The Complete Where Dreams - Volume 2 of 2

Chapter 17-1

Chapter 17

Perrin knew what she had to do, and hated it. Hated the situation. Hated herself most of all. At least she was used to that part of it.

She sat in the farthest corner of the painfully white hospital waiting room. As far as possible from Jaspar now behind some anonymous curtain in the ER, far from the three yarn-bombed chairs she and Tammy had done together a mere few days ago, and close by the sliding glass doors she’d have to use in a few minutes.

She wanted to run through them now and out into the fading Seattle afternoon. Run and never stop, but there was one thing she had to do first. So she waited, her hands clasped in her lap until all feeling had long since left them, staring straight ahead at a poster about identifying different reactions to different types of bug bites. Normally, it would creep her out, but she was too numb.

It had all gone wrong so fast, that’s what she couldn’t wrap her head around. One moment she’d been curled against Bill, laughing with Cassidy and Tammy, and the next a screaming Jaspar had gone shooting by the stern. Russell had been in the water so fast he hadn’t been ten feet behind the boy. So fast, Perrin didn’t even have time to be afraid for him. Cassidy had turned the big boat back to Russell and Jaspar so fast it was a miracle.

But on the drive to the hospital she’d learned that it wasn’t an accident, not merely a bad wave and a clumsy ten-year old. Tamara had sobbed out her story, unheeding and unaware of where the axe had fallen. This wasn’t just a bump in the road, it was the end of the line. It was going to kill her heart to walk away, but she had to. But first…

Bill staggered out into the waiting room looking haggard. He scanned the weekend crowds, about two-thirds of the chairs were filled, before spotting her and coming over. He dropped into the seat beside her. The dark rings under his eyes showed the awful toll the last few hours had taken on him.

“Well, that was fun.”

She couldn’t make herself laugh, not even as a kindness.

“Clean break. Bit of a mess because of all the jostling, but they have that sewn back up and the bone reset. They gave him a painkiller, so he’s resting easier now. Tammy won’t leave him, not even when he yelled at her. Can’t figure that one out, he never yells at Tammy like that. First one he goes to when he’s hurting, even before me. She just sits there like a ghost, holding onto his foot like she’ll never let him go.” He scrubbed his hands over his face then offered her a weak smile, “How’s your day been?”

“Bill… ” her throat closed. How was she supposed to say what she had to say to this poor, exhausted man? A deep breath didn’t help, mostly because she couldn’t make her diaphragm take one.

Finally catching her mood, he sobered and turned to face her.

“I only stayed to say goodbye… ” she didn’t even pause for a breath, the only way through was absolute truth to the end… and speed. She had to say it fast or maybe it really would kill her. “The reason they fought is that I’m the problem. I’ve taken you and Tamara away from Jaspar and he’s angry. He’s so angry and hurt. He’ll be even angrier that you’re out here now with me. Your children need you and all I’m doing is driving them away. Don’t come after me. I won’t talk to you. I won’t see you. I owe that to your children.”

She stood and walked out the door before he could respond. When she made it through the door, she saw Cassidy and Russell had arrived from putting the boat away. She did the only thing she could think of, she turned in the other direction and ran—it was all that was left for her to do.