“Benny, sweetheart, stop,” Mom said, her voice shaking, trying to pull him back. But he couldn’t stop thinking about Red’s face, the way it twisted up, the sound he made when he hit the ice, the way his eyes rolled back a little.
Feeling like he might throw up, Benny went slip-sliding over the ice with Mom, everyone parting to let them through. She kept murmuring things to make him feel better and telling him how everything would be fine, but Benny knew better.
Grandpa had a heart attack and coulddiebecause Benny’d insisted he skate in this show. It made him sick to even think about it.
“Gracie!” Marshall’s voice cut through the noise, steady but loud. He was suddenly there, skating on his boots, Olivia at his side. “Let me take Benny. You go with your family to the hospital. I’ve got him.”
Benny looked up at his mom, vaguely aware that he’d never seen her face that white. She was the same color as the ice, looking as terrified as he felt.
“No, no,” she said. “He’ll stay with us. With his family.” She clutched at Benny again like she was scared to let him go. “I can’t…leave him.” She kept kissing Benny’s hair and he didn’t care. He clung to her. “I can’t.”
“They’re taking Red to Intermountain,” Marshall said, very calmly. “Please go with your family and let me take care of Benny.”
Mom straightened and looked at him. “I can’t…”
“Yes, you can.” He put his hands on her shoulders and for a minute, Benny thought he was going to hug her. “You don’t know what’s going to happen there, or what Benny…” He glanced at Benny. “You don’t even know if they’ll let children inthe ER. Please trust me to take care of him and bring him to you the minute Red is in the clear. I’ll treat him as if he were my own son.”
As if he were my own son.
The words rang loud in Benny’s ears, giving him an ache that felt like something was right and wrong at the same time. Like he wanted it so much but shouldn’t dream that big. A dad like…Marshall Hampton.
“Oh, Benny.” Mom folded again, hugging him. “What do you want to do, honey?”
“I, um…” He let out a wobbly breath. “I’m a little scared of the hospital.”
Marshall instantly reached down and wrapped both Benny and Mom in his big arms, holding them tight.
“Come on, Gracie,” he whispered. “I promise he’ll be fine and you can concentrate on what the doctors say. Right, Ben?”
Benny nodded. “Mom, call Marshall when Grandpa…gets better, please? So I know.”
“Gracie! Gracie!” Nicole and Uncle Jack came rushing to the side of the rink. “Is Benny okay?”
No, Benny thought.I’m not okay. I’ll never be okay until Grandpa is. I’ll never?—
“All right, Benny.” His mom put her hand on his cheek, drying tears. “You stay with Mr. Hampton and Olivia. I’m going with Uncle Jack to the hospital, and I will call the minute I can tell you he’s fine. Marshall will take care of you.”
He stood a little straighter and managed to nod but then clutched her jacket when his heart broke again. “Please don’t let Grandpa die. Please. Please don’t…” He couldn’t finish. His throat shut tight, his voice gone.
“He’s going to be fine. I promise.” She turned away, fighting tears of her own. Then she looked up at Marshall. “I’m sor?—”
“No, Gracie. I’m sorry. So sorry you’re going through this. Take Benny off your mind. I’ll have him with me in town and if he needs to come to our house tonight, he can. He’s in good hands. I promise.”
His words made Benny feel a little bit better, but then he looked past the man’s big shoulder and saw tears pouring down Olivia’s cheeks. Had he ever seen her cry? He didn’t think she was capable of it.
For some reason, that made him want to be strong.
“I’ll be okay, Mom,” he said, forcing himself to stand up straighter. He swallowed, managed a breath, stole another look at Olivia. “You go and tell Grandpa I’m…I’m…that I love him.”
She made a weird noise in her throat and hugged him again, kissing him on the cheek. “He loves you so much, Benny-bean.”
He smiled at the nickname only Grandpa used, needing to hear it more than he realized.
Uncle Jack hugged him, and Nicole, then they put their arms around Mom and took off, leaving Benny with a family that wasn’t his.
“Let’s go, Ben.” Marshall scooped him up into a bear hug. He helped him get out of his skates while Olivia found his shoes and regular clothes. The whole time, Kat licked his mittens and put her snout in his lap because that border collie was smarter than anyone and knew something was wrong.
In fact, everything was wrong. A world without Red was…not what Benny wanted.
