Drake
No matter how many times Drake walked past the main phone, his job to call his parents didn’t get any easier.
He glared at the offending electronic as he poured a glass of milk, putting the gallon back into the fridge. Seeing the shelves filled made his chest swell. He’d never had to provide for anybody. The fact he was able to do that for Emma and Stefanie, made it a big deal to him. Not to mention the pride stroking when Nate had seen all the food.
Drake wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
Alright, I can do this. He picked up the handset and dialed the number Emma had so conveniently left for him on a Post-it beside the phone. Over and over he repeated in his head don’t pick up, don’t pick up, don’t pick up.
Ring. Ring.
His mother picked up, her voice ecstatic and more lighthearted than Drake ever remembered. “Emma! We didn’t expect to hear from you so soon. How are you doing? I thought you were going on vacation.”
“This is Drake.” He didn’t even want to say Mom to her. He couldn’t. He couldn’t call her that. He was still too angry and hurt. He hadn’t talked to his parents in a long time.
“Drake?” Her shriek ripped through the phone. She pulled her mouth away from her end and yelled “Oh my gosh! Drake’s on the phone, he wants to talk to us.”
Drake shook his head, she couldn’t see him, but he still had to shake his head. He raised his voice to be certain she heard. “No, I don’t want to talk to you. I’m calling because Emma is making me call you. She’s sick, and she’s not going to get help this time. I think you should come to her place. Do it soon, because Nate is trying to sell the house.” He hung up before they could say anything else.
How else was he supposed to move on from this? He had too much invested in being away from them. He had no reason to be invested in his family anymore.
There was too much pain there anyway. He had done what Emma asked him to do, now he could checkmark that off the list. What else was she going to ask of him?
“Nice to see we’re not the only ones you treat horribly.” Nate leaned against the side of the kitchen wall, his eyebrow arched under the wide-brimmed hat he hadn’t bothered to remove indoors. “If I needed you to buy food for us, I would’ve asked you to.”
Drake braced his arms on the counter and leaned against it. “Let’s be honest, Nate, you wouldn’t ask me for a damn thing. Emma’s dying and no one has asked me for anything.”
“Because I don’t need anything from you, Benson. I can do this on my own. Emma is my wife. I can do this.” Desperation tinted the blue of Nate’s eyes almost black.
Drake drew back. Nate really believed he could do it. Even as he was failing, he believed he could still succeed.
Pity filled Drake. He nodded shortly. “Okay, I can see how you would believe that. But I’m watching our sisters starve under the weight of your pride. Nothing is holding them together except for the simple fact that they don’t want you to fall apart. That they don’t want you to think they’ve lost faith in you.”
Drake, still sick from the conversation with his parents, didn’t have any nice words to say at that point. “Look, I’m not asking you to sell everything you have. I’m asking you to give them all a fighting chance. Use me. I’m here. I’m a solid resource. Stefanie wants to buy this place, did you know that?”
Nate shook his head, harrumphing as he stalked into the kitchen. “You don’t know anything about Stefanie. You’ve always panted after her like a mare in heat. Well, she likes to come up with stuff to do. She never follows through, she never does. Stefanie relies on me too much. She’s never been able to figure things out since Mom and Dad died.”
“Maybe she’d follow through with things if she had the support or the resources to do so. Don’t discredit Stefanie. She’s got more going on than you know.” Drake did his best to hold back the rage building inside him. How dare Nate abandon Stefanie like an afterthought. He was so blinded by his own self-appointed purpose that he didn’t see the value in the rest of them.
Nate approached the fridge, then stopped, not even reaching for the handle as if he remembered there was food in there because of the man he berated. He spun to face Drake with his arms crossed again, his head tilted back. “I don’t know why you came. If it’s because of Emma, she’s going to be around a long time so you can just go. Just leave. Come back for the holidays or something. I’ll find you and let you know her whereabouts.”
Drake shook his head, laughing under his breath. “You still don’t get it, do you? Our parents didn’t know anything about this. You didn’t call them just like you didn’t call me, right?”
A thunderous anger darkened Nate’s face. “I called you every day for two weeks. The old man at the number said he didn’t know who I was talking about. I called every day.” Nate stepped forward thrusting his finger into Drake’s chest. “I used the number your parents had. You didn’t want to be contacted. You. So that’s not my fault. I tried. My best.” Nate studied Drake from his head to his toes, disgust puffing out his lips. “It takes more than a random visit and food in the fridge to make you family. Don’t you think?”
Drake struggled to get past his emotions so he could find some way to reply with a sense of wit. He had to reply. He could not let his emotions get the best of him and let Nate win the batter of wits.
Nate chuckled dryly, and sauntered out of the kitchen, leaving Drake to stand there and fume.
~~~
Three breakfasts, three lunches, and three dinners later, Drake had enjoyed every smug meal he’d provided.
Hannah had been ecstatic about the food. Her gratitude warmed Drake’s heart and he felt just a little guilty since it felt so good to one-up Nate’s pride.
Stefanie hadn’t been around.
Hannah claimed that her sister had gone for a visit with Jareth’s wife, Cyan, and her family. Drake understood, he knew she had goals, even though Nate couldn’t care about her goals or even see her for the woman she’d become.
Hannah and Nate had stepped outside to go to the barn, to visit the horses they were trying to sell. Nate had almost completely cleared out their livestock and Drake hated watching Stefanie say goodbye to everything. Thankfully she wasn’t been there. But Hannah’s grief was just as palpable.
A knock at the door, and Emma’s weak voice called from the living room. “Drake, can you get that, please?”
Drake dropped the dish towel to the counter. He’d been trying to help out around the house as much as he could. He obviously wasn’t welcome out in the barn. At least until Stefanie got back. When she got back he’d see if they could take the last two mares out for a ride. Together.
The thought of them together brought out a smile.
He made his way to the front door, winking at Emma as he turned the handle and then swung open the panel. He couldn’t figure out the bemused twist to her lips before he turned to face who was on the other side.
His parents. Or the people that he called his parents at one time.
He didn’t recognize these versions without their faded, worn jeans and pale clothing. Instead his mother had filled out and wore a brightly colored blouse with white slacks.
His father looked nothing like the man Drake had grown used to when he was younger. The man before him had carefully combed hair, a suit, and a tie.
Something Drake himself could not really fall in love with – well, the tie anyway.
Drake didn’t say anything. He opened the door further and walked past them onto the deck. The bewilderment on their faces suggested that they hadn’t expected him to look the way that he did either.
Even on the ranch he’d made himself dress in his tightly tailored suits, and his well-fitted boots. He couldn’t chance Stefanie showing up and not finding him dressed less than his best. For some reason her knowing he had money and knowing that he turned out better than he’d ever been was more important than how his parents felt about him. Even how Emma felt about him.
How Stefanie felt about him had become tantamount to the world.
Emma’s parents walked inside and turned to the right.
The door closed behind them.
Drake heaved a breath of relief. The air in Montana had a crisper feel to it, maybe due to the higher elevation. The humidity wasn’t as high as it was in Wyoming. Even the Montana air had a sweet tinge of honey in it, as if the hummingbirds laced their sweet nectar throughout the skies.
He claimed a seat on the railing of the deck. It creaked under his weight. He glanced down, noticing the lines and cracks in the floor boards.
They would never get top dollar for the place. If Stefanie really was going to buy Bella Acres, then Drake was going to have to make sure that she had the best she could have.
She would let Emma live there. Emma would need a wheelchair ramp soon with how she’d gotten to where she couldn’t move much beyond being carried. A wheelchair just wasn’t practical for where they were, at least unless they had a ramp.
Drake pulled out his cellphone, and made a quick call to an acquaintance of his in the area.
His mother stuck her head out the door. “Drake, Emma wants us all in here. Can you join us, please?” She nodded as he stood and moved to walk past her. She placed her hand on his arm and then drew back sharply. “It’s nice to see you, son.” She awkwardly moved her arms and to hug him, but he darted away, too cowardly to even admit that he didn’t want her to hug him.
Even if he really did.
His face flaming with heat, he joined his sister in the living room.
“Maybe we could open up some of the chairs from the deck and put them in here so we can all sit down?” Emma’s voice came like a half-whisper, her eyes half closed as her arms draped over her chest.
Drake hated visiting with her. Her weakness astounded him. He had never known her to be weak, even as a child when she’d undergone chemotherapy and radiation therapy, she’d never given in. Her vibrancy had never paled.
But he could see her light fading and it hurt him.
Drake nodded. “Of course, Emma.” He returned from the deck with three fold up chairs which he placed in a semicircle around the side of the couch.
They each claimed a seat. Drake, as close to Emma as he could possibly be, tried placing a foot or two between him and his father.
How did he always end up sitting next to his father? It didn’t seem right, that his dad would be there. Why did Drake have to cope with them?
His dad didn’t even look at him, or acknowledge the fact that he sat next to him. Whatever, Drake could totally deal with that.
Emma struggled to push herself to a sitting position. After a moment she accomplished it. Breathing heavy, she glanced at each of them in turn. “I wanted to have a family meeting because I wanted you to know that —”
Drake held up his hands. “I haven’t been a member of this family in years. Can we just call this what it is? A gathering of people who are worried about you?”
“I’m trying to call this what it is, Drake.” Emma eyed him as if warning him with her gaze. “There’s nothing stopping you from leaving, except for the fact that you know that you’re part of this family.”
At that, Drake stood. “Actually, I was staying simply because I figured you would need some moral support in here. But now that I know that you don’t need that, I can leave.”
“Sit down, boy.” His father’s gruff voice grated in the silence of the room, even as he didn’t even bother to look at Drake.
Drake laughed, then bit the humor off as he looked down at the man who claimed him. “You don’t call me boy. You don’t call me anything. You pushed me out, that was it. Uncle Will is more of a father than you’ve ever been. I’m done with this.” He stomped to the doorway.
Emma called out his name. “Drake. Stop.”
Drake half turned, giving her a small shake of his head. “I don’t have to deal with this crap, Emma.”
Emma’s look was reproachful. “Look, I don’t care what happened so long ago. I understand everybody was hurt. My heart was ripped out, Drake. I didn’t want to lose you. You’re my brother. The last thing I wanted was for something to happen to you. Look at how great you turned out. That wouldn’t have happened with us. You’ve made it out, you have made something of yourself. And now you get to come back here and act all smug. I know how great that’s got to feel. But I’m dying.” She narrowed her gaze at Drake and pursed her lips.
Their mother gasped, placing her fingers over her mouth. Their father leaned forward grabbing Emma’s hand in hand his. “Don’t talk like that, you can beat this.”
Emma sighed. “I don’t want to beat it. I’m tired, Dad. I have been beating it my whole life. It’s too late. We caught it too late.” Tears glinted on her cheeks and she swiped at them furiously. “Nate deserves better, so does his family. And so do all of you. I just feel bad that I wasn’t able to release you guys from this when I was growing up.”
Her mother didn’t speak. She blinked wide eyes at Emma and moved her head like she struggled for breath.
Drake opened his mouth, closing it again. He forced a swallow. “Did you tell them what you told me? You’re quitting. That even though I have all the money that can save you, you don’t want to be saved?”
Their mother leaned forward gripping their father’s arm. “Emma, is this true? Can Drake help you and you won’t let him?” She glanced at Drake. “Do it. Do whatever you can.”
Emma didn’t speak. She pierced Drake with her gaze and then each in turn. “Why would I use anything that any of you have earned? I can’t do that to you. Not after all this. I’ve been happy. I have been loved. More than I can say. I can’t have his babies. I can’t give him what he needs. He’s putting himself further into debt to take care of me. He has to sell his family’s land. For me.”
She dragged in a ragged breath and continued. “How do you think that makes me feel? We are going to have to live in the back of a truck, because of me. Stefanie and Hannah... My sisters. My only sisters I’ll ever have. And they’re getting turned out of their home because of me. You can’t understand what that’s like.”
They sat there in silence as they absorbed her words. Drake didn’t know how much more truth he could handle from Emma.
Yet, she had more to say, as if she’d been shoring up her phrases for a long time. “You guys had to move, because of me. You could never find enough money or enough income because of me. Drake was sent away because of me, and look at him now. I’m not going to take that away from him. Just because I could? What kind of a person would that make me?” She shook her head softly, the tresses of her hair moving just a bit above her shirt. “I’m not going to do that. I just want one thing from you guys. I want you all to get along. You won’t have me around anymore. I want you to get along, forgive each other, love each other. Because I need to know that my family is intact when I go.”
Drake turned to face his sister full on, his hands clenching and unclenching at his side. “You see the thing about promises, Emma? You keep asking for them, and I’m not sure I can deliver on all that.”