Page 63 of Property of Player

She shrugs. “For about five years. I don’t remember you being around back then.”

“Player and I were over way before that.”

“I see. Why’d you break up?”

She’s getting personal, and it’s really none of her business, so I give her half-truths. “I left town to go to school.”

“Oh, really? What did you study?”

“French. I translate documents for a company.”

“Really? I sucked at French in school.”

“My father was French, so it was a second language in our home.”

“I see. So, are you home for good?”

“We’ll see.” I direct her to The Rusty Pelican, and she pulls into the lot. Getting out, I lean in the window. “Thanks for the ride, Molly.”

“Anytime. Maybe we can get a coffee sometime,” she offers, but there’s something in her smile that just doesn’t ring true.

“Sure,” I say to be polite. “Thanks again.” I turn and walk inside, then peer through the window and watch her drive off.

“Taylor, thank God,” Kayla calls from behind me, hurrying over. “I’ve been calling and calling.”

I pull my phone from my bag. “Sorry, it must have been on silent. What’s wrong?”

“Mom took a turn for the worse. The neighbor came over for coffee this morning and found her on the floor. She’d gotten dizzy and fell.”

“Oh my God. Is she okay?”

“Mrs. Olsen called 911, and the paramedics came and took Mom to the hospital. Pete just showed up to cover for me so I could meet them there. Come on.”

We head to her car and are in the ER within ten minutes.

Coming around the curtain divider in the ER bay, it hits me how weak my mother looks, but at least she’s conscious.

“I’m all right, girls. Don’t look so worried,” she says, patting my arm and smiling at Kayla.

“Are you in pain?” I ask.

“A bit,” she replies.

“Mom, you took a bad fall,” Kayla says, then looks at the nurse. “Is she all right?”

“The doctor wants to send her for a scan to make sure she didn’t break anything, especially her hip. She’s in some pain, and he may want to keep her overnight. There’s some swelling on her knee he’s also concerned about, especially with the medications she’s on.”

Kayla and I stay by her side, and the doctor eventually comes in to tell us they found a hairline fracture in her hip, and he’d like to keep her overnight to make sure the swelling in her knee goes down and isn’t a sign of something more serious.

After hours in the ER, they eventually move her to a room.

It’s late, and visiting hours are ending. The nurse gives her something to help her sleep, and soon she drifts off.

“Come on,” Kayla says, and I follow her into the hall.

“I hope she’s okay,” I whisper. “I’m exhausted.”

“Me, too.”