The Lost Days
Prairie Town book 3
By T.E. Ridener
Author’s Note
These stories are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author.
Cover by Double J Book Graphics
Editing by Lindsay Errington, LTE Editing
©Copyright T.E. Ridener, 2015
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Acknowledgements
A note to the readers
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Thank you!
Acknowledgements
As always, I’ll try to keep this short and sweet.
My Double J’s - you’re the reason my heart beats. I love you so much.
To my street team and fans – I couldn’t do this without each and every single one of you. Thank you for believing in me and for loving my stories.
To the beta readers of this story – you do realize this book wouldn’t have been finished without you, right? For every ‘is the next chapter written?’ and ‘I can’t wait to read what happens next!’ I just want to say thank you. This one reached the end because of you.
This book is dedicated to
Alisha Webster
A note to the readers
As you return to Prairie Town, I hope you will keep an open mind and an open heart. Remember that on the inside we are all exactly the same.
No matter your reason for reading this story, I hope you know how wonderful and special you are as an individual. Never let anyone tell you otherwise.
Trans Lifeline: (877) 565-8860 (USA)
(877) 330-6366 (Canada)
Welcome back!
Chapter 1
Kelly
“Mommy?”
The quiet whisper of her son stirred her from sleep, which was easy to do because she had ‘Super Mom’ hearing. Even in the deadest of sleeps, she would awake by the faintest whimper or smallest cough.
Sitting up in her bed and rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Kelly gazed through the darkness of her room, searching for her little boy.
“What is it, Justin? What’s wrong?”
“It’s storming outside. Can I sleep with you tonight?”
She felt the weight of his little body bounce against the mattress and she immediately pulled down the blankets, patting the mattress with a tired smile.
“Come on up here, baby.”
As his warm little body snuggled against hers, she wrapped her arms around him and closed her eyes, listening as thunder rumbled gently in the distance; another night, another storm. It seemed like it had been storming more often than not in the tiny town of Prairie Town. She couldn’t even remember the last time they’d had a pretty day.
So much for summer. She thought, pressing a kiss to the top of Justin’s head.
“Mommy?” He asked long after she’d snuggled beneath the blankets and finally felt herself drifting off again. “Mommy, are you awake?”
“Barely, Justin,” she mumbled groggily, burying her face into the pillow. “What is it?”
“Do you think Daddy is helping make it rain right now?”
Her eyes snapped open and instantly filled with tears. Patrick had been gone for three years. Her heart had tried to mend many times for the sake of her children, but every time Justin asked such questions, and out of the blue, it felt like her heart was ripped open all over again.
“Maybe,” she finally replied. It was hard to keep her voice steady. “Your father loved the rain.”
“I know he did. I do, too.” Justin was matter-of-fact, in his response. His cold little feet touched the back of her legs and she winced inwardly. “I just don’t like that dagone thunder, Mommy. I bet it scares Jamie.”
“Jamie sleeps like the dead.” She laughed. “Just go to sleep, sweetheart. We’ve got to get up early in the morning. Mommy has work.”
“Aw, man. Do you have to go?” He groaned.
“Of course, I have to go. You want to go to camp this summer, don’t you?”
And you want the electric to stay on, right? She wanted to add, but it wasn’t right to make a child worry about utilities or grown-up things. They had been at their lowest point only two years prior and by God, she’d never put her family through that again.
Had it not been for the kindness of her friends two Christmases beforehand, they would have been on the streets by now; her children would have been taken from her. Even though Justin hated the fact she had a job and he had to have a babysitter, Kelly wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Duh!” He bounced up and down on the bed excitedly and then flopped down across her stomach. “I want to be a ninja when I grow up.”
“I know you do, dear.” She smiled sadly, stroking his hair. “But even ninjas have to go to sleep.”
“Ugh. Fine.” He crawled back up beside her and nestled against the pillow his father had fallen asleep on every night. “Night, Mommy. Sweet dreams.”
“Sweet dreams, precious.” She kissed his forehead again and finally drifted off.
However, she didn’t sleep as well as she’d hoped. Jamie, her beautiful 2-year-old daughter, was awake by 5AM for whatever reason, and Kelly had to drag herself out of bed and into her little girl’s bedroom.
“What’s the matter, sweet little dumpling?” She asked, and covered her mouth with her hand to suppress a yawn. “Are you hungry?”
Jamie, looking more and more like her father with each passing day, stood in her crib with big alligator tears rolling down her cheeks.
“What’s wrong, baby?” Kelly hurried to her crib and scooped her into her arms. Pressing kisses against her wet cheeks, she examined her, checking for whatever could have caused her daughter’s discomfort. “Are you teething again, sweetie?”
“Mom, Mom, Mom, Mom, Mom,” Jamie jabbered as her hands grabbed for Kelly’s long hair, grasping the locks and pulling. “Mom, Mom!”
“Ow—hey, I’m right here. No need to do that, sweetheart.” She moved to the rocking chair and placed Jamie on her lap, rocking back and forth in an effort to soothe her. “Open your mouth and let Mommy see?”
“No, no.” Jamie shook her head furiously, tears still falling. “Mom, Mom.”
And that’s how her morning began. With a still fussy Jamie practically glued to her hip, Kelly struggled to get everything together to start their day. Justin and Jamie’s babysitter would arrive by 6:30; she’d be leaving for work.
It was total chaos, as per usual, but she was hesitant about saying goodbye to her children because she hated the thought of leaving them when Jamie felt so bad.
So she did.
She pulled into her designated parking spot by 7 on the dot and was inside the building just in time to greet her boss before he departed for one of his many, many meetings.
“Good morning, Mr. Reynolds. How are you today?”
“I’m fine, Kelly. How are you?” He asked with a smile. Mr. Reynolds was a very nice man and Kelly was grateful she worked for him. She had only had a handful of jobs in her life, but this was by far the best one.
She had really gotten lucky that Christmas Eve night two years ago, meeting her childhood friend’s future father-in-law. Mr. Reynolds had mentioned he would be opening a new business in Prairie Town and he’d promised her she would be the first person he hired on.
He’d truly meant it, and now, here she was, playing secretary to a classy gentleman who had no intention of hitting on her.
It was an ideal arrangement.
Reynolds’ Renovation was a really incredible business to be a part of, too. Mr. Reynolds visited numerous people every day, near and far, and heard their cases on why they needed help renovating their homes.
Some of the people who contacted them for help were truly in need, but they did get the occasional call from people who were simply looking for a hand out. Mr. Reynolds had trained her how to tell the difference.
“Who are you visiting today, Mr. R.?” She asked as she seated herself at her desk.
“I’m flying to Alabama to meet with a recently widowed father of two. He’s got a leak in his roof and it’s done some significant damage to his bathroom and kitchen. It should be a pretty simple fix, I think.”
“I really feel for him.” She nodded, glancing at a picture of Jamie and Justin near her computer monitor. Smiling a little, she glanced back at him and nodded. “Good luck and safe travels, Sir.”
“Thank you kindly, Kelly. I’ll see you in a while then. Keep up the good work, young lady.”
She snorted as he walked away and rolled her eyes.
Young? Was he kidding? She was only four years away from turning 30 and she already had three gray hairs. She’d nearly died the first time she saw them, but she supposed it was inevitable with the amount of stress she’d been under since her husband’s death.
Losing Patrick was the single most agonizing thing she’d been through.
If it weren’t for her children, she would have opted to eat a bullet a long time ago, and that was a terrifying thought.
But she pushed forward for them, for herself, and also for her friends.
Her phone started ringing a few minutes after ten and she glanced at the screen in a panic. What if it was Mrs. Harrington calling about Jamie? Oh, her poor girl...
A sigh of relief escaped her when she saw that it was her friend Lydia, Mr. Reynolds’ daughter-in-law, calling.
“Lydia.” She smiled and pressed the phone to her ear. “Hey, you. What’s up?”
“Oh, not much.” Lydia didn’t sound too convincing. “I’ve just got...some news.”
“Well, you don’t sound very happy about said news—what’s wrong?”
“I can’t really talk about it right now. I mean, you’re at work, right?”
“I am, but it’s a slow day. You can talk to me, Lydia. I’m always here to listen.”
Though she hadn’t mentioned it yet, she knew exactly who Lydia had once been in her life—a boy. Lydia was a transgender woman and that didn’t bother Kelly at all. She accepted her friend for who she was, but she didn’t want to frighten her by telling her she knew the truth. If Lydia wanted her to know, she’d tell her. Until then, Kelly would continue to act clueless.
Jonathan, Jeb, and Laney McIntosh were dear friends of hers. They had been so close when they were little, but things changed when Johnny moved away. No one heard from him again, and while Kelly missed her friend greatly, she could only pray for his safety and that peace would find him.
She prayed a lot. She prayed all the time. Was God listening? Who knew? But she still prayed without fail. Sometimes she talked to him while driving to work and sometimes she sobbed to him when things became too much, but she always prayed.
It seemed that Lydia would need some prayers as well when she began to cry.
“Lydia, why are you crying? What happened? Are you okay?”
“I’m f-fine. Really, I am. It’s just...Oh, God. It’s bad news. I don’t know how to tell you this. I don’t know how to tell anyone about this.”
“About what?” Kelly leaned forward in her chair and rested an elbow against the counter, gnawing on her bottom lip. She was really worried about Lydia. What happened to make her friend so upset?
“Callum. He...”
“He, what?” Her heart dropped into her stomach like an anvil and she felt sick. Surely to God nothing bad had happened to Callum. Flashbacks from the night of Patrick’s death slammed into her as she tightened her grip on the phone.
“Kelly, I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news.” Sheriff Ellis said as he removed his hat and bowed his head. “Patrick’s been in an accident, honey. He didn’t make it.”
“Oh, God.” She whispered and squeezed her eyes shut. What if Callum was dead? What if Lydia had to go through everything she’d gone through? It wasn’t fair! Lydia had only been married to Callum for a little over a year. Oh, how cruel...
“He has a child.”
Her eyes flew open and her tears disappeared. “W...what?”
“Callum.” Lydia sniffled on the other end. “He has a little boy he never even knew about. The mother contacted him a few minutes ago and she wants Callum to come meet him. I don’t know how I’m supposed to feel about it.”
“A child?” Kelly echoed as relief flooded her system. “Is that all, Lydia? Callum has a child?”
“Y-yes, but I don’t know what to do. I reacted badly to it, Kelly. Callum left and I really don’t know what to say. W-what would you do?”
“Oh, honey.” She sighed and dropped her head, shaking it slightly. “That’s...well, that’s better than a lot of bad news, isn’t it?”
“I suppose, but I still don’t know what to do. He has a child with another woman—how would you react?”
I would be grateful he’s still alive.
No, that was a terrible response. If Patrick had had a child with another woman, how she reacted would greatly depend on the circumstances.
“Was the child conceived before you and he got together?”
“I...yes. Yes.” Lydia cleared her throat and calmed down a little. “He’s four so he must’ve been conceived a little while before Callum and I met.”
“Well, that’s good. I mean, Callum didn’t cheat on you or anything, right?”
“Of course not. He’d never do that.”
“Good. So it just so happens Callum has a son he created before he met you, and now that little boy’s mother wants him to be in Callum’s life. That doesn’t sound too terrible, does it?”
“Not at all. Ugh, I’m stupid,” Lydia mumbled. “I feel like such an idiot. I should have handled it better. Kelly, I’m a moron.”
“No, you’re not, Honey. I totally get it.” She switched ears and glanced at the phone on her desk as the red light began blinking. “Oh, shoot. I have to take this call, Lydia. Can I call you back in a few minutes?”
“Yes, of course. Or maybe we can do lunch?”
“Anything for you, honey. I’ll call you back, okay?”
“Okay. Bye.”
Hanging up her cellphone quickly, Kelly sucked in a deep breath and grabbed the receiver.
“Reynolds’ Renovations. This is Kelly speaking. How may we help you?”
—————
Devin
It had been the same thing every single day. By 7:00 AM he was awake, dressed, and ready for another visit with his psychiatrist, and those visits always
frustrated him.
“How are you feeling today, Mr. Rose?”
That question really got on his nerves. How was he feeling? The same way he’d been feeling for nearly a year: lost, confused, angry, and completely hopeless.
Resting his elbows against his knees, he lifted his eyes to meet those of Dr. Alexander Thompson, an esteemed psychiatrist known for helping cure amnesia.
It was a big load of crap.
“I don’t know how I feel today, Doctor. Tired, I guess.”
“You didn’t sleep well last night?” He scribbled something on his notepad and glanced at him again with those judgmental eyes of his. “Should I prescribe you something for sleep?”
“No. I don’t like medicine. I hate what they’ve got me on already. It’s just...I keep having these dreams, but I can’t remember them when I wake up.”
“Nothing at all?”
“No. I still can’t remember anything and it bothers me. I feel like I’m hitting this wall...this big rock wall. If I could just hit it hard enough maybe I’d remember something, anything.”
It was infuriating not being able to remember anything. Not knowing who he was—it sucked. The fact someone else had to tell him his name was bad enough, but not to even recognize his own parents or siblings? It was tragic.
“Mr. Rose, you’ve been with us here at the institute for the past ten months and you’ve not shown much improvement in regards to regaining your memories.”
Devin rolled his eyes. Duh.
“Some people speculate you are faking it so you can get out of your prison sentence.”
“That’s a damn lie!” Devin shouted, jumping up from his seat and knocking it over. “I didn’t do anything wrong! I helped them. You can ask Laney yourself—I saved them that night. I didn’t hurt anyone.”
“Calm down, Mr. Rose,” the doctor warned, eyeing him. “For you to be so passionate about your innocence, your behavior suggests otherwise.”
Biting his quivering bottom lip, Devin turned to pick up his chair and eased back into it, bowing his head. “I’m sorry. I...I don’t know why I get so angry. I just...I hate that people say I’m bad. I don’t feel bad, Doctor. I c-can’t remember who I was before the accident, but surely to God I’d feel something if I was as bad as people say I am. Right?”
The Lost Days (Prairie Town Book 3) Page 1
