Fitting The Pieces (The Riverdale Series Book 3) (6 page)

           
“And I’m edgy. Stick us both together and were
explosive.” He winked at her. “I promise I’ll get everything booked and
finalized for the wedding. You don’t think I’d miss my little sister marry this
pain in the ass?” He said shoving a thumb in Nick’s direction.

           
Sam smiled slightly. “You know I could help with Cara’s
recovery, too.” She said knowing that Luke was on edge mostly because he had
his hands full with Cara the last week.

           
Luke shook his head. “No one can help Cara but herself
now.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I just drove her up there.”

           
“That’s not true. You found a good place for her to get
help. You were supportive from the moment she decided to get help. You’ve been
a rock for her, whether or not either of you, realize it. She wouldn’t be
receiving the care she is, if you hadn’t been there for her.”

           
Nick watched Luke glance down at his work books as he
absorbed Sam’s words. “Hey, why don’t we pack it up for the day? We can go back
to painting the Sunkist living room tomorrow.”

He looked over at Sam,
who nodded in agreement.

           
“Alright,” Luke agreed and started to clean up.

           
“Leave it, we’ll get it. If you hurry you’ll make the
first pitch.” She winked at him and hoped that she didn’t leave him in a
permanent bad mood and the rest of his day could be salvaged.

 
* * * * *

           
Cara was escorted to the room she had stored her
belongings the day she was admitted to Lakeview. Detox had kicked her ass, but
here she was still standing. Barely, but that didn’t matter. She had found the
strength within her and made it through the first step in the long road to
recovery. She didn’t know what day it was or how long she had been locked in
that room battling her addiction.

           
“Is there anything you need?” The orderly asked, once
Cara had stepped into her room. “Someone will be in shortly with dinner or if
you are feeling up to it you can join everyone else in the dining room.”

           
Cara looked around the room for a moment, her eyes
wandering to the phone beside her bed. She turned around to face him. “Okay. Am
I allowed to make a phone call now?” She asked.

           
The orderly smiled slightly. “Yes.” He waited a moment
and then nodded. “I’ll leave you to that phone call.” He said before taking a
retreating step backward and closing the door softly as he exited her room.

           
She stood frozen for a minute, unsure what to do with
herself. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and the woman who
glanced back at her looked severely ill. She frowned as she stepped closer to
better assess what a mess she was. She looked like she had lost ten pounds. Her
face was sunken in and the color drained from it. Her hair was pulled back into
a messy bun and with the hair out of her face, she noticed her features, mainly
her eyes. They were golden brown with the slightest flecks of green in them.
The eyes that were once so full of emotion and life were blank. She swallowed
hard and turned away, unable to stare at the ugliness that came from being an
addict.

           
She walked to the bed and sat on the edge. The silence
pierced her and for a moment she thought she’d rather be locked in that room
with her hallucinations keeping her company. The feeling of loneliness crept up
on her and she began to feel sorry for herself.
 
She was pathetic. She had no right feeling sorry for herself when she
was the one who created this mess. Still, she couldn’t help feeling alone. The
one person who loved her was gone.

           
She wiped at the lone tear that escaped and slid down her
cheek. God, did she miss Jake. She closed her eyes and wondered how that hole
in her heart would ever mend. She opened her eyes and looked over at the phone
and debated if she should call Luke or not. She didn’t want to be a burden to
him. She knew he was only helping her because of the bond he had with his
brother. There was no other reason for Luke to take an interest in her
well-being.

           
She reached for the notepad that sat beside the phone and
looked at the list of numbers that were written on it. Three telephone numbers
and all of them were relatives of Jake. She sighed and pushed the sorrow aside
as she stared at the number listed above the other two. Slowly, she reached for
the receiver and with hesitant fingers, she dialed Luke’s number.

* * * * *

           
Luke pulled up to his parent’s house, quickly turning off
the truck. He glanced at his watch as he swung open the driver’s door. He was
eager to catch the first pitch of the Division Series, and if he hauled ass
across the driveway, he probably would even have time to grab a beer first. He
kicked the door to his truck closed as his phone rang in his pocket. He sighed,
annoyed. It was probably his sister adding some sort of nonsense to his list of
things to do before she got hitched.

Without glancing at the
Caller ID he hit answer on his phone and brought it to his ear.

           
“Hello?” He said as he hurried across the freshly
manicured front yard.
 

           
“Hi. Did I call at a bad time?” Cara asked hoarsely,
finding her voice buried somewhere inside of her.

           
Luke stopped mid stride at the sound of her strangled
voice. He had spent many nights wondering if she would in fact call him. “No.”
He said quickly. “I’m glad you called.” He said and sunk down on the porch
steps. “Are you okay?”

           
“I think so.” She said, unsure of herself.

           
“When did you finish detox?” He asked as he ran his palm
along his thigh nervously.

           
“About twenty minutes ago.” She said honestly.

           
He couldn’t help the smile if he tried. She had called
him and almost right after she was permitted to.

           
“How long was I in there?” She asked not giving him a
chance to respond to her admission.

           
“Five days.” He said softly and then cringed. It must’ve
been hell for her.

           
“I never want to do that again.” Cara whispered. “They
gave me medication to help with my withdrawal symptoms.”

           
“Is it helping?” He asked as he leaned forward and
propped his elbows on his knees.

           
“I guess so. I haven’t felt sick since they gave it to
me.” There was a silence for a moment. “How are you?” She asked, wanting
desperately to take the conversation off of herself.

           
He smiled slightly. “I’m better now.” He closed his eyes
instantly not believing he actually said the words. He tried to back pedal so
that he didn’t sound like a complete ass. “I was just worried about you. Glad
to know you’re moving right along.”

           
“Stop worrying about me.” Her voice wasn’t harsh or mean
spirited but rather typical Cara, the Cara that didn’t want anyone’s sympathy,
the Cara that hadn’t lost her whole world. “I’m going to be okay.”

           
“Yeah, you are.” He said confidently.

           
“Now that we’ve established that I’m going to make an
amazing recovery, tell me what’s been going on over there while I’ve been holed
up in purgatory.” She smiled for the first time in days and laid her back
against the pillows on her bed, making herself more comfortable.

           
Luke smiled genuinely content with just listening to the
change in her voice from when they first started their call. “Well… let’s see
Sam is officially on the crazy wedding train. Which reminds me, is your
passport valid?”

           
“Yes.” She said and pictured Sam running around crazily
planning her wedding.

           
“Well, that’s one hurdle we don’t have to worry about.
Onto more pressing business, if I don’t book flights soon she may kick us out
of the wedding and rip our titles away from us. Would you mind flying down with
me and Ava on Christmas? Everyone else is getting there a few days before, but
I want to wait until Ava opens her presents Christmas morning.”

           
Cara smiled softly as she thought about Ava’s face on
past Christmases and how special a child at Christmas truly was. “Not as long
as I can bear witness to Santa’s magic that morning too.”

           
Luke raised an eyebrow at the idea, but chose not to over
speculate. “Sounds like a plan.” He said simply.

           
Cara’s stomach growled, surprising her. She tried to
remember the last time she ate anything or held it down for that matter, but
couldn’t. “I think I’m going to actually go to the dining room to eat, instead
of staying cooped up in my room feeling sorry for myself.” She said out loud
and then bit her lip because she didn’t like the weakness she portrayed in her
statement.

           
“That’s a good idea.” He said not wanting her to feel
uncomfortable. “When you’re allowed visitors I’ll smuggle you some of Deb’s
food.”

           
“Shut up. I’m probably about to eat sludge and now I’m
salivating for a bowl of spaghetti.” She teased as she sat up and threw her
legs over the edge of the bed.

           
He laughed slightly. “I’m sorry… I’ll be more cautious
next time.” He said.

           
“Oh, so you don’t mind, I harassed your life and called?”
She asked half kidding, half wondering if she was in fact bothering him.

           
“You can call me anytime you want.” He said huskily, not
recognizing the thick emotion laced in his silky voice. Christ, where did that,
come from? He cleared his throat. “You can keep a lonely guy like me company.”

           
She remained silent for a beat. She never really took
notice to Luke’s social life. Sure, they all kidded around from time to time
and told him he needed to cut loose, assuming he didn’t have much of a social
life. Then he had met Leah, things had seemed to be pretty serious between the
two of them... well until Cara went and botched that all up. She cringed at the
memory of Leah lashing out at a barbeque recently. “Okay. Then I will bombard
your phone with calls about my stint in rehab regularly. Tomorrow is my first
group therapy session. That conversation should be a doozy.” She cocked her
head to the side and then laughed. “Luke?”

           
“Hmm?” He said loving the soft sound of her laughter.

           
“Is it too soon for rehab jokes? I suddenly want to sing
my own rendition of Amy Winehouse’s Rehab.”

           
He chuckled and swiped his hand along his face and
scratched the stubble that outlined his jaw. “Maybe just a little too soon.”

           
“Damn it!” She said and there was that silence again.
“I’m going to hang up now.” She declared yet still she cradled the phone to her
ear.

           
“Okay. Goodnight.” Luke said as he rose to his feet.

           
“Goodnight, Luke.” She whispered before she hung the
phone up slowly.

           
Luke heard the soft click on her end of the line and then
shoved the phone back into his pocket. He reached behind him and cupped the
back of his neck, letting out a deep breath. He was startled when the front
door opened and his mother emerged.

           
“What are you doing out here? You’re missing the game.”
She said from the doorway. He had completely forgotten all about the playoff
game he had been so excited to watch.

Dear
Jake,

I
think I may have really lived through hell. I mean the kind of hell where the
devil's bargains for your soul and then even when he gets a taste of you he
chews you up, decides he’s done with you and spits you back into the flames. He
lets you sit there as the flames burn through your flesh and when the fire hits
your insides you scream in agony but no one hears you. No one wants hell’s
leftovers. So right now, though the flames have gone out, all I am now is a
pile of dust and ashes, at least that’s what it feels like.

I
never thought I’d say that I had to go through detox. I never thought I’d
become an addict. I bet you didn’t think I had it in me either. Luke said I was
in there five days, but I would’ve sworn it was five weeks. I really thought I
was going to die. They gave me medication to help with the side effects of
detox and I guess they are working because I don’t feel violently ill or like
I’m going to throw my organs up.

Tomorrow
is my first day of counseling and I’m not sure how I feel about that either.
I’ve never shared my problems with anyone other than you. I know we were a
couple at the end, but more than I miss my boyfriend, I miss my friend, the
friend who knew all my problems, all my concerns. I miss my best friend that
would listen to me vent and never judge me, no matter how crazy my thoughts
were or how out of control my feelings were. Our friendship meant everything to
me and I mourn that every day. I think even before you died I started to mourn
our friendship.

I
should go to bed that way when I stand in a room full of strangers and tell
them what a fuck up I am at least I look presentable. Who the fuck am I
kidding? I look like road kill lately.

I
love you.

I
miss you.

Love
always and forever,

Cara