30. Frannie
I stoodthere after Evan walked away, not knowing what to do or how to react. I’d never seen him blow up like that before, and even though I knew it was his pride and his ego that were bruised, his words still hurt. He hobbled away, assisted by Miller. I wanted to follow him but also didn’t want to make things worse, especially in public.
Charice came up and put an arm around my shoulder. “Are you okay, Frannie?”
“I don”t know,” I told her honestly.
“Let”s get you back to the finish line,” she said. “If you don”t want to stick around and hand out the medals, I can do that for you.”
I shook my head. “No, Evan was right about one thing. I should be the one to hand out the medals and recognize everyone for their fundraising efforts.”
I tightened my grip on Pete the Dog’s leash and set my shoulders back, ready to finish the job I”d set out to do. Not only had Andrew won the race and set a new record, he’d also come in as the top fundraiser, beating Evan by over five-thousand dollars. I wasn”t sure how he”d done it or why he’d been so motivated to help in a new town where he didn”t have any stakes in raising money for the school. Based on what I knew about him, that was just the kind of person he was. Evan might harbor a lifelong resentment against anyone whose last name happened to be Stewart, but I”d like to think I could keep a more open mind.
Andrew smiled back as I handed him the medal. “Would it be inappropriate for me to ask for a hug?”
“Of course not.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him back. The reason I’d ended things with him had nothing to do with him and everything to do with me and Evan. Andrew was a nice guy, and I hoped that he would find someone who could set his soul on fire like Evan did for me.
Once everyone had finished the race and we broke down the registration tables, the awards table, and everything else, I realized Evan had driven me to the race and I had no way to get home. Charice had left early to get to a family function, so as I looked around, I wasn”t sure who I could ask for a ride.
Silas Stewart was one of the only people left. I cautiously made my way over to him, hoping that he would be willing to do a favor for someone he probably considered more enemy than a friend. Pete the Dog greeted him first, nudging his nose straight into Silas”s crotch. It seemed to be a bad habit of his—one we’d have to work on overcoming.
“Whoa, hey there, buddy.” Silas scratched behind Pete the Dog”s ears, then looked up to see me right behind him. “Hey, Frannie. Good race today. We had a nice turnout, don”t you think?”
“Yeah, I couldn”t have asked for a better day for it.”
He was being polite and saying the right words, but I could tell by the way his eyes softened at the edges that he, along with everyone else who”d been in attendance today, had seen what went down between me and Evan.
“What”s the school going to do with all that extra money you raised?”
“We”ve got a lot of kids who need extra school supplies and it”s also going to allow us to plan a few more field trips. You wouldn”t believe how much it costs by the time you rent buses for a couple hundred kids.”
“That”s great. It”s always nice to see everybody come out in support of a single effort.”
I offered a tentative smile, hoping I wasn’t about to overstep.“Speaking of everyone pitching together, would you be open to me asking for a small favor?”
“Sure, what do you need?” he asked.
“Seems like I don”t have a way to get home. I was wondering if you might be kind enough to give me and Pete the Dog here a ride?”
The tension in his shoulders seemed to relax just a little when he realized I wasn”t going to ask for a major request. “Sure, no problem. My truck’s parked just over here.”
I followed him over to where he”d left his truck, waving and thanking the few people that were still tearing things down along the way. Silas opened the door for me and the back door for Pete the Dog. Once we’d all buckled in, he started up the truck and looked at me.
“Just one question for you, Frannie. Where do you want me to take you?”
That”s when I realized I didn”t have a home to go to. My house was still at least a week and a half or two weeks away from being inhabitable, and all my belongings were at Evan’s. The two of us definitely needed to talk, but I wanted to give him a little bit of time to cool off. For the first time in my life, I had nowhere to go.
Tears welled in my lower lids, and my chest tightened. I bit down on my lower lip and tried to figure out who I could ask for another favor. I was really racking them up, and I”d probably spend the rest of my life trying to pay them back.
“Um,” I said, trying to buy a little time.
“You could always go to the distillery,” Silas said. “Or I can drop you off anywhere in town.”
I thought about my dad”s place, but they wouldn”t allow dogs. I supposed I could sit outside in the courtyard with Pete the Dog, but the forecast for later on this afternoon called for rain. The easy thing to do would be to go back to the house and get my car, but I wasn”t ready to face Evan yet.
“Just a second,” I said to Silas. Then I pulled up my phone and shot off a quick text to Ruby. She responded right away and told me she was wrapping things up for a private party at the distillery, but to head to her place and she”d give me the code to the garage.
“Can you take me to Ruby’s?” I asked Silas.
“Yep. No problem.” He pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward the north side of town. All the Bishops lived within a five-mile radius of the distillery, which made it easy for them to get back and forth to work and also made it feel like they were a tight-knit family.
Silas pulled into the drive and was about to get out, probably to open my door.
“I”ve got this. You”ve done enough already. Thanks so much for the ride.”
He nodded. “Are you going to be alright, Frannie?”
“Yes,” I said with more conviction than I actually felt. “Everything”s going to be fine.”
I opened up the back door and Pete the Dog bounded out and across the driveway. I looked up in time to see a squirrel race across the street and up a tree in the neighbor’s front yard. Today couldn”t be a day where Pete the Dog listened.
I dropped my purse in the front yard and raced across the street after him as he jumped up on his hind legs and scratched at the trunk of the tree.
“Stop it.” I lunged for his leash.
Silas joined in the chase and within a few minutes, we had Pete the Dog cornered between the house and the neighbor’s chain-link fence. When he realized there was no hope of escape, Pete the Dog sat down and wagged his tail, his way of apologizing. I grabbed him by the collar and secured his leash on my wrist, chastising myself for being so careless in the first place.
As Silas and I walked back across the street, Ruby pulled up. She got out of the car, looking like a million bucks. “Oh, Frannie, there you are. I thought for sure you’d beat me here and be settled inside by the time I got home.”
“We had a little trouble with the dog.” I glared down at Pete the Dog, hoping he”d be able to sense my anger and disappointment.
“Are you all good now?” Silas asked.
“Yes, thank you so much for the ride.” He might be a Stewart, but Silas seemed to have a good heart.
“Take care, Frannie. I hope things work out for you the way they”re supposed to.” He offered a shy smile to Ruby as he rounded the front of his truck. “See you at the distillery.”
“Yeah, see you around,” Ruby said as she caught up to me. “What the heck is going on? I had a call from Miller, then my mom beeped in, and even Cole left a message. They said Evan fell at the race. Is he okay? Why aren”t you with him?”
I held on to her arm to steady myself as we made our way into the house. Tears threatened, stinging the backs of my eyelids like thousands of tiny needles. I was hanging on by a fraying thread. “He pushed himself too hard. Your brother is one of the most stubborn men I”ve ever met. He had no business running that race, and everything is ruined.”
“Sit down.” Ruby pulled a chair away from the kitchen table. “Let me get you some water and you can start from the beginning.”
Even Pete the Dog must have sensed my grip on control was sliding away. He set his head in my lap and looked up at me with big, round puppy dog eyes. Mindlessly, I ran my hand over the soft fur between his ears. Evan’s last words to me played on repeat through my head. He didn”t mean them, I kept telling myself. He was hurt and embarrassed and lashing out. It couldn”t really be over between us.
“Here you go.” Ruby slid a glass full of ice water onto the table in front of me. “Now tell me everything from the beginning.”
I started with us arriving at the race and told her how Evan had driven the course since it had changed overnight. “He seemed fine right before he took his place at the starting line. After they took off, Pete the Dog and I went to the finish line to wait for him. Your mom sent me a text when he crossed the halfway point, and he seemed to be doing great then.”
Ruby got up from the table to pace back and forth across her narrow kitchen. “Did his leg just give out, or was he in too much pain to continue?”
“I don”t know. One second, he was headed toward the finish line and the next he was lying in the middle of the street.” I could still see him struggling to get up. Could still see the look of defeat on his face. “He told me he was fine. The doctor even cleared him to participate.”
“Are you sure about that?” Ruby asked. “I wouldn”t put it past him to lie. He”s always pushed the limits, and I feel like it”s my dad”s fault. Seems like none of my brothers felt like they amounted to much in my father”s eyes.”
I could see that, but Evan should be smart enough to know when he”d reached his limit, especially since he hadn”t fully healed from his injury. “Why would he do it?”
“Do what?” Ruby asked.
“Push too hard.”
“Don”t you get it? He”s never felt good enough for you.”
“That”s ridiculous. Good enough how? Evan has always achieved what he set out to do. He was a star football player, and how many ribbons and awards did he get while serving overseas?”
Ruby set her palms flat on the table and looked at me. “A lot. That doesn’t have anything to do with it, though. For some reason, it was never enough.”
Was it my fault? Was I the one who made him feel that way? I wracked my brain, trying to come up with something I’d said or done that might have made him feel like a lesser man. Usually, when something was bothering me, I’d call Evan. He’d always been the one who could help me see things more clearly and set me straight. Knowing he didn’t want to hear from me left me feeling unanchored, like I was drifting away.
“Would you be willing to watch Pete the Dog for a little while?” I asked Ruby. “And could I possibly borrow your car? I think I need to go talk to my dad.”
“Of course.” Ruby pulled her keys off a hook by the door to the garage. “Take your time.”
“You’re sure you don’t mind?” I didn’t want to put her out any more than I already had.
“Saturday night and my only plans are trying to find a way out of having to drag Silas Stewart along with me on my next business trip. His brother thinks I’ve been saying bad things about the Stewarts behind their backs at the award ceremonies.” She shook her head. “Stupid Stewarts. Stupid feud.”
“I’ll only be a couple of hours, max.” I pulled her into a loose hug. “If you hear from Evan, please let me know.”
“Hopefully Miller will be able to talk some sense into him.”
I gave Pete the Dog a final rub between the ears, then made a beeline to Ruby’s car and hoped my dad was having one of his clear days. He was the only one I could talk to now, and I needed his advice.