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She kissed her mother’s cheek. Then she hugged me causing me to send mashed potatoes flying all over the counter when the mixer pulled out of the bowl.
“Rhonda,” Dana scolded her.
“Sorry Mom.” Rhonda grabbed the paper towels and cleaned up the mess while I finished mixing the potatoes. Together, Rhonda and I scooped them into a big serving bowl that she carried to the table.
I had never experienced dinner with so many people before. Cal took my hand when his grandfather led us in prayer. Rhonda to sat to my left so she held my other hand. His grandfather was a thoughtful man. He prayed for his son’s safety when he returned overseas. He prayed for his granddaughter, Rhonda who wanted another baby soon. “May her heart and her body heal quickly,” he said.
I squeezed her hand and she glanced at me out of the corner of her eye and winked. I liked being part of this large family.
After dinner, we went to the garage together, me and Cal. I squeezed in between him and the corner of the sofa. Aiden was on the other side. We watched sports of course. That’s all that Cal’s family did, like mine on Thanksgiving Day.
A pounding on the garage door startled me. Aiden’s dad was calling his name. “I have to go,” he said.
Dan rose and Cal went with him. I followed just to the front door where Dana met me to watch what would happen. Aiden’s dad was drunk. I could tell by the way he staggered in the drive.
At first, I thought everything was fine. They walked to the end of the drive. Cal and Dan stood outside until they stepped into the middle of the street then turned towards the house when all hell broke loose.
“What did you say to me?” Aiden’s father shouted at him.
“Nothing,” Aiden said quietly. “I didn’t say anything.”
We could hear them as Dana, and I stepped out onto the porch. “Dan, stop him,” Dana told her husband.
Everything sort of happened in slow motion. Aiden’s father wrapped his hands around Aiden’s neck. He was squeezing the life out of him. From here, I could see Aiden struggling to breathe. Struggling to break the hold his father had on his throat.
Dana ran into the house. I didn’t know why until she returned with her cell phone. She was calling 911. I watched Dan finally reach Aiden’s dad. He broke his hold on Aiden. Dan pushed Cal back. Then Aiden fell into the grass at Cal’s feet. He lifted him from the ground examining him to see if he was hurt.
Aiden’s father threatened Dan, but he was no match for Dan Cooper. The sirens blaring in the distance seemed to sober Aiden’s dad. He staggered backwards into the street away from the scene that he had created. Then he turned and went home.
“Will they let him go?” I asked Dana.
She shook her head at me as she watched Dan check out Aiden’s throat. Then he guided both Cal and Aiden towards the house. Her eyes traveled to me. “I don’t know.”
The police officers were at the Cooper residence for an hour before going across the street to talk to Aiden’s dad. It wasn’t long before Carla Todd made her way across the street on a walker. She pounded on the door. When I saw her face, I knew she wasn’t angry just afraid. Devastated at what had been happening to Aiden.
She cried when she saw him. His neck was still red and starting to bruise. “You aren’t accident prone, are you?” She asked.
“No,” he agreed. “When you became ill Dad started drinking…”
She was shocked and devastated by Aiden’s confession. “So, he started abusing you,” she said.
“He was hurting,” Aiden defended him.
“So were you,” she said choking on the words. “You were both afraid I was going to die.”
“I
remember,” Aiden said.
“Cal, why don’t you take Abby to your room so Aiden and Carla can have privacy.”
“Sure Mom,” he replied grabbing my hand, he led me down the hall.
His mood was somber. We kicked off our shoes and turned on the twenty-four-inch television in his room. He flipped through the stations while I laid cuddled next to him. Cal was never quiet, so I knew this scene with Aiden and his dad was bothering him.
“Want to talk?”
“No,” he responded. “I need you now, Abby. Just like this, letting me hold you.”
