reporters snuck in for the candid shot.”
Most of her flowers hadn’t been delivered from well-wishers. The hospital had purchased them to set the ‘healing atmosphere’ that blended impressively for the perfect newspaper photograph.
No wonder she’d needed an escape.
Dani sighed at the memory and looked back to her aunt.
Still nothing, but she was listening.
Kathryn always listened. She listened and judged and made sure that she was superior in our own mind.
“I know why you loved Julia and Erica more than me.” Dani cut to the chase and said promptly, “You loved the same man that my momma loved and I’m thinking…I’m a bit too like my momma for you to pretend I was yours. I’m right, aren’t I?”
The corpse disguise was done to perfection. No twitch, no reaction, nothing.
“I look like momma. I don’t look like him, do I? And that’s what you kept in that sick head of yours. It’s why you didn’t fight Mae at all, when she wanted to adopt me. It wasn’t because that’s what my momma wanted—you couldn’t pretend I was yours.”
A shallow, ragged, breath escaped her aunt’s parched lips.
“I’ve been thinking about it. You and momma had the same taste in men. My momma wasn’t ‘right’ in the head, as some people have said, and you’ve never married. In fact, you’ve never been with any man. Those are the types that hold on the longest and you held on, didn’t you?”
A single tear escaped her aunt’s eyelid, but Dani realized that she was unemotional. Flat.
She ceased caring.
“I should be angry at you. Julia told me that I was the one that pulled away, but that’s not true, is it? You pushed me away and a nine year old feels that and thinks it’s something wrong with her. There wasn’t anything wrong with me, Aunt Kathryn. It was you. Something was wrong with you.”
“You ungrateful…” the corpse hissed.
“See—I’m not ungrateful, but I’m not grateful. I’m…just figuring it all out, Aunt Kathryn, and that’s how I see it. That’s how everything went down, didn’t it?”
“Leave.”
The order was expected. Her grandmomma had said the same thing, but Dani didn’t think it was her.
It was the courage she spoke.
Dani nodded in acceptance and pushed out of the brief comfortable chair, “Fine, but I am your niece. I’m still your niece and Julia is not your birth daughter. She’s my momma’s and you can’t erase her DNA, no matter how much you wish you could. I’d sure like to know who my daddy is, but I know you won’t tell me—not on your deathbed since you kept it quiet for thirty years.”
She stopped short and turned back, “I promised Julia that I’d come and see you. She didn’t want you to die thinking you only had one niece left in this world, but I think she got it wrong. You wanted to forget that I ever existed and Julia’s misdirected wish did the opposite of what she wanted. You would’ve been happier if I hadn’t come, wouldn’t you?”
“You should respect the dying,” Kathryn finally opened her eyes and said harshly.
“I know.” Dani nodded. “And I know I should, but I respect the truth more. This was a good chat. I feel good about it.”
There wasn’t much else to say so she left.
The coffee tasted better and her feet had a lighter tread.
There wasn’t any water for her to slide on, so Dani felt good when she left the hospital.
The sun winked back at her.
The community center was packed to the brinking point and yet, Dani watched in amazement as familiar faces from the River’s Headquarters approached the water’s edge. More and more were still arriving, dried and grateful.
Dani didn’t need to worry about searching for her friends.
Kate found her and yawned, “Morningwhere’dyoudisappearto?”
“Disperieto?”
“No.” Kate laughed. “No. Sorry. Where’d you disappear to this morning? I know you slept in the office because I woke up at four and you were curled all cute-like in Jonah’s dusty blanket.”
“Oh, I went to see my aunt and Jonah went somewhere else. It’s all secretive.”
“Hmm.” Kate sighed, “I suppose I should round up my awful-tasting partner—that sounded very wrong. I meant…”
“Your partner that has awful taste.”
“Yes! Thank you, God!”
“Everyone’s coming in?”
“Hmm mmm.” Kate nodded. “Everyone’s supposed to round up for emergencies. It’s typical protocol and I’m supposed to report to duty. Where is Jake?”
“Over there.” Dani pointed the path and Kate harrumphed before she followed.
Aiden took her place and spoke before spoken to, “So, mi hermano called and said that we have to sit tight before saving my home. You know how long?”
“He said through the night.”
“Great.”
Bubba followed behind, tired as everyone else, “Anyone have cards?”
“Sadly, I never played poker last night, but I’m pokered out.” Aiden grimaced. “Bad memories for the rest of my life.”
“Who knew how powerful poker was?” Dani teased.
“You’re in a good mood,” Aiden announced. “How come?”
“I bid my farewell to my aunt this morning and I survived another disaster. I have good reason to be chipper.”
Aiden caught her arm. “What?! ‘Another’ natural disaster?”
Dani shook her off, “No, no. Mum’s the word. I’ve filled up with emotional conversations. Chipper is how I’m going to be from now on.”
“Famous last words, Flamingo Two,” Bubba forewarned and teased.
“I will always be known as that, won’t I?”
“Pretty much.” Aiden left the ‘another’ incident alone and Dani relaxed, a little. The chipper was starting to be more forced as the conversation went along.
Aiden added, “So the Morning Aunt was in a good mood?”
“No. And no—it was not touchy-feely-share-y stuff this morning. It was more me, saying a lot of things that Kathryn would probably not ever want aired, but I said what I needed to say and she never corrected me, which...is worse.”
“Flamingo Two, you have lost Chimp Two,” Bubba grunted.
“No decoding necessary. It wasn’t good content to be shared. Sorry.”
“Well, I hail from a long line of ‘not good content to be shared’ hailers…that was awful, sorry,” Aiden said ruefully. “I’m just saying…good for you. There’s quite a bit that I haven’t ‘shared’ with my father and it resulted in my wacky breakdown last night.”
“Before your house got flooded and we all had to flee for our lives.”
“Yes. Not good timing.”
“Ah!” Aiden cried out. “They have donuts! And I’m over thirty and my metabolism can’t take that and I really hate this flood even more.”
“Your heart will always be child-like.” Dani grinned.
“As it should! Thank you.”
Bubba wrapped an arm around his wife, but Aiden shoved him off. “Oh, no—ew! We both smell and I don’t love you that much.”
“Chimp Two has been rejected from his first mate. Chimp Two shall maybe look elsewhere for another Chimp One.”
“Chimp Two is welcome to do just that,” Aiden murmured as they passed the donuts and inhaled the grease-filled air. “They smell heavenly.”
“I bet chimps have great metabolism,” Dani mused.
“I bet chimps could eat an entire box of donuts.”
“Hopefully it wouldn’t poison them like chocolate and dogs.”
“Hmmm. I can dream.”
Bubba had left, long ago.
“Oh, there’s Mae.” And Aiden went in search to ensure no Chimp One was found elsewhere.
Her aunt was hesitant, but Dani quickly hailed, “I can’t do emotional right now so it’s only light-hearted conversations allowed. And that definitely leaves out adoption conversations.”
Mae chuckled dryly and sighed in relief. “Thank God.”
“Yes.”
They fell silent and watched the parade of dazed, lost, and the pissed walk around them.
“Not a lot of folks enjoy getting told they need to leave their homes,” Mae noted.
“It’s for their safety.”
“They don’t see it that way.”
Something in her aunt’s voice had Dani frowning, “What do you mean?”
“A lot of homes weren’t touched by the flash floods. A lot of folks are coming in to hear whatever bullshit story is the reason why they have to uproot from their dry homes.”
“Because it’s still raining and there are still flash floods going on. The water’s rising, Mae.”
“Its farther north. It ain’t that bad around here anymore. The river nearly touched my Grill, but I ain’t worried. We haven’t flooded since ‘62. That flood wiped everyone out, but they built the dam since then.”
“It’s flooding pretty bad up north?”
“Yeah. Round about near the dam, but I don’t think those folk are being forced out of their homes.”
Dani frowned.
Mae sensed her niece’s perusal and shrugged, “I just don’t like being forced from my home. That’s all. I gotta think a lot of folk feel the same. I don’t think they’ll sit tight and wait for any announcement saying it’s okay to go home. They’ll come in, hear any reason that Jonah might be cooking up, and probably head back home.”
“This isn’t some controversy. Whatever reason that Jonah has for this, it’s not some government controversy. Do you think people are thinking that?”
“Folk don’t trust the government that well around here.”
“Why?”
Mae quieted.
“No, I want to know why.”
“Because…I know that Jonah’s got reason, but a while back before Tenderfoot Rush brought a lot of tourists to this region, people were hurting for money. Craigstown was dying and a lot of resorts tried coming in to help out the revenue, but the government said no because of the land’s safety. It set a lot of seeds inside people and some of those seeds are still in bloom. Jonah was nearly crucified a few years back when he wouldn’t let that big company into town.”
“I thought that was actually good.”
“Those people aren’t thinking that right now. What sits with them is that Jonah didn’t let them get more money. They like the water around here, but with being flooded and forced out of their homes—they’re not too caring about its quality and such. A lot of resentment bristling amongst this group today.”
Talk about doom and gloom.
Mae’s prediction turned out accurate and Dani noticed an emptiness around the community center a few hours later. She even stood at the door and watched as Julia left. The waters were decreasing, but the mayor announced everyone needed to stay together in the center. Flooding increased more and more farther north and that water would travel south.
Dani was helpless as she realized people ceased to see reason at times. Especially when old emotions reared their ugly heads and deep-rooted beliefs, no matter how illogical, started churning their wheels. She almost started to think that people left out of spite, not caring about their safety.
Aiden and Bubba remained oblivious and happy. Robbie joined their group as Dani sat down with a blanket over her lap.
Mae had moved to a card game with Barney and Jeffries.
Dani could hear their chatter, but she wasn’t avidly listening.
Robbie turned to her and asked, “So, where’s Jonah lately?”
Aiden and Bubba looked up from their card game (they had folded) and waited with somber expressions on their faces.
“I don’t know.”
“The mayor didn’t really say anything,” Aiden spoke up. “Just that we’re supposed to sit tight, but Jonah said if we get clear through the night, then we should be okay.”
“The water’s gone down outside,” Robbie murmured.
“Flooding up north can affect us too,” Bubba noted.
“I know, but my home’s safe. I built it high enough.”
“Nothing’s safe,” Aiden muttered to herself. “You can’t expect anything to be immune to the weather, even if it’s got money behind it.”
Robbie stiffened. “What?”
“Nothing.”
Bubba didn’t say a word.
“No,” Robbie pushed forward. “What are you talking about?”
“Nothing.”
“This have to do with your dad staying at my place?”
“No.”
“Or was that some poke at me because I’ve got some money.”
“You’ve got more than some,” Aiden snorted and sat up. “You took a pretty penny with that settlement you won.” She shot a furtive glance at Dani, but continued, “And you got partner because of that. You’re one of the few attorneys in town. You make more than all three of us together right here.”
“Not Dani.”
“What?” Aiden and Bubba looked up.
Robbie quieted a moment, but said anyway, “Dani’s got near a million in the bank.”
They all looked at her and Dani asked, “How do you know that?”
She shouldn’t have been surprised. She’d always supposed small towns knew everything, but no one had questioned the unusual amount in her bank account. She’d actually thought that Mrs. Gallows had kept to her confidentiality clause, but...
Robbie gave up the game and said shortly, “Kelley Lynn was in the bank when you deposited that check. She overheard Mrs. Gallows.”
“And Kelley Lynn is your secretary,” Dani said faintly. “I love how everyone is so connected in small towns. Makes me remember why I needed to leave before.”
“You have almost a million dollars?” Aiden cried out.
Dani shrugged, “So?”
“Where’d that come from?”
“That’s…private.”
“Does Jonah know?”
“Is it any of his business?” Dani countered.
“Yes! Jonah would want to know that.”
Dani didn’t think it was the typical reason why people wanted to know who had what in their bank accounts.
Dani casted bait, “Do you guys not like people who have money?”
Aiden took it, “What are you talking about?”
“You just threw money in Robbie’s face. You seem irritated that I’ve got some and you say that Jonah would want to know that. What? Is it the money thing? Do you not like anyone who has money because you think they’ll turn into your father?”
Aiden sucked in her breath, taken aback. And Dani waited. What she had in her bank account was her business and no one else’s. Why that money was there was her business and no one else and she wasn’t ever going to feel the sharing mood about her past.