Page 7 of Forever Frenzy
“Tell me.”
He was quiet for a long moment.
“Tell me, Seth,” I prodded. I knew I shouldn’t have. I should have kept living with my head in the clouds.
“You’ve got a brain tumor.”
I let out a shallow laugh, but he didn’t laugh with me.
“How do you know?”
His face contorted in pain. “I can see it, but I can’t heal it.”
The breath was knocked out of me with one simple sentenceand the look on my son’s face. Seth was no liar.
“How long do I have left?” I croaked.
He shook his head. “Not long.”
I eased the hammer into my tool belt and walked around the pile of work we’d made for the day. “Then let’s go home. I don’t intend to waste another minute out here when I can be spending it with you and your mom.”
When Saul and Seth came home mid-afternoon, I knew that Saul was aware he was dying. But did he know about Tage and his offer? I waited on the porch as they trudged up the hill. Saul didn’t mope. He ran right to me, wrapped me in his arms, and kissed me like there was no tomorrow. The very thought hit me in the gut; a sharp arrow of truth that found its mark. There might not be many tomorrows left.
Even if he chose The Sand, he might be different.
But Tage wasn’t.
Maybe Saul would stay… Saul.
So many emotions flowed down my face, wetting his cheeks.
“Don’t,” he croaked. But his eyes filled with tears, too. He kissed me again; our sadness mingling with our love.
When we parted, I looked to Seth, who gave a slight shake of his head.
“We need to talk to you about something, Saul.”
His eyes narrowed. “Is it worse than the tumor?”
“You can be the judge of that,” I said quietly.
As Seth moved past us into the cabin, Saul grabbed my elbow gently as I began to follow him inside. “What’s this about?”
“It’s best if Seth explains. Just... hear him out.”
Saul nodded once and followed me inside, where the light from outside wasn’t strong enough to illuminate the room entirely. It was pale, wan, and thin.
Saul sank into his normal seat at the table, where Seth was already waiting in his. I threw a log on the fire and stoked the glowing-red embers until the seasoned wood ignited and the flames began to throw heat into the room.
“What’s up?” Saul asked, his eyes fixated on the fresh wood aflame in the hearth.
“Seth...” I gently nudged.
Seth threaded his slender fingers together and leaned into the table. “Tage has been helping me with my powers for a long time.”
“I know that,” Saul said quickly.
“He’s been helping me in The Sand. Not just in my dreams.”
