“I didn’t have change.”
Years ago, we’d made a vow to never give Marcus more than twenty dollars at a time. He was an addict. The boy was smoking pot and drinking at thirteen and on heavier drugs by fifteen. Both Teresa and I had already moved out, me just making the majors while she was still knee deep in medical books trying to make something of herself. Mom couldn’t handle Marcus. I shouldn’t have left him with her alone.
“I know. I get it,” I assured her.
“I went by your house, just to make sure he hadn’t broken in again,” she said. “Everything looked fine.”
I’d paid for treatment six times, and each time he came out promising to do better. The first time lasted a week. The third was almost six months. The last time, he’d come out of rehab higher than a kite.
“Okay. I’ll be out there tomorrow. We’ll move Mom, then I’ll deal with Marcus.”
I hung up the phone, pushed it into my pocket, and walked over to Rhett. He was finishing up a photo with the kids’ teachers as I approached. I nodded in his direction, pulling him away from any further marketing bullshit.
“I need to fly out to New York immediately,” I said.
Don’t ask. Tell. That’s what my eleventh-grade teacher, Mr. Simms, taught me. “Be assertive, boy,” he would say. “You won’t get anything by asking. Tell them what you’re taking.”
Rhett didn’t flinch. “Okay. Can I ask why?”
I explained as quickly as I could that my mother was being moved, and why. His eyes lit up, his lips curving into a smile that seemed pretty inappropriate given the topic of our discussion. “That’s a great idea,” he said, motioning toward Katrina.
She stepped over, standing next to Rhett and glancing nervously from him to me. I abstained from laughing at the idea that she thought Rhett had found out about our fling and was calling her over to reprimand us.
“Todd is flying out to New York this evening. I want you to go with him,” he said sternly.
Her eyes filled with as much surprise as mine. “I don’t need a babysitter,” I insisted.
“Of course not. Your mother going into the Alzheimer’s unit is a dreadful thing, and for that, I’m truly sorry. But we need to find a charity to make a large donation to, and since a Beast is tied to the disease, it would be a wonderful choice. I hear they are making great progress in their research, so the funds would be very helpful,” Rhett said, professional as always.
I hated the thought of having my mother pulled into the media in any way, but I knew the donation would go to a great cause. I’d given quite a bit myself already, and my sister was in for just as much. “Okay, but why does Katrina need to go?”
“She will be delivering the check while you’re there. I need her to take a few pictures of you and your mother.”
The thought of being alone with Kat was thrilling. Even though she wasn’t given a choice by Rhett on the matter, the fact that she couldn’t look me in the eye without blushing told me she was excited as well.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Katrina
I barely had time to pack my bags before a private car whisked Todd and me to the airport. Todd was quieter than I’d expected, but I didn’t push him. Even with all that was on his mind, he still managed to comfort me throughout the flight. He closed the window shade, held my hand at takeoff, and rested his hand on my knee throughout most of the flight.
“Is your mother still at home?” I asked as we climbed into the backseat of a black SUV outside the airport.
“No. She’s in an independent living facility, or she was. I guess she’s in rehab now after the fall.”
“Will she go back to her place after she heals?”
I wasn’t exactly clear on all the details. I knew his mother had Alzheimer’s and that she had fallen, but that was it. Was she hurt badly? Why the sudden rush to New York to see her?
“The facility said she’s fallen too many times. They want to put her in the nursing home section. That’s why I’m here, to stop them.”
Todd to the rescue. My heart fluttered thinking about how sweet and loyal a son he was. I settled back into the leather seat of the SUV and tried imagining Todd Morris as a child. His beautiful blue eyes must have melted his mother’s heart when he was small.
“We’re here,” Todd announced, opening the backseat door. He extended his hand, helped me from the back of the car, and turned to stare at the entrance of the white brick building.
I reached out, slipped my hand into his. He squeezed my fingers together, pulled me close to him, and headed to the doors. A keypad on the entrance required him to enter a few digits before we were able to open the heavy wooden door. Inside, a cozy area was situated like a home living room, complete with a television and fireplace. It was nice here, nicer than I'd imagined. A woman greeted us with a smile at the small window near another set of large glass doors. “Can I help you?”
“Tamara Morris,” Todd said to the woman. Tamara, that’s Todd’s mother’s name. Pretty.
“Of course. I should’ve recognized you, Mr. Morris.” The woman stammered over her words as she pushed a button that opened the large doors.
“Down the hall, last door on the right.”
He gripped my hand tightly as we walked down the long hallway. The coziness of the entrance was replaced with cold, hard tiled floors, white walls lined with gray doors, and small plaques that offered each residents’ name beside a room number. We stopped at the last door on the right. There was no plaque with her name, just a sign that said "rehab" on the door.
Todd pushed open the door to a large room with one bed, a wide window that overlooked the parking lot, and a small elderly woman sitting in a wooden rocking chair.
“Mom,” Todd said, rushing to her side. The slip of his hand from mine was quick, leaving me standing alone at the doorway.
“Marcus?” she asked, her voice shaky and soft. “Where have you been?” Tears formed in her eyes as her arms opened wide to hug her son, the wrong son.
Todd didn’t flinch. He wrapped his arms around his mother’s frail body and smiled toward me. “No, Mom. It’s me, Todd.”
Her eyes moved in my direction, filled with confusion. “Who’s this?” she asked.
“This is Katrina Delaney. She’s going to take some pictures,” Todd explained to his mother.
She welcomed me into the room, allowed me to take the pictures I needed for the social media pages, and still continued to call Todd by his brother’s name even though he explained who he was to her several times.
It felt invasive taking the photos of Todd and his mother. His hand was clasped over hers gently, his eyes locked onto her as if he were afraid she’d disappear if he looked away.
“Todd!” A pretty woman with long, dark hair and the same eyes as Todd rushed into the room. Her arms wrapped around him tightly, squeezing like she hadn’t seen him in years.