“How’s Dad?” Axel asks.
“Finally out of surgery. The doctor said he’s doing well.”
“Good to hear.” Axel lets out a relieved breath.
“They’re keeping him in a medically induced coma until the swelling in his brain subsides.”
“What’s the prognosis?”
“We’re still at a wait-and-see status, but the doctor’s hopeful. Are you flying in?”
“Nope. No one’s flying tonight due to the weather.”
“Well, hopefully things will clear enough for you to get out tomorrow.”
“Oh, I’ll be there. I’m on the road now and will get there sometime tomorrow morning.”
“What?” she exclaims. “You shouldn’t be out in this. Dad hit some black ice and skidded off the road into a tree. The last thing we need is for you to have an accident too.”
“Cassie, don’t be a drama queen,” he scoffs. “I’m not gonna have an accident. I’ll be fine.”
My first inclination is to urge Axel to be kinder to his sister. She’s obviously freaked out about her dad’s accident. Then I remember that if I breathe a word, Cassie might recognize my voice.
“What’re the roads like where you are? It’s awful here.”
“The roads are bad here, too, so we’re having to take it slow.”
“Is Zoe with you?”
My stomach tenses.
“No.” From the way Axel answers, I can tell that he’s uncomfortable talking about Zoe with me listening.
“Who’s with you? Max? Did y’all work out your differences?”
“Not hardly,” Axel grunts.
So something happened between Axel and Max. Is that the reason why Axel left the band?
“If not Max, then who is it?” Cassie questions.
Short pause, and then Axel clears his throat. “Her name’s London.”
She giggles. “Ah, stepping out on the blogger diva. Way to go, bro.”
“It’s not like that,” he says darkly. “I’m ending things with Zoe as soon as I can see her in person.”
“Wow, finally! Hallelujah. That’s great news!”
I can’t help but grin. Now I remember why Cassie and I were such good friends back in the day.
“London,” she muses, “that’s not a name you hear every day. Hey, do you remember my friend London from high school?”
Exactly what I was afraid of. I’m glad it’s dark. Otherwise, Axel would see my panicked expression and know that something’s up.
“Nope,” Axel says.
“I wonder what London’s up to these days. I thought we were good friends, but I’ve left her a couple of messages on Facebook, and she never responded.”
