Chapter One: Getting the Call
Duke never talked about her.
It wasn't because he didn't care. If anything, he cared too much. But he couldn't take the misguided pity. Whenever someone gave him that trademark of sympathy, it was like they were twisting a knife in his gut. So he kept busy – mostly with ill-advised schemes. He had once read that idle hands were the devil's playground. He wasn't sure about that but it sure did give you time to think – time to torture yourself with the same old thoughts.
Eventually, it became too much to take and he left Haven, a town so haunted by her memory. For a time, he was free. And then the Troubles came back. Reluctantly, but true to his word, Duke returned.
And now, here he was, several years later, and she was on his mind once again. He stood on the deck of his boat, looking out on the water, lost in what he had come to call "the dark thoughts." He clutched a cup of coffee that had once been steaming hot but was now tepid.
"Good Morning, Early Bird." Jennifer came on deck, wearing one of his shirts, her hair messy. She gave him a sleepy smile and moved to lean on the railing with him.
Duke put down his coffee and pulled Jennifer into his arms, entangling his fingers with hers. "Good Morning, Sleepy Head. Thought you were going to sleep all day."
"It's only eight in the morning. And you have been up since five. What's up?"
Duke shrugged. "Couldn't really sleep."
"I could tell. From all that tossing and turning you were doing."
He rested his chin on the top of her head. "I'm sorry I kept you up."
She turned and looked up at him with a mockingly stern look on her face. "I'm willing to forgive it. But is everything alright?"
Duke took one more look out at the water, the waves lapping against the side of his boat, before giving Jennifer what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "Nothing you need to worry about. How about breakfast? I make a mean omelette."
Jennifer's brow furrowed and he could tell that she wasn't sure whether to push him for more information or not.
"I'm telling you – these are the lightest, fluffiest omelets in all of Maine. Damn good coffee, too." He gave her a wink.
Finally, after a bit of consideration, Jennifer returned the smile. "I've had the swill you call coffee. I think it's best you stick to making omelets and margaritas. I'll take care of the morning's caffeine supply."
"Alright." He kissed her on the forehead and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "Start the coffee. I'll be down in a second."
"Okay, don't take too long." She gave his hand a quick squeeze before heading below deck again.
Duke sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He loved Jennifer. He really did. And she knew more about him than most. She knew about his curse. She was even there when he was forced to kill his brother. So why had he withheld what was on his mind? Maybe because he wasn't yet willing to discuss the greatest failure of his life.
He started to head below deck when his cell phone rang in his pocket. He pulled it out, prepared to hit the ignore button. He stopped when he saw the caller ID.
Haven Medical Center.
Duke's pulse quickened and his breath caught. With trembling hands, he hit the answer button and held the phone to his ear. "This is Duke."
"Duke Crocker? We have you listed as an emergency contact for a Veronica Riedel."
He felt his chest tighten. He had been waiting for this day for almost twenty years. "That would be me, yes."
And then, she said something that surprised him. "Sir, Veronica is awake."
He walked below deck to find Jennifer pouring creamer into a steaming cup of coffee. "Okay, so I know you normally prefer Bailey's in your coffee but I found this new creamer at the store the other day. It's called salted caramel mocha and it's to die f-," She stopped when she saw the look on his face. "Duke, what's wrong?"
He looked at the phone still in his hands and then back up at Jennifer, at a loss for words at first.
She looked up at him, her eyes full of worry. "Duke?"
"It's…My sister. She's been in a coma. She just woke up this morning."