Three Days of Rain

by Christine Hughes

  With tears streaming down his face, he dragged her out of the bathroom then ran to the kitchen, grabbing a dishtowel and the phone. Wrapping the towel around her wrist that spit blood at him, he called nine-one-one. She was mumbling gibberish, and he couldn’t understand a word she said.

  “Maddie! Look at me. Look at me. Everything is gonna be okay. I’ll help you. The ambulance is coming. Just stay with me till they get here.”

  “You did this to me, Jake Morgan. This is all your fault.”

  He’d never felt more alone than when she spoke those words to him before passing out in his arms.

  “Emergency. What is your situation?”

  “This is Jake Morgan. I need an ambulance. Madison’s hurt. She hurt herself.”

  “Calm down, Jake. Tell me what happened.”

  “Damn it. I told you she hurt herself. Just get here now.”

  Jake hung up the phone and threw it across the room.

  “Shit, Maddie. What have you done?”

  She’d stayed in the hospital a week before they released her to him. He moved her back in to his place and vowed he wouldn’t let anything bad happen to her again.

  ***

  Jake jerked himself back to the present and tied his sneakers. God, she’s like a damn ghost. He wasn’t sure when she was going to stop haunting him. What did he ever do to deserve two years of gut-wrenching memories? He was far past the point of remembering any good times with her. That would have been too easy. All he knew is he must’ve pissed off God big time if He was allowing Jake to fall into this shit over and over again. Jake wasn’t one to cry “Why me” but he needed at least a small break from it. She was paralyzing. Everything about her brought him to his knees.

  A small knock on his door caught his attention.

  “Jesus, Danny! It’s seven in the morning!”

  He pulled open the door, fully expecting to see his brother standing on the other side. Instead, he found Lily. She was dressed in hot pink running shorts and a white tank, her curly hair pulled into a loose ponytail. The smile on her face was genuine.

  “Morning.”

  “Lily? What are you doing here?”

  He wasn’t wearing a shirt and she tried not make her appreciation obvious. “I haven’t seen you since Wednesday. I figured I’d come by and see if everything was all right.”

  “Everything’s fine. I don’t need you to check on me. Look, I gotta go. I was just about to go running. I’ll talk to you later.”

  Her foot kept the door from closing. She was still smiling when he looked back at her.

  “I know. I run, too, but I don’t know my way around here yet. I can’t figure a good route. I thought I’d go with you and get some ideas.”

  “This town is small, Lily. You can run anywhere you want. It’s not like you’ll get lost.”

  She defiantly put her hands on her hips. “I know. I just need the right pacing. Gotta get the ol’ heart rate up, ya know?”

  “How’d you know where I live?”

  “Like you said, it’s a small town.”

  Jake stared at her, annoyed. “Incredible. Fine. Just keep up. I’m not slowing down for you. Come on in, let me get my shirt.”

  Lily looked around the space as he disappeared into the back of the house. Why is there a broken guitar in the garbage?

  “What happened?” She pointed to the garbage as he walked back into the living room.

  He looked, shrugged. “Nothing. It just broke.”

  “But it’s really broken.”

  “I know. Like I said, it just broke.”

  Sure it did. She made a mental note to get more information out of him later. Uncle Billy had told her Jake used to play guitar. She wondered why he didn’t play anymore.

  He held the front door open and ushered her outside.

  “So, where do we go from here?” she asked.

  “First we stretch. Usually I stretch in the house but since you’re here, there wouldn’t be enough room.” He needed some excuse to temper the heat he suddenly felt.

  They silently stretched out their legs and arms for a few minutes before Jake started to run. He was several steps away before she realized he’d started, and she double-timed a few strides to catch up. “Nice to give a girl a warning.”

  He didn’t hear her. He’d already plugged his ears with his iPod. She decided to bring hers next time as they ran in silence.

  For three miles she kept pace with him and, despite himself, Jake was impressed. He’d even kicked up his strides a little bit, hoping to give her a silent clue that he’d rather be alone. But Lily wasn’t getting the message. She didn’t even look winded, he noticed. He noticed quite a bit about her, actually. The sweat was making her tank cling a little tighter to her body, her hamstrings were perfectly toned, and her focus was unbreakable. He pulled the buds from his ears.

  “Good to go another mile?”

  “Oh, now you’re talking to me?”

  “No. Just felt like running down the beach. I like running in the sand.”

  “I never ran on the beach before. Let’s do it.”

  “It isn’t easy.”

  “Who said it needed to be easy?”

  Jake smiled. “No one. Just warning you.”

  “Well, you can keep your warnings. I’m not gonna melt.”

  “Okay, then. Don’t say I didn’t tell you.”

  He pushed himself on the sand and even though he didn’t want to be, he was happy to have some company. She never broke stride, she never once complained. He could tell she was pushing it but she didn’t stop. He eventually eased up and they made their way back to his house, walking the last quarter mile.

  “Thanks, Jake. I needed that,” she said when they reached his front yard.

  “No problem. You want a bottle of water or something?”

  “Sure. I’ll wait out here.”

  When he came back outside, two bottles in his hand, she was stretching out her legs and he once again noticed how in shape she was. He shook off the thought. “Here you go.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Well. I gotta get back in. I told Mr. Olsen I’d put in a couple hours today.”

  “Sure, no problem. Thanks again for the run and the water. Maybe we could do it again sometime.”

  “Yeah. Maybe.”

  “See ya, Jake.”

  “See ya, Lily.”

  He watched as she jogged away while a tiny something rolled in his belly. It wasn’t until she disappeared around the bend that he turned to go back inside to get ready for work.

  CHAPTER 7

  “Hey Jake! Thanks for coming in. The haul’s been so big this week, we haven’t had a chance to get anything properly cleaned or restocked. I appreciate you doing this for me.”

  “No problem, Mr. Olsen. I didn’t have anything planned, anyway. Just had to get my run in this morning.”

  John Olsen was quiet a minute. He knew Jake was hurting and he knew it was his daughter who had hurt him. He’d tried to take responsibility for it and gave Jake anything he could, be it overtime, small raises when he could afford it, or just alone time on the boat he knew Jake so dearly missed. Jake had changed so much since Maddie left. All of them had.

  It was a hard pill to swallow but John knew they were all better off with Maddie gone. No one had seen her in the two years since she left. She called occasionally but, for the most part, his daughter was gone. She never wanted to talk about what happened the night she left and each time he tried to bring it up, she’d hang up on him.

  The guilt he felt over the relief of her absence ate at his gut. He prayed for her everyday but knew it didn’t help. Mostly, he just felt bad for Jake. She was no good for him. John had known there would be trouble the first time he’d heard she was moving in with Jake...

  ***

  “Maddie, you sure you want to do this?”

  “Jesus, Dad. I’m just moving a mile away. It’s not like you won’t ever see me.”

  “That’s not what I mea
nt. You barely know him,” he said, although he was really thinking, He barely knows you.

  “I’ve known him since high school. He’s a good guy, Dad.”

  “But, Maddie—”

  “No Dad. Don’t, ‘But Maddie me.’ I’m a grown woman and if I want to move in with my boyfriend, I will.”

  “Look, I know his family. They are my employees. Jake is a good guy. I just don’t want—”

  “Don’t want what? Don’t want me to mess him up? Don’t want me to hurt him?”

  “That isn’t what I said.”

  “No. But you may as well have. You’ll see. I’m not the same girl I was, and if you don’t want to support my decisions, then you should just leave us alone.”

  “I support you. I’m just afraid you don’t think things through.”

  “Sorry if I’m not smart enough for you. Sorry if I can’t be more like Megan. Sorry I went away to college instead of settling down in this shit-hole of a town and starting a family.”

  “Madison Olsen! You listen to me. Stop blaming everyone else for your behavior. You just make sure you remember to treat people like you want to be treated.”

  Her tone was poisonous. “Jesus. You sound like Mom. You gonna start crying like her now, too?” Grabbing her suitcase, she headed for the door. She stopped and looked at him with hatred. “You ever stop to think that maybe you and Mom made me who I am? That all the crap I’ve pulled in the past was your fault? Chew on that.”

  She slammed the door behind her and he stared at the empty space that mirrored the empty hole in his heart. Maybe she was right, after all. Maybe they just didn’t do a good enough job of raising her.

  ***

  “You okay, Mr. Olsen?”

  Jake’s question chased away the memories, jerking John back to the present.

  “Yeah. Yeah, Jakey. I’m sorry. Just got lost for a minute. You need anything?”

  “Nope. I’m good. I’ll have the boats restocked, organized, and cleaned in a few hours.”

  John looked at his watch. It was almost eleven. “Hey, did you eat yet?”

  “Yeah, I had breakfast after I ran.”

  “I’m gonna order lunch from Billy’s in about an hour or so. You want anything?”

  “Sure. Just a sandwich or something.”

  “Okay, Jake. I’ll let you know. Thanks again.”

  Jake watched John turn and walk down the dock into the building. He knew the man was torn up over his daughter—like they all were—but Jake was too busy dancing with his own devils to do anything about it. Hard to imagine one person could cause so much damage and destruction.

  Two hours later, Jake had completely cleaned, restocked, and organized one boat. He still had another to finish. He saw John walk down the dock with a bag from Billy’s. He drained the last of his water bottle and hopped off the boat to meet his boss halfway.

  “Here you go, Jake. I got you a grilled chicken sandwich and a soda.”

  “Thanks, Mr. Olsen. I’ve got one boat done. I just have to finish the other one. Probably another two or three hours.”

  “That’s fine. Hey, you mind if I eat with you? I know you usually eat by yourself but, truth be told, I’m a bit bored. Too much paperwork makes me feel isolated.”

  “Sure, Mr. Olsen.”

  “How many times do I have to tell you to call me John?”

  Jake laughed. It was a running joke between them. Mr. Olsen knew he would never call him John. They walked down the dock together to the table that sat under the biggest tree on the property. It would give them both some shade from the intense afternoon sun.

  As they ate, they mostly made small talk. They spoke about the boats, the docks, and the large amount of fish that had been coming in these past few weeks. John went on about the weather and his grandkids. He spoke of Jake’s dad, Andy, and what a great employee he was. He spoke of Danny and how proud he was to have a man like that in his family. Eventually, he turned his conversation to Jake.

  “You’re also an asset to the docks, Jake. You’re the hardest worker here.”

  “Thanks, Mr. Olsen. I appreciate that. I love working here.”

  “You know, I consider you family. If you ever need anything, please let me know.”

  An uncomfortable shiver sped through Jake. Sweat began to pool at his brow and his legs bounced with nervous energy. He did not like the direction this conversation was taking. “I’ll remember that. Well, I should be getting back to finishing the other boat. Thanks again for lunch.”

  “Wait, Jake. I never really got to apologize for what happened with Maddie.”

  “It’s been two years. You don’t need to apologize. You didn’t do anything. And I really don’t want to talk about her right now, if it’s all the same to you.”

  “I know. I really do. I was just wondering, if, well, if you’ve heard from her lately.”

  Jake rubbed his hands over his face to keep her from taking up space in his brain. He was relaxed and focused on finishing up the boats. He didn’t need this right now.

  “No. I haven’t heard from her in two years. Not since she left. Now if you don’t mind, I do want to finish what I started. You’ve been more than generous with me and I’d like to finish the work you’re paying me for.”

  John looked at Jake with the eyes of a man lost. “Sure. Go ahead. I’ll throw this stuff out.”

  With that, Jake turned and walked back to the boat and John sat frozen by memories...

  ***

  John grabbed the ringing phone by his bed. “Yeah? Who is it?”

  “Mr. Olsen? It’s Jake. Something’s happened. You need to come to the hospital right away.”

  John bolted upright and it took him a minute to clear the sleep from his head.

  “Jake? What’s wrong?”

  “It’s Maddie.”

  That was all John needed to hear. He shook his wife from sleep and they were dressed and in the car within five minutes of hanging up the phone.

  Abigail Olsen was a slight woman with blonde hair, like Maddie’s, and light brown eyes. A bubbly woman, she was well-liked throughout the small community. She did so much to create a feeling of togetherness within the town. She organized picnics, headed the PTA, and felt a sense of accomplishment when she was able to bring about positive change for those around her. Now, however, she was tired and scared. “What did he say happened?”

  “Abby, he didn’t. He just said ‘something happened’ to Maddie and we needed to get to the hospital right away.”

  “Why would Jake call you? I thought they broke up.”

  “I thought they did, too, sweetie. At least, I hoped they did.”

  “John Olsen! What a terrible thing to say!”

  “I know it is. I know it is.”

  The nearest hospital was two towns over, about a forty minute drive. John managed to make it in twenty-five, running every red light and pushing the Volvo to its limit. He pulled into the emergency parking lot about the same time as Danny and Andy Morgan.

  “Do you know what happened?” he asked Danny.

  Danny shook his head. “All I know is Sheriff Finlay called me and told me Maddie was being taken to the hospital by ambulance and we needed to come right away. Didn’t he call you too?”

  “No. Jake called and said something happened.”

  Andy Morgan was silent as they walked towards the emergency room doors. John knew he was trying hard not to imagine the worst. He knew that even though Jake had broken it off with that Maddie, they were too intertwined to leave each other alone for long. John, like many others, wondered when Jake was going to wake up and realize she was no good for him. He suspected that Andy felt the same way. Jake was a good kid and Maddie was just...well, not.

  It had to be hard raising the two boys after his wife died. Jenny Morgan had been a good woman and John shuddered when he thought about what she’d say about Jake and Maddie’s relationship.

  John was the first one through the door. He scanned quickly for Jake. Instead he f
ound the sheriff talking to one of the nurses.

  “Finlay! What happened?”

  Sheriff Finlay turned to look at him with somber eyes and noticed Abby, Danny, and Andy standing beside him. Dropping his head, he walked slowly toward them.

  Finlay was tall and skinny. In high school they’d called him “Bean Pole Finlay.” He didn’t seem to mind too much, though. Back then, he was the fastest kid on the track team, and he still held the county record for cross-country. Now, forty years later, he was sheriff of the small town he grew up in. He’d been able to watch his friends settle down and have kids and watched those kids grow up.

  “Why don’t we all sit down?”

  Abby’s voice was weary. “I don’t want to sit down. I want to know what happened to my daughter.”

  Andy spoke up. “And I want to know what Jake has to do with any of this. Is he in trouble?”

  “No, no. Jake isn’t in any trouble. It’s Maddie. You see, it seems she got high on something, we don’t know what yet—”

  “Oh my God, John! She OD’d!”

  Finlay interrupted, “No, Abby. She didn’t. It seems she got high and broke into Jake’s house. He was woken up by the sound of breaking glass. When he went to investigate, he found Maddie sitting on the floor of the bathroom. She had broken the mirror.”

  “What? But why? I don’t understand.”

  “Well, John, it seems that she was quite upset about their break-up and she wanted to talk to Jake about it. She’d called earlier and he says he hung up on her. She wasn’t happy with the way that call ended, apparently, so she decided to break into Jake’s, like I said before.” He hesitated. “I’m sorry to say that Maddie tried to kill herself tonight.”

  Abby sank onto the nearest chair and placed her head between her knees. John sat beside her and rubbed her back. Neither had any words to share.

  Danny stepped up to ferret out the information from Finlay.

  “When you say ‘tried to kill herself’ you mean with drugs or pills or something?”

  “No, Danny. She told Jake everything was his fault and then proceeded to slit her wrists right in front of him. Jake jumped on top of her to stop her but she’d already done the damage. He got all cut up in the process, too, what with all the glass on the floor.