As much as Jo had tried to psych herself up for her visit with Mrs. Garrett, it turned out that nothing had prepared her for the sight of her former headmaster. Mrs. Garrett looked as if she'd aged at least twenty years since the last time Jo had seen her. She was completely grey-haired now, her face held many more wrinkles than it had before, and one side of it sagged. Seeing her broke Jo's heart.

"Oh, Mrs. G!" the brunette cried, rushing to embrace the older woman. Mrs. Garrett made some nonsensical sounds, trying her best to speak.

"We all came as soon as we could," said Blair. As Mrs. Garrett looked from one of her former students to another, her eyes filled with tears. It was clear that, although she couldn't speak, she recognized everyone.

"I'm remarried now, and I have a beautiful seven-month-old daughter." Jo showed Mrs. Garrett a photograph of Doug and Bethany. The older woman's eyes lit up. "Jamie's fourteen now. She's going into the ninth grade in the fall. Can you believe she's a high schooler now?"

Mrs. Garrett made a sound that sounded like a chuckle.

"The kids and I live in Oklahoma City too now, close to Jo and her family," Blair added. She left out the news that she was now divorced, as she didn't want to upset Mrs. Garrett with any negative news. "This is the most recent picture of them." She showed her former headmaster a photograph of Adam and Alyssa. Mrs. Garrett tried to smile again.

Natalie and Tootie likewise shared their most recent news, and Tootie showed Mrs. Garrett a recent photograph of Tisha.

The three women visited for the rest of the morning and then went to the hospital cafeteria for lunch. "It really scared me to see her just lying there like that." Tootie sounded as if she were about to cry.

"I know what you mean," Natalie agreed. "I feel exactly the same way."

Blair and Jo were both silent, lost in their own thoughts. Jo was thinking about the last time she'd seen Mrs. Garrett, how healthy and vibrant she'd been then. She seemed like such a different person now. Jo wondered if strokes always did that to people.

"Want the binky?" Doug asked his infant daughter, who in response angrily threw the pacifier onto the floor and continued to cry. "No binky? You want Mama, don't you? She'll be back real soon."

The doorbell rang, and Doug went to answer it. Before him stood a slender blue-eyed blond boy who looked to be about fourteen. "Hi, I'm Chase," the boy told him. "Is Jamie here?"

"I'm her father." Doug's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "How do you know her?"

"She hung out with us last night," Chase replied. "We met her and Tisha at the pool and they walked to the corner store with us. I bought her a soda and we went for a walk around the block. I told her I'd stop by to take her to a movie today."

"Well, she's not going anywhere with you today," Doug said shortly. "Good-bye." He slammed the door shut and, still holding the baby, went to find Jamie. "We need to talk," he said tersely.

"What is it, Dad?" Jamie feigned innocence.

"A boy named Chase just came to the door, wantin' to take you to a movie. He said you went for a walk with him yesterday."

"Yeah? So?" Her eyes blazed with defiance.

"What made you think you could just go for a walk with a perfect stranger without even asking us first?"

"It was only around the block."

"I don't care if it was to Mexico. You left the motel premises without our permission. Do you realize how dangerous that was?"

"He's a nice guy, Dad, and after all, I am fourteen now."

"Yeah, all of fourteen. Gimme that tablet."

"What?" Jamie shrieked.

"The iPod too, and also the cell phone. No electronic gadgets for a week, young lady. You can read or visit with the rest of the family, and if anything like this ever happens again, I can assure you, the consequences will be much more serious."

"That's not fair!" Jamie was near tears. "My real Dad wouldn't have done that!"

Stunned and deeply hurt, Doug walked away without saying another word.

As Jo returned to the motel with her friends, she was so preoccupied with concerns over Mrs. Garrett's health that she didn't even notice that anything was amiss, until Doug's stony silence and the dried tear tracks on Jamie's face let her know that something unpleasant had happened during her absence.

"What on earth happened?" she asked.

"He took all my stuff away," Jamie grumbled.

Jo turned questioning eyes to her husband, and he told her about the incident with Chase.

"Honey, your Dad's only concerned about your welfare," she told her daughter.

"He's not my Dad!" Jamie exploded.