Page 5 of All It Takes

Alice reached out, clasping my hands with hers where they rested limply on my knees. “Breathe.” She released one of my hands and snatched a tissue out of the box on my desk, handing it to me.

I sucked in a deep breath before blowing my nose and dabbing at my eyes. “That woman”—I gestured to my phone—“says she’s a social worker. I guess she works with the court in cases like this and was assigned to help facilitate making sure their son is cared for. She’s coming here to talk to me and said there’s another godparent. What do I do?”

Alice squeezed my hand before releasing it. “Do you want some tea or coffee?”

I took a shaky breath. “Coffee. I needed some anyway.”

“Come on. Let’s go in the back while we wait.”

I blindly followed Alice to the break room, watching as she quickly made a pot of coffee. It was ready in a few minutes. I sat at the table, feeling numb. She sat down across from me, handing me a mug.

“Here’s the thing. It sounds like he’s already staying with someone, and you just need a little time to adjust to this. I’m sorry about Sarah.”

I shook my head. My chest ached. “I’m still trying to absorb the information.” I took a gulp of coffee, the bitter flavor a jolt to my system. “Holy shit. I don’t know what to think. Are you anyone’s godparent?” I asked, feeling as if I’d been tossed in the ocean without a life raft. I had no idea what to do.

Alice shook her head. “No one’s asked me. For what it’s worth, most people don’t think something will happen to people they love.”

“I’m not going to run away from my commitment.”

“Just breathe,” Alice repeated.

There was a knock on the back door, and Alice leaped to her feet. “I’ll let her in.” She paused just as she began to turn out of the doorway. “Do you want to meet with her privately? Or would you like me there?”

“If you don’t mind, it would help to have you here. I’ll probably forget half of what she tells me.”

Alice nodded quickly and hurried down the hallway. A few minutes later, the three of us were sitting at the table in the break room. The social worker, Eileen, had accepted a cup of tea. She had already summarized what happened. Sarah and George had died from when they drove over a downed power line and it brought two electrical poles down on their car, crushing them instantly. I was still stunned and my heart hurt, as if someone had knocked it hard and cracks were spreading.

“Oh my God,” I repeated.

Eileen was politely nodding. “Ross is all set for the weekend. I’ve already arranged a meeting with the executor of the will. I’m just the messenger. Whenever something like this happens and there isn’t any family listed, they call the state. In this case, there is a will in place and a law firm in Seattle handling it. They connected with a local attorney here since both of you are here.”

“Who is the other godparent?” I finally thought to ask.

“Wes Stuart.”

“Wes? From the animal shelter?” I prompted.

“We do all the vet care for the shelter,” Alice chimed in.

“That’s the one,” Eileen replied with a nod. “His mother runs the shelter, and he helps out. He’s also a firefighter. Ross is with him for now. I had a little more trouble getting your number. The one in the paperwork was out of service.”

“That was probably my old cell number in Seattle. I wanted to have an Alaska area code, so I changed it after I moved,” I said, still trying to get my brain to absorb this flood of information. “I just changed it a couple of months ago.”

Eileen shrugged. “I found you. So you know Wes? He mentioned he knew you.”

I nodded. “We don’t know each other well. It’s a small town, but I was with Alice when…”

I was so grateful Alice was here. She jumped right in to fill in the blanks of every sentence that I couldn’t finish. “I was looking for a dog to adopt, and Tiffany came with me.”

“You knew each other in high school too?” Eileen prompted.

“Yeah, but we weren’t close. We were a few years apart, and you know how that goes. A few years feels like nothing now, but in high school, it feels like forever.”

Eileen nodded. “I’d suggest you take some time to think about how you’re feeling. The will lists both of you as guardians. You don’t have to accept it, but…” She handed me a sheaf of paperwork. “They specifically stated they want both of you to care for him in the event they are not able. They clearly trusted both of you to be reasonable and to be able to work together in the best interests of Ross. Given Wes’s job situation, it might be helpful for both of you to be involved.”

I felt like I was trying to slog through quicksand to get my thoughts to catch up to the situation. “What do you mean?”

Alice’s gaze slid to mine. “He’s a hotshot firefighter. They’re gone a lot in the summer.” She shifted her focus to Eileen. “My husband, Jonah, is also a hotshot firefighter.”

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