Sunday
Her eyelids fluttered, pushing the sleep from her eyes. The room was dark, quiet except his contented breathing, deep, regular and rhythmic. She smiled knowing he was close, by her side, touching her, ever so slightly. Though she had to use the restroom, she didn't want to wake him, he needed his sleep. So she remained still, curled on the couch, her feet touching his knees, his body mostly upright, leaning against her hip.
She floated back into sleep, dreaming of him. They were lying next to each other, shoulder to shoulder, thigh to thigh, on a plaid blanket. The sun warming their faces as they lazily watched clouds float across the blue sky. Amy felt happy, holding his hand.
The gentle breeze picked up, first just swaying the leaves on the trees, then whipping into a wind so strong it howled. In a flash, a white cottony clouds turned dark, menacing, threatening, funneling to the ground. Spiraling, twisting, the ferocious force touched down, ripping Ty from her side, his body hurled viciously skyward.
She tensed, jerked, her foot hit his thigh, waking him. Anguish in her voice, she called for him. "Ty...No!"
"Amy, wake up!" He gently shook her, trying to pull her from the far recesses of her mind and her REM sleep, back to reality.
"Ty?" Her chest heaving, sweat glistening on her temple, she sat up, lunged for him.
"Amy.." He held her close, wrapping her in his arms, petting her hair. "It's okay. I'm here."
"Oh, it was awful."
"Tell me." He pulled away, enough to see her face, to brush away the strands of golden hair plastered to her cheek.
"I dreamt we were having a picnic on a beautiful day. I was so happy. Then a storm came up, a funnel cloud yanked you away."
"Shh...it's okay. It's just a dream." He tried to comfort her.
"But..." She whispered, not finishing her thought.
"You have to trust me. I am here with you. I am not going away."
She tried to smile even as her eyes filled with tears.
"Come here."
She shuttered, nodded, then buried herself into his side. He pulled her closer, his arm protectively around her shoulder. He kissed the crown of her head. They held each other until she calmed, relaxed, felt safe again.
"What time is it?" Amy asked.
Ty glanced at his watch. "Just after midnight."
"Oh. I should go." She pulled away, sat up straight.
"No. You should stay. It's late." He suggested.
"I can't." She replied, but did not move.
"Sure you can." He leaned in, kissed her forehead.
She tried not to smile. "I have chores at 5am." She explained.
"I'll wake you at 4:30." He moved closer, kiss the tip of her nose.
She softened. "I don't have my pajamas."
"I'll lend you a t-shirt." He countered, kissed her lips. He pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.
Smiling she said. "I don't have my toothbrush."
"I have an extra. Come on. It's late." Then he added, whispering in her ear. "Please stay."
"Mmmm." She murmured, closing her eyes as his warm breath tickled her.
"You can have the couch. I'll take the bed."
"What?" Her eyes flew wide open, she pushed his shoulder.
"You want the floor?" He said innocently.
"Ty Borden. You need tickling!" She reached her fingers towards his side.
"No. Don't!" He yelled, trying to hold her wrists to keep her tickling fingers away, but not soon enough. Her fingers wiggled, connecting with his sides, causing him to squeal. "Amy! Stop!"
He pulled away from her, moved off the couch, ran into his bedroom laughing. She followed right behind. Laughing as she watched him hurdle onto the bed.
"Don't you run away from me!" She said giggling.
He stopped laughing, looked at her, then sat down on the edge of the bed. "Amy. I'm not running away from you."
She nodded, suddenly shy, sat down next to him. She put her head on his shoulder. "Ty, I.."
"I know. It's okay." He walked to his dresser, got a t-shirt out of the top drawer and handed it to her. "Want to change in the bathroom?"
She nodded, her eyes downcast.
"There's an extra toothbrush in the bathroom cabinet. You go first."
By the time she exited the bathroom, reentered his bedroom, he had stripped down to his underwear and a t-shirt.
"Pick a side. I'm gonna brush my teeth." He said as he passed by her.
She turned to watch him walk out of the room. She couldn't help herself.
Under the covers, she waited for him to return. Turning off the overhead light, he slipped into bed next to her. She curled into his side, his warmth, his earthy scent mixed with soap and minty freshness.
"Night Ames." He kissed the top of her head.
"Good night Ty." She drifted into a deep sleep, at first, calm and dreamless, but soon, her peaceful slumber morphed into one of dark places, howling winds and a sense of being watched by a raven with slick black feathers.
As promised at 4:30, he woke her, by whispering in her ear. "Morning."
Feeling his warm breath on her neck, she sighed deeply, murmuring, "Mmmm." Her eyelashes fluttered, but her eyes remained closed.
"Mmmm?" He echoed back. "Still sleepy Horsey Girl?" He teased.
"Mmmm." Slowly she opened her eyes, one at a time, to find that he was watching her. Although she slept, she felt exhausted, unrested, spent.
"Morning." He leaned in, kissing her forehead.
"Morning." She said through a yawn. Swallowing, she tried to smile.
"Want some coffee? Or tea?"
"Mmmm. Coffee, please." She sat up, stretched.
"Come on. You're wasting daylight."
"Okay Grandpa!" She teased him.
She dressed, then joined him on the couch. Side by side, feet propped up on the coffee table, sipping coffee, they talked about their plans for the day.
"I'm having dinner at Heartland. Wanna come?" She asked hopefully.
"I want to." He hesitated as he didn't want to disappoint her. "But. I gotta study. Finals start tomorrow."
"I get it. School comes first." She took another sip of coffee, her eyes straight ahead, focused just beyond the rim of her cup.
He examined her expression. "Something going on at dinner?" He asked.
She shook her head No, sighed. "Not really. I wanted to give my journal to Grandpa and Lou. But, I think I'll wait until you can come too. A few more days won't matter."
"Are you sure? I will be there if you need me." He wanted to reassure her.
"Yeah. I'm sure. Thanks." She said unconvincingly.
"Hey. As soon as my finals are done.." he offered.
She nodded. "Okay."
He gulped the rest of his coffee, then changed the subject. "Ames. Last evening was really nice." He watched her, hoping to see a smile. "Thank you for everything."
"It was nice for me too." Her sleepy eyes cut to him, though she didn't turn her head.
"Even the part about reenacting dogs eating spaghetti was...interesting." He teased.
"Shut up." She sassed back. Her shoulder bumped into his, sloshing her coffee on the front of her dress. "Grrrg. Figures."
He retrieved a towel from the kitchen. As he mopped up what he could, she turned toward him, a tiny smile danced on her pink lips. He slowly bent in, checking her expression, searching her eyes. He shifted, kissed her lips, sweet, warm. He pulled back, their foreheads touched.
He whispered, "Was that okay?" Still not sure. He didn't want to push her.
She nodded, rubbing his nose with hers. She murmured, "Despite your coffee breath."
"Mine? What about yours?" He shot back, laughing, nudging her.
She smiled, putting her cup down before more could spill.
"Come here, Mr. Coffee Breath!" Amy gently pulled him to her, initiating a slow, inviting kiss, which he gladly accepted, returned. Their kiss parted soon after, their foreheads touched, staring into the other's eyes.
She was the first to pull away, sighed. "Well. I guess I should go." She frowned.
"Yeah. Me too."
He walked her to her truck, kissed her cheek, watched her drive away, headed to the Polo Club.
Trying to be inconspicuous, Amy quietly moved through the barn towards stairway to her apartment. As her foot stepped on the bottom tread, Brian cleared his throat. She rolled her eyes, then turned around.
"Morning Brian." She greeted him as normal.
"Hope your not wearing that to do chores." He said sarcastically.
"Of course not." She responded, then ran up the stairs before he could say anything more.
When she reached the landing, she saw that her apartment door was ajar, open six inches, at least. She racked her brain. Amy was certain she had closed and locked her door the prior evening.
Hesitantly, she approached the entry, peering into the darkness, trying to focus her eyes. All of a sudden, a chill ran through her body, the tiny hairs on her arms stood up. Her heartbeat quickened, so much so that she could hear the muffled beat in her ears. Every sense of her being was on high alert.
Her gut was begging her to run, to stay away. But still, she inched closer to doorway. Quietly, she leaned in, held her breath, then took another step forward. Slowly she raised her shaking hand to push open the door.
Without warning, something or someone grabbed her shoulder.
She screamed, loud and shrill.
All at once, she turned around, throwing her arms up in an offensive move, removing the grip restraining her. Blinded by fright, she swung, defending herself.
"Amy! It's me." She shrieked, stumbling back, her arms and hands raised to protect herself.
"Oh my god. Ashland, you scared me!" Amy gasped, her eyes bigger than saucers, reaching out to her friend. "I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..." Ashland echoed.
Noticing Amy's outfit, her brows raised, a low chuckle escaped her lips. "Oh, you're trying to sneak in, Huh?"
"Amy? Are you okay?" Brian rushed onto the landing, his voice worried. "I heard you scream."
"I am okay...But. My apartment. Someone opened my apartment door. I know I closed and locked it last night." Rattled, she tried to explain.
"Someone broke in??" Brian jumped to the conclusion.
"Wait! What? Someone broke into your apartment?" Ashland's eyes widened. "OMG!"
"I don't know. I just know I closed and locked the door last night." Her voice still shaky.
"I saw her close and lock it last night." Ashland corroborated.
Brian pulled out phone. "I am calling Officer Benny."
"What's all the commotion?" Darren exited his apartment, clad in pajama bottoms, not much more.
"Someone broke into Amy's apartment last night. They left her door open." Ashland conveyed.
"Huh? I didn't hear anything." Darren said clearly hung over, scratching his stomach.
"Benny's on his way. He's calling Nick." Brian relayed.
"Okay." Amy mumbled.
"I'll be back." Ashland disappeared into her apartment.
"I'm going back to bed." Darren shuffled into his apartment, closing the door behind him, with a swift slam.
Ashland returned to the hallway with Mouse and Ruth in her arms. "Here." She handed Ruth to Amy to hold, cuddle.
Though it seemed like an eternity, Officer Benny Turner was in the hallway in less than 5 minutes. As usual, he was in uniform, black pants, light colored long sleeved shirt, a black tie, security badge and baseball cap. The radio on his belt was crackling.
"Ms. Fleming, are you okay?" He pulled out his small notebook and tiny pencil, like in an old cop show.
"Yes." She replied, rubbing Ruth's ears. "A little shaken but I'm fine."
"Okay. Ms. Fleming. Tell me what happened."
"Um. When I came home, my apartment door was opened as you can see. I know I closed and locked it last night when I left." She explained.
"Are you positive you locked the door?"
"Yes." She said confidently.
"I was there. She did." Ashland added. The officer nodded, made a note.
"Excuse me." He pulled his radio out of its holster, held it to his mouth, spoke. "Turner here. Come in Smith. Over."
"Smith here. Go ahead. Over." A voice crackled through the radio.
"With alleged B and E Victim. Upstairs in Coach's Barn. A-okay. Stand By for update. Over."
"Roger Wilco. Over." A voice said clearly despite the radio static.
"Turner. Over. Out." Officer Benny put his radio back in its holster.
The officer asked. "Is anything missing from your apartment?"
"I don't know. I didn't go in." She said, shaking her head, No.
"Is anyone in there?"
"I don't know. I didn't go in." She repeated herself.
"Okay. Do I have your permission to enter and search?" Benny asked.
She nodded.
"Good. Please move down the hallway, away from the door, so I can do a sweep. Brian, stay close to the door.. in case.." He didn't finish his sentence.
Benny radioed his partner to inform him that he was going in. From the hallway, they could hear him opening and closing doors and cabinets. Twenty minutes later, he exited her apartment and reported that it was clear.
"Ms. Fleming. No one is in your apartment."
She nodded, relieved, smiled weakly. "Thank you."
"What time did you leave your apartment?" He continued with his questions.
"About 7:30 p.m. Or so."
"Last night?"
"Yes." She said sheepishly.
"I see." He raised an eyebrow, made a note. "What time did you return?"
"5:15 am this morning." she admitted, her cheeks began to burn.
"Ah Huh." He wrote it down. "Where did you go?"
"I went to visit my friend in Calgary."
"Name?"
"Um. Ty Borden." Amy gave him Ty's contact information.
"Who knew you'd be out last night?"
"Um. Ashland." She paused. "I didn't tell anybody else."
"Name?" He looked Ashland.
"Ashland Berry." She said. "You know that."
"Where were you last night?" He continued.
"Um. I was with Amy until she left...I saw her close and lock the door." She reiterated. "Around 7:30."
"After that?"
"I was in my apartment with Ruth and Mouse." She pointed to the puppy and kitten. "Oh. I did laundry too."
"What time?"
"I don't know...um.. maybe 9 to 11. I don't really remember."
Nick cut into the conversation, walked right up to her. "Amy." He searched her face, gave her a quick hug. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah. Just a little shaken." Her voice cracked.
"I bet. Don't worry. We will get to the bottom of this." Nick reassured her.
She nodded. "Thanks."
"I'd like to continue here." Benny groused.
"Sorry. Please continue." Nick stepped back.
"Ms. Berry. What did you do after you did laundry?"
"I went back to my apartment and..um read until real late." She looked at Amy. "Um. I finished..the book. Then I went to bed."
"Can anybody corroborate your story?" He asked, taking his detective role very seriously.
"I didn't break into Amy's apartment, if that's what you are asking." Ashland shot back.
"Ashland. Benny's not accusing you. Just trying to get the facts." Nick said. "Right Benny?"
"Right." He frowned, then asked "Did anyone else know that Ms. Fleming was out."
"Um. Brian knew." Ashland spoke up, startling Amy. "He was doing laundry too. He asked me where you were. I told him."
The officer looked at Brian.
"Name?"
"Benny. You know my name." Brian rolled his eyes.
"Fine. Brian, where were you from.." he checked his notes. "From 7:30 last night to 5:15 this morning."
Brian recounted his time. "As most Saturday nights, I was in the barn until 6. Then dinner til 6:45. Watched TV. 8:30 to 9:30, was in the laundry room. 9:30 to 10:30 the barn for night check. Back to my apartment to sleep until 5. Then barn for morning chores." Then he added. "All approximate times."
"I see...Did Ms. Berry tell you that Amy was out last night?"
"Yes. Ashland said Amy had a date with Ty."
"It wasn't date." Amy said under her breath.
"Can't you just check the video?" Ashland was already tired of the questions.
"Ms. Berry. This is not CSI. We do not have video cameras everywhere. But yes, we will check the ones we have."
"Um. Can I go in my apartment to see if anything is missing?"
"Yes. We will go in together." Benny advised.
Walking into the apartment, Amy was naturally on edge, expecting things to be in disarray, riffled through, broken and missing. But, after a thorough walkthrough, everything was as she left it, nothing was out of place. Regardless, she had an uneasy feeling, a sense that someone had been there.
"Appears there was no burglary." Benny said to the gathering in the hallway, his tone tinged with some disappointment. "Isn't that correct, Ms. Fleming?"
Amy wore a weary, beaten smile. "Nothing is missing or disturbed. Sorry everyone for the disturbance."
"Nonsense. We are just glad that everything is okay." Nick said. "I am going to send up a repairman to ensure that your lock and latch are working properly."
"Thanks Nick." Amy replied, her shoulders slumped.
"Benny, be sure to check all the cameras." Nick instructed him.
"Of course. We will wrap up our investigation and issue a report."
"Good. I'll take off now." Nick smiled, then left. Benny tipped his hat, then headed down the steps following Nick.
Only Brian and Ashland remained in the hallway with her, standing there awkwardly, embarrassed by the the whole ordeal, she gave each a hug.
"Guess I need to change into work clothes and get started on work." She took Mouse from Ashland's arms, entered her apartment, closing the door firmly behind her. Locking the door.
She collapsed into the wingback chair right inside, holding her babies close to her chest, wide-eyed and scared. Her mind was running through all sorts of possible scenarios leading to her open door. Her mind kept landing on Ahmed.
Drawing on what little energy she had left, she pulled herself out of the chair, fed Ruth and Mouse, then changed into work clothes retrieved from her dirty clothes basket. She hadn't done laundry since moving in.
After the upsetting start, Amy was relieved that her morning was filled with routine chores with Spartan and Harley and working with Midnight and Parsnip. Only Ashland and Brian were there with her. They finished just before lunch time.
"Well Ashland, think we're done for the day." Amy told her assistant. "You are free to do whatever you want."
"Oh. What are you going to do?" She sounded disappointed.
"I'm going home for Sunday dinner. Maybe visit Mrs. Bell beforehand."
"Mrs. Bell?" Ashland asked hopefully.
"Yeah. It's been a couple of days. I need to check on her..." She was worried about her elderly friend. "What about you?"
"Nothing. I have nothing to do." Sighing heavily, she lamented.
"Why don't you visit with your parents or your friends?" Amy suggested.
She just shook her head No. "They all have plans." She moped, pouted dramatically. "I guess I'll just sit in my apartment...by myself..alone."
She took pity on her. "It probably won't be much fun for you but.. Want to come with me?" Amy said offhandedly.
"Yes!" She said enthusiastically without a second's pause. "I'd love to."
Amy chucked . "Well, okay then. How about we trailer a couple of horses? I can show you Heartland."
"I'll take Night."
"Okay. Good. I'll take Spartan."
"Can we eat lunch first? I'm starved."
"Sure. Peanut butter sandwiches?"
"Is that all you have?" The younger asked seriously.
Amy just shook her head. "Do you have something better?"
"Me? No." She made a face, seemed surprised at Amy's question.
"Well then... peanut butter it is."
By mid-afternoon when Amy and Ashland finally pulled through the Heartland gate and parked at the barn, the day had turned blustery. A stiff wind from the west, sweeping off the Rockies, across the foothills and into the valley, had cooled the air. The sky was an endless, cloudless blue.
As Amy exited the driver's side holding Ruth, Caleb walked out of the barn to greet them with a wide grin. "Hey! What brings you back to Heartland?"
"Hey Caleb. We're here for Sunday dinner, what else?"
"Well. You are a little early for dinner..." Caleb challenged her.
"Right." She nodded. "We're going to ride around first. Then go visit Mrs. Bell."
"Oh. You missed her. She was here this morning." He said offhandedlly.
"Who?" Startled, Amy tilted her head to one side, as though she hadn't heard right.
"Mrs. Bell. She came to see Jack." He explained.
Surprised, she uttered. "Grandpa?...She came to see Grandpa?"
"Yeah. Her niece brought her."
"Why?" Her brows drew together, Amy quizzed him.
"How the heck should I know?" He shrugged, made a face.
Just then, Ashland exited the passenger side, came around front of the truck, carrying Mouse.
Caleb tipped his hat, gave her a wide smile. "Hey there. I'm Caleb O'Dell...Whom might you be?"
"Hey. I'm Ashland. Ashland Berry." She gave a shy smile back.
"Oh. Sorry." Amy sputtered. "Ashland and I work together at the Polo Club. Caleb is Heartland's ranch hand."
"But, mostly I'm a rodeo cowboy and all round good guy." Adding as he reached out to the kitten, rubbed under her chin. "Who's this?"
"Mouse. Her name is Mouse. She's Amy's."
"I think she likes me." he chuckled. "She's purring like a motor."
"I think you're right. Want to hold her?" Ashland offered.
As the two continued to talk and get acquainted, Amy's gaze seemed to be glued to the ranch and Jack's gold truck parked outside.
"Caleb. Who's home?" She asked, still looking away.
"Just Jack. Everyone else is out." Noticing her gaze, he asked. "Everything okay?"
"Um. I need to talk to Grandpa." She said absently, still staring.
"Tell you what. Go see Jack. We'll unload and tack the horses. Right Ashland?"
"Yeah. Sure." Ashland agreed.
She looked back at Caleb, then Ashland.
"Go ahead Amy." He encouraged her.
"Are you sure?" Amy asked.
"Yeah. We got this." Ashland confirmed with a smile.
"Um. Okay. Thanks. I won't be long." Amy said, turned, started walking to the ranch.
"Wait." Ashland ran to the truck, returning with a white plastic bag. "Here. Take this." As she handed it to her, she whispered. "It's your journal. I finished."
"Oh." Taking the bag, she whispered back. "Thanks." She walked away.
Amy hesitantly opened the old door, crept into the house, quietly closing it and the cold wind behind her.
"Grandpa?" She called tentatively as she sat on the bench, then shucked off her boots.
He called back from the living room. "Amy. In here."
Seated on the couch, facing a dwindling fire, he turned to his youngest granddaughter, his readers balanced on the end of his nose. Though he smiled at her, a somber expression shadowed his face, sadness colored his eyes.
"Hey Grandpa." She greeted him as she entered the living room. She bent over the couch, kissed his cheek.
As she feared, her journal laid open on his lap. She straightened, swallowed hard. She wasn't quite ready to talk.
"Amy." Jack's voice was calm and tender. "Come sit with me."
"Um. I'm going make some hot tea first. Would you like some?" Not waiting for his answer, she put Ruth on the couch, the bag on the side table, then headed into the kitchen.
"Okay." He said, petting the pudgy puppy.
Closing her journal with a book marker tucked in, he laid it on the round coffee table, then stood. A loud clatter rose as he threw a log, then another onto the fire. An exaggerated shhh, ahhh, shhh sounded as he stoked the fire, pumping the bellow, sparking and igniting the unburnt fuel. Satisfied he returned to the couch, scooping Ruth into his arms.
Several minutes passed before she returned to the living room carrying two steaming cups of ginger tea. She handed him one.
"Thanks."
Amy sat on the couch, next to him, both staring straight ahead at the fire, sipping tea. After some time, she commented absently. "The fire feels nice."
"Yes, it sure does." He hesitated, drawing out his response.
Jack put cup down on the table, then his arm around her shoulder, gently drawing her closer to his side. His fingertips on his right hand clutched her shoulder while his other hand continued to stroke the puppy's velvety ears.
He inhaled deeply, then breathed out her name as though he was in church. "Amy."
In her exhausted state, she reacted to emotion in his voice. Ever so slightly, her eyes began to burn, anticipating the worst.
"I hope you know how very much I love you." He reminded her, pulled her even closer.
"Love you too." She whispered, biting her lip to keep her tears at bay.
"And, I hope you know how very proud I am of you."
She nodded, then sniffled.
"And, no matter what, that will never change."
Amy tried to smile.
He cleared his throat, continued. "Mrs. Bell paid us a visit this morning."
"I heard." Worried, she asked. "How is she? Is she doing okay?"
"Well, she was spry as usual. Opinionated, of course. Hard of hearing when she wanted to be."
"Sounds like she recovered from her spell."
"Maybe so. She's staying with her niece for the next few weeks. Sugarfoot is boarded here."
"Oh. Caleb didn't mention that. I hope she's okay."
He nodded, then pointed with his forefinger to her journal on the table.
"She dropped off your journal." Jack said.
"I saw that." She admitted with a somber tone.
"She said that we needed to read it with an open mind." He continued. "She said to imagine ourselves to be you, a young gifted horse healer, training high end horses, owned by the royal family of a powerful country, working long hours, in stressful situations, on the other side of the world, on her own,..."
He paused. "Without the support of her family." His voice cracked.
"Oh Grandpa.." She started to object.
"Let me finish." He interjected. "I will be honest. I was perfectly fine that you didn't shared your journal with us. It is your journal, your decision...But, I was downright ticked that Mrs. Bell implied that we didn't support you. Because I was certain that we had."
"But, as I began to read your journal and thought back, I realized that we should have done better. We really weren't there for you. We didn't ask about your work, accomplishments and triumphs. Or...struggles. We didn't know how hard it was for you, how much stress there was, your long days."
"We didn't listen to you or your needs. We didn't know if you were okay, happy, or even safe. Instead, we asked you to do more, give back your sweat earned money back to Heartland. And, when you came home..."
A first tear overflowed her lashes, streaking down her face. It's saltiness licked her lips and chin. She turned to look at him. His blue eyes were watery.
"Grandpa. I am so sorry."
"Amy, you have nothing to be sorry for." Jack was adamant, his voice raised slightly. "You...did everything that was asked, expected and more...and you did it above reproach." He swallowed, trying to gain his composure. "You should be proud of yourself. I am so proud of you."
She didn't respond. Her eyes were focused on Ruth who crawled from his lap into hers. Jacks's warm hand touched her cheek, drew her gaze back to him.
By now, her eyes rimmed red, her nose running, her cheeks wet. A single tear hung from her chin, before it dropped.
"I am so sorry." Jack implored her. "I promise to do better."
She nodded. "Oh Grandpa."
She buried her face in his chest, silently cried as he held her, whispered "shhh." into her hair.
When she could cry no more, she curled up, fell into a deep sleep in his arms. She didn't wake when Ashland and Caleb entered the house and Jack suggested that they ride without her. Not when Georgie and Katie returned from their friends house making a ruckus. Not when Lou and Lisa came in with groceries, and started to prepare the evening meal. And, not when Ashland and Caleb added leaves to the table and set it with dishes.
At 5:30, Lou woke Amy, asking her to shower and change for dinner, that a fresh set of clothes were on her bed.
When Amy entered the dining room, she was stunned.
"Oh my gosh." She muttered, covering her mouth with her hands as she began to cry, this time, tears of happiness.
"Surprise! Welcome Home Amy!" They all yelled, clapped, hooted and hollered from around the table. Someone popped a bottle of champagne.
The table of full of grinning people. As usual, Jack was at the head of the table with her dad at the other end. To Jack's left, Lisa, Georgie, Katie, and Lou sat. To Tim's left, Caleb, Ashland.
And Ty sitting next her empty seat.
There were balloons, streamers, signs. The table was set with their best tablecloth and dishes.
Ty stood, pull out her chair for her. Once she was seated, he kissed the top of her head, and retook his chair, his hand on her thigh.
Jack stood, a glass of champagne in hand. "Thank you all for the coming tonight to belatedly celebrate Amy's successes in Europe and her return to Heartland and to us. Cheers!"
"Cheers!" Everyone clinked glasses.
"What about studying?" She leaned over and asked Ty.
"Dr. Johnson let me take the exam today. I scored a 107%".
"What? How?" She shook her head.
"He put 10 points of bonus questions on the test about Winter's Snow and Drift! So thanks." He kissed her temple.
She laughed.
"Tell us about Snow and Drift." Georgie asked.
"Read it from your journal." Ty suggested.
After that story, Amy told stories about her travels, competitions and of course, horses, Noble Cause, Juliet, Rein. She only told good stories, ones that she chose to remember and cherish.
Happy but exhausted, physically and emotionally spent after the long day, Amy crawled into bed at the polo club at just past 10pm. Leaning against the plumped pillows resting against the headboard, she nestled Ruth and Mouse close to her, one on either side of her, calmly petting them, whispering, snuggling. When the babies had settled, drifted off to sleep, she reached for her journal on the nightstand. Her hand touched various spots on its cool surface, blindly searching, but not finding it. She sat up, scanned the nightstand. Her journal was not in its usual spot.
She grumbled, drug herself out of her warm bed, turning on the overhead light. She searched through the nightstand drawers, behind it, under it. It was not there.
"Hmm." She crossed her room, looked on top of her dresser, under pictures, knickknacks, then in its drawers, mussing the neatly folded stacks of clothing. She checked under and behind the dresser, only to find tiny cobwebs starting to form. It wasn't there.
She stood in the middle of her bedroom, hands on hips, head tilted, eyes looking upward, racking her brain. "Where did I write in it last?" She mumbled to herself.
The chair in the corner, mounded with clothing, clean and not so, caught her eye. She sorted through the pile, cartoon style, tossing clothing to the floor, finding nothing. Dropping to the floor on her knees, she checked under her bed, only to find a healthy layer of dust.
"Oh yeah. Ugh. I'm so ditzy." She murmured as she stood. Padding into the living room, where she recalled writing in it last. Turning on the lamp, she looked in the few places it could be, on, under and behind the two chairs, foot stool and end table. She crawled around the floor. It was not there.
She inspected the kitchen, counters, in the cabinets, drawers, and even the trash. Nothing.
She searched the terrace, her closet, even her dirty laundry basket. Still nothing.
Exacerbated, she threw her hands up as she looked around. Her apartment was in disarray after her search. The realization that her journal was missing set in, her heart was beating hard in her chest. It was then that she realized her notebook was gone too.
"What did I write in there? To do lists, shopping lists, accomplishments, hopes, goals. Nobody cares about that stuff." She said aloud.
She frowned, realizing that she noted Summer, UC, Ty, Mrs. Bell. She started to worry.
She found her cell phone, dialed his number. "Ty. My notebook and new journal are missing."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. I looked everywhere."
"I'll call Jack and have him burn the copies of your journal as soon as they finish reading them. Hopefully tonight."
"Okay."
"I'm turning around. I'll be there in 20 minutes. Call Benny. Let him know I'm coming."
Hey Everyone.
Hope you enjoyed this chapter, despite being very belated.
The holidays are just around the corner. May you and yours have the loviest, merriest holiday.
SBR