Watching her face. Waiting for that moment when she closed her eyes.
Chasing that moment when consciousness lapsed into a blood-rush frenzy.
It was so good.
* * *
Nora was dressed and at the table drinking coffee when Gunner walked into the kitchen.
“Where’s Ash?” he asked.
“Living room talking to Dylan, I think.”
He nodded, poured himself a cup of coffee, and sat down at the table.
“Your bandage is off. Can I see?” he asked.
She held out her hand, and smiled when she saw the delight on his face.
“Cute worm,” he said.
She glanced at her palm and frowned. “It’s a caterpillar, thank you.”
He was laughing when Asher walked in.
“What did I miss?” he asked as he refilled the cup he was carrying.
“I dissed her worm,” Gunner said.
“Caterpillar,” Nora muttered.
Asher grinned. The banter felt good. It took his mind off the nightmare he’d had, and the day ahead of them.
“On another note, Dylan is on the way with a metal detector. Dad’s good. He’s in PT every day and when they walk him up and down the hall, the security guard is right behind them. I imagine it’s quite the sight. The nurses will be glad to see the back of us when he’s released.”
“I’m packed,” Nora said. “If you’ll run me back to the house before he gets here, then I’ll be out of your hair.”
“You haven’t eaten anything yet,” he said.
She shook her head. “I’ll get something at home.”
Ash was already feeling her absence, but understood the need. “I’ll get your things.”
Gunner was stirring sugar into his coffee. “Nora, I have something to say before you leave. Thank you for the honesty and the help, and for taking the scab off of a sore I’ve been nursing for the last twenty years. I don’t know whyBrenda was the way she was, and I’ve been so bitter, and so angry at her. At the age of seven, all I felt was rejection. I kept thinking that if she’d loved us, she wouldn’t have done what she did.” He took a deep breath. “Then last night in my sleep, I remembered the note from the tooth fairy. Oh… I knew the story of it, because I’d heard it repeated, but I didn’t actually remember it on my own. Until the dream. I remembered that after she slid it under the pillow, she leaned over and whispered in my ear, ‘Love you forever.’ Asking us to remember that day and that night, and the last time we saw her alive, unlocked that memory. I don’t know why she did what she did to Dad, or why she got caught up in Brandt’s world, but it wasn’t because she didn’t love us, was it, Ash?”
Asher shook his head. “No, buddy, it wasn’t because of that.”
Tears were rolling down Nora’s face. “It’s going to be okay, honey. It’s all going to be okay.”
Gunner nodded. “I’ll get your stuff,” he said, and walked out of the room.
Asher picked up a dish towel and began wiping away the tears. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened in my life.”
“I think we’ll call it even. Get your coat, big man, and take me home.”
Gunner came back with her things, and then they were gone, driving away from the bar and up a side street on the way to her house.
* * *
