“Clean this yourself?” he asked.
“Yeah.”
“Remind me not to use you as a nurse.”
More burning, then a bandage to cover the gash. When he was through, Billy examined Ash’s face, looking at the scars of the surgery from what seemed so long ago.
With a simple “It looks like nothing’s going to fall off,” Billy went to see what he could do about Chloe’s leg.
“You got ‘em,” Pax said, once he and Ash were alone.
“Yeah, I did.” Ash knew he should be happy, but the worry he’d had for his kids’ safety had turned into worry for their mental well-being. Sometimes being a parent sucked. “Thanks for your help. Those mini-explosives you gave me, I couldn’t have done it without them.”
“Don’t even worry about it.”
They talked a little longer, but at some point Ash fell asleep. How Pax and Billy got him into a bed upstairs, he had no idea. But that’s where he woke to an afternoon sun shining through the window.
He showered, put on the new clothes someone had laid out for him, and headed downstairs. He found Pax and the old woman in the kitchen, laughing and having a cup of coffee.
“Where’s Josie and Brandon?” he asked, alarmed.
“Your kids are fine,” the old woman said. “They’re out back, playing with the dog.”
Ash walked over to the open back door and looked out the screen. Josie was sitting on a picnic bench, petting the head of a golden retriever while Brandon was trying to coax the dog away with a ball. It seemed so…normal.
“And Chloe?” Ash asked.
“Billy took her back to the ranch,” Pax said. “Said she needs surgery on the leg, but that she should be fine.”
Ash hadn’t told her thank you. He should have done it already, but he’d been too drained to even think about it.
“Can I get you a cup of coffee?” the woman asked.
Ash shook his head. “Not right now, thanks.”
He opened the screen door and stepped into the backyard. Both his kids looked over and stared at him. He wondered if their uncertainty would ever go away, if they’d ever truly believe he was their dad.
As he walked toward them, the golden retriever ran to him. Ash knelt down and petted the dog’s head. “Hey, buddy.” He looked over at his children. “What’s his name?”
Neither of them said anything for a moment, then Brandon took a step forward. “Strider.”
“Hello there, Strider,” Ash said to the dog.
Strider wagged his tail and licked Ash’s hand.
“He likes to play catch,” Brandon said.
Ash stood up. “You have a ball?”
Brandon nodded and showed him the tennis ball in his hand.
“Throw it for him,” Ash said.
Brandon tossed the ball across the yard, and Strider took off after it. As the dog was bringing the ball back to the boy, Ash casually walked over.
“Can I try?” he asked.
“Sure,” Brandon said, handing him the ball.
They played toss with the dog for several minutes, alternating turns, with neither of them really saying anything. While they did this, Josie sat quietly on the bench watching them.
As Ash was about to throw the ball again, Josie said, “Why did they tell us you were dead?”
Ash paused for a moment, then let the ball fly. “I don’t know, sweetheart. Because they weren’t very nice, I guess. They told me you were both dead, too.”
“They did?” Brandon said.
Ash nodded.
Strider returned with the ball and dropped it at Brandon’s feet, but the boy didn’t seem to notice. Brandon looked at his father for a moment, then glanced at his sister and whispered something just low enough so Ash couldn’t hear it.
Josie seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, then looked up at their dad. “Is…Mom alive, too?”
Ash could feel his heart suddenly break. He sank down to his knees so he was closer to their height, tears forming in his eyes. “No, sweetie. She’s not.”
“But you’re here, and they said you were dead,” she countered.
Ash could hear Brandon’s breath become ragged as he fought his own tears. “I know, Josie. But your mom was gone before they even took us out of the house.”
“But…but…are you sure?”
He nodded.
Brandon was the first to fall into his embrace, sobbing into Ash’s shoulder, but Josie wasn’t far behind him.
“I love you guys,” Ash said, then repeated “I love you” over and over.
“I love you, too, Dad,” Josie said, once her tears had finally lost their strength.
“Me, too,” Brandon added.
The hug that followed seemed to last for hours.
FB2 document info
Document ID: fbd-fd565d-6522-d448-8db5-bd8d-e02a-c5f7e5
Document version: 1.1
Document creation date: 26.03.2012
Created using: calibre 0.8.39, Fiction Book Designer, FictionBook Editor Release 2.6 software
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Document history:
1.0 — создание документа fb2
1.1 — исправление опечаток, разделение слипшихся слов, аннотация
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