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“She seemed confused, thinking someone had taken you away from her. With her past, that sent her into a deeper depression. When you have a moment, please come and visit her. It should help her to know that you are still around.”
“Of course. As soon as I find time in my schedule, I’ll be there. School has started, so I’ll have to push it to make the visiting hours, but I’ll do it.”
“I know you will.” Dr. Livingston sounded sincere when she said that. “I need to go. Have a good day, Cadence.”
“Thank you.”
When she hung up, I leaned against the wall. I had managed to walk to where the public bathrooms were. It was a small hallway out of view of the rest of the diner. I used that privacy to collect myself.
As soon as Dr. Livingston hinted at Lindie not being okay, I thought my heart was going to explode. It scared the crap out of me. I didn’t know what to do with the emotions or what to think. She had made my life a living hell for a long time, left me broken in so many different ways, and yet the idea of her no longer around scared me more than anything. I’d rather she disappear like Dad than to die and never be around again.
Was that fucked up to think about? Shouldn’t I think it’d be easier if she were dead? Self-hatred slammed into my gut, and I leaned forward, taking in a deep breath and releasing it slowly. Now, that was fucked up thinking.
And wrong. So very wrong.
A shuffling caught my attention and I turned to see Davies. He stood by a door further down, staring at me with a blank expression. Then he turned and walked into the kitchen, the door swinging behind him.
Fear curled low in my stomach. What had he heard exactly? And what was with that look? Like he knew.
“Cadence?”
I jumped, turning to meet Seth’s gaze, forcing a smile.
His frown deepened as he took me in. “Are you okay?” He tried to find something in my expression, but I worked hard to hide my emotions.
“Yeah, why?”
“You look pale.”
“Oh.” I waved my hand dismissively. “Lindie gave me a little scare. She sprained her wrist today.”
“Is she okay? Do we need to go to the hospital?”
I held in a snort. “It’s fine. Her doctor took care of it already, and she’ll be good after a couple of weeks of rest. I guess it wasn’t as bad, but Lindie is good at making it seem worse than it really is.”
“Hm. Well, come on. Your food is getting cold and the others are ready to hunt you down.”
Forcing out a laugh, I followed him back to my seat.
When I took a bite of my sandwich, the rich flavors helped to wash away all my confusion.
The food here really was worth the risk.
We were just finishing up when Paxon waved at someone behind me.
“Dad!” he called out.
Calvin turned in his seat until he could see who Paxon had seen. A massive smile stretched across his ketchup covered face.
“There you guys are,” a man said, coming over and stopping at the table. As soon as I saw him, I understood who Paxon and Calvin mostly took after. The middle-aged man wore a suit, tired gray eyes staring back, silently laughing as he took in how we were all squished at one table. He didn’t have the blond hair like Paxon and Calvin, but it was a very light brown. He was slim, not too tall, maybe more my height. “Enjoying your dinner?”
“Yeah. I didn’t think you’d be stopping by,” Paxon said.
“It’s getting late, and we still have church in the morning. And figured why make Seth do extra trips to drop you guys off.” Paxon’s dad’s gaze landed on me and stayed there. His head tilted to the side. “So this is the girl you guys are always talking about.”
“Dad,” Paxon practically yelled. He tried to jump up too, but stopped when he slammed his knee into the table, shaking everything and almost tipping over drinks. Paxon’s face turned dangerously red with embarrassment.
His dad chuckled, clearly enjoying teasing his son. “George Stokes,” he introduced himself.
