and that turned out badly. But I’m better now.”
At least the woman was able to admit the obvious.
“Anyway,” she added, “the kids need to be with family. And if they can’t be with me for the next few months, then I want them with one of my relatives.”
What family? If there were any Hemings relatives nearby, wouldn’t they have stepped up by now?
“Do the kids even know these relatives?” Toby finally asked, his fingers gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles ached.
“No, but they’re family, Toby. You of all people should understand about long-lost family.”
She was talking about James Marshall Fortune coming to Horseback Hollow and finding his sister, Jeanne Marie, Toby’s mom. Although, quite frankly, Toby was surprised that she even knew about that.
“I have a cousin in California,” Barbara said. “I’m going to ask him to take the children until I get out of rehab.”
Great. Another upheaval? And just who was her cousin?
“What’s his name? What does he do?”
“His name is Rocky, and he’s looking for work. His parole agent thinks he can find a job by the end of this month. His wife works at a hospital out there, but one of his conditions of parole is that he’s not allowed to work at hospitals anymore, so that’s out. But there are plenty of other places where he can get work.”
His parole agent? He couldn’t work in a hospital anymore? If the cousin couldn’t be trusted in a hospital then he sure as shooting couldn’t be trusted with Brian, Justin and Kylie.
What made Barbara think that the children would be better off with some deadbeat cousin they didn’t even know than they would be with Toby?
“I don’t think that’s in the children’s best interest, Barbara.”
“Honestly, Toby, it’s not your decision. I thought you’d be a little more cooperative, but I guess the kids can’t count on you for that.”
The woman disconnected the call before Toby could throw the phone out his open window, which was what he’d wanted to do the moment he’d heard her voice.
He sucked the country air into his lungs and counted to ten, the way his pitching coach had taught him to do when he’d been on the mound.
Think. Whom did he call first? Ms. Fisk, the case worker? Or an attorney?
He glanced at the clock on the dashboard. Crap. It was too late to call anyone today. That would have to wait until tomorrow. He continued to sit in the idling truck for a while, his hands on the steering wheel, his thoughts on the troubling call.
Would the court decide that the kids were better off with a sketchy family member over a stable and caring guardian? It didn’t seem feasible, but then again, anything was possible...
He did his best to shake off Barbara’s threat, telling himself he didn’t have time to worry about that blasted woman. He’d told Angie that he was going to be late, but he hadn’t meant to completely abandon her with the kids.
After checking for traffic, Toby pulled back onto the road and accelerated.
At times like this it was nice to know he had someone to rely on, especially Angie.
People might think that she was flighty—and they might even be right. But either way, she was proving to be a real blessing.
A man could get used to going home to a woman like her.
* * *
Angie sure hoped Toby got home soon, because she was fading fast. She hadn’t slept very well the past two nights, thanks in large part to the residual stress and worry from that 911 fiasco at the Y.
Even her mother had heard all about it and called, asking her what had happened. Sheesh. What a pain that conversation had been.
But at least Toby trusted her enough to ask her to help with the kids again.
It hadn’t been easy to adjust her schedule to accommodate his, but she had. She’d worked a split shift at the Superette, going in early this morning. Then she’d left at ten o’clock to take Mr. Murdock to his doctor’s appointment in Vicker’s Corners. After that, she’d run over to Redmond-Fortune Air to type some letters for Sawyer. And it was back to the Superette for another two-hour shift, after which she purchased the ingredients she needed to make spaghetti for dinner.
She was nearly late picking the kids up from school, but she got there just in the nick of time. Then it was a quick stop at her house for the surprise she’d planned for the evening.
A couple of summers ago, she’d worked at an old movie theater outside of Lubbock. When the Red Raider Cinemas went out of business, the owner gave Angie a projector and several old movie reels. She’d always wanted to have an old-fashioned movie night under the stars, but she’d never gotten around to planning one. That was, until tonight.
Too bad she was about to nod off from exhaustion. She could really use one of those energy drinks Brian had wanted yesterday afternoon.
Hopefully, Toby would be home soon. He’d told her not to wait dinner for him, and they hadn’t. At this rate, she was going to start the movie without him, too. Otherwise, she’d probably curl up on his sofa and nod off before he even got home.
She’d fixed him a plate and left it on the stove. Then she’d cleaned up the kitchen. She’d made popcorn, but had to make it the old-fashioned way, since Toby didn’t have any kind of popper. She’d just salted a large bowl for them to share when Brian came in.
“We’re all done,” he said. “Me and Justin hung up the white sheet, just like you told us. And Kylie made beds for us on the lawn. You ought to see it.”
Angie followed the boys out of the house, where they’d set up the makeshift outdoor movie theater. And, just as Brian had said, Kylie had, indeed, made them a giant bed—with every blanket, sheet and pillow she could possibly find.
“Did you leave any of the beds made up in the house?” Angie asked her.
“Nope,” Kylie said. “Even Toby’s blankets and pillows are out here.”
That wasn’t quite what Angie had in mind, which meant there was going to be a big mess to clean up afterward, when she doubted she’d have the energy to deal with it. But she wasn’t about to scold the kids when the whole idea had been hers in the first place—and when they’d tried so hard to follow her instructions.
Besides, look how happy they were.
“Okay,” she said. “Let’s get this show on the road.”
She’d just finished setting up the projector with the Star Wars film threaded in the proper slots, when Toby’s Dodge rolled into the driveway.
“What’s all this?” Toby asked, as he stepped out of his truck.
“Movie night!” Justin yelled, as he barged out of the back door in his pajamas and
