by Debbie Civil
Chapter 40
Carmen
So my father was right, yet again. Why we have waited this long to get out of dodge is beyond me. I hate to think this, but if we hadn’t participated in Eli’s bogus wedding, Dad would be sitting in his library reading one of his books. Instead, I’m parked in a hospital chair, waiting for results. Mom sits beside me, flipping through a magazine. She started panicking the minute she was told what happened. So, I’ve been handing her things to read and crossword puzzles to fill out. I’m not sure how my mother can be two different people, strong and fragile. Then again, I guess that there’s a significant difference between dealing with your daughter’s potential boyfriend and facing the fact that your husband could die. The doctors haven’t given us much of anything. I hadn’t even been there when Dad was admitted in the ER. I had been on top of the she-witch, pleading with her to turn herself in.
“Carmen, are you all right?” Jake is here. This surprises me so much that I don’t react at first. Then I jump into his arms and am relieved when his strong arms hold me to him. When I’m in his embrace, I feel as though we are in our own universe. In this universe, No one can hurt me. There is no pain, emotional heartache or worries, just love.
“I’m fine,” I say against his chest. “I’m fine.”
“Jake,” Uncle Ben greets, his tone sounding threatening. Jake brushes his lips on the crown of my head before letting me go. He looks exhausted. That surprises me mainly because I’ve been here for a few hours, and he just got here. He was late. Part of me, the part that is itching to feel something else besides worry, wants to know what has taken him so long.
“Carmen, are you hungry?”
“Yes,” I say, getting an idea. “Walk with me to the cafeteria.” I don’t bother asking Uncle Ben and Mom what they want. Instead, I grab Jake’s hand, and we leave the waiting room.
“We need to talk,” Jake tells me as we enter a bank of elevators. It’s never a good thing when guys tell you that they need to talk. If he even thinks of telling me that he’s not going to pursue me anymore…
“About what?”
“Haven’t you wondered where I’ve been?” Jake asks, a bit confused.
“Yes.” I don’t want to tell him that I’m disappointed that he didn’t come to the hospital right away. But I don’t need to. The disappointment is deep in my eyes. I guess that the emotion is too difficult for Jake to deal with because he doesn’t meet my eyes. Instead, he focuses on a point above my head. When the elevator lets us off, he doesn’t grab my hand. Instead, He glances around, as if to figure out who’s listening.
“Let’s go outside,” he gently suggests. He thinks that he’s on such troubled grounds that he won’t command me to do things. I don’t feel right about the sudden rift between us. I want to fix it, but he’s got some explaining to do.
“Fine,” I agree and we walk out into the overcast August day. We sit on the same bench where Eli and I sat two years ago. That had been when she was given a letter by a mystery man in a suit. Thinking of that day makes me worry about Eli. Is she okay? Why hadn’t she answered anyone’s text messages?
“Chelsea knows that her mother killed Amy,” Jake says bluntly. His dark eyes are trained on my face.
“I told her,” I say, thinking that I had forgotten to mention that to Jake. He seems perturbed by that fact. But what did he expect? He had been traipsing around with America’s Darling at the time.
“And?”
“And she also knows that her father got arrested. I…”
“Jake, get to the point. Why weren’t you at the hospital with me?” That came out really forcefully. Honestly, I’m too tired to play his vague game. He needs to talk more.
“Chelsea wants to shift your Aunt Kate to some unknown island. I’ve been trying to stop her. But she’s convinced that hiding her mother and getting her father a good lawyer is the best action to take.” No. The woman that bashed my father over the head is leaving town before he could get justice.
“She’s already gone. Chelsea arranged a rental so that the woman can drive up to Canada. Then, she’s flying to parts unknown,” Jake explains, rubbing his neck.
“What did Peter say?” That guy will do anything for Chelsea. That’s what always concerned me about him. I…
“He left.”
“Left?”
“He won’t take part in Chelsea’s games. If Chelsea changes her mind, he’ll move back in with her. But for now, he’s back with his parents,” Jake tells me. Come on, like we didn’t need more drama today. How is Chelsea going to be convinced to do the right thing if her husband has checked out of the marriage?
“So she’s hiding her mother from law enforcement? This is too much, Jake. I don’t know what to say about this.” He nods as if my reaction is totally understandable. It’s funny how things changed so drastically. One minute, I’m eating ice cream out on the patio with Jake, the next, I’m at the hospital, waiting for results on my father’s CAT scan. I’m hoping he just has a minor concussion. If that were the case, he would stay overnight for observation. But then, he could go home. There’s no way that we’re staying at the mansion. We’re going home.
“She’s a little nuts. When she calms down, she’ll see reason,” Jake tells me, and I nod. There’s no way that Chelsea would allow the person that hurt my dad to get free.
“I’m sorry,” I softly tell Jake.
“For what?” he asks, confused.
“I was mad at you for not coming to the hospital right away. I didn’t realize that you were trying to get Chelsea to do the right thing.” Jake brushes my cheek with his fingertips.
“It’s all right. I forgive you,” he says with a smirk. I want to kiss him. I really do. But I also have self-control. It would be nice to get lost in Jake’s lips. But, he needs to work a little bit harder to get me back. I know that he had his reasons, but he still dumped me like a bad habit. Maybe, if he had explained things to me, before rejecting me, things would be a little different.
“Do you think that Eli is all right?” I ask Jake. He nods.
“It’s like her not to call. She will reach out to us, eventually.”
“Come on, let’s go back in,” I tell Jake. When I stand, he entwines our fingers, and we go to the cafeteria for some snacks. Returning to the waiting room, I hand Mom a bottle of water and some peanut butter crackers and she takes the offerings as if she has to. Uncle Ben shakes his head before I can give him his cracker jacks.
“I’m not hungry, yet,” he tells me. That means that he would rather hear the news about his little brother on an empty stomach. Mom doesn’t have that reservation. She gingerly eats her snack, as if it’s something unpleasant that needs to be accomplished.
“I swear, I’ve been here too much,” I whisper to Jake as I’m sitting in the chair beside his. I put the plastic bag of goodies on his lap. If Dad’s going to be okay, I’ll eat.
“Check that out,” Jake says, gesturing to the television. A picture of Jill has just flashed on the screen. I smile, thinking that whatever accolade that she’s gotten must have been big enough to be on the 5 o'clock news.
“Say it isn’t so, Jake and Jill are no more,” A female reporter says and we just stare at each other.
“Really?” her male colleague asks.
“That’s right Jeff. Jill’s good friend Ashley Ryan had this to say on the Cory Morgan show.” The screen then changes, and we see a pretty busty blond sitting beside a handsome older man with black hair.
“So, what’s up with your best friend Jill Mace and her boyfriend Jake Jones? Will there be wedding bells in their future?” The reality star laughs. “Maybe the four of you could have a double wedding.”
“No, I’m sorry to disappoint, Cory. There will be no double wedding. Unfortunately, Jake isn’t the committing type. His eyes wander a lot.” The audience freaks out upon given that bone.
“Really?” Cory seems surprised, and Ashley looks embarrassed, as if she hadn’t
meant to say what she said.
“No comment,” Ashley Ryan says and the two news anchors come back into focus.
“Jill Mace’s PR Reps have denied commenting. Though, this does come as a surprise since Jill Mace has just signed up for a roll on an unnamed pilot that shoots in Gately,” the female anchor comments.
“Young love, it is so complicated,” her male colleague responds.
“I’m Sonia Parks.”
“And I’m Maurice Rice. Thank you for watching 17 news.
“I wish you all a good night,” Sonia Parks says, and then a game show comes on. I’m speechless.