by Amy Gamet
Enough to make it to her in-laws’ house across the island and back home, but talk about being unprepared for a disaster. She wanted to cry, fatigue bearing down, but didn’t have the energy to waste on self-pity.
All she had to do was stand her ground, camp out in the condo she shared with Brady while Oscar passed overhead, and hope for the best. She drove slowly through the empty streets of Hilton Head, the roads littered with branches, until she pulled into the circular drive of her in-laws’ house and ran to the door.
Back in the day they had loved her.
Joe’s parents had welcomed her into their family with open arms. Theresa in particular had been wonderful, so proud of her new daughter-in-law, the doctor. But their dynamic had become terribly strained after Joe died, with Theresa becoming more and more critical of Hannah and the choices she made raising Brady.
They loved their grandson and took good care of him, and for that Hannah was grateful. And if it meant she was on the receiving end of a lot of flack from her mother-in-law on a regular basis, then she would take Theresa’s snide remarks with a smile to keep her son happy.
Theresa pulled the door open as if she’d been standing there, waiting for Hannah to arrive, which she probably had. “I was starting to think we wouldn’t have time to evacuate. We almost decided to go and bring Brady with us.”
She wouldn’t take the bait. “I’m here now.”
“The eye wall is only forty miles offshore, Hannah. You could have given us a little more time.”
“The patients—”
“Oh, leave her alone, Theresa.” She turned to her father-in-law, Tom, his features so much like Joe’s she sometimes found it hard to look at him. Brady was right on his heels. “Mama!”
She dropped down to his height and opened her arms, her heart seeming to take a deep breath as her sweet little boy pressed against her. She kissed his hair, smelling his head. He was hers. The most important thing in her life now and forever, and she wondered again if she should find a different career.
But she was in so much debt from Joe’s company — start-up debt that he would’ve dealt with over time had he lived — she couldn’t afford to take a position that paid less than her current one.
They hadn’t gotten around to increasing his life insurance since he opened shop—a stupid mistake that made his death that much more difficult to deal with. They’d been so busy, him trying to get the new company up and running before he’d even quit his job at the hospital.
“Brady, baby. I missed you so much. Were you good for Grandma and Grandpa?”
“We played Play-Doh and made forts.”
He had chocolate around his mouth, and she dabbed at it with her thumb. “Sounds like fun.”
“I missed you.” He tucked his head under her chin. “How come you have to work all the time?”
Five years old already. Where had the time gone? She was missing her son growing up and she felt like the worst mother in the world.
It’s just because you’ve been at the hospital so much this week, getting ready for the hurricane. It’s not always this bad.
“I don’t suppose you got to the grocery store?” asked Theresa.
Touché. If Hannah kept a list of everything she hadn’t done to get ready for the hurricane, she’d have one hell of a stack of paper. “We’ll be okay.”
Teresa shook her head. “You should come with us. There’s plenty of room in the RV and it isn’t safe for you to stay here.”
“I need to be close to the hospital in case they reopen. My place will be fine. It has hurricane glass and everything.”
“But the storm surge alone is going to be fifteen feet. You don’t understand what that’s going to do to the island, Hannah.”
“The building is steel. It’s more than sound enough to weather the storm, and I can wait out the storm surge as long as I need to. Please, let’s not fight about this again.” She moved to the table and dug through Brady’s bag, looking to see if he had everything. “Where’s Mr. Bojangles?”
“In my room,” said Brady, who went upstairs to grab his stuffed bear.
Theresa crossed her arms over her chest. “It isn’t safe for him to stay here.”
“We’ll be fine.”
“But—”
“Stop.” Hannah held up her hand. “Just stop.”
Theresa inhaled loudly. The women faced off.
Tom cleared his throat. “We should get a move on.”
“I just need to finish up a few things, then we can be on our way,” said Theresa. She left the room.
Tom opened his arms and Hannah gratefully stepped into them. “She’s just worried about you,” he said. “She loves you. You know we both do, honey.”
“I know.” She pulled back.
“Be safe. Call us if you need anything.”
“The phones probably won’t be working.”
“That’s right.”
“How far are you going?”
“Up to Richmond. They still don’t know which way Oscar’s heading, and Theresa doesn’t want to have to move again once we get settled.”
“Smart.”
Brady ran back downstairs. “Guess what, Mom? The weatherman said we might even get a tornado.”
She inwardly cringed. “Wow, that’s exciting. Say good-bye to Grandma and Grandpa. We’ve got to get home before the storm comes.”
She settled Brady in his booster seat.
“I can do it myself,” he complained.
She climbed back into her car, the water falling off her body like she’d just turned off the shower head. She felt better now that he was with her, her shoulders relaxed and her soul much calmer. She could deal with anything as long as she had her son by her side.
Through the rain-slicked glass, she saw her in-laws loading the last of their belongings into the camper.
You should go with them.
The thought caught her off guard.
It would be so easy to change her mind, to gather up Brady and his things and let Theresa and Tom drive them away from this place, leaving the storm behind. It would feel nice to be taken care of, to know she was safe without needing to slay any dragons herself. She wouldn’t need to be afraid.
She wouldn’t need to be alone.
Her in-laws climbed into the RV and closed the doors, the brake lights shining in her eyes. She started her car.
“I love you, Mama.”
“I love you too, sweetie.” She backed out of the driveway.
Her condo was seven miles across town back by the hospital and tonight those miles were harrowing. She couldn’t remember ever seeing the island so deserted, and she found herself again questioning her decision to stay. It seemed everyone with any sense had left Hilton Head Island in their dust, leaving Hannah and her little son alone to face the storm.
She thought of the tornadoes Brady mentioned and shuddered.
The last thing I need right now is a freaking tornado.
Her shoulders were stiff and tight from driving through debris when she saw the lights of the corner store where she bought coffee on her way to work. With a grateful sigh she pulled into the parking lot. A big hand-painted sign read no gas.
Oh, well. Maybe she’d get lucky and find milk after all.
“Can I get gum?” asked Brady.
He sounded so cheerful, so childish, so unconcerned with the doubts that plagued her, and she loved him so much in that moment she felt her heart might burst. This was fun to him, an adventure, and she decided to do her best to play it off that way. “Sure you can, baby.” She unbuckled her seat belt, turning to face him with a smile. “Are you ready to get wet?”
3
Hannah got out of her car with great effort, the wind pushing against it, fighting her, then opened Brady’s door for him. In the time it had taken her to get across the island, the winds had gone from bad to worse, and she wondered at the wisdom of taking her son outside, even for a moment.
She held his hand, grateful her parki
ng spot was mere feet from the door of the small store. A bell rang over her head as she went inside and Brady ran straight for the candy section.
“Hi, Dr. Fielding,” said a skinny teenage boy, stepping out from behind the counter.
“Hello, Julio. I’m surprised you’re still open, though I’m grateful.”
“You just made it.” He flipped over the sign on the door from open to closed. “My father wanted us to stay open as long as we could, but the news says the storm surge is coming up the beach already. He doesn’t want us to get stuck in that.”
“That’s nice of your father to be concerned with others at a time like this.”
“Just like you, sí? You stayed in town to help people who need it, right?”
“Yes, I suppose I did. Though the hospital is closed now. I’d like to be here when they reopen.” She turned and looked at the shelves, surprised by how empty they were even though she’d been expecting it. “Wow. I guess I’m a little late to the party.”
Her eyes connected with a strange man’s fierce stare over the empty shelving unit, startling her. Icy gray eyes. Chiseled features. Unshaven with dark hair and stubble covering his cheeks. He was strikingly handsome and a bolt of awareness shot through her body from her head to her toes. She pulled her eyes away.
Holy cow.
Definitely not someone she knew, but that wasn’t unusual in this tourist town. She sure as hell would have remembered that face.
“For you, Dr. Fielding, I have milk and bread,” said Julio. He walked into the back room.
“Thank you.”
She could feel the eyes of the stranger still upon her. “You’re a doctor?” the man asked. His voice was gravelly and deep, with a richness that resonated inside her belly.
Working to keep her expression neutral, she met those intense eyes again. “Yes.”
“What kind?”
“I’m a surgeon, but most of the surgical cases on the island go to the mainland, except for the stray appendix. That sort of thing. So I do a lot of general stuff.”
God, I sound like a moron. General stuff? That’s the medical term for it.
A touch of self-loathing made her toes curl in her wet sneakers.
Julio came back with the items. “My father made sure we had plenty for ourselves. We can share with you.”
She took them from him with a smile. “Thank you so much.”
“Mama, can I get chocolate?” came Brady’s voice from deeper in the store.
“No. Just gum.”
“Can I get a Spin Pop?”
“If you ask me for one more thing, you’re not even going to get the gum.”
She glanced back where the man had been, curious to see if he looked at her differently now that he knew she had a kid, but he wasn’t there. Disappointment made her shoulders fall. She made her way around the tiny store, conscious of the fact that she was looking for him as much as she was looking for groceries.
She found neither.
She couldn’t remember the last time she’d thought a man besides her husband was attractive. What was his story? A renter, perhaps, who didn’t heed the evacuation warnings? He was probably here with a woman. A girlfriend or wife. She frowned at the direction her thoughts were taking. She should tell him to leave while he could still get out of town.
A hurricane was on its way, about to terrorize the island with hundred-and-sixty-mile-per-hour winds, and she was flirting with a tourist. She went up and down another aisle, picking up mustard and a jar of pickles just so she’d have something to buy. Anything she might actually want had been snapped up long before.
The bell over the door jingled and she looked up to see the back of the stranger’s head as he left.
Figures.
What did you think was going to happen?
He’d ask you out right before the eye wall hit and you’d live happily ever after?
Happily ever after was dead.
She made her way to the counter. “Come on, Brady,” she called.
He came running, adding a pack of gum to her purchases.
“I can buckle myself in,” he said. “I’m not a little baby anymore.”
She shrugged. “Okay, that’s fine.”
She paid, then they ran through the rain and she opened the door for him, squinting against the wind and pelting rain. She climbed into the front seat and pulled her seat belt on.
“Wow, thanks,” said Brady, awe in his voice.
She laughed. “You’re welcome.” She reached up to adjust her rearview mirror so she could look at him. “Are you all buckled?” Her eyes locked on to the fierce stare of the man from inside the store. She screamed, starting. “What are you doing in here?”
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said.
“He gave me chocolate!” said Brady.
She jumped out of the car and raced to the other side, yanking open the man’s door. “Get out of my car.”
“I need your help.” The man’s eyes were beseeching hers. “I have a GSW in my thigh.”
Her eyes moved down his body, seeing the tourniquet and bloodstains for the first time. She gasped.
A lot of bloodstains.
“Through and through,” said the man, “I can’t reach the back of my leg to stitch it up and stop the bleeding.”
“My mom’s a doctor,” said Brady.
She met the man’s eyes again. They were no less intense now than they’d been when she first saw them. If she were alone, she would help. But Brady was here and there was a good chance this man was dangerous. “I don’t have the supplies,” she lied.
“Of course you do. Antiseptic. Sutures. Antibiotics.”
He was right on every count. She kept all those things in her medical bag just for emergencies like this one.
No, not like this one. Not like this one at all.
“I don’t have any painkillers.”
“I don’t need any.”
The lights of the bodega went out. Any moment now, Julio would be walking out to his car.
“Please,” said the man. “Just stitch me up and I’ll be on my way.”
She didn’t move, the storm stinging her skin in her indecision. It wasn’t in her nature to refuse help to someone who needed it, but she couldn’t put Brady in danger, either. “How did it happen?”
“It was an accident. I was cleaning my gun and didn’t realize it was loaded.”
Anger was swift. “Don’t lie to me. I have every right to leave you on the side of the road.”
“I’m begging you, Doc. I’ve lost a lot of blood. If I don’t get help soon…”
She shook her head. He had a bullet wound and he lied to her about how it had gotten there. This man was clearly dangerous. “No. I won’t take chances with my son. Now get out of my car.”
He nodded slowly. “I understand.” He lifted his hands, half covering them with one of Brady’s sweatshirts that must have been on the seat. The gleam of metal peeked out at her from its folds and she squinted to make out what it was.
A gun.
He has a gun next to my baby.
Her insides lurched, as if the blood in her veins had come to a screeching halt.
“I’m sorry I have to do this. Take me to your house,” he said.
She shook her head frantically. “No.”
“I’m trying very hard to make this a pleasant experience for Brady here, but I’m running out of time, Doctor. Now get in the car and drive.”
“Take the car. I don’t want it. Just give me my boy and it’s yours.”
“He can’t have our car!” said Brady, as if she’d lost her mind.
The man’s eyes never left hers. “I don’t need a car, I need a doctor. The hospital’s already closed.”
She didn’t move, her feet seemingly rooted to the spot.
“Now,” he said.
Her mind was desperate for a different answer, swirling through possibilities that were fruitless and lame. The metallic click of the weapon had her sobbing
out loud and running to her door, sliding behind the wheel as she cried.
“Mommy, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” Her voice was strangled and high.
Stop crying, damn it. You’re scaring him more than the guy in the backseat.
“Are you sure you don’t want some chocolate?” the boy asked.
“I’m sure.” She put the car in gear, her feet tentatively touching the pedals.
“Faster,” the man said.
The car shot forward, taking them away from the only person who might be able to help her. She was losing control, had already lost it, a line from a self-defense course she’d taken in college echoing in her head.
Never let them take you to the second location.
“Where’s your husband?”
“Waiting for us at home—” she blurted, but Brady answered, “In heaven with the angels.”
Fuck.
Her son continued, “He died at Christmas when I was four. Santa brought me a teddy bear.”
“I’ll bet you miss him a lot.”
“Are you going to die, too?”
“Nope, your mom’s going to fix me right up.”
“She couldn’t save my dad.”
Hannah’s heart squeezed so hard it was like a chef trying to wring the last drop of juice from a fruit. She was right back in that moment, Joe on the floor, her performing CPR and pounding on his chest, screaming for him to breathe, damn it, when Brady walked in from his room.
It was the worst moment of her life, and he’d shared it with her, right by her side. Her little man had been through so much already in his short life. The last thing he needed was any more trauma.
She squinted into the rain as her headlights caught on the familiar shape of a police car with a truck pulled over on the side of the road. She hit the brakes.
“Keep driving,” the man said.
“But there’s a policeman. He can help you. He can find you another doctor and you can let us go.”
“I said drive.”
She continued to slow down, less fearful he would shoot her in front of a cop. Something on the ground caught her attention, though it took her brain a minute to process what she was seeing. A pile of something. A shiny gold reflection. She hit the brake. “What is that?”
