Broken Pieces (Riverdale #2) (10 page)

“Do you like what you do, Dad?” Nick asked his father.

“Of course I do. Who doesn’t like making money? Forget I asked, apparently you don’t.”

“I do just fine for myself and I’m happy where I am. I’m not going back to Seattle.” Nick said firmly. His father had exactly ten seconds before he ended the call.

“What about the tart you left me here with? I’m just supposed to keep her under payroll? She barely knows how to send a fax!” The eldest Foti, roared into the phone.

“Erica? She’ll manage. Do whatever you have to do.” Nick said and shook his head, wishing he could erase the mistakes he made in Seattle. There wasn’t an eraser big enough though. “Look Dad, I’ve got to go. I’ll call you if I change my mind.”

“Just think it over. You were good with the business. You really are a natural. Don’t throw it away.” He paused and Nick was about to hang up the phone when his father began again. “Your mother was right, whatever or whoever is in that town has some hold on you.”

Nick had heard enough, the minute his mother was mentioned, he cringed. He ended the call without saying goodbye. When he turned around Sam was standing in the center of the room. Great, just fucking great.

“Sam…” He started as he swiped his hand over his face. How much had she heard?

“Don’t mind me. I left my charger on the table.” She said as she hurried towards the other end of the room to grab her phone charger.

His patience was running thin
and when she started for the bedroom without uttering a word to him, he cracked. “Can you just stop, skirting around every issue that seems to tick at your nerves?”  She stopped mid stride but didn’t turn to face him. He let out a
strangled breath. “I know you heard part of my conversation. Instead of acting as if you and I didn’t have one of hell of a good time today, and putting on the face of disgust, ask whatever questions you want to ask. Yell if you want, but don’t, fucking pretend like you can’t stand me, not, after today, because I’m not buying it, Sam.”

She turned around slowly to face him. Her eyes bore into his as she lifted her chin.
“The only acting I did today was when I acted as if everything between us was okay. Right now, I’m not acting. Ava’s asleep, there’s no child to put on a show for. I won’t ask any questions, because I’m not interested in the answers. I won’t yell, because quite frankly, there’s no point. Now if we’re done here, I’d like to go to bed.” Her voice cracked with the last sentence, proving to him that she wasn’t as hard as her words. That she was using them to mask the hurt she was feeling, but from what. Why wouldn’t she just tell him what he did to her? She turned around and walked into the bedroom, softly closing the door behind her.

Chapter Eight

      
Luke propped his foot on the chair beside his hospital bed, and reached over to tie his shoelace. He couldn’t wait to get out of there, he really had no idea how Jake had spent the last year in and out of this place, one night and he felt like his skin was crawling. The door opened quietly, and Leah stepped into his room. She had been checking on him all night, as she worked her shift. He looked over at her. She was still in her scrubs, and so he glanced at his watch. She should be off the clock by now. He looked at her face and saw the traces of fatigue, and something else he couldn’t quite put his finger on.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” She asked, as she walked towards him.

“I had a little pain, but the doctor came in about an hour ago and said he would discharge me.” He glanced at her. “Are you here to tell me, he changed his mind?”

She sat beside him on his bed and shook her head. “No, I’m not.” She let out a breath and took his hand in hers. Luke’s eyes fell onto their hands and then he looked back at Leah’s drawn face, dread lurked in the pit of his stomach.

“What’s wrong?” He asked sharply. When she lifted her eyes to meet him, he shook his head, he didn’t have time for her to sugarcoat whatever she needed to tell him. “Leah, speak.”

“Jake’s not doing well.” She stammered, her voice squeaking from her nerves.

He looked at her as if she had just punched him in the gut. Without caring about the soreness he was feeling, he quickly rose from the bed, cringing as the pain seared through him.

“That’s impossible. The doctor’s said the transplant went well.”  He said more to himself
than to Leah. She quickly stood up and rushed to his side.

“You need to take it easy, you’re not completely recovered.” She placed her hand on his forearm, trying to sway him back towards the edge of the bed. He tugged his arm from her grip and shook her off him, as if she was a pesky fly.

“Leah, do me a favor and don’t tell me what I need. Instead, tell me what is going on with Jake.” He said and clenched his jaw, trying desperately to find patience.

She swallowed, defeated and took a step backward. “He’s had a dangerously high fever all night. It will not break and his immune system is too compromised from all the chemotherapy to fight off the infection.”

He looked at her and studied her eyes that were full of sympathy. He swallowed the lump in his throat, realizing her voice lacked any sort of hope. “But the bone marrow, was supposed to help him.” His voice was rough, almost desperate.

“What’s happening to Jake, has nothing to do with the bone marrow transplant. His body is too weak from the chemo Luke and his organs…” She shook her head not able to finish her sentence.

“His organs are failing.” Luke finished for her. She didn’t utter a single word. All she did was hang her head. Luke stood frozen for a moment, waiting for her to look up at him and give him some sort of good news. He’d take anything at this point. She never lifted her head. He ran his fingers through his hair, tugging at the ends. As he grasped the strands he wished his hair was straws, and he would be the one holding the shortest one and not his brother.

He brushed past Leah, and as quickly as his body allowed, he went in search for his brother.

* * * * * *

Nick sat in his assigned seat at the dance competition that was being hosted at The Atlantic City Convention Center. This place was a zoo, he thought as he took in his surroundings. He felt completely out of place, and made a mental note that if he ever had a daughter, she would be the biggest tomboy to ever live. He glanced beside him at Sam, who was watching one of the competitors perform. She had barely said anything to him the entire morning, it was driving him crazy.

He casually stretched his arm across the back of her chair, and leaned close to her ear. “When is she going to go on?” He whispered into her ear. Then, because he couldn’t help himself, he reached out and tucked one of her blonde strands of hair, behind her ear.

Sam shuttered, feeling his breath on her earlobe. He grinned slightly, musing on the fact that no matter how mad she claimed to be, she still was affected by him. He watched her glance at the program she clutched in her lap. She quickly flipped through the pages to find out when Ava would be performing.

“There are two more teams before she goes on.” She whispered back to him harshly, not taking her eyes off of the stage. He watched her, contemplating his next move. When he went to trail his fingers down her arm, his phone rang. She turned to him abruptly. “Are you kidding me? I told you to put it on silent!”

His eyes widened at the tone of her voice as he quickly reached for his phone. He silenced the ringing, not even glancing to see who was calling. She met his gaze and then motioned to his phone.

“You should take it, could be some pressing business, you need to tend to” She spat sarcastically, before turning her head back to the stage.

Nick sighed or maybe he growled; he couldn’t be sure. He looked down at the phone and saw Luke’s number.

“Hello?” he whispered into the phone.

“Where are you?” Luke asked roughly.

Nick squinted and held his free hand to his other ear, trying to block out the surrounding sounds to hear Luke better. “Where do you think I am? What’s going on?”

“You have to leave.” Luke said sternly.

“Leave? She didn’t even go on yet.” Sam turned around and faced him as he spoke.

“Nick, I need you to leave. Jake isn’t good.” His voice caught and Nick wasn’t sure if the line had gone dead.

“Luke?” Nick asked, hoping he hadn’t heard him correctly.

“Please, just come home.” That was all Luke managed before ending the phone call.

* * * * * *

Luke shoved his cell phone into his pocket. He blew out a breath and turned the corner, his heart clenched at the sight before him. His father had his arms wrapped around his mother as she cried, listening to the doctor. He couldn’t hear what the doctor was saying, he didn’t need too, by the looks of it, and it wouldn’t have made a difference. Jake was dying, despite his efforts to save his brother, he had still failed. He clenched his fist and lifted it to punch the nearest wall when his eyes fell upon Cara. He dropped his hand and watched her slide down the length of the wall, her body writhing with sobs. She was shaking her head uncontrollably as if she could shake away the doctor’s words.

When Luke made his way towards his family, he bypassed his parents and kneeled down, gathering Cara in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sobbed into his shoulder.

“I can’t let him go.” She said between sobs. He held her tighter, tears slipping from his eyes. He glanced up at his parents, who looked as if they had died a thousand deaths.

“All we can do now, is make him as comfortable as possible.” The doctor took Deb’s hand in his and looked up at both parents. “And we can pray for a miracle.”

“Thank you, doctor.” Joe said with his voice barely above a whisper.

Luke felt Cara shift in his arms, and averted his eyes to the woman falling apart in his arms. She pulled back and started to wipe at her face.

“I can’t let him see me like this.” She dragged her fingers through her wavy hair, tucking some strands behind her ears. She looked up at Luke and her eyes instantly filled again with tears. “I can’t go in there yet.” Her lower lip quivered as the tears started to fall down her cheeks. She bit down on her lower lip, trying to control her outburst.

Luke had no idea what to do. He didn’t know how to comfort her. He looked back at his parents who were clinging to one another. His eyes then met the closed door of the room where his brother was. He stared at the wooden door and felt his heart plummet in his chest.

“Luke?” Cara said softly, causing Luke to tear his gaze from the closed door. His eyes met hers. “Go sit with him. He shouldn’t be alone. I’m going to go wash my face and then I’ll be right in.” She looked down at her hands and twisted the engagement ring around her finger absent-mindedly. She lifted her eyes back to his. “Please?”

He nodded, not able to find his own voice. Slowly he rose to his full height and held out his hand to her. She took his hand and allowed him to help her to her feet. He gave her hand a slight squeeze before he dropped it. He stood in front of the door, and took a deep breath.

How do you prepare yourself to say goodbye to your only brother? How do you look at him, knowing you failed him? How do you watch the rise and fall of his chest, and wonder if that will be his last breath? The questions raced through Luke’s mind as he opened the door and stepped inside the room.

Jake lay helplessly in the bed that centered the dark and dreary room. The mauve walls, he once complained of were darkened from the drawn shades, and Luke couldn’t help but wonder if the darkness of the room was a coincidence or rather a request of Jake’s. He was hooked up to several machines. They were basically pointless at this point, but the noise of the machines working was the only sound in the room. Nothing was going to save him.

He moved to the edge of his bed, and Jake must’ve sensed his presence. He opened his eyes and looked up at Luke. It hit
Luke hard and fast, as the blue eyes of his little brother, searched his for the answers, much like they had their whole lives. Luke didn’t have the answers this time and it killed him.  He allowed himself to cry for the first time in his adult life, Luke succumbed to defeat.

Jake wiggled his fingers, reaching for Luke’s hand. Luke quickly placed his brother’s hand in his and sat on the edge of his bed. He squeezed Jake’s hand lifting his eyes to meet his. “I’m so sorry.” Luke murmured. “I’m so sorry I failed you.” He wiped at his face angrily with his free hand, brushing away his tears.

Jake lifted his other hand to the oxygen mask that covered his mouth, he tugged it down, so that he could speak. “Don’t you ever say you’re sorry” Jake struggled to get out. “You gave me the greatest gift.”

Luke shook his head, and then Jake tightened his grip on his hand. “It’s not your fault Luke, I need you to believe me. God’s got a bigger plan for me.” He attempted to smile, and closed his eyes mustering up some strength.