Page 81 of Reckoning

“Oh, yes…he is. Just a moment.”

Tate heard a click, then Vernon Autry was on the line.

“Tate! I trust your trip was enjoyable,” he said.

“It was eye-opening, for sure. So, about those credits…”

“We had a school board meeting while you were gone. I, along with the counselor and all of your teachers, made a decision regarding your request. We took the extra year you almost finished into consideration, along with that perfect SAT score, the IQ test, and your age issues, and voted unanimously that you have more than qualified to receive your high school diploma. It’s signed, stamped, and all yours. You can pick it up in the office from Della anytime. You have the opportunity to do just about anything you want in life. We all want to wish you the best in your future endeavors.”

Tate breathed a long sigh of relief. “Thank you, sir. Thank you.” He hung up. Now he needed to talk to Briar before anything else occurred.

Abel was outside helping Lilith pick tomatoes when Tate walked out the back door and into the garden.

“I have news. I am officially a high school graduate. My diploma is sitting in the high school office. I’ll pick it up tomorrow. Contact a Realtor. Start packing. Find a moving van. Whatever it takes to get you home before winter.”

They stood up, staring at him as if he were a ghost. “Wait! What? How?” Abel asked.

“A combination of things. Nearly doing first grade twice, which meant I’ve already attended twelve years of school, plus six weeks or so. A perfect SAT score and that absurd IQ test I aced. I’ve already exceeded the number of credits I needed to graduate. They had a board meeting. It was a unanimous decision. I need to talk to Briar. And I have that dang press conference in the park in an hour or so, and I need to borrow a vehicle.”

“My car,” Lilith said. “Take my car.”

Tate blew her a kiss and went back into the house, leaving Abel and Lilith staring at each other in shock.

“Oh my God, Abel. My head is spinning. He’s done this for us, but he will be leaving Briar months ahead of their plan.”

Abel nodded. “He’s sacrificing for you, the way you sacrificed for him when we stayed. He’s turned into quite a man, not to mention a son to be proud of. Let’s finish gathering the tomatoes. And no, you’re not going to start canning tomorrow. The next vegetables you put up will be whatever we grow next year. We’re going to go see a Realtor tomorrow and get this house up for sale.”

Lilith started laughing as she threw her arms around Abel’s neck. It was happening. It was finally happening. They were going home for good.

* * *

Briar was standing in the kitchen, admiring the new french doors and the new cookstove. The whole house was finally put back together. Even the flower beds in the backyard had been replanted. The wicker chair and table on the back patio where her mother used to drink herself into oblivion had been replaced by a metal bench with a cushioned seat. But the best part of the renovation was that every vestige of Mariah’s presence had been erased.

She knew Tate was coming home today and couldn’t wait to see him again, and when her phone suddenly dinged a new text, she grinned.

I’m home. God, I missed you. I have news. We need to talk. I’m on the way.

She read it twice. It felt more like a warning than a greeting, and she braced herself for what was to come. Whatever it was, it was what it had to be.

A few minutes later she heard a car driving up, then footsteps on the porch, and went running for the door.

* * *

Tate’s heart was pounding as he drove to Briar’s house. They didn’t have six more months together. He was leaving Star Ridge as soon as he could find a place in New Orleans. It was about to get crazy, and he had to get the conflict of his life away from the people he loved most. He didn’t know how she was going to react, and it was going to kill him if she cried.

He glanced in the rearview mirror as he drove, making sure no one was following him to her house, and as soon as he arrived, he jumped out and took off running. Before he could ring the bell, the door swung open. He stepped across the threshold, shut the door behind him, then gathered her in his arms and held her.

Now Briar knew something was wrong. “What’s happening?”

“Everything all at once,” he said.

“Come sit,” she said. “Then tell me…one thing at a time.” He began with the diploma and what Mr. Autry just told him. Briar’s heart dropped. That meant he wouldn’t be in school anymore. “Okay, that’s one thing.”

“Did you know the town is full of reporters?” he asked.

Her eyes widened. “No. Are they looking for you?”

He nodded. “There was a van at the front door before we barely got inside, wanting an interview with the psychic who keeps saving people’s lives. I won’t go into detail what I said to them, but I promised one meeting with all of them at the gazebo in the park in about an hour.”