Yearn (Revenge Book 4)

by Burns, Trevion

  Veda pretended not to notice, her eyes dashing all over the room.

  Pearl’s frown deepened. “Busted her butt at Stanford… just to come back here? For what?”

  “Grandma, we’re not having this conversation again…” Veda begged.

  Linc motioned to his books, leaning over to retrieve them from the table. “I’m sure you guys want some alone time. I’ll just get outta here—”

  “Nonsense!” Pearl cried, making both Veda and Linc jolt. “You’ll stay for dinner.”

  Linc froze, his eyebrows rising.

  Veda’s did too. “There’s dinner?”

  “You think I’d fly all the way up here to surprise my only grandbaby and not prepare her favorite dish for dinner?”

  Veda’s stomach growled. Castrator, baby mama to a monster, and accomplice to murder be damned. Her grandmother’s fried catfish could right Veda’s world with just one bite. It was the miracle Veda hadn’t even realized she needed.

  She gave Linc a look. “You have to try my grandmother’s fried catfish. It’s heaven on a plate. Like nothing you’ve ever tasted. You think you’ve had fried catfish? You haven’t.”

  His face glowed with amusement.

  “You’re staying, young man.” Pearl gave the cane her weight, removed her arm from Veda’s, and offered it to Linc instead.

  Linc bounded across the space and gave Pearl his arm.

  “Oh my,” Pearl said, her trembling hand locking around Linc’s bicep. “You are just monumental. How tall are you young man?”

  “Uh… ‘Bout six five.”

  “My goodness!” Pearl began firing off a million questions as Linc helped her into a chair at the table, but she looked over her shoulder at Veda before he could answer any of them, nodding to the door. “Veda, what on Earth are you waiting for? Go and get the groceries out of the rental while Lincoln and I catch up. It’s the red Toyota parked out front.”

  Veda couldn’t help but wonder who her grandmother was more excited to see—her or Linc. She also wondered what her grandmother could possibly have to “catch up” on with a man she’d only known for three minutes. Regardless, Veda turned away with a small smile, doing as she was told.

  As she made her way outside, Veda heard the last remnants of her grandmother’s voice.

  “Young man, what you need is a good haircut…”

  ——

  The dining room was soon dominated by Pearl’s chatter and her relentless interrogation of Linc.

  Gazing at him across the table, Veda couldn’t deny that she adored Linc more at that moment than she ever had before. All throughout dinner, he’d been on the receiving end of Pearl’s unsharpened ways, but instead of running for his life, he’d weathered Hurricane Pearl like a champ. Surely he had better things to do than sit at that table amusing her grandmother, but there he remained.

  Unbeknownst to her, as Veda gazed at Linc, Pearl gazed at Veda.

  Leaning forward on the dining table, cradling her cheek in her hand, Pearl’s second helping of catfish and fries went half eaten. “My granddaughter is so gorgeous…” Pearl appeared to go off in another world as she gazed at Veda with shining eyes. She threw her dark brown gaze to Linc. “Don’t you think so, Lincoln? Isn’t she just gorgeous?”

  Linc froze in the midst of his fourth helping of catfish, considering Veda across the table. “She’s a’ight.”

  “A’ight?” Pearl roared, drinking in his playful smile before looking back at Veda. “She’s a killer.”

  His voice lowered. “Undeniably.”

  “Mmmhmm…” Pride shone in Pearl’s eyes. “I did that.”

  “And you did it very well.”

  Veda shifted under the unwavering attention, pretending to scrutinize her second helping of catfish. Seconds later, she snuck a look up at Linc from under her lashes.

  He looked right back, his fork lingering over his catfish, green eyes riveted to hers.

  “So, Lincoln,” Pearl began.

  He cleared his throat and broke his gaze from Veda’s, raising his brows at Pearl.

  “I hope you’re not the kind of married man who’s planning on taking advantage of my sweet grandbaby by playing the ‘good friend’ card.”

  Veda and Linc shared a wide-eyed look, foolishly having believed the destructive eye of Hurricane Pearl had already passed.

  “Grandma, Linc and I are just friends.”

  “I’m old enough to know a married man when I see one.” Ignoring Veda, Pearl lifted a brow at Linc. “When I first arrived, I saw that tan line on your finger from across the room. You know my baby’s a doctor, right? You know she’s too smart for all that?”

  Linc’s eyes fell to his left hand, and he curled his fingers into a fist, which only highlighted the tan line on his ring finger even more.

  “Grandma,” Veda growled. “That’s enough.”

  “And just who in Jesus’ name do you think you’re talking to?”

  Veda fixed her face and her voice before her grandmother sent a fork flying at her head. “I didn’t mean to have a tone. It’s just, Linc’s situation with his wife… well…”

  Pearl blinked rapidly at Veda, patiently waiting for any explanation that didn’t make Linc an irredeemable adulterer.

  Veda sighed, realizing there was no explanation without putting all of Linc’s personal business on the table, and it wasn’t her business to tell. “Grandma, can we please just drop it?”

  Linc held a hand out toward Veda. “It’s okay…”

  “No, it isn’t.” Veda tilted her head. “You don’t have to.”

  Linc met Pearl’s still fluttering eyes. “My wife’s been missing for five years.”

  “Heavens….” Pearl straightened with a soft gasp, her hand over her heart. “Lincoln.” She reached across the space between them and covered his bicep, flexed tight from where he had both elbows on the table. “How awful.” Pearl took a moment. “How did it happen?”

  “Grandma!”

  Linc held another hand out toward Veda, chuckling softly. “It’s okay.”

  No longer worried about catching a smack to the face, Veda now gaped at Pearl in horror, silently begging her to cease and desist.

  Linc set his fork down and gave Pearl his full attention. “She was a reporter. Ambitious. Driven. Fearless. Went after the wrong people. Asked some dangerous questions. Got a little too close to the dangerous answers…” He took a moment, scooping the inside of his cheek with his tongue. “And, one day, she was…” He swallowed thickly, shrugging. “She was just gone.”

  “And you kept your ring on all these years.” Pearl squeezed his arm. “Well, I believe I owe you an apology, young man.”

  “You really do,” Veda agreed.

  Linc splayed his fingers at Veda, keeping his eyes on Pearl. “You don’t have to apologize. It’s natural to be curious. Most people are. And maybe…” He took a deep breath, gaze moving to Veda—who still shot fire at Pearl with her eyes—his voice lowering. “Maybe it’s time for me to figure out how to talk about it.”

  “What made you decide to take it off?” Pearl asked. “Clearly you removed it recently since the tan line is still so fresh.”

  “Grandma? You’re just…” Veda sighed heavily. “You’re absolutely killing me.”

  “He says he’s ready to talk about it, baby. Why not with us? You are his good friend, aren’t you?”

  Veda’s eyes blinked slowly, lazily, giving Pearl a heavy-eyed gaze.

  “Don’t you make that face at me,” Pearl warned.

  “Well, he always bites my head off whenever I bring her up,” Veda said. “But I guess he has no problem pouring his heart out to you.”

  Linc gave her a stunned look, clearly wondering when Veda’s ire for her grandmother had redirected itself to him. He lifted his shoulders without responding.

  “Let me tell you something, Lincoln. After I lost my first and only husband…” Pearl’s voice went to a faraway place. “I kept my ring on for ten years. Never once took it
off. Ten years! Ten years, I allowed eligible men to pass me right up, believing I was off the market.” She squeezed his arm. “And not to toot my own horn, but I was a real looker back then. A stone-cold knockout. You think my grandbaby is a stunner—whoo! You should’ve got a look at me back in my day.”

  Veda found herself unable to tear her eyes away from Linc’s two front teeth. One was slightly uneven, which she’d never known because she’d never seen him smile so genuinely.

  Pearl leaned closer to Linc. “I could’ve gotten remarried with my eyes closed. I could’ve remarried four times over if I had just found the heart, the courage, to take off that ring. I could’ve found myself a wonderful man. Maybe if I had, I wouldn’t be alone today.”

  Inhaling sharply, Veda reached across the table for her grandma, but her hand froze halfway when Pearl didn’t even notice, too captivated by Linc.

  Linc held Pearl’s eyes, plate forgotten.

  “But I couldn’t.” Pearl’s voice lowered. “I just couldn’t take it off. Because even though he was gone… it still felt…”

  “Wrong,” Linc finished.

  Pearl’s eyes widened, nodding. “It felt like a betrayal.”

  Veda’s eyes dashed between them, understanding that she’d officially been uninvited from the conversation.

  “I can’t imagine how much harder it would’ve been, if I’d had no idea whether he was really gone or… or simply just lost.” Pearl moved her hand to his shoulder and squeezed again. “It might feel like a betrayal… but it isn’t. You did the right thing taking it off. You chose the better path. The smarter path. The path I wish I’d have chosen. Because, Lincoln? Boy. Just like I was back in my day? You are nothing to sniff at, young man.”

  Veda dropped her forehead into her hand.

  “You’s a looker.” Pearl laughed, her voice rising as she gave his shoulder a shake. “You’s a real looker. Try not to let all the good women pass you by, huh? Try not to look up, fifty years from now, and wonder where all the time went. Why you didn’t let go sooner.”

  A long silence fell.

  Veda breathed deep. “Okay, Grandma, I really think Linc’s taken enough abuse for the night. Honestly.”

  Pearl and Linc’s eyes flew to Veda in shock as if they’d forgotten she was even in the room.

  “Can we have a normal dinner?” Veda begged, holding her hands out. “Like normal people? Have a normal conversation?”

  Giving in, Pearl and Linc went back to their meals while shooting secret looks at each other.

  “Good.” Veda reclaimed her fork with a nod. “Now… What do normal people talk about at dinner?”

  Pearl and Linc looked on blankly.

  “Anyone?” Veda asked, a small smile picking up her lips before moving into a soft laugh.

  Linc chortled, shaking his head and going back to his food.

  “Or are we just destined to be…” Veda’s words slowed to a stop when she looked at Pearl. After observing her for a moment, Veda shot out of her seat, lingering in mid-stance as horror zoomed through her body. “Grandma?”

  Linc’s eyes followed Veda’s, and he leaped from his seat as well at the sight of Pearl slowly tilting sideways in her chair, trying to speak, but every word coming out garbled. He seized Pearl’s arm just before she tumbled out of her seat.

  “Oh no.” Veda flew across the table and fell to her knees next to Pearl’s chair, cupping her wrinkled cheeks. “Grandma, can you talk to me? Can you nod if you understand what I’m saying? Can you squeeze my hand? Anything?”

  Pearl tried to speak, but the words were still jumbled, more indiscernible every second, her hand limp under Veda’s desperate hold.

  Veda’s tear-filled eyes rose to Linc. “Call 911.”

  Linc raced into the kitchen where both their cell phones sat on the counter since Pearl had insisted on no phones at the table.

  “What’s happening?” He hurried back, phone on his ear.

  “She shouldn’t have come all this way on her own.” Veda’s voice broke as Pearl seemed to crumble before them. She looked up at Linc with wide eyes. “She’s having another seizure.”

  16

  “How could you not be insured, Grandma—How?” Veda’s nostrils flared, feeling like even the simple act of breathing was setting her lungs on fire. She squeezed Pearl’s hand, the sight of her sleeping face nearly vanishing as tears blurred Veda’s vision. “I’m so angry. I’m so angry at you.”

  Sniffling, Veda adjusted the vital machine next to Pearl’s bed, the bronze chip clutched in her hand forcing her to navigate the machine with her knuckles. The continuous beeping that resonated from the machine had been reduced to a never-ending chime in Veda’s ears since she’d been sitting in that room overnight. Her cheeks were tight thanks to the waterfall of tears that had dried on them over the hours, only loosening when fresh tears popped from her eyes right then.

  She leaned over the bedrails, adjusting the array of tubes racing from Pearl’s arms before cupping her cheeks. Veda knew her response was dramatic. Pearl was no stranger to seizures. But the older she got, the more dangerous they became. Veda lived in a constant state of panic that Pearl’s next seizure could, very easily, be the last.

  Thankfully, this one hadn’t been Pearl’s last, and though the doctors had insisted on monitoring her overnight, just to be safe, they assured Veda she’d be discharged before the sun finished rising.

  That sun had already begun its slow rise in the window behind her, giving life to the rocky black cliffs in the distance, which seemed grander with every wisp of light that boomed across the horizon.

  It had been over twelve hours since Veda and Linc had raced Pearl into the hospital. The tears on Veda’s face alone had been enough for her co-workers to rally together and get Pearl a room and immediate care, even though her grandmother didn’t have insurance. Even though she didn’t have insurance, there she lay, in one of the hospital’s best beds, with some of the brightest medical personnel on their team keeping a close eye on her.

  Veda sniffled and slapped her tears away at the sound of clothes shuffling at the door, looking up from Pearl’s sleeping face.

  Linc watched her from the doorway, his own clothes rumpled. He lifted two coffee cups with a sideways grin.

  “Cafeteria workers finally made it in,” he said. “Coffee’s fresh.”

  “Four creams, nine sugars?” Veda asked, voice still nasally.

  “Diabetes in a cup, yes.” He chuckled, crossing the room and setting her cup on the bedside table.

  “Thank you, Linc.” Veda looked up at him while squeezing Pearl’s hand. “And not just for the coffee. Thank you for staying with us all night. You’ve already got so much on your plate with work and with class…” Her words faded, and then she gasped, shooting a look at the clock on the wall. “Oh my god, you’ve got class.”

  “I’ll miss it.”

  Veda cringed and shot out of her seat. “Of course you’re not going to miss it. We spent hours getting you ready for this test, and it’s in less than an hour!” She tried to push him toward the door. The action barely moved him.

  “I’ll ask him to re-schedule the test.”

  “I don’t like the word ask because it leaves room for the word no." Seeing the stubborn gleam in his eye, Veda motioned to Pearl. “She’s fine, Linc. She’s stable.” Sighing, Veda flashed back on Linc’s dumbfounded face the night before, when Pearl had been at her worst, foaming at the mouth on Veda’s dining room floor. “It freaked you the hell out because you’re not used to seeing an old woman seizing, but she’s been having these things since she was a small child. She’s okay. She’ll be fast asleep for the next several hours. Hours entirely comprised of me cursing her out for not having insurance, all because sixty-five is a few months away and she knew Medicaid was right around the corner—See? My incessant ranting has already begun, and you’ve got better things to do than sit around listening to it. No reason for you to hang around just to watch me fall apart.”


  Linc looked toward the door, licking his lips.

  “And if she wakes up and finds out you missed this class and put your promotion at risk, you’ll have to hear it from her too.” She lowered her head, looking up at him from under her eyelashes. “And, Linc? Believe me, you do not want to hear it from her.”

  He cut a look at her, smirking.

  Veda gave him another push toward the door.

  He caught her arm and pulled her in.

  And her tear-stained face was buried in his chest, breathing in the scent of the detergent lingering on his t-shirt, sinking into the weight of his arms as he wrapped them around her. She wrapped hers around him too, squeezing tight.

  “I have work right after class,” he said. “But I’ll drop in when I can to check on you guys, a’ight?”

  Veda tried to pull away, but he still held tight. She was thankful because she wasn’t quite ready to pull away either. Just a few more seconds. Just a few more seconds wrapped in a hug that was a touch too tight—that almost took her breath away. Just a few more seconds in any world but the one that had been plaguing her for weeks.

  She took one last, deep breath and stepped back, shoving her hands in the back pockets of her jeans before nodding at the door with a laugh. “Go, Linc. Jesus, get outta here already.”

  Linc watched her over his shoulder as he moved to the door, a tiny grin on his lips.

  “And it better be an ‘A’ too,” she threatened, a laugh bubbling out.

  “I’ll see you later.” Just as he was about to step out into the hallway, he took hold of the doorframe and doubled back. “By the way, saw Gage on my way back from the cafeteria. Lighting into the nurse at the front desk for admitting Pearl without insurance.”

  Veda nearly screamed. “I’ll handle it.”

  He held her eyes for another moment, took one last glance at Pearl, and then patted the doorsill. “Call me if you need anything.”

  “I will. Thank you, Linc. Go.”

  And he was gone.