Hey! Thanks so much for the support :) I really appreciate it. Once again sorry about the editing. I'll keep trying to work on it.
Chapter Three - A-tisket A-tasket
"... A-tisket, a-tasket
I lost my yellow basket
Won't someone help me find my basket
And make me happy again, again?..."
- Ella Fitzgerald
Lucy sat, waiting on a long bench in the corridor of the small hospital.
It may have been judgmental to think, but now more than ever, Lucy wished that they were back in the city with all of the newfangled medical gadgets and not in this dour backwater county.
The sound of tearing brought Lucy out of her worried haze. She looked up to her right to see the young man who had helped her, nervously trying to stick the edges of a frayed curtain he had just been fiddling with back together. Eventually he gave up and inconspicuously shoved his hands in his pockets and tried to walk away with his hands clean. He stopped though once he realized that Lucy had been watching him. He held her stare in an awkward silence.
After he had dropped them off at the hospital, Lucy had expected the man to return to his own affairs but he had found her after he had parked his truck and she had admitted Issac into Dr. Newton's care.
And now here he was. This stranger who was sharing a strange silence with her and waiting to hear the fate of her brother... her only brother, the only family she had left.
'That's not true...' Her arms wove around her middle once more.
Her stomach twisted. For once it felt empty, for once she didn't feel like throwing up... it should have been a good feeling, but it wasn't. She didn't want to be alone. She looked up at the man who, after all he had already done, had not abandoned her in her time of need.
It had been so quiet that his voice had shocked her a bit by breaking the silence when he finally spoke. "You know, never did get your name Miss..." he trailed off waiting for her to offer her name.
Blinking at the invitation to make polite conversation, Lucy took a moment to respond, clearing her throat before she did. "Luciana... Lucy Mills."
A genuine smile broke across his face as he held out his hand and walked towards her. "Well, pleased to make your acquaintance Miss. Lucy. I'm Jack Bondurant."
Lucy was able to muster up a twitch of her lips and a lackluster handshake, which considering how horrible she was feeling was quite an achievement.
"You ain't from around here are yah?"
"Baltimore."
"You and your brother visitin' family in these parts?"
'Family...' that word put a lump in Lucy's throat. Her eyes glazed over with water and her thoughts went to the room.
Clearly taking in her low demeanor, Jack went on talking in a soft way. "I reckon your brother'll be all right."
Lucy remained silent.
Jack seemed to sense his misstep as he fell mute as well.
After a spell of staring absently down the hall, Lucy looked up to the young man to ask in a broken whisper, "How can you be sure?"
A new spark lit in his dark eyes. Causing another young boy's face to flash through her mind.
'He looks so much like Christi...' Lucy forced herself to stop her train of thought, she wasn't sure would be able to handle anymore sadness.
Luckily Jack was still there and willing to distract her, "Honest Miss. Lucy." He went on, his excitement about the subject causing him to forgo propriety as he took a seat next to her on the bench, "I got a knack for knowin' these things, on account of... well on account of how us..." he waved his hand in front of his proud chest "... that is my brothers and me are death proof."
That last part of his statement got Lucy's attention, "Death proof?" She questioned turning in her seat to face him properly.
"Yes m'am. We survived damn..." he paused to cough over his cursing once more before going on "... most everything between us. Wars, sickness, slashings, bullets..."
Lucy wasn't sure what to say, her brown eyes simply widened at the list he gave her, which was contrary to the nonchalant way he was speaking.
Watching his beaming face she thought to herself, 'Not everyone makes it through...'
Clearly thinking he had reassured her, Jack gave her yet another encouraging smile.
Blinking away the new wetness in her eyes, Lucy smiled weakly at his childish countenance. "You're very lucky, not everyone is..." she was having a hard time containing tears, as memories of pale lifeless forms flood her mind.
"Miss. Mills." Lucy was jolted out of her thoughts by a kind voice above. She had been so distracted she hadn't noticed Dr. Newton approaching.
Standing up quickly Lucy spoke before she could help herself, "How is he? Is he awake? Is he... Is he..."
"Miss. Mills, I know it's difficult but I need you to calm down."
Lucy resisted the urge to wring the grey haired man by the neck, instead she made herself breathe slowly.
The doctor went to eyeing Jack, who he obviously recognized, before addressing Lucy once again. "Now, we can talk in private if you wish..."
"It's fine." Lucy blurted out quickly, "Please just tell me how my brother is."
With a small breath, Dr. Newton said calmly. "He's stable."
Lucy could feel herself practically lift off the ground with relief at that statement.
"But..." the doctor went on, Lucy felt herself crash back down. "His head sustained a significant injury. He's alive and his body is able to breathe, albeit poorly and he is not conscious."
Her hearing felt fuzzy.
"Not conscious." Lucy sounded out as though she were trying to figure out the meaning of the words she had just heard.
The kind eyed doctor gave her sympathetic look, "I'm afraid so. It's uncertain when or if he'll wake up."
"Wake up..." she whispered, Lucy could feel her heart sinking.
"He's in need of constant medical care and will have to stay here. The cost alone is quite a..."
Even though he was speaking clearly, she was having trouble understanding what he was saying.
All she could see was Issac's violin, sitting in a grey room with all of the the lights slowly burning out.
Cutting through the white noise Lucy spoke over the doctor. "I need to see him."
"I... of course." Dr. Newton gave her a sympathetic smile before leading her down the long echoing hallway. Lucy felt like a shaking leaf as he directed her through a door into a basically empty room. Empty except for one bed.
Lucy tried raising her eyes past the foot of the bed but she couldn't. Before she could even think she found herself running away from the room's doorway, back up the hall and to the hospital's exit as fast as she could.
Gasping for breath, she curled over and held her knees tight. The fresh air filled with the unfamiliar smell of pine needles was cool and relaxing against her face.
"Miss. Lucy?" Jack's gentle voice spoke from behind her.
"Oh god!" She groaned as everything that had happened came back to her.
She could hear the young man approach her. He awkwardly rested an uncertain yet reassuring hand against her back, "It'll work out Miss. Lucy. I promise."
Feeling a well of frustration and fear erupt, Lucy pulled herself away from Jack and all but shouted. "Will it? It's my fault he's even in there!"
She faced him, her eyes now spilling over with tears. "It's my fault," she pressed her accusing finger hard against her chest, "... if I hadn't distracted him, if I'd just cooperated, if I hadn't been stupid enough to..." she looked down, realizing that she had moved to pointing her stomach. "Do you understand? It's all my fault!" Her hands moved up to cover her face.
She cried for what felt like hours, but was probably minutes of berating herself.
And even over her raging thoughts, she could hear his soft voice speak. "I do."
It was a small phrase, so bare and honest that was enough to drag her out of the whirlwind of emotions inside her.
Lucy lowered her hands to see the young dark-eyed man's serious face.
Unsure of how to respond, to the intensity behind his words, Lucy mumbled, "I have nothing." She felt that horrible emptiness in her stomach again, "I can't afford... I have nothing to keep him here with."
"I think I can help on that account, Miss. Lucy."
Lucy couldn't help but eye him with some suspicion, which he immediately seemed to recognize. "Ain't nothin' untoward M'am. Just cooking, servin' and dealin' with the folk that come by the Station. "
"But you don't know if I can cook or if I'm a hard worker."
"Well, from what I've seen you could run just about any other worker in these parts off their feet." He gave her a good natured chuckle before going on, "And it'd truly be a help to us to have a someone around."
Looking at him carefully, Lucy contemplated how to reply to his generous offer. "That's sweet Mr. Bondurant but you don't know..." her lungs seized and she gasped slightly, her hand automatically travelling to her stomach, "... you don't know all of the circumstances. I'm..." air seemed difficult to get into her lungs as she spoke "... I'm in a delicate condition."
"Oh..." The look on his face had changed. But wasn't that same look she gotten used to seeing on the doctor's face, then on Issac's and Robert's when she finally told them.
She could tell that this young dark haired man was doing some sort of math in his head."You don't look none too delicate to me, Miss Lucy." He said, giving her an easy shrug and a kind-hearted smile "... 'Sides a woman in your condition'll suit the motherless dogs out here well, even though I reckon you won't be here all that long any way." He added clearly trying to comfort her about the duration of her brother's state.
Despite her situation Lucy couldn't help but feel somewhat lighter when he said it. He was only being kind, but Lucy needed that more than anything else in this moment.
She needed some to lie and say that everything would be ok and so, despite herself, Lucy found herself nodding, "All right."
Jack's smiled widened, he reassuringly reached out to squeeze her arm. "All right. Let's go ask Forrest."
That had been the second time he had mentioned that name but it was the first time Lucy had actually processed it. "Forrest?"
"My older brother, he runs the Station." Lucy felt a pang of concern about the prospect he had only just offered her. Jack must have seen it because he carried on hurriedly, "But don't worry Miss. Lucy, bet he'll say yes."
They had stopped off at car wreck to pick the few items she and Issac had brought along on their trip. It was getting late and night was nearing so Jack had offered to come back and tow the T-Ford to the Station with his brothers tomorrow.
After going through the pockets and giving any money she could find over to the hospital, in a show of good faith, Lucy had put Issac's heavy coat over her shoulders.
The money for... everything. For the reason they even been travelling South was gone. Lucy shifted under the weight of the jacket, her arms were clutching Issac's violin to her chest. The worn case felt comforting against her pale fingers.
"Miss. Lucy?"
The blonde woman was startled by the loud voice next to her. "Sorry." She blinked at the young man driving, "Were you saying something Mr. Bondurant?"
"It's Jack, Miss. Lucy. I'm only 21 and your makin' me feel like some ol' man."
Lucy wasn't exactly surprised by the information he gave her, the way he dressed and spoke it was obvious that he had to be somewhere near her age. "Well then I insist you stop calling me Miss. Lucy. I'm only a year older than you."
"Sorry Miss. Lucy I was taught to respect my elders and the like." He said with a light teasing smile.
Lucy let herself enjoy that small moment, before clearing her head and apologetically asking him to repeat what he had been saying earlier.
"I wasn' sayin' much. Just rattlin' on about my brothers and me." He said, "Suppose I do tend to go on."
Forcing a smile that she had actually wanted to be genuine Lucy stated, "No. I want to hear."
"Really?"
"Really," Lucy said, finding it less difficult to smile the more she spoke to him.
"Well then..." Jack grinned pulling into the Station. "For- For..." the grin slipped off of his face and his skin blanched as he came to a stop in front of the Station.
Getting out of the car he walked out and opened the passenger side for Lucy, the entire time his dark eyes stuck to the open door of the Station house.
Once a very confused Lucy had stepped out of the car she asked in soft whisper. "Has someone broken in again?"
Jack began to shake his head, but before he could say anything a new voice called from the left side of the front porch, "Woohoo!" it was coming from a man so covered in grime, it was no wonder why Lucy had missed seeing him laying there with his arm resting over his forehead. "Jackie boy, you're in for it. Best get your scrawny white ass in there boy."
"Shut up, Howard." Jack spat at the man resting on the deck.
The dirt covered man only sniggered in response.
"Get in here Jack." A low gravelly voice spoke from beyond the Station's open door, it was quiet but still each word carried enough weight to make a thudding impact low in Lucy's gut.
The man inside the Station spoke again, "Need to repeat myself, Jack?"
The young man quickly made his way up the steps and inside, though he made sure to hover near the door.
"Forrest, this is Lucy," Jack pointed towards her, though he was blocking any view of her by standing in the doorway "... she's that girl from yesterday."
"So, you the little thing that broke the window?" Raising his arm to open one eye the man named Howard stared out at the rapidly paling woman quivering by the parked truck. An amused smile playing across his face.
Lucy felt numb, her hold on her brother's violin case tightened, luckily Jack spoke up again to take back focus.
"Her brother and her were in a wreck a ways back and..."
There was a grunting noise.
"Awww, come on Forrest. Couldn't leave her brother out there... plus, she's agreed to help around the Station. Figured since Mag..." the dark haired man suddenly lost his place, nervously rubbing his hand over the back of his neck before speaking up again "...um, since we're stretched pretty thin here she could help is all."
There was the sound of more grumbling and a chair being scraped back.
Jack cast a smiling glance back her way, with a well meaning half smile. "Just for a spell though 'cause I reckon he'll be out of the hospital soon."
Lucy couldn't find it in herself to smile back, she was lost in thought. 'What would my life be without him?' Her brother's face floated before her eyes.
"All right then." The light haired woman was jerked out of her thoughts by the deep voice coming from inside. Jack's brother made no move to come towards the door, instead Lucy could hear the sound of creaking floorboards followed by a door slamming shut somewhere inside the Station.
Jack's grin looked about ready to crack off his face as he whooped, "Didn' I tell yah Miss. Lucy?"
"He doesn't want to meet me?"
"Nah. Forrest ain't like that, especially since..." he trailed off as he moved to get her bags out of the car, "He just ain't like that."
Lucy watched as Jack unloaded her's and Issac's things. "Am I staying here?" The dark eyed man nodded distractedly. "But..."
"Ain't no cause for worry Miss. Lucy. Hardly a time that one of us Bondurants ain't hereabouts."
Though had meant it as reassurance, Lucy couldn't figure out how to quite take his statement.
'I suppose beggars can't be choosers.'
However that thought was difficult for her to remember as her brown eyes drifted from the man clearly hungover and laying on the porch, to the young man who practically still a boy standing next to her and finally to the dim light glowing in dark just past the Station doorway.
Hope you all enjoy this. Please let me know what you. Hopefully the next chapter will be up soon.
