A Forever Thing (20 page)

Her eyes fluttered open, and she heard Theron and Tina talking
at the table. Something about cheese, but that was crazy. It was
Thanksgiving, and she was in Florida. It was just a crazy dream
she’d had after she’d eaten too much turkey and dressing for lunch.
She had a headache. That’s probably what had brought about the
dream.

Momma must have bought a new sofa, because she didn’t recognize the pattern. She tried hard to focus, but it still looked like
brown plaid. Momma never would have picked that kind of pattern; she liked solid colors with floral touches.

Tina said something about chocolate cake. She really should get
up and fix the baby something to eat. She’d be starving by now.
Theron wouldn’t know how to feed her properly. He’d never really
been around children except at recess and Sunday school. He could
push her on a swing or give her a ride on the merry-go-round, but
he wouldn’t necessarily remember to keep her on a good schedule.

Everything she looked at was foggy. Where was she anyway?
She shut her eyes, and a black cat chased across her dreams. The
smell of almonds filled her nostrils, and she brushed at her face to
make it go away. She blinked and saw that her hand had bypassed
her face and landed on a blanket covering her.

Was she still in jail? She had to concentrate. The black cat was
the answer. It ran in front of her car, which was in a barn. Surely
that was bad luck.

Then it was cold, and she was coming back home, only she fell
and hit her head, and everything went black. Had she died and was
drifting around in the afterlife, trying to find her way to heaven?

The sun was a big orange ball peeping up over the windowsill,
yellow rays sneaking through the miniblind slats. Fancy threw up
an arm to cover her eyes. She’d been dreaming of walking on the
beach in the rain, the soft drops making a pinging noise when they
hit the chaise lounges and the catboats.

She blinked a few times, reminding herself that the beach was a
dream and she was really in Albany, Texas. When she could really
focus, she moaned. She was still in the cabin in Decatur, Texas, in
an ice storm.

“Good mornin’,” Theron said in a lazy drawl from a chair not
two feet from her. “Welcome back to the land of the livin’.”

It took a few minutes before she remembered how cold she’d
been, slipping and falling. “Did I break anything?”

“Just your head. You’re going to hate me, but I took care of it,”
he said.

She reached up to find her long hair in pigtails.

“That was Tina’s idea, when she saw that I couldn’t do anything
with your hair. I was going to pull part of it up on top of your head
and the rest down at the nape of your neck. Her idea worked a lot
better.”

She felt her forehead and groaned when she attempted to sit up.

“I’m thirsty. What time is it, and is that the sun?”

Theron headed for the sink to get her a glass of water. “It’s six
o’clock in the morning, and that is the sun.”

“Morning? How long have I been asleep?”

“Fanny’s awake!” Tina bounded out of bed and snuggled up
against Fancy.

Fancy tried to remember what had happened, but everything was
all too foggy. “What happened?”

Theron explained, “You went for a walk yesterday after we had
lunch. Do you remember that?”

“I remember falling. That’s all. I don’t remember where I was or
how I fell. It was cold, though.” She sat up, and the room did a few
spins before she got it under control.

Tina wrinkled her nose. “New Daddy fixed it.”

Fancy’s blue eyes were frantic when she looked at Theron for an
explanation.

“You slipped and fell on the ice beside the river,” he said. “You
remember using the hoe handle as a walking stick on the ice?”

“Black cat in the barn. Should have come back to the cabin,” she
said.

“I love cats,” Tina said. “Can I have a cat? Momma said no. KayKay said no “

“I have cats, so you will too,” Theron said.

“Not a black one,” Fancy said.

“You hit your head on a log, and that’s where we found you,”
Theron explained.

“New Daddy dragged us home,” Tina said.

Fancy looked at Theron for more of an explanation.

“I fell asleep and awoke two hours later. You weren’t back from
the walk, so I figured something was wrong. Tina and I went looking. I took an extra blanket just in case you’d gotten cold.”

“And then?”

He went on. “You had a scalp wound and, likely, a concussion. So
I cleaned it with soap and hydrogen peroxide and put Steri-Strips
and antibiotic cream on it.”

“And he cut your hair off on the floor,” Tina said seriously.

“You cut my hair?” Fancy groaned.

“Just half an inch around the cut. The bandage wouldn’t stick,
so I had to cut and shave the hair away,” Theron said.

“You shaved my head?”

Tina patted her arm. “It’s not yucky anymore.”

“How long have I been asleep?”

“It’s Friday morning. You fluttered your eyes a few times last night, and you muttered something about Kate, and once you told
Hattie no about something.”

“It’s melting. I can hear the ice melting.” She’d think about the
back of her head later.

Tina ran to the end of the sofa and touched the gauze. “No more
blood”

“We can probably go home tomorrow morning,” Theron said.

“Not right now?” Fancy asked.

“The road out of here will take a while to be passable. The ice
has been melting all day. If we tried to go now, we’d have to deal
with several inches of mud. We’d only get stuck and have to wait
until someone finally found us and came to rescue us. If it freezes
over again tonight, we can get the truck out by early morning riding on the frozen mud. There’s chains out in the barn,” he said.

It made sense, but she wanted to go home.

“Don’t cry, Fanny,” Tina said.

Fancy swallowed twice before the lump in her throat finally
subsided. “I’m fine, but I’m kind of hungry. Think we could have
breakfast?”

“Pandy cakes?” Tina’s eyes glistened.

Theron raised an eyebrow at Fancy.

“With sausage?” she asked.

“Tina, you watch the patient, and I’ll cook,” he said.

Fancy slowly began to remember her mishap as she mentally
replayed everything after the black cat in the barn. She stood up,
and the room just swayed a little bit.

Tina pointed toward the chair where Fancy’s clothes were drying. “New Daddy washed ‘em in the bathtub.”

“Are you blushing, Miss Sawyer?” Theron joked.

“Don’t you tease me, Theron Warren,” she said.

Tina giggled. “Three-horns don’t play with long-necks,” she said,
getting into the fun.

“You are right, darlin’, they don’t,” Fancy said as she gingerly
made her way to the bathroom. One look in the small mirror showed
black circles rimming her eyes, pigtails hanging limp on her shoulders, and some dried mud peeking out from behind an ear. She bent
forward and rolled her eyes upward but couldn’t see the bandage. It had felt like a goose egg when she touched it; she hoped the shaved
part wasn’t that big. She checked in the cabinet and found a tiny
mirror inside a compact and turned around. She bit back a moan. It
would take years for that hair to grow out. Thank goodness the rest
of her hair would cover the bald spot while it caught up.

Theron knocked on the door. `Are you okay in there? Your pancakes are ready.”

She opened the door and leaned on the jamb. “I’m fine. Thank
you for taking care of me, but did you have to scalp me?”

She took one wobbly step before the room spun again. He
reached out and scooped her up in his arms, carried her to the
table, and set her in a chair.

“You need food and liquid. I was afraid you had a concussion,
but maybe you just lost a lot of blood. Scalp wounds always bleed
a lot. As soon as we get out of here, you are going to a doctor,” he
said. “If our cell phones had been working, I’d have called 911.”

“Don’t tell me what I’m going to do”

“No doctor. No shot,” Tina said.

Fancy held her fork tightly and concentrated on getting food
from her plate to her mouth. “See? Even a three-year-old knows
what she wants. Thatta girl,” she said in solidarity with Tina.

Tina watched her carefully. “Good girl,” she said.

Fancy smiled.

“There’s no telling how much blood you lost. You might even
need a transfusion,” Theron said worriedly.

But Fancy’s hands shook less with each bite. “I’ll be fine in a few
days. I might need a tetanus shot, but that’s it. What’s on the agenda
today?”

“What’s ‘genda? Is it like macky cheese?”

“No, it means what are we doing today?” Fancy said.

“Outside?”

“I don’t think so,” Theron said. “Fancy is going to rest. Maybe
she can read to you if it doesn’t hurt her head, and when she gets
her sea legs back, maybe she can take a shower.”

“Bossy, bossy,” Fancy mumbled.

“Yes, yes, yes. Bossy! Read Bossy Cow to me,” Tina said.

Theron laughed until he lost his breath. Mostly it was pure relief that Fancy had awakened with an appetite and her memory intact.
He’d feel even better once a doctor said she was fine.

Fancy sipped orange juice. “What is so funny?”

Theron wiped his eyes on a dish towel. “Everything, through a
three-year-old’s viewpoint.”

“She will keep you entertained and free of boredom,” Fancy
said.

“You are so right,” he said.

Tina finished her breakfast and went straight to her little satchel
of toys, brought out a Bossy the Cow book, and carried it to the
sofa.

“Think maybe you should get dressed first and let Fancy finish
her food?” Theron asked.

Tina sighed. “Okay.”

She unsnapped the tab at the top of her pajamas and unzipped
them. Then she pulled her sweat pants and top from the drying
chair. When she finished dressing, she picked up a pair of socks
and carried them to Theron.

“Need help,” she said.

“Did Kay-Kay help you get your socks on in the morning?” he
asked.

“No. Mar-Daddy did.”

Fancy held on to the chair for a moment to get her bearings
when she stood up, then slowly made her way to the sofa, where
she eased down beside Tina, who waited with her book open and
ready. Fancy slung an arm around Tina’s shoulders and began to
read, “Bossy was a black and white cow who thought the whole
barnyard belonged to her …”

Tina listened intently to every word.

By the time Fancy finished the book, clouds covered the sun
and thunder rolled in the distance. Lightning lit up the cabin in
flashes, and rain began to pour in great sheets. At least it wasn’t
freezing drizzle and they wouldn’t have to spend the whole winter
in the cabin.

Theron mumbled curses under his breath. Fancy caught a damn
or two and a couple of hells.

“So, suffice it to say that you hate rain?” she asked.

“Suffice it to say that we’re going to be packing up and getting
out of here in the next hour. I’ll get the bags ready. You get dressed.
We’re going to get out of here and check into a motel in Decatur for
the night,” he said.

“Why?”

“Because it’s fifty degrees out there, and it’s not likely to refreeze. That means the rain will turn the dirt road into a muddy
mess that will be worse than ice. If we don’t get out now, we’ll be
stuck here until the road dries out, which could be a week or more,”
he said.

“I’ll get ready and put Tina’s shoes on. What about all the towels and bedding and food?” Fancy said.

He took care of things as he talked. “Linens and towels stay
here. Dad will bring in fresh and take the dirty ones out when he
comes to hunt or fish. Leftover food goes out in the yard for the
animals and birds.”

Fancy gathered up her underwear, jeans, and T-shirt. “Why a
motel?”

“Because the highways will still be slick, and we need to shop
for Tina. And because once I get us out of this mess, I’m going to
be too uptight to drive two hours back to Albany,” he said testily.

Tina curled up on the end of the sofa and looked at them with
wide eyes.

Fancy sat down beside her. “We’re going to a motel tonight. Do
you know what that is?”

Tina shook her head.

“It’s a place that has rooms something like this cabin. And
we’re going shopping.”

“Wal-Mart?” Her dark eyes danced.

“Maybe. And maybe we’ll find you a new book,” Fancy said.

Tina threw her arms around Fancy’s neck and hugged her so
hard, it made her head throb. “Cake?”

“No, a book.”

“Cake and a book. Happy Birthday to Tina,” she singsonged.

“Maybe Maria or Kayla talked about her upcoming birthday?” Theron wondered aloud. “Okay, Fancy, you can have the bathroom first to get dressed. I’m going to get the bags ready and out to
the truck. Oh, no, I don’t have a safety seat for Tina.”

Fancy wondered at the mother who hadn’t thought of that. “We’ll
buy one at the store. If we get stopped, you can tell the officer exactly why you don’t have one yet,” she said from the bathroom
doorway.