33. Chapter 33

Chapter thirty-three

"It's the fifteenth."

W hen Sydney arrived at work, she heard Gage mumbling in his office. The coffeemaker was finishing its first pot of coffee, and she filled his mug and went to the partially open door.

"Good morning." When he didn't answer, she opened the door wider, and was shocked to see the room in disarray. Gage had been looking for something and had torn the place apart. "What's going on?"

He looked up at her and scowled. "Nothing. Just looking for something."

"Can I help you?"

"No." He went back to digging through his desk.

"Um…I'll just leave you your coffee, then." She set the mug on his desk. "Let me know if you need help." When he didn't answer her, or even acknowledge that she'd spoken, she turned and left the office. Something was definitely up.

When Sydney heard something crash to the floor, she went back to the door. Gage was looking down at his broken mug on the floor and the coffee that had spilled out of it. He glanced at her for a moment, then walked around the spill and took his jacket from the coatrack.

"I need to go home."

"It's Thursday."

"I know what damn day it is, Sydney. Just get the paper out. Can you do that for me?"

"Yes. Of course. Do you want me to call someone for you?"

He cocked his head. "Why would I want you to call someone?"

"You seem really upset. And if you don't want to talk to me, then maybe one of your brothers or Clementine."

He brushed past her as he went through the door. "I don't need to talk to anyone." He went through the outer office and out the front door. She watched him get into the Mustang and take off down the street a little too fast.

"Wow. What the hell?" She'd seen Gage upset or frustrated before. But this was different. And considering they were a couple, very uncalled for. She took a breath. She didn't want to get mad or take it personally. Something was very wrong. As she was deciding what to do about it, Dale opened the door.

"Where's Gage going?"

"I don't know. He had something to do."

"He damn near hit Lily, the librarian, crossing the road."

"I think he's upset about something. We need to get the paper out. I don't want him to worry about that."

"Okay."

"It's all printed. Can you start folding? I'll be back to help in a minute."

Sydney went into Gage's office and closed the door. She didn't want Dale speculating on what had happened in there. She picked up the three pieces of the broken mug and set them aside. It meant a lot to Gage, and she wanted to try to fix it.

After she cleaned up the spilled coffee, she looked around the room and debated on whether he'd be upset if she cleaned it up. Coming to the conclusion it wouldn't be an invasion of his privacy, she began straightening the room. When she finished, she took the pieces of the mug and went into the main office. She set them on her desk, then went to help Dale.

Dale glanced at her. "Is he okay?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure." Dale seemed to sense he shouldn't question her further.

When the papers were folded, boxed, and in Dale's truck, she sent him off to deliver them. Then she put a note on the door stating she'd be back in thirty minutes.

She stood in front of the building for a moment while she decided who to talk to. As far as she knew, Remington was the only brother in town other than Corbyn. And she didn't want to bother him at the clinic. Sydney headed down the sidewalk toward the Ambrose Tavern.

Since it was late morning, the restaurant wasn't too busy. But the lunch crowd would probably be arriving soon. Hopefully, Remington would be able to talk to her for a few minutes. Sydney went to Becca, who was making coffee.

Becca gave her a smile. "Hey. Are you here for an early lunch?"

"No. I'm here to talk to Remington. Is he too busy to talk?"

"It's kind of dead right now. It should be fine. What's up?"

"I really need to talk to Remington about it."

Becca seemed to be used to being excluded from conversations concerning the Calaway brothers. "Sure. He's in the kitchen."

When Sydney went through the swinging doors to the kitchen, Remington looked surprised to see her.

"Morning."

"Hi. Do you have a minute to talk?"

"Let me dropped these burgers." He put three hamburger patties on the grill, then turned to Sydney. "What's up?"

"Gage."

Remington nodded. "He stayed home, right?"

"No. He was in the office when I came in. But then he went home. And he wasn't happy. But it wasn't his normal grumpy. Something is definitely up."

"It's the fifteenth."

"Why does that matter?"

Remington wiped his hands on the cotton towel tied around his waist. "He never works on April fifteenth. He probably came in today because the paper goes out."

"He was looking for something and tore his office apart. What's so significant about the fifteenth?"

Remington raised an eyebrow. "He's never told you?"

"No."

He went to the grill and flipped the burgers. "I'm not sure if I should be the one to tell you."

She took a few steps toward Remington. "Please. I'm worried about him."

Becca came into the kitchen. "How are those burgers coming?"

Remington glanced at her. "You can get the plates ready."

Becca prepared the plates with buns, lettuce, tomato, pickles, and onions, then Remington put the patties on them. He added fries, then waited until Becca left.

He was caught up on the orders, and he moved away from the grill. "However he treated you this morning. I hope you can forgive him."

"Of course. Like I said, I'm just worried."

Remington took a breath. "Today is his birthday."

Sydney had asked Gage a time or two when his birthday was, but he always brushed her off without telling her. She shook her head. "Why would that put him in such a foul mood?"

He motioned toward the rear door. "Come out back with me."

She followed him outside. "Now I'm really confused."

Remington took a moment before going on. "Gage had a twin brother."

"What? What happened to him?"

"He died when they were seven. He drowned in the Southfork."

Sydney put a hand to her mouth. "Oh, my God."

"It's kind of a touchy subject with the family. And we never talk about Seth around Gage."

"So his birthday…?"

"Reminds him of his brother. We never celebrate it."

"He's never celebrated his birthday?"

"Not since he was seven."

Sydney sat on an overturned milk crate. "So, where did he go today?"

"He probably went home, packed up a backpack, and took off down the creek."

"For how long?"

"Overnight. But you probably shouldn't expect him in the office tomorrow. He usually brings a bottle of bourbon with him."

Sydney thought back over the last few years. Gage rarely missed work. But now that she thought about it, he always missed a day or two in the spring. She just never thought about it being the same days every year.

She looked up at Remington. "There's nothing I can do?"

Remington shook his head. "I'd just steer clear. Give him some space. He'll be back to himself by Monday."

"What do your parents think about the no birthday thing?"

"They respect his wishes. For the first few years they tried to talk him into celebrating. But after a while, they let it go. We all commemorate Seth in our own way."

She was still trying to process the information., "Was Gage there when it happened?"

Remington nodded. "Yeah. I think that's why it made such an impact on him. I think he somehow feels responsible. But he was seven. What could he have done?"

"Who else was there?"

"Corbyn. He was only thirteen, but he pulled Seth out of the water and tried to resuscitate him, while Gage ran to the road for help."

"Oh, my gosh. It just gets worse and worse."

"Yeah. Corbyn has his own guilt to deal with. But it wasn't his fault, either. Seth slipped and fell in. Corbyn went in after him, but by the time he got to him, it was too late."

Sydney put her hands over her face. "I can't even imagine going through that."

Remington nodded. "Gage puts it out of his mind the rest of the year. But on this day…you don't want to be around him."

"Dale and I got the paper out, and I'll take care of things at the office until he comes back. At least the weekend is coming up."

"Good. Like I said, don't let anything he might have said to you this morning make you change your mind about him. He's been pretty happy these last couple of weeks. He really cares for you, Sydney."

"I know he does. And I care for him. We'll be fine."

"Good. I'm glad he finally came to his senses. I know you've been interested for a while."

She smiled. "Apparently it was obvious to everyone but him."

"Better late than never, I guess."

She stood. "When I see him again, should I tell him I know? I'm not sure I want to pretend I don't."

"Go ahead. He won't be mad at you. He'll be mad at me for telling you. But I can handle it."

"Okay. Thank you for telling me. The family secret is safe with me."

"I wouldn't have told you if I thought it wouldn't be."