The Way Back to You

by Sharon Sala

  Doctor Quick pointed toward the door.

  “You’re not supposed to be out of bed,” he said, but Melissa didn’t even acknowledge his remark.

  Sully smiled.

  “I dropped the Johnny for Sully when I was in high school. As to why I’m here, it’s a long story.”

  “Are you just passing through?” Melissa asked.

  “Not exactly,” Sully said.

  Before Melissa could ask anything more, Hope had her by the arm.

  “Here you are, Melissa Dean. I thought you had better sense,” Hope said. She took Melissa by the elbow and led her back into her room and settled her back into bed. Then she raised both of the guardrails and pulled up the covers. “How do you feel?” Hope asked.

  Melissa wasn’t going to admit that she was dizzy and glad to be lying down again.

  “Oh my God, Hope! You don’t understand! I know him! I grew up with him. He’s the first boy I ever kissed, and I haven’t seen him since I was thirteen! He saved my life, Hope. I had to say thank you.”

  Hope brushed a lock of Melissa’s hair away from her forehead as she smiled. “That is amazing, and I understand the quirks of fate better than most. But you two will have to catch up on old times later. You don’t want to make yourself worse by passing out, okay?”

  “Yes, I promise. I won’t get up on my own until you guys are through checking me out.”

  Hope left, and Melissa tried to rest, but the longer she lay there, the more she began to hurt. She was verging on tears when Sully appeared in her doorway.

  “Hey,” he said.

  “Hey,” Melissa said, noticing for the first time how tall he’d become.

  “I’m leaving now, but I’ll be in town for a couple of days. If you get to feeling better, maybe we could meet at Granny’s for coffee. I’m at the Blessings Bed and Breakfast. Just leave me a message if you’re up to it.”

  “I will. I promise. I’m sorry you were hurt, but thank you again for today. I would have died if it hadn’t been for you.”

  Sully blew it off. “I’ll take the pain for the pleasure of running into you like this. Do what the doctor tells you,” he said, and then he was gone.

  Melissa smiled and closed her eyes. The next time someone came in the room, it was Hope and the doctor. He moved to the side of her bed.

  “How do you feel?” Dr. Quick asked.

  “I hurt all over,” Melissa said.

  He nodded. “As you should, and I hear you had quite a rescue.”

  “I couldn’t get out of the car,” she said, and started crying. “I thought I was going to die, and then this man appeared out of nowhere. The car was full of smoke. I could barely see him, but I clearly heard his voice. He didn’t panic. Not once. Now I’ve found out I knew him. I grew up with him.”

  “Your old friend was just what the doctor ordered when you were hit,” Dr. Quick said. “He’s a recently retired fireman.”

  Melissa was still marveling at his appearance. “Fate sure does throw in some life twists.”

  “Agreed,” Dr. Quick said. “Now about you. Nothing is broken, but you likely have whiplash, and there is some serious bruising on your chest area, although no broken bones. You have the one cut on your forehead where you hit the window, but we glued it shut, and it should heal nicely. We got a few glass shards out of your hair, but Hope is going to make sure we got them all before you leave the ER. Are you still experiencing dizziness?”

  “A little,” Melissa said.

  He nodded. “That’s the concussion. You have a choice. Stay here overnight, or go home and get someone to stay with you. I know where you live. Is your bedroom upstairs?”

  She nodded.

  “If you can, stay downstairs, at least for tonight until you see how quickly you recover your balance and mobility.”

  “I can. There’s a bathroom downstairs, but all my clothes and toiletries are upstairs.”

  “That’s easily remedied with help,” Dr. Quick said. “So what is it? Stay here, or call a friend?”

  “I don’t know who to call,” Melissa said. “I have friends, but I don’t have girlfriends. Not like that.”

  Hope patted her arm. “Yes, you do. My shift ends at three this afternoon, and tomorrow is my day off. I’ll stay through tomorrow until you’re given an all clear. But for now, I’ll call someone to come pick you up and take you home. They’ll stay until I can get there, okay?”

  Melissa started crying again.

  “Don’t cry, sugar,” Hope said. “We’ve got this.”

  Dr. Quick left the room as Hope was raising the head of the bed to comb through Melissa’s hair one last time. She was nearly finished when Chief Pittman appeared in the doorway.

  “Melissa, do you feel like talking to me a minute?”

  “Yes,” she said.

  Hope smiled at her. “I’m through. I think you’re good to go here. I’m going to make some calls, and I’ll talk to you soon. She’s all yours, Lon.”

  “Thanks,” Lon said. “Oh, hey, Hope! Are you guys still coming to dinner Sunday?”

  “Are you kidding? Do you have any idea how cool it is to have a brother-in-law who’s the chief of police and a sister who can cook like Mercy does? We wouldn’t miss it,” Hope said.

  Lon gave her a thumbs-up and moved up to Melissa’s bedside.

  “What do you remember about the accident?” he asked.

  “I never saw the car, and I didn’t know what had happened until after my car stopped spinning. Who hit me?” she asked.

  “Niles Holland,” he said.

  Melissa’s lips parted in shock. “Niles—the president of the country club—Holland? What happened?”

  “Yes, that Niles.”

  Melissa gasped. “You aren’t serious? Was he hurt? Oh my God. I’m sorry to hear this.”

  Lon frowned. “You don’t apologize for anything. He got himself out of the wreck, but when the cars exploded, I’m sorry to say he was killed by flying debris.”

  “Oh no! Poor Barb. This is terrible,” Melissa said, and started tearing up again. “This whole day has become a reality check on how fast life can change.”

  * * *

  Sully was still smiling as he drove back to the bed-and-breakfast to change into clean clothes. He couldn’t believe the woman he’d pulled out of that wreck was Missy. She held a special place in his heart, and he couldn’t wait to talk to her again.

  But when he walked back into the B and B, his condition caused something of a stir.

  “What on earth happened to you? Are you all right?” Rachel asked.

  “I witnessed a pretty bad wreck on Main Street and wound up pulling the woman who got hit out of her burning car. I’m okay. Just got cut by some burning debris as I was carrying her away.”

  Rachel gasped. “Oh my lord. I heard what sounded like a big explosion about an hour or so ago. Was that it?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Who was the woman?”

  “Melissa Dean. The weird part of all this is that I know her. We were kids together in Missouri, before she moved away.”

  Rachel smiled. She loved stories like this. “What a coincidence!” she said. “But is Melissa okay?”

  Sully nodded. “She’s going to be. She got hit pretty hard, and I’m not sure about the extent of her injuries, but nothing appeared to be life-threatening.”

  “Oh no! Bless her heart!” Rachel said. “I’ll have to make sure to take her some food tomorrow. Likely she’ll be all sore and laid up for a while. Did you hear who it was who hit her?”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Then I’m guessing you didn’t make it to Granny’s, did you? You must be starved.”

  “Actually, Granny’s is where I took her until the burning debris was no longer an issue. I’m going to get clean clothes and go bac
k.”

  “If you don’t feel up to it, I’d be more than happy to make some lunch for you here. I have plenty of roast beef to make you a sandwich, and peach cobbler for dessert. Bud’s on his way home. We’d love to have you eat with us. That way you could rest up and go to Granny’s for supper later.”

  Sully hesitated. The offer was tempting. “My back is pretty sore. If you’re sure it’s okay, I will take you up on the offer.”

  “Perfect,” Rachel said. “You go clean up. Bud and I always eat in the kitchen, and you’re the only guest here at the moment. It will work out perfectly. When you come down, just go through those double doors at the end of the dining room.”

  “Yes, ma’am, and thank you again.”

  “Please, call me Rachel,” she said.

  Sully nodded, then took the stairs up two at a time and let himself into his room. Once again, he was back in the shower, washing away the blood and the choking scent of smoke. The small wound on his back had also been closed with glue after they’d removed a small piece of metal and cleaned it up. He showered in lukewarm water, patted his back dry, and put on more clean clothes. At this rate, he was going to be looking for a place to get laundry done.

  As he came downstairs, he heard dishes rattling, then voices, and followed the sounds into the kitchen.

  “Come in, come in!” Rachel said. “Sully, this is my husband, Bud. Bud, this is Sully, the man I was telling you about.”

  Bud came forward smiling and quickly shook Sully’s hand.

  “Good to meet you,” Bud said. “Sounds like you’ve had quite an introduction to Blessings. It’s not normally this exciting. Have a seat at the table. Lunch is almost ready. Hope you’re hungry. These open-faced roast beef sandwiches are the bomb, and so is the gravy that goes on them. Rachel is taking french fries out of the deep fryer right now. Would you rather have coffee or sweet tea?”

  “Sweet tea, please,” Sully said.

  The food appeared moments later, and as soon as they sat down, Bud reached for the ketchup for his fries. When he did, Rachel rolled her eyes.

  “Peasant,” she said.

  “Snob,” Bud fired back.

  Then they laughed at each other as Bud began shaking ketchup all over his fries.

  “Rachel thinks gravy should go on the fries that come with these sandwiches,” Bud said.

  “Bud puts ketchup on everything, which is a slight blow to my ego, considering I’m supposed to be this great cook,” Rachel countered, and then winked at her husband.

  Sully laughed. “Pass the ketchup, please,” and proceeded to do the same thing that Bud had, which sent Bud and Rachel into peals of laughter.

  “I guess that settles it,” Rachel said. “When in Rome…and all that. Will someone pass me the ketchup, too? Oh…and save room for dessert. It’s peach cobbler à la mode.”

  Sully took his first bite and then rolled his eyes in delight.

  “This is amazing. The meat is so tender. What kind of bread do you use for this?” he asked.

  “Different kinds,” Rachel said. “This is toasted and buttered sourdough bread.”

  “I’m going to remember this,” Sully said. “We all had to take turns cooking at the fire station when I was still on the job. Those guys would love this food. Rachel, you are an amazing chef.”

  Rachel beamed, pausing a moment to watch two men wolfing down her food like they’d been starving. The satisfaction of knowing people loved her cooking was a huge part of the reason she enjoyed owning the B and B.

  * * *

  Once lunch was over, Sully went upstairs to rest and fell asleep, dreaming about the wreck.

  The dream was on a loop in his head—his own kind of eternal hell. In the dream, he knew it was Missy in the car and he had not been able to save her. He was hearing her screams over and over in his head when he woke.

  He groaned as he got up, and walked to the windows. The day wasn’t as sunny as it had been earlier, and he wondered if the weather was supposed to change.

  His shoulder was aching, and he remembered the mini-fridge was stocked. He opened the cabinet to see what was in it, and then grabbed a Mountain Dew and opened it. He took one drink, then got a couple of over-the-counter pain pills out of his travel bag and washed them down with another swallow.

  Sully hadn’t counted on his search for his birth mother being dangerous, but the throb in his shoulder reminded him of how close he and Melissa had come to dying. He wondered how she was right now—whether she was still in the hospital or if she’d gone home.

  Then out of the blue, he wondered if she had someone to go home to and was surprised at himself for even going there. He’d come looking for the woman who’d given birth to him, not to renew a teenage crush, even if she had grown into a beautiful woman.

  He did smile, though, remembering her defiance of rules. Seeing her walk into his room determined to say thank you, even if she had to get out of bed to do it. Staring down the doctor who chided her for being out of bed was evidence of a woman bent on doing the right thing, and the plus was finding out they knew each other.

  He was curious about her and her life. Maybe she’d call and take him up on that cup of coffee. It was something to look forward to—a relaxing break from the tension of his search. He’d meant to go to the local courthouse this afternoon and search the property deeds and marriage licenses. And there was the local paper he intended to research as well, which likely meant a trip to the library. But he’d only arrived today. Thanks to the unexpected drama, he was too sore to do anything but hang out, and there was always tomorrow.

  Chapter 3

  When Ruby Butterman showed up with an orderly behind her, Melissa was beginning to shake from the shock of what had happened.

  “Thank you for doing this,” Melissa said when she saw her walk in.

  Ruby patted her cheek. “No thanks are needed, sugar. That’s what friends are for. My car is already at the door, and this fine young man is going to give you a ride in his wheelchair.” Then she glanced up at the orderly and frowned. “Tommy, have you been cutting your own hair again?”

  Tommy grinned. “Yes, ma’am. Is it that bad?”

  Ruby rolled her eyes. “Just make an appointment and get yourself into the shop so one of us can fix that mess.”

  He laughed out loud. “Yes, ma’am. I sure will.”

  “Good. Now let’s get Melissa into this chair so I can take her home. Are there pain meds to go home with her?”

  “Yes, ma’am. They were called in to Phillips Pharmacy,” Tommy said.

  “Good enough,” Ruby said.

  A few minutes later, Ruby and Melissa were on their way to the pharmacy. Although the burned-out cars had been towed away and debris cleaned up from the streets, the black marks from the fire were still visible on the pavement.

  “I still can’t believe all this happened,” Melissa said.

  “Girl, I know just what you mean. It doesn’t take but a heartbeat for your world to change. Are you okay, or do you need to lie back? The seat reclines.”

  “I’m okay,” Melissa said. “It’s not far to the pharmacy, and it’s not far to get home.”

  A couple of minutes later, Ruby reached the pharmacy and parked.

  “You just sit tight, sugar,” Ruby said. “I won’t be long.” She was out of the car and inside the pharmacy in seconds.

  Melissa leaned against the headrest and closed her eyes. Now that she was out of the hospital, she could almost convince herself that all of this was a bad dream, except she hurt all over—and Niles was dead, and Johnny Raines had just saved her life. It was going to take a bit to get used to thinking of him as Sully, but she was so sorry about Niles. He was one of the town leaders and president of the country club. Only a few months earlier, he had been elected to the town council, and now he was gone.

  She was still blinking b
ack tears as Ruby returned with the meds and a bottle of water.

  Ruby opened the water and then handed the prescription to Melissa. “Take two pills now,” she said. When Melissa shook them out in her hand, Ruby handed her the water and watched her swallow them.

  “It says not to take them on an empty stomach. Do you have food at your house?” Ruby asked.

  Melissa started to cry.

  “What’s wrong, honey?” Ruby asked.

  “I debated with myself as to whether I would go home for lunch, or go to Granny’s. If I’d just gone home, none of this would have happened.”

  “Or…if Niles hadn’t run through a stop sign and hit you, it wouldn’t have happened,” Ruby said.

  Melissa sighed. “You’re right. I guess there’s no way to make sense of an accident, and yes, there’s food.”

  “Okay, then. We’re off,” Ruby said, and backed away from the curb.

  Melissa was quiet all the way home and still couldn’t quit shaking.

  Ruby frowned. “As soon as I get some food in you, you need to rest.”

  When they pulled up in the drive at Melissa’s house, she breathed a quiet sigh of relief. The sight of home had never been so welcome.

  Ruby walked her inside, afraid to let her go for fear she’d fall, but Melissa felt better just being here.

  “I’m going to the bathroom,” Melissa said.

  Ruby nodded, then pointed into the living room.

  “Why don’t you take the recliner to sit and eat. It will be easy for you to hold a tray in your lap, and you’ll be more comfortable with your feet up,” Ruby said. “I’m going to your kitchen to make you some food.”

  Melissa didn’t argue about any of it, and a short while later she was in the recliner, eating a sandwich Ruby made for her from the leftover ham, with a glass of milk on the table beside her.

  “Drink some of the milk, sugar,” Ruby said.

  Melissa took a few sips, then kept eating, alternating bites with sips of milk until she was too full to eat any more.