Page 126 of Relentless

“Pull it together,” she murmured to herself. She made her way back upstairs and took a seat on the leather sofa. Themoment to herself allowed her to regroup, and put her mind on other things besides her own failures.

Crew limped up the steps and plopped down with a wince in one of the chairs beside her.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she murmured, her eyes flicking to the ceiling.

“What was that?” Crew drawled.

Harper cleared her throat loudly.

“I said — Oakleigh finally set you free, huh?”

Crew laughed, revealing his gapped-toothed smile. “Oh, she’s still down there giving those medics the what for.”

“I figured as much,” Harper nodded.

Give me a chance to make something right.

The prayer that filtered through her mind surprised her. There was something intimate and authentic about speaking to the Lord in that familiar way. She was certainly out of practice, but it was comforting nonetheless.

“You took quite a hit,” she observed. “Sorry about the tooth.”

Crew grinned, running his tongue along where his tooth used to be. “Yeah,” he chuckled. “Oakleigh ain’t too happy.”

“Occupational hazard, I suppose,” Harper said, absentmindedly picking at what remained of her pink nail polish. There was a long silence between them before Harper spoke up again. “You were really something out there.”

“Thank you, ma’am — er,” he quickly corrected. “Mrs. Davenport.”

“Harper,” she clarified. “And — I think I owe you an apology,” she stumbled, biting her lip as she carefully chose her words. “I made you feel pretty small in our last conversation.”

“Well, I do appreciate that,” he replied. “But maybe —” his voice trailed off.

“You can say what’s on your mind,” Harper reassured. “I won’t bite your head off — this time.”

Crew suddenly looked more nervous than when he had faced Big Slim. He inhaled, digging his fingers into the leather chair as he appeared to gather his nerves. “Maybe you should apologize to Oakleigh first?”

Harper nodded, respecting the young man’s honesty. Despite the tenuous peace between them, she knew her daughter was still hurt.

“She’s pretty upset with me.”

“Yeah, she sure is,” Crew replied, not mincing words. “Especially after, well — you know, the other night?” he said, his eyes going wide. “We’re still sweepin’ up pearls.”

“Maybe it’s for the best,” she shrugged, running her fingers down her shirt and smoothing the wrinkles. “She’s got Maeve.”

“That’s just the thing, Mrs. — Harper,” Crew said, finally gathering the courage to look her in the eyes. “Oakleigh loves hard, and boy, does she fight hard,” he reflected, giving a quick shake of his head. “But I can tell you this — she and Maeve have been praying for a long while.”

Harper’s eyes narrowed, and she tilted her head to the side as she contemplated his words. “Praying for what?”

“Foryou.”

Footsteps clanged up the metal staircase once again, and Harper was grateful for the interruption.

Oakleigh appeared with a bag of ice in hand.

“The medics say you’re done riding for two weeks,” Oakleigh announced.

“Well, it’s a good thing it’s off-season,” Crew grinned.

Oakleigh shook her head. “Never again, Crew,” she begged. “Please promise me.”

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