(Day Seven... On the Road Again...)
After a quick breakfast, Brady and Chloe were on the road home by nine in the morning. Chloe spent most of the ride reading the diary entries that she had skipped over previously, as Brady concentrated on the road in front of him. About 400 miles down the road, Brady though he heard a rattling beneath the van.
"Chloe... do you hear that noise?"
Chloe lifted her head from the diary and turned down the radio so she could listen closer. She paused for a moment and tilted her head slightly. "Yeah, I hear it... But I can't tell if this is just a bad road or if it's the van."
"Well, I had the entire van checked out before we left, and the mechanic said everything was perfect."
Chloe looked at him and raised her eyebrows. "And you believe a mechanic? Not exactly the model for truth and reliability in this day and age..."
Brady shrugged it off. "Well, I trust this guy. He hasn't screwed up my father's car or mine yet. Must be the road, right?"
"Sure... I guess. You should still check it the next time we stop."
"I will. Don't worry about it."
Chloe smiled and snapped the diary shut with a sigh. "Brady... do you think that I'm anything like my mother?"
"I don't think I really know your mother well enough to say, but... maybe a little. Probably more than you realize."
"Oh no..."
"Hey, hey, hey... it's nothing bad. I'm just saying, that's part of the reason that you two don't get along, right? You're both stubborn and hard headed. I can see that for sure. Nobody ever wants to hear that they are just like their parents, but almost everyone is."
Chloe nodded and replied, "Yeah, I guess so. I mean, you're definitely a lot like your dad, aren't you?"
"Oh yeah, I don't think I'm a 100 percent like my father, but we do have the same temperament and all."
"And Belle is a lot like her mom. And, you'd probably hate to admit it, but all these years of Marlena as your step-mom has rubbed off on you too."
Brady briefly turned to give her a look of skepticism, "And how in the world would you come to THAT conclusion?"
"I'm just saying. Marlena is a psychiatrist, so she's good at talking to people and helping them solve their problems. Belle is good at that too, she's a good listener and is always willing to help. And, so are you... at least you are to me anyway."
Brady grinned and nodded, "Well, that's only for you. For everyone else I prefer to be closed-off and generally aloof."
Chloe laughed and shook her head, "Well, I doubt that you're being entirely truthful about that, but I'll give you two points for using the word aloof in a sentence. Plus, I like to pretend that I'm just more special than everyone else."
Brady reached his right hand over and gently patted her knee before returning his hand to the steering wheel. "You ARE special. Very special."
"Which is a nice way of saying... 'Chloe, you're weird.' Isn't it?"
"No, not at all... It's just my cowardly way of not saying what I really want to say."
Chloe paused for a moment as she considered what his last statement meant, "And what is it you really want to say, Brady?"
"If I could just open my mouth and say it, then we wouldn't be having this conversation."
Chloe wrinkled her forehead and stared at him. "Uhmmmm, okay... is there any way you could be a bit more vague?"
"Possibly..."
Chloe was just about to reach over and give him a playful nudge when she felt the front of the van bottom out. She heard the awful shrieking noise of metal grinding on the pavement. Brady threw an arm in front of her for protection and Chloe instinctively reached her right arm out towards the dashboard and screamed at him, "BRADY!!! WATCH OUT!!!"
The van scraped along the side of the metal guardrail making sparks fly everywhere as Brady tried to bring the van to a stop. He had lost use of his front brakes and had to wait for the van to lose momentum before it finally came to a halt. Brady turned off the engine immediately, and unbuckled his seatbelt turning to face Chloe. Her eyes were shut and he took a deep breath in as he gently stroked her face.
"Chloe... are you okay?"
Her eyes suddenly snapped open and she nodded, "Yeah, I think so."
Brady breathed a quick sigh of relief, "Oh thank God, I thought you were unconscious."
"No, just scared enough to shut my eyes. What happened? Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I don't know what happened, I just lost my brakes or something."
"But, you still know how to throw the mommy-arm in case of emergency."
"The what?"
Chloe laughed quietly. "The mommy-arm. It's whenever you're in an accident or almost in one, and the driver throws their arm across the passenger to protect them. You know, like your dad or Marlena would do for you and Belle when you were kids, probably. It's the patented mommy-arm."
"Oh, well, I've never heard it called that before, but I guess you're right."
Brady opened his door carefully and stepped outside the van. Chloe looked briefly at her door and turned back towards him.
"Guess I'm gonna have to get out on your side. I'm a little blocked by a van resting against the rail over here."
Brady nodded and reached out a hand to help her out of the driver's side of the van. She made her way over and grabbed his hand with her left. She placed her right hand on the dashboard for a little leverage but suddenly gasped and quickly moved it away. She winced in pain and leaned against driver's seat for support.
"What happened?"
Chloe shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know... my wrist..."
Brady helped her the rest of the way out of the van, and gently lifted her right wrist closer to him. He quietly inspected it, and cringed at the swollen tissue that was already turning black and blue.
"This isn't looking too good, Chloe..."
Chloe sighed deeply. "Well, it doesn't feel very good either. I must have hit it on the dashboard pretty hard. I didn't even notice."
Brady nodded. "Sometimes you don't notice these things right away. Do you think you can bend it?"
Chloe's face wrinkled up at the notion. "Do I have to try?"
"Yes, please... I know it hurts, but we have to see if it's broken or not."
Chloe sighed and slowly bent her wrist until the pain became too much to handle. She suppressed her instinct to scream and cry, but moaned in pain as she leaned against the van. Brady half-embraced her with his other arm, as he gently held her injured wrist in his hand.
"If you can bend it, it's probably not broken, so that's the good news."
"And the bad news?"
"We're stuck on the side of the road with a van that doesn't work, and you need to go to the hospital to have your wrist checked out."
"What happened to the van anyway?"
Brady looked around to the front tires and looked back at Chloe. "Looks like the tires and wheels, everything just came right off the front. That's pretty... strange. But, it explains why I had no brakes."
Chloe nodded in understanding. "And it explains that weird noise we've been hearing. Guess your mechanic forgot to check that part of the van, eh?"
Brady chuckled softly. "Guess I'll be looking for a new mechanic soon. Do you think you can stay here by yourself for like an hour?"
"I... I guess so. I mean, it's daylight, so I doubt anybody is going to try to dismember me anytime soon."
"Hmm. You must have never seen The Texas Chainsaw Massacre."
Chloe looked at him with wide-eyed shock. "No, and I don't think I want to now."
Brady laughed and kissed her on the forehead. "Don't worry, you'll be fine. The sign up there says there's a gas station about 3 miles up the road. I'm sure you'll be safe here, just roll down the windows or use the key to turn the air on if you get too hot."
"And my wrist?"
Brady paused and breathed inward as he tried to think. "We're going to have to get you back in the van, can't go through the other side, so it's back through the driver's door."
Chloe sighed and stepped towards the driver's side of the van. Brady helped her up and she sat in the passenger's seat as Brady went towards the backseat.
"Stay right there, Chloe."
Chloe heard him rustling around in the luggage for a few minutes until he called her into the backseat. She stood from her seat and moved towards where he sat. He had laid down the backseat so that it folded out flat like a small bed. Brady had also taken some blankets he kept in the van, and set them up for her to lay on or to use as pillows. He smiled at her and patted the empty spot next to him.
"A place for you to stay comfy while I'm gone."
She smiled at him and sat on the seat. He gently placed her sore wrist on top of a pile of folded up clothes he had found in the luggage. Next, Brady placed something cold wrapped in one of his t-shirts on her wrist.
Chloe raised her eyebrows in wonderment. "Wow... were you a boy scout or something?"
Brady laughed. "No, I wasn't... just a quick thinker. I remembered I put some ice in our cooler before we left the hotel this morning. I'm just glad it hasn't melted yet."
Chloe smiled appreciatively, "Me too... Thank you for all this."
"Just wanted you to be comfortable. No need to thank me." Brady leaned forward and briefly kissed her on the lips. "I'm gonna go now, but I will be back as soon as I can get someone to drive me back here. I'll walk fast, so it shouldn't be more than an hour and half, maybe 2 hours. I promise."
"I'll be fine... just hurry up."
Brady smiled as he slid off the seat. "I will."
She smiled as she watched him go. She tried to ignore the pain in her wrist, but as soon as she could no longer hear Brady's footsteps outside, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.
***
(About an hour and a half later... or so.)
Chloe yawned as her eyes fluttered open. The makeshift ice pack had melted and the t-shirt it was wrapped in was now completely soaked. Chloe shifted in her seat and moved the ice pack away. The cold had kept her wrist from becoming twice as swollen as it already was, and Chloe noticed the dark bruises around her wrist and on her hand. She groaned in pain as she tried once more to bend her wrist.
"Aaaaaghhhhh... not getting any better, that's for sure." Chloe sighed and leaned her head against the wall again, and shut her eyes for a moment. All of a sudden she heard the sound of a car pull up on the gravel behind the van. She opened her eyes as she heard footsteps come around the side of the van.
"BRADY!" she yelled out. "Brady!! Is that you?"
The driver's door opened up and she saw Brady crawl into the van and peer around the corner at her.
"Hey you... how ya holding up?"
"If you cut my wrist off, I'll be doing pretty good."
Brady moved into the backseat and glanced at her wrist. "Don't worry. You've got a ride to the nearest hospital, right now."
Chloe looked surprised. "I do? How did you manage that?"
"Well, the guy who owns the gas station up there owns a tow truck too, so he's going to tow the van into a mechanical shop in town, which is only about 20 miles away. And, his wife is going to drive you to the hospital."
"That's awfully nice of them, being complete strangers and all."
Brady shrugged it off. "I just have a way with words, I guess. Now, come on..."
Brady grabbed her good hand and helped her out of the van. She was greeted by a smiling woman in her fifties with graying brown hair.
"Hi, you must be Chloe. My name is Kay, my husband Mike is on his way with the tow truck."
Chloe smiled politely at her. "Thank you, I'd shake your hand, but I have one less available hand than normal right now."
"Well then, we'll just have to take care of that. Follow me and I'll get you to a doctor." Kay smiled and led Chloe towards her gray Toyota.
Brady gently squeezed Chloe's good hand, and smiled at her. "I'm going to wait here until Mike gets here with the truck, and then I'll be right behind you, okay?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine." Chloe smiled at him as she got into Kay's car, and watched him standing there as they drove away. She sighed softly and sunk into her seat further.
"So, Chloe... where are you two kids from?"
"Salem, Illinois."
"Sounds like you're awfully far away from home then."
Chloe nodded and sighed. "Yeah... too far."
"Is this some kind of summer vacation then?"
Chloe shrugged slightly. "Something like that... we were on our way home from New York City when all of this happened."
"Sounds like a lot of fun, up until now anyway."
"Part of it was fun..."
"And the rest is none of my business, I'm sorry dear, I don't mean to pry. I was just trying to make small talk."
Chloe shook her head. "No, it's okay. Don't be sorry. It's just... well, this isn't really a vacation. I left home to go look for my biological father. It's a REALLY long story."
"Oh... By the way you say it, it doesn't sound like you met with great success."
"I found what I was looking for. And now I just want to go home."
"Well, I'm sure between my husband and your friend Brady, they'll have that van ready to go in no time."
Chloe sighed again and nodded in agreement. "I hope so. Either way, thanks for helping us out. Most people aren't willing to help out strangers, so I really appreciate this."
"You're welcome. When Mike called me and asked me to come out here, he said he had met a young man so distraught over leaving an injured young lady alone that he knew we had to help you out. And when I got to the station, that poor boy was still frantic."
Chloe looked somewhat surprised. "Really? He's always so calm around me."
Kay chuckled knowingly. "Then it's a tell-tale sign. That boy is in love with you, dear."
"What makes you think that?"
"I've been married for 28 years, and my Mike is just like that. He wants to stay strong in front of you when you're hurt, but away from you he's a nervous wreck."
"And you think that means he loves me?"
"Not just that. I saw the way he looked at you when you got into the car. Mark my words, he is head over heels for you, he's just too macho to admit it. Just call it a product of being older and wiser."
Chloe half-smiled. "Well, maybe..."
"But do you love him?"
Chloe paused and sighed. "I do... I really do. But, I can't tell him that."
Kay smiled widely. "Of course you can, and you will. Just give it time. If the feelings are there, then you just have to wait for the time to be right. It'll come out when you least expect it."
"I don't know about that, I don't have the easiest time expressing myself."
Kay shook her head in disagreement. "Well, I'm going to stay out of your business, but believe me, it will happen. If you truly love him, then you won't be able to hold that in forever. Same goes for him."
Chloe nodded and smiled as she glanced out the window. "You may be right..."
***
(Later... at the hospital.)
Chloe stepped through the doors and into the waiting room. She saw Brady sitting with Kay in the corner, and he stood up from the chair as soon as he saw her come out. She walked towards him and he briefly kissed her on the lips.
"So, what's the verdict?"
She lifted her arm to show him the dark blue brace they had put over her wrist and hand. "Slight fracture, big ugly black bruise, and pills for the pain. That's the short version."
"A fracture? It's broken?"
Chloe shrugged slightly. "Not exactly. It's one of those happy fractures where it immediately sets itself back into place, so that's the good news. I don't have to wear a real cast, as long as I wear this and don't let it move. I lucked out really. The doctor said it's going to hurt for awhile, but it could've been a lot worse."
Brady smiled widely at her. "Good news then."
Chloe nodded in agreement. "And what about you? How's the van?"
"Not good. It's got a lot of damage from sliding across the road like that. Frame damage, and things like that. No brakes either. I think I'm just going to leave it here and buy a new car when we get home."
Chloe raised her eyebrows skeptically. "And we're just going to walk the 500 miles home to Salem? I mean, I've got pain pills, but I don't think that will help me walk faster."
Brady shook his head. "No, we're going to fly home. I already got us a flight that leaves tomorrow, and a hotel to stay in tonight."
"Wow... I'm impressed. But, aren't you going to miss your van?"
Brady nodded with remorse. "A little bit, but sometimes you just gotta move on. Besides, I know you'd rather get home as soon as possible instead of waiting around here for repairs."
"Yeah, definitely. It's been an extremely long week, and as scared as I am of facing the music with my mother... I'm ready to be back in more familiar surroundings."
"Me too."
Chloe turned to Kay who had stood up from her chair as well. "Kay, thank you so much for everything. I really appreciate it. And thank you for waiting here all this time."
"It's my pleasure. I just hope that things work out for the both of you. Besides, I had to wait... I'm your ride to the hotel." Kay smiled and motioned towards the parking lot.
Brady nodded in agreement with Chloe. "Really, thank you. I've already told Mike thanks for all his help, but thank you for taking care of Chloe for me. She means a lot to me."
Kay nodded knowingly. "I know. I can tell. Anyway, Mike is going to pick you both up in the morning and take you to the airport, alright?"
Chloe smiled at her and winked. "Thank you... for everything." And when Chloe smiled, Kay knew that she wasn't just thanking her for the ride, she was thanking her for the advice that she had dispensed earlier in the day.
"You're welcome, dear." Kay picked her purse up from the chair and the group filed out to the parking lot. They got into Kay's car together and headed over to the hotel.
***
After a quick breakfast, Brady and Chloe were on the road home by nine in the morning. Chloe spent most of the ride reading the diary entries that she had skipped over previously, as Brady concentrated on the road in front of him. About 400 miles down the road, Brady though he heard a rattling beneath the van.
"Chloe... do you hear that noise?"
Chloe lifted her head from the diary and turned down the radio so she could listen closer. She paused for a moment and tilted her head slightly. "Yeah, I hear it... But I can't tell if this is just a bad road or if it's the van."
"Well, I had the entire van checked out before we left, and the mechanic said everything was perfect."
Chloe looked at him and raised her eyebrows. "And you believe a mechanic? Not exactly the model for truth and reliability in this day and age..."
Brady shrugged it off. "Well, I trust this guy. He hasn't screwed up my father's car or mine yet. Must be the road, right?"
"Sure... I guess. You should still check it the next time we stop."
"I will. Don't worry about it."
Chloe smiled and snapped the diary shut with a sigh. "Brady... do you think that I'm anything like my mother?"
"I don't think I really know your mother well enough to say, but... maybe a little. Probably more than you realize."
"Oh no..."
"Hey, hey, hey... it's nothing bad. I'm just saying, that's part of the reason that you two don't get along, right? You're both stubborn and hard headed. I can see that for sure. Nobody ever wants to hear that they are just like their parents, but almost everyone is."
Chloe nodded and replied, "Yeah, I guess so. I mean, you're definitely a lot like your dad, aren't you?"
"Oh yeah, I don't think I'm a 100 percent like my father, but we do have the same temperament and all."
"And Belle is a lot like her mom. And, you'd probably hate to admit it, but all these years of Marlena as your step-mom has rubbed off on you too."
Brady briefly turned to give her a look of skepticism, "And how in the world would you come to THAT conclusion?"
"I'm just saying. Marlena is a psychiatrist, so she's good at talking to people and helping them solve their problems. Belle is good at that too, she's a good listener and is always willing to help. And, so are you... at least you are to me anyway."
Brady grinned and nodded, "Well, that's only for you. For everyone else I prefer to be closed-off and generally aloof."
Chloe laughed and shook her head, "Well, I doubt that you're being entirely truthful about that, but I'll give you two points for using the word aloof in a sentence. Plus, I like to pretend that I'm just more special than everyone else."
Brady reached his right hand over and gently patted her knee before returning his hand to the steering wheel. "You ARE special. Very special."
"Which is a nice way of saying... 'Chloe, you're weird.' Isn't it?"
"No, not at all... It's just my cowardly way of not saying what I really want to say."
Chloe paused for a moment as she considered what his last statement meant, "And what is it you really want to say, Brady?"
"If I could just open my mouth and say it, then we wouldn't be having this conversation."
Chloe wrinkled her forehead and stared at him. "Uhmmmm, okay... is there any way you could be a bit more vague?"
"Possibly..."
Chloe was just about to reach over and give him a playful nudge when she felt the front of the van bottom out. She heard the awful shrieking noise of metal grinding on the pavement. Brady threw an arm in front of her for protection and Chloe instinctively reached her right arm out towards the dashboard and screamed at him, "BRADY!!! WATCH OUT!!!"
The van scraped along the side of the metal guardrail making sparks fly everywhere as Brady tried to bring the van to a stop. He had lost use of his front brakes and had to wait for the van to lose momentum before it finally came to a halt. Brady turned off the engine immediately, and unbuckled his seatbelt turning to face Chloe. Her eyes were shut and he took a deep breath in as he gently stroked her face.
"Chloe... are you okay?"
Her eyes suddenly snapped open and she nodded, "Yeah, I think so."
Brady breathed a quick sigh of relief, "Oh thank God, I thought you were unconscious."
"No, just scared enough to shut my eyes. What happened? Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I don't know what happened, I just lost my brakes or something."
"But, you still know how to throw the mommy-arm in case of emergency."
"The what?"
Chloe laughed quietly. "The mommy-arm. It's whenever you're in an accident or almost in one, and the driver throws their arm across the passenger to protect them. You know, like your dad or Marlena would do for you and Belle when you were kids, probably. It's the patented mommy-arm."
"Oh, well, I've never heard it called that before, but I guess you're right."
Brady opened his door carefully and stepped outside the van. Chloe looked briefly at her door and turned back towards him.
"Guess I'm gonna have to get out on your side. I'm a little blocked by a van resting against the rail over here."
Brady nodded and reached out a hand to help her out of the driver's side of the van. She made her way over and grabbed his hand with her left. She placed her right hand on the dashboard for a little leverage but suddenly gasped and quickly moved it away. She winced in pain and leaned against driver's seat for support.
"What happened?"
Chloe shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know... my wrist..."
Brady helped her the rest of the way out of the van, and gently lifted her right wrist closer to him. He quietly inspected it, and cringed at the swollen tissue that was already turning black and blue.
"This isn't looking too good, Chloe..."
Chloe sighed deeply. "Well, it doesn't feel very good either. I must have hit it on the dashboard pretty hard. I didn't even notice."
Brady nodded. "Sometimes you don't notice these things right away. Do you think you can bend it?"
Chloe's face wrinkled up at the notion. "Do I have to try?"
"Yes, please... I know it hurts, but we have to see if it's broken or not."
Chloe sighed and slowly bent her wrist until the pain became too much to handle. She suppressed her instinct to scream and cry, but moaned in pain as she leaned against the van. Brady half-embraced her with his other arm, as he gently held her injured wrist in his hand.
"If you can bend it, it's probably not broken, so that's the good news."
"And the bad news?"
"We're stuck on the side of the road with a van that doesn't work, and you need to go to the hospital to have your wrist checked out."
"What happened to the van anyway?"
Brady looked around to the front tires and looked back at Chloe. "Looks like the tires and wheels, everything just came right off the front. That's pretty... strange. But, it explains why I had no brakes."
Chloe nodded in understanding. "And it explains that weird noise we've been hearing. Guess your mechanic forgot to check that part of the van, eh?"
Brady chuckled softly. "Guess I'll be looking for a new mechanic soon. Do you think you can stay here by yourself for like an hour?"
"I... I guess so. I mean, it's daylight, so I doubt anybody is going to try to dismember me anytime soon."
"Hmm. You must have never seen The Texas Chainsaw Massacre."
Chloe looked at him with wide-eyed shock. "No, and I don't think I want to now."
Brady laughed and kissed her on the forehead. "Don't worry, you'll be fine. The sign up there says there's a gas station about 3 miles up the road. I'm sure you'll be safe here, just roll down the windows or use the key to turn the air on if you get too hot."
"And my wrist?"
Brady paused and breathed inward as he tried to think. "We're going to have to get you back in the van, can't go through the other side, so it's back through the driver's door."
Chloe sighed and stepped towards the driver's side of the van. Brady helped her up and she sat in the passenger's seat as Brady went towards the backseat.
"Stay right there, Chloe."
Chloe heard him rustling around in the luggage for a few minutes until he called her into the backseat. She stood from her seat and moved towards where he sat. He had laid down the backseat so that it folded out flat like a small bed. Brady had also taken some blankets he kept in the van, and set them up for her to lay on or to use as pillows. He smiled at her and patted the empty spot next to him.
"A place for you to stay comfy while I'm gone."
She smiled at him and sat on the seat. He gently placed her sore wrist on top of a pile of folded up clothes he had found in the luggage. Next, Brady placed something cold wrapped in one of his t-shirts on her wrist.
Chloe raised her eyebrows in wonderment. "Wow... were you a boy scout or something?"
Brady laughed. "No, I wasn't... just a quick thinker. I remembered I put some ice in our cooler before we left the hotel this morning. I'm just glad it hasn't melted yet."
Chloe smiled appreciatively, "Me too... Thank you for all this."
"Just wanted you to be comfortable. No need to thank me." Brady leaned forward and briefly kissed her on the lips. "I'm gonna go now, but I will be back as soon as I can get someone to drive me back here. I'll walk fast, so it shouldn't be more than an hour and half, maybe 2 hours. I promise."
"I'll be fine... just hurry up."
Brady smiled as he slid off the seat. "I will."
She smiled as she watched him go. She tried to ignore the pain in her wrist, but as soon as she could no longer hear Brady's footsteps outside, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.
***
(About an hour and a half later... or so.)
Chloe yawned as her eyes fluttered open. The makeshift ice pack had melted and the t-shirt it was wrapped in was now completely soaked. Chloe shifted in her seat and moved the ice pack away. The cold had kept her wrist from becoming twice as swollen as it already was, and Chloe noticed the dark bruises around her wrist and on her hand. She groaned in pain as she tried once more to bend her wrist.
"Aaaaaghhhhh... not getting any better, that's for sure." Chloe sighed and leaned her head against the wall again, and shut her eyes for a moment. All of a sudden she heard the sound of a car pull up on the gravel behind the van. She opened her eyes as she heard footsteps come around the side of the van.
"BRADY!" she yelled out. "Brady!! Is that you?"
The driver's door opened up and she saw Brady crawl into the van and peer around the corner at her.
"Hey you... how ya holding up?"
"If you cut my wrist off, I'll be doing pretty good."
Brady moved into the backseat and glanced at her wrist. "Don't worry. You've got a ride to the nearest hospital, right now."
Chloe looked surprised. "I do? How did you manage that?"
"Well, the guy who owns the gas station up there owns a tow truck too, so he's going to tow the van into a mechanical shop in town, which is only about 20 miles away. And, his wife is going to drive you to the hospital."
"That's awfully nice of them, being complete strangers and all."
Brady shrugged it off. "I just have a way with words, I guess. Now, come on..."
Brady grabbed her good hand and helped her out of the van. She was greeted by a smiling woman in her fifties with graying brown hair.
"Hi, you must be Chloe. My name is Kay, my husband Mike is on his way with the tow truck."
Chloe smiled politely at her. "Thank you, I'd shake your hand, but I have one less available hand than normal right now."
"Well then, we'll just have to take care of that. Follow me and I'll get you to a doctor." Kay smiled and led Chloe towards her gray Toyota.
Brady gently squeezed Chloe's good hand, and smiled at her. "I'm going to wait here until Mike gets here with the truck, and then I'll be right behind you, okay?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine." Chloe smiled at him as she got into Kay's car, and watched him standing there as they drove away. She sighed softly and sunk into her seat further.
"So, Chloe... where are you two kids from?"
"Salem, Illinois."
"Sounds like you're awfully far away from home then."
Chloe nodded and sighed. "Yeah... too far."
"Is this some kind of summer vacation then?"
Chloe shrugged slightly. "Something like that... we were on our way home from New York City when all of this happened."
"Sounds like a lot of fun, up until now anyway."
"Part of it was fun..."
"And the rest is none of my business, I'm sorry dear, I don't mean to pry. I was just trying to make small talk."
Chloe shook her head. "No, it's okay. Don't be sorry. It's just... well, this isn't really a vacation. I left home to go look for my biological father. It's a REALLY long story."
"Oh... By the way you say it, it doesn't sound like you met with great success."
"I found what I was looking for. And now I just want to go home."
"Well, I'm sure between my husband and your friend Brady, they'll have that van ready to go in no time."
Chloe sighed again and nodded in agreement. "I hope so. Either way, thanks for helping us out. Most people aren't willing to help out strangers, so I really appreciate this."
"You're welcome. When Mike called me and asked me to come out here, he said he had met a young man so distraught over leaving an injured young lady alone that he knew we had to help you out. And when I got to the station, that poor boy was still frantic."
Chloe looked somewhat surprised. "Really? He's always so calm around me."
Kay chuckled knowingly. "Then it's a tell-tale sign. That boy is in love with you, dear."
"What makes you think that?"
"I've been married for 28 years, and my Mike is just like that. He wants to stay strong in front of you when you're hurt, but away from you he's a nervous wreck."
"And you think that means he loves me?"
"Not just that. I saw the way he looked at you when you got into the car. Mark my words, he is head over heels for you, he's just too macho to admit it. Just call it a product of being older and wiser."
Chloe half-smiled. "Well, maybe..."
"But do you love him?"
Chloe paused and sighed. "I do... I really do. But, I can't tell him that."
Kay smiled widely. "Of course you can, and you will. Just give it time. If the feelings are there, then you just have to wait for the time to be right. It'll come out when you least expect it."
"I don't know about that, I don't have the easiest time expressing myself."
Kay shook her head in disagreement. "Well, I'm going to stay out of your business, but believe me, it will happen. If you truly love him, then you won't be able to hold that in forever. Same goes for him."
Chloe nodded and smiled as she glanced out the window. "You may be right..."
***
(Later... at the hospital.)
Chloe stepped through the doors and into the waiting room. She saw Brady sitting with Kay in the corner, and he stood up from the chair as soon as he saw her come out. She walked towards him and he briefly kissed her on the lips.
"So, what's the verdict?"
She lifted her arm to show him the dark blue brace they had put over her wrist and hand. "Slight fracture, big ugly black bruise, and pills for the pain. That's the short version."
"A fracture? It's broken?"
Chloe shrugged slightly. "Not exactly. It's one of those happy fractures where it immediately sets itself back into place, so that's the good news. I don't have to wear a real cast, as long as I wear this and don't let it move. I lucked out really. The doctor said it's going to hurt for awhile, but it could've been a lot worse."
Brady smiled widely at her. "Good news then."
Chloe nodded in agreement. "And what about you? How's the van?"
"Not good. It's got a lot of damage from sliding across the road like that. Frame damage, and things like that. No brakes either. I think I'm just going to leave it here and buy a new car when we get home."
Chloe raised her eyebrows skeptically. "And we're just going to walk the 500 miles home to Salem? I mean, I've got pain pills, but I don't think that will help me walk faster."
Brady shook his head. "No, we're going to fly home. I already got us a flight that leaves tomorrow, and a hotel to stay in tonight."
"Wow... I'm impressed. But, aren't you going to miss your van?"
Brady nodded with remorse. "A little bit, but sometimes you just gotta move on. Besides, I know you'd rather get home as soon as possible instead of waiting around here for repairs."
"Yeah, definitely. It's been an extremely long week, and as scared as I am of facing the music with my mother... I'm ready to be back in more familiar surroundings."
"Me too."
Chloe turned to Kay who had stood up from her chair as well. "Kay, thank you so much for everything. I really appreciate it. And thank you for waiting here all this time."
"It's my pleasure. I just hope that things work out for the both of you. Besides, I had to wait... I'm your ride to the hotel." Kay smiled and motioned towards the parking lot.
Brady nodded in agreement with Chloe. "Really, thank you. I've already told Mike thanks for all his help, but thank you for taking care of Chloe for me. She means a lot to me."
Kay nodded knowingly. "I know. I can tell. Anyway, Mike is going to pick you both up in the morning and take you to the airport, alright?"
Chloe smiled at her and winked. "Thank you... for everything." And when Chloe smiled, Kay knew that she wasn't just thanking her for the ride, she was thanking her for the advice that she had dispensed earlier in the day.
"You're welcome, dear." Kay picked her purse up from the chair and the group filed out to the parking lot. They got into Kay's car together and headed over to the hotel.
***