Jaye walked up the stairs and into the bedroom she shared with her husband of sixteen years. She saw him packing his bag quickly. She stood by the doorway, knowing what was going on. He was leaving again on another 'business' trip. "So what's the business this time? How long are you going to be gone? Are you going to bother with the little things while you're gone such as calling me? You seem to forget that when you go on these little trips," she said with fire.
"Turning into Hector Ramirez on me?" Flint asked with a smidgen of a tease, putting another suit in the small suitcase. He closed the suitcase and looked at his wife. "I'm heading to New York for the Farmer's Market meeting."
"They don't call you on the spur of the moment for that meeting, Dash." Jaye said, her voice indicating that she did not like the fact that he was teasing her. It was an insult.
"I'm sorry, Honey," Flint said, walking over and wrapping his arms around her, kissing her on the forehead. "I should had told you about the meeting, but I must've forgotten all about it as they called me to double check my reservations for the hotel room." His heart rate quickened in his chest. 'Duke, you are so dead.' he thought to himself.
Donatello walked into the bedroom, sniffing around. He sat his large rear down, and panted at the couple, tilting his head, thinking if he would get a glimpse of the show.
"But I don't want you to go," Jaye argued. "I want you to stay here with me."
"I want to stay with you too, Allie," Flint said truthfully, "But I also need to go these meetings, so we can both have a life." He glanced at her with a small smile.
Jaye turned away. "Who is she?" She was still in his embrace.
"Who is who?" Flint asked, giving her a puzzled expression.
"The woman you are going to see," Jaye said, her voice sounded devastated.
"W-woo-woman!" Flint stuttered, dropping his hold with surprise. "What!"
Jaye started to cry softly. "The one that's taking my place."
Flint gently wiped her tears with his thumb. "Allie," he said gently, soothingly. "There's no other woman. Honest." He looked deeply into her green sorrowful eyes.
"Then stay home with me. Please. I need you here," Jaye told him, almost begging.
His heart became torn watching the tears leave those green eyes. He wrapped his arms around her once again and held her close, gently swaying them both. "It's only a few days, I promise."
"But we need you here. I need you here," Jaye said into his chest, not making eye contact.
He felt guilty keeping the secret from her, but if she knew what kind of meeting he was really going to, she would be livid. He held her tighter. "Allie, you are a remarkable women, you are more then capable running this whole farm on your own. And besides, you have a very smart fifteen year old and a cool sister-in-law with her husband to help you."
"But it's not the same. I need you," she said then shut up before she said too much.
"Allie, are you feeling all right?" Flint asked concerned, now getting more worried.
"Ummm...yeah I'm fine," Jaye said, trying to get away from him.
"Tell me what's wrong?"
"It's nothing. I'm just really tired." She told him. "You better get going. You'll miss your flight." He could tell by her words that there was more too it and that she really didn't want him to go.
"With you, it's never nothing," Flint stated, taking her hand and leading her to the bed, sitting her slowly down. "The morning sickness is worse than when you were pregnant with Cayden, isn't it?"
Jaye only nodded.
He leaned down and kissed her forehead, then pulled down the sheets, and gently laid her head down on the pillow, covering her up. "Allie, you need some rest," he stated with great care, stroking her hair slowly, raking it with his fingers. "Now, while I'm gone, I want you to do nothing, and no arguments."
"But there's so much to do with the storm clean up, the cow calving, the bottle baby, and all the other stuff around here. We don't have enough men. I have to help," Jaye told him trying to sit back up.
Flint pushed her back down. "Cayden, Nancy and Brad are helping. There's plenty of help with the workers, and we've been through storms before."
"Alright. But I'm not staying in bed," Jaye said. "I'll run things from the house." She got up and headed down the stairs.
"Alison!" Flint's voice shouted from the second floor. "Get back here and into bed!"
Cayden stuck his head out from his bedroom. "What's going on, Dad?"
Flint raced down the stairs, while answering his son, "Your Mother!" He stopped at the bottom of the stairs and glanced around. "Allie! Where are you?"
Cayden followed his father down the stairs. "What about my mother?" Though no answer came from Jaye.
Flint felt his anger rising, looking around for his escapee. "She's not feeling well." He looked at his son. "Morning sickness." He headed towards the kitchen. "And she won't stay in BED!" The last word echoed around the house.
Cayden put his hand on his father's shoulder. "Dad, she'll be fine. I'll keep an eye on her and if she's showing any signs of stress, then I'll make her come in the house."
"Or get your Aunt Nancy after her, she knows better then to cross with the evil plastic things queen," Flint chuckled. He glanced around, trying to spot his wife, but knew she was in hiding. He patted his son on the shoulder, then raced up the stairs, grabbed the suitcase and came down quickly, heading for the door. "Well, you two have fun." He bided his son goodbye, then yelled, "BYE, ALLIE!" Before he left the house, closing the door behind him.
The door swung open and Jaye hurried out of the house. "Dash!" she called out almost urgently.
Flint turned, watching her come down the porch steps. "Yes, my little crazy Scottish woman who should be in bed?"
She wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him. "Come back to me safe," she said to him. He could hear the fear in her voice. This was something they had done since they were first married when he had to leave her behind.
"You know I always do, nothing can keep me from you," Flint said lovingly, bending down and kissing her, while wrapping his own arms around her waist, holding her close.
As the kiss broke, Jaye looked deep into his brown eyes. "I love you."
"No you don't, you love Brutus more than me." He gave her a huge grin, even making his slightest newly formed wrinkles dance. "And I'm not even the person who gave him to you," he finished, capturing her lips once again before she could reply.
Jaye deepened the kiss with promises of what would be awaiting him when he returned.
"Don't you two ever stop?" came a voice right near them. "There's a teenager present!"
Flint broke the kiss, but still held his wife in his arms, turning towards a sun touched face Nancy slowly walking while leading a brown dapple horse, one he had never seen before. "I don't know even the meaning of the word," he teased his sister.
Nancy instead of answering him with words, stuck her tongue out at him.
Jaye kissed him again and let him go. "You better go and don't forget to call me."
"Don't forget to buy me something," Cayden called out with a big grin on his face.
"Orders, orders, orders," Flint playfully rolled his eyes, waved goodbye to them, got in his truck, and skidded away.
Cayden waved at the car until it disappeared down the driveway and then went into the house.
Jaye watched him until she could no longer see his truck. She turned and started to sob a little as she headed towards the barn where the bottle baby was.
"Come on, Cherokee," Nancy tugged on the horse's lead, making the animal start to follow her. She followed her sister-in-law toward the barn, The perspiration from the heat, stung the back of her neck. She led the horse close to the red building, passing a large water barrel. Suddenly the horse reared up from fright, knocking her down on the ground.
Cherokee reared again, this time pounding the ground with her hooves.
"Easy." Nancy slowly stood on her feet. She patted the animal's neck, soothing the petrified horse. But every hair on the back of her neck stood up, discovering what had spooked the horse, a snake. "Easy," she said again, trying not to make any sudden movements. "Al-Allie!"
Jaye came running out of the barn, a pole with a hook in her hand since she was going to bring down some extra hosing from high up in the barn. "WHAT?!"
Nancy held on to Cherokee, barely not moving, her face turned to a pale peach color. "Don't come closer!" her voice whispered. "Snake."
Jaye looked at the snake. "Slowly back away." She told her sister-in-law as she slowly walked closer, hooked pole in hand.
"Allie, I can't," Nancy stated. "If I move, Cherokee will bolt." She glanced at the ex-Joe, knowing that is the horse did any sudden moves, the snake would strike.
Jaye nodded and continued to move forward. She got in front of the horse and started to pick up the snake when it struck, biting her in the shin.
"ALLIE!"
Jaye growled and turned the hook around and stick it through the snake's head.
"Now, can you tell me why you decided to play Jeff Corbin?" Nancy asked, her features pale, glancing down at the dead snake.
"Because my pistol is in the house," Jaye said. looking down at the snake. "Go get a bag. We'll need to take it with us." She said as she got down on one knee and looked at the bite.
Nancy went to the barn and returned with a seed bag for the snake. "Here."
Jaye picked up the snake and put it in the sack. "I guess we better go huh?"
Nancy nodded, holding on to the horse's reins. She glanced to her right, spotting her husband rushing towards them at full gallop. "Brad can drive faster, he can take you there quicker."
"I'd rather you took me," Jaye said.
"I'm sorry, but you know I can't go there," Nancy replied, her voice breaking. She mounting the horse, ready to ride out of there, her entire body trembling. "B-Brad can take you."
Jaye walked away. "Forget it. I'll take myself."
Nancy took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to hide the panic she had inside. "Allie, wait." She dismounted the horse and raced to her sister- in-law.
"No. It's fine," Jaye said as she went to the car.
"Brad!" Nancy yelled to her husband, watching him near them with his horse. "Allie got bit by a snake!"
"What?!" Ace exclaimed and rode towards them faster.
Jaye tossed the dead snake into the back seat and started to climb in.
"Can you drive? You're faster!" Nancy hollered, shaking off her fear of hospitals and racing towards the house at top while calling out from over her shoulder. "Allie, you drive and I'll tell Dash!!!" She bounded up the porch steps. "Cayden!" she cried out, but spotted him playing some video games, and before the teenager knew what was happening, she grabbed him by the arm, and started running back towards the car, her heart thumping.
They spotted already Ace in the driver's seat while Jaye was yelling at him in Gaelic.
Ace just ignored Jaye which seemed to fuel her fire even more.
"What's going on?" Cayden asked as he was ushered to the car.
Nancy got in the backseat, next to her nephew. "GO! GO! GO!!!" The car jerked forward, making them all be pushed backwards.
"Why is there a snake in a sack back here?" Cayden asked as Jaye continued to curse at them all in several different languages.
"Your mother got bit by a snake," Ace said as he drove faster at top speed.
"BRAD! Look out for the cows in the road!" Nancy's backseat driving came on full throttle, which caused the car to jerk left and right, making everyone bounce everywhere, but none of the cows were harmed, but extremely angry apparently as the bull started chasing the car.
Cayden looked from the backseat window. "Hamburgers six o'clock! Coming in fast!"
"Talk about your—" Nancy went to say when the car jerked suddenly to the left, leaving the property. "your fast food."
"Hang on there, Allie," Ace said. "I'll have you to the hospital in no time."
Jaye quieted down.
Nancy glanced at the other woman, who apparently just stared out the window, ignoring everyone. She turned her head to the backseat window, looking out, starting to feel the air conditioner. Her eyes started to drift off and she jerked awake. She glanced at the rearview mirror, catching a glimpse of her husband watching her, and once again she turned toward the window and then the next minute felt someone stroking her hair, and felt no longer the car moving.
"You awake now, Honeybear?" Ace asked his beloved.
Nancy slowly rose her head from the backseat. "I didn't make it, did I?" she asked, looking into his blue eyes. "Because there is an angel right over me."
Ace grinned. "We're here. I already took Allie inside and Cayden's with her."
"Well, that's probably why the parking lot is all quiet," Nancy pointed out with a slight smile. "Unless we all didn't make it and now God has to live with her hormones for all eternity!" Her smile vanished from her features very suddenly and the tears started without warning. "Brad, the snake—" Her soft sobbing covered the rest of the words.
"Shhh..." Ace said pulling her close. "She'll be all right. She's a fighter."
Nancy trembled uncontrollably. "The snake was going after me and Cherokee," she murmured, closing her eyes tightly, shutting the image out of her head.
"Come on. Let's get inside so we will know what the doctors have to say," Ace said.
"It wasn't a copperhead," she informed him. "I didn't see the yellow color on the back." She slowly got out of the car. "Maybe I should stay here, she's angry with me anyway, it may get worse in there."
"No, you need to come inside," Ace said and gently ushered her into the Hospital.
Nancy held on to his arm. "Are you angry?" she asked him, not glancing toward him to see his features. She was afraid of the answer. They rounded a corner, passing three nurses all who were shaking their heads and mumbling something about never again.
"Of course not," Ace told her.
Nancy wrapped her arm around his waist and leaned against him. Her eyes try to cover her fear from being in the hospital, even though this time she wasn't the patient. She kissed quickly him on the cheek, catching him by surprise.
He smiled. "Thanks." He sat her down in a chair in the waiting area next to Cayden. "Where's your Mother?"
"In the room with the doctor," Cayden answered.
"She'll be fine," Nancy assured her nephew. "I saw the snake, it wasn't a copperhead. Your Mom was trying to get to it, before it got to me and Cherokee."
They sat there in silence for what seemed like an eternity when the doctor finally came out from the exam room.
Ace stood up and shook the doctor's hand. "How is she?"
"She'll be sick for a couple of days but the venom is not lethal to humans," the doctor told them. "It was a Yellow Belly Racer. The venom is lethal to small animals but in humans it just makes them very ill."
Nancy nodded, remaining quiet.
"She's sedated. Why don't you three go home. You can see her in the morning," the doctor suggested. "She'll be here for a couple of days."
Ace nodded. "Come on, you two. Let's go home."