Stubborn Truth (The Stubborn Series Book 3)

by Arnold, Jeanne

  “Remember how Mr. Halden said Brigg Barrett was involved with your mother?” I asked. “Your father was talking about it at the cabin in Texas—how Mr. Barrett was always trying to get between them and ruin HalRem. Did he ever visit your mom when you were growing up?”

  She took off her mitten and drew a frown in the frost on the window. She didn’t answer me.

  “Was he any part of your life? Was he around before Leon?”

  “No way. I’ve heard my brothers talk about him. His son killed my brother. Lane said Joel testified to put him in prison.”

  “Lane told me how Barrett chased your mom for years, and he never says much about his mom,” said Molly. “Personally, I think Barrett is why the Haldens broke up. It’s a good thing you have those hazel eyes, Deliah—or we’d be questioning your paternity.”

  I had to ask the burning question. “What did your mother ever see in Leon?”

  “She never kissed the troll. My mom always told me love was for suckers. She never had a real boyfriend.”

  “Avery! Look out!” Molly shouted. My gaze flashed back to the road.

  Deliah’s shriek overpowered my own as a force jolted us into a tailspin. Our voices echoed through the cab in surround sound and then I heard a buzzing in my head. I grabbed the dashboard to brace myself as the impact happened instantaneously. My foot pressed the brake to the floor, but we didn’t stop. A second blow sent the truck spinning in the opposite direction.

  * * *

  I was sitting up, sort of. My knees were propped up. Voices droned. I wanted them to be quiet. I wanted the humming to stop. And there was beeping. That really needed to stop. I fought to open my eyes.

  The hand on mine was warm. It gently rubbed my knuckles raw. When it squeezed, I squeezed back. I smelled peppermint.

  “Look who’s awake,” Gabe mumbled.

  He was exactly what I wanted. He would tell the voices to shut up. I opened my eyes. Gabe’s eyebrows lifted. He was wearing his glasses.

  “I fell asleep?” I tried to sit up. The weight of my free hand alarmed me. “What is that?”

  Gabe lifted my wrist. “You have a mild sprain. Nothing broke.”

  My eyelids fell. “What do you mean nothing broke?”

  “You don’t remember? You were talking to the police when I got here. You told me all about the dance and the parking lot.”

  I cringed at the stiffness in my shoulders. “Where are we?”

  “A private room at Mercy. You crashed Meggie’s truck, and I’m an uncle.”

  I pulled a breath in with minor difficulty. My ribs trembled. My temples throbbed. “Molly had the baby? Is she okay?”

  “Yup.”

  I set my head back down. Gabe leaned in and ran his thumb over my bottom lip. Had I told him about Caleb groping Rachel? I didn’t want to spoil the moment.

  “She wasn’t due for over a month. I remember now. Deliah was upset—oh no.”

  “She’s right there,” he said and jerked his chin to the side. I couldn’t see past the partition. “Still out cold. She looks like she got sandpapered.”

  “But she’s okay?”

  “Yup.”

  “My shoulder is sore,” I whispered.

  “They gave you a shot for the pain. Three minutes later, you conked out. I carried you in here.”

  “What happened to the truck?”

  Gabe folded a piece of gum and popped it in his mouth. “You rammed the ass end of an oil tanker.”

  I sunk down further in the bed. “Molly’s really okay? You’re sure your sister’s okay?”

  “Molly had to have a C-section. The baby was in distress. Deliah was just freaking out for the sake of freaking out.”

  “It’s all my fault.”

  “It’s not your fault. The police told the lieutenant a reporter was tailing you.”

  I closed my eyes. Fighting to keep them open was futile. I wanted to sleep. At the same time, I had questions about the accident.

  Someone shook my shoulder after I dozed off. I opened my eyes.

  “Sweetie, how do you feel?”

  “Meggie? I’m sorry about your truck,” I said.

  The woman in front of me was wearing purple scrubs and a visitor badge. She held a clipboard in her hand. Her blond hair reminded me of Meggie’s. She sounded like Meggie. She wasn’t Meggie.

  “I’m the nurse.”

  “I thought you were my aunt. How’s Deliah?” I asked her.

  “Her scans were clear. You ladies are very lucky.” She flipped the paper over on her clipboard and touched my arm. “Take a little while to get your bearings and have cutie here call for me if anything changes. Then you’re free to go.”

  The mattress shifted. Gabe climbed on top of me. He had his finger in a book, marking the page. He let his weigh down on me and kissed the side of my cheek. Then he rolled off.

  “Cutie?” I asked. “Why does she have a visitor pass?”

  “My dad hired her. She’s a private nurse. You’re hogging the bed,” he said as his head rested beside mine on the pillow. I could see his work boots hanging off the end of the bed. He set his book on my stomach. I wanted to curl into his arms; however, my entire body felt stiff.

  “Do I have to give up the bed?”

  “No. The lieutenant booked the room,” he told me. He tried to pull the blanket over our heads, but I wiggled my head out.

  “Since when can you book a hospital room?”

  “He can. Speak of the devil.”

  I watched Gabe’s features tighten as his father loomed over the side of my bed. “It’s encouraging to see you looking well. Now, Gabriel, this is unsuitable behavior for a hospital visit. Miss Ross needs to rest. You need to find a place to stay.”

  Mr. Halden’s phone rang, and he checked the screen.

  “I need a moment with you in the hallway,” he said.

  Gabe acted like he was in no hurry to speak with his father. He rolled off the bed in slow motion. I listened to them talk in the doorway.

  “I’m getting a flood of calls about a media camp outside. This needs to stop. Miss Ross is attracting too much attention.”

  “It’s not her fault they ran her off the road,” Gabe countered. “Lay off already.”

  “Lieutenant Halden,” a woman interrupted. “Sir, we’ve run into an issue regarding your daughter’s records.”

  Gabe returned to my bed and didn’t say anything. He situated himself beside me and ate from a bag of Reese’s Pieces he bought from a vending machine.

  “I’m sorry if I got you in trouble.”

  “Don’t,” he said. “He’s way out of line. Let’s see how long he can hide Deliah’s identity or the reason why he’s been hiding her for her whole damn life.”

  I closed my eyes while I let Gabe feed me candy. We listened to the hospital noises.

  “One good thing came out of this mess. Lieutenant’s a grandpa now. I’m saving it for the ideal time to rub it in his old man face.”

  “Your father doesn’t look like a grandpa. He never will.”

  “He started having kids around my age. He’s got the gray hairs to prove it.”

  “I can’t believe Molly had the baby. Was it a boy or girl?”

  He took my hand under the blanket and squeezed my fingers. I was relieved I was wearing my own clothes and not a hospital gown.

  “Eli Taylor Halden,” he said.

  I smiled and threaded my fingers through his so he would stop trying to worm his hand under the hem of my shirt. “Emmie will have a cousin the same age.”

  “He’ll be her nephew.”

  I crumpled my nose. “Oh yeah. That’s right.”

  Gabe stretched out and tugged on my collar to pretend to look down my shirt.

  “Do you want me to sneak you out?”

  I attempted to roll into his chest. “Can we pretend I’m asleep?”

  He pulled me close and set his chin on my head. His heartbeat was all the comfort I needed.

  “So we’re gonna let
the dirty laundry pile up another night?”

  The room was dark when I opened my eyes again. Gabe’s breath tickled my neck. I pulled my head back slowly and gazed at his sleeping face, his long lashes. I wanted to kiss him, regardless of our surroundings. He hadn’t left my side.

  “Is it morning?” I asked in a scratchy voice.

  His hazel eyes opened. “It hasn’t been an hour. You missed Meggie. She left ten minutes ago. She brought you pajamas.”

  “I’m thirsty,” I whispered. Then I realized his hand was inside my shirt and I pulled the blanket over my shoulder. He had unbuttoned the bottom buttons.

  He gave me a look as if he were going to deny what he did. His leg flew over the side of the bed and he stood up. “Coke?”

  “Real Coca-Cola, not Dr. Pepper,” I replied. “Coke is Coke. Dr. Pepper is not Coke.”

  He winked and tried to pull off the blanket as I buttoned up using my good hand. “It’s a Texas thing.”

  “Is it a Texas thing to strip your girlfriend’s clothes off in her hospital bed?”

  “Yup.”

  “Good thing I like Texas things,” I said as I fastened the last button. I was going to need help as long as I had one working hand.

  Gabe walked to the door. “Only one Texas thing, I hope.”

  Judson followed Gabe into the room when he returned with a can of soda and a straw.

  “What’s shakin’, darling?” drawled his uncle. “Looks like they put all your pieces back together.”

  I stared, amazed, when I caught the two of them side by side wearing sunglasses on the bills of their HalRem hats. They were each a distinct shade of Halden. I recognized how much Gabe looked like his father; still he looked like his uncle just as much.

  “Is Deliah awake yet? Can you open this?” I pointed to the wall.

  Judson pushed the partition around the track to reveal her bed. She was asleep with her arms set out in front of her. There wasn’t anything visibly wrong with her other than a large bandage in the center of her forehead. She had a pulse monitor on her finger.

  “They removed her unicorn horn,” Gabe said. “She’s gonna throw a hissy fit when she finds out.”

  “Gabe.” I swatted his hand. “She looks okay.”

  Judson stepped over to Deliah’s bed and sat down. He set a protective hand on her foot.

  She was wearing a hospital gown, but her hair was fixed for the dance. She looked like an angel. I swung my legs over the bed and stood up lightheaded.

  “Deliah. It’s Avery. Wake up.”

  “Funny. She’s never this quiet,” Gabe drawled. “She can talk the hide off a cow.”

  The nurse breezed in. “Such a pretty kid. I hope she wakes before my shift ends. Her mother must be a stunner.” She narrowed her gaze on Gabe and then his uncle. “The family resemblance is uncanny.”

  “She’s got her ma’s spark,” Judson muttered. “She’s so much like Sara when I met her.”

  Minutes later the quiet room transformed.

  “I have rights,” Deliah stated as soon as she woke up. “I can get up and leave if I want to. Joel doesn’t care what I do. You don’t care about me either.” She wagged her finger at Caleb when he entered on cue.

  “Simmer down,” Gabe said. “What the heck’s gotten into you?”

  She set her head on the pillow.

  “Tell him before I do,” I said.

  “Tell me what?” Gabe approached her bed.

  “First of all, he’s not my brother. Second of all, I hate him. Third of all, he ruined my life.”

  Caleb crossed his arms over his chest. “Come again? I’m trained to save lives not ruin them, little sister.”

  “Weren’t you at a dance with Avery?” Gabe asked.

  “I was,” she drawled. “He was supposed to be my date.”

  Gabe offered me a confused look.

  “He was her date until he found a new one,” I said.

  Gabe made a snorting sound. “At the middle school?”

  Judson started to laugh. “Not enough girls to go around, so you hit up the playground, eh?”

  “He kissed Rachel! He French kissed her with his tongue!” Deliah blurted.

  “Wait a goddang minute.” Gabe spun around and hit the swinging table on my bed. “You’re getting it on with Rachel Merriweather? You know what she’s like. That’s low, even for you.”

  Deliah grunted. “He’s a dirty cow. Avery said so.”

  “I said he’s a dog,” I corrected.

  “Y’all have fun preaching to the choir,” Caleb said as he made a break for the door. “I’m mighty glad you’re gonna pull through, Mona Deliah. And for the record, I don’t play tonsil hockey on the first date.”

  A flash went off. Someone yelled. There was a scuffle outside the door, and then Caleb and his uncle chased the culprit down the hall. Boot heels clunked into the distance.

  * * *

  Caleb didn’t take a turn holding the baby the next morning. He kept checking his phone. No doubt he was trying to hook up with Rachel and avoid talking to his brother about the baby situation. I wanted to visit Molly, but she was asleep. I gave my accident report to the police while Gabe volunteered to make a run to Meggie’s to collect papers to prove Mr. Halden was Deliah’s legal guardian. The hospital was challenging her name and her release.

  “I hear you’re on her shitlist.” Lane elbowed Caleb. He pointed to Deliah from the waiting room outside of the nursery. She was having a turn holding her nephew.

  “You really are despicable,” I interjected.

  “You know how much I like name-calling, legs.”

  I turned to Lane. “Will you tell Molly I was here? Tell her congratulations and that I’m so glad she’s okay and the baby is okay. He’s adorable.”

  “Sure thing. She was up all night trying to feed him. She’s wiped out,” he replied. “She was worried about y’all being okay.”

  Gabe returned from Meggie’s and glanced at the window where Deliah was sitting in a rocking chair. She was wearing a hospital gown over her dress with a pair of plaid pajama pants underneath. The bandage on her forehead had been changed. It was smaller.

  “We’re taking off. Lieutenant can’t prove he has custody. They’re releasing Deliah anyhow.”

  Caleb looked up from his phone. “What are they gonna do? Arrest him for kidnapping his own DNA? Don’t they know he could buy this hospital tomorrow and change their policies?”

  “Watch out when you leave. Lieutenant’s about to talk to the press,” Lane said.

  Gabe knocked on the nursery window with his cowboy hat and got Deliah to look up. She stuck her tongue out at him.

  I caught up with him halfway down the hall. “What happened to Meggie’s truck? You never told me.”

  “It’s totaled.”

  I stopped in my tracks. I owed Meggie an entire truck? My parents were going to kill me.

  “She’ll get a new one.”

  “That’s what I’m worried about. Your father’s car is ruined. Josh’s truck is smashed. And now Meggie’s truck is totaled. It has to be a curse. My curse!”

  Gabe walked to me and ran his finger under the strap of the sling that held my sprained wrist. “Nobody cares about the damn truck. Everybody cares that you’re okay, the baby’s okay, and Deliah’s okay. Let’s get breakfast and then go to my place and forget about this nightmare,” he said.

  “So pancakes and hibernation are the answers to all of our problems?”

  Gabe snickered. “What problems? I can only think of one.”

  He didn’t clarify, but I was pretty sure he meant Caleb. He tapped the elevator button and the doors slid open. Two nurses strolled out and ran their gazes up and down my boyfriend. They both acted like doe-eyed preteens from Deliah’s school. I didn’t know if I should laugh or punch his shoulder when he acknowledged that he saw me watch them check him out.

  “That must get tiresome for you,” I told him. The women couldn’t help themselves. I couldn’t really blame t
hem.

  The elevator doors closed. The anti-fracking poster with my face was taped to a wall panel. Gabe grabbed the corner of the poster and tore it down. I waited for him to curse or scowl.

  All he did was press the down arrow.

  Gabe walked in front of me just as Caleb cornered the hall.

  “Your fly’s undone,” he teased.

  Gabe shoved Caleb’s shoulders. “Put a cork in it. I’ve had enough of your lip.”

  Caleb flattened a hand on Gabe’s chest and pushed him into the wall. Gabe snapped right back, but Caleb hopped out of the way and scurried behind me.

  “Please don’t fight in the hospital. You know how fast you can be a headline on the news.” I wasn’t in any shape to break them apart. At least they waited until they were out of Deliah’s sight to engage in battle.

  “Oh, don’t give me that baloney. You get turned on watching us smack it up for you,” Caleb replied.

  “Who’s got Deliah?” Gabe asked.

  Caleb rubbed the back of his arm. “Uncle Dud’s sneaking her out the delivery exit.”

  “Good morning, y’all!” Mr. Halden’s voice carried down the hall. We turned our heads and listened.

  “Lieutenant Halden!” shouted the first reporter. “Why did you stay overnight in Mercy Hospital? Are your sons being treated here?”

  A journalist cut in before he answered. “Is it true you have a teenage daughter attending public school?”

  “Mr. Halden! Can you comment on the accident? Was Avery Ross involved? Is she your responsibility? How are you handling her involvement in the smear campaign against the petroleum industry?”

  I cowered behind Gabe as we edged closer to the crowd. He reached around me and slid a hand in my back pocket. The microphone chirped.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, y’all never cease to amaze me with your meticulous guesswork,” he drawled. “I’m here strictly to announce that last evening there was an unfortunate incident involving three young ladies. They were traveling in a vehicle registered to my family. These ladies are being treated for minor injuries and then released. I’m requesting that y’all give us our privacy while the matter is being investigated.”

  “Sir, can you tell us about the pregnant woman?”

  Mr. Halden dropped his chin and set his fists on his hips. “The young lady is a friend of the family. That’s all I’m fixin’ to share. Thank you for your time.”