Morning light shone through the windows. Maverick sat up and eyed his nemesis, the two prosthetic legs resting in the corner of his bedroom. He’d been a coward yesterday, unable to face Julia and Ryan at the lake. If only he’d been walking, he wouldn’t have had to leave them behind and beg James to go pick them up with some lame excuse about having to drive to another town to pick up some supplies. James called him out on it, but picked them up anyway.
He scooted to the end of the bed. The half-sanded walls in the one story, five bedroom house remained a reminder it was a construction zone. He’d bought it for a steal since it was at the edge of town and abandoned. It had once housed a large family, but now it needed some renovating. But despite that, the property was beautiful.
With a forced breath, he grabbed one of the legs. It was now or never. Time for him to give it a shot. He couldn’t bear the thought of seeing Ryan look at him with disappointment, and Julia with her pity. It wasn’t their fault. It was uncomfortable and they did their best, but he wanted to give them more.
He slid the protective sock over his stump, then the other. The room filled with bone-chilling silence, but he could imagine his men cheering him on. That was what his comrades did daily in the field, cheering each other on, supporting each other.
He slid one metal leg over the sock then the other. It fit snug, almost too snug on his right stump. After several deep breaths, he shoved from the bed and stood for a second, wobbled, then fell face first onto the floor. He punched the hard wood. “Come on! You’ve got this.”
He held onto the bedpost and swung one leg around to the front. Keeping the left one behind him, he shoved to standing, this time keeping hold of the bed.
With his abs tight, he swayed a few times until he could manage to balance. Sweat instantly pooled at the nape of his neck, every muscle in his body tense, struggling, fighting. Flashes of waking in the hospital to the empty space under the thin sheet, his commanding officer hunched over the bed, recounting what happened. Bad Intel. Bad orders. Bad decisions.
He channeled the energy of his men, the ones that didn’t make it home. He couldn’t give the men back their lives, but they could still help change the future of others. He used their strength and determination, willing his right thigh to move. Tears streamed down his face, dripping from his chin. His pulse bombarded his neck with its rat-ta-tat firing. He swallowed the anger, the fear, the guilt, and dragged his right leg an inch then another. “For the Black Diamonds,” he choked out.
He let go of the bedpost and moved his right leg a step in front of him. His arms flailed, but he didn’t grab onto the bed post, or the guilt. Instead, he dragged his left leg to join his right. For a moment, he stood tall, proud. His abs vibrated with exhaustion, his thighs protested the weight pressing against the prostheses. Too tight, too wobbly, too unbalanced, he fell forward. His hands braced his fall and the left prosthetic severed from his stump.
His arms, legs, stomach, shoulders, feet, everything felt fatigued. Feet? He lay on the floor for a moment, exhaustion shackling him to the ground. One, two, three long breaths pressed through the resistance in his lungs. The cool air flooded inside, feeding his muscles with needed oxygen.
His phone vibrated on the nightstand. With the small amount of restored energy, he army-crawled to his bed and grabbed the phone. “Hello?”
“Hey, you headed this way soon? I want to chat with you before everyone arrives.”
“Yeah. I just need to throw on some clothes. Equipment’s already packed in the truck. And I want to talk to you about something, too.”
“Then get yourself over here,” James said, his voice light and happy.
He had to face Julia and Ryan today. It was wrong of him to ditch them yesterday, but he didn’t want to ruin Ryan’s special time. If only he would’ve been able to manage the long rocky hill or cement steps…but it wasn’t practical. And it was supposed to be a mother-son day anyway.
Yes, that was what he’d say. He’d tell them he realized he was imposing on their day together, so he wanted to give them some time. That sounded reasonable. She wouldn’t argue with that. He’d rather be in the captive pit, awaiting interrogation, than have Julia angry with him. He’d never groveled to a woman before. Of course, he’d never walked since his injury either. It was time for him to man-up and make some changes, changes for a real future. For Julia and Ryan. They deserved it.
He returned his prosthetic legs to their corner, tossed on his clothes and made his way to the site. The excitement of seeing Julia and Ryan bolted through him like five shots of Mrs. Fletcher’s specialty espresso. It was hard to believe they’d just met. That they’d become so close so quickly. He’d never been this excited about seeing a woman before, not that he could remember.
James stood outside with two cups of coffee in his hands. Maverick hadn’t even thought about coffee, or breakfast for that matter. He parked and joined James at the side of the building.
James handed him the cup and leaned against the metal siding of the hanger. “I thought you could use a cup for our conversation.”
Maverick had thought he would be asking questions about the project, but based on his set jaw and pressed lips it was going to be more than that. “Okay, but I really want to ask you something first. Can you get me in to that PT friend of yours tomorrow morning? I need my prosthetics adjusted.”
James choked on his coffee. When he continued to cough, Maverick smacked him in the back. “You don’t have to be so dramatic. It’s not like it should be a surprise. You ordered me to walk if I was going to work on this project, and I told you I would.”
James wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “You and I both know you had no intention on listening to me. I’m sure I have Julia to thank for your recent interest in coming out of your hermit state. But the way you ditched her and Ryan yesterday…that was unacceptable.”
“I didn’t ditch them. I thought they wanted some mother-son time, so I used the excuse of no accessibility at the lake so I could let them out of having me tag along.”
James lowered his cup to his side and placed one foot behind him on the wall. “How long did you practice that line?”
“What are you talking about?” Maverick sipped his own coffee, enjoying the light roast flavor.
“Come on. You’ve got to do better than that. I had to guilt Julia into coming back out here today. She twisted her ankle again on the hill and she said she didn’t know if she could stand that long to be of any help on the project. I had to pick them up an hour after you dropped them off. They both looked like they had a horrible time, too. Ryan just wanted to go home.” James shook his head. “Good job. You proud of yourself for bailing on them now?”
“Is she okay?” Maverick sat forward in his chair, ready to jump out and run on his stumps to make sure she wasn’t hurt.
“She’s okay. I wrapped her foot. It’s not broken, just aggravated.” James gave him a stern look. “As I am with you.”
“What was I supposed to do? I couldn’t get down to the water.”
James dropped his foot back to the ground and stepped forward. “So, you did bail because of that.”
“Stop head-shrinking me. Ryan wanted to swim. I did the right thing.”
“Did you? Disappointing a boy that took you to a special place, a place his father used to take him, only to have you run off?”
“It was? I didn’t know.”
“Of course you didn’t. You were too busy trying to protect yourself from another disappointment. You’re so scared about letting people down that you hide from life. I’ve been gentle with you so far, but you better get over yourself or you’ll lose that amazing woman before you can even get something started.”
The roar of a truck drew James to the corner of the building. “Looks like the cavalry has arrived. When Julia gets here, you need to tell her what’s going on with you. She needs to talk, too. According to Cathy, you two are going to muck this up.”
James disappeared, leaving Maverick to his thoughts. He couldn’t argue with anything the man said, but that didn’t make it any easier. The thought of facing Julia and Ryan, seeing their disappointment, was worse than being stripped and beaten by the enemy.
He headed for the truck, grabbed his job lists then made his way to the crowd. A few scribbles later and he had Julia, Ryan, and himself scheduled to work on the outermost building. He’d planned on being in the hanger for the big job, but today was just cleanup, so they could manage that without him.
Cathy and Devon shuffled over, carrying a long folding table. “Where do you want the food set up? Church people will be arriving soon. Pastor John ended service early after his sermon on giving. I think we’ll have a few extra people showing up after that inspiring guilt trip.”
Devon unfolded the table and shook Maverick’s hand. “Good to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you. Sorry I haven’t been around more. I had some things to take care of before we left for the mountains.”
“No worries. We’re glad to have you here now,” Maverick said.
James escorted Judy to the table and they all began setting the food out. Other people arrived and dropped off more food, then more and more. He’d never seen a town donate so much for one day.
Julia’s green Oldsmobile came into view and his stomach did a fox hole dive.
“Why don’t you go over and help Julia and Ryan with their stuff? I heard Julia’s ankle’s giving her some trouble,” Cathy snarled at him.
He set the container with some sort of fru-fru salad down and made his way to Julia. Ryan hopped out, spotted Maverick but didn’t say anything. He ran around the car and opened his mom’s door. “You should drop the food and go. I don’t think you should be on your foot all day.” The little man looked troubled.
“I can take that for you,” Maverick offered. “I’m so sorry about your ankle. Should I take a look at it?”
“No need,” Julia said in a cold, distant tone. “James already did. He’s a doctor, so I’m sure he’d know. He said I could come out today if I felt up to it.”
Ryan took the large shopping bag and a container from Julia and set it down on the ground. Then he took his mother by the arm, as if to keep weight off her foot.
“Ryan, I told you I’m fine. You can relax. No one ever died of a sprained ankle.”
“That’s not funny, Mama.” Ryan stomped his foot.
“Hey, little man. You okay?” Maverick reached for him, but Ryan moved away.
He jetted out his chin. “I’m good. I hope you got your work done.”
“Listen. I owe you both an apology.” Maverick took off his cap and twisted it in his hands. “I wanted to give you both some time together yesterday.”
Ryan crossed his arms. “We could’ve gone to the movies instead. If you hadn’t left, Mama wouldn’t have gotten hurt.”
“Ryan, that’s not Maverick’s fault,” Julia scolded.
“If Mr. Maverick would’ve stayed we could’ve gone to the movies and you wouldn’t have fallen.” Ryan grabbed the bags and ran to James and Judy standing next to the table.
Mr. Maverick? His chest stung with regret.
“I’ll go talk to him. He can’t speak to adults that way.”
Maverick snagged Julia’s arm before she could walk away. “No, let him be. He has a right to be mad. I let him down. James told me that the lake is where he used to go with his father. If I had known…”
“It doesn’t matter. You’re not his father, and I shouldn’t let my son get too close to strangers that might not be around tomorrow.”
Might not be… “I’ll be around tomorrow. And the next day and the next. I have no desire to leave you and Ryan.”
Julia stared down at him. “You don’t even know us. If you did, you would’ve never left yesterday. It’s not your fault about my ankle, or about how Ryan is feeling. It’s mine.” She shook her head. “I don’t know why I developed feelings for you so quickly.”
“You have feelings for me?” Maverick raked his thumb over her hand, wishing he could take her into his arms and hold her.
“It doesn’t matter. I have my son and that’s enough for me.” Julia tugged her hand free and shuffled to the food table.
Maverick raced after her. “James said I needed to tell you the truth.”
She stopped. “Truth about what?”
“About why I left yesterday, why I don’t use my legs, and why I’m struggling with even working on this project.”
Julia turned to face him, crossing her arms over her chest. “I’m listening.”
He folded and re-folded the lists in his hands, trying to find the words. “It’s more than a five minute conversation. Can we talk after everyone eats? I don’t want to say this wrong, and I’m scared that I will.”
Julia glanced at Ryan standing between Judy and James, Cathy sneaking him a cookie behind their back.
“I promise I won’t harm Ryan again. If you don’t want me to speak to him, I won’t. I’ll do whatever you want.”
Julia licked her lips and eyed him for a moment. “Okay. I’ll talk to you after lunch, but it doesn’t mean—”
“I understand.”
She nodded then left to join the others while Maverick remained behind to collect himself. One look at Ryan explained why Julia was mad. He’d hurt her son and her motherhood walls were quickly rebuilding. He only hoped his words would be the wrecking ball.
The meal took over an hour. People trickled in and chatted. It wasn’t until almost noon that a hundred or so sweaty volunteers began working.
Ryan silently trotted to his assigned station with trash bag, gloves and a bottle of water.
Maverick rolled next to Julia. Her expression was pensive and she held tight to her work gear. “Do you think he’ll ever speak to me again?”
“Usually I’d say he’s a kid and he’ll be over it in five minutes, but Ryan’s been struggling lately.”
Maverick stopped beside the barrack and stuck his trash spear into a beer can. “I’m sorry I added to his struggles. I thought he really wanted to swim and I couldn’t bear to disappoint him. I think I left to avoid seeing him look at me that way.” He sighed. “I’m a coward.”
“You’re many things. Stubborn, hard-headed, and according to James impossible, but you’re no coward.”
Maverick leaned the trash stick against the brick soon-to-be veterans’ home and faced Julia. “I need to get this out before I ruin everything. I left for selfish reasons. Facing that hill was like facing the reality that things had to change, but I didn’t want them to. The idea of utilizing those prosthetic legs and trying to walk is difficult for me.” He tried to explain why, but his words twisted in his throat. “I guess what I’m trying to say is that it’s easier to runaway than to face something. I didn’t mean to hurt you or Ryan. I understand if you don’t want to see me anymore, but I’ll confess that I’m prepared to work hard to win your trust back.”
Julia sighed and sat on the top step. “It wasn’t entirely your fault. You didn’t really do anything wrong. After you left, that darn hill meant a huge obstacle in my life, too. I could’ve insisted that we all go, but I only suggested it and let you leave without a protest. I thought I was ready to move on with my life, to have a friend with the potential of more, but facing the place that we went as a family tore me up inside. I let Ryan down, too. He tried to have fun, but I used my ankle as an excuse to leave. I mean, it hurt, but I could’ve swam. I guess we both have some apologizing to do. The only problem is that I’m not sure you should apologize. You said yourself that you’re not ready, and I don’t know if I am either. Should I let you near my son if we might disappoint him again? He’s been through enough already in his young life.”
Maverick nudged closer then transferred from his chair to her side. “I think Ryan deserves happiness, and I think avoiding the possibility of heartache will only cripple him, the way that I’ve allowed my legs to cripple me.”
Julia took his hand and his heart soared to the cloudless sky. “Let me think about it, okay? Maybe if we keep things slow. We edge into this and not complicate things too quickly.”
“I can do that.” He said the words, but one glance at her soft lips and he thought he’d have heat stroke if he didn’t kiss her.
“Mama, I’m going around the back. Can you come with me?” Ryan eyed Maverick, letting him know it wasn’t okay to be close to his mother any more. Something told Maverick it was about more than just the fact he’d left yesterday. This dug deeper, but now wasn’t the time or place to go fishing.
“Yes, hon. I’m coming.” Julia shoved from the steps. Maverick wanted to follow them, but he remained behind.
Ryan hopped over some boards, his foot catching the last one, and he slid. Julia grabbed him, but they both tumbled over.
“Mama, I’m so sorry. You okay? Are you hurt?” Ryan sounded hysterical, his voice several octaves higher.
Maverick vaulted into his chair and raced to help her up. “She’s okay, Ryan. It’s just a little fall.”
Julia held her ankle and took long breaths, her face turning read. . “I’m fine, honey. Calm down. It’s just my ankle. It gave way.”
Ryan cried and threw himself into his mother’s arms. “I can’t lose you, too. Dad’s gone. Rusty’s gone. Now, Mav’s gone. You can’t leave me. You can’t.”
Julia rocked him while sitting half on a board, her leg still twisted under her. “Shhh. I’m fine. It’s okay.”
Maverick lowered to the ground and wrapped his arms around them both. “I’m not going anywhere, buddy. I’m here. I’ll help you take care of your mother now.”
They sat in the shade of the building for a long time, holding each other. All needing the reassurance, all for different reasons, but they were there for each other.
Finally, Ryan settled into a quiet sob and Julia relaxed in Maverick’s arms. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I think it’s time I took Ryan to talk to someone.”
Maverick sat back. “Come here, buddy.” He lifted Ryan onto his lap. “You know why we are all working together to build this place?”
Ryan shook his head and took a stuttered breath.
“Because there are lots of people like you, your mother, and I who need help healing. I’ve struggled. Your mother has struggled. Even Mr. B has struggled. This place we’re making here will help people like us. There’ll be doctors, nurses, physical therapists, housing, families and people to talk to about how we’re feeling. And you’re going to help make that happen.”
“I am?” Ryan wiped his nose with his sleeve.
“You are, and your mom will have a job here, and I’ll be here lots, too.”
“You will?”
“Yep. I need some physical therapy. You convinced me to try out those legs. I need help with that. Do you think you could help me learn to walk again? Make me better?”
A smile revealed dimples in Ryan’s cheeks. “I could really teach you to walk?”
“You sure can. I think we can all make each other better. Now, I know you’re mad at me, but I think if I work hard enough I might—”
Ryan flung his arms around Maverick’s neck, everything forgiven. Maverick held him tight to his chest until he felt safe enough to let go. Ryan wiped his tears away then offered his mom his hand. “Can I help you up?”
“Sure, hon. That would be great.” Julia moved, but her right foot gave way again. She managed to twist and, with Ryan and the wall’s help, she stood on her left foot, holding the right out in front of her. “Oh, okay. I admit it smarts a little.”
Maverick settled into his chair and offered his hand. “Come here. I’ll get you to James so he can take a look.”
Julia hopped over and sat in Maverick’s lap. He settled her so that he could reach the wheels and told her to hold onto his neck.
Ryan walked alongside, his eyes never leaving his mother.
“I told you I’d help with your mom. All’s going to be okay now.”
Ryan’s face relaxed, his expression no longer that prisoner facing execution look. “I’ll run ahead and tell Mr. B.” Ryan bolted, his little legs carrying him quickly across the asphalt.
“Does it hurt bad?” Maverick asked, wishing he could take the pain away.
“Only when I try to walk,” she whispered.
“Hey. She okay?” James called, meeting them at the edge of the hanger. The heat proved too much for many people, so they’d headed home, but others stayed to help finish the cleanup.
“I haven’t been able to look at it yet.” Maverick rolled to a stop and James bent down to take a look.
“Oh!” Julia cried as James twisted her foot left, right, up, and down. Maverick held tight to her small frame while James examined her.
“Looks like your cleanup project is more of an excuse to have a summer fling.”
That voice. It sent a shot of battle adrenaline through Maverick’s spine. If Julia hadn’t been on his lap, he probably would’ve tackled the man. “What are you doing here, Watermore?”
“I thought this was a community event.” The man waved a folder in front of his face like a fan. Another man stood beside Watermore in a suit, his attire anything but appropriate for a project like this.
“Mr. Burton, it’s good to see you,” Julia said, her voice strained with pain.
Ryan exited the building and froze. He opened his mouth, but looked at his mom and shut it again.
“Hello, Mrs. Cramer.” Mr. Burton tipped his hat to her. Maverick had overheard Judy and Cathy talking about the man, though he didn’t appear to be the type to alienate his daughter so bad that she fled to college with her boyfriend to get away from him.
“Are you here to help with the cleanup?” Julia asked in obvious disbelief.
“No, I’m afraid not. Apparently, Mr. Watermore spoke to the town council and they offered to sell me this land cheap. We’ve been planning to expand our factory, but the county wouldn’t sell the surrounding land to me. It looks like this could be a good option to build a new factory. Demands are increasing and I could certainly tear this down easy enough and build what I need.”
“You can’t do that. This property has been promised to the people of this county, to the VA and all veterans coming home, and their families.”
“It was promised, but not signed yet,” Watermore added.
Maverick moved forward, ready to smack that smug grin right off the man’s face, but Julia set her good leg down, bracing the wheelchair to keep him where he was.
Judy came out of the hanger. James stood and waved her over. “Do you remember the papers we’re supposed to sign on Monday about this real estate?”
Judy nodded, eyeing Watermore and Burton. “Yes. Our appointment’s at ten then the place is officially set to be the center.”
“It appears as if we might not be having that appointment,” James said in a flat tone.
“Why?” Judy asked.
“Because Mr. Burton here plans on buying this property and the surrounding land to build a new factory, and the town council is agreeing to meet with him.”
Maverick’s blood swooshed through his ears. This wasn’t happening. There had to be something he could do to stop it.
Ryan tugged Maverick’s sleeve, his eyes swelling with tears once more. “That means we can’t help people or ourselves get better?”
“There has to be something we can do,” Maverick insisted, ready to go to war to save this place.
James shook his head. “If the council decides to sell to Burton Enterprises, there’s little we can do. The project is dead in the water.”
Maverick watched Watermore, the man’s elation at the thought of taking this place away from them clear on his face. He wanted it to fail, but maybe Mr. Burton would listen to reason.
“Can’t you find another area to build your factory? This hanger and those outbuildings are perfect for what we need. I’m sure we can work out some kind of deal with the county about the surrounding land,” Maverick offered, hoping to open up some sort of negotiations.
“I don’t have an issue with what you’re doing here,” Burton said. “I’m not sure why it’s needed when the VA is just over in Riverbend, but that isn’t the reason for my interest. I’ve been trying for over a year to relocate or extend my factory, but the county has changed zoning, upped the cost of land, and various other tactics to keep me from expanding. This is the closest property to town that isn’t outrageously expensive. It is the ideal location and price point for the new factory. I didn’t even know it was available until Mr. Watermore insisted I come out here with him. I thought he was crazy until I saw the property. But I really think it’s ideal.”
Cathy headed over from the second outbuilding.
“I think we better table this conversation until another time,” James said. “If Cathy hears us, there could be blood. It sounds like our hands are tied, but I’d appreciate it if you left the premises, for your safety more than anything.”
“I’m not scared of that old bat,” Watermore huffed.
Mr. Burton pressed the button on his remote and his car door locks popped open. “You can walk then. I’m out of here. That woman isn’t someone I want to have words with right now.” Both men climbed into Mr. Burton’s sports car, taking all hope of the future with them.
One glance at Ryan and Maverick knew he’d let him down, again.