“Who was that?”
“The coffee shop.”
“Coffee shop?”
“Yes. Coffee shop. The one you gave the tree pictures to.”
He had to think about it for a minute.
“Oh. Yeah. What’d they want?”
“There’s a new art museum-thingy downtown.”
“Yeah. And?”
“I’m getting there, jeeze! Anyways, they wanted to ask you if you wanted the art people’s phone number.”
“Why would I want their number?”
“Because they really like the trees and they want to see if there’s anything else you can do. So today or tomorrow you have to call them back and see what this is exactly.”
“I do?”
“Yes you do. This kinda thing doesn’t come along every day. Call them back.”
“I don’t know…”
“Do it. What do you have to lose?”
“That’s not what scares me.”
“Then what’s wrong?”
“I don’t know.”
“Call them anyways. Today or tomorrow, okay?”
“I guess.”
The phone rang again.
“I hate that thing. Be right back.”
Cole yawned and pulled a pillow under his shoulders. He needed a nap. When Nancy came in later, he was half asleep.
“Daddy’s coming over tomorrow.”
“Wha?”
“My dad is coming by tomorrow because he’s going to be in the neighborhood.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. Probably to give you the ‘you hurt my daughter I’ll hurt you’ speech. Don’t worry, he’s harmless. But he has to give you the lecture.”
“Better a lecture than more broken ribs, I guess.”
“Don’t worry.”
Cole put his hand on the cat and swallowed. He didn’t really want to meet anybody right now, but how bad could it be?
Chapter Sixty-Six
Nancy was reading when Cole came out the next morning, phone in hand.
“I called them.”
“Called who?”
“The art people.”
“Oh. And?”
“They’re gonna call me back after they look at the pictures the coffee shop gave ‘em. And after that I don’t know.”
“It’ll turn out fine, just wait and see.”
He nodded and made himself comfortable on the couch next to her.
“What time is your dad coming over?”
“In about half an hour. Relax, he’s harmless. It’s his job as my dad to give you the lecture.”
“I guess.”
He lay down with his head in her lap and his eyes closed.
“Hi.”
“Is this okay?”
“Yeah. How’s your ribs?”
“They hurt like hell.”
“And your head?”
“Things are a little fuzzy.”
He pulled this sheet up to his chest. Nancy hesitated before combing her fingers through his hair and going back to her book. Cole sighed and moved so he was pressed up against the back of the couch.
“My chest really hurts.”
“Want me to go to the store for anything?”
“No, no, I’m okay. It just hurts, that’s all.”
“Take a power nap until Daddy gets here, if you want.”
“Maybe.”
* * * *
Nancy lost track of time, and a knock on the door scared her.
“It’s open!”
“Who is it?” Cole mumbled.
“Daddy.”
“Mm.”
John Hale came into the room, his wrists in braces. Cole raised a hand halfway.
“Mr. Hale?”
“Cole, right? Nice to meet you. I’d shake hands, but I can’t do anything in these braces.”
“What’d you do, Sir?”
“Carpal tunnel, no big deal. Hi, honey.”
“Hi, Daddy.”
Cole was tense and Nancy wanted to tell him to calm down. John sat down across from them and leaned forward.
“Nancy said you broke your ribs.”
“Yes, Sir. Got jumped.”
“Call me John.”
Cole didn’t answer to that. He only moved back a little bit and straightened his gloves. Nancy set her book down.
“How’s mom?”
“Fine, I think. For her.”
They chatted quietly for a few minutes more before John turned to Cole.
“It’s my job to say this, so don’t take it personally. If you hurt my daughter in any way, shape, or form, I will hunt you down with a shotgun and make you miserable. Clear?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Good.”
“Daddy, be gentle.” Nancy said. “He’s a mess.”
Cole shook his head.
“S’okay, Nance. He’s just doing his job.”
Nancy rolled her eyes.
* * * *
Cole faded out a bit after that. He could still hear Nancy and John talking, but he didn’t know what about. Everything was a haze. He wasn’t so sure if he liked John or not. On one hand, he seemed very nice and personable. On the other hand, Sean had seemed nice and personable, too-until the doors were closed.
“You two are behaving, aren’t you?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
Behaving? What’s that supposed to mean…oh. Nance is from a religious family. Got it.
“You’re sure?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
“Good. Your sister was enough of a handful.”
Cole could practically see Nancy’s eye roll. He swallowed and adjusted his position a bit. The conversation continued a little longer, but Cole didn’t catch any more.
* * * *
Cole hadn’t woken up for most of the afternoon, save for a few minutes when John was leaving. Nancy let him be.
That had gone okay, she decided. Considering John had been less-than-pleased to find out she was dating an ex-addict, it had gone fine. If she could get Janet to be as accepting, things would be just about perfect.
Cole coughed and rolled over, his hand coming to rest on her knee. She wanted to move him, but he hadn’t gotten a lot of sleep lately. Besides, she was kinda comfortable here.
“Nancy?”
“Hey.”
“What time is it?”
“Around seven or so.”
He yawned and sat up a little, his hair flopping into his face.
“I don’t want dinner.”
“What about a shower?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Want help up?”
He shook his head.
“M’okay. Meet you in a little bit.”
He looked taller than usual for some reason. Maybe he’d lost weight again. With everything going on, she wouldn’t be surprised.
“Cole?”
He turned.
“What?”
She shook her head.
“Forgot. Never mind.”
He vanished into the other room. A few minutes later, there was the usual “Fuck!” that came with picking up Sadie. Nancy repressed giggles and turned on the TV.
Chapter Sixty-Seven
Cole was lying on the hide-a-bed, half-asleep, when there was a sudden banging on the door. Sadie fled for the bedroom and Nancy blinked and gave the door the finger before replacing her hand on his stomach.
“Who is it?”
“Who cares. I’m going back to sleep.”
That was a good idea. He put his arm back around her and was about to close his eyes again when the door opened and someone came in. He didn’t recognize her at first, but the high, annoying voice gave her away. Janet.
Fuck my life.
“Go away, Jan.”
“I’ve been calling for the past week!”
“The phone lines are down here. Remember that big storm? How’d you get in, anyway?”
“You two need to put your key somewhere original.”
“Well, go away. We’re sleeping, for crying out loud. When no one answers the door, they’re either busy or not home.”
Cole nodded his agreement. Janet’s eyes shot to him.
“What happened to you? Are you okay?”
“Fine. A little beat up, but fine.”
Nancy nestled a little closer to him and closed her eyes. Cole really wanted Janet to get out. Neither of them had gotten much sleep the night before, and today was supposed to be a nap day.
“Were you two asleep?”
“About to be.”
“What happened, Cole?”
“He’s a little out of it from the meds they’ve given him. You’ll have to wait for another day.”
Thank you, Nance.
Janet didn’t look like she bought it, but she did shut up.
“You two need to get out more. Hey! You should come to the movies with me tomorrow!”
“No. We’re tired and busy. Maybe another day.”
“Busy?”
“Jan, please just go, okay? We’re exhausted.”
Janet stayed for a few more minutes until Nancy finally mentioned that she’d had the stomach flu recently. When the door closed behind her, Cole was relieved. Nancy yawned and wrapped herself in her blanket before settling back down.
“I’m going back to sleep, Cole.”
He nodded and pulled his blanket up a bit.
“Nightmares?”
“Yeah.”
“Wake me up if you need me.”
“I’m fine…”
“No. If you need me, wake me up. It’s okay, I don’t mind.”
“But…”
“Promise you’ll wake me up if you start dreaming again.”
“Okay…”
“Promise.”
“Promise.”
“Good. Night.”
“Night.”
* * * *
Cole couldn’t go back to sleep. Nancy had fallen asleep a little bit ago, and she was pressed too close against Cole for comfort, but he didn’t bother moving her. She was warm and he wasn’t.
I need a nap.
Nancy sighed and her hand clenched his shirt.
“Nance? You up?”
She was not up, but she’d gotten very tense. Dreams?
“Nancy?”
She didn’t respond and he let her be. He needed sleep, too.
“Cole, please…no more, no more…”
“Nancy?”
She was rigid, her hand clutching his shirt tight enough to make her knuckles white. He pried her hand off him and sat up. His ribs protested.
“No more, no more…”
“Wake up, Nance, it’s okay.”
He could make out tears on her face. He didn’t want to see her cry, but he didn’t want to shake her, either. That would probably only make it worse.
“Nancy, wake up, it’s okay.”
“Stop…please, stop…”
“Nance. Wake up, it’s okay.”
She sat up, hands reaching blindly for something. He moved back a bit and said softly, “Nancy?”
She blinked and stared at him for a second before bursting into tears and pulling the blanket around herself. He wasn’t sure what to do, what to say. If there was some sort of special feel-better phrase, he had no clue what it was. He ended up bringing her a juice box and her teddy bear. She took them both without a word.
“Want to talk about it?”
A quick shake of the head. He nodded and leaned against the arm of the couch. After a few minutes, Nancy’s sobs turned into hiccups, which eventually faded into silence. Cole sat there, looking at his hands, and was startled when Nancy finally spoke.
“Make him go away, Cole.”
Her voice was flat, expressionless, and it scared him.
“Make who go away?”
“The boogey man.”
“Dr. Grey?”
She nodded.
“He looks like a boogey man. His eyes aren’t right. And his voice is wrong.”
“Shh. He’s gone, he can’t hurt you any more. Don’t worry.”
“He’s not gone. He’s in my head.”
“He’s gone. Look at me.”
She did. Her eyes were as flat as her voice and it hurt Cole to look at them. He didn’t know where else to look and eventually settled for a spot on the wall behind her.
“He’s gone, Nancy, he can’t hurt you any more. If he shows up and even so much as says ‘hi’ to you, I’ll make sure he backs off real quick, okay?”
“How?”
Good question.
“Let’s not go into details, huh? Just trust me. I won’t let him bother you any more, I promise.”
She nodded and dropped her eyes again. Cole reached over to put the blanket around her shoulders. She didn’t shy away. She didn’t really do anything except sit there and hug her bear. After a few minutes, she shuffled closer to him and hugged him instead.
“Make him go away.”
“He’s gone, he’s gone. It’s okay.”
“It’s not okay. He’s still here.”
“Shh. He can’t hurt you any more. Trust me.”
He felt her nod against his shoulder.
“Okay.”
“Good. Can you go back to sleep?”
“No.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t go away.”
“Where would I go?”
“I don’t want to be alone any more.”
“Shh. You’re not alone, I’m right here.”
She shrugged and didn’t say anything. Cole wasn’t sure what to say to her and decided on keeping quiet.
“Thanks, Cole.”
“Shh.”
“Cole?”
“Mm?”
“Are you sure he’s gone?”
“Yeah.” he said. “He’s gone.”
She didn’t answer.
Chapter Sixty-Eight
“Dammit, Susan, stay out of it! He deserves what he got!”
“You’re going to kill him, Sean! I’m not going to stick around and watch you kill my son!”
“Then get out!”
Cole watched, wide-eyed, through the banisters. His mother was throwing things into a suitcase and shouting at Sean.
“Do you have any idea what you do to him? Are you blind? He couldn’t eat dinner because his jaw was swollen! Do you love him at all?”
“More than you! You’d be happy to spoil him to death! Now get out!”
“I’ll finish packing!”
“Hurry up, then!”
Cole scuttled back to bed and pretended to be asleep.
“Cole? Sweetie?” He didn’t move. “I’m sorry.”
He wanted to ask why, but Sean would be mad at him for being awake. Susan left the room and came back.
“Cole. Cole…”
“Cole. Cole, wake up. Wake up, you’re dreaming.” Cole struggled up, coughing. Nancy took her hands from his shoulders. “You were having a nightmare.”
“I don’t remember. Did I wake you up?”
“Partly.”
“Sorry.”
“It’s okay.” He swallowed and took as deep a breath as possible. “Can you go back to sleep?”
He shook his head. “I don’t think so. Ribs hurt. Can’t breathe.”
She put her hand on his forehead. It was cool and dry and soft. He could feel a small scar on her palm and wondered where she’d gotten it. She took her hand away and helped him lie back down.
“Sorry.”
His throat hurt and it felt swollen.
“Shh. I’d rather wake you up then have you having nightmares. Just go back to sleep, if you can.”
“Thanks.”
She turned the light back off and Cole rolled over. For some reason it was easier to sleep on his injured side.
“Nancy?”
“Yeah?”
“Have you had any more nightmares?”
“No. Now go to sleep.”<
br />
“Sorry.”
“It’s okay, just go to sleep. Remember, you have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow.”
He’d forgotten. Now that she mentioned it, he really didn’t want to go. The doctor would probably bring up his addiction, and he didn’t want to talk about that, not with someone he didn’t know.
“I don’t wanna go.”
“Still. You have to go. Now go to sleep.”
He sighed but shut up. After lying there for a good half-hour, he gave up and went out to watch TV. There was nothing on. Sadie jumped up on his lap just a light went on.
“Cole? You okay?”
“Didn’t want to keep you up.”
“I can’t sleep, you know that.”
“I guess.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, I’m fine.”
She sat down next to him.
“You really don’t want to go to the doctor, do you?”
“No.”
“Why not? It’s twenty minutes at the most and you’re done. And I’ll go with you.”
“It’s not that.”
“Then what’s wrong?”
He gestured to his hands.
“What do you think? You’ve seen how people get when I go to the grocery store. How do you think a doctor’s going to react when they see all the health problems that come with it? I know I’m screwed up. I can’t breathe, I’m sick constantly, and on top of that I’ve got this stupid scar…”
“Cole.”
“What.”
“It’s okay. I’m gonna be right there with you, and if they give you crap, I’ll give them crap.”
“How.”
“All people in the medical profession fear lawsuits.”
He forced a smile.
“I guess.”
“They do!”
“How do you know that.”
“Everyone knows that. And I’m going to be a nurse, remember? That’s something they tell you every day-don’t get sued.”
“Seriously?”
“Well…only one teacher tells us that. But she’s right.”
His smile was genuine this time.
“I guess.”
“Trust me.”
“Just don’t leave me alone with these people. Please?”
“Why would I do that?”
“I don’t know.”
He still didn’t want to go back to bed, but he was feeling a little better now. Well, apart from the fact that he’d remembered his mother. He didn’t like to remember her-she’d left him.
“Cole? Are you okay?”
“Spaced.”
“What were you dreaming about earlier?”
“I don’t remember.”
“You were saying something about your mom.”
“I don’t remember, Nancy.”
“Okay.”
“I’m just gonna stay out here. You can go back to bed, if you want.”
“Want me to pull the bed out for you?”
“I’m okay.”
He felt her stand up.
“Okay. See you in the morning.”
“Night, Nance.”
Chapter Sixty-Nine
Nancy found Cole still awake on the couch the next morning, clutching a cup of coffee.
Color Blind Page 14
