Riverbend (9 page)

“Sweet television,” said Alder.

“Don't get too excited,” said Annie. “Same rules as home. One hour max.”

“Mom, really?”

“Really.”

Behind another door was the bedroom, with a four-poster, king-size bed and matching dresser made in walnut. Long white curtains hung over large windows. There were two sitting chairs in a light tan fabric, facing one another, with an ottoman between them. On one wall was another fireplace, this one made with jagged and uneven gray rocks. The bed was made up with white linens, a tan throw blanket, and one blue and white accent pillow.

“This is a beautiful room,” said Annie.

Drake went to the window, pulling back one of the curtains an inch so that it matched its mate hanging on the other side of the window. “This space was designed for my sister. She lives in Los Angeles. But she might not ever come to visit.”

“Why?” asked Alder.

“She's a make-up artist for movie stars. Loves her work. And she has a boyfriend,” he added, with a wry twist of his mouth. He didn't
like the boyfriend. That was obvious. But why?

“Oh,” Alder said, nodding his head like he knew all about women and their boyfriends. “That explains it.”

Drake shrugged, a look of disdain on his face. “I can't imagine how anyone could live down there with all those phonies, but she likes it. For now.”

Annie glanced at her watch. It was just after three o'clock. “Should we get going? It might take us an hour to get packed up.”

“Sure thing,” said Drake.

In Drake's car on the way to her home, the air conditioner blew on her face so that her curls tickled her forehead and cheeks. Alder, in the back seat, was quiet. She resisted the urge to ask him if he was all right. He hated it when she hovered over him lately. Motherhood was a constant exercise in letting go, she thought. Every day they grew more independent from their mother. As it should be, of course. She knew that. But it still hurt.

She told Drake where to turn off the main highway. “Just stay on this road for five or so miles. I'll tell you when to turn onto our road.”

They drove for a mile or two in silence. “Haven't been this way before,” he said.

“A lot of the older homes are out this way.” She told him briefly of her rental arrangement with Lee and of their shared history, both what brought Lee to River Valley and the story of opening the restaurant, leaving out the part about how much danger Lee had been in when she first arrived.

He glanced over at her. “I remember the story from the papers. The high tech community was shocked when her husband committed suicide. Matter of fact, I had my eye on Lee Tucker. She was well respected in my circles.”

“She's a great businesswoman. What she's done with the restaurant is nothing short of amazing.”

“Your food is the biggest part of that.”

“Yeah, Mom,” said Alder from the back.

She smiled. “Well, my point is, she runs the business side of things so I can focus on cooking. I barely know how to turn on a computer and she's a whiz with spreadsheets and all that kind of thing. We're a great team.”

At the curve in the road before her driveway she let him know to turn. He did so, slowing the car as the road turned to gravel.

“Would you like to come in?” she asked, glancing at the house. It was an old farmhouse, freshly painted white with black trim and with a sweeping porch in the front. Nothing like the majestic mountain retreat of Drake Webber's home, but home nonetheless for her and Alder. They'd been happy here, both of them grateful to live in a newly remodeled home, especially compared to the small apartments and trailers of their past.

“I'd better,” said Drake. “Make sure it's all clear.”

They were all getting out of the car when there was the sound of another car coming down the long dirt driveway. She tensed, anticipating the worst. But it was only Tommy's truck, bouncing in the potholes. Lee was sitting beside him, her strawberry blond hair blowing in the breeze from an open window. Ellie-Rose was in a car seat in the backseat.

“Who is it?” asked Drake, his eyes alert.

“It's just Lee and Tommy,” said Alder.

Tommy pulled up next to Drake's car. Lee hopped out almost immediately, her gaze on Drake, while Tommy opened the back to get Ellie-Rose.

“We came by to steal some herbs from your garden,” said Lee. “Hope you don't mind.”

“Not at all.” Annie gestured towards Drake. “You remember Drake Webber.”

“Of course. My best customer for two weeks there.” Lee smiled in her gentle way but her eyes were distrusting. She didn't like him, Annie could tell. She'd been skeptical when Annie first told her what he'd offered to pay for one day of cooking. It still took Lee a long time to trust anyone outside her tight circle of friends.

Tommy, with Ellie-Rose on his hip, reached out to shake Drake's
hand. “Don't believe we've met, though,” said Tommy.

“You're the singer,” said Drake. “I recognize you from your posters.”

“That's right. You should come hear us some time. We play four nights a week in the summer.”

“I don't think so,” said Drake. “Not my kind of thing.” He was staring at Ellie-Rose, like someone looking at an old photograph, perhaps pained at seeing the past one could not get back.

“Sure. Of course.” Tommy's face was open and kind, as always, but she could see he was trying to understand this mysterious man.

“Can you guys come in for a minute?” asked Annie. “I need to talk to you.”

Ellie-Rose was squirming in Tommy's arms. “Dada. Down. Me play with Alder.”

Alder held out his hands as Tommy set her on the ground. “Come on, munchkin. You can help me pack.” They headed, hand in hand, towards the house.

“Pack?” asked Lee, twisting around to look at Annie. “What's he talking about?”

“Wait,” called out Drake to Alder. “Don't go inside without me.” His voice was loud, almost panicked. Alder jumped and scooped up Ellie-Rose in his arms, standing still in the middle of the yard.

“Alder, you two stay out here until I make sure everything's all right,” said Drake.

“Okay, we will,” said Alder.

“Swing,” said Ellie-Rose, pointing at the swing hanging from the large oak in the front yard. Alder put her down and she ran towards it with him behind her. He set her on top of the flat swing. “Hold on tight,” he said, pushing her in a two-foot arc back and forth.

Drake looked over at Annie. He reached inside his car and pulled a small pistol out of the glove box before stuffing it in the pocket of his pants. “Don't worry,” he said to Annie. “I took shooting lessons for months. I'm perfectly safe.”

Tommy and Lee both stared at him as he headed towards the house. At the front door, he stopped. “Is it locked?” he called to Annie.

“Oh, yes, right,” she said, feeling Lee and Tommy's gaze boring
a hole through her backside. She sprinted to the porch where she took the key from her purse and opened the door. “I don't think there's any way to get in,” she said to Drake. “The house is fairly secure.”

“Don't be ridiculous,” said Drake. “We're never safe. Especially not in a house without a security system. You need a locked gate and a system installed in this house. Even then, it's not safe.” He looked at her, his eyes empty of expression. “You stay here. I'll go in and make sure it's clear. Keep your friends and the kids out here, too.”

He reached for his gun, cocked it and went inside. He almost seemed like a cop the way he handled the gun, she thought. Or some kind of crazy vigilante.

The screen door slammed. She turned to see Tommy and Lee standing on the steps.

“What the hell's going on?” asked Lee, her face both scared and angry. “Why does he have a gun?”

“Sit,” said Annie, pointing to the steps. “I'll tell you everything.” She hesitated when tears threatened to stifle her voice but as succinctly as possible she told them of the phone calls from Marco and Drake Webber's offer.

“But why would he do this?” asked Lee. “He hardly knows you.”

“I don't know. But it's safer there with him than anywhere. You should see this house and security system. It's like something a movie star would have. There's no way to get in there.” Annie paused, wanting to bite her nails but keeping herself from it. “You don't know what Marco is capable of. He almost killed me more than once.”

Tommy was shaking his head, his eyes soft and sympathetic. “I had no idea. Why haven't you ever told us this before?”

“I thought it was all behind me. I never wanted to think about him ever again.” Her eyes filled. “I've tried so hard to keep all this from Alder. And now here he is again. I'm frightened out of my mind, you guys.”

Lee put her arm around her. “I'm so sorry. God, I know exactly how you feel, unfortunately.”

Just then Drake came out the front door. “All clear.”

They stood. Annie gestured for Alder to bring Ellie-Rose inside with them. “I don't want them outside alone from now on.”

“But what can be done to catch this guy?” asked Lee.

Ellie-Rose, running, stumbled in the grass, falling on her hands. She began to cry. Tommy, sprinting, reached her and pulled her up into his arms. “You're okay. Are you my tough girl?” He ran his hands down her arms and legs in the way parents do to ensure nothing was broken. He called over to Lee. “She's fine. Not even a scratch.”

Lee smiled, rolling her eyes at Annie. “Of course she is. She falls like fifty times a day. Papa bear is still so protective.”

Drake put his hand on the doorway, as if he might fall over. He was breathing heavily and his face was white. His lips looked almost purple.

“Drake, what's wrong?” asked Annie, putting her hand on his arm.

He gasped, like it was hard to breathe. “I'm having an attack.” He put his forehead on the doorframe now. Sweat pooled on his forehead. “In my car.” His chest rose and fell, as if he couldn't get enough air in, like a child with asthma. “My pills.” Another ragged breath, and then, “In the glove box.”

Annie ran to his car and yanked open the glove box. Nestled beside a road map and car registration was a prescription bottle with a drug she didn't recognize. By the time she turned to run back towards the house the porch was empty. She darted across the grass and went inside the house. Tommy had, apparently, transformed from daddy to paramedic mode in a split second. Drake was sprawled on the couch with the top two buttons of his shirt undone, with Tommy kneeling next to him. Lee was coming out of the kitchen with a cold glass of water. Annie shook a pill into her hand before giving it to Tommy, who then helped Drake sit up and swallow it.

“Where are the kids?” whispered Annie to Lee, worried they were frightened.

“Eating a cookie in the kitchen,” said Lee. “They're fine. I told Ellie-Rose that Mr. Webber has a booboo.”

“Sweetheart,” said Tommy to Lee, “would you get my
paramedic bag out of the car?”

“Of course,” said Lee, looking apologetic and glancing at Annie. “I should've figured that one out on my own.”

After she returned with the bag, the two of them hung near the doorway between the kitchen and the living room, watching Tommy listen to Drake's heart and take his pulse and temperature. But Drake's breathing was back to normal. The color had returned to his cheeks.

“You been having these anxiety attacks long?” asked Tommy, perching on the coffee table.

“Three years,” said Drake, staring at the ceiling, still flat on his back. “So embarrassing this happened now.”

“Don't worry about it, man. We're all friends here.”

“So let me get this straight, Tommy. You're a paramedic and a musician?”

“And a firefighter and a songwriter.” Tommy chuckled. “I know. It's weird. But you get used to it after a while and I'll seem totally normal.” He looked over at Lee and Annie. “Right, girls?”

“Honey, no one in this house thinks you're normal,” said Lee. “But we love you anyway.”

For the first time since they'd arrived, Drake seemed to relax. The corners of his mouth turned up into an almost smile. “Well, then, you'll understand perfectly that I have every intention of becoming a recluse on the side of my mountain. That's about as weird as you get.”

“Is it because of your attacks? You don't want to be around people?” asked Tommy in a gentle tone. Only Tommy could ask such a personal question and make it sound non-intrusive.

Drake's face twitched in that same way she'd seen twice already that day. “You'd think that, but no, actually. My attacks are a symptom of something else. Something I don't talk about.” He sat up. “That said, this was truly embarrassing.” He held out his hand to Tommy. “Hell of a first meeting.”

The men shared a smile. Leave it to Tommy, thought Annie, to loosen up the elusive Drake Webber.

Lee came into the living room and sat on the couch next to Drake. “We're appreciative of you offering to help Annie and Alder.
But we don't know you. We have no idea if you're a safe haven, regardless of your security system.” Her voice was cold and firm, like it was when she negotiated with vendors.

Drake looked her in the eyes.
Both of them steely
, thought Annie.
Good business people—not all soft and mushy like Tommy and me.
“I understand completely why you would be skeptical. Just know this. It makes me sick to think of any woman or child in danger. If there was anything I could do to make it safe for them, despite my own issues, which, as you can see by this little episode today, are extensive, I will not hesitate to do everything in my power to help. I couldn't live with myself if something happened to them because I chose to do nothing when I have so many resources to help. That's all it is. No agenda. I don't need anything from them. I don't need anything from anyone. And I have no need or desire for human companionship. So, as much as I understand your concerns, hell, I would have them myself if it were my best friend, you needn't worry.”