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Chapter Four

The woman standing in the doorway to Dan's room could have been a Bette Davis stand-in—with an Audrey Hepburn pixie haircut—in red…bright, almost neon, red. Stonewashed boyfriend jeans rolled to mid-calf, a black leather boyfriend jacket over the boyfriend white shirt, tail out, and silver ballet slippers which matched the big silver hoops at her ears—had she missed dressing for effect in middle school? And now at seventy-something, she was making up for it?

Elaine had never met Margaret Mahoney but had gotten an earful from a critical daughter and a much more forgiving son. And this was not a woman who was going to slow down anytime soon. No surprise that there was a boyfriend—maybe this Stanley had inspired the clothes. But how neat that she'd probably literally jumped ship to get here. Elaine knew Dan would be grateful.

“I'm Elaine.” She held out her hand.

“Maggie Mahoney. Is a hug not appropriate?” Before Elaine could decide either way, she was wrapped in a bear-grip that belied the woman's slight frame.

“What exquisite taste you have, my darling son. She's just what I imagined.” Maggie called over her shoulder and then took a step back to survey Elaine. “She's perfect for you.”

Elaine knew her face was crimson, but at least it matched Dan's. He was sitting on the side of the bed in slacks and shirt, sans shoes and socks. He caught Elaine staring at his bare toes.

“Too many ‘can you wiggle these' tests.” He pointed to his bare feet. It was obvious that he was choosing to ignore his mother and her comments on the girlfriend. The turban-bandage on his head had been replaced by a four by four-inch square gauze pad anchored by adhesive tape on his barely showing stubble of hair. “Like it?” He pointed to his shaved head.

“It'll grow back. But, yes, I kinda do. You have a great-shaped head.”

“Better than Carolyn's.” His mother chimed in. “I had a much easier time giving birth to my son.”

“That's a terrible thing to say.” Elaine noticed Carolyn sitting on the cot in the corner, but no Phillip. She vaguely remembered that mother and daughter were a little challenged when it came to getting along. Guess this was proof.

“So, when are they going to give you your shoes and spring you from this place?” Elaine walked to the bed and gave Dan a peck on the cheek. Funny how even at her age, she was self-conscious in front of Mom.

“By noon if they keep their promise. I've convinced them I can recoup just as well on the outside and simply check in every once in awhile.”

“How long will you be under observation?”

“A month.”

Elaine tried not to react. A month? Here in northern New Mexico? Not Ireland? She realized Dan was watching her, and she quickly smiled hoping he hadn't noticed her hesitation. “Great. I'm glad they're being careful.”

“Damn.” The expletive came from the cot where Carolyn had dumped her purse and was pawing through its contents. “I must have left my phone in the car. Phillip's expecting a call—needs to know when to pick us up. It's a long drive; I don't want to get home too late.”

The “us” must include Mom, Elaine thought. That would make sense; she was probably going to stay with them for a while.

“Here's mine.” Maggie fished in a pocket of her jacket and handed over a snappy looking iPhone in a red case.

“Thanks.”

The shriek caused Dan to hop off the bed and take a step toward Carolyn as the iPhone skittered across the floor.

“What the—”

“Oh my God. I can't believe it.” Carolyn looked like the wind had been punched out of her as she steadied herself by slumping against the foot of Dan's bed. “My own mother. There's no excuse for this kind of lewd behavior.” Spittle sprayed from the corner of Carolyn's mouth. “What if someone found you by the side of the road…found your phone—”

“Ah, Carolyn, always the melodramatic. It's called sexting, my dear. And that's a picture of my birthday present.” Maggie seemed barely able to keep a straight face. “I would have assumed you'd seen something like that before. I do have a grandson. But, of course, I could be wrong.”

Elaine bent down and retrieved the errant phone and there it was—the offensive picture, a stiffy with a bow on it. Stanley's, she presumed. She handed the phone to Dan.

“Hey, I've given that sort of gift before.” Dan sneaked a sideways look at Elaine. Elaine quickly looked away biting her bottom lip to contain the laughter.

“You're not seventy-plus and you didn't advertise it. What happened to decorum? Don't encourage her. This is juvenile behavior. The kind of behavior that could wreck Phillip's chances to lead this great state.”

“I don't think it's going to make the front page of the
Albuquerque Journal
.” Dan sighed. Carolyn always wore him out—her view of the world and his had never meshed.

“Exactly. Just a little harmless fun.” Maggie took back her phone and dropped it in a pocket.

Elaine held out her cell to Carolyn and couldn't resist pointing to the wallpaper, “Sunflowers. Stems covered.”

Carolyn glared at her, lips pulled into a straight line. “Not funny, but thanks.”

Conversation was strained until Phillip got there. Then, there were assurances of all getting together again before Maggie had to go back to Scottsdale. She was here for a week and had already said she wanted to come back to Santa Fe to shop—under much happier circumstances, she added when Dan was back in the peak of health. They'd keep in touch but maybe midweek next week? A quick hug for Elaine and more comments about how she was so “right.”

Finally the room was empty, only Dan and Elaine left. A crisis averted? Or would Maggie pay for her indiscretions? Carolyn sulking, taking Phillip aside to enlist a comrade-in-arms. Elaine didn't think for one minute that Maggie couldn't take care of herself, but she didn't envy her long ride by car with the two of them.

“I like your mother.”

“Me, too. I hope she'll survive to old age in spite of her daughter.”

Any further discussion was interrupted by Dr. Zimmerman pushing open the door. “Well, looks like you're anxious to get out of here. I have to say you've done a real turnaround in four days. Almost like new. I'm a little reluctant to let you go, but I agree with the general populace—you can get sick in places like this.” His laugh was more of a chortle. “But what I'm saying is if you follow some rules, I think you'll be fine—shall we go over them?”

He turned to Elaine. “I don't want our guy here to overexert—no foot races or
mountain climbing
.” He looked meaningfully at Elaine, then chuckled and turned back to Dan. “Rest, rest, and then some more rest. Just take things easy. There's still a little swelling. No driving until I say so. Keep the bandages dry, and the cast, only take a painkiller if you absolutely have to—you probably know the drill. I'll need to see him Saturday morning.” This directed again at Elaine. “Make an appointment on the way out.” He turned back at the door, “I like happy endings—don't disappoint me. Take care of yourself.” And with that he was gone.

“Let's get out of here.”

“Shoes an' socks?”

“Try the bottom drawer under the TV.”

***

“Where to? Are you hungry?” Elaine pulled the Flex out from under the hospital's covered entrance to Emergency. Dan had refused a wheelchair ride from his room, much to the consternation of the floor nurse. And he didn't need help climbing into the SUV's front seat, even though Elaine saw the grimace before he settled back.

“Yeah. But I'm not thinking restaurant. Maybe back to the motel?”

“And that wouldn't be overexerting? I thought Dr. Zimmerman's reference to ‘mountain climbing' was just a euphemism for sex.”

“Can't let Stanley get ahead of me…figuratively speaking.”

He grinned and Elaine couldn't help thinking how terrific it was to have him back—innuendo and all. The grin was the same, a little lopsided, infectious, probably hadn't changed any since fifth grade. The bandage gave him a rakish look—like he'd been in a really bad fight but had won. Come to think of it, that wasn't too far from the truth, she decided.

She grinned back. “Sounds like a plan.”

She'd chosen a motel on Cerrillos Road—plain, not too expensive but it took pets. She carried the luggage inside while Dan turned on the shower. She looked the other way when Simon hopped onto the queen-sized bed closest to the window. There was a dog who understood creature comforts. She filled his water bowl and put it under the vanity's counter. She wiggled out of jeans and pulled the shirt over her head, dropped the silk undies on top of the pile and headed toward the bathroom.

“Glad to see you're following doctor's orders.”

“Have to. Won't get this thing off for awhile.” He held up his right hand with the cast already encased in a plastic bag sealed off with two rubber bands.

“Kind of a sexy outfit for the shower. But you're missing a bow.” Elaine pointed.

“Ah, you'd just tell Carolyn. After you.” Dan held the shower door open.

The shower felt good but it felt even better to just lean against Dan, her arms around his back, her head on his shoulder. He'd removed the bandage from his head and she could see the ten or so stitches at a diagonal above his right ear. But it was the bruising that made her pull back. Most of his right side was a dark blue-black beginning that attractive slide from puce to puke-green that denotes healing.

“Hurt?” She lightly touched a bluish-green welt on his shoulder.

“Looks a lot worse than it really is. I took the brunt of it on my right side—went through the windshield at an angle and collided headfirst with something.”

“You were lucky.”

“Yeah.”

He bent down and kissed her, pulled back, and murmured, “God I've missed you,” before pulling her into him again. “What if I wanted to take a rain check on that mountain climbing and just take a nap? Would my reputation be ruined?”

“I'd say that Superman was probably human.” She kissed him again. “I'm planning on having lots of second chances.”

They slept until four, ordered in, and watched a movie on HBO.

“I know it's probably back to work tomorrow.” Elaine wasn't quite ready to give up having Dan all to herself. She slipped another piece of pizza out of the box between them and sneaked the crust to Simon.

“Yeah, I need to look up that sheriff—Howard didn't you say?”

“Mora County. His office's in Las Vegas.”

“I'll give him a call in the morning.”

***

The gold lettering on the door said Sheriff Lewis Howard. Dan paused, then knocked. He had been dreading this. Obviously, he hadn't known the old man who had given him a ride but still, he certainly hadn't wished him harm. It hadn't been any solace to know that asthma had brought on the coughing fit, but being pinned by the truck had killed him. Dan wished he'd been able to do something.

He was startled by the yell “Come in.” It certainly didn't lack in volume. The man who got up from behind the desk was a big man—not fat, just a gym-induced solidness that made him intimidating. Something from the brick-shithouse genre that seemed to get people hired in this sort of job out here. He instantly thought of a certain lawman in Tatum.

But this man seemed to have some things going for him, according to the pictures on the wall. The sheriff with grade-schoolers at a soccer tournament handing out a trophy, sheriff at the fairgrounds crowning Miss Mora County, sheriff with a group of uniforms standing in front of new cruisers. Must be about ten years his senior, Dan thought. Ought to be staring retirement in the face. He idly wondered if someone like Lewis Howard would stay close or take off for a cabana by the sea. Dan was pretty sure he knew what he'd do in the same situation. It was tough to adjust to one-horse towns. He dreaded the “where should we live?” discussion that he'd have to have with Elaine one of these days.

“Have any trouble finding me?”

“No, your directions were great.” Dan shook hands, took the proffered chair in front of the desk and waited for Sheriff Howard to return to his.

“First of all, I want to say I'm happy to see you up and around. There could have been another outcome.”

“I'm all too aware of that. I was sorry to hear about Chet Echols.”

“Yeah, his eightieth birthday was coming up in February. Shame. He had some good years left. Sheriff Howard blew his nose on a red square of material that he pushed back into a center drawer of the desk. Dan ruled out any emotion in favor of allergies. He waited while the man took a small spiral-bound notebook out of another drawer.

“Let's get started by you telling me what happened that afternoon.”

“Anything in particular?”

“How 'bout lapse of time from when the Cherokee gave out and Chet showed up with a ride.”

“Probably not more than five minutes. One-thirty to one thirty-five. I considered myself lucky to get a ride so quickly. There's a lot of empty highway out there.”

The officer looked up from his notes. “You'd never met Mr. Echols before?”

Dan shook his head, “Funny, Chet seemed to think I should know him. That his name should ring a bell.”

“It didn't?”

“Still doesn't. Who was he anyway?”

“An old stunt driver—right out of Hollywood. Back in the forties and fifties, he was the best. Lots of articles on him over the years…enjoyed some minor celebrity. Big in this part of the country—born in Roy. Performed in state fairs until a couple years ago. There aren't a lot of celebrities from out this way unless you include Tommy McDonald. Remember the running back for the Philadelphia Eagles? There was a deserving Hall of Famer if there ever was one. A real Roy High School Longhorn. Lived up to all our expectations.”