by Beth Ehemann
“Here you go, babe.” Michelle handed me a glass of lemonade.
I was so lost in my own world that I didn’t even hear her come back outside. She looked at me funny as I took the glass from her. “You okay?”
“Yeah, sorry.” I lifted the glass to my lips and took a sip so that I didn’t have to talk. The thoughts racing around my brain were moving so fast I couldn’t keep up with them and I started to feel dizzy.
“You nervous about later?” Michelle asked as she sat down in the chair across from me.
“Later?” I frowned at her.
Her face fell into a deadpan expression and she stared at me. “Yes, later. Your knee?”
“Oh! Right!” I was losing my fucking mind. “Yeah, I’m a little nervous. I just want to get today over with.”
“What happened to you?” Kat asked.
“I hurt my knee playing hockey,” I answered, looking down at my glass.
“You play hockey?”
My eyes snapped up to hers. She knew damn well I played hockey. She practically lived with me for a year and knew almost everything there was to know about me. I chewed on my top lip as I debated what to say next.
“Yeah, I play hockey,” I finally said, swallowing my anger for the sake of not upsetting Michelle.
My phone vibrated in my pocket—I’d never been more excited to get a phone call in my whole life. I pulled it out and stared at the screen. “Uh . . . I gotta take this. I’ll be right back.” I stood as quickly as I could and hobbled into the house, away from everyone.
“Dr. J! What’s up?” My phone was at my ear but all I could hear was my heart thumping loudly. Nervous didn’t even begin to cover it.
“Hi, Viper. I have the results of your MRI, and a couple of us have looked it over and talked about it. When can you come back in so we can go over it?”
I clenched my eyes tight and swallowed hard. “Is it really necessary to come back in? Can’t you just tell me now?”
“Viper, this isn’t a quick conversation. We need to talk about some things and make some decisions.”
“Doc, I hardly slept last night and today has been the longest day. Can you please just give me the verdict and I’ll come in tomorrow for the sentence?”
He let out a sigh and was quiet for a couple seconds. “Okay. Fine. You have a pretty significant tear in your anterior cruciate ligament—your ACL—and it’s going to require surgery to repair before you can get back on the ice.”
Fuck!
“Now this isn’t a career-ending injury, it’s not even season-ending, but it will keep you off the ice for about six months, depending on how quickly you heal.”
He started going on and on about physical therapy and exercise, but I checked out. My stomach rolled as I sat down on the kitchen chair, my hands shaking so bad I could hardly hold on to the phone.
“Viper, did you hear me?” Dr. Jennings said loudly.
“Yeah, I’m here.”
“I said don’t let this discourage you. In the grand scheme of things, this is minor. You’re young, you’re healthy, and you’ll be back on the ice before the year is over. Come in tomorrow morning and we’ll discuss your surgery options.”
“You’re sure this can’t wait and be repaired in the off-season?”
“I wouldn’t recommend it, Viper. Not only will you not have full range of motion in that knee, you risk injuring it further and possibly doing permanent damage. Don’t think about the next six months right now. Get a good night’s sleep tonight and come in bright and early tomorrow so we can go over everything. Okay?
“Yep. Thanks, doc.”
I didn’t wait to see if he said anything else before I hung up. Frankly, I didn’t want to hear any more. I put my head in my hands and sat stunned, staring at the wall. I really had convinced myself that it was nothing and the team was just being overly cautious. Dr. Jennings had his opinions on the injury and I had mine. It wasn’t minor and it was a big deal. Not being on the ice for six months was devastating, especially this year when we were starting off the season so strong. Stronger than we ever had.
And now . . . I was no longer part of the team.
“Are you okay?” a familiar voice asked from the doorway, but not the familiar voice I wanted to hear.
I spun around in my chair and glared at Kat so hard my eyes were physically strained. “Why the fuck are you here?”
Her head jerked back in surprise. “I was assigned here, Viper. This is my job.”
“It was your job. You’re quitting . . . today,” I hissed.
She shook her head vehemently. “No, I’m not. I love my job, and I really like Gam. I’m not going anywhere.”
I bolted from my chair, ignoring the pain that spread from my knee like a lightning bolt, and took an intimidating step close to her. “Did you pick this job on purpose?”
“No,” she barked incredulously, her jet-black hair falling around her face. “I can’t believe you’d even think that.”
I leaned to my left and stole a quick glance at the front door to make sure no one was coming before I turned back to her. “Well, it’s pretty fucking coincidental that of all the jobs you could be sent to, you wind up at my grandmother’s house, don’t ya think?”
“I’m sorry. Perhaps you’re remembering our past a little different than I am. You never even introduced me to one single family member, so how was I supposed to know she was your grandmother?”
“Gee, I don’t know . . . the last name Finkle didn’t ring a fucking bell?”
She sighed and crossed her arms over her chest, cocking a hip to the side. “When I was assigned, they told me what the case was and where it was. I didn’t learn her name until the morning I was supposed to start. What was I supposed to do?”
“Quit!” I growled. “There was an easy fix. You march into whoever’s office and say, ‘Nope, sorry.’”
“I can’t do that or I’d risk losing my job!” she snarled.
“I don’t give a shit about your job!”
“I’m not surprised. You never really gave a shit about anything,” she said in a cold tone. “I’d be surprised if you even really give a shit about that woman out there.”
My jaw clenched and I curled my hands into fists as I lunged forward and glared down at her. “You know nothing about that woman out there, and if I ever hear you say one single thing about her, your job won’t be the only thing you lose!”
She narrowed her eyes. “Did you just threaten me?”
I lowered my voice to a calm but intimidating tone. “Call it whatever you want, but I promise you . . . quitting this job is the best decision you’ll ever make.”
Before she could respond, I stepped to my right and limped through the front door.
“All right, time to go.” I clapped my hands loudly as I hobbled across the porch and picked up my crutches.
Michelle stopped talking to Gam mid-sentence and looked at me with bulging eyes. “What?”
“Yeah, you just got here,” Gam added.
“I know, but I have stuff to do. I’ll come back tomorrow, okay?” I bent down and kissed the top of her head again.
“Wait. You’re serious?” Michelle asked, setting her drink on the table.
“Very. Get the kids together. I’ll wait in the car.” I turned and limped slowly down the steps as the front door creaked open. I didn’t have to turn around to know who it was.
“Viper!” Gam called after me, but I didn’t look back as I got in the car and stared straight ahead. I was so close to snapping already and seeing Kat on the front porch again might just push me over the edge.
We were a couple miles from Gam’s house and Viper was still breathing heavy, more agitated than I’d ever seen him.
“You wanna talk about it?” I asked, hoping he didn’t blow up at my question.
He took a long, slow breath in and let it all out. “That was Dr. Jennings on the phone.”
Oh crap.
“And?” I asked anxiously, quickly lo
oking from the road to him and back again.
“And I have a torn ACL that needs to be surgically repaired.”
“Oh, Viper! I’m so sorry.” I wanted to pull over and wrap my arms around him, but I knew he’d recoil, so I just kept driving.
“Yeah. It pretty much blows. My whole season is shot.”
“Not necessarily,” I disagreed carefully. “It’s only October. You can be back before the end of the winter.”
“That’s practically the whole fucking season!” he shot back with a glare that I felt even though I wasn’t look at him.
“Okay, don’t snap at me, and please don’t talk like that in front of the kids.” I sighed and shook my head but didn’t say another word. Talking to him when he was this upset was pointless. Obviously I felt horrible about his knee, and I wished more than anything it hadn’t happened, but when he was lost within himself like this, no one could reach him.
Not even me.
As I pulled onto my street, I noticed someone standing at my front door.
“Who is that?” I said out loud to myself.
“Looks like Jodi,” Viper answered dryly.
Jodi, and her much younger husband, Vince, lived right next door to me, and I could not have asked for more awesome neighbors. After Mike died, she helped me through some really dark days and weeks, until Viper came along and made those days and weeks bright again.
The headlights moved across the porch as I turned into the driveway. She turned and gave me a quick wave, following my car into the garage.
“Hey,” I greeted her as I got out of the car.
“Hey, yourself. Long time no talk.” She walked up the side of my car and gave me a quick hug.
“I know. Things have been a little crazy around here.” I opened the back door and gently unbuckled Maura, who was sound asleep.
“I’ve heard. I mean I saw,” Jodi said as Viper slammed his car door. “How are you feeling? Any verdict on that knee yet?”
“I have to have surgery,” Viper mumbled without looking up at her. He opened the car door for Matthew and then sulked along behind him into the house.
Jodi’s eyes widened and slid over to mine. “Wow. It’s a little chilly in here.”
“He just found out about the surgery a little while ago,” I defended quietly with a shrug. “It’s been a really bad day.”
“Yikes. I can imagine. Maybe I should go.”
“No.” I shook my head. “I’m guessing he’s going to go upstairs and want to be alone. It’s fine.”
Jodi followed me into the house. I dropped Maura’s bag on the island and turned back to Jodi. “I’m gonna go lay her down. I’ll be right back.”
She nodded and opened the fridge, plucking herself a water bottle.
I quickly ran up the steps and changed Maura’s diaper as quietly as I could. Thankfully, she didn’t budge. It was barely even dinner time yet, but she was so wiped out from the last couple days, and probably didn’t sleep as good at Kacie’s as she would have in her own bed, so I decided just to let her nap. She’d eat when she was hungry.
I laid her in her crib, turned the music on, and went to check on Matthew in his room, but it was pitch-black.
I peeked my head in my bedroom. Viper was lying on the bed on his stomach and Matthew was sitting on his back, watching television.
“There you are,” I said quietly as I walked over to the bed and put my hands on my hips. “Whatcha doing?”
“Watching Ninja Turtles,” he answered in a squeaky little voice.
“Don’t you think you should watch it in your room and let Viper rest?” I leaned down and kissed the side of his head.
“He’s fine,” Viper mumbled into the pillow.
“Okay. Are you gonna come downstairs at all?” I was pretty sure I already knew the answer.
“I don’t know,” he said with a shrug.
“Okay. Well, I’ll check on you in a bit.”
I grabbed the monitor from Maura’s room and headed back to the kitchen. Jodi was sitting at the island, lazily flipping through a Pottery Barn catalog.
I let out a deep breath, puffing my cheeks out as I collapsed on the stool next to her.
Jodi glanced over at me. “You look exhausted.”
“I feel exhausted. Between Gam’s hip and now Viper’s knee, it’s been the longest couple of weeks.” I lifted my head off the island and propped it up on my hand. “And I have a feeling it’s going to get worse, not better.”
“So what happened to his knee? I mean, I saw the game, but what does he have to have surgery on?” She flipped another page of the catalog.
“I wasn’t kidding when I said that he just found out a little bit ago, and he hasn’t told me a whole lot. All I know is that he tore his ACL and needs surgery.” I got up from the stool and walked to the fridge, grabbing a bottle of water for myself. “And apparently he’s going to be out for like six months.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Holy shit.”
“I know. And I get that he’s not happy about it, I totally get that. I just hope that maybe once surgery is over and he’s on the mend, he snaps out of this a little bit.”
She twisted the cap off her water and took several big gulps. “I hope so, too. How are you going to take care of both him and Gam?”
“Well, in an ironic twist of events, before he even got hurt, he hired a nurse for Gam. Not that she needs a ton of medical care, just someone to help out with whatever she needs.” I grabbed a bag of Cheetos out of the pantry and tossed them on the counter. “Don’t judge me, I’m starving.”
Jodi pulled her bottom lip up and shook her head. “No judging here. I’ll even open them.” She pulled the top of the bag apart. “The nurse is a good thing though, right?”
“Oh, for sure!” I agreed. “We met her today . . . she seems nice. And Gam seems to like her a lot, and that’s what really matters.”
“That’s good. I guess it frees up some time for you to help take care of him.” She pointed a finger toward the ceiling.
“It does. I’m just worried about the kids.” I grabbed a handful of Cheetos from the bag and put them in front of me.
“The kids? Why?” She popped a Cheeto in her mouth and crunched it loudly.
“Well, the last couple of weeks we’ve been doing a lot of driving back and forth to Gam’s house, and now we’re driving Viper everywhere.” I glanced down at the island and picked at the corner of a napkin that was sitting there. “A couple days ago we went to Kacie’s and he was so excited to play with her kids. He still has preschool a couple days a week, and that’s great, but he just wants to play.”
“Oh! Oh!” Jodi perked up and held her hand over her mouth, chewing as fast as she could. “Sorry, I got excited. Get this! Vince has a buddy who just rented the house across the street from us . . . and he has a son!”
“Seriously? How old?”
She pinched one eye shut and looked up in the air. “I don’t know, I have to ask, but I think he’s around Matthew’s age. He’s not quite in school yet either.”
“Really?” Excitement shot through me. “You have to find out details for me. That would be awesome!”
“I’ll ask Vince tonight. I’ve never met the guy, but I think he works with him or something. Oh my God, take these away from me before I eat all of them.” She pushed the bag across the island.
“You and me both. I swear I’ve become an emotional eater lately. That’s all I’ve been doing.” I grabbed a few more Cheetos and set them in front of me before I rolled the top of the bag down and put it back in the pantry.
Jodi and I chatted for a little while longer until Matthew came downstairs and complained that he was starving to death.
She went home and Matthew and I had a quiet dinner of macaroni and cheese. It was kind of nice spending some time alone together.
“Do you know what Miss Jodi told me today?” I asked.
He shook his head as he shoveled a huge spoonful of noodles into his mouth.
&nb
sp; “She told me that Mr. Vince has a friend who is moving in across the street and he has a son who she thinks might be close to your age. How cool is that?”
His blue eyes lit up. “Does his son want to be my friend?” he said through a mouthful of food, sending a few noodles back into the bowl.
I couldn’t help but giggle. “I bet he will. And maybe you guys can have campouts in the backyard and go sledding and do all sorts of fun stuff together.”
“Will he be here tomorrow?”
“Mmm, I don’t think tomorrow, but I’ll ask Miss Jodi later if she knows when he’s moving in, okay?”
He nodded excitedly. “I bet he likes Ninja Turtles like I do.”
“You might be right, buddy. Ninja Turtles are the coolest.” I reached over and smoothed his crazy blond hairs down.
Matthew told me all there was to know about Ninja Turtles as he finished eating. Then I gave him a quick bath and tucked him into bed. I peeked in on Maura one more time, who not only slept right through dinner, but hadn’t moved a muscle since I put her in there.
“Sweet baby girl,” I whispered to myself as I closed her door and tiptoed to my bedroom. The room was quiet and pretty dark except for the glow of the TV Matthew had left on when he went downstairs. I set the monitor on the nightstand and slipped off to the bathroom for a quick shower.
When I got out, Viper was sitting up in bed, looking down at his phone.
“Hey. How are you feeling? Do you feel better after getting some sleep?” I pulled the towel off my head and squeezed my hair with it.
Viper just shrugged without looking up.
“Are you hungry? Want me to make you something to eat?”
“No thanks,” he muttered.
“Okay then.” I turned and headed back toward the bathroom to brush my hair and put pajamas on.
The TV and all the lights were off when I came back. Viper had rolled over and was facing away from me.