AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“We were driving back from an auction. I sold two of my best yearlings.” Mandy took her hand. “The road wound through the country, narrow and dark. It was a trip we took a dozen times a year.” She remembered the hypnotic sound of the tires on asphalt. “My older sister was up front with my dad. Kimmie and I were in the back. She was only five. I fell asleep.”
Swallowing hard, she recalled a hard jerk that startled her awake, the horrible sound of the front bumper scraping the guardrail.
Then, her father yelling, “Oh, God…no!” It was the moment she knew they were going to crash.
“Dad fell asleep at the wheel. We swerved onto the shoulder, the guardrail gave way, and we started tipping over the side.” She swallowed hard. “Kimmie was scared. She unbuckled to climb over the seat to our dad. She didn’t understand what was happening and just wanted to get to the person who always made her less afraid. I unbuckled to grab her but it was too late. The trailer slid sideways and the weight pulled us over.”
A single tear slipped from the corner of her eye and Zoe reached up to wipe it away. “Kimmie and I went through the windshield. She was killed instantly and so was Dad. My older sister barely had a scratch and she still feels guilty about it.”
Inhaling deeply, she whispered, “The last sound I ever heard was Megan screaming for me not to die, not to leave her, that she thought Dad and Kimmie were dead and she was scared. Then my brain swelled and drowned out everything. It took too long for help to come. By then, the damage was done.”
Turning, she stared into Mandy’s hazel green eyes. The girl was crying. “Kimmie used to annoy me. She was always taking my stuff, playing with my gear. She threw a fit earlier that day at the auction and I called her a spoiled brat.”
Zoe shrugged. “I was sixteen, so patient with other people’s kids but less with my sister. I had to babysit her a lot.” She twisted the ring on her pinkie. “Megan was eighteen and consumed with dating, modeling, and being glamorous. I was resentful of them. I wish I had it to do over. Life is hard sometimes.”
Closing the lid to the piano, she reached out to wipe Mandy’s tears. “I was in the hospital for months. The scars are bad on the back of my neck. It’s why I keep my hair close.”
Mandy leaned around to lift her ponytail and look at Zoe’s nape. The deep scars there made her wince. “I bet that hurt a lot, Zoe.” She ran her fingertips over them before touching the little silver ring. “Was that your sister’s?”
Zoe nodded. “I missed their funerals. My mother came the next day and put it on my finger. It was a present my father gave Kimmie the day she was baptized. Mom said they’d want me to have it, to help me be strong.”
“I’m sorry, Zoe.”
“It hurt to lose my father and my sister. Ihatedbeing deaf but I’m grateful I wasn’t paralyzed. The doctors worried I would be at first.” Mentally shaking herself, she smiled. “The accident took a lot but it reminded me that I’m stronger than I realize sometimes.”
She stood and tugged the young woman up as well. Nate walked around and pulled her into a hard hug. Leaning back, he said, “I’m glad you survived but so sorry for all you lost, Zoe.”
“Enough talk of sad things. Let’s eat and then I should get home. I want to make you both dinner sometime. How does that sound?”
“You cook?” Nate looked anxious for her answer.
“Not a lot, but Southern food that clogs the arteries? Yeah. I make a mean fried chicken and a chocolate cola cake with cherries that’s to die for.” Mandy pretended to drool. “I don’t make it often or I’d waddle but I’m happy to have a reason to make it for you.”
Mandy’s face telegraphed her pleasure. “Anytime you want to cook, we’ll eat. I mean that. We’re greedy like nobody else.”
Nate kissed Zoe’s temple and led them to his truck. They spent almost two hours eating and talking.
Vicki was blown away that Zoe was speaking and lowered to the booth seat beside her. “You have the prettiest voice.”
“Thank you. Mandy gave me the courage to try again.”
The older woman patted her hand. “They’re good people and now you can feel a bit more at ease.” She winked. “And order whatever you like on the menu.”
“Yes. I-I was really shy when I got here. It’s been hard to shake it.”
“Well! You’re on the road to it now! I’m going to bring you all some of Jim’s goulash. It’s a new recipe he wants to try on the menu. I bet you’ll love it.” Meeting Zoe’s eyes, she said, “He asked me to dinner. To cook for me.” Her face went red. “I told him he does plenty of cooking right here.”
Zoe tilted her head. “Did you want to say yes?”
“I don’t…” Her voice trailed away. “My husband hasn’t been gone long. It’s not the right time.”
“Maybe. Only you know for sure. I used to watch the two of you together. You reminded me of my parents. Laughing and hugging all the time. I imagine, like my mom, it can be hard to lose all of that.”
Vicki was quiet for a long moment. “A week feels like a year.”
“I understand. You deserve to be happy, Vicki. There’s no set time on life and we’re not guaranteed anything. I hope you do what makes you happy. Don would want that. Don’t you think?”
“You kind, gentle woman.” Leaning forward, she kissed Zoe’s cheek. “I’ll think about it.” Waving her hand, she stood. “Be right back.”
