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“My boy,” he said in a voice cracked with emotion as he held his arms outstretched and tried to stand.
Troy went to him and held on tight, soaking in the familiar smells. Coffee and Irish Spring soap filled his nose with memories of home. His dad’s arms were thinner, and he could feel him giving more of his weight, which he was glad to bear.
They stood like that for a long time, each holding on to the other, when his dad let out a sigh and leaned back to look at him.
“How was the trip?”
Leave it to Dad to get right to the point. He was a practical man with practical emotions. A rancher through and through, he was a tough old cowboy, but his hair was fully white, unlike the last time Troy had visited, and his face was gaunt with worry and exhaustion.
Troy propped his hands on his hips. “Long, uneventful. I’m more interested in you. You have a nurse helping you, and why are you out of bed?”
Troy’s dad waved a hand but eased himself back down onto the bed despite his show of force. “Megan’s just being nice, and I’m fine.”
He wanted to ask his dad more about the beautiful redhead in his house, but knew there was time enough for that later.
“Fine is not what I heard on the phone the other day.”
His dad clapped his hands in front of him and let them fall on his lap.
“I’m going to the cardiologist in a few days for a follow-up. Been taking some pills. Feel okay.”
Troy eyed the McCafé cup, knowing full well how much his dad loved the golden arches.
“I’m no expert, but French fries won’t be his favorite thing.”
“Well, I will deal with that when I talk to the doc. There are other things to deal with. The inspector said the house is uninhabitable as it stands right now. Might be a loss, depending on if we can get the money to fix. Insurance is only covering fifty percent of the possessions and none of the appliances.” His dad glanced up at him with brown eyes just like his own. “Have you seen it yet?”
Troy let out a breath in response. “Just the outside. I came right here.”
His dad nodded, the lines in his face carving farther in while a slight sheen of sweat formed on his brow. There weren’t any curtains hanging in front of the open window. Broken blinds hung at odd angles, with sun scattering through reminding Troy of shattered glass. A few plastic bags from Wal-Mart lay on the ground with some fresh clothes inside waiting to be unpacked.
He hadn’t even thought about the clothes and the housewares. All of that would have to be replaced. He had been so focused on the past that he had neglected to focus on the implications on the present. It could be fixed, but the toll it would take was just starting to set in.
Levi whined next to the bed until Hank reached out and rubbed his head.
“Why don’t you take a rest, and I’ll unpack a little. We can…assess the situation and sort things out tomorrow.”
“Okay, yeah. I think that might be good.”
Troy helped Hank into bed and covered him up, reminded of how many times his dad must have done the same for him, and Levi hopped up to curl at the foot of the bed. He folded the pants his dad had been wearing and placed them on the small dresser which stayed with the house. They were new along with everything else he could see through the cracks of the open drawers. Nothing from the house was here other than Dad and Levi.
With his dad settled, Troy came back down the small hall, careful not to make any noise despite still wearing his field jacket which was anything but quiet. He peeked out the door, frowning when he only saw his car. Clearly, Megan hadn’t gotten his mental message to stay put.
He came out into the kitchen and living room space, noting the old, worn furniture. The carpet needed to be replaced but had been freshly vacuumed, and more Wal-Mart bags were in the kitchen.
He pulled open the fridge and found more evidence from McDonald’s, along with a fresh half gallon of skim milk, some bread and cold cuts, and a few apples. A quick inspection of the cabinets revealed Cheerios, oatmeal, and a handful of dishes.
The house was furnished, but very basic with nothing fancy. If this was going to turn into a long-term situation, there would need to be a few other upgrades including a TV, which he hadn’t seen in the bedroom or in the living room in front of the kitchen.
Troy brought in his luggage and set them in the other bedroom, which had a pack of new sheets on the naked mattress. He could hear snoring through the wall so decided against unpacking.
Coming back out, he decided to make a list of everything that would need to be purchased. His dad had covered the basics, but Troy could only go so far without a coffee maker, and McCafé wasn’t his cup of tea…er, coffee at all. His dad might be happy enough eating a literal heart attack in a bag, but Troy had always loved to cook, a skill he had learned from his mother.
Grabbing his keys and his list, Troy headed out to the car to drive over and inspect the house for himself. Later he would go into town to pick up a few more things, and during dinner he fully intended to question his father more about the mysterious Megan.
CHAPTER9
“So the son finally showed up, huh?” Megan’s friend Laura said before taking a bite of her roast chicken.
