Page 75 of Left Behind

“When someone says something mean on purpose.”

“Why do they do that?” Ava asked.

“Because, when God was handing out manners, they were picking their nose instead, that’s why.”

She giggled.

Wiley grinned, then winked. “That’s my girl.”

“Are we going home now?” she asked.

“Yes, we are,” Wiley said. “You’re gonna play, and I’m going to straighten up the house and get ready for the party.”

They were leaving the station and about to turn left when he saw Linette coming out of an office building. He honked and waved, and she waved back, then blew him a kiss. Wiley had the strongest urge to stop the car, get out, and kiss her senseless in front of God and everybody, but since that couldn’t happen, he just kept driving. He was, however, still smiling when he pulled into their driveway.

He opened the garage door with the remote, drove inside, then lowered the door before getting Ava out of the back seat and into the house.

“You can go play now. And if you want to watch TV, come tell me and I’ll find your cartoons for you.”

“Okay, Bubba. Can I take off my shoes and play barefoot?” she asked.

“Absolutely,” he said.

She nodded and skipped off down the hall with Pinky under her arm.

Chapter 12

Carey Eggers received the news at breakfast that she was being released today. They were getting her release papers ready, and all she needed now was a ride out of town. She was so excited she quit her food and called Johnny immediately to give him the news. When he answered on the first ring, the familiar rumble of his voice was in her ear.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Johnny, it’s me. I have good news. I can go home this morning.”

Johnny let out a whoop. “Best news ever, sweetheart. It won’t take us long to pack up and check out. I can’t wait to get you out of here.”

“Me too,” Carey said. “Love you. See you soon, and thank you for the new going-home clothes you brought me yesterday.”

“You’re welcome. See you soon,” he said, and disconnected.

An hour later, she was finally dressed in blue shorts and a blue and white T-shirt with Jubilee written across the front. As she waited within the silence of her room, the gravity of her situation fell in on her again.

She was going home to a brother in the morgue and the hopes that there was no one left who wanted her dead. Being hunted down like a wild animal had shaken her to the core. Detective Gardner had assured them again that he’d publicly announced Billy Eggers’s sister had neither seen the person who shot him, nor had any idea who’d tried to kill her. She couldn’t identify anyone, or know anything of value to the case, and that was all the reassurance she had that she was off the shooter’s radar. She also knew that they’d issued an arrest warrant based on DNA found under her brother’s fingernails during the fight, so she had no reason to doubt Gardner’s word, but the whole debacle was still horrifying.

Then the door to her room opened, and Tom and Johnny came in. She eased herself down from the bed and hugged the both of them.

“You two are my angels. Tommy, I will never be able to repay you for all the days you’ve sacrificed for us. And Johnny never quit believing I’d survive. I just want to go home, talk to Billy’s lawyers to see what I have to do, and find out when I can bury him.”

“He’s still in the morgue, but I think they’ll release him for burial now that you’re able to claim the body,” Tom said.

Her eyes welled. “He wanted to be cremated. I’ll have to find a funeral home for that. I’ve been so focused on me that I haven’t had time to grieve his absence in my life, but I will. I will miss him. So much. He was the last of my family.”

Johnny took her hand. “We have each other, and good friends like Tom. We’ll make our own family, baby. Just don’t cry. Not today. Today is pure joy that you’ve healed enough to leave.”

She nodded. “I’ll have to check in with my regular doctor once I get home. They’re sending my medical records to his office so that he’ll have the full picture, but it’s standard practice until I’m released to go back to work.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Johnny said. “Together, we’re unstoppable, darlin’.”

Then an orderly came in with a wheelchair, followed by a nurse with Carey’s release papers and prescriptions.

---