Page 43 of Defending What is Mine

Chapter Twenty-Two

Sam:Then—Mid-January (a little more than a week ago)

I check the rearview, then check it again before changing lanes. It’s been three days and still no word from Jack. Three nail-biting days, coupled with three anxious, sleepless, painfully long nights. And not one word. I feel like I’m losing my grip on reality and I no longer trust myself to think clearly. With a final check of my mirrors, I move the car into the exit lane and click off the blinker. Please God, even if the news is bad, I can’t stand not knowing. Please, send me a sign.

When I miss the green light at the end of the ramp I growl in frustration at the universe as a whole. As I impatiently tap my thumb against the wheel, my phone buzzes in the console before the car’s Bluetooth picks up and rings through the stereo. I check who’s calling and find Mollie’s smiling face on screen, so I press a button on the steering wheel to accept the call. “Hey, cuz. Aren’t you supposed to be working? I didn’t expect to hear from you for a few hours.”

When Mollie doesn’t respond right away, it strikes me as odd, but when she does speak, the anxiety in her voice immediately sets me on edge. “Sam, where are you…?”

My first instinct is that something happened to Vanessa, but in the back of my mind I know the school would call me first and I’ve had my phone with me all day. “In the car, headed to the house. Why? What’s the matter?”

“Okay. Go straight home. I’m at Hank’s but I’ll be there as fast as I can.”

The little hairs on my neck raise up and stand at attention. “Why? What happened? Is Hank alright?”

“Just get home safe. I’ll meet you there. Okay?”

I swallow hard, trying desperately to remain calm while the part of my brain that worries goes into overdrive, imagining a thousand different things that might have happened. “Alright. But Mol, you are really freaking me out.”

Mollie sighs into the phone. “I know, babe. And, I’m sorry. I’ll explain everything when I see you.”

“Okay,” I squeak, before ending the call.

The drive home is a blur. For that matter, so is the compulsive pacing back and forth across the living room while I stare out the window, frantically watching for Mollie’s car. All capacity for rational thought is nonexistent. I’m running solely on adrenaline and fear.

When she finally pulls up, I intend to act casual.

To seem like everything is fine.

Like I’ve all but forgotten the brief, yet very strange call we had on my way home.

But the solemn look on her face as she exits her car and scrunches her scarf tight against her neck tells me she is not fine. Which makes me feel anything but fine. I plop down on the couch, pick up a magazine from the coffee table, and pretend to be lost in an article when she comes through the front door.

“Sam?” Mollie calls from the doorway.

I look up from the magazine, still trying to play it cool. “Yeah, hon. I’m here. What’s up?”

“Good, you’re sitting down.” Mollie pushes the door closed and hurries to sit beside me. “I’m sooo sorry, but I swear I just heard.”

“Sorry for what? What did you hear?”

“It’s Jack. He’s…he’s…” She turns away, fighting tears.

Everything stops. My heart clenches. My breath catches. There’s a moment of just…nothing…and then a rush of everything. Dread, adrenaline, fear, and the worst possible images and ideas flooding my system.

Oh, dear God. Please don’t let him be dead. When I said I could handle bad news, I meant like, he lost men in a battle, or his tour got extended. Not this. Please don’t let it be this.

Panic engulfs my body. Every fiber of my being hangs on her next words. “What is it? Spit it out already. What about Jack?”

As she speaks, Mollie’s voice quivers. “There’s been an accident.”

One look at her face when she got out of the car made that apparent. In fact, a part of me knew it the moment I answered the phone. What I need now is information. “Oh my God. Is he alright? What happened?”

“I don’t think anyone knows yet, hon. Hank said all they could tell Marie is he’s alive. But whatever happened was bad enough that he had to be medevac’d, and I doubt they do that if it isn’t serious.”

Any remaining threads of normalcy evaporate as my entire sense of the world begins to spin. “When will we…? How will they…?”

Mollie wraps me in her arms and pulls me close. “I’m so, so sorry, babe. That’s all I know. But Hank promised to keep us updated as soon as he hears anything else. Anything else. Big or small.” She gives me an extra squeeze. “God, I can’t begin to imagine what you must be going through. Tell me what I can do. What do you need? I want to make sure you know I’m here for you. So’s Hank. I’m sure everyone is.”

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