A Song for Rory

by Cerella Sechrist

  It still didn’t give her and Sawyer enough time. But she would take every minute God gave them, whether it struck him at thirty-five or fifty-five or anywhere in between...or not at all. They’d already been luckier than most. They’d been high-school sweethearts and other than the last two years, they’d been with each other ever since. Maybe that luck would continue to hold, and Sawyer wouldn’t develop Alzheimer’s. But even if that wasn’t the case and the worst should happen, Rory still chose him, still chose to love and cherish him.

  “Then there will be the exchange of the rings...” The minister continued to walk them through the ceremony step-by-step while Rory and the rest of the bridal party waited patiently in their positions on either side of the bride and groom.

  Rory’s eyes didn’t wander far from Sawyer, though Gavin occasionally distracted her. He was making faces and trying to get Erin to laugh, as she attempted to remain serious. With his typical charm, he managed to get Weston, Paige’s husband, in on the antics with him, and Rory caught Paige rolling her eyes in annoyance. But it was difficult to become truly irritated with Gavin. He just had one of those personalities, goofy but sweet, where you couldn’t help laughing along with him, no matter how silly he became.

  Erin finally broke, bending over with erupting giggles, and the minister paused to look their way. Erin coughed.

  “Sorry, sorry. By all means, Reverend, continue.”

  She shot daggers at Gavin for getting her in trouble, but he raised his hands as if to say “I didn’t do anything wrong here.”

  Rory felt her lips twitch with a smile. Erin and Gavin were such an easygoing couple. They loved and supported each other, made each other laugh. She wanted that. She and Sawyer had something similar once upon a time. And she believed they could get it back. If he’d just put aside his fears and trust her, trust their relationship—they could weather whatever came their way.

  Her focus shifted again, and this time, she found Sawyer’s eyes on her. She offered him a slight smile, and to her relief, he responded in kind. Her heart soared. His smiles had been too rare lately.

  I love you, she mouthed, for him alone.

  Love you, too, he mouthed back, and a part of her melted.

  The pastor’s words interrupted her thoughts as he said, “I will then dismiss the wedding party, who will go back down the aisle in pairs, first Erin and Gavin, then Rory and Sawyer, followed by Tessa and Rafael, and Paige and Weston. I will then announce the bride and groom.” He gestured to the chairs set up in neat rows on the lawn. “And Connor and Harper will head toward the back.”

  They all relaxed and broke ranks to mingle. Molly brought Kitt over from where they’d been playing in the grass. The pastor continued to give an overview of what would happen next, but Rory only listened halfheartedly as she found her way to Sawyer’s side. She didn’t wait for him to say anything, but rather stepped right up and stood on her toes to plant a soft kiss on his lips.

  He smiled, and in that moment, she sensed no tension in him, no worry for the future. She breathed an internal sigh of relief.

  “Hey.”

  “Hey,” he replied with a broad grin and then leaned down to kiss her in turn.

  She forgot where she was and wrapped her palms around his neck, holding him to her. He’d been sparing with his kisses in recent days, and she ached at the loss of them. After two years without his touch, she craved it now more than ever, wanted to make up for the time they’d been apart.

  She lost herself in the feel of him, the way his arms slid around her waist. His lips were gentle on hers, and his thumbs stroked her back until she shivered.

  A whistle pierced the air, and both she and Sawyer jumped in surprise, pulling apart.

  “Seriously, guys, do we need to send you two on the honeymoon instead of Connor and Harper?”

  Rory blushed as she realized the attention they’d drawn. At least Gavin had managed to make a joke out of it, relieving most of the awkwardness.

  “I am not giving up my honeymoon,” Connor announced, placing a possessive arm around Harper’s waist and drawing her in for a kiss of their own.

  “Then these two will just have to get married and book their own honeymoon,” Gavin countered, crossing his arms over his chest and raising an eyebrow at them.

  “Sounds good to me,” Rory said, low enough that it was for Sawyer’s ears alone.

  She slid him a glance, but his expression was unreadable. He did, however, take her hand.

  “One wedding at a time, guys.”

  “I agree with that statement,” the pastor said and wrangled them all in once more to go over final details.

  Maybe it was Gavin’s teasing about the two of them going on a honeymoon. Maybe it was simply the atmosphere, being surrounded by loving couples. Or maybe it was just the feel of Sawyer’s hand in hers.

  But whatever it was, Rory chose to trust in him and their future.

  * * *

  SAWYER DROVE HOME with a lighter heart than he’d had in a while. After the conversation with his dad, the wedding rehearsal and dinner and his time with Rory, he was feeling a little bit better about the future. He was strong. His family was strong. They could get through this. There was no reason they couldn’t. If Rory was willing to have him, then he wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of his life with her. He would hedge against the future. He would plan for it. But he couldn’t live his life in anticipation of something that might never happen.

  He felt confident about his decision the whole way home, even humming a few notes of a song he’d been working on in the weeks before he’d returned to town. A tentative bubble of happiness grew, expanding and filling him with joy.

  As Sawyer pulled into the driveway, he noticed Chase’s car wasn’t there. He hoped his younger brother was out having fun. He had always been the more serious of the two of them, but this Alzheimer’s diagnosis had made him even more so. Chase deserved a break.

  Turning off the ignition, he exited the vehicle. He didn’t even make it to the walk before the front door opened, and his mom appeared on the stoop.

  “Is he with you?” Her eyes were frantic, her silvery blond hair standing on end. She wore a faded sweatshirt, one of his dad’s, he realized, the Baltimore Orioles logo worn to a pale shadow of what it had once been. She had her arms wrapped around herself. His stomach dropped, all the happiness he’d been feeling disappearing in a puff of concern.

  “What?” He didn’t know what she meant, but he automatically knew the question was in reference to his father.

  She quickly said, “Chase is out looking for him now. We’ve been calling you.”

  Sawyer reached for his phone but couldn’t find it. Had he left it at the restaurant, after the rehearsal dinner? No, he remembered letting Molly play with it while they were still at the Moontide. He’d forgotten to take it back from her. It must still be at the inn. He mentally berated himself for being so careless, placing himself out of touch from his family yet again.

  “Mom, slow down. What’s happened?”

  “It’s your father,” she answered, confirming his worst suspicions. Her expression was pinched with fear. “He’s missing.”

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHASE HAD ALREADY called the police, and they had units on the lookout for Ford. Sawyer wanted to go out and join his brother in the search, but his mother was manic with worry. He was afraid to leave her on her own. He’d used the house phone to call Chase for an update and to apologize for not having his cell phone on him. His brother sounded calm, but he also detected the faintest touch of worry in his tone.

  Chase explained that they’d been in the garage, finishing the painting Sawyer had begun. Their mom was out at the store. Their dad had gone inside to clean some of the paint items, rinse out the brushes and the like. Chase had been so busy finishing up that he hadn�
��t realized how long their dad had been gone until maybe thirty to forty minutes had passed. By the time he went inside to check on him, Ford was gone with no clue as to where he went. There was no note and the sedan was still parked along the street. Since Sawyer was driving the pickup they knew he couldn’t have taken that. Chase’s car was still in the driveway, and their mother had the only other vehicle, and she was still out running her errands.

  Now she sat at the kitchen table, her head in her hands, her shoulders shaking slightly with suppressed sobs. The wall clock’s ticking was the only sound in the room, and with every tick, the apprehension grew. Sawyer had never been so aware of time in his life. Every moment his father remained missing was a chance for something to happen to him. What if he became so disoriented that he walked in front of a car? What if he wasn’t disoriented at all, but had left on some mission to spare his family what was to come? What if he’d merely stepped out of the house for something and then gotten lost and was simply stuck somewhere, unknowing of where he was...or even who he was?

  Sawyer thought he’d go crazy with wondering.

  He suddenly noticed the white plastic bags deposited by the refrigerator door. There was a pale puddle forming beneath one of them. He moved closer and realized his mother hadn’t even bothered to put away the groceries she’d picked up. The ice cream, dropped on its side, had melted and leaked through the bag.

  For some reason, noting this was a relief. It gave him something to do besides wait for word from Chase. He began gathering up the abandoned foodstuffs, placing them in the sink to rinse clean. He scrubbed a container of orange juice, washing off the ice cream’s sticky residue, and ran water over a bag of grapes until he was satisfied they were clean. He drew a sink full of water to wash some of the other items and then left them to dry on the counter while he used paper towels to swipe the ice-cream puddle off of the floor. He filled one of his Mom’s glass serving bowls with soapy water to scrub the tile clean. It was only as he was finishing up that she stirred from her sorrow and noted what he’d done.

  “Oh, no. Oh, Sawyer, I’m sorry.” She was suddenly beside him on the floor with a clean towel, drying up the leftover water.

  “It’s okay, Mom, I’ve got it.”

  “No, it’s not okay. It’s not.” She was trembling, from her fingers to her shoulders and down her torso. He experienced a moment of alarm.

  “Mom.” He tried to take the towel from her, but she kept a tight grip on it. “I told you I got it. It’s fine.”

  “No.” She pushed at him, and he was so surprised that his balance gave way. He toppled to the side as she kept trying to dry the remaining drops of water. “No,” she repeated, “it’s not fine. Nothing is fine. Nothing will ever be fine, ever again, do you understand me?”

  It was only then that he sensed the break in her. The trembling became a convulsion as she bent over, forehead to the floor, and finally released her anguish. She sobbed onto the tiles, her tears wetting the surface he’d just cleaned. The sounds coming from her were horrible, grief-stricken wails, and he wondered just how long she’d had to hold all this inside her.

  He moved then, easing himself back to a sitting position and bending over to wrap his arms around her. He didn’t try to make her stand up, and he didn’t try to make her stop. He just let her cry as he covered her back with his chest to remind her that he was there.

  Shudders wracked her, and he felt each one vibrate through his midsection. He had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from releasing his own tears. Right now he had to be strong for her.

  When the sobs finally eased, he backed off and sat on the floor, resting his back against the fridge. His mom straightened, still sniffling but without the level of grief he’d just witnessed.

  “I’m sorry,” she apologized, her voice thick. She cleared her throat. “I’m sorry you had to see that.”

  He didn’t say anything. He was sorry, too, but not for the reasons she believed. His sorrow was for all of them, for the suffering they were in the middle of and the suffering to come. If anything, he was grateful for his mother’s outburst. He had a feeling she’d needed it. But it also rattled him. Because his mother was one of the strongest, most stalwart people he’d ever known. She’d nursed both her parents through cancer. She’d miscarried twice before she conceived Sawyer. She was strong. Unbreakable. Seeing her like this shook him to his core. If his mom, of all people, could break...what chance did the rest of them have?

  So instead of replying to her apology, he reached over and took her hand. She shifted to sit beside him, placing her back against the refrigerator and leaning into him. Her head came to rest on his shoulder. Neither of them spoke.

  It was several minutes more before the phone rang, and they both scrambled off the floor to answer it. His mom reached it first, grabbed it off the hook and answered, “Chase?”

  He watched her expression carefully, waiting to see what sort of emotion revealed itself. After a beat, relief stole over her features, and he felt himself release a sigh, his shoulders relaxing.

  Still clutching the phone, she met Sawyer’s eyes.

  “He found him.”

  * * *

  IT WAS WELL after midnight by the time they got his father tucked into bed. His mom went with him. Sawyer knew she didn’t want to let him out of her sight again. He and Chase sat at the kitchen table after their parents had retired. Despite the late hour, Sawyer didn’t think he could sleep. Not because he wasn’t tired—he was exhausted. But rather because there were too many thoughts circling in his head.

  Besides, Chase looked like he needed to talk, and after everything his kid brother had been through, he had no intention of leaving him on his own. Instead, he salvaged what was left of the melted ice cream and blended it into a milk-shake concoction. He squeezed in a fair amount of chocolate syrup and thought of Rory as he did. It always worked for her and her brother, so why not him and his?

  He placed a glass in front of Chase, who sat at the kitchen table with a weary expression and bloodshot eyes.

  Sawyer was curious, but he didn’t want to push. When Chase brought their dad into the house, it was obvious they were both emotionally drained. So their mom took over, issuing directions to get her husband into bed. Chase didn’t give them details, and they didn’t ask. But Sawyer wondered what had happened, why their dad had disappeared and how Chase had found him.

  He took a sip of his milk shake, but the sugary sweetness was more than his stomach could handle at this late hour. He pushed it aside. Chase didn’t even touch his.

  “He was at someone’s house.”

  Sawyer straightened as his brother spoke. “You mean, he was with someone?”

  Chase ran a hand over his face, his exhaustion evident. “Sort of. They took him inside after he kept insisting it was his home.”

  Sawyer tried not to wince but failed. “Whose house was it?”

  Chase shrugged, obviously weary. “I don’t honestly know. They said he started pounding on their door earlier this evening, and when they answered, he kept telling them that this was his home. So they finally let him come in, and they fed him. They said he just seemed more confused the longer he was there. He didn’t have any identification on him, no wallet or anything. So they tried calling around to hospitals and nursing care facilities, but no one was missing any patients or residents. Finally, they called the police, and that’s how I found out where he was.”

  Sawyer sighed. “How far had he gone?”

  “About two miles from here. The strip of houses along Carrick.”

  “Near the fire station?”

  Chase gave a short nod.

  “How in the world did he end up over that way?”

  “He walked, as far as I could tell. I’m not sure where he thought he was going.”

  Sawyer considered. “Home, I guess. But why would
he leave home to look for home?”

  “I don’t know, Sawyer.” Chase slumped forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “I should have checked on him. I don’t know why I waited as long as I did. I just didn’t think. I mean, it never occurred to me that something like this might happen.”

  Sawyer reached out to place a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “It’s not your fault.”

  “Then whose fault is it?” Chase looked up, his eyes desperate. “If not mine then whose? Dad’s? He can’t help that this disease is stealing his mind. And it’s not Mom’s responsibility to watch him every second. You were away, and he was in my care. I should have been more responsible.”

  “Chase.” Sawyer’s tone was firm. “This is not your fault.”

  Chase opened his mouth to protest, but Sawyer forged ahead.

  “This is no one’s fault. It’s not yours, or Mom’s, or Dad’s, or mine. You can’t assume responsibility for things beyond your control.”

  Chase leaned back, breaking away from Sawyer’s grip. “I should have kept a better eye on him,” he insisted.

  Sawyer wanted to protest further, but he could see that nothing he said tonight would make any difference. Chase was determined to shoulder the blame for what had happened.