Page 19 of I Knew You
“It’s not that,” Josiah interrupted with a chuckle. “We aren’t that shallow. Whit might be a professional, but you were well on your way before…” His voice trailed off, seeming to know it wasn’t my most pleasant topic.
I stuck the toe of my black boot into the loose gravel, doing whatever to avoid looking him in the eye.
“Either way, I’m not interested,” I replied. “With my job, I don’t think stretching myself further is a good idea.” I was the superintendent for the US Forest Service at the Washington-Jefferson National Forest. It wasn’t a difficult job overall, but Josiah didn’t need to know that.
The anticipation in his expression fell away. “That sounds like a cop-out, but I’ll take a man’s word. You know Coach won’t let this go.”
“I know.” I sighed and opened my driver’s side door. “It’s good to see you, man. Thanks for making time to come help.”
“I’m always happy to. I’ll never forget what MCA did for my mom and dad after the plant shut down. I’m sorry I haven’t been able to help more in the last few months.”
“Don’t apologize. You do more than enough for everyone. Just glad to see you. Say hello to the family.”
We shook hands, and I climbed into the truck. With a departing nod, he walked away, and I closed the door, exhaling loudly. The long day had stolen all my energy. I’d been in my uncomfortable ranger uniform all day, sweating. I couldn’t wait to get home, take a hot shower, and lie down in my comfy bed.
First, I had some choice words for Whit.
He might have been a professional football player, and my best friend of over twenty years, but those facts didn’t soften the blow of the text he’d sent earlier. I rechecked it to make sure I hadn’t read it wrong.
Whit: Julianna is coming back to Mill Creek for a while.
I had been pushing the words out of my mind as much as possible, keeping my focus on where I was and what I was doing all day. But now, it was time for the reckoning. I would have to call him right there in the parking lot, considering there was little to no cell phone signal on the way home, thanks to the adjacent mountains.
On the fourth ring, a frantic and loud “Yello!” sounded from the other end. Loud voices, rattling dishes, and footsteps filled the background. He was at a restaurant or bar.
“Why did you text me Julianna is coming back to Mill Creek on a random Friday and then not give me one fucking detail?”
There was a pause. “Huh? I told you what I know, dude. Jules is coming to town soon, and she’ll be staying at Grams’ house. What more do you want?”
The telltale lilt of Whit’s voice and the inflections in his voice gave away his physical status.
“You’re drunk.” I put my hand to my brow, kneading the skin there, trying to will the headache that was forming to goaway. Years of dealing with my Mom, who was constantly inebriated, gave me a radar for these things. My plans to talk this through tonight with Whit had little chance of happening.
“Meh, a little tipsy.” There was more raucous conversation in the background. “I’m lettin’ loose with the boys. Got a big game Sunday.”
“That’s great,” I said, sarcastically, not caring one bit. “So when is she arriving?”
Bottles clinked in the background. “Uh…Sunday?”
My heart sped up in my chest.
“Sunday? As in the day after tomorrow?”
“No, next week, next Sunday. She’s got an appointment with a surgeon on that Monday.”
Now, my heart stopped altogether.
“Surgeon? What’s going on? Is it her back?”
“Yeah, it’s her back. She’s going to a doctor in Roanoke for surgery. The details are fuzzy.”
I shook my head and squeezed the phone tighter in my hand.
“Is she?—”
“Listen, I’ll talk to you later,” Whit interrupted. “Too many people here. I can barely hear you.”
His words were still trying to sink into my consciousness.
