Chapter 2
Dr. Hannah Fielding had just finished up an unprecedented thirty-seven-hour shift at Hilton Head Hospital.
Pitching her body forward into the wind, she made her way to her car, her scrubs wet and plastered to her body.
The microscope she carried was heavy in her arms. She was bone-tired, a weariness like she’d never before experienced suddenly replacing the adrenaline rush that had kept her going for the last day and a half.
She’d been responsible for the well-being of every patient in that hospital, for getting them transferred somewhere inland capable of weathering the storm that could handle each person’s individual problems. She sighed heavily.
Director Patel should have taken on more responsibility, but instead he’d placed it all firmly in Hannah’s lap.
And while she was proud of everything she’d accomplished at work, she was overwhelmed by her own lack of preparedness at home for the storm that had been growing outside the hospital windows.
She had to get to her son, Brady. Guilt clawed at her for leaving him with her in-laws for so long, but what choice did she have? Her phone was full of messages and voice mails from her mother-in-law, Theresa, not-so-patiently waiting for her to leave work.
The rain pelted her face and body, a moment’s weakness making her wish so desperately her life had turned out differently.
If she’d known she was going to be a single mother, she never would’ve gone to medical school.
Joe had encouraged her, even after she had the baby, but it wasn’t a job that let her be there for her son, and now she was all he had.
The close crack of thunder made her jump. She hated storms and would have liked nothing better than to evacuate during this one. But she was a healer, her occupation requiring she run toward danger instead of away from it.
Just let me get Brady home safely. That’s all I ask.
She envisioned empty grocery store shelves and cursed as she climbed into her little car. She was sure she had enough dry and canned goods to get them through, but the window of opportunity to buy bread and milk had long since passed.
The dashboard lit. She had less than a quarter tank of gas.
Great.
Enough to make it to her in-laws’ house across the island and back home, but talk about being unprepared for a disaster. She wanted to cry, fatigue bearing down, but didn’t have the energy to waste on self-pity.
All she had to do was stand her ground, camp out in the condo she shared with Brady while Oscar passed overhead, and hope for the best. She drove slowly through the empty streets of Hilton Head, the roads littered with branches, until she pulled into the circular drive of her in-laws’ house and ran to the door.
Back in the day they had loved her.
Joe’s parents had welcomed her into their family with open arms. Theresa in particular had been wonderful, so proud of her new daughter-in-law, the doctor.
But their dynamic had become terribly strained after Joe died, with Theresa becoming more and more critical of Hannah and the choices she made raising Brady.
They loved their grandson and took good care of him, and for that Hannah was grateful. And if it meant she was on the receiving end of a lot of flack from her mother-in-law on a regular basis, then she would take Theresa’s snide remarks with a smile to keep her son happy.
Theresa pulled the door open as if she’d been standing there, waiting for Hannah to arrive, which she probably had. “I was starting to think we wouldn’t have time to evacuate. We almost decided to go and bring Brady with us.”
She wouldn’t take the bait. “I’m here now.”
“The eye wall is only forty miles offshore, Hannah. You could have given us a little more time.”
“The patients—”
“Oh, leave her alone, Theresa.” She turned to her father-in-law, Tom, his features so much like Joe’s she sometimes found it hard to look at him. Brady was right on his heels. “Mama!”
She dropped down to his height and opened her arms, her heart seeming to take a deep breath as her sweet little boy pressed against her.
She kissed his hair, smelling his head. He was hers.
The most important thing in her life now and forever, and she wondered again if she should find a different career.
But she was in so much debt from Joe’s company — start-up debt that he would’ve dealt with over time had he lived — she couldn’t afford to take a position that paid less than her current one.
They hadn’t gotten around to increasing his life insurance since he opened shop—a stupid mistake that made his death that much more difficult to deal with. They’d been so busy, him trying to get the new company up and running before he’d even quit his job at the hospital.
“Brady, baby. I missed you so much. Were you good for Grandma and Grandpa?”
“We played Play-Doh and made forts.”
He had chocolate around his mouth, and she dabbed at it with her thumb. “Sounds like fun.”
“I missed you.” He tucked his head under her chin. “How come you have to work all the time?”
Five years old already. Where had the time gone? She was missing her son growing up and she felt like the worst mother in the world.
It’s just because you’ve been at the hospital so much this week, getting ready for the hurricane. It’s not always this bad.
“I don’t suppose you got to the grocery store?” asked Theresa.
Touché. If Hannah kept a list of everything she hadn’t done to get ready for the hurricane, she’d have one hell of a stack of paper. “We’ll be okay.”
Teresa shook her head. “You should come with us. There’s plenty of room in the RV and it isn’t safe for you to stay here.”
“I need to be close to the hospital in case they reopen. My place will be fine. It has hurricane glass and everything.”
“But the storm surge alone is going to be fifteen feet. You don’t understand what that’s going to do to the island, Hannah.”
“The building is steel. It’s more than sound enough to weather the storm, and I can wait out the storm surge as long as I need to. Please, let’s not fight about this again.” She moved to the table and dug through Brady’s bag, looking to see if he had everything. “Where’s Mr. Bojangles?”
“In my room,” said Brady, who went upstairs to grab his stuffed bear.
Theresa crossed her arms over her chest. “It isn’t safe for him to stay here.”
“We’ll be fine.”
“But—”
“Stop.” Hannah held up her hand. “Just stop.”
Theresa inhaled loudly. The women faced off.
Tom cleared his throat. “We should get a move on.”
“I just need to finish up a few things, then we can be on our way,” said Theresa. She left the room.
Tom opened his arms and Hannah gratefully stepped into them. “She’s just worried about you,” he said. “She loves you. You know we both do, honey.”
“I know.” She pulled back.
“Be safe. Call us if you need anything.”
“The phones probably won’t be working.”
“That’s right.”
“How far are you going?”
“Up to Richmond. They still don’t know which way Oscar’s heading, and Theresa doesn’t want to have to move again once we get settled.”
“Smart.”
Brady ran back downstairs. “Guess what, Mom? The weatherman said we might even get a tornado.”
She inwardly cringed. “Wow, that’s exciting. Say good-bye to Grandma and Grandpa. We’ve got to get home before the storm comes.”
She settled Brady in his booster seat.
“I can do it myself,” he complained.
She climbed back into her car, the water falling off her body like she’d just turned off the shower head. She felt better now that he was with her, her shoulders relaxed and her soul much calmer. She could deal with anything as long as she had her son by her side.
Through the rain-slicked glass, she saw her in-laws loading the last of their belongings into the camper.
You should go with them.
The thought caught her off guard.
It would be so easy to change her mind, to gather up Brady and his things and let Theresa and Tom drive them away from this place, leaving the storm behind. It would feel nice to be taken care of, to know she was safe without needing to slay any dragons herself. She wouldn’t need to be afraid.
She wouldn’t need to be alone.
Her in-laws climbed into the RV and closed the doors, the brake lights shining in her eyes. She started her car.
“I love you, Mama.”
“I love you too, sweetie.” She backed out of the driveway.
Her condo was seven miles across town back by the hospital and tonight those miles were harrowing.
She couldn’t remember ever seeing the island so deserted, and she found herself again questioning her decision to stay.
It seemed everyone with any sense had left Hilton Head Island in their dust, leaving Hannah and her little son alone to face the storm.
She thought of the tornadoes Brady mentioned and shuddered.
The last thing I need right now is a freaking tornado.
Her shoulders were stiff and tight from driving through debris when she saw the lights of the corner store where she bought coffee on her way to work. With a grateful sigh she pulled into the parking lot. A big hand-painted sign read no gas.
Oh, well. Maybe she’d get lucky and find milk after all.
“Can I get gum?” asked Brady.
He sounded so cheerful, so childish, so unconcerned with the doubts that plagued her, and she loved him so much in that moment she felt her heart might burst. This was fun to him, an adventure, and she decided to do her best to play it off that way.
“Sure you can, baby.” She unbuckled her seat belt, turning to face him with a smile. “Are you ready to get wet?”