Damaged Amazon

by Kim Pritekel

  “Hey,” Nora said, scooting closer. “Shannon, your therapist suggested I wait a little bit to tell you. She wanted to make sure you could handle it.”

  Shannon said nothing, not sure what there was even to say. She felt so alone, even as she held the most important person in the world in her arms.

  “Honey,” Nora said, resting her hand on Shannon’s slumped shoulder. “I swear to you, we’re going to get you through this. You’re going to have your own life again, you and Bella.”

  Shannon could hear the determination and love in her sister’s voice and spared her a glance. She saw in her eyes what she heard in her voice. “I tried so hard to get us a life, Nora,” she whispered. “So hard.”

  “I know, sis. I know. It wasn’t all in vain, I promise you. None of this was your fault.”

  Shannon’s tears slowed and eventually stopped. She was so tired, more so than she had been in a long time.

  “Come here,” Nora said, seeming to sense her exhaustion.

  Nora scooted down in the bed beneath the sheets and Shannon scooted over to her, Bella cuddled between the two sisters. Without another word or another thought, Shannon’s eyes fell closed and peaceful sleep overcame her.

  Chapter Thirty

  “Come on,” LJ muttered as he grunted to reach as far behind the dresser as he could, fingers grabbing blindly for the end of the cable cord. “Gotcha.”

  Bringing the cord up to the back of the new flat-screen he’d bought for his bedroom, he connected it to the correct port. He’d already hooked up the much larger TV to cable and to the moveable arm mounted above the fireplace in the living room downstairs. Though surrounded by boxes that needed to be unpacked, he knew that first and foremost, even before picking up some groceries, was getting his TV hooked up and ready.

  “Ha!” he exclaimed with satisfaction as he stood back from his handiwork.

  Deciding to bring in the last few boxes from his truck, he trotted down the stairs only to see Kristie and Julia coming in, boxes in hand.

  “Hey, Dad,” Kristie said, setting her box down on the couch, which was loaded with black trash bags of towels and linens and other boxes.

  “Where do you want this, Mr. Schaeffer?” Julia Donovan asked.

  “Right here is fine, Julia,” he said, stepping over to his daughter to leave a quick kiss on her cheek and one on Julia’s cheek, as well. “Nice to see you, Julia.” He grinned at the two young women. “I kind of like this. The deal is Julia gets to come over whenever she wants and I get to put her to work.” He nodded dramatically. “I can handle this.”

  “Dad.” Kristie rolled her eyes. “Um, can we go upstairs and unpack my room?” she asked, uncertainty in her voice.

  LJ studied his daughter for a moment. Though he knew she would be eighteen soon, it was hard to admit to himself she was no longer a child, but a woman who was about to graduate high school and begin her life. “Yeah,” he said softly. “But first, give your old man a hug.” He squeezed her tightly to him for a moment before letting her go. “I’m ordering Chinese in about an hour.”

  “Awesome. Thanks, Dad!” Kristie called over her shoulder as she and Julia bolted for the stairs.

  He watched them go and shook his head. Pushing all that aside, he looked around his brand new living room, and even though it was cluttered with boxes to be unpacked, furniture to be assembled, and random objects to be given a home, he was proud. Through all the current chaos, it was his. A brand new townhouse—nobody had ever lived there before, and there were no memories to wade through.

  Crossing his arms over his chest, he nodded. “I can do this.”

  ****

  “Damn,” Nora said, leaving the two wrapped packages on the table with the other gifts. “These two made out like bandits.”

  “No joke,” Shannon said, resting her cane against the table as she put down two other gifts that Nora had bought for her to give their niece and nephew for their sweet sixteen. “Are you sure I don’t look stupid, Nora?”

  Nora glanced at her younger sister and shook her head with a smile. “You look amazing, sis,” she said, noting the simple dress she wore which showed off a beautiful figure, even if it was still a little thin. She also took in the short, spiky auburn hair. “I mean you’ve got an Annie Lennox circa 1986 look going on.”

  Shannon chuckled. “Yeah, and I was T minus four years old at the time.”

  “Still, very chic.” Nora grinned at her, but she was able to see exactly how unsure her sister felt. “Sweetheart, you’ve got the face of a model and the voice of an angel. You have absolutely nothing to worry about.” She hooked her arm at the crook of Shannon’s, both for comfort through connection but also to give a bit of steady support to her kid sister, who was still a bit weak and shaky on her feet. “Come on, let’s go party.”

  The venue was decorated for Tyler and Sylvia’s birthday, and there were tables and chairs, tons of incredibly fragrant food, as well as a bar with nonalcoholic drinks available. Jill fluttered around to talk to the various groups, to refill drinks, or to get more of this or that. Nora was amused.

  “You know, I’m pretty sure that’s why you spent so much money on wait staff,” she said, walking up to her flustered older sister.

  Jill glanced at her almost as though she didn’t recognize her for a moment before Nora was taken in a quick but tight hug. “I know,” she said with nervous laughter. “Hey, you.” She gave Shannon a hug. “Where’s Bella?”

  “She’s having a playdate with a little friend from school,” Shannon said. “I figured this might be a little much for her. Too many people and no kids for her to play with.”

  Jill nodded and let out a breath.

  “Breathe,” Nora said dramatically, holding her older sister by her shoulders. “It’s okay.”

  “I know. I want everything to be perfect for the twins. Tyler is doing so well now, and…”

  Nora gave her an understanding smile. “You don’t want to let him down.” She gave Jill another hug. “Look,” she said, pointing toward the center of the room where some folks were dancing to the DJ’s music mix. “He’s having a great time. He looks good, too. That kid always looked like a vampire, so pale and unhappy.” Nora marveled at the handsome young man her only nephew was becoming, noting some stubble on his chin and over his lip.

  “I know. Since he’s been on the antianxiety medication and with our family therapy, he’s flourishing.” Jill smiled at Nora and Shannon. “He’s doing great in school. Pulling all Bs and an A.”

  “That’s fantastic, Jill. Truly.” Nora knew full well the kid had been flunking out of school before. “Is he dating her?” she asked, noting the pretty young lady he was dancing with certainly had eyes for him.

  “We’re not sure and he won’t say.” Jill laughed. “I think so, but he’s keeping it pretty close to the vest. Andy says we should let him come to us when he’s comfortable to talk about it.”

  “Look at this group of gorgeous ladies.”

  Nora whipped around to see LJ grinning at her with Kristie standing behind him alongside the attractive blonde she remembered from Kristie’s phone that day they’d spent together. “Hey, big guy,” she said, accepting his hug. “Congratulations on the new place. When can we come over and see it?”

  “Once it no longer looks like a storage unit.” He laughed.

  “Who’s this?” Jill asked, also accepting a hug from LJ and giving one to Kristie.

  Nora watched as Kristie glanced at her father, LJ giving her an encouraging smile and nod.

  “Aunt Jill, this is my girlfriend, Julia. Julia, my Aunt Jill and Tyler and Sylvia’s mom.”

  “Hello,” Julia said softly, offering her hand in greeting.

  Nora was so proud of her niece in that moment. That hadn’t been an easy thing to do. She gave the pretty young women a huge smile of approval.

  ****

  LJ stood near the wall watching the events unfolding before him. He’d eaten far more than he should and now felt
tired and in all honesty, was ready to go home. Letting out a heavy sigh, he absently reached for his left hand with his right, fingers looking for the band that he would normally twist with nervous energy.

  “It’s strange, isn’t it?”

  Startled, LJ glanced to his left to see Rachel Quinn standing there. She looked lovely dressed in jeans and a fitted sweater for the cold late-October evening. “Hey. What is?”

  She glanced down at his bare left hand. “Getting used to it being gone.”

  He followed her gaze and chuckled nervously. “Yeah. Guess so.” He met her amused blue eyes.

  “After Mason died, I wore mine for about a year. In all honesty, the day I decided to take it off, I thought I was going to need to call for the Jaws of Life.”

  LJ burst into laughter. “Isn’t that the truth.” His smile widened when he saw her grinning at him. His smile slowly fell, though, as confusion hit him. “Why are you here?”

  “Jill invited me,” Rachel said simply, raising the glass of soda she was drinking. “And hey, free food, how could I say no?”

  His good mood returned. “I won’t tell.”

  “I met your niece and nephew. They seem like great kids,” she said, sipping her drink.

  “They are. Tyler has had a tough go of it over the last few years, but I think he’s getting it together now. I’m super proud of him.”

  “Is your daughter here? Kristie, right?”

  “Good memory. Yes,” he hedged, not sure what all he should reveal as Kristie and Julia were standing shoulder to shoulder talking to some of the twins’ school friends. He glanced over at the nurse and, something in him told him to be honest. “She’s over there, in the black combat boots standing with the blond girl.”

  “Oh my,” Rachel chuckled. “I see attitude written all over that one.”

  “Oh yeah,” he nodded. “The blonde is Julia…her girlfriend.” He eyed her for her reaction to the information that his daughter was a lesbian.

  “God, kids today are so lucky, you know?” Rachel glanced up at him. “My best friend, Gregory would have been so much better off if he’d been able to be himself and come out in high school. I mean, it wasn’t like we all didn’t know already,” she added flippantly.

  “Your best friend is gay?”

  “As the day is long. Gregory has been like my brother since seventh grade. He and his long-time boyfriend, Gabriel, are getting married in December.”

  “Wow,” he said, not sure what to say.

  “Are you okay with Kristie being a lesbian?” Rachel asked, turning slightly to face him, pressing her shoulder against the wall.

  He nodded. “Yes. Well, I mean it’s taken some time, I won’t lie. I have nothing against gay people. Not sure if you know it or not but my sister Nora is a lesbian. So, it’s not exactly new to me. But…”

  “When it’s your own child?” she supplied.

  He smiled with a small laugh. “Yeah. I saw all that Nora went through, and Kristie’s mom isn’t thrilled. I don’t want to see Kristie get hurt.”

  “Nah, she’s got you and certainly her aunt.”

  He glanced at her and studied her for a moment, her words soaking through him. A slow, contented smile spread across his lips. “Would you like to dance?”

  ****

  “Do you guys happen to have any cranberry juice?” Nora asked the bartender behind the nonalcoholic bar.

  “Yes, ma’am,” he said, turning to fulfill her order.

  “From what I remember, that’s good with vodka.”

  Nora glanced to her left, surprised to see Sarah standing there.

  “Oh, wait, that was grape juice,” she said with a smile.

  Nora returned the smile, remembering well the time Sarah was referring to. The two thought it would be brilliant to get drunk one night on vodka and grape juice. Nora had never been so sick and had never mixed the two again.

  “Yes, I avoid grape juice at all costs now, thank you very much.”

  Sarah chuckled. “Me, too. Diet Coke, please,” she asked the bartender who had set Nora’s juice down on the bar top. She turned back to Nora. “Sorry I’m late. I had to work then run home and change.”

  Nora noticed she was dressed in blue jeans that she couldn’t help but notice fit her incredibly well. In all her life, she’d never known a woman who could make jeans look so good. She also wore a black long-sleeved shirt with the Pueblo Police Department emblem on it.

  “I can’t stay long,” Sarah said. “I have an interrogation class to teach tonight.”

  “I see. So, crashing a sweet sixteen birthday party on the way?” Nora teased, taking her glass of juice as Sarah retrieved her soda. “Free dinner?”

  Sarah grinned, taking a sip through the straw. “No, more like a little birdie invited me.”

  “Oh, he did, did he?”

  “Yes, she did.”

  Nora grinned and shook her head as she walked away from the bar to get out of the way of other partygoers, Sarah following.

  “I saw Shannon on my way in,” the detective said as they found a table to sit at. “She looks fantastic. How is she doing?”

  “Well,” Nora said, finding her little sister dancing with Andrew. The two seemed to be in fairly serious talks. “Pretty damn good.” She glanced over at Sarah, who looked comfortable and at ease. It was rare that she saw Sarah in casual clothes and it was nice. Somehow, to be sitting next to her wearing jeans and boots, she felt less unapproachable. Her dark hair was brushed to a shine down around her shoulders and framing an absolutely stunning face. Sarah caught her staring, but Nora couldn’t quite look away for a long moment. Finally, she cleared her throat and concentrated on her juice as she turned back to watch the handful of pairs dancing.

  ****

  “So, what do you do when you’re not visiting family members in the hospital?” Rachel asked as she and LJ danced to a quirky tune that he didn’t recognize.

  “Well, I teach at Pueblo West High School and I’m a coach,” he responded, chuckling as Rachel did a fun little shimmy to the beat.

  “Yeah? What do you teach? What do you coach?”

  “English Literature and football.”

  “Oh, because those two go together so well.” She laughed. “Do you like to read?”

  LJ nodded. “I do, but more so I love to write.” His eyes grew wide, shocked at the fact he’d told her what so few knew about him. He looked at her, waiting for the worst.

  “Are you serious?” Rachel asked, her own eyes wide but seemingly for a different reason. “That’s great, LJ. God, I wish I had the talent to write. I’ve always had crazy ideas, but admittedly, I do not have the talent to get them on paper. I used to write some pretty atrocious poetry, though.”

  LJ laughed, partly by what she’d said and the amusing expression on her lovely face but also from the relief that she wasn’t going to rebuke him or call him down. “What do you like to do besides put broken people back together again?”

  She smiled sweetly. “I love being a nurse. I love being a mom and I love to cook.”

  “Do you, now?” he asked. “Well, I love to eat.”

  She eyed him. “Well, I love to read and you love to eat. Maybe we can work something out.”

  ****

  The early evening had become bitterly cold, the smell of snow in the air. Nora walked Sarah out to her Mustang, as she had to get to her class.

  “I’m glad you came,” she said, her words puffs of steam.

  “Me, too. I always liked your family. It is a trip to see Shannon all grown up, though.” She stopped at the driver’s side door of her car and faced Nora. “She’s turned into a gorgeous woman.”

  Nora nodded. “Yes. She can sing like no other, too.”

  “She’s talented like her older sister, I see.”

  Nora smiled and rolled her eyes, tucking her hands into the pockets of her jacket. “I can’t carry a tune in a bucket.”

  “No, you can’t,” Sarah said, her eyes twinkling. “But, you
r pictures are amazing.”

  The mention of her photography brought back a slew of memories and regret where Sarah was concerned. Nora looked up into her eyes. “I’m sorry,” she said softly. “So sorry for being such a coward.”

  Sarah nodded, seeming to understand that Nora was talking about twenty years before. “It’s okay. We were both young.”

  “Really young. But, it doesn’t justify me leaving like that.” She let out a heavy sigh, filled with the sadness that had lived in her heart ever since. “Sometimes I think about how we could have been together for almost twenty-two years by now. Crazy to think about.”

  “True,” Sarah conceded. “Or, we could have been a train wreck fifteen years broken.”

  Nora smiled. “That’s kind of what LJ said.”

  “Great minds.” Sarah took a step forward and raised her hands, cupping Nora’s face. She brought their lips together for a soft, lingering kiss.

  As Sarah pulled away, Nora looked at her, eyes wide. “Why did you do that?” she asked softly.

  Sarah smiled. “Because I knew you wouldn’t.” She turned and unlocked her car door. Turning back to Nora she reached up and tucked some hair behind her ear. “I have to go.”

  Nora nodded, her lips tingling from the brief but vivid memory of Sarah’s kiss. “Be safe.”

  “I will.” Sarah ducked to climb behind the wheel. She met Nora’s gaze. “Talk to you soon.”

  Nora stepped back to allow her to back out of her spot, watching as the sleek black car disappeared into the night.

  Chapter Thirty-one

  Dressed only in bra and panties, Jill used her Neutrogena cleansing cream to remove her makeup, eyebrows lifting to create a funny expression as she worked on her eye makeup. She glanced into the reflected image of Andrew as he walked behind her in the bathroom, wearing only pajama pants.

  “I am so tired,” he said, walking to his sink and opening the mirrored door that revealed his toothbrush and toothpaste. “Who knew a damn birthday party could be so exhausting?”