Fragile Hearts (Poplar Falls #4) - Amber Kelly Page 0,42
getting to meet Jefferson Lancaster, and she wanted everything to be perfect for Aunt Mads.
“I remember Dad and I were outside, shoveling the drive and walkway, when she came out of the house with Elle on her hip, all bundled up, and they ambushed us with snowballs. We spent that afternoon together, laughing and playing in the snow. Then, I helped her convince Dad to load us all up into his Cherokee to go get a tree. It took us both. He wanted to wait because he said the tree would be too dried out by Christmas, but I begged him. Elle was so excited. It was the first Christmas she was old enough to grasp the idea of Santa and presents. He finally gave in after I promised to keep it well watered every day.
“I can still see that entire ride vividly. Momma popped in a CD and made us all sing carols. Elle was clapping, and Dad was purposefully getting all the words wrong while I laughed. The car came out of nowhere. The last thing I remember before we were hit was my mother’s face looking back at us and going from a wide, happy smile to pure panic. I didn’t have time to turn and see what she saw before I heard the sound of wheels squealing and steel crunching. She was in a seat belt, but she managed to snake her arms out and twist in the seat like lightning, trying to reach us and shield us with her body. The impact was so hard it slung us around in circles and threw her against the windshield. Her head slammed into the glass and busted open. We went over the side and I remember the feel of falling, and when we slammed into the ground, part of the frame broke loose and ended up imbedded in her chest. Her body was shaking from the shock. I tried so hard to get loose and get to her, but I was trapped. I swear, for years, every time I closed my eyes, I could hear her petrified screams.”
I watch him get lost in that memory as he closes his eyes tightly, and the pain washes over him.
“I’ve never told anyone that. Not even Elle,” he confesses.
“I’m so sorry,” I tell him.
“We ended up upside down at the bottom of the gap. It took rescuers forever to reach us. Momma went silent fairly quickly, and I could hear Dad’s anguished cries as he reached for her face. He was coughing blood. I remember the gurgling sound when he tried to talk. Elle was screaming as she hung from her car seat. He struggled to get free, but he was pinned, and his chest was crushed by the steering wheel. I was dazed, but I was able to finally get my belt undone, and through my sobs, I asked him what to do. He told me to take care of my sister. I crawled over and grabbed her, got her loose, and wrapped her in my arms. We sat there, huddled on the roof of the SUV, with him reassuring us that everything would be okay as he lost his fight. He took his last breath as the sirens filled the air, and lights from the sheriff’s car and ambulance reflected on the back windshield. He held on until that moment. Until he knew help had arrived for us. Then, he took one last labored breath. He hadn’t wanted to leave us alone in that wreck.”
“Jeezus,” is all I can manage to say.
“I blamed myself, just like you, for a long time. I was the reason we had been out that night. I convinced him to go get the tree. If I hadn’t promised to water it, he wouldn’t have given in. It was all my fault,” he says as he looks up at me.
I shake my head. He was just a kid. It was an accident.
“When I ended up here with Aunt Madeline and Jefferson, I was so closed off. I was afraid to get close to them. Afraid to love them. I thought I didn’t deserve love. In the beginning, the only thing that kept me going was Elle. I had to take care of Elle.”
He stops for a moment and gets a far-off look. One I know well.
“Hard to tell which is worse sometimes. Being the one dying or the one left behind.”
I nod in agreement.
“Guess we won’t know till we’re dead,” Walker utters.