days. Mrs. Pimlott was on her way to church when she found her way blocked by some orange safety cones. Instead of stopping, she maneuvered around the cones and drove right into a creek that had overflowed its banks. That’s when Gary saw her.”
Savannah paused and dipped her brush into the paint can. Though TJ didn’t say a word, she could tell that he was paying close attention. “The water was up to her neck, and afterward she told everyone that she’d been certain she was about to die. She wasn’t strong enough to open the door.
“Gary rushed right into the water. He managed to get the door open and helped her out of the car. Even then they weren’t safe because the water was really churning. You know that scar he has just above his left knee? That’s where the tree branch hit him.”
“I thought he got that scar in a bar fight.”
“Nope. He got it saving Mrs. Pimlott’s life. He waited with her until an emergency crew showed up and helped them out of the creek. He was seventeen, I believe. Maybe sixteen. He acted selflessly and courageously, and we were all so proud of him.”
Savannah didn’t say any more, allowing TJ time to consider the story.
While filling his roller with paint, Zach suggested, “Tell him the story you told me about your dad and the guy in the grocery store.”
It was another story that showed TJ’s family in a positive manner, and Savannah repeated it with pleasure. Of her brothers, she’d been closest to Gary. She knew he loved his son, had seen how he’d grieved when TJ’s mother left them. The fact that he’d believed Kyle instead of her was a wound on her heart still today.
With three people working, the image fell quickly beneath a cover of crimson. Savannah said no more, but she continued to watch TJ closely, so as the last soap bubble disappeared beneath his roller, she didn’t miss the tears that spilled from his eyes and trailed down his cheeks. For a moment, she debated how to react. Instinct told her to take him in her arms and hold him, but experience—the lack of experience—kept her rooted in place.
“I miss my dad,” TJ said.
Her heart twisted. “I know you do, Teej.”
“Why did he have to be so stupid? He knew the consequences. He knew they’d throw his ass in jail if he got another DUI. He knew I’d be alone!”
Savannah had asked herself that question, and she didn’t have an answer. Fumbling for a response, she met Zach’s sympathetic gaze. He said, “Alcoholism is a disease, son. In my job, I’ve seen over and over how it grabs hold of a person’s will and strangles the life out of it.”
“He should have gotten help. He didn’t even try. I heard his lawyer tell him he needed to go into a program. He wouldn’t. And they warned him what would happen to me. He just didn’t care.”
“He let you down,” Zach said.
“Big time!”
TJ wiped his nose with his sleeve, and Savannah squelched the automatic urge to tell him to find a tissue.
“I’m so pissed at him … he didn’t even say good-bye to me. The day they came and got him, all he had to say were excuses.”
Savannah said, “But you still miss him.”
“Yeah, I do. He’s my dad.”
She totally understood.
“I didn’t get to see him. I was supposed to get to see him the day before I left, but there was some screwup at the jail and it didn’t happen. The lawyer said he’d get Dad to call me, but I don’t know how that’s supposed to happen with me here. Dad may not even know where I am. I don’t have a cell phone and he won’t call you, Aunt Savannah.”
It was the first time he’d actually addressed her as “Aunt Savannah,” and despite the circumstances under which he used it, she felt a rush of pleasure.
“See, this is where having a friend in law enforcement can help,” Zach said. “I can make a phone call happen … if I want to make it happen, that is.”
Savannah could easily read the warring emotions on TJ’s face. He didn’t want to ask for any help from Zach, but the sneaky smart sheriff had dangled something the boy desired. She took pity on him and asked, “What would make you want to make it happen, Zach?”
TJ watched him suspiciously.
Zach allowed the moment to stretch out before saying, “Nothing. I’m happy to help