Cross Country Chaos Read online

  Mart turned to him. “Yes I do. Very much.”

  The boy looked at the floor. “Do you love me and Paulie?”

  “You’d better believe it.”

  He looked at him. “Really?”

  Mart nodded. “Absolutely. I think it’s great I’ll get to be with all of you every day. Are you okay with that?”

  Denny nodded but looked sad.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “You can still be my coach, right?”

  “Yes, of course I’ll still be your coach. Is that what’s bugging you?”

  “I was worried when you married Mom you couldn’t be my coach anymore.”

  Mart laughed. “Naw. In fact, you’ll have to work even harder because I’ll be around all the time.”

  Denny grinned. “I don’t mind.”

  Mart relayed the conversation to Kelly. She laughed, then cried. “He was worried you couldn’t be his coach?”

  “Yeah.”

  “That’s so sweet. Here I was worried they might not want a stepdad.”

  “I think it’s safe to say we’re well past that point.”

  * * * *

  Late Tuesday afternoon, Denny streaked down the hall past Kelly’s office toward the front door. She couldn’t make out what he shouted. Paulie was close on his heels, and she removed her headphones. “What’s up?”

  “Mart’s here.”

  “What?” She wasn’t expecting him until tomorrow. He’d flown out early Monday morning for Seattle and must have returned that afternoon. He wanted to cancel his trip after the weekend’s events, but she assured him they’d be fine until his return.

  David made no attempt to contact the boys.

  Mart was unloading his van, a huge grin on his face.

  She walked over. “Hey you. What’s up?”

  He winked, and she laughed. “Pervert,” she whispered.

  “You love it.” He pulled her in for a quick kiss. Then to the boys, “I have a surprise for you.”

  He wheeled to the back and pulled out a huge box. “Paulie, help me out here, buddy.”

  Paulie helped him unload it. “This is for Denny,” Mart said. “And

  this—” he reached inside, pulled out two more boxes, “is for both of you. Let’s take them inside so you can open them.”

  The boys helped carry the boxes. Inside, Mart got out of his chair and helped Denny and Paulie open them. Denny bounced and flapped when he found the hockey sled.

  “Oh boy! Mom, look at this!”

  She leaned against the doorway, wondering how she’d managed to hit the jackpot with Mart. “I see it.”

  Paulie ripped into the other boxes and found a full set of equipment for Denny, including sticks. And a helmet, gloves, and skates for himself.

  “I got the size from your shoes,” Mart said. “If they don’t fit, we can exchange them. We’ll get you a stick in town—you need to find one that fits your height. This way you can help with practice. If you decide to join a team, we’ll get you a full set of pads to go with it.”

  “Thanks, Mart.” Paulie threw his arms around Mart. Kelly put a hand to her mouth, trying to hold back the tears.

  Denny hugged Mart too. “Thank you so much. This is awesome. Can I try it on?”

  “Sure.”

  Kelly watched as Mart and Paulie helped Denny into the various pads and properly adjust the helmet so it fit.

  Paulie tried on his skates. They fit, as did his helmet and gloves.

  She sat and watched them, without interrupting, not wanting the moment to end.

  Mart looked up and returned to his chair. He rolled over to her. “You okay, babe?”

  She nodded, hugging him. She whispered in his ear, “Do you know how much I absolutely love you right now?”

  He grinned and whispered, “If I’d known that, I would have bought hockey gear for them instead of the ring. It’s cheaper.” He winked.

  She laughed, and he pulled her in for a kiss. “Hey, they’re my boys too,” he said. “My boys want to play hockey, so they need the right equipment.”

  * * * *

  “He got them both hockey gear?” Patty asked the next afternoon at swim practice.

  Kelly nodded, watching the boys working with Greg. “Both of them. He didn’t get Paulie a full set of pads, just what he needs to get on the ice to help with sled hockey practice.”

  Patty shook her head. “And you’re not married to him yet, why?”

  Kelly watched the boys swim and didn’t answer.

  “Okay, spill it,” Patty said.

  Kelly fingered the pendant around her neck. She always wore it, her lucky talisman. “I need to talk to your sister.”

  “Why?” Kelly met Patty’s eyes. Patty grinned. “When?”

  Kelly shrugged. She looked at the pool and smiled. “We don’t know exactly. That’s why I want to talk to your sister to set the date. We have Denny’s meet in Birmingham, and then two weeks later, Mart and I have his races in Boston. Within a few weeks after that. I want to do it before Thanksgiving.”

  “Church?”

  “Hell, no. Didn’t work the first time for either of us. We’ll do it at my house.”

  “Congratulations. Kelly, I know he’s the one for you, he’s so sweet, and Ben said the boys love him.”

  “Really?”

  “Paulie told Ben what happened at David’s. He said, ‘You should have seen the way Mart protected my mom. It was awesome.’”

  She nodded. “It was, but I wish David hadn’t shown his ass in front of the boys.”

  “It was bound to happen sooner or later.”

  Kelly watched the boys. “I never wanted them to lose their dad.”

  “That’s not your fault. You were more than fair considering what that asshole did to you. This is all on David’s head, so don’t you go feeling bad about it. At least they have Mart they can rely on. Besides you, duh.”

  Kelly forced a smile. Then Mart appeared at the gate to join the swim session, and Kelly’s smile transformed into a wide grin.

  Patty noticed. She leaned closer and dropped her voice. “You both light up when you see each other. You know that?”

  “Yeah. I feel it.”

  “That’s what love’s supposed to feel like. Not dread.”

  Toward the end of her marriage, Kelly had dreaded David being home, even before she discovered his affairs. “I know, Patty. I love him.” She turned to her friend. “I’m happy.”

  Patty reached out and squeezed Kelly’s hand. “I know. I don’t think I’ve seen you this happy except when the boys were born.”

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Kelly worried she’d have to call David to get him to respond to her email about Denny’s meet. Either parent needed the other’s written agreement to take the boys out of state. Finally, two days before their scheduled departure for Birmingham, David responded with a one-word reply: Whatever.

  She took that as a yes.

  The boys missed two days of school, not that they were complaining. Mart drove while Kelly relaxed in the passenger seat.

  Mart was nothing like her father on trips. He was prepared, calm, and joked with her and the boys. He was scheduled to work the meet as an official, but he taught Kelly how to set up the throwing chair in case he missed any of the field events.

  Denny won all three of his track and all four of his swim events. Field was last, on Saturday afternoon.

  Kelly sat in a folding chair under an oak tree and tried to work on her laptop. Mart rolled up and leaned in for a kiss.

  “How are you doing?” he asked.

  “Tired. But I think they’re having fun.”

  “I checked the prelims. It looks like Denny’s holding onto first.”

  “Really? He’ll be happy.”

  “There’s still a couple of kids to go, but from their qualifying throws, I don’t think they can beat him. Don’t say anything until I know for sure.”

  “How much longer until we’re done?”

 
He glanced at his clipboard. “Probably two hours, then we can get dinner. Where are they?”

  She looked at the field, scanned, found them. “Over there.” She pointed to where Denny and Paulie sat under a staging tent, talking to a couple of boys from the Georgia team.

  “I see them.” He leaned in for another kiss, long, lingering, and touched her chin. “Weekend after next, you’re all mine.”

  She smiled, trying to ignore the pleasant tingle stirring inside her. “You better believe it,” she whispered, pausing to nibble on his ear before pulling away.

  He beamed. “God I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  Their moment was short-lived. Mart’s radio squawked, and a woman’s voice cut through their bubble. “I need an official on Pit Three for a record, please.”

  “I’ll be back,” he said with a fake Terminator accent, making Kelly laugh. He wheeled away across the field.

  Kelly squinted at her laptop, trying to make out the screen. A few minutes later, Paulie ran up, out of breath.

  “Mom, Denny’s sick.”

  “What? What’s wrong?”

  “I don’t know. He was doing okay, then he said he had a headache and felt kind of sick.”

  “Did he throw up?”

  “No, but he hasn’t been drinking any water. I yelled at him, but he didn’t do it.”

  She closed the laptop and slipped it into its case. “Let’s see.”

  Denny sat under the tent, looking mopey. “You’re a fink, Paulie.”

  “Shut up, Squirt,” he said as Kelly knelt in front of Denny.

  “How you feeling, honey?”

  He frowned and shifted in his chair. “I’m okay.”

  “You haven’t had any water?”

  He shook his head. Hopefully he was only dehydrated. That was the irony of spina bifida—you hoped something was “only” the flu or “only” dehydration, as opposed to a shunt failure.

  There was a cooler nearby with bottled water for the athletes. Kelly grabbed a bottle and opened it. “Drink this. Now.”

  He did, and a few minutes later, he nodded. “My headache’s better.”

  She sighed, relieved. She handed him another bottle. “I want to see this one empty in the next fifteen minutes.”

  He nodded.

  “Do you still feel sick to your stomach?”

  He shook his head.

  “It’s hot out here. If you get dehydrated, you’ll have to go to the hospital and they’ll put in an IV.”

  “No.”

  He hated IVs, and she hated using the threat. “Then drink.”

  He enthusiastically nodded and took a few swallows from the new bottle.

  “Don’t make yourself sick. Just keep drinking all afternoon, okay?”

  He nodded again.

  She walked back to her chair and sat, unable to work. Mart returned twenty minutes later. “What’s wrong?”

  She told him. He frowned. “Are you sure that’s all it was?”

  Kelly tried to ignore the nagging in her gut. “Don’t say it. Don’t you dare say it.”

  “There’s a great children’s hospital right here on campus.”

  “Don’t say it.”

  “Kelly, how do you know it’s not his shunt?”

  She closed her eyes. “Don’t jinx this. I don’t know. But he felt better after he drank some water, and his headache went away. If I haul him to the ER every time he gets a headache, he’ll get to the point where he won’t tell me if he has one. And it is hot.”

  Mart looked and found Denny under the tent. “I trust your judgment, but I’m saying there’s an easy option.”

  “I know. I appreciate it. If he gets sick again, we’ll take him. Right now let’s let him be, see how he does.”

  Mart nodded. “Okay.”

  Every time Kelly looked at Denny, he either had water or a sports drink in hand. She relaxed, confident she’d made the right choice. Dehydration was common and could happen to anyone, disabled or not.

  Early Sunday morning, Kelly went across the hall to wake the boys. They had a twelve hour drive ahead of them, and Mart wanted to get on the road after breakfast. Paulie woke immediately, but Denny was slower to respond.

  “What?” he mumbled.

  She gently shook him. “Come on, honey. Time to get up.”

  “I don’t want to.” He sounded grumpier than normal.

  “Tired?”

  “I have a headache. I want to go back to sleep.”

  Her stomach dropped. “You need to get up.”

  He did, and Kelly waited until he was in the bathroom to return to her room.

  “What’s wrong?” Mart asked. She told him, and he frowned. “Well?”

  She shook her head. “Let’s give him until breakfast—”

  Paulie pounded on their door. “Mom!”

  She flung it open. “What?”

  She knew from Paulie’s face there was a problem. “Denny just puked. Bad.”

  Kelly raced across the hall and found Denny crying and leaning over the tub. “I’m sorry, Mommy.”

  “Shh.” She grabbed a washcloth and wiped his face. “It’s okay.”

  “I don’t want a shunt, Mommy!”

  Her stomach tightened. She heard Mart crowd into the bathroom doorway. “It’s okay,” she told Denny. “You might be sick from yesterday. But we need to get you a CT scan.”

  “I’ll call the front desk,” Mart said, “and tell them we aren’t checking out. Paulie, get dressed and get what your mom needs for your brother.”

  The older boy nodded and jumped to it. Mart was already dressed. He met Kelly’s eyes. “It’s okay, Kel. I’ll stay with him. Go get dressed.”

  Mart moved out of the doorway and grabbed her hand as she walked past. “This’ll be okay.”

  She nodded, fighting her nervous tears. This was her baby. It didn’t get any easier no matter how many times it happened.

  When she returned, Mart had Denny and the worst of the mess cleaned up.

  If she didn’t marry him for that alone, she was nuts. David didn’t do puke clean-up unless practically forced at gunpoint.

  “Let’s get him over there right now,” Mart said.

  They headed for the elevator. Denny let her push his chair. He sat, slumped over, his eyes closed.

  Mart helped them load and drove them to the pediatric ER entrance. After filling out paperwork, they were taken to an exam room. Denny quietly sat while the nurse took his vital signs and asked him questions.

  “You’re in luck,” the nurse said. “There’s a PA on duty today for one of the pediatric neuro-surgeons. We’ve already called him, and he’s ordering a CT scan.

  “Thank you,” Kelly said. Mart’s arm encircled her waist, and she struggled not to cry. She had to stay strong.

  Paulie sat in a chair in the corner next to Denny’s bed, watching cartoons with him.

  “I have to call David,” Kelly whispered in Mart’s ear.

  Mart held out his hand for her phone. “I’ll do it.”

  “But—”

  “Kelly, I don’t have a problem dealing with the guy. You’ve got enough stress.”

  She handed him the phone. He wheeled out and returned a few minutes later.

  “Well?”

  Mart’s face was a thinly disguised mask of anger. He leaned over and whispered, “He bitched I woke him up. When I told him we thought Denny’s shunt might be bad, he said to call him later.”

  “That’s it?” How could even David be that callous?

  Mart nodded. He leaned in closer, his mouth next to her ear. “I told him it was possible Denny would need surgery, and he said, ‘Whatever. Call me after it’s over.’”

  She fought a wave of fury and reached for the phone. “Give it.”

  He shook his head. “No. Getting into a fight with him won’t help.”

  “I’m going to call Beatrice.”

  Mart hesitated, then handed her the phone. Kelly went to Denny. “I’ll be ri
ght back, honey.”

  He nodded. She walked to the lobby, fighting her angry shakes. Beatrice answered on the second ring. “Hello?”

  “It’s Kelly.”

  “Oh, thank God! What’s going on?”

  “What the hell is wrong with David?”

  Beatrice was silent for a long moment. “He’s drunk.”

  “What? It’s—” she looked at the clock on the waiting room wall and did the math, “eight o’clock in the morning there.”

  “I’m sorry, Kelly. I tried to get the phone away from him when Martin called, but I wasn’t fast enough. David hung up on him before I could find out what’s wrong.”

  “We’re waiting for a CT scan. If David sobers up enough to care, tell him they might have to do a shunt revision. I don’t like having it done away from home, but it’s not like we’re only a short drive away.”

  “I know. I’m so sorry.” It sounded like Beatrice was struggling not to cry. When she spoke again, she kept her voice low. “I may not be around here much longer. I’m looking for an apartment. David doesn’t know. I wouldn’t let the boys come over here after I go. His drinking is out of control. If you want, I’ll testify for you, I promise. I’ll sign an affidavit or whatever you need, but until David gets into rehab, the boys shouldn’t be alone with him.”

  Kelly’s gut clenched. This was too much, too soon. “Thank you for your honesty.”

  “I love the boys, I think they’re great. I really do. But David—” Beatrice sounded like she was trying not to cry. “He loves the boys. Really. I know he doesn’t act like it, but he does. He needs help. He’s gone downhill the past couple of months. Please tell Denny I hope he feels better and give him a hug for me. I’ll keep my cell phone on me all day. Please, call as soon as you know something.”

  Of all possible emotions, Kelly didn’t expect to feel sympathy for Beatrice. “I will. It might be a few hours.”

  “Thank you.”

  Kelly returned to the room. Mart raised his eyebrow, but before she could talk, a white-coated young man walked in and introduced himself. “I’m Steve Davis, Dr. Arslowe’s PA. You’re Mom and Dad?”

  Mart was closer and held out his hand. “Yes.”

  Neither Kelly nor the boys corrected him.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Thirty minutes later, Kelly stood in radiology, a heavy lead apron wrapped around her while Denny “rode the doughnut,” as they had nicknamed the CT machine. Mart took Paulie to the cafeteria to eat. Kelly would eat later. Denny couldn’t eat in case he needed surgery, so neither would she.