Page 67 of Castle's Cards

“Janet?”

“Mr. Castle, I’m calling to let you know that Miss Hughes has pulled into the driveway. You seemed worried earlier, which is why I thought I would let you know.”

I let out a breath of relief. She’s safe. I wish I’d known an hour ago, when I was driving to every location I’ve ever gone in the city with Addy. The equestrian center, the apartment, the diner, various restaurants all received visits from me in hopes of finding Addy. Obviously, the search yielded no results, which is why I ended up calling Denseon.

I hang up on Janet and let Denseon know that I don’t need him after all, that she’s been found.

Pulling in the driveway and seeing Addy’s car sitting out front fills me with a sense of relief that I didn’t know was possible. I let out a grateful sigh as I park next to her car.

When I get out, I realize that her car is still running. I lean down to look through the passenger window. Addy’s still sitting in the driver’s seat, staring at the wheel. A sinking feeling fills my stomach -- she looks absolutely bereft.

I tap on the window, causing Addy to jump and look over at me with wide eyes. Relief flickers over her face when her eyes meet mine. After she presses the unlock button on her door I get in the passenger seat and settle in.

“You can never go off the grid like that again. I drove all over the city looking for you.” I smile, but when she looks up at me her eyes are filled with tears. I grab her hand and gently rub circles with my thumb. “What’s wrong, Addy? You know you can talk to me about anything.”

Addy sighs as she looks down at her hands.

“I got sick at work today, so Cassie sent me home. On the way I got a phone call from the prison. It was about my dad. He’s… he’s dying, Carter. He has metastatic lung cancer. They’ve only given him six months to live, and even that is an ‘optimistic diagnosis.’ So I went to see him. And talk to the warden more in person. It seemed like the right thing to do.”

I grip her hand tight and squeeze, encouraging her to continue.

“It’s been so long since I’ve seen my dad. We had a long talk about how much he’s missed out on and what I wish he’d been there for. I had forgotten how easy it was to talk to him. But he looks bad.” Addy shakes her head. “Really bad. He’s skinny, and my dad’s never been skinny. Not that he was ever overweight, really, but he was, you know. Bulky. Not anymore, though. I was under the impression that men get more muscular in prison, not less. It’s like the cancer is absorbing all the strength he has.”

A tear escapes down her cheek. I reach over and wipe it away, absorbing the news. We haven’t spoken much about her father, if at all. But it’s clear that she loves him. I open my mouth to respond but I’m interrupted by her phone ringing. When I look down I see it’s connected to the charging port in the car, the tiny battery bar in the top right corner flashing red.

“It died,” Addy says apologetically. She looks at the screen that is lighting up with Izzy’s name. “I have to go pick up Izzy from the equestrian center, as much as I’d love to sit here and talk about this more.”

I can’t help but feel like that’s sarcasm, although I can’t tell for sure. I clear my throat and meet her eyes.

“I can get her.”

Addy looks at me with surprise.

“Really?”

“Of course. We’re a team, and you’ve obviously had a terrible day. There’s no reason for you to go out and do more. I’ll go get Izzy. You go inside, spend some time relaxing and decompressing from the day you’ve had.”

Addy’s eyes water as she throws her arms around me.

“God, thank you. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

She kisses me on the cheek and turns her car off, drifting inside as I get back into mine. Looks like I’m going out again.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Addy

Isinkdeeperintothe steaming tub filled with bubbles, thoughts about the day I’ve had drifting in and out of my mind. I threw up three times at the prison, much to the chagrin of the guards.

One even stepped in and suggested that I head home, considering how sick I seemed to be. But after I gave him an earful about spending time with my dying dad he backed off, opting to get me a bucket so I didn’t have to sprint to the bathroom and go through security over and over again.

I close my eyes and sigh as I sink deeper into the tub. In a weird way, knowing that my dad is dying is almost like losing him all over again. It was devastating when he went to prison, knowing that I would be growing up without him.

At 14, I was old enough to understand the effect it would have on our lives in a way that 6 year old Izzy wasn’t. Even as she got older, it was obvious how differently it impacted her compared to me. Mom rarely took us to visit, stating that a prison was no place for children. As right as she may have been, the truth is that she simply didn’t want us to be there.

I sigh. It’s not even just the day I’ve had anymore. It’s the last week and a half. The stress of losing the apartment and moving, having to find a new school for Izzy, being sick, and now this. Everything is falling apart at the exactly the same time. Bad things are supposed to happen in three’s, so why am I getting one thing extra?

The worst part is that I have no idea how I’m going to tell Izzy about Dad. She deserves to know. Sure, she doesn’t have the relationship with Dad that I do. Izzy was just so young when he was sent to prison, she never had the chance to develop the closeness with him the way that I did. But his dying will affect her just the same.

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