A Gift of Time (The Nine Minutes Trilogy Book 3) (29 page)

Chapter Fifty-One

Ginny

2001,
Fort Lauderdale

Two weeks later
, I found myself standing at his front door
mentally kicking myself in the butt for being so weak.

I’d
purposely picked a day in the middle of the week and a time I knew he’d be at
work. I just wanted to stand there. To see if I could identify what I was
feeling.

The
emotional rollercoaster I’d been riding had been too much. I needed to resolve
things in my head. I needed to see him. To confront my feelings. I couldn’t
even identify what they were, but they were there. My heart insisted this was
the only way to move on from Grizz. And that’s what I wanted, right?

I would come
to learn my heart was even a worse liar than I was. I looked down at my feet
and whispered, “You might’ve been right, Tommy.”

The sound of
a low-flying plane overhead and the continuous droning of insects did little to
distract me as I tried to imagine how I’d feel if he were actually at home.
Would I be happy to see him? Would I be angry, mad, accusatory? Would I puff
myself up as I convinced myself I was feeling righteous anger? God spoke to me
then. Not out loud. I never hear an actual voice, but I do know when my
thoughts are from Him.

I knew then
that I would come back to talk to Grizz. For in the moment I heard God, I’d
felt instant shame about the way I’d treated Grizz. I could convince myself all
day long that I had a right to treat him the way I had, that he didn’t deserve
my forgiveness. But even Jesus asked God to forgive those who were persecuting
and torturing him. “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do.”

At that
moment, I knew I would be able to have a calm and adult discussion with Grizz,
not one laced with an unforgiving attitude and resentment. Yes, I could and
would forgive Grizz. I would come back and talk to him.

A peace fell
over me then, and I turned my face heavenward.

“Thank you
for the gift of knowing Your peace, Father. Thank you for showing me this in
Your time,” I whispered.

Just then,
the front door flew open and Grizz came barreling out, almost knocking me over.
And just like that, my heart did a flip-flop.

“Kit...uh,
Ginny!” He grabbed me roughly by my arms, his eyes wide with surprise. “I
didn’t see you. What are you doing here, honey?”

I started to
snap back at him and ask him what he was doing here—he was supposed to be
at work! I caught myself just in time.

“I—I
didn’t think you were here,” I stammered, staring into his warm, green eyes. “I
was just—just trying to see what I was feeling. Kind of practicing to
maybe, uh, have a conversation with you.”

He smiled.
“I took today off. I have to go to the dentist. I have a tooth that’s killing
me. But I’ll cancel the appointment.”

“Thought you
didn’t have a phone.” I looked up at him. I wasn’t accusing, just curious.

“I didn’t.
Bear gave me one after the last time I saw you so we could communicate for
work. Like this morning, I called and told him I had to go to the dentist.”

I remembered
how much Grizz had hated the dentist. He must be in some serious pain if he’d
called a dentist. I didn’t want him to miss his appointment. I surprised myself
by making an offer.

“Let me go
with you.”

He looked a
bit startled, and I could see him mentally calculating his options. Then he
gave me a rueful smile.

“I’d rather
invite you into my house, but it hurts bad enough that I’m going to take you up
on your offer.”

He locked
the deadbolt on his front door and aimed his clicker at the small, detached
garage. Before he pressed the button, I said, “I’ll drive you.”

Without
giving him time to answer, I headed for my car and got in. He followed and
clumsily climbed into the passenger side of my SUV. He was so big that it was
awkward for him to settle in. He slid the seat way back so he could ride
comfortably.

After
telling me where the dentist was located, the car became silent. I decided to
fill it with idle chit-chat—questions about his job on the landscaping
crew, his neighbors, how he was settling in. I was surprised he’d met some of
his neighbors.

“I don’t
know the people on my left. Apparently, they only come down from up north in
the winter. The couple across the street, can’t think of their names, are too
busy with four kids to be friendly, which is fine with me. The family on the
right came up from Miami. The parents don’t speak English. They have two kids.
The boy is in high school, the daughter is in college. The daughter, Rosa,
cleans my house once every two weeks. I think the family behind me just moved
in from somewhere out west.”

I cast him a
sidelong glance, and he quickly added, “I’m not invited to family barbecues or
anything like that. I just try not to be too much of a standoffish prick. I’m
the nice widower from up north who goes to work every day and minds his own
business.”

“You’re a
widower?” I asked, my curiosity piqued.

He then told
me about the alias that had been created for him. His new identity came with a
family history and all kinds of official documentation.

“Aren’t you
tired of it, Grizz?” I blurted, then wanted to eat my words.

But he knew
exactly what I was talking about. The aliases and name changes were tiresome.
He answered without looking at me.

“More tired
than you know, Kitten. And before you give me shit for calling you Kitten, it’s
a habit and I’m working on it.”

“Jason wants
me to invite you to the house for dinner.” It had started to rain, and I
flicked on the windshield wipers.

“No,” he
answered a little too quickly. “I…I shouldn’t have come to your house with
Mimi. I’m glad I did because I got to meet Jason. He seems like a great kid,
Ginny. But I’m sorry I came there because it’s just not a good idea.”

“Tommy told
me the story, and he told me you’re free now. They don’t care about you
anymore.”

“That’s true
or I wouldn’t have made sure you knew I was still alive, but at the same time,
I’m still trying to lay low. I know the population has multiplied by leaps and
bounds since I went to prison, so blending into a bigger pot is easier
therefore making the risk smaller. And my established identity should protect
me.”

The rain
came down harder now, and I switched the wipers to maximum speed.

“But there’s
always that small chance that someone might recognize me. And maybe they’ll
tell themselves it’s impossible because I’m supposed to be dead. But if someone
thinks they recognize me and sees me with you—well, I just think it would
cause them to think twice. I probably shouldn’t have accepted your offer to come
to the dentist with me, but I can’t help it, Kit...Ginny.”

I could feel
his eyes on me. I wouldn’t look over at him but stared straight ahead.

“You’ve
always been my addiction.” He didn’t have to compete with the pounding rain.
His voice was deep and clear and his next statement seared my soul.

“I can’t see
myself ever saying no to you. I love you, Ginny. I never stopped loving you for
one single second. Ever.”

Thwip,
thwap, thwip, thwap. The windshield wipers were slamming back and forth, and
their desperation to keep up with the pelting rain matched the rhythm of my
heartbeat.

“How many
people actually know?” I chanced a look at him. “Other than me, Mimi, Carter,
Bill, and Anthony?”

“That’s it.
Anthony may have told Christy, but I’m not worried about that.”

I nodded,
then bit my lip.

“Grizz, why
the bandana? Seems like such an old-fashioned way to handle things. I could’ve
just said something to Carter. It would have been far easier.”

“It was
something I put in place back in 1985, after I was arrested. Didn’t see any
need to change things up. She always had a way to get in touch with me.”

I asked him
a little more then, delving into his relationship with Carter and Bill. He
answered everything casually and without hesitation. Finally, the curiosity I
denied having got the best of me.

"How?
How did you pull off a fake execution?" I blurted out. "I mean, I
understand that this group is supposed to be powerful, but faking a
death?"

"I
almost didn't pull it off. I'm pretty sure I really did die on that table. I
came around in the morgue where their doctors were working on me," he
answered, his voice even.

I shuddered
at the thought of waking up in a morgue. "But, couldn't they have still
had you killed after you gave them their stuff back?" I gave him a
sideways glance.

"Yes,
they could have, Kit, and nobody would've been the wiser."

"But,
they didn't, Grizz. Why didn't they?"

"Only
two possibilities come to mind. They don't care anymore or someone has been
watching out for me. I'll probably never know for sure."

I could tell
by the tone of his voice that the subject was closed and I was secretly
relieved.

Finally, we
arrived at the dentist. The dentist’s office was in a medical building that
shared the same corner as a large shopping outlet. They were so common now in
Florida. Developers had to make the best use of every space. You could pull
into one complex and do your grocery shopping, eat, have a manicure, and see
your chiropractor all in one visit. I lucked out and found a spot right up
front.

“I think you
should wait in the car, Ginny. Just to be safe. If you don’t want to, I can get
a cab home.”

I agreed
with him about not going in and told him I didn’t mind waiting. He gave me a
smile that made my toes tingle. My toes didn’t tingle when Alec held my hand or
kissed me. Stop it, Ginny!

I passed the
time by playing with my cell phone. I still wasn’t used to all the things the
kids told me I could do with it. I was trying to check my data usage and figure
out how to pick ringtones when I looked up.

I’d noticed
a small car kept circling the medical building. It had a handicapped sticker
hanging from the rearview mirror. A quick glance told me all the handicapped
spots were taken. I should pull out and let them have this spot. I waited until
I saw them come around for the umpteenth time, and I started to back up slowly.
I saw them stop and put on their blinker. I drove to the farthest spot and
backed into a space so I would be facing the dentist when Grizz came out. I was
glad the rain had stopped. The couple took forever to get out of their car and
make their way up to the sidewalk.

I wasn’t
sure how much time passed when something caused me to look up from my phone. I
knew he’d come out. I couldn’t explain it, but somehow I felt Grizz. I think I
always had.

I started the
car and watched as he casually walked down the sidewalk. He crossed over to the
next building and strode past a deli, hair salon, and sportswear store. He
appeared to be looking for something. He wasn’t looking out into the parking
lot at the cars. He wasn’t looking for me.

I finally
caught up with him and lightly tapped my horn. Without missing a beat, he came
toward my car and got in.

“Thought you
left.” He didn’t sound mad or hurt, just stating a fact.

“I gave up
my spot for a couple that needed it. How’d it go in there?”

“He fixed me
up. I don’t need to go back.”

“What were
you doing? You looked like you were looking for something or someone.”

“I thought
you left so I was going to call a cab. But I left the phone Anthony gave me at
home.”

“So what were
you doing?”

“I was
looking for a fucking phone booth!”

I gave him a
half-smile. “Phone booths have become an endangered species.”

“A lot of
shit has changed since I’ve been gone,” he said matter-of-factly.

“A lot of
things have changed,” I said. “But I can see your use of profanity isn’t one of
them.”

“You don’t
survive in prison for fifteen years saying ‘intercourse’ and ‘poop.’”

Just hearing
him say the words intercourse and poop sounded comical. As much as I disliked
the use of profanity, I couldn’t help myself. I smiled at the thought of him
using the alternatives.

He asked if
I would come into the house after I dropped him off. But I shook my head. Not
only was it probably not a good idea to let myself be alone with him, but I
also wanted to be at the bus stop when Jason got off. I told Grizz Jason had
been getting in fights in school, and one bully in particular rode his bus.
Grizz seemed interested and asked me to elaborate.

“It has to
do with Tommy,” I said. “Everyone was so nice and understanding after Tommy
died, but there’s always that one person that sees someone’s pain as a way to
manipulate and make themselves feel better. In this case, it’s a kid named
Corbin. He’s been awful to Jason recently. I don’t know why or where it’s
coming from, but he’s said some hurtful things.”

“Like what?”
Grizz frowned.

“The last
thing that got Jason upset was that Tommy was stupid to have gotten himself
killed. That if it was Corbin’s father, he would’ve been smart enough to hide,
and if he did try to stop the shooter, he wouldn’t have been dumb enough to get
shot.”

“So what
happened? Jason clocked him?”

“No! Tommy
and I have taught Jason to turn the other cheek, to ignore bullies and only
fight back if there’s no other choice.” I could sense Grizz rolling his eyes as
I kept mine on the road in front of me. “It actually bothered Corbin that Jason
wasn’t reacting to the taunts, so he started getting physical. Of course, Jason
fought back. He’s sporting a black eye, but it’s nothing compared to his
bruised heart. To have to go through the loss of his father and be teased about
it? It’s been really hard for him.”