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Chapter 105: Jack-Epilogue-Five years later
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2022-10-26 14:22:02Related chapters
The Journey Collection Chapter 1: Beaten Paths-Charlie-Prologue
Hospitals do their best to be nice places. They keep the lobbies scrubbed, arrange leather furniture around fake hearths, and add little gardens to their walkways, but it is all still largely for the visitors. The cafés with their warm-coffee smells at the entrance, the small gift shops with fuzzy bears and big red hearts, and the fountains full of wishful pennies don't do anything for the people inside. Just like everyone else, I'd stopped to grab a snack before facing whatever lie upstairs. People latch onto anything that allows them to forget the pain and misery while paying their respect. Everyone wants a distraction. No one chooses to think about what is going on a few floors above their heads. The patients are the ones who have to live with the buzz of bright fluorescent lights, the sanitized and sterile smell, and the constant hum of electronics. That is why no one likes hospitals. When a patient is there for the long haul, they are left staring at a white wall with their
Last Updated : 2022-10-26The Journey Collection Chapter 2: Charlie
The idea of anyone trying to make her feel bad about what she was going through mortified me. This was one of the hardest times of her life; hell, she was lucky to be alive. If I were ever privy to anyone trying to tell her to suck it up, I'd give them a clear message regarding their behavior. I'd be damned if I didn't put them through a window. "You're not making a scene." I wasn't great with words and even worse at empathy, so I tried to keep my voice gentle. I tended to have a fairly deep timbre, and in this stark room, it reverberated rather forcefully. The last thing I wanted to do was come across as condescending. "You've been through a lot. I think you're entitled to show some emotion." I needed her to look at me, to give me an indication that she heard me, but I got nothing. "Most people would have cracked under the pressure. You are an incredibly strong woman." She shook her head, and her messy blond curls bounced with the movement. "I'm not." Her voice cracke
Last Updated : 2022-10-26The Journey Collection Chapter 3: One month earlier-Sarah
There was a beautiful blue butterfly on the porch railing. I wanted to capture it and put it in a glass jar, even though I shouldn't. Daddy always told me that rubbing the powder off a butterfly's wings made it impossible for them to fly. I didn't want to hurt the thing; I just wanted to look at it a little longer. And as soon as I walked up the porch, it would fly off, and I would never see it again. The butterfly flew away, as predicted, and I had only made it up the first step. With the slight distraction gone, I was free to focus on other things. I had a mission in mind now that Miranda was home. Through the screen door, I could hear her rustling around in the kitchen like a raccoon. Honestly, there were some days where she wasn't so bad. They were just buried underneath all of the other days where everything she did annoyed me. She had her face stuck behind the fridge door, and I waited-patiently-for her to pull her head out. I had no doubt she
Last Updated : 2022-10-26The Journey Collection Chapter 4: Sarah
Randi's nostrils flared, and she looked like a horse ready to paw at the ground. I wanted to nail her down with one final comeback. I wanted to end this exchange and put her in her place. But more than anything, I wanted my little sister to see what she'd done wrong. For once, she needed to admit the error of her ways. But she was far too stubborn ever to give me that satisfaction. She always bested me in the end. Randi stayed one step ahead, regardless of how hard I fought to keep her in line. That bullheaded streak was as wide as a river, and there was nothing Daddy or I could do to take it out of her. "You're grounded." The words tumbled out, and the weight they held went with them. It was a suitable punishment if it stuck. "You can go to cheer camp. That's it. There's plenty to do around here." Her mouth fell open, and I felt an unsatisfying surge of victory. Not even the smile that lifted the corners of my mouth created a sense of satisfaction. There shoul
Last Updated : 2022-10-26The Journey Collection Chapter 5: Charlie
This was the last place I wanted to be, but I had questions about the work I was doing for Jack on his ranch, and just because his life had stopped, didn't mean mine could. Someone had to keep his cattle and land watered, or he'd have far bigger issues than just Sarah when his ranch met its demise. My parents had thought it was a good idea for me to use this as an excuse to come check on Jack and Sarah. My mom had even sent me with a plate of food because she knew Jack wouldn't have eaten. That's what women in this town did. They fed people. A lady had a baby, they got casseroles. Someone got married, they catered the reception. Funeral-food. It was some Southern tradition that had passed from generation to generation, and I doubted I would ever understand it. But it did give me a reason to show up the day after the second tragedy of Jack's life fell on his shoulders. I didn't have a clue where he might be. I imagined in whatever waiting room was closest to Sarah, but this was
Last Updated : 2022-10-26The Journey Collection Chapter 6: Charlie
I'd stopped by the hospital again to get Jack to sign off on a finance agreement for equipment he needed for the irrigation project I'd been working on in his fields. He'd barely been at Cross Acres since the accident, and the hospital seemed to be the only place I could track him down with any success. I found him in the same place I had the other times I'd come for one thing or another. I felt like I spent more time on the road to and from the Anston Medical than actually accomplishing what Jack was paying me to do. But right now, this was the only option. I either came up here, or irrigation stopped. And it wasn't just Jack who was affected. His entire staff needed this monkey off their backs with the drought we were dealing with, I'd planned time away from my family's farm-and Twin Creeks needed me just like Cross Acres did. No sooner had I sat down and started to explain the paperwork to Jack than a nurse appeared at the double doors that never seemed to open, or t
Last Updated : 2022-10-26The Journey Collection Chapter 7: Charlie
Before I drove out to Laredo, I decided to stop by Cross Acres to locate Jack. It was possible that one of his ranch hands knew where he was if he weren't on the ranch. When I turned down his gravel driveway, I passed the ornate wrought-iron gates that were always dripping with vines and colorful flowers. I'd asked once who kept them up, and Jack told me that was Sarah's doing. I wondered if Randi would take care of them in her sister's absence. I breathed a sigh of relief when I found Jack's F-350 parked in the circle in front of the farmhouse. At the very least, it meant I didn't have to make the forty-five-minute trip to Laredo or traipse all over town to track him down. Instead of pulling into the drive behind him, I parked in front of the barn next to what appeared to be Austin's truck. I hopped out of the cab, wondering what my brother was doing here at seven in the morning. I knew he'd been spending a ton of time with Randi, but this was early even for them. And
Last Updated : 2022-10-26The Journey Collection Chapter 8: Sarah
Time had slowed to a crawl once they transferred me to the rehab center. It wasn't like the hospital where people had come to visit and there were always nurses or doctors in an out of my room. The afternoons passed by hot and lazy because just like at home, the air conditioners couldn't keep up with the blazing summer heat. I kept my single window at the facility open even if all it did was invite in the warm, sluggish breeze and humidity. But it brought the smells of home with it-cattle, dirt, fresh grass, all the things I missed. I wanted to be back out in the thick of it or as much as I ever was. I might not have been in the fields working the head, but I missed cooking for the hands, doing the books, keeping track of the business side of the ranch. Even the trivial things like community events were passing me by as I stared at four walls and endured hours of painful therapy and isolation. I'd give anything for my life to return to normal. The reality of that neve
Last Updated : 2022-10-26
Latest chapter
The Journey Collection Chapter 105: Jack-Epilogue-Five years later
I threw the truck in park, glanced at the clock, and then jumped out, slamming the door behind me. It had been over an hour since I'd gotten the call, and I hadn't been able to reach Austin since. My feet refused to carry me as fast as I wanted them to move, and the second I made it inside the emergency room, I came to a halt. A flood of memories hit me, and they weren't the good kind.The last time I'd stood in this room, I was blind with rage. It was also the day Austin became a man, and I lost my little girl to the person who owned her heart. It took guts for him to step in front of her that day. Almost as much as it took for him to confront me when he got back from New York. I'd hoped that day would never come, but I prayed for it all the same. In order to atone for a sin, I had to confess it...and then deal with the punishment. Austin had made damn certain I understood that if I ever raised a hand to Randi again, there wouldn't be a hound in the world who'd sniff out my remains.
The Journey Collection Chapter 104: Austin
My phone rang for the fourth time since I'd left for work this morning. I couldn't stop the smile that spread across my face seeing Randi's name flash across my screen. Her calls came at inconvenient times, but damn if it didn't make my day. I slid my hand from the glove I was wearing to swipe my finger across the screen. "Hey, sweetheart." "What are you doing?" The boredom in her voice was palpable, and it caused me to snicker when I responded."I'm working. The same thing I was doing the other three times you called.""Oh... I'm sorry. I'll let you go."I tucked the phone between my shoulder and my ear so I could talk to her and at least make it appear like I was working to anyone who might see me. "Everything okay?" "Yeah, I'm just bored."We'd had this conversation several times in the last few days. "Why don't you get out of the house? Go into town. If nothing else, go grocery shopping." She was afraid of the reactions she'd get without me, Sarah, or Jack at he
The Journey Collection Chapter 103: Austin
There'd never been a day in all the years I'd been coming to Cross Acres that I'd dreaded it. Even when Randi had shown up unexpectedly, it was never the ranch I didn't want to be near. For years, this place had been my solace. Today, however, I had to have a conversation I wasn't keen on having with a man I'd respected my entire life. Not even the sound of the gravel under my tires soothed the ache in my chest.I'd debated on whether or not to go straight to the farmhouse or get the guys out working before I pulled Jack aside. I'd opted for the second. If there were a scene, no one needed to be around to witness it. I didn't care if Jack had deeded the ranch over to me; this was still his home, and these men respected him.It had taken me a little over an hour to get everyone out of earshot, and once I had, I climbed the steps to the front porch. At a little after six, there was no doubt in my mind Jack was awake-it was in his blood. He'd get up when the rooster crowed for the res
The Journey Collection Chapter 102: Miranda
The four-day drive back to Mason Belle turned into seven. Austin and I used the time to catch up; although, not a lot had gone on in either of our lives. Our greatest sticking point had been my relationship with Eason. It took a FaceTime call to him and Garrett to get Austin to relax about the security of our friendships. By the time we'd hung up, Garrett had Austin howling with laughter and Eason shaking his head in the background. Austin and Eason would need to get to know each other, and that could happen over time. For now, they seemed to appreciate what the other brought to my life and left the mutual understanding at that.After stopping at the airport to pick up his truck, we arrived at Austin's house before lunch, and he'd insisted we go inside to eat before he went to Cross Acres. Unable to convince him that food and a nervous stomach didn't make a happy union, I gave in. It dawned on me that it wasn't his refrigerator he wanted to show off. Austin was proud of the two-story
The Journey Collection Chapter 101: Miranda
Every inch of my body coiled, and each step I took required more effort than the last. I'd left Austin to explore New York-well, the bagel shop at the corner-while I went to have a conversation with my best friend and boss. My stiletto-clad foot slipped on the marble floors in the lobby, and an older gentleman kindly prevented my fall. Heat rose in my cheeks, and embarrassment gripped what little hold I had on reality. "Don't worry, sweetheart. Happens to me all the time." He lifted his hand, and a nervous giggle passed my lips. Even at his age, he was spry, and I found humor in the cane he showed off with pride. I wondered if women found that attractive later in life, although I didn't ask. Instead, I patted his hand and thanked him. He then shooed off my apology. "A girl as pretty as you, the pleasure was all mine." Yeah, this guy definitely played the geriatric field. The man straightened his suit jacket, tipped his cane to the up arrow, and then pressed the button to ca
The Journey Collection Chapter 100: Miranda
It took me a moment to recognize the arms wrapped around me and realize the heat behind me wasn't a blazing inferno I needed to escape before the house burned to the ground. In the haze of waking, last night was more like a dream than reality, and his embrace reminded me that life didn't always follow an expected path. I wiggled free without rousing him and rolled to my side. As soon as I did, I regretted losing the comfort that being close to him provided. Although, the view made up for the loss of contact. Austin's disheveled hair gave him a boyish appeal in direct contrast to the maturity that age had given his body. My heart swelled, knowing I could think about him and not feel like a dagger had pierced my chest. He had the capacity to forgive, and despite the unknowns, that trait had the power to heal. Couple it with devotion and love, and somehow, we would get through this together. Austin stirred in front of me, and my picture of perfection came to life when he moved. His
The Journey Collection Chapter 99: Austin
We had talked late into the night. I didn't know where her roommate was, but I was glad he hadn't interrupted. Eason would throw a monkey wrench into any progress I made once she realized she hadn't factored him into the equation. By the time she had convinced me to spend the night, I didn't have a commitment from her to come home with me. She had, however, admitted that she wanted to be together. If that meant I needed to sell my house in Mason Belle and relocate to New York, then I'd do what I had to do. Life without Randi was no longer an option.She held my hand and led me down a dark hallway and up a flight of stairs. Randi didn't bother flicking on a light until we stepped into her room. Her life had changed drastically while she'd been in New York. Her family had money by Mason Belle standards-at least they had while she lived there-but she lived in luxury here. Her bedroom was the size of my den and kitchen combined, her king-sized bed overflowed with pillows, and while I did
The Journey Collection Chapter 98: Austin
I'd made it this far without nerves taking over or second-guessing my trip, not even on the flight from hell where I swore the masks were going to fall out of the overhead compartment at any given moment. Oddly, I'd been most apprehensive over leaving my truck in an uncovered parking lot at the airport. Now, standing on Miranda and Eason's doorstep, I hesitated to lift my fist to knock.For two days, I'd tried to reach Miranda, and for two days her phone went to voicemail, even after I assumed she'd gone back to work. That same lost feeling I'd experienced when she left the first time had returned, except this time, I wasn't willing to accept her decision as my fate. I didn't ask Sarah where she lived. I didn't talk to Jack about where I was going when I told him I needed a couple of days off. Not even my parents were aware I'd left the state. I made the choice to chase her, and no outside influence would alter my plans, so there was no point in discussing it. It proved a tad diff
The Journey Collection Chapter 97: Austin
I'd expected her to call. After the things Miranda had admitted, I thought she'd use my number when she got up. The minutes and hours barely moved on the clock. Exhausted wasn't a good way to spend a day on a ranch. The work was physical, the sun was brutal, and I needed it to end. Hearing from Miranda would have broken up the monotony, and I'd hoped the two of us could sit down to talk. The few hours of rest I'd had last night were spent mulling over every word she'd said. The things she had confessed brought on more questions than answers. I doubted I wanted the answers, but in the end, I'd need them. Since she hadn't called, it was clear, I would have to force the conversation. She needed to get her rental car from The Hut which gave me an excuse to be alone with her without making an issue out of it.But when I got back to the barn, the only vehicles there were mine and Brock's. I'd successfully avoided him all day, and if I played my cards right, I'd get out unnoticed. I didn
