Yesterday's Embers (Clayburn Novels Book 3) Read online

  Kayeleigh took a half-step toward Mickey’s desk.

  “I’d like you to come and sit down for a minute.” Mickey pointed to the chair in front of her desk. “We need to talk.”

  Kayeleigh slumped into the chair, hugging her backpack and fiddling with the zipper pull.

  “You walked straight home after school?” Mickey felt a little guilty baiting her, but she wanted to see how she’d respond.

  Kayeleigh mumbled something that sounded like “yes.”

  “Kayeleigh, look at me. You didn’t stop anywhere between here and school?”

  “Why are you interrogating me?”

  “I’m not interrogating you. I’m just making sure you’re following the rules—”

  “My dad makes the rules and if he—”

  “I’m not talking about the rules at home. I’m talking about the daycare rules. I’m the director here, and the rule is that if you come from school, you come directly here, the shortest route possible, no stopping along the way. I think you know that.”

  “Well, I did.”

  “Did what? Kayeleigh. I’m going to ask you again. Did you come straight here from school?”

  “Yes!”

  “Then why did I see you coming out of the coffee shop?”

  The blood drained from Kayeleigh’s face. She’d been caught red-handed. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Would you rather talk to your dad about it?”

  “Fine. Anything so I don’t have to talk to you.” She hoisted her backpack and stormed out the front door.

  By the time Mickey collected herself and went after her, Kayeleigh was half a block down the street, running back in the direction of Latte-dah.

  Chapter 33

  “What was I supposed to do, Doug?”

  Doug had never seen Mickey so worked up.

  She threw a dish towel onto the counter. “I treated her like I would have any other child who behaved the way she did while in my care.”

  “Why didn’t you call me?” He felt like he was playing mediator for a couple of six-year-olds. He’d sent Kayeleigh to her room and was trying to get to the bottom of what had happened between her and Mickey. All he knew was that when he got home from work tonight, happy because he’d finished the farmwork early and could actually spend an evening at home, he’d been met by this firestorm—Kayeleigh in tears because Mickey had grounded her, and Mickey up in arms because he questioned her actions and didn’t immediately back her up.

  Hands on hips, she stood in the middle of the kitchen and spat the words. “I didn’t call you because I know how busy you are at work. I didn’t want to bother you with something I thought I could handle myself.”

  “Well, it goes without saying: you apparently couldn’t handle it yourself.”

  Her eyes narrowed and the tendons in her jaw pulled into a taut line. “What is that supposed to mean?”

  He composed his words carefully before he spit them at her. “I don’t think it was your place to ground Kayeleigh.”

  “What did you expect me to do? Just let it go?”

  “No, but you could have waited until I got home, so we could talk about it. Decide together.”

  “We should talk about it, Doug. I’m not saying ‘subject closed.’ But it’s not like there was any question whether she’d lied to me or not. I couldn’t let that go.”

  “So you saw her with Seth?”

  “Yes, I did. They were coming out of the coffee shop with smoothies and she—”

  “You know it was smoothies they were drinking? What are you, a detective?”

  She gave a frustrated growl. “That’s not the point.”

  He held up a hand and forced his voice down. “I’m sorry.” How did every conversation manage to turn into an argument?

  Mickey took his cue and softened her voice. “The point is, when she got back to the daycare—almost half an hour late, by the way—I asked her specifically if she came straight home. She looked me in the eye and told me she did.”

  Doug nodded. “Okay. I just wish you would’ve let me handle it.”

  “Well, believe me, next time I will. I should have called you out of work to come and get her.”

  “What would that have accomplished?”

  “Doug––” Mickey looked toward the stairway, as if she were afraid the kids might be listening. But they’d been in bed for an hour––after a dinner eaten in silence. “If I’m going to be in charge of Kayeleigh, I’ve got to have some clout. When you defended her in front of me like that, you stripped me of any authority over her––over all the kids.”

  He exhaled and bowed his head briefly, trying to look appropriately contrite. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I probably shouldn’t have done that. But come on…give the kid a break. She hasn’t exactly had it easy these last few months. She…she’s still grieving.”

  His own words took him by surprise. He hadn’t thought of it that way exactly, but it was true. “You’re taking everything so personally, Mickey, but I don’t think this has anything to do with you. The kids are still grieving. We’re grieving. All of us. It…it hasn’t been that long.”

  “You make it sound like you’re all in this together. Where does that leave me, Doug?”

  “There you go again, making it all about you.”

  “No. That’s not what I mean. It’s just…I can’t compete with that, Doug.”

  “Nobody’s asking you to compete. This isn’t a competition.”

  “Well, it sure feels like one.” She wheeled and strode down the hall.

  He started after her, then shook his head. Let her fume a little. She was being ridiculous.

  But it was Doug who fumed all night. He went out to the garage, feeling as if he’d been banished from his own home. At least he got some shelves cleaned off that he’d been meaning to sort through. When he got up the courage to go into the house around ten, Mickey had turned out all the lights and locked the front door.

  She was in bed, asleep, curled up so close to her edge of the mattress that he was afraid she’d fall out. Well, let her. Maybe that’d knock some sense into her.

  He got ready for bed and assumed a similar position on his side of the mattress.

  The next thing he knew, a sliver of morning light was coming in through the curtains. He hadn’t heard Mickey’s alarm clock, but the shower was running and her side of the bed was empty.

  He eased out of bed and went down the hall to make coffee. When he came back to the bedroom, Mickey was making the bed, dressed in a fluffy robe, her hair wrapped in a towel.

  He tested the waters. “Good morning.”

  “Morning.” Not meeting his eyes, she yanked at the bedspread and punched a pillow into place on the headboard.

  Okay. Still a bit chilly. Fine. He liked quiet in the morning anyway.

  He showered and dressed quickly and went to the kitchen. The fresh scent of laundry soap and dryer sheets permeated the air, and he found Mickey in the laundry room folding clothes. She didn’t look up when he walked through the room and went out to retrieve the morning newspaper.

  He pulled the paper from its niche below the mailbox and tucked it under his arm. When he straightened, a flash of white caught his eye.

  He looked up to see Mickey’s cat sitting at the edge of the driveway. Smiling to himself, he squatted on his haunches and held out a hand, calling the cat quietly. He couldn’t have bought a better peace offering at any price.

  The cat took two steps toward him and retreated one step back, until finally it was close enough to sniff his fingers. He laid the newspaper down and nabbed the cat. It let out a yowl when he scooped it up, but quickly settled into his arms. Leaving the paper on the ground, he carried the cat through the garage and into the laundry room.

  Mickey was bent over the dryer, scooping out a load of white T-shirts and underwear.

  He cleared his throat loudly. “Look what I found.”

  Arms loaded with the clean laundry, she straightened. She took
one look and a smile filled her eyes. “Sasha!” She dropped the laundry in front of the dryer and stormed Doug, nearly crushing the cat between them. “Where was she?” She looked into his eyes for the first time since last night.

  “Just waiting out on the driveway. See, I told you she’d come back.”

  Mickey didn’t respond but nuzzled the cat and whispered sweet nothings to it, while it purred like there was no tomorrow.

  Doug stood with his arms folded over his chest, watching the happy reunion. She looked up from stroking the cat, and without a word, her eyes told him his peace offering had done the trick.

  “You know, a lesser man couldn’t help but be a tad jealous right now.”

  To his surprise, her eyes welled with tears. “Thank you, Doug.”

  He wanted to close the distance between them, take her in his arms, take her back to bed. But there was that blasted cat between them. And Mickey didn’t seem inclined to remove it. And besides, he heard the kids stirring upstairs.

  Chapter 34

  Mickey flung the smelly tennis shoe off the sofa, just missing a nearly full glass of milk somebody had left there to sour. She didn’t want to cause any more trouble with Doug, but if something didn’t give around here, she was going to blow a gasket big-time.

  She kicked the other shoe out of the way, searching again for today’s newspaper.

  When the second shoe clunked against the wall, Doug hollered in from the kitchen. “Landon? What’s going on in there?”

  “It’s me, Doug. Landon’s outside. Playing.” She hoped to hammer home a point.

  Doug appeared in the doorway between the kitchen and living room. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m trying to find this morning’s paper, but I don’t know how anyone can find a blessed thing in this place. Look at this, Doug. Just look…” She stretched out her arms to encompass a living room cluttered with toys and dirty clothes, and dishes with crusted-on food. Who knew what else lay underneath the first grimy layer.

  “Well, call the kids in. Make them clean up their stuff. You shouldn’t have to do it.”

  “I told them to clean up before dinner.”

  “And did they?”

  “Excuse me?” Incredulous, she stepped to one side in case he’d missed the view before. “Are you looking at the same room I’m looking at?”

  He shrugged. “Let’s see, I’m going to guess….no, they didn’t.”

  She wasn’t in the mood for his sarcasm. “I cannot stand this mess another minute, Douglas! I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like next week when they’re all out of school!”

  “Mickey, six kids live in this house. It’s not going to stay clean.”

  Doug didn’t seem to notice that he’d misspoken. Or maybe he was referring to himself as the sixth child. She immediately felt cruel for having such a thought. She’d heard him slip up before. The idea of being dad to six kids was so ingrained in him.

  Although there wasn’t a day that went by that she didn’t confront Kaye’s memory in this house, it had been a long time since anyone had spoken Rachel’s name. But Mickey understood why. It brought a lump to her throat just to think of the sweet little girl.

  Doug went on, obviously unaware of what he’d said. “Mickey, this is what life with kids is like. Surely you knew that when you married me. You’ve worked with kids long enough to know—”

  “But I never realized how much it would take out of me to have them all day long at daycare and then come home and have them all night, too.” She glared at him.

  “Well, welcome to my world.” He spoke through gritted teeth. “It’s not like I’m out playing golf or down at the bar having a beer with the guys when I get off work, you know.”

  She’d never heard such venom in his voice. She vacillated between wanting to weep and wanting to give him a piece of her mind. The latter seemed the easier choice. “Maybe not, but when you do finally get home, at least you have a nice meal ready for you and a few minutes to sit in front of the TV.” She matched his caustic tone. “I don’t even get that. I’m on duty from the minute I wake up until the minute you go to bed.”

  “And who got up with Harley last night?”

  “What do you mean? I—I didn’t know she woke up.”

  “That’s right, because when you go to sleep, you can turn it all off. I can’t even sleep without one ear to the door in case something goes wrong with the house, or one of the kids gets sick.”

  Admittedly, she hadn’t heard Harley wake up last night. And yes, she did put all her responsibilities out of her mind once she crawled under the covers. “If I didn’t, I’d be a mental and physical wreck. As it is, I’m doing good to get six hours of sleep a night. Between the house and the laundry and groceries and making sure the kids have lunches packed, it’s almost always after midnight before I finally get to bed.”

  “You bring that on yourself, Mick. Nobody is asking you to keep this house looking like a showroom.”

  “Believe me, this is a far cry from a showroom. I don’t see how you can function like this!” She kicked at a book bag one of the girls had dropped in front of the sofa after school. “How anybody ever finds anything in this pigsty is beyond me. And you know…” She was gathering steam now. Might as well get it all out in the open while they were at it. He couldn’t get much angrier than he already was. “Would it kill you to ask the kids to help me out once in a while?”

  “You ask them.” He threw up a hand as if he were tossing all reason to the wind. “If you want help, Mickey, ask for it. There’s no reason those kids can’t help you out.”

  “I don’t think I should always have to be the bad guy.”

  “Well, I’m sorry, but I’m not here to see what it is you need them to do. You’re going to have to be a big girl for a change and handle it yourself.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “Mickey—” He waited a beat too long, and the look on his face said he’d been holding back a blow that he was about to deliver with pleasure.

  He pawed at the floor like a tormented bull. “You’re acting like a child! You’re acting like a spoiled princess with three doting brothers, who’s always gotten everything her way and who’s never had to make a sacrifice for somebody else.”

  “And you’re acting like a tyrant who’s never had anybody dare to challenge his authority before.” Hackles flaring, she furrowed her brow and lowered her voice in a fair imitation of him. “Get that done right away. No questions asked. When I say ‘jump,’ the proper response is ‘how high?’ ”

  It was clear she’d pushed too far with that one. Doug’s jaw tensed and his face went red. “Are you talking about you or the kids?”

  That threw her. “What do you mean?”

  He jabbed at the air with a finger. “Is that how you think I treat you? Is it?”

  “No.” She took a step backward, wishing she could take back her words as easily. Doug wasn’t that way with her. And he was never harsher with the kids than he needed to be. “Never mind. I shouldn’t have said that.”

  “No. You said it. It didn’t just come out of nowhere. You must have meant something by it.”

  She looked at the floor, on the verge of tears. “This…this isn’t like I thought it would be.” Her voice wavered and she shook her head, not wanting to cry but powerless to stop the tears. “Nothing is like I thought it would be…for you and me. We never see each other, Doug. Kayeleigh hates the very sight of me.”

  “She doesn’t hate you, Mick. She’s twelve. Give her a break. Weren’t you ever twelve?”

  She waved him away. “Just forget it. You don’t understand what I’m saying.”

  “I’m trying.” But the hard edge to his voice wasn’t convincing.

  She was broken. She only wanted him to take her in his arms now, tell her that things would get better. That they’d work it out, that they’d find the sweetness they’d had with each other before.

  But he didn’t do that. Instead, he s
tood there, tapping his foot, as if he couldn’t wait for her rant to be over so he could get to something more important.

  She sighed. “Can we just forget all this? I shouldn’t have said anything.”

  “But you did.” Now it was his turn to look at the floor. “Mickey, I’m sorry if things aren’t like you thought they’d be. I don’t know what to do about that. I can’t exactly send the kids away.”

  “I’m not asking you to do that, Doug. Don’t be ridiculous.”

  “Well, what you’re asking isn’t realistic.”

  “The kids take care of their stuff at daycare. I don’t see why they can’t do the same here.” An idea started taking shape in her mind. “What if…would you be willing to let me do some organizing around here? Maybe if the kids had a place to put things, they’d be more responsible.”

  “What exactly do you have in mind?”

  “For one thing, I could bring some of the bookshelves from my house. We need to get stuff out of there anyway if we’re going to rent the place out. And maybe the kids could start using the back door, so we could at least keep the living room clean. Aren’t you embarrassed to have people see the place like this?”

  He shrugged, but she could see that he’d lost a little steam and he was opening up to her idea. “When would we do this great transformation?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe over the weekend? We could make the first day of summer a fresh start that way.”

  He shook his head. “Don’t you remember, I’ve got that EMT training thing in Salina. I’ve got to leave here by seven Friday morning, and I won’t be back until late Saturday night.”

  “What if I do it while you’re gone?” She looked around the room and the adrenaline started flowing as fast as the ideas. “What if I take a couple days off? I’ve got days coming, and I need to take them before school’s out anyway.”

  “What about the kids? And how are you going to move bookcases by yourself?”

  She glanced at the clock. “I know it’s late, but…would you consider helping me move the heavy stuff tonight?”

  He opened his mouth and she waited for his protest, but then he blew out a breath and shrugged. “Okay. Let’s do it. Can we do it in a couple of trips?”