Chapter 6

Wade lookedlike a kettle about to boil when he finally faced Jake. "This isn't one of your suspect interrogations, Jacob! She's your mother!"

"I know that."

"It sure as hell didn't seem that way."

Jake rubbed the tension from his jaw and took a breath trying to collect his thoughts, but really, what was there to say?

Wade paced the length of the kitchen looking as frustrated as Jake felt. "What the hell were you thinking, Jake?"

"I was thinking, she needs help! More help than either of us can give her."

"We do just fine here."

"Wade! She tried to slit her wrists! She needs professional help. I thought that's why you called me out here."

"I called you because you're the only one who can get her what she needs."

"And what's that?"

"Your father."

Jake pinched the bridge of his nose. "We talked about this."

"No, I talked about it. And every time I bring it up you shut me down."

"Because he's the last thing she needs!" Jake yelled, unable to leash his temper any longer.

Reaching out to his father was also the last thing he was willing to do. Not that it would even work. He had no idea where the low life was.

No one did.

Jake's father had a lifetime to seek him out, yet he never had. But selfish people were predictable that way. They only thought of themselves.

Jake's phone vibrated on the kitchen counter. Dana's name glowed on the screen again, distracting him. Jake felt Wade's gaze on him as he strode across the kitchen to silence the call.

"You can get that," Wade objected.

"Don't need to."

All at once the fight went out of Wade. His lanky limbs seemed to give out as he sank onto the spindly chair at the small kitchen table. The ancient wood groaned, sounding almost as weary as Wade looked. His uncle stared up at him. "Jake, you gotta stop pushing people away."

"I'm not." Not wanting to find his father wasn't the same thing as not inviting Dana into his family drama.

"Pulling away isn't any kinder than pushing her away."

"I'm trying to put out one fire at a time," Jake muttered, slipping the phone into his pocket.

"Yeah, well take it from me, some flames need to be fanned or they flicker out on their own."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means life only gives ya so many chances at happiness, kid. And even a blind man can see that woman makes you happy. Ignoring that is a mistake."

Jake reached up and pulled two glasses from the worn pine cabinets, pouring himself and his uncle each a generous amount of bourbon, neat, the way Wade had taught Jake to drink it.

Carrying the glasses over to the tiny table, Jake sat down, joining his uncle. "I'm not ignoring her, Wade. I know what's at stake when it comes to Dana."

Frankly, the way Jake felt about Dana scared the hell out of him, especially after spending the last few days with his mother.

Helen Shepard was a shattered woman, living proof of how foolish and destructive a misguided heart could be. But Jake was done letting fear keep him from living his life to the fullest. Dana was it for him. It was something he'd known for a long time, but he was just now willing to admit it.

That's why he'd come out here. If he wanted any chance at a future, he needed to start fixing his past. He wanted to set things right with Wade and his mother so he could go back to D.C., back to Dana, with no distractions. She deserved nothing less.

"I hope you do, Jake. If I've learned anything from your father's absence over the years, it's that sometimes leaving does more harm than good."

"Do you really believe that?"

Wade shrugged. "Don't get me wrong. I was never a fan of your father, or the way he treated your mother. Helen could've done better. But I could sing that song umpteen times and it ain't gonna make a difference. The heart is a stubborn muscle, and I just can't watch her slowly wither away pining for him anymore." Wade shook his head, running a hand through his thick salt and pepper hair. "I thought I could help her get past it." He took a slow sip of his bourbon. "I guess his hooks ran deeper than I knew."

"Then I don't get it," Jake argued. "Why do you want me to drag him back here?"

"Because if she's not over him after all this time, I don't think she'll ever be."

"So? He didn't deserve her then and he sure as hell doesn't now."

"You're right, but it's not about him. You'd be doing this for your mother. She wants closure, and she deserves it."

"Why now?" Jake asked.

Wade finished his drink and set it on the table with a heaviness Jake hadn't seen in his uncle before. "Because we're out of time, Jake. And I can't deny her dying wish."

"Wade—"

Jake's uncle cut him off. "No! She's my baby sister. I've known her for her entire life. In fact, I've sacrificed having much of a life of my own to be here and make sure she's cared for. So when I tell you it's time, you damn sure better take me at my word." Wade exhaled slowly, regaining his composure. "You know I'd do anything for your mother, but I know when she's given up. What she did to herself … it was no accident. She'll do it again."

"We can get her professional help."

Wade shook his head. "She's been through all that, Jake. The hospitals, the medications, they don't work for her. Being here in this house, with familiar surroundings, it's the only thing that calms her soul. I'm not gonna force her away from her sanctuary at the end. I've gotten her this far. I'll get her the rest of the way. But I can't do that and track down your father at the same time. That part's up to you."

Every ounce of hatred Jake held for his father flooded his veins. The man had abused him and his mother before abandoning them, giving Jake every right to despise him. But still, Wade's words hit their mark.

Jake had come home to help, and this might be the only way he could.

"Jake," Wade pleaded. "She doesn't have the means to find him herself. If it's what she wants, it's the least we can do."

Feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket signaling yet another unanswered voicemail, Jake stood from the table. "I've gotta get back to D.C."

"And your father?" Wade asked.

"I'll look into it, but I'm not making any promises."