Once past the city’s outskirts and the mill, she increased her speed, but was quickly passed by another vehicle, driving well above the posted limit. She recognized the truck—and its driver—almost right away.
It was Troy Nance, and he wasn’t alone.
Carolyn’s headlights revealed two people in the truck’s cab. The passenger was a woman with short blond hair, her head resting on Troy’s shoulder.
Earlier Susannah had mentioned seeing Troy with someone else. A blonde, she’d said. Not that it was any of her business, but Carolyn was curious. Maintaining a discreet distance, she followed Troy to the Roadside Inn. He parked, and the moment the blonde climbed out of the cab, it was abundantly clear that they were more than friends.
While Chrissie waited at the hospital for word on her grandmother’s condition, Troy was out with some other woman.
CHAPTER 37
“Does Dad know about Grandma?” Chrissie asked, sitting down on the waiting-room sofa.
Susannah shook her head. She’d tried to reach him but Joe wasn’t home and apparently he’d turned off his cell phone. She’d left a message, and that was all she could do for now.
“Don’t you think you should tell him?”
“He’ll call as soon as he gets my message.” She took out her cell, then noticed the sign on the wall warning against the use of cell phones in the hospital. Luckily there was a pay phone down the hall. Chrissie walked with her and stood by while Susannah called collect. Brian answered and accepted the charges.
“Hidy, ho,” Brian sang. “How come you’re calling collect?”
“Hi. Is your dad home yet?”
“Hey, Mom, what’s wrong?” Apparently her son hadn’t listened to the message.
“I need to talk to your dad,” she said without explaining.
Her son asked, “Is everything all right?”
Susannah lowered her gaze and tried not to look at Chrissie, who was examining her like a biology specimen under the microscope. “Everything’s going to be fine.” And it would be once she spoke to Joe. He was her touchstone, and she needed him.
“Where’s Joe?” she asked.
“Hey, Mom, hold on, I hear him in the garage. He was at some get-together with his dentist friends.” Brian put down the phone with a clatter.
Susannah could hear her son talking in the background, and a minute later, Joe picked up.
“Hi,” she said softly, loving him so much she wanted to weep. This time apart was wearing on her, wearing on him, too. “Mom fell and broke her hip,” she said without preamble.
“How is she?” Joe asked, immediately concerned.
“Chrissie and I are at the hospital. Mom’s in surgery now….” Susannah’s voice faltered.
“Susannah?”
“She might need to have a hip replacement.” Stifling a sob, she waited a moment before continuing. “Joe, she hit her head on a pool table, of all things, and was knocked unconscious. Altamira took care of everything. I can’t imagine what might’ve happened if she’d been at home or by herself.” These scenarios had played through Susannah’s mind ever since she’d arrived at the hospital.
“Do you need me to come over and be with you?” he asked.
Susannah knew how difficult it was for him to get away at the last minute. “I…I think it’ll be okay. I’ll have a better idea once Mom’s out of surgery.”
“Of course. Needless to say, the more notice I have, the better, but I’ll leave right now if you want me to.”
His willingness to drop everything for her touched Susannah. She wanted him to know how much she appreciated this, appreciated him, yet all she managed to choke out was a simple, “Thank you, sweetheart.”
“Anything you need? Anything I can do?”
“No. I don’t think so.” She felt oppressed by her worries—Vivian, the situation with Jake, the revelations about Doug, the conflict with Chrissie. Susannah was tired, so tired of feeling responsible for all of it. Tired of making decisions—and mistakes.
Soon afterward, the surgeon appeared, still in his green surgical gown. He explained what he’d done and the anticipated outcome. Her mother would likely spend several days in the hospital recuperating, and would be temporarily moved to a nursing home, where she’d receive the care she needed. Progress would be slow, but Vivian had come through the ordeal well.
Relieved by the news, Susannah and Chrissie drove back to the house.
“I’m glad you came to the hospital,” Susannah told her daughter.
“I’m glad I did, too,” Chrissie said. “When I read your note, I freaked. Troy drove me to the hospital, thank God. I asked him to come in with me, but he says he can’t stand the smell.”
Susannah bit the inside of her lip to keep from commenting. If Troy loved Chrissie as much as she believed, then wouldn’t he want to be with her?
“I hate the thought of Grandma in pain,” Chrissie added. “I don’t think I realized how much I love her until I found out she’d been hurt.”
“I know.” But bad as it was, the accident could have been so much worse.
The house was dark and quiet when they got home. Chrissie immediately turned on the hallway lights, and they both listened, breath held, for any alien sounds. There was nothing. The only thing out of the ordinary was a real estate business card tucked in the screen door; this was the third one. She was nowhere close to getting the house on the market. Susannah tossed the card, as she had the others, annoyed by the aggressiveness of the agents.
She hurried to her bedroom and surveyed it carefully, looking, she supposed, for another message from Jake. He couldn’t possibly know what had kept her away from their meeting.
“Mom, Carolyn’s on the phone,” Chrissie yelled from the kitchen.
Susannah hadn’t even heard it ring.
“I understand you just got in,” Carolyn said when she answered. “How’s your mother?”