It was quiet for long moments, and even I held my breath, peering around the corner at my parents, my eyes wide.
“Fine,” Daddy finally grumbled, his tone that of a spoiled child not getting his way for the first time. “I dunno why you’re gettin’ so snippy about it.”
I could practically see the smoke billowing out of my momma’s ears, so I figured now was a good time to interrupt before she actually strangled the big oaf who was too dumb to realize when he was being an idiot. “Will and Rory are on their way. Rory’s bringin’ a casserole.”
Momma exhaled a deep breath, her shoulders sagging. “Thank you, honey. The girls okay?”
I knew she meant the little girls—when the next generation came along, the previous one didn’t get asked about often. “Ella’s out huntin’ for the new flags I put out, and Ava’s gettin’ Gran.”
Momma nodded, and before I could ask what was going on, the back door opened, and in strode my sisters. Rory studied the room, her eyes assessing Momma and Daddy, then the spotless kitchen—something that never happened on Sundays—before narrowing back on our parents. Will’s gaze was more frantic, her eyes running over our father as if checking for any outward sign of injury.
“Momma,” Rory said, walking over and giving her a kiss on the cheek before doing the same to our father. “Daddy. I’m just gonna pop this in the oven. Shouldn’t take but a little while.”
“I don’t suppose that’s fried chicken, is it?” Daddy asked, eyes hopeful.
“Richard James Haven, what did I?—”
“Okay, all right.” Daddy held up his hands in surrender. “I was only jokin’.”
“If you ‘joke’ with me one more time, I’m gonna lock you in the bedroom and add a pass-through slot like they have in prisons.Thenwe’ll see how much you feel like jokin’.”
My eyebrows shot up, my eyes meeting first Rory’s, then Will’s. They each wore the same shocked expression.
“Now, don’t go talkin’ crazy, sweetheart. Who’s gonna run the city if I’m stuck at home? I know the doctor said I need to take some time off, but I just can’t do that right now. I’ve got meetings scheduled every day this week and next.” Daddy looked at Will, eyebrows raised. “Isn’t that right? We’ve got all those plannin’ meetings with the city council to discuss redoing several roads around town. Plus the new park they want to install. And then there’s the Christmas parade. I can’t just cancel them because a few tests came back slightly bad.”
“Slightlybad?” Momma snapped. “For Christ’s sake, Richard, take your butt upstairs and lie down right now.”
“But—”
“Now,before you givemea heart attack. We’ll figure it out because youaretaking some time off. I don’t wanna hear another word against it.”
Daddy huffed but apparently wasn’t a complete idiot because he heaved himself off the chair, tucking his pants up under his protruding belly, and trudged upstairs without another word.
The four of us were silent for a few moments after he’d gone, no doubt each of us making sure the surly old man was out of hearing range.
Rory broke the silence. “What’s goin’ on, Momma?”
She rested her hands on the counter, head hanging between her shoulders like she was too tired to hold it up any longer. “Let’s get your sister on the phone and make sure Gran’s down here so I don’t have to say this more than once.”
I exchanged worried glances with my sisters, but without a word, the three of us sprang into action. Will plucked her phone from her purse to video call Nat, Rory intercepted Ava when she and Gran came down the stairs and directed her elsewhere so the grown-ups could talk, and I hooked my arm through Gran’s, guiding her toward the dining room table.
“Guess my son’s been causin’ quite a ruckus,” Gran said.
“You know Daddy.” I pulled out Gran’s chair for her, then took the seat to her left. “Always needs to be in the spotlight.”
Once the five of us were seated and Nat’s face filled the phone screen, our momma folded her hands on the table and took a deep breath. “Your daddy’s been complainin’ of a few things lately—more so than usual. He went to the clinic the other day, but I swear all he did was shoot the breeze with Dr. Snyder because the doctor wasn’t aware of any of the issues when we went into urgent care today.”
“What’s the matter?” Will asked, her brow creased.
“He’s been havin’ some persistent leg cramps and swelling and shortness of breath. He’s also been complainin’ about stomachaches throughout the day. Any one of those separately wouldn’t be a big deal, but all three together had me worried—especially after I Googled them.” She took a deep breath, her fingers pressed to her temples. “They’re precursors to a heart attack, so I dragged his butt to urgent care right away to get him checked out. They did an EKG, and it looked okay. But with all his symptoms, they gave him a prescription to help remove excess fluid and sent him home with strict instructions to take it easy. And that man, God love him, but he refuses to doanythingeasy.”
“’Course not,” Nat said, rolling her eyes on-screen.
“What can we do?” Will asked, worry lacing her voice.
“Make sure he’s doin’ what he’s supposed to andnotdoin’ anything he isn’t,” Momma said. “Which, I’m sure you know,will be a full-time job for about ten people. Your daddy doesn’t like bein’ told no.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “We can handle him.”
