Broken Wings (5 page)

“One of my many, many flaws,” she asserted with a sarcastic smile.

“Fine,” he said as he walked out the door. “Perhaps you should start taking chances on people, Ms. Wells, instead of always taking chances on animals.”

“Duly noted. Thanks for coming, Mr. Phillips,” she stated, and then slammed the door behind him.

Pamela went back to the couch and plopped her aching body down on the soft fabric. Looking over at Louis in his cage, still munching away on his pecan, she wished at that moment that she could be like her squirrel. She wanted to be left alone, unperturbed by the world around her, and able to find pleasure in the taste of a simple nut.

Three days later Daniel returned. The back of his Jeep was crammed full with roofing materials and paint. Across the roll bars on top of the Jeep, he had secured his ladder. When he pulled up in front of the blue and white Acadian cottage, there was no one around. But before he had even turned the engine off, the pack of stray dogs that hung out on the front porch made for his car.

Daniel sat in his Jeep, not wanting to face the snarling teeth of Pamela’s overzealous four-legged burglar alarm. The pack ranged in size from a small chiweenie to the monster Catahoula mix named Quincy. A few minutes later, Pamela emerged from the house, gingerly carrying a towel in her hands. She stopped on the porch and caught sight of his Jeep.

“Guys, calm down,”
she called to the barking dogs.

Instantly, the pack backed away from Daniel’s Jeep and headed to the porch
.

“I’m glad to see that the posse is always on patrol,” Daniel said as he climbed out of the Jeep.

Pamela came down the steps to the gravel drive. “What are you doing here?”

Daniel waved to the back of his Jeep. “I told you I was going to fix up your house.”

Pamela walked up to the car. “And I told you I didn’t want your help.”

“Lucky for you I’m one of those men who doesn’t pay a whole lot of attention to what women tell me,” he smartly remarked as he went around to the back of his Jeep.

“So what? Are you are just going to ignore my wishes and fix up my house anyway?”

“Something like that, yeah.” He smiled at her as he pulled a roll of roofing felt out of the back of the car.

Carol came out on the front porch, carrying a cup of coffee in her hands. She waved at Daniel. “Couldn’t stay away, huh?”

“Nope,” he answered as he carried the roll of felt over to the side of the house.

“Carol!” Pamela cried out. “Tell this man to leave. I don’t want his charity.”

“Well, I do,” Carol admitted as she made her way to the edge of the porch. “Your house could use some work. It’s beginning to look like something one of those weird animal hoarders would live in.”

“Don’t consider it charity,” Daniel told Pamela as he walked to the Jeep. “Consider it a donation.”

“Yeah, Pamie,” Carol added from the porch. “Consider it a donation.”

“You two are impossible.” Pamela ran back up the porch steps still carrying the towel in her hands. “Fine, do what you like. I have babies to feed,” she grumbled over her shoulder, and stormed back into the house.

Carol raised her mug of coffee to Daniel. “I think you’re growing on her,” she said with a playful grin.

Daniel just shook his head and lifted a can of paint from the back of his Jeep.

Once back inside the house, Carol found Pamela sitting on the floor of her kitchen, holding a tiny baby gray squirrel in her lap. She watched, fascinated, as Pamela fed the animal formula drop by drop with a small syringe. It amazed her at times how much patience her friend always seemed to have with these animals. But when confronted by someone like Daniel Phillips, Pamela became like a snapping turtle, eager to bite off the man’s fingers with her powerful jaws.

“You could give the guy a break,” Carol proposed as she leaned against the entrance to the hallway.

“He’s a bartender from New Orleans who beats up his customers. Now why should I give him a break?”

“He also studied at Harvard.”

Pamela frowned. “How do you know that?”

“He told me.”

Pamela glanced up at Carol and then she snickered. “And you believed him?”

“Of course,” Carol shrugged as she took another sip from her coffee mug. “They’re not all out to get you, you know.”

Pamela turned her attention back to the baby squirrel in her hands. “What are you talking about?”

“Men. You think every one of them has some ulterior motive for talking to you or doing anything for you.”

“Men always have ulterior motives, Carol. That’s what makes them men.”

“The guy drove up here from the city, bought supplies to fix your house, and hasn’t so much as asked you for a cup of coffee, let alone a date. So what’s your problem with him?”

Pamela shook her head. “I have a hard enough time letting people I know into my life. How do you expect me to accept a stranger just like that?”

Carol lazily pushed her body away from the wall. “I’ve got to head over to my office and get some work done.” She placed her mug down on the old brown and white tiled counter in the kitchen. “Sometimes people come into your life for a reason, Pamie. Just like the animals. You always said every animal that you have rehabbed has changed you in some way. People can do the same thing, but you have to let them in first so you can find out how they will change you.” Carol walked over to the couch and picked up her five-gallon purse. “You once told me your biggest fear was being a burden to someone. And I have often wondered if that’s the reason you have fought so hard to be alone. But the one thing you’ve never stopped to consider is that you will never be a burden to anyone who loves you.”

Carol placed her purse over her shoulder and then walked to the front door. She opened the door and without looking back quietly exited the house.

Pamela felt her heart sink as she mulled over Carol’s words. Inside she wished it could be that easy for her; to just accept people into her life and not give a second thought as to the consequences. But like a prophet privileged to see the future, Pamela knew exactly how any relationship with the impossible Daniel Phillips would end. And the thought of giving in to those long dormant desires scared her more than a lifetime filled with frozen dinners for one.

*  *  *  *

After feeding all of the baby squirrels inside of her house, Pamela ventured out to the front porch to look for her uncannily quiet handyman. She found him on the side of her house, frozen atop his ladder and starring into the oak tree next to her bedroom window.

She came up alongside of his ladder and gazed up at him. “Is something wrong?” she asked.

He did not move, but appeared to talk very slowly out of the corner of his mouth. “There is a big ass owl up here staring at me like it’s going to rip my eyes out.”

Pamela laughed and started to climb up the ladder behind him. “Oh, I forgot to tell you about him. That’s Lester. He won’t hurt you.”

As Daniel looked down at her, Lester let out an ear-splitting screech.

“Oh, Lester, hush up,” Pamela scolded as she waved her hand at the large brown owl.

“Jesus!” Daniel grabbed for his chest. “That thing wants to kill me.”

Pamela came up right below him on the ladder. She reached out to the tree and began to stroke the owl’s wing. “He’s really a pussycat when you get to know him. He already ate this morning so I can guarantee he has no interest in you. That is unless you are carrying any chocolate on you.”

Daniel caught his breath. “Chocolate?”

“He loves chocolate. Only comes out of the tree for it. Otherwise he stays up there all day and all night.”

Daniel rubbed his hand across his sweaty forehead. “I’ve been sitting up here for thirty minutes afraid to move or make a sound in case that thing went after me.” He shook his head. “And then you come out here and tell me the damned owl only eats chocolate.” He stared down at Pamela. “What kind of place are you running here?”

“Oh, Lester eats ham and eggs, too. I only give him chocolate on special occasions,” she confided with a smug grin on her face.

Pamela started back down the ladder and Daniel quickly followed behind her. When they reached the ground, Pamela noticed the man’s dark blue T-shirt was soaked through. She did not think it was warm enough for him to be overheated.

“Are you all right?” she asked as she watched his eyes dart back and forth across the compound.

He wiped his hand across his sweaty brow. “I just don’t like being cornered like that.” He leaned over and grabbed his knees.

Pamela saw how his hands gripped on to the fabric of his jeans until his knuckles turned white.

She put her hand on his shoulder. “Let’s go sit down over by the porch,” she softly suggested.

Daniel stood up and took a few deep breaths.

To Pamela, the man appeared to be trying with all of his might to regain his composure. She noted his respirations and reached over to check his pulse.

“I’m fine,” he insisted, pulling his wrist away from her.

“You’re not fine.” Pamela put an arm about his waist. “Come on,” she urged as she ushered him to the front of the house.

Daniel let her guide him to the porch. She shooed the dogs gathered there away to make room for them to sit. Five dogs instantly scattered and ran to the back of the house. She eased Daniel down on to the step.

“I’m going inside to get you some water. Stay right here,” she ordered in a firm tone.

Daniel rubbed his face with his hands and nodded.

Pamela ran into the house and grabbed a glass from the kitchen cabinet and filled it with water from the tap. When she returned, she found Daniel standing by the porch railing. Studying him from the steps was Rodney the raccoon. She walked over to Daniel and handed him the water. His hands were shaking as he took the glass from her.

She nodded to the raccoon. “He came to check up on you.”

Daniel took a few deep gulps of the water and then motioned to the raccoon. “I thought he was debating on whether or not to attack me.”

Pamela noted the way Rodney stood on his hind haunches and sniffed at Daniel. “No, he’s concerned. He senses your distress. Animals can do that.” She turned back to him. “They know when someone needs help,” she added.

“Maybe it is because they’re wild animals. They’re just more in tune with nature, or whatever you rehabbers call it,” Daniel reasoned.

“Wild is only a term used to measure degrees of distance between us and them. We call something wild because we do not know it. But once you form a bond with a creature, and become part of its family, you discover it was never wild, simply afraid.” She watched his hands as they tightly gripped the glass. The beads of sweat were still forming above his upper lip and forehead, despite the cool spring morning. “Can I get you anything?” she asked, suddenly feeling helpless without her array of EMT equipment to aid her.

Daniel shook his head and tried to wave off her concern. “I’ll be all right. You got anything stronger than water in your house?” He then took another long sip from the glass.

“I’ve got one bottle of vodka and half a bottle of cognac.”

Daniel raised one eyebrow at her.

Pamela just shrugged. “I like to take a sip of cognac when I can’t sleep. It helps to calm me.”

“I suspect it’s a good pain reliever too,” he stated, handing the empty glass to her. “I saw you grabbing your arm the other day. Carol told me about your lupus.”

Pamela sighed as she took the glass from him. “Carol has a big mouth.”

He leveled his dark eyes on her. “And she cares for you a great deal. She even threatened me with torture if I ever hurt you.”

That made Pamela laugh.

Daniel watched the pale woman’s face fill with color. She had a light harmonious laugh that reminded him of wind chimes stirring in a gentle breeze.

“That’s something you need to do more often,” Daniel said, smiling into her face.

“What?”

“Laugh. You look good when you laugh. And your eyes are not all cold and distant, like they usually are.”

Her smile fell away. “My eyes are not cold and distant.”

Daniel tilted his head slightly to the side and frowned. “They are when they look at me.”

Pamela gazed down at the porch deck beneath her feet. She knew she had been staring at the man as if he were some plague-carrying vagrant. But that was the way she always looked at people. It was her safety mechanism, in a way. And even though keeping everyone at a distance had guaranteed she would live a lonely life, at least it was a life she knew she could live with.

She rubbed her tennis shoe against a crack in the wood on the porch deck. “Yeah, well, you’re a thug, remember?”

Daniel leaned to the side and playfully nudged her shoulder. “Still think I’m a thug?” he asked with a grin.

Pamela turned and examined his face for a moment. He was a handsome man, she decided, and wondered why she had never thought of him as attractive before. His looks were more suited for a man of adventure rather than a model or actor. He appeared to be someone who should be flying planes or, at least, jumping out of them. His eyes were the only part of his features that she found unsettling. The darkness of them seemed to hint at some hidden pain behind his welcoming smile. Like he had been to hell, and the visions he had seen there were still burning through his soul. She found it odd
how you can look into a person’s face a thousand times, and then suddenly, one day, you glance over and feel as though you are seeing them for the very first time.