Page 107 of Home Tears

Dani glimpsed the nursing home ahead, then the flat runner drew abreast the ground. Jonah cut the engine, hopping out and pulling it the rest of the way on the embankment. He helped Dani get out, placing his hands on her waist and lifting her. She held on to his arms. “Looks like I’m walking the rest of the way.”

“You’ll be okay?” He nodded to the right. “The town’s center is a block down. There shouldn’t be any water around it—”

“I’ll be fine. It’s a block away.” She stretched up and kissed him, whispering, “Good luck with your top-secret meeting.”

“I’m not—” He stopped and admitted, “I am.”

“I know.” Dani backtracked up the hill, toward the hospital. “Still rather be doing what you’re doing than what I’m about to do.”

Jonah gave her a wave before pushing the boat back into the water. He lithely jumped back in, and after a second wave, floored the engine. He was gone from eyesight within seconds.

Dani smelled freshly brewed coffee when the doors slid open. She almost groaned. The receptionist looked up and smiled. Dani saw how tired she was.

“Are you here to see your aunt?”

“Yes.” Dani readied herself. “And just so you know, she might have you throw me out. I won’t hold it against you if that happens.”

She grinned as she stood up, taking a walkie-talkie with her. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.” A pair of glass doors opened behind her. “I’ll be right back.”

It wasn’t long before she came back. “Kathryn said you could go in, but she’s not sure if she’ll talk to you.”

Classic Kathryn. “It’s better than what I thought.”

“My mom had my grandma barred from her room when she was in the hospital a while back. Every family’s got their own ways. You’d be surprised at the families that come through the doors. Yours isn’t that bad.” She pushed a button, and the doors slid open. “I’m sure you’ll have a lovely visit.”

Dani wasn’t, but then she was heading inside and down the hallway. Call lights were beeping in the background, along with other alarms.

She stopped in her aunt’s doorway.

Kathryn lay with her hands propped over the folded-back sheet, dead center over her body. Her rich chestnut curls were brushed, with the curl lying over her shoulders. Kathryn was dressed in a pink silk nightie.

“Hello, Aunt Kathryn.”

The eyes stayed closed, but the chest paused on a suspended breath.

There were metal chairs folded up, leaning against the wall. A regular lounger that Dani glimpsed in other rooms was pushed into a far corner. Right alongside the bed was a large white leather chair. It was hard imagining her aunt relaxing in there, but she must’ve. It was there for a reason.

“I was in a hospital not too long ago, but it wasn’t this nice. Then again, this is a nursing home. It’s supposed to be like home, right?”

Dani’s room had more flowers, a lot more. Kathryn’s bedside table was clear except for a notepad, a couple of pens, and an iPad. Her window frames were empty, too. The only flower that decorated the room was a solitary sunflower, put in her bathroom. It was drooping over. A few pictures of Julia, Kathryn, and Jake were put up.

She turned back to her aunt. Still nothing, but she was listening. Kathryn always listened. She had to, in order to judge.

Dani cut to the chase. She wasn’t there for the silent treatment. “I know why you loved Julia and Erica more than me. You loved the same man my mom loved, and I’m thinking that I’m a bit too like my mom for you. You couldn’t pretend I was yours. Am I right?”

No reaction. She didn’t expect any.

“I don’t look like him, do I? And that’s what you kept in that head of yours. It’s why you didn’t fight Mae at all, when she wanted to adopt me.”

A shallow, ragged breath escaped her aunt’s parched lips.

“I’ve been thinking about it. You and Mom had the same taste in men. My mom wasn’t ‘right’ in the head, as some people said, and you’ve never married. Those are the types who hold on the longest and you held on, didn’t you?”

She remembered Sandra’s words.

“You can always ask Kathy. She knows who your daddy is, too.”

“Kathryn doesn’t like me much.”

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