180 Days and Counting... Series Box Set books 1 - 3

by B. R. Paulson

  Cady huffed in exasperation. “Are you seriously saying that you’re not going to tell me what is going on? I don’t think I deserve this.” She pushed away from the counter, shaking her head. As she passed Margie, she avoided her gaze.

  “What do you want me to say? There’s nothing going on that you need to worry about right now. You’re just emotional because of your loss. Things won’t be such a big deal once you get through the stages of grief.” Judging by the hardening of Cady’s gaze, Margie hadn’t chosen the right things to say and for once she was too tired to try to fix anything.

  “Okay, Mom. I get it. Thank you for coming and for your help. You can keep your secret.” Cady didn’t look back as she left the kitchen.

  Margie stood in her spot by the counter, staring out at the snowy landscape with trees, the chicken coop, and a dark red stained play house with a yellow slide that Bailey hadn’t used in a few years. When had things gotten so complicated? Margie didn’t want to hide from Cady that her father was dying and that she probably wouldn’t see him alive again, but at the same time, she didn’t want to worry her and take David’s chance to see Alaska before he died.

  Margie had a lot on her mind, but getting on the road was a big part of relieving her stress. For just a minute, she wanted to think of herself.

  She was losing her husband. She had to hide it from her daughter. Margie was all alone and she couldn’t be overly upset with David and she couldn’t be honest with Cady.

  Reality crushed her chest and she didn’t want to breathe. What if she missed something?

  Chapter 16

  Cady

  Upstairs, Cady tried not to dwell on the frustrating conversation she’d endured with her mother. In the hallway, outside the guestroom, she knocked on the door. “Hey, Dad?”

  A cough from inside caught her attention and she pushed open the panel. “Dad? Are you okay?” Cady stopped mid-step, covering her mouth with her hand. “Dad?” She rushed to his side as he lay on the already-made bed.

  A fine sheen of sweat covered his pale features, shining on his forehead in the light from the guest bathroom. He reached up, his eyes closed, and held a handful of toilet paper to his mouth as he coughed. His body jerked upright as he coughed, as if his entire soul was engaged in the act.

  Cady patted him on the back, wincing at the frail feeling of his ribs and spine through his shirt.

  The cough calmed and then disappeared. Her dad slowly sat up, his hands shaking as he lowered the red-spotted toilet paper crumpled in his hand.

  Gasping, Cady shook her head. “Dad. Please, tell me what is going on. I can’t handle this. Please.” They weren’t telling her something huge – something she should know. She could feel it’s importance in her gut.

  David cautiously wiped at his mouth and glanced at the door. He reached out and grasped her hand with his fingers. His skin felt thin and frail, as if he would tear with the slightest provocation. His whisper was low, either from the sense of conspirator or because he’d coughed until he was too weak to speak normally. “Don’t tell your mother you know.” He pierced her with his gaze which wasn’t weak. “I have cancer, Cady.”

  Dread hardened in her stomach like a rock. “Wha…” She swallowed. “Dad, I mean, what kind? What kind of treatment?” She blinked rapidly. She couldn’t decide which was more important – crying, breathing, or passing out.

  It was too much for her to handle, but she held it together. She had to.

  He squeezed her fingers. “Cady, it’s… Can I just say what a delight you’ve been all of your life? You’ve made your mother and I very happy and proud. I love you so much… it hurts.” David reached up and touched her cheek softly. “I don’t believe in goodbyes, you know that, but if I did… this would have to be goodbye.”

  Goodbye. A word her father had always refused to acknowledge. Even at Zach’s funeral, David had said, “There’s no such thing as goodbye, my son. I will see you soon and then I can ask what you’ve been up to.”

  “But… you don’t have to leave, Dad. Stay here, with me.” Cady bit her lip and knit her eyebrows tightly over the bridge of her nose. “You…” What was happening? Why was she losing her father the same week she’d lost her husband?

  He softly shook his head. “No. Your mother needs some more time with me. She still hasn’t fully accepted this. She wants to help me by taking me on a bucket-list style trip and I don’t want to let her down.” He smiled sadly. “I just want her to be happy.”

  Cady shook her head. He didn’t understand. They couldn’t go. He’d be vulnerable. He could stay there with her. She needed him to stay there with her. “I mean, stay with me, Dad. You can stay with me and I’ll make sure you eat and…”

  Pressing his finger against her lips, David shook his head again. “No. Cady, let’s leave this be, okay? I most likely won’t go yet. You know how doctors are.” He moved his finger from her mouth to whirl in a slow circle in the air by his temple. “They’re all a little crazy. They’re most like off on their time estimation. I’ll be back before you know it and you’ll be in shape to make me some of your amazing banana bread, okay?” He watched her, waiting for her to agree.

  “Yes, Dad. I’ll even make sure there’s extra chocolate.” Cady had to hold it together. Her father was trying so hard to be strong for her. She could return the favor.

  Unable to hold herself back from him any longer, Cady reached forward and wrapped her arms carefully around his shoulders in a tight grasp. She needed him. What was she supposed to do without her dad just a phone call away?

  “I love you, too, Dad.” She blinked furiously at the tears gathering in her eyes. Jackson’s plan wouldn’t affect her dad. The blood in his hand was more proof that the doctors were closer to the truth than David was letting on. He might not think Cady had seen the tissue paper, but she had.

  How was she supposed to feel about the blatant lies her mother was telling her? Hiding something so important from Cady was close to unforgivable.

  How would Cady ever confront her about the deception?

  At least she’d had a chance to say goodbye to her father. That was more than she’d had with Zach.

  Chapter 17

  Margie

  Leaving Cady when she’d been so upset had been harder for Margie than she’d thought it would be. Of course, Cady was upset by her recent widowhood. Margie was scared about losing her own husband and they’d been together long as she could remember. Cady and Zach hadn’t been together long enough to know if they were scared to lose each other or not. They were still trying to figure out if they wanted forever together.

  But Cady’s frustration over Margie’s secrets made things so much harder to abandon than her grief.

  Cady’s distraction and overall pallor had worried Margie, but David reassured her that Cady was going to be okay. She was a tough, independent woman and even though Margie hated it sometimes, he was right. Cady didn’t need them there and the tension between Bailey and Cady wasn’t going to resolve itself while Cady and Margie were at odds as well.

  They didn’t wait until the next morning to leave. Margie didn’t want to stay any longer, not when she couldn’t tell Cady what was going on. She and David left the next morning, headed toward the wilds of northwest Washington before their cruise.

  The long drive through the forested highways passed quickly and as soon as they had settled into their campground spot while they waited for David’s sister to join them, Margie called Cady while stirring stew on the stove. “Cady, honey, how are you doing? Are you eating?”

  “Mom, I’m fine. I haven’t had a chance to starve.” At least Cady’s humor had returned enough to leave her with a dry tone. That was how the Moss clan did contention. They acted like nothing was wrong while leaving the issues out in plain sight. They dodged the truth because that would be too much work and possibly hurt more feelings.

  “I know, Cady, but you haven’t eaten much the last few days and you don’t have a lot of meat on you as it is
.” Margie settled on her hip and glanced over her shoulder. David had fallen asleep sleeping with a hunter magazine lying open on his lap. His head was leaned back and lolled to the side. He wouldn’t hear any of the conversation and he wouldn’t be able to get on Margie about being too pushy with Cady.

  “Cady, I’m worried about you.” Something had distracted Cady before they had spoken in the kitchen. Margie wasn’t sure it was only grief. She had the distinct impression that she wasn’t the only one hiding facts.

  Clearing her throat, Cady took her time answering. “Mom, I promise there’s nothing to worry about. I’ll tell you if anything comes up to worry about, though, okay?” Was that a mocking tinge to her words? It was almost as if Cady were imitating the things Margie had said earlier.

  Cady hesitated, something in her voice hitched like she was holding more back, more that she wanted to say but wasn’t sure how. “Wait, Mom, that’s not true. I… Look, something could happen over the next… I’m not sure when. I’m not even sure what can happen. I just know… Mom, I think you guys might want to skip your cruise.”

  Did she suspect something? “Cady.” Margie scoffed without being mocking. “I can’t skip that cruise. Your father is going to be fine. He’s always wanted to go on a cruise. He needs to relax. I need to relax. You just lost your husband. I think you’re more upset than you’re letting on.” Maybe she didn’t know how to tell her mother that she was sad and upset and scared. Grief was a hard bundle of emotions to cope with and Cady had never been exposed to many of them. Cady wasn’t the type of woman to say things in search of attention, but grief affected people differently – at least according to Dr. Phil’s latest book.

  “I know you’re dealing with a huge loss. I’m here. Do you need us to come back?” Margie used her soothing maternal tone, the one she rarely got to use with her daughter. Sadly, she’d probably be using it again on the way back through but she’d be talking about David. “It’s okay, honey. It will never get easier, but it gets bearable.” At least that’s what she’d heard. Margie was like Cady. Her loss hadn’t been enough to make her stronger. She had that trial to still deal with in her life. No matter how many grief and dealing with dying books she read, she wasn’t sure she’d ever be fully prepared.

  Sighing, Cady grunted. “Mom… yeah, you’re right. Okay, just promise me you’ll check your email or text messages. Find a way when you’re on your cruise. I’m sure everything will be okay.” Cady reassured her mother, back-pedaling on her warnings. “Bailey misses you already. Make sure you stop by here when you guys head home and thanks again for being here, Mom. Tell Dad I love him.” A hitch in her voice didn’t seem right.

  But Margie ignored it. She didn’t want to dwell on emotions or feelings right then. “Anytime, Cady. I’m sorry we weren’t there as long as we would’ve liked to be.” As they hung up, Margie couldn’t help thinking about Cady and Zach’s relationship. They hadn’t seemed happy and Cady wasn’t an emotional person by nature. The fact that his death was affecting her so thoroughly worried Margie. How would Cady react when something happened to her parents, or worse, her daughter?

  How was she going to survive the loss of her father?

  Chapter 18

  Cady

  Cady couldn’t stay mad at Margie for lying about David’s illness. How long would Cady have hidden Zach’s death from Bailey, if she could? If Margie wouldn’t take Cady seriously and she was her mother, how fast would Cady be laughed out of any situation where she attempted to warn others?

  Her dad… Cady couldn’t dwell too long on how bad it was. Regret and sadness threatened to overtake her from the combined situations of Zach’s death and David’s difficulties. She didn’t want to add to Margie’s stress with news of something that was coming, something she wasn’t able to define just yet. Cady didn’t have a timeline or anything more specific than “our plans”. For all she knew, Jackson hadn’t created anything, he was just all talk – maybe even delusional.

  The only solace she had was that her parents would be isolated from the main land and overly public arenas over the next month. There was no telling what exactly Jackson was up to, but knowing the man she’d get details over time and only the ones he would want her to know. He was a gloater, he’d always been that way. With her mom and dad going on an Alaskan cruise after camping, Cady would have to have faith that they’d be okay and maybe even come back after whatever mess Jackson had planned.

  What had he been talking about? He’d warned her to watch for more, but he hadn’t given her any other details.

  Setting the phone down after talking with Margie, Cady rounded the end of the counter and slumped onto the stool by the wall. She didn’t want to sit on the couch or go to the table or do anything she would normally do because nothing was normal anymore.

  A stack of mail had been piled by the fruit bowl and she pushed the top envelope to the side. Then another. And another. Some had Zach’s name, others had hers, and even others just said Resident. None of them caught her eye as anything other than bills, credit card offers, and… wait… C. Moss was written on one of the envelopes.

  C. Moss… Moss was her maiden name. She hadn’t gotten anything addressed to Moss since she’d married Zach and had taken on his last name of Warren.

  The only person who called her C. Moss was Jackson.

  Cady eyed the white envelope. The sharp lines stood out against the brown and gold granite countertop and she reached for it with shaking fingers.

  How had he gotten her address? He’d looked her up before he’d emailed her back. How long had he known who she was? Jackson didn’t strike her as the type of person to act like a stalker, but she didn’t know him as well as she’d thought, if he was going to terrorize the world.

  What if there was a poison in the envelope? But no, Jackson was more dramatic than that. He would want Cady for an audience. Maybe she knew him better than she thought.

  She turned the envelope over and froze for a half-second at the phrase written on the back. “The world is about to change.” Staring at the ominous wording, she carefully slit open the top of the envelope and pulled out a single sheet of paper.

  C. Moss.

  Watch for a package coming certified mail next week. Things have already begun. There is no way to stop it at this point. I’ll send you a detailed timeline so you’re aware of what we’ve orchestrated.

  Your actions for this week are to forward your mail and don’t accept anything else from anyone after the package I send you next week.

  Do not smell any samples of anything anywhere. Just because I say right now that nothing has been sent out, that’s not a guarantee. We are dealing with human incompetence, after all (not mine, of course).

  You have one week to get your affairs in order, then you can’t leave your house. It will be too dangerous.

  Looking forward to meeting you, C. This has been a long time coming.

  J.

  The tone in the email morphed from sinister to almost friendly, as if he discussed having lunch when he came to town.

  Turning the letter over, she inspected the paper but her inspection didn’t turn up anything that would help. Help her with what? What did she think was going to happen, if he gave her a clue?

  Her blood ran cold.

  He was setting their plans in motion, except none of that was what she’d intended to happen when she’d ranted via email to someone she’d believed was just in it for the talk. Did that make her pathetic? At least Jackson was taking action regarding his beliefs. He lived what he believed.

  Cady didn’t know what she believed anymore. If nothing else, she at least knew she didn’t believe in killing off the world’s population in order to make a point. She could cling to that belief. After that, she was going to have to build on it.

  Unfortunately, she had the feeling that her new goals were going to be to thwart whatever Jackson had in mind. She had a lot of research ahead of her and only one week. According to Jackson himself.

&
nbsp; When had she gotten the letter and when had her week begun?

  Would she have enough time to warn anyone? There was no doubt in her mind she would do the things he told her. Jackson was a brilliant man and whatever he had planned, he was serious about.

  Did she have time to do… what?

  Chapter 19

  Scott

  Grief was supposed to be able to change people, change how they acted and spoke. Scott got that. He was comfortable with it. He even expected it, but when he went to Cady’s house to check on her every day, she seemed to be getting worse.

  Scott knocked on the front door as he kicked the slushy snow from his Sorels and pushed the door open. Things had gotten a lot looser around the Warren house since Zach had died. Cady didn’t even acknowledge the doorbell or knocking. She walked around in a state of nervousness.

  Bailey went out with friends constantly in an attempt to drown out the pain.

  Scott saw it but didn’t know how to help with anything.

  “Cady? You in here?” Scott closed the door behind him. The inside of the house wasn’t warmer than the outside, in fact it was almost chillier. Wasn’t Cady keeping up on the fire? He furrowed his brow and slid his boots off. Leaving muddy tracks across her wood floor didn’t sit right with him, even if she didn’t care. “Cady, hey, are you in here?”

  Through the hallway lined with family pictures and artwork, Scott rounded the corner into the larger sitting room where the main heat source was. He stared at the black window of the fireplace with his jaw jutted to the side. He’d started the fire yesterday for her and prodded her to promise him to put a log in every little bit. Zach hadn’t left a solid stack of wood near the house and he hadn’t checked the twelve cord back in the lean-to off the shed. If he had, he would have caught the snow blocking the entrance to the dry wood.