by Jamie Begley
“We all know you were the best man,” Tate said sardonically.
Greer dropped the ring into Tate’s hand. “Damn right.”
Tate walked back to Dustin’s bed, standing uncomfortably as Dustin tried to open his hand.
“I’ll do it.” Ema went to her knees, taking the ring from Tate, then plopping back down on the bed.
Jessie held her hand out for Ema to put the ring on. “Thank you, Ema.”
“Welcome.” She snuggled back against Dustin.
Dustin grinned at Jessie as she stared at the ring she remembered.
“I now pronounce you man and wife.”
Jessie managed to take her eyes off her ring long enough to kiss him. When she raised her head, everyone gathered around were congratulating them.
Jessie tugged Logan close after giving him a hug, keeping her arm around him. His son’s eyes were swollen and red.
The hardest thing he had ever had to do was tell his son that he was dying. He had spent the day with him yesterday and this morning, and he seemed just as lost and frightened today as he was yesterday.
The nurses pushed in a big cake on a wheeled table. Holly gave Rosie to Greer so she could slice the cake, giving the first slice to Jessie.
Offering him the first bite, she held the fork to his lips before taking a bite for herself. As soon as her lips closed around the fork, he was opening his mouth for another bite.
“You like it?” she asked, feeding him another.
Dustin waited until he swallowed to answer, “It’s delicious. It’s as good as my mother’s. Did Sutton make it?”
Jessie took another bite for herself. “I did.”
“You made it?” He gave her a warning glance when she took another bite instead of giving him a turn.
Tauntingly, Jessie slowly brought the fork out of her mouth. “Who do you think your mama got her recipes from?”
Dustin’s head fell back on his pillow as he laughed. “If Greer knew you could make jam cake as good as Ma, he would be married to you instead of Holly.”
“Why do you think my brothers always pretended I was a lousy cook?” she said, finally giving him another bite.
“I’ll move her, Dustin.” Rachel started to hand Cash her paper plate to move her daughter. Ema had fallen asleep curled against Dustin’s side with her thumb in her mouth.
“Leave her be. She’s not bothering me.”
Rachel went back to eating her cake.
When he looked back at Jessie, he saw her again looking at her ring.
Seeing him looking, she shrugged. “I can’t help it. It’s beautiful. Who got it for you?”
“I picked it out online, and Greer picked it up for me when you were in the bridal salon.”
“He did?”
“Yes.”
“It looks very expensive.”
“It is … Don’t frown at me. I could afford it … and the dress.”
“You paid for my dress?”
“Yes, and let me tell you, if I hadn’t already been in the hospital, the cost would’ve put me here.”
“Dustin, it’s too much … I thought Greer paid for the dress.”
“You think he could afford your dress easier than I could?”
Embarrassed, she leaned down to whisper in his ear, “I thought he paid for it with the weed Asher brought back.”
“It didn’t bother you that he used weed money to pay for it?” he tilted his head sideways to whisper back.
Jessie ran a caressing hand down the side of her dress. “I really like it.”
“I really like it, too. I’m glad you picked it.”
“Actually, Greer did. I almost did get it until Britt told me it would cost twelve thousand dollars.”
“Give me another bite of that cake, and then I’ll tell you something that’s going to make you feel better,” he said, already opening his mouth.
Swallowing it, he savored the flavor until Jessie started to move the plate away.
“Okay, okay … Greer got her down to five thousand.”
“You’re joking.”
“Nope.”
“Holly,” Jessie called out, “give Greer another piece of cake … Wait a sec. Did anyone in here happen to watch the news last night?”
When Dustin asked why, she explained that she had been afraid Greer had robbed the store.
“Technically, he did. He got it at her cost. He did the same with your ring. The jewelry store and bridal salon owners asked him never to come back.”
“It’s a good thing I’m not going to get married again, then,” she joked.
The laughter drained out of his face. “I don’t want you to be alone for the rest of your life.”
“I was joking, Dustin. But truthfully, I don’t see myself with anyone but you. I never could.”
“I don’t want you to miss out on having children. And I don’t want you to rush out and find someone. Those marriages never last,” he advised.
“How long do you think I should wait?”
“At least twenty to twenty-five years. A woman had a baby in her fifties last month.”
“Who?”
“I don’t know. She was famous. I must have read it online.”
“I don’t want to have a baby in my fifties.”
“If you really feel that way, I don’t want to press you.”
“Thank you for being so considerate.”
Dustin arched a brow. “Are you making fun of me?”
“Why are you acting so jealous? You’re the one who didn’t want me left alone.”
“I’m reconsidering it.”
Jessie reached out to pull Logan closer. “Your father is being a silly man.”
Dustin watched as Jessie tried to draw Logan into teasing.
He looked so handsome. Tate had taken him to the department store this morning to get a new suit.
Logan hadn’t taken any cake from Holly, remaining by the side of the bed as he listened to him and Jessie talk.
Suddenly, Logan’s face crumpled and he began to cry. “I don’t want Dad to die.”
Jessie handed Tate the plate they had been eating off. Then, expecting her to pull Logan into her arms, Jessie instead picked Logan up and sat him on the bed next to him.
As Logan cried onto his chest, Dustin wanted to hold his son, but his useless arms wouldn’t cooperate.
When he had been in the dark void, he hadn’t been able to move either. Concentrating, he remembered the effort he had put into breaking out of the void. Unable to bear his son crying put him into a mindset to move his arms.
Slowly and shakily, he was able to make them move. He wasn’t able to grasp Logan, but the movement had him stop his tears.
“Dustin, you moved your arms.”
At Jessie’s startled cry, everyone stopped talking to watch.
“Should we tell the nurse to call Dr. Price?” Tate asked.
“I’ll go talk to his nurse.” Sutton rose from her chair, going to the nurse’s station.
“Try to move them again, Dad.” Logan used his suit sleeve to wipe his eyes.
Dustin looked down at Ema still sleeping by his side, making sure to lift that arm carefully so he wouldn’t accidently hit her.
“Here, I’ll take her.” Rachel bent down to lift Ema into her arms.
At Rachel’s touch, Ema shrugged away, but Rachel persisted, lifting her.
“Dusty … I want my Dusty.” Ema started fighting her mother, trying to throw herself out of her arms.
“Ema, stop.”
“I want Dusty ….” Ema held out her arms, clenching and unclenching her hands as she reached for him.
“It’s okay, Rachel. Lay her back down.” Dustin tried to calm the temper tantrum.
“Here, let me have her.” Cash took his daughter into his arms; however, the little girl was fighting so hard that Cash almost dropped her. “What’s going on with her?”
“I don’t know. We should take her home—”
“Put her back
down!” Greer yelled.
Dustin had been so distracted by Ema that he hadn’t noticed Greer had gotten to his feet and was trying to shake Shade and Knox off him.
Cash looked at Greer and the way his daughter was trying frantically trying to get out of his arms.
Greer stopped struggling. “Please lay her back down.”
The hair on Dustin’s arms lifted at the tone in Greer’s voice.
“Cash, I’m begging you. Lay her back down.”
Dustin saw the torn expression on Cash’s face. Greer did, too.
“Don’t ….” Slowly, it began to dawn on him what was happening.
“Shut up, Dustin. Everybody move away from the bed.” Greer turned and looked at Shade and Knox. “Let me go. I know how to fix Dustin if you’d let me go.”
The two frowned, looking at Dustin.
“Don’t do it … Tate, get them out of here.” Dustin tried to reach the call button, but Tate’s hand on his wrist stopped him.
“Tate … Greer will die.”
“You’re asking me to choose between two brothers. I can’t do that, Dustin.”
“Listen to me, Dustin,” Greer pleaded.
Dustin cut his eyes around the room, seeing the ones inside were only family, Shade, Knox, Willa, and Lucky. The others who had watched the ceremony had been ushered out into the hallway and into the waiting room after they had gotten their cake.
“Lucky, shut the door and close the window. I’d kick you and Willa out, but we’re going to need the good Lord’s help.”
“Don’t ….” Dustin tried to tear his hand out of Tate’s hold.
“Do it!” Greer snarled at Lucky. “Let go.”
Dustin started crying when he saw Shade and Knox release Greer as Lucky shut the door and closed the curtains.
“Greer, please don’t … Jessie, stop him, please … He’ll die.”
Logan jumped off the bed, running at Greer and pummeling him on his waist. “Stop it! Stop it! You’re making my dad cry!”
Instead of pushing him, Greer bent down to Logan. “I don’t want to make your pa cry, boy. I’m trying to save his life. None of us want to lose him. Trust me … Please … God, both of you, trust me.”
Crying, Logan ran to Holly’s arms.
Dustin’s head fell back to the pillow. Turning it, he stared up at Greer fatalistically. Greer was an unstoppable force when he set his mind on something. This was what he had tried so hard to prevent.
“Trust me, Dustin. If it takes too much, I’ll stop. It’s not like I can’t cut it off if it takes too much out of me.”
“You’re not going to listen to me anyway, are you?”
“No.” Greer reach for Ema. “Give her to me. I can’t concentrate with that screaming.”
“Greer ….” Cash and Rachel spoke at the same time.
“I know what I’m doing. I wouldn’t do anything that would hurt Ema.” He stubbornly held his hands out for Ema. “Rachel, you know.”
Rachel nodded, bringing her hand to her belly. “Dustin told me in his letter it was a boy. He gave me the picture that Logan had drawn.”
Greer sat a still struggling Ema down on Dustin’s bed.
Scooting over, Ema lay back down next to him. “My Dusty.”
Greer sat down on the bed by his side. “Why is he your Dusty?” he asked.
Ema took her thumb out of her mouth. “I have to fix him. His head hurts.”
“How do you know?”
Ema shrugged, putting her thumb back in her mouth.
“Can I help?”
The thumb came back out. “No! My Dusty.” Back in it went.
“If this is what I’ve got to look forward to, we’re only having one,” Tate said as he sat down at the end of the bed.
“You all making yourselves comfortable?” Dustin looked down at his brothers.
“Yes, it’s a hell of a lot better than being in the waiting room crying.”
Dustin felt ashamed that he wasn’t doing his part. Once he died, he wouldn’t be in pain any longer, but his family was going to be left with the pain of his memory.
Dustin felt Jessie take his hand. If he died, sooner or later, she would find love again. Another man would be the father of her child.
The last night he had spent with her, he had imagined her pregnant with his child, their baby nursing at her breast. He could let that be the last memory of them together when he died, or he could let Greer help.
Dustin could tell that Greer was watching Ema, who was curled up against him.
Slowly, Greer reached out to touch his arm. Ema swatted it away.
Greer stood up, going to the head of the bed and laying his hand on top of Dustin’s head. Ema got onto her knees, reaching out and swatting his hand again.
“Let me help, Ema.”
“No! My Dusty!” Ema stood on the bed, grabbing Greer’s wrist. “No!” Ema held Greer’s hand to her side and laid her other one by his head. “My Dusty!”
“Oh God …” Rachel gave a laughing cry of understanding. “I understand what she’s trying to do. She’s doing what you and I do.”
Greer turned his hand to grip Ema’s. “I guess I’m not the big hoss in town anymore.”
“What does that mean?” Jessie asked.
“I’ve always been the stronger one between me and Rachel. When I heal, Rachel feeds me her strength. We combine it.”
“Is it working?”
Dustin felt something changing, but he couldn’t explain it to Jessie. He turned to look at her, seeing the beginning of hope in her eyes.
He looked around at Sutton, Holly, Logan, Drake, Bliss, Rach ….
He started to feel the beginning of something … until the dark figure came through the closed door.
“No!” Dustin screamed in his head. “No! Not yet! I don’t want to go!”
He wildly looked around the room, seeing their eyes turning to horror, but they weren’t staring at the dark figure approaching the bed. They were staring at him.
38
The pain bursting in his head wouldn’t allow him to see. Where was he? His screams reverberated against the walls of his mind.
This darkness was different than he had ever experienced before. Before, it was like he was floating. This time, it was as if he was in a locked room.
Putting his hands out, he found that he could move. He took several steps forward before he came across something that stopped him. Sliding his hands sideways, he skimmed along the dark wall, moving sideways as if he were in a circular room. When his hand touched something new, he had to think for a second before he realized what it was.
He was afraid to open the door. And afraid not to.
“Open the door, Dustin. Don’t be afraid.”
He jumped at hearing the unknown female voice. Then, twisting the knob, Dustin opened the door.
He stepped into the most beautiful place he had ever seen. The leaves and grass were so green they were almost blinding. The sky was so blue you could almost reach out and touch it.
Hesitantly, he walked farther out the door. When he came out, the door closed behind him, and in its place was a small brook with water lapping at stones. Over the brook was an arched wooden bridge. Instinctively, he knew to walk across the bridge.
As he took a step forward, a woman came out from behind a tree on the other side of it. Dustin couldn’t make out her face, but the closer he came to the bridge, the closer she moved toward the other end. He was almost at the beginning of bridge when he recognized her. It was his grandmother.
He started walking faster to the bridge, and as he did, another woman stepped out from behind another tree that was closer to the bridge. Dustin recognized her immediately.
“Ma!” he yelled.
His mother didn’t yell. She just kept walking toward the opposite side of the bridge. When she did, another woman came out from a different tree diagonally from the one his mother had come from. Dustin didn’t recognize her. She was younger than his mother and grand
mother. She looked as if she was about eighteen or nineteen. She reminded him of someone, but he couldn’t place who.
Seeing that his mother was crossing the bridge, he started to run toward them.
“No, Dustin! Go back!” his ma yelled.
Dustin moved his foot away from the bridge, stopping, as the young woman stopped on the other side, not stepping onto the bridge.
His ma and grandmother stopped in the middle.
“You have to go back,” his grandmother told him. “It’s not your time.”
“I want to cross.”
“Dustin, I know it hurts, but you can’t give in to the pain. You’re fighting them.”
“No, I’m not,” he argued back to his grandmother
“You are. You’re not opening yourself so that they can reach the part of you that needs to be healed.”
“I don’t …” Dustin thought back to the last thing he could remember. The dark figure had entered his room. He remembered screaming out, and then … and then he had started counting like he always did to control the fear.
“You have to let them inside. It’s the only way. Please, Dustin … Ema and Greer can heal you. You can’t come here now … It’s too soon,” his ma pleaded with him.
He wanted to run to her, but her pleading eyes held him back.
“Greer, Rachel, and Tate need you. Logan needs you. Jessie needs you.”
“I married her.”
“I know. We were there with you … Dustin, you have to go.” His grandmother stared at him as if memorizing his face. “You’re so handsome. I always told your ma that you were going to be the best-looking in the bunch.”
Dustin frowned. “You did?”
“Of course. You look just like me when I was younger. You were the handsomest one … and the most sensitive. Tate and Greer took after their pa, but you … you, Dustin, were the one most like me.
“You always thought I didn’t like you, but I had to hide it. I did it because your ass of a father would have made your life miserable. He hated my guts. He always said our gifts were hogwash, but deep down, he was afraid of them. He called me an old witch.” Her mocking laughter brought a smile to his lips. “That’s why he was afraid of you. It made him stop and think before treating you the way he did Tate and Greer. He wanted no part of something I feared.”
That his grandmother had outsmarted his father, and that he had found out why his grandmother had treated him differently patched a hole in his heart. He had loved her, even when he had believed she had disliked him.
