,” I say, wishing there was a way to dissolve the dark circles under her eyes with a snap of my fingers.
“Sounds wonderful, wish I was there with you two.”
“Take care of yourself, give Andy a gentle squeeze for me.”
“I will. Love you,” Jo says, then adds in a much louder voice “LOVE YOU KOOKOO FOR KOKO PUFFS!” Kody stops running for a split second to yell back “Love you Mommy!”
* * *
As promised, our trek to the ranch includes a stop for soft serve at the Dairy Queen. Kody, hopped up on sugar, chases Gordy around the house for the half-hour it takes me to get dinner sorted. We eat dinner on the porch, watching the sun set while Kody peppers me with questions:
“What’s the fastest car, Auntie Paige?”
“No clue. Probably something Italian.”
“How big is the biggest tree?”
“Way bigger than me.”
“Why are you taller than my mom?”
“Because she’s a Leprechaun.”
“Have you ever taken a bush wee?”
“What’s a bush wee?”
“A pee in a bush. I think.”
“Oh, absolutely.”
I’m guessing that last question was influenced by her love of a particular Australian cartoon.
Her mind is a vast, colorful landscape, and I’m spinning trying to keep up.
I manage to escape to the bathroom for a minute after promising her a pedicure.
When I return to the porch, nail polish and file in hand, I find her curled up on the settee, Gordy snoring loudly at her feet. I raise my hands in silent celebration.
Fifteen minutes later, Kody is tucked in bed, and I’m back on the porch with a much- deserved glass of wine.
Moths bump up against the porch lights, their fluttering wingbeats the soundtrack to my thoughts.
Beyond the porch lights, the night stretches out to infinity.
It’s a moonless night, and the stars stay hidden behind the thick cloud cover; there isn’t another source of light for miles and miles.
I’m used to isolation at my cabin, but it’s a much cozier feeling being tucked up in the trees.
My cabin feels like part of the landscape.
Here on Jo’s porch, surrounded by undulating hills and vast stretches of prairie, with the universe hanging heavy above, I am nothing but a speck.
A dust mote on a speck. It’s a terrifying thought, really, and it deserves a fortifying chug of wine.
“Fancy some company?” Shayne asks, from just beyond the halo of light. I jump to my feet, knocking my wine glass to the ground in a shatter.
Gordy barely cracks an eyelid despite all the noise.
“Easy there, Banshee,” Shayne says, stepping into the light.
“Jesus, Shayne, why are you always sneaking up on me? Next time, announce yourself, or one of these times I’m going to accidentally shank you!”