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She inhaled deeply and looked at the passages her father underlined in his notebook. She made her own notes on her laptop so she could complete the Affidavits of Service when her father dropped the pen and sat back in his chair.
Fear crawled through her as she stared at his body, which seemed frozen. “Daddy?”
He didn’t move, and she stood. Leaning over, she touched his cheek lightly. “Daddy?”
The front door opened, and she whipped her head around. “Mama, Daddy isn’t moving or answering me.” She swallowed the panic that clenched her throat.
Her mom rushed over. “Howie, open your eyes.”
His faded blue eyes opened, though he didn’t seem to recognize either of them. Her mom shook her dad’s shoulder, and he blinked a few times before spitting out, “Stop shaking me, Niya.”
“Well, you weren’t responding again, Howie.”
Again? Kenna swallowed the dread that clawed up her spine.
He shook his head slightly. “I’m tired. I want to go home.”
Her mom helped her dad stand, but Kenna’s heart wouldn’t stop racing.
“Mama, maybe you should call the ambulance and get Daddy to the hospital.”
“I’m not going to the damned hospital. Whole blasted town will know everything about me five minutes after I land there. Then business will drop off.”
“Daddy, business isn’t more important than your health.”
“Says the girl who traipsed off to Houston the second she could.” He bit back.
“I didn’t...” She stopped at the glare her mother shot her.
Huffing out a breath and feeling complete defeat, she stepped to the other side of her father and put her arm under his to help him walk to the car. As they neared the door, her father whispered, “Kenna, look out and make sure no one’s out there looking.”
She did as he asked, knowing how important it was for him not to appear weak to anyone in town. Stepping onto the front porch, she looked around and the town seemed rather peaceful.
“It’s all clear, Daddy.”
She moved to his side again, and he waved her off. Glancing behind her father’s back toward her mom, she received a slight shake of the head, and they stepped past her and out to the front porch. Her mom had parked to the side so the passenger door was closest to the door so her father could slip into the car with minimal exposure.
“Proud, stubborn mule,” she whispered.
She waited until her mom got into the driver’s seat and waved, then she closed the door so the heat wouldn’t have time to warm up the whole inside of the office.
Inhaling a deep, cleansing breath, she gathered up the papers she and her dad had been working on when the front door opened again.
Her mom hustled in. “Daddy wants his notebook. Says he’ll underline all the important things you need to prepare for the affidavits.”
“Mama, shouldn’t he rest?”
“Kenna, he won’t rest if we don’t give him his damned notebook.”
“Wait!” Kenna scooped up the notebook and pulled her phone up. She scanned pages quickly with the scanning app so she could continue to get the paperwork caught up.
With a frown, she handed it to her mom. Her mom kissed her cheek, then skipped toward the door in a hurry to get back before her father tried coming back in.
Kenna locked the door behind her mom, hustled upstairs to change into jeans and tennis shoes and a lightweight t-shirt. She’d try a different approach toward Craig today to see if that worked any better. Couldn’t hurt.
As soon as she’d changed, she hustled out the back door, and ran next door to Smith Squared to pick up her papers.
The law office was neat, clean, and incredibly quiet. The Smiths had updated their furniture with a modern mahogany desk and richly upholstered chairs, creating the upscale atmosphere they were known for.
