Daniel's Gift (6 page)

"I don't think it's fair that he lives like that, and my mom has to work all the time. She never has any money for anything. She said she didn't know if I could play baseball this year. Registration is ninety bucks."

Danny slouched down in his seat, resting his knees against the back of the seat in front of him. His feet swung restlessly as he kicked them against the bench. "I gotta play baseball," he said, turning to Chris. "I'll die if I can't play baseball."

"She'll change her mind," Chris said. "Moms always change their minds."

"Not if she's mad about this." And his mom would be mad. Every time he asked about Luke, she changed the subject. Even knowing that it bothered her to talk about Luke hadn't stopped Danny from asking. He had to know about his father. He just had to. He couldn't think about anything else.

Now that he had seen Luke, Danny knew that he would go back. Next time, he wouldn't leave until he had talked to his father.

The bus glided to a stop. "Finally," Danny said as Chris scrambled to his feet.

"You boys be careful now," the driver said. "It's hard to see out there."

Danny and Chris looked at each other as the bus pulled away. They were about a half mile from their houses, and they still had to cross Highway 1. It wasn't that far in the daytime, but right now it looked like a million miles away.

"Man, this was a really stupid idea," Chris said. "I am never listening to you again."

"I didn't know it was going to be foggy."

They walked for about five minutes, then Chris tugged on Danny's arm. "I see the sign for Ida's Ice Cream."

Danny nodded with relief. "Good."

"Let's cut across here," Chris suggested.

Danny took a step, then tripped on his shoelace. Chris kept going as Danny knelt down to tie his shoe. He had barely straightened when a sudden rush of headlights blinded him. He tried to run, but the car caught the edge of his body. He felt himself being lifted in the air. He heard someone scream, but he didn't know if it was him or Chris. Then there was nothing but blackness.

* * *

"Hell of a night, isn't it?" Police Officer Alan Brady looked at his partner, Sue Spencer, as they walked out of the Golden Moon Chinese Restaurant on Highway 1.

Sue shivered and zipped up her coat. "No kidding. Maybe the weather will keep the kids off the beach."

"Maybe," Alan said as they walked across the parking lot to their patrol car. They had just taken a late dinner break and had another three hours to go before they were off duty. Hopefully, it would be a peaceful night.

The coast was quieter at this time of the year, not as many beachgoers as in the summer, but the restaurants and bars along the highway produced their share of troublemakers, especially on Friday nights.

Alan liked his beat. Half Moon Bay and the neighboring coastal towns were small and cozy. He had spent ten years in L.A. and had burned out on gangs and drive-by shootings. At least here there was a semblance of normalcy.

"You and Jenny have plans for the weekend?" Sue asked.

Alan adjusted his cap, "She wants to spend time with Danny, so probably not."

"Does the kid like you any better?"

"No. In fact, lately all he talks about is finding his real father."

Sue gave him a curious look. "Where is his real father?"

"I don't know. Jenny said the guy took off when she told him she was pregnant. He didn't want to be a father. I'm the one who's around now, the one who wants to spend time with Danny. You'd think the kid would appreciate that."

"He'll come around."

Alan paused by the car. "Jenny and I aren't doing that great. I don't know what the hell she's thinking anymore. We've been seeing each other for six months. That's a long time at my age. I'd like to move things along, maybe get married. I'm turning forty next year; it's time to be settling down."

Sue smiled. "Have you told Jenny how you feel?"

Alan shook his head. He had a difficult time talking about personal things. "Ifs hard with Danny around," he complained. "The other night I got so mad at the kid I told him that like it or not, I wasn't leaving, and if he had a problem to get over it."

"What did he do?"

"He went to his room and refused to eat dinner. Jenny spent the rest of the night worrying about him. She blamed me, of course. Said I was too harsh. That I acted more like a cop than a friend. Maybe I do. But Danny needs rules in his life. He's spoiled. Sometimes I could wring his neck."

Sue put a gentle hand on his shoulder as his tirade came to an end. "It's okay, Alan. You're entitled to feel frustrated. Dating a woman with a child is not easy."

"Tell me about it." He rolled his neck to one side, then the other, trying to ease the tension that stiffened his body.

"Kids can drive you crazy," Sue said. "I should know. My two are a handful. Luckily, I've got Jim at home, who's solid as a rock and patient as a saint. But kids know you love them. They just like to test you. Give Danny a chance. Show him you care. He'll realize you're one of the good guys."

"That's the problem, I've always been a good guy. I know how to get respect from people, even kids. I just don't know how the hell to get them to like me."

"Just be your natural sweet self."

"Yeah, right," Alan growled. He opened his door and slid into the driver's seat while Sue got in on the other side. He had barely started the car when the call came in -- an accident on Tully Road just off the main highway.

"That's down the road from Ida's Ice Cream," Sue commented. "I hope it's not a child."

Alan pulled the car out of the parking lot and sped down the highway. It was incredibly difficult to see. He could only imagine what they would find when they got there.

The paramedics beat them to the scene, and another patrol car pulled up alongside them. As soon as Alan opened his door, he heard crying, wild shrieking, like that of an animal in pain.

Alan hoped it was an animal and not a human being. Instinctively he knew it wasn't. He and Sue walked through the small group of people huddled on the road, while the other officers set up a roadblock to protect whoever was lying in the middle of the street.

When Alan got to the front of the huddle, he stopped dead in his tracks. Nothing prepared him for the sight before him.

"Oh my God," he muttered.

Sue caught up to him, pushing past his shoulder so she could see. She cried out, a mother's cry, a friend's cry, an anguished cry.

* * *

Jenny's tension increased as she drove slowly through the fog. Twelve years of living on the coast had made the route as familiar to her as the back of her hand. She knew the landmarks, the incline of the road, the smell of the sea.

Tonight everything seemed different. In the past five minutes, her heart had begun to race without reason, her pulse going ninety miles an hour.

She knew every fear was greater because Danny wasn't with her. That's why her imagination was running wild. She had to think positively. Danny was probably sitting at home, eating ice cream out of the carton for dinner.

A few more minutes, and she would be with him. The nightmare would be over. A gleam of light cut short her thought. She was getting closer to the highway, where there were streetlights and businesses rather than the rural Christmas tree farms and pumpkin patches that dotted Highway 92.

Jenny came upon the accident before she saw it. She slammed on her brakes and narrowly avoided hitting the car in front of her. As she peered through her windshield, she saw the flashing lights of a police car and the rescue squad. They had completely blocked off the road. In front of her were five cars waiting to get by.

Jenny shifted into park. It took her fifteen seconds of debate before she jumped out of the car and ran down the road. She heard someone call after her, but she didn't stop. She was pulled forward, relentlessly, by something stronger than herself.

Someone caught her by the waist as she joined the throng of people standing in a circle. A body had been placed on a stretcher. The paramedics were loading the person into the ambulance. A flash of blond hair took her breath away.

A fear that was so great, so powerful, so debilitating hit her all at once. The figure on the stretcher was so slight, so pale, so fragile.

A wild cry broke from her heart. "Danny. Danny!" she screamed. "Oh God, no."

Chapter Five

Someone was talking to her. Someone was holding her back. She had to get to her baby.

Jenny struggled against the arms that bound her. She turned in fury, attacking her captor as if he were an assailant. She pummeled her fists against his chest until her hand caught the edge of a slash of silver. A badge. A cop. Alan.

She looked into his face and saw pain and fear. "Danny?"

"He's hurt bad, Jenny. They have to get him to the hospital."

"I'm going with him," she insisted, but even as she spoke the ambulance roared into the night.

"No, no. Stop!" she screamed. "I have to go with him. He's my baby. He needs me."

"He's unconscious."

"Why did you stop me? Why did you hold me back? Damn you. I should be there with him."

"I'll take you to the hospital in the patrol car. We'll be right behind them."

Jenny stared at the spot on the ground where Danny had been lying. She saw a pool of blood that must have come from some part of his body. It looked so dark. There was so much of it. She felt faint, horror-stricken.

She looked away from the highway and saw a slight figure wrapped in a blanket, crying inconsolably as he sat on the side of the road.

A woman was talking to him, but the child wasn't listening. He rocked back and forth, his arms wrapped around his body, his eyes wide and shocked.

Jenny ran across the road to Christopher. Without a word, she gathered him in her arms and held him tight.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry," he cried. "It's my fault. It's all my fault."

"Sh-sh," she whispered against his hair, feeling the tears streaming down her face onto the top of his head. "It will be okay. It has to be okay."

"Jenny," Alan interrupted. "Are you ready? Christopher's mom is on her way over."

"I want to go home," Christopher said, rubbing his eyes. "I want to go home."

"Your mom will be here soon."

"Danny's hurt bad," Christopher whispered.

She stared into his face and couldn't say a word. Alan pulled her away and put her in the car before she realized that her legs had moved.

They sped down the highway as fast as visibility would allow. Jenny didn't know how far they went or how long it took. She didn't know if Alan spoke to her or if she answered. She was numb, in shock. Her system shut down. The only thing that ran through her mind was that her son was hurt. He was in pain. He was probably terrified.

Not being with him hurt more than anything else in the world. Her heart felt like it was ripped in two. The pain was worse than anything she had ever experienced.

Her child. Danny, with the smile that brought her joy, with the arms that brought her warmth, with the innocence that made her believe in everything impossible. He was her life. If anything happened to him, she would die.

Alan pulled up to the emergency entrance, and Jenny jumped out of the car before he had put it in park. She was at the front window, demanding to know where her child was, when Alan came through the door.

The nurse didn't seem to understand what Jenny was saying. She was asking for insurance. She was pushing papers at her, and a pen. A goddamn pen.

Jenny picked it up and threw it back at the nurse. "Danny. Where is Danny St. Claire?" she yelled.

"Easy, honey." Alan stepped up behind her.

The badge obviously brought respect, because the nurse stopped looking at her as if she were a lunatic and straightened up.

"Daniel St. Claire," Alan said briskly. "Where is he?"

"He's in the examining room. We don't have any information yet," the nurse replied. "I do have to ask you to fill out these forms. I'm sorry," she added belatedly.

Jenny turned to Alan. "I can't."

Alan took the forms as the nurse shut the window between the waiting room and reception desk. "I'll help you. Try not to worry."

"Try not to worry? Are you crazy?" Jenny shook her head in amazement. "I'm going in there. I'm going to find Danny. She can't stop me. I'll look in every room until I find him."

Alan put his hands on her shoulders and gave her a little shake. "Stop it, Jenny. They're doing all they can. This is a good hospital. They have excellent doctors."

"He's my son. My son," she wailed. "He needs me."

"He needs medical attention more."

"I'm his mother. His mother." Her voice broke on the word. And what a horrible mother she was, letting her child get hurt. She wrapped her arms around her waist, feeling so cold she didn't think she would ever feel warm again.

Alan tried to pull her into his arms, but she resisted. She didn't want his comfort. She didn't want his arms around her. She wanted Danny's arms, only Danny's.