“Can you fix it?” Emily stared at her mom, waiting for her to do something to bring Peppa back.
“Not right now.” Tessa forced herself to smile. “Good job finding this though. Now go get your shoes on.”
She raced through the house hitting the light switches in every room at the top of the stairs and hoping for the familiar warm glow from a single bulb. Each empty click resounded too loud in her ears, the silence pronounced by her panicked breathing and the heavy beat of her heart. Focus. She willed herself to slow down.
So what if the power goes out? There were marshmallows and graham crackers in the pantry. Worst case scenario, it’d be like an extended camping trip. For a year. Her father’s words threatened to break through the resolve she was building. He could be dramatic sometimes. She stood in the darkness of the hallway bathroom. But he’d actually apologized.
Pure instinct made her rip back the shower curtain printed with colorful fish and scoop out the toys in the tub. She plugged in the stopper and turned the water on full blast. It poured from the faucet as loud as a geyser in the quiet house.
“Is it bath time?” Emily asked from the open door with her untied shoes on the wrong feet.
“No sweetie.” Tessa tried to calm her racing thoughts. “I just want to fill the tubs up for later in case we want some water.” In case we don’t have water. She sucked in a steadying breath and turned to knot the laces on Emily’s shoes. “Why don’t we fill up all the sinks and then we’ll go get your brother?”
Tessa balanced Emily on her hip as she ripped her purse and keys from the hook. She didn’t bother to lock the door as they hurried outside. The neighborhood was safe enough and no one messed with them up there on the hill. She glanced up at the brilliant blue sky and the sun shining down on the desert valley. It was like any other day. Shouldn’t it be shooting flames if there was some kind of massive storm?
“Can I watch a movie?”
“Sure baby.” Tessa strapped Emily into her booster seat in the back of the Kia Telluride. She turned the key in the ignition and the engine purred to life. A static pop sent the systems haywire. Lights flashed across the dashboard and the navigation screen displayed a system error. You’ve got to be kidding me. This thing is brand new.
Tessa dropped her hands from the wheel, turning the vehicle off and then back on. The GPS screen remained blank and the check engine light was on, but other than that it all seemed fine. She put the vehicle in reverse and pressed on the gas. The anti-lock braking system light flared up and the tires screeched to a stop. Emily cried out at the sudden jerk. Of course this is happening right now.
“New plan.” Tessa turned in her seat, reaching for Emily’s hand to calm her down. “Mommy’s car is a little sick. Can you sit here and be a big girl while I get daddy’s truck?” A smile spread across her face as she nodded.
The remote to the garage wasn’t working. She tossed it into the Kia and ran back through the house. Moose lifted his head from his nap on the couch as she yanked off the worn throw pillow. “Sorry, boy. I’ll be right back,” Tessa called to him over her shoulder as she threw open the door. She fumbled in the dark for the dusty release lever hanging from the garage ceiling.
Sunlight filtered into the room as Tessa forced the metal door open until the springs caught hold of it. She stood there panting from the effort, waiting for the thing to come crashing back down. This is not the end of days. It’s just a power outage and really bad deployment luck with her vehicle. Everything was going to be okay.
She uncovered Old Blue and the sun reflected off the garish cobalt paint of Landon’s 1982 Ford F150. The gas guzzler. The money pit. The single cab machine of death that Landon insisted on keeping in mint condition despite Tessa’s insistence that it was a dead horse. It roared to life with the spare key on her chain.
“Yes.” Tessa pressed her forehead against the steering wheel, breathing a sigh of relief. Last deployment she’d forgotten to start it every few days and the battery was dead when Landon got home. This time she’d been smart. She put the throw pillow on the worn seat and propped it up so she could see over the dashboard.
“Is daddy’s truck sick too?” Emily asked as she pushed open the door to the Kia.
“Sure isn’t.” Tessa left Old Blue running as she ran over to get the booster and install it in the cab of the truck.
“I can’t wait for him to come home.” Emily leaned against Tessa’s side and held up her fingers. “Three more days.”
“Three days,” Tessa said. And that was it. Only three more chains on the construction paper ribbon that she’d hung above the fireplace. All the tantrums, the late-night tears, the wins and losses she’d dealt with; all the broken Facetimes, dropped calls, and whispered promises in between. The fear, the waiting, tuning out each news alert and pretending the worst couldn’t happen to you because that was the only way to survive the kind of life they led. It would all be over soon and they could deal with this solar storm or whatever it was together.
She wouldn’t have to do it alone anymore.
Three more days.