Page 96 of Home Tears

Kate was at the edge of the garage, watching the water. Her phone was still in her hand. Jonah ignored her, grabbing a ladder and leaning it close to the canoes.

“Jake’s coming out, too.”

Jonah nodded to Kate, climbing up the ladder. He began to pull a canoe down from the rafters. “Dani. Kate. Can you grab this?”

Dani deftly caught the nose end of the canoe, and Kate helped her lower it to the ground. They did this with the remaining three canoes. Jonah grinned after the last was pulled down. “Thank God Bubba used to want to be a canoer, huh?”

Kate grunted at the same time Jake joined them. Kate filled him in, and Dani was watching Jonah. He was enjoying this. She caught a small thrill in his eye. He was searching for life jackets. Jake and Kate both joined, looking for anything that could be used as a flotation device, but Dani was rooted in place.

Jonah came over to her, lowering his voice. “What?”

“You’re enjoying yourself.”

Some of the excitement left him. His grin slipped a tiny bit as he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Everything will be fine, Dani.”

He didn’t know. He couldn’t say that. “People got stranded last time. They died.” It could happen again. He had no idea. “They panicked and stampeded other people. Some of them weren’t even given the chance to drown.”

The entire grin vanished. He bent closer to her. “That’s not going to happen here. We’re already way ahead of schedule with security provisions. Part of that is because of you.” Then his phone rang, and he answered it, “Trenton!”

Dani heard him talking about shallow boat runners, but the conversation turned technical, so she looked around for what else they’d need. “Bags,” Dani stated. “Lots and lots of bags.”

Jonah hung up. “What?”

“There’s not enough life jackets, but we can triple-bag them—you know—the grocery bags that everyone keeps, but never throws out. We can blow air in them and just put three over each other so they won’t break that easily. People can put them inside their clothes. It’ll be sort of a life jacket.” She spotted a pile of bungee cords. “People can hook these into their clothes and wrap the other end across the canoe to someone else. They’ll hold each other up on the canoe if they get too fatigued.”

Jonah didn’t say anything for a moment. He caught her hand. “Dani—no one’s going to die here.”

“Not this storm.” Her stomach felt like ice had lined the bottom. “Everyone’s going to have to be told what to do if their clothes weigh them down—”

“Okay, before you turn into Indiana Jones, Trent’s on his way with a flat runner. He and Hawk have a bunch that they’re pulling over here. We’ll be fine.”

“What if they don’t get here in time? What if they see other people they need to save and they don’t get here? What then? We have to plan. We have to—”

Jonah caught her shoulders. He put his forehead to hers. “You’re not going to die.”

Dani stopped and took a breath. She whispered, “That’s not what I’m scared of.” She could see the children. They were standing in that garage, watching her, and it was happening all over again. They were depending on her. She was going to fail them.

“What are you scared of?” Jonah kissed her forehead, wrapping his arms tight around her. “Tell me what you’re scared about.”

Dani’s arms hung limp at her side. “People die around me.” The ice was spreading from her stomach. It was invading the rest of her, numbing her. “I didn’t do anything last time.” She gulped for air. She was drowning. “I didn’t do anything last time, and they died. This time—”

“—you’re doing something.”

Dani took her last breath and let loose her demons. “I’m suffocating.”

He pulled back and searched her face. His eyes raked her features. “I know.”

She couldn’t say it. She couldn’t explain it.

“I know,” Jonah said again. He wrapped his arms around her and said again, “I already know.”

Dani’s arms slowly reached up and wrapped around him. She held onto him, as tight as she could.

“And you stayed,” Jonah added. “With those kids—you stayed with them and you did something. You held onto them. Death is sometimes inevitable. Even if it’s for someone who shouldn’t die. I know this river and I know that. And I know you. You stayed.”

Dani never thought the vision of Hawk, driving a flat runner with three more chained behind him, would bring tears of relief to her eyes.

They did.

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