Shaking his hand, Scott hurried down the hall, wrapping his arm around Lizzie while thanking Carrie. As they walked to his vehicle, she was quiet, and he kept glancing to the side, wondering what she was thinking. Afraid to ignore, and yet, afraid to ask, they drove home in mostly silence.
Not waiting on him to assist, she climbed down from the passenger seat and immediately headed toward the back. Her feet stumbled ever-so-slightly as she passed the blackened shell of her former barn, hurrying past until she stopped at the pasture gates, the animals crowding near her.
Coming up behind her, Scott placed his hands on her shoulders and said, “The metal bin that held the feed appears unharmed. Let’s get them fed, and they can stay out here tonight.”
She nodded, and together they walked back to the scorched area around the bin holding the food. Working side-by-side, they fed all the animals before heading back to the house. Once inside, she moved to the refrigerator and opened the door, staring inside.
Scott watched her stand, motionless, one hand on the open refrigerator door, her gaze blank. Suddenly, she began to shake violently, and he rushed to her, catching her before she fell to the floor. Her mouth was open as tears ran down her face, but no sound came forth until finally a great sob was forced from her lungs.
“M… m… my own fa… father…”
It was an awkward descent to the floor, but he managed to get her into his lap, his arms wrapped around her tightly, feeling her shudder. Rubbing her back, he murmured words of comfort, hating every painful hitch of her breath. Finally, her crying slowed, and she heaved a deep breath.
“Let it out, baby,” he encouraged.
It took another moment of silence before she spoke. “He was so full of anger that Papa Beau didn’t include him in the will.”
It was on the tip of Scott’s tongue to interrupt, ranting about the ridiculousness of Robbie’s poor me attitude, but he clamped his jaw tight, knowing that Lizzie needed to speak freely without interruption.
“Papa Beau would have been so horrified at what Robbie tried to do. When I stared at him out in the barn, it was as though I was talking to a complete stranger. I guess he really was.”
“Lizzie, baby, you’re right. He was a stranger. In the end, he didn’t want you to be physically hurt, but he was so blinded by his own desires. I remember Beau talking about him once with me.”
At that, she immediately twisted in his arms, holding his gaze, her face filled with curiosity.
“He told me that the farm had always been in your blood but never in Robbie’s. He actually said that Robbie was very lazy, often getting in trouble as a teenager and young man.”
Letting out a deep sigh, she admitted, “I heard he and Papa Beau arguing the night he left. To be honest, it was after a fight he had with Mom where he accused her of ignoring his needs to work on the farm or take care of me and she argued back that one of them had to work, which just made him angrier. Then he told Papa Beau that he wanted his share of the land and was told that the farm would not be given to someone who did not care about it. He stormed out that night after packing a bag, and I never saw or heard from him again until today. I don’t even know where he’s been all these years.” Blowing out a breath, she shook her head. “I guess he was just lying in wait for Papa Beau to die.”
Scott’s arms pulled her tighter as she dragged in another shuddering breath before letting it out slowly. She leaned her weight against him for another moment before shifting to stand. He followed, watching as she snagged a tissue, wiping her face and blowing her nose.
“Honey, Colt gave me the number for Victims Assistance and mentioned that Maddie was a counselor. I want to make sure that you’re going to be fine, and I want you to call someone if you need them.”
Watching her carefully, he could see thoughts moving behind her eyes, but remained silent to give her a chance to process his request.
After throwing away her tissues, she stepped into his embrace, and they stood in the middle of the kitchen, arms banded around each other with her cheek resting against his chest.
“Right now, I’m not going to waste any more time thinking about what he did to me. But I promise that I’ll talk to Maddie if I need to. But, for the immediate future, Scott, I want to focus on the farm. Taking care of the animals, figuring out a way to get the barn rebuilt.” She jolted, then quickly added, “Oh, my goodness. I need to call the insurance company.”
Pressing her cheek against his chest again, he said, “We’ll do that first thing in the morning. They’ll send out someone who will look at everything, check the police report, and then they’ll have a settlement for you to get someone to rebuild the barn.”
“I guess it’s a good thing the weather is nice so the animals will be comfortable,” she sighed. “I hope it won’t take long to get a new barn up.”
Thinking about the number of phone calls that had come in that day, Scott did not think it would take long at all but did not want to get her hopes up. Instead, he simply held her close, kissing the top of her head, offering his strength to her.
Lizzie had found sleep easier than she thought she would. The long cry had exhausted her, and Scott fixing comfort breakfast food for dinner had almost made her comatose. But now, in the middle of the night with Scott sleeping with his arm draped across her, she had woken and could not settle her mind.
She had allowed Scott to chat with their friends, not feeling in the mood to rehash the events with everyone. Grateful that she had friends who cared, the ache from her father’s actions still penetrated deeply. Mostly, she was glad that Papa Beau had not lived to see how low his son had sunk.
The one person she had talked to was her mom, hating to call her but knowing it was the right thing to do. Jane had been horrified at Robbie’s actions, bursting into tears at the thought that Lizzie could have died. She finally convinced her mother to put Richard on the phone where she assured him that she was all right and being taken care of. Accepting their promise that they would be back in the United States by Christmas, she gave them both her love.
Now, the full moon was casting faint light across the bedroom as she carefully slipped from under Scott’s arm and slid from the bed. Moving first to the bathroom, she took care of her business before going downstairs, avoiding the few steps that creaked.
Not hungry, she still headed to the kitchen, recognizing that it had always seemed to be the heart of the house. Memories of family meals over the years, her grandmother baking, her mother cooking, and Papa Beau dressed in his overalls, a big smile on his face as he called out his greetings.
As she glanced around the familiar room, she realized she had very few memories of her father… in this room, in this house, or on the farm. While she did remember a few of the arguments, her grandparents and mom had shielded her from most of that.
Turning as she stood at the sink, she glanced at the view through the window, the moonlight casting the farm in a lovely glow. She sighed, knowing that it would be a pain to rebuild the barn but not an impossibility. The animals were safe, and she planned on calling Sam the next day to check on her pregnant goats.
Moving to the kitchen door, she stepped down into the yard, the patio stones cool under her bare feet. As she continued walking, the grass cushioned her footsteps and she stopped halfway through the yard. Turning in a circle, she spread her arms wide, knowing that her family’s farm encompassed all the land that she could see.