“Give me a break. The media was always going to be all over you on this one, no matter what we did. That press conference was held because Halle needed to get the truth out before industry people could try to spin it or bury it. You and I both know that they’d try to get that driver to change his testimony if they could. And they’d likely have also threatened Halle with being blackballed if she didn’t downplay things. Now, that potential leverage is gone.”
“No, I get that,” he said as Terry came back with the detective’s coffee and my Coke.
Somehow, I got the impression that they’d be video-recording their interview with the driver if they hadn’t done so already.
From there, things went much more smoothly. Terry turned out to be a funny guy. He really was going through a messy divorce, but he had a good attitude. It looked like my lawyer was killing it on Candy Crush. He was either doing that or texting the whole time I was interviewed. I sent a text to Ms. Dixon to inform her that we wouldn’t need him for anything else.
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I hate going through security at airports. For some reason, I get pulled aside and patted down much more often than any of my travel companions. I have yet to see any of my security people get checked, which made no sense to me. What I discovered was that if you’re in a wheelchair, there’s an express lane. I didn’t even have to get in line with everyone else. It was VIP treatment all the way. It was almost like I was with either Rita James or Adrienne. I was simply flagged through.
They even had me jump the first-class line when I boarded. I was thankful because it wasn’t easy to move from the regular wheelchair to the boarding wheelchair. That was a much smaller one that would fit to go down the aisle to my seat. Getting into my seat was no fun, either, because I’d stiffened up during the day. Fritz found my pain meds as soon as I was secure. I’d upgraded him to first class because I didn’t want to deal with anyone else. Once I’d had my pain pill and settled in, I put in my earbuds and found my music app. I think I was asleep by the time we were at altitude.
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Chapter 23 – They’re All Sick! Tuesday October 11
My hound figured out I was hurting and abandoned his duty of watching the little ones. I woke to him crawling onto my bed. He must have heard my breathing change when I woke up. I gave him the loving he desired. I swear he told me that no one else had ever rubbed his ears and chest.
“Do you think I’ll cry if I go take a shower?”
Duke’s tail just thumped against the bed. I took that as a good sign. Too bad Duke was such a liar. Holy crap, my side hurt. I hobbled into the bathroom and found my trusty hound at my side.
“It’s okay, buddy, I’ve got this,” I announced and focused.
My plan had been to try crutches today. Now it looked like I was destined to spend another day in the wheelchair. I was almost out of pain pills. Chuck would have to drive me to the pharmacy before school, or it would be an unbearable day.
My dad had to help me tie my shoes and steady me as I navigated the stairs. I was relieved when I saw he’d brought the wheelchair my parents had rented to my apartment’s back door.
“I feel helpless,” I complained.
“Just remember what the doctor said. I don’t want to hear that you tried to stretch or exercise yet. If I have to, I’ll have your mom go explain things to everyone at school,” Dad warned.
Talk about not playing fair. If I could have gotten out of my wheelchair on my own, I would’ve beaten him with my crutches. Duke was done with his business before we made it to the back door. Precious seemed irritated that her buddy ignored her and instead came with me into the house. Duke bolted upstairs to check on his charges and Peggy. I smiled when I saw Chuck had decided to brave breakfast with us so he could get a home-cooked meal.
Little David needed some daddy time, so I held him in my lap and fed him. Peggy had mixed yogurt and apricots into his cereal. He seemed to like it, so I had her make me a bowl and found it was okay. It would do for a change of pace, but I didn’t want it every day.
I caught up with Peggy. She said that she’d placed third in her race on Saturday, and her coach told her that she would receive a full scholarship in the spring.
“Can you watch the boys tonight?” she asked.
I almost just said I would and then saw my mom turn away so I couldn’t see the expression on her face. The other issue was, how exactly did she expect I could watch them in my condition?
“I don’t know. What are you doing?” I asked.
“I have a date,” Peggy said, daring me to act protectively.
The Alpha Male in me was suddenly on full alert. I hadn’t realized that I thought of her as mine. I suspect I would have had the same reaction if Pam told me she was dating. If I could deal with Tami dating others, I could do the same for Peggy. I brought my Alpha Male response to heel.
“Have you let Mom meet this guy?” I asked.
