by Liz Isaacson
“Me too.” He smiled at her and looked at the week-old infant in her arms. “He sure is cute.”
Mal looked at Warren again, who bore that strong Walker chin and a ton of fluffy, blond hair. “Yeah, he is. And yeah, I’d like babies of my own.” She beamed up at Skyler, who could only lean his head back and smile.
Chapter Thirty
Gideon Walker existed somewhere that was completely white. Every sound seemed to echo endlessly, all of them piling on top of one another.
Tripp had been with him for a while. Stay with me, Daddy, he’d said, and Gideon seemed to be able to recall everything the boy had said to him. Oh, how he loved that Tripp and Liam had followed his footsteps into the tech industry. They were both so talented with the coding and animation work they did, and Gideon longed to be able to tell them one more time how proud he was of them.
Push me higher, Daddy.
That was something Tripp had always said. The boy had never been afraid to take risks, and Gideon had drawn strength from his children when they were still very young. His own failures hadn’t stopped him from trying again, but really, it was his sons that had inspired him. He couldn’t let them down. He couldn’t allow Penny to put all her trust in him only to have him fail.
So he’d picked himself up and tried again. He’d done his best to make a good life.
Everyone’s here, Daddy. You’ll want to see them all again. Hang on, okay?
Hang on.
Hang on.
Hang on.
Gideon couldn’t see anything to hang on to, but he decided to do what Tripp had begged him to do.
He heard other voices, male and female, that he didn’t recognize. They spoke about vertebrae, and blood pressure, and clinking metal seemed to accompany everything. He floated somewhere, unable to feel any pain.
“Gideon.”
Joy filled him at the sound of his wife’s voice. She was here, and everything would be okay now that she was. “I love you, you old cowboy.”
I love you too, he thought, but he did not hear himself say it.
“The whole family’s here, and you should see them, Gideon. They’re everything we’ve hoped they’d be.”
He remembered how shocked he’d been to learn that six of his sons had entered into their marriages under false pretenses. But they’d all obviously worked through their issues, their hang-ups, their problems.
Skyler? he asked, because he knew Skyler and Mal had been going through a difficult time. He’d begged the Lord to build a bridge between them and guide their feet to the path they needed to be on to meet on that bridge.
But Penny didn’t tell him about Skyler. She talked about Warren, and how the baby needed to be able to grow up in his grandfather’s shadow, that Marcy had no grandfather for the baby on her side of the family, and that Gideon’s work on this Earth wasn’t done yet.
“Daddy, I love you.” Rhett.
“Gideon, you are precious to me.” Evelyn.
One by one, every person in his family told him how much they loved him.
“I love you, Dad.” Jeremiah.
“You mean a great deal to me.” Whitney. “I love you.”
“You’ve been my hero my whole life.” Liam.
“Please hang on, Daddy. We love you.” Tripp.
“Thank you for everything, Daddy.” Wyatt. “I love you.”
Gideon smiled, because he could see his son waving that hat. Oh, how he’d loved watching Wyatt in the rodeo. He’d traveled with him when he could, and every time that hat came off his son’s head, Gideon knew it was for him and Penny.
“My dear Gideon, I love you.” Marcy.
“Daddy.” Skyler, who sounded so broken but who was so strong. “I love you forever. You’re the glue for us.”
“Gideon, you’ve been so kind to me. I love you.” Mal.
Micah did not speak, and Gideon really wished he could see. He needed all of his sons with him. Restlessness filled his soul, and something akin to darkness flashed in his world.
“Daddy,” Micah finally said. “You just can’t go.”
Gideon wasn’t going anywhere. He was trapped in this place, but he wasn’t going anywhere. His sons, their wives, their children, and his dear wife spoke around him, their voices combining into a quiet din that soothed him to the very core.
I love you all, he tried to say. I love you all so much.
“So that’s it,” Micah said. Gideon had no way of telling time in the white existence where he was. “She said she thought I was still hung up on Simone, which, if I’m being honest, I am.” Micah sighed, and Gideon wished he could take his son in a hug and tell him everything would be okay.
He should go out with Simone, because anyone with even one good eye could see how much they liked each other. Gideon had liked Ophelia too, of course, but he wasn’t all that surprised she’d broken up with Micah.
Still, breaking up was never easy, and Micah had seemed a bit more tormented than usual the past couple of months.
It’ll be okay, he tried to tell his son.
“Anyway, Liam’s here, and he wants to bring the kids in to see you. Love you, Daddy.”
“We got the horses to the Shining Star, Daddy,” Liam said. “I think even Momma was surprised by how many you had.” His son chuckled, and Daddy wished he could hug him too.
Thank you, Liam.
“I mean, Dad, did you know you have fifty-two miniature horses? Plus the eleven new ones, none of which were harmed in the accident, by the way.”
Accident.
The word rang through Gideon’s head, and he tried to grasp onto wisps of movement. A horn. Light. A crash.
Pain.
Gideon tried to move, but he couldn’t.
“You should see Callie and Denise out there with the ponies,” Liam said, chuckling. “Denise goes everywhere with her mama, and they’ve been collecting the honey this week too. I’m still plugging away on the sixth film, and I think another week will do it.”
Liam sounded tired, and Gideon wished he could take Liam to the side and tell him not to work so much that he missed the important things in life. Gideon had missed so much of the boys’ lives growing up, and that was one of his biggest regrets.
Liam had two beautiful girls, and he should be out there getting the honey, and helping Denise learn to ride a horse, and plant the flowers.
“Here they are now,” Liam said. “Denise, say hi to Gramps.”
“Heya, Gramps,” the little girl said, and Gideon’s spirits soared. “Is he sleepin’, Daddy?”
“Yes, right now,” Liam said.
A baby babbled, and Callie said, “That was Ginger, Gideon. She wants you to take her out to the goats, so when you wake up, you’re going to have to do that.”
I will, he promised her, also promising himself. He’d never known as much joy as he had when he’d become a grandfather. Will you ask Evelyn and Rhett to bring Conrad? And Tripp needs to bring his boys by too.
Liam spoke with Callie, and Gideon pieced together that Callie was leaving with the children. Then his son’s strong, steady voice started reading, “Old Billy Dunbar was down flat on his face in a dry wash swearing into his beard….”
Ah, Louis L’amour. Gideon had read all of the man’s books, and extreme gratitude that Liam had brought one to share filled his soul. With his son reading, Gideon drifted again….
“Daddy,” Jeremiah said, and Gideon immediately came back to his white place. “I brought your new granddaughter to meet you.”
Oh, how wonderful.
“She was born yesterday,” Jeremiah continued. “And we named her Clara Jean. Jean was Whitney’s great-grandmother. She has a ton of hair, Daddy, and you’d just love her.” The love Jeremiah had for his daughter came through loud and clear, and Gideon so wanted to hold that new grandbaby. He wanted to hug Whitney for her part in carrying the baby for nine long months, as he’d seen his wife really suffer there near the end of all six of her pregnancies.
Jeremiah tol
d him about the ranch, the new baby, what JJ was up to now that he was fifteen months old. “And I’m tired, Daddy,” Jeremiah said. “I don’t know how you had seven kids. I’m drowning with just the two.”
They’re close together, Gideon told him. You’re doing great. You’ll be fine. You’re a good man, and a great father, Jeremiah.
“I don’t know what I’m doing most of the time,” Jeremiah said, as if arguing with him.
No one does.
“I keep thinkin’ about you, and what you’d do in any given situation. When the hay isn’t getting mowed fast enough. When the blade on the swather goes out at exactly the wrong time. I’m stressed about the ranch almost all the time, and sometimes I bring that home to Whit, who’s been home with JJ—by herself—all day.” He sighed, and Gideon wished he could take his son into his arms and tell him he was merely human.
But Jeremiah had always bordered on superhuman, and he had high expectations for himself.
You’re doing great, he told him again.
“We’re just gonna sit here with you for a while, Daddy. Is that okay?”
Totally fine.
Gideon listened to the baby make a grunting noise, and a few moments later, the even breathing of his son told him that Jeremiah had fallen asleep. Peace moved through him, because if he could give Jeremiah a few minutes of rest, he wanted to do just that.
“Conrad’s giving you a hug, Daddy.” Rhett’s voice brought joy to Gideon’s soul. Oh, how he’d loved becoming a father, and Rhett had been such a good first baby boy. He’d always helped his mother, led the other boys, and set the kind of example Gideon had hoped he would.
“Hey, Gideon.” Evelyn was the perfect person for Rhett, and Gideon sure had enjoyed getting to know her. “You look good today. Doesn’t he look good, Rhett?” The way she drawled Rhett’s name reminded Gideon so much of how Momma said his name.
“You sure do,” Rhett said. “More color in your face.” Something scraped, and then Rhett added, “We came to tell you something big, Daddy. You’re the first one to find out.”
“And it’s a secret still,” Evelyn said. “So you can’t be tellin’ the nurses in the middle of the night or anything.” She laughed, and Gideon hadn’t heard someone laugh in so long. All of his sons had come. They’d brought their kids and wives, and Jeremiah had even brought Winston and Willow, his dogs.
But they didn’t normally laugh. They talked to him. They read to him. They talked to each other. They didn’t laugh.
He really craved the sound of laughter, and he wanted to reach for Evelyn and thank her for treating him like he wasn’t one step away from death.
“Daddy,” Rhett said. “Evelyn’s going to have another baby.”
“Not just one baby,” Evelyn said. “Three babies, Gideon.”
Triplets! Gideon felt like he couldn’t breathe. How wonderful. You two must be so thrilled!
“His monitor is increasing,” Rhett said.
“Of course it is,” Evelyn said. “He’s excited about the babies.” Her voice got louder as she drew nearer. “Remember, it’s a secret. And I’m scared out of my mind. How am I supposed to take care of three babies?”
Momma will help, Gideon told her. God wouldn’t give them to you if He didn’t think you could take care of them.
“And how are we doing, Mister Walker?” This time, one of the nurses was talking to him. They did that from time to time, and he knew one woman was having some trouble with her son. “Yep, his heart rate went up. What have you guys been telling him?”
“Nothing,” Rhett said. “Just visiting.”
Nope, they’re having three babies. Three babies! Gideon felt downright jovial, and the nurse said, “Oh, there he goes again. Well, let’s get the doctor in here to see him.”
“This is good, right?” Rhett asked. “I mean, he hasn’t done this before.”
The voices faded, and once again Gideon was left alone. Three babies. Wow, he thought as he drifted.
“I’m back, Gideon.”
Gideon smiled at the sound of his wife’s voice. Liam had finished the Louis L’amour book, and Gideon had told him to send Momma with a new book.
She had, and she’d been reading to him for a couple of chapters now. She didn’t stay all the time, but Gideon understood. They had seven sons, and six daughters-in-law, and eight grandchildren. Penny was a busy woman.
“Can you squeeze my hand, dear?” she asked.
Gideon so wanted to see his wife again. So he put everything he had into trying to squeeze her hand.
“Oh,” she said. “He did it, Doctor. He squeezed my hand!” Penny started to cry, and Gideon tried to reassure her that he was okay.
All at once, he could see, and everything wasn’t nearly as bright as the white space where he’d been floating.
Penny’s beautiful face slowly came into focus in front of him, and Gideon became aware of a sharp, clean scent, and a monitor beeping to his left. “Penny?” he asked. His voice actually hurt coming out.
“Welcome back, Mister Walker,” a man said, and Gideon looked at him, noticing the white doctor’s coat.
“Praise the Lord.” Penny sobbed into his chest, and Gideon had no idea what to do, but he thought he had a very long road ahead of him.
Chapter Thirty-One
Mal woke with a groan as she realized a phone was ringing. “It’s Thursday,” she complained. She didn’t work at the bakery on Thursdays or Sundays, the only two days she got to sleep past two a.m.
“It’s my mother,” Skyler said, and that got Mal all the way awake. Guilt crept through her for complaining as he asked, “Momma?”
Mal looked a Skyler, finding tense anticipation in his face. Suddenly, everything sagged. “Oh, thank heaven.” He pulled the phone away from his mouth. “Daddy woke up this morning.”
Emotions surged in Mal. “That’s great.” She got out of bed. “Let’s get over there.” Gideon had been in a coma for over a month now, and while he wouldn’t be coming home any time soon, him waking up was a miracle.
Thank you, she prayed as she hurried into the bathroom to get some clothes out of the closet.
“I’m getting in the shower real quick,” Skyler said.
“Okay, I’ll go make coffee.” Mal dressed quickly as the shower started. In the kitchen, her hands shook as she measured the coffee grounds. Fifteen minutes later, both of them with a cup of coffee, Skyler and Mal headed to the hospital.
“Is it weird I’m nervous to see him?” Skyler asked. “I mean, I have a picture of him in my mind, and he’s not that man anymore.”
“He’s the same man,” Mal said.
Skyler didn’t argue, and Mal chalked that up to nerves. They’d been getting along splendidly since she’d returned from Amarillo. He’d been teaching her to ride a horse on her days off, and they often clip-clopped along in the mid-afternoon heat, talking.
He spent mornings on the ranch after his solitary run, because it was cooler. He and Jeremiah got along great, and Mal could usually find the two of them in Skyler’s office at the front of the house in the hotter afternoon hours. They went over the budget, planned for breeding season, market day, and more ranch talk Mal didn’t completely understand.
What she knew was that Seven Sons had drawn their market day on the same day as her and Skyler’s one-year anniversary. He’d said there wasn’t much he could do about it, but that they could go anywhere in the world the day after.
Mal honestly didn’t care all that much about the anniversary. She knew a life wasn’t built around special occasions, but constant living, breathing, talking, and praying with someone day after day.
“We’re going to offer to have him and Momma come live with us, right?” Skyler glanced at her as he got the truck going down the highway.
“Yes,” Mal said. “But Sky, he’s not going to come home immediately.”
“I know that,” Skyler said, his voice a bit wounded. “But I don’t want them going back to that farmhouse. Momma can’t
handle what it will take to care for him.”
“I agree,” Mal said. “Our place is huge, and we have a bedroom right across the hall.”
“Jeremiah will offer too,” he said.
“He has two children under sixteen months,” Mal said. “Your mother will come to our house, Sky.” She wanted to tell him not to worry about it, but she knew that annoyed him. Skyler worried about things sometimes, and that was okay. He was allowed to worry.
He reached across the console and took her hand. After kissing her knuckles, he said, “I love you, Mal.”
“I love you too.”
“I don’t think we’re going to get to celebrate our anniversary the way I want to. Not if my parents move in with us.”
“It’s fine,” Mal said, thinking of where she’d been a year ago. “Remember when you found me in my apartment?”
He cast a look at her. “Yeah.”
“This new life is the celebration,” she said, her voice quiet. “That apartment was infested with cockroaches and rats. I couldn’t afford to fix my car. I had nothing. Less than nothing.” She put a brave smile on her face, because they didn’t talk about their lives before they’d gotten married very often.
“Now you get up at two a.m.”
She knew he was trying to make light of the situation, because he didn’t like it when she called him her savior. But he had literally saved her, and she was so grateful for him. “That’s by choice, though,” she said. “I do love the bakery.”
“I know you do.” He smiled at her. “We’ve almost made it a year, sweetheart.”
“And we’ve heard nothing from the immigration agent.”
“Well….” He glanced at her again.
“Well?”
“Wyatt said he did his interview over a month ago.”
“He did?”