Page 142 of Defenders of Jawhara

Melanie shook her head. “It was an accident. He was losing his balance and I got too close.” The young woman gave her a small smile, but Chloe was having a hard time believing her.

Chloe attempted to smile at her dad, who was still staring at her as if she were a stranger. Holding up the drink tray and the bag of scones, she said, “I thought we might enjoy something sweet together. That is, if you’re ready to settle down?”

The other man, who she thought was named Davis, smiled brightly at her dad. “There you go, Mr. Baker. How about we get you back in bed and you can spend some time with your daughter. Would you like that?”

Shaking them both free, her dad wavered before he flopped backward onto the bed. “Stop handling me as if I’m some sort of unruly horse.” He wheezed as he attempted to slide backward on the bed, but any attempt by either CNA to help had him waving his arms around again, ready to make contact. With a loud groan, he managed to get back into bed and calmed down enough to allow Davis to cover him up while Melanie kept her distance.

“Dad, they’re not handling you, they’re here to help you.” She stepped forward to set the cocoas on his bedside table along with the bag of scones. “There’s a bakery on this street that makes blueberry scones that rival Momma’s.”

“Don’t speak ill of your mother.”

“I would never—” Before she could finish, her father snatched one of the cups out of the drink tray. Yanking too hard, he spilled some on his hand and hissed. “Dad! Are you all right?”

Her dad glared at her as he tipped the cup up to take a big sip, and Chloe winced, hoping he wouldn’t burn his mouth. Before she could say anything, he pulled the cup away and spit out what was in his mouth. “What the hell is this? If you’re going to force me to drink this crap, at least have the decency to put some Jack in it.”

“Dad, it’s hot cocoa, like we used to drink with Momma. I thought…”

“You thought? You thought? What did you think, girl?” Her dad’s eyes darkened, and his face was turning red. Throwing the cup he was holding, it hit the wall. The lid popped off, and hot cocoa splattered across the wall and floor. Davis stepped toward him to grab what was left on the table, but he wasn’t fast enough. With another sweep of his arms, he sent Chloe’s cup and the bag of scones flying. Everyone watched as a puddle began to spread toward where the bag landed.

She swallowed hard. She’d hoped that this type of behavior would have fled along with his drinking, but it seemed that wasn’t the case. She felt like a child again, cowering under the covers while listening to one of her dad’s drunken rages.

Except she wasn’t a child anymore.

Squaring her shoulders, she stood up straight and stared him down. Speaking evenly, she said, “Well, it looks like you’re having a bad day today. It’s too bad when that happens because you don’t remember your manners.” She gestured to Melanie and Davis hovering nearby. “When you’re feeling a bit more like yourself, you might want to start with an apology to them, and probably everyone else in this hospital.”

Her dad started to speak, but she held up her hand and surprisingly he stayed silent, but she wouldn’t. “We are here because of you. We had to lease out our land because of you. You are in this hospital because of you. And if you want to get out of here and go home, then you do whatever they tell you to do and know that if you don’t succeed, it’s because of you.” As she spoke, she stepped closer and closer to him, and she watched as he pushed back against the bed to put more distance between them.

Satisfied she’d made her point, she took a step back and gripped the strap on her bag. “Since it looks like you aren’t in the mood for visitors today, I’ll see myself out.”

Turning, she strode toward the exit and her father called out, “Your momma would have been proud of the woman you’ve turned into.” Freezing, she turned her head and gave him a quick nod before exiting the room.

Once in the hall, she collapsed against the wall and listened as Davis finished getting him settled and a cleaning person came in to clean up the mess. They exited the room, and she could see the now-soggy bag of scones on top of the bucket.

Melanie joined her. She had a small ice pack pressed to the side of her face. “It really was an accident, but it seemed to set him off and we couldn’t calm him down. So thank you.”

Closing her eyes, Chloe pushed back memories of similar behavior from her dad. “How often does he behave this way?” She knew it wasn’t the first time.

She felt Melanie squeeze her arm. “Not very often. If it was anything to be concerned about, we’d have let you know.”

Pushing off the wall, Chloe adjusted her bag again. “It is of concern. If he does it again, please tell me.” She waited for the woman to agree and then made her way to the exit, stopping to enter the women’s restroom. Locking the door behind her, she flopped against the wall and let the tears she’d been holding fall.

Donald Baker had never been a particularly violent man, you couldn’t be around horses, not if you wanted to be successful. But he did love to drink, and that made him surly around the folks who were trying to help him the most. Momma had always been the peacemaker and would do her best to shift his mood, but once she’d passed, Chloe had chosen to hide from it.

She felt her phone vibrate with a text. Pulling it out, she swiped at the angry tears so she could read it.

Hey! We still on for lunch? Where are you?

Shaking her head, as much as she’d bet he’d get her out of this somber mood, she didn’t want to have to explain what had happened. At least not right now.

Typing back,Something came up. I’m with my dad. How about tomorrow?

She watched the three dots as he appeared to type and then retype a message to her.

Cool. Surf’s up. I’ll catch you laters.

Somehow she didn’t think that was what he’d originally written, and she wasn’t sure why he’d chosen to sound so insincere after the night they’d had. Maybe he didn’t want attachments. That was something to think about another time. Sending a thumbs-up emoji, she pocketed her phone and walked out into the sunlight.

9

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