Nantucket (22 page)

A
s soon as Liam pulled into the elementary-school parking lot, he saw Carlton Knox standing in front of the building with a police officer while a woman they didn't recognize held Aidan's hand.

“Holy shit,” Levi growled in disbelief.

Liam parked the car and they made their way through the crowd of parents picking up their children. “Excuse me, Officer,” Liam said as they approached. “What's going on? You can't just come to school and take my child without notifying me.”

The officer immediately stood straighter, as if he'd been warned about a possible confrontation. “Sir, please step over here,” he said.

Liam's heart pounded as he stared at Carlton. “
I'm
Aidan's guardian,” he said, trying to control his anger. “You have no right to take him.”

“
I'm
his grandfather,” Carlton snarled, “and I have
every
right. I have a court order that says I've been granted custody until the court's confirmation.”

“I don't care what you have,” Liam said, his voice rising. “His mother's dying wish was for me to be his guardian—it says so in her will.”

“Do you have the will?” the policeman interrupted.

“I don't have it on me. My attorney has it.”

The woman shook her head and, without an ounce of sympathy, stated, “I'm afraid Aidan will be staying with his grandparents until further notice.”

Liam eyed her. “I'm sorry . . . I didn't catch your name.”

“Michelle Logan with DCF,” she said, extending her hand.

Liam ignored her outstretched hand and looked back at Carlton. “Cadie doesn't want you raising Aidan.”

“Ms. Logan,” Levi interrupted, trying to gain control over the unraveling situation. “Aidan is settled here—he's started school; he loves his teacher; and he's happy. It's wrong to take away him from his home right after he lost his mother.”

“I'm sorry, but we have the court order right here,” she said, holding up an official-looking document.

Liam looked down at Aidan and saw tears in his eyes. “How can you take him?” he asked angrily. “He obviously doesn't want to go.”

The DCF agent looked down at Aidan. “It's okay, hon,” she soothed, squeezing his hand, but Aidan pulled free.

“I won't go,” he cried. “I want to stay with Cap.”

A crowd began to gather around them curiously, but the policeman motioned for them to move along. Then he turned back to Liam. “Sir, please come with me,” he said, trying to motion to Michelle Logan to take Aidan to her car, but when she picked him up, he started to howl.

Liam glared at Carlton. “You can't even grant your daughter her dying wish, you son of a bitch,” he seethed.

“Stay away from my grandson, you pathetic piece of shit,” Carlton growled.

Suddenly, all the years of pent-up anger were summoned to Liam's fist, and in the next moment, he lunged at Carlton, and although Levi made a valiant effort to step between them, he couldn't stop Liam's fist from connecting with Carlton's chin, knocking him to the ground.

“Arrest him,” Carlton demanded, rubbing his chin. And before Liam knew it, his throbbing fist was in a handcuff, and Levi was shouting, “Dad, give me your keys and don't resist!”

With his free hand, Liam tossed his truck keys to Levi. “Call John Alden,” he shouted. “Tell him what happened.”

Carlton struggled to his feet and watched as Liam was led away. “Good luck getting him now,” he sneered.

Liam swore repeatedly as the officer ducked his head into the back of the cruiser. “I can't believe this is happening,” Liam growled. He looked out the window and watched as Aidan, still howling, reached out for Levi. “Oh, Cadie, I screwed up,” he whispered, feeling anguished tears streaming down his cheeks. He wiped them on his shoulders. “Your father's right—I'm never going to get custody
now
.”

 

Two hours later, a different police officer peered into Liam's cell. “Well, well, well, if it isn't Liam Tate. What the hell'd you do, Li?”

Liam looked up. “Hey, Frank,” he said, “something stupid, obviously.”

“I've never known you to do
anything
stupid,” his old classmate said, reaching for his keys.

“I did this time,” Liam said, shaking his head.

Frank unlocked the door. “Not to worry. Sally bailed you out—you're free to go.”

Liam walked to the main desk, collected his wallet and watch, and gave Sally a long hug. “I really messed things up, Sal.”

“So I heard.”

“I think I've lost him.”

“You never know,” she murmured.

“How come
you
bailed me out? Where's Levi?”

“He and Emma are on their way to Boston to pick up the will. Your attorney said he'd send it overnight, but Levi said he didn't want to take any chances.”

Liam sank heavily into the passenger's seat of Sally's wagon and shook his head. “I can't believe this is happening.”

“It'll work out, Li. Once you have the will—which appoints you as guardian—her father won't have a leg to stand on.”

“Even after I assaulted him in front of DCF and a police officer?!”

Sally looked out the window and didn't say anything, and Liam glanced over. “Your silence speaks volumes.”

“I'm sorry,” she said. “I'm trying to think of a way to justify that.”

“There isn't a way.”

“Have you eaten?” she asked, changing the subject.

“I'm not hungry. If you could just drop me off, I'll just wallow in my misery.”

“Suit yourself,” Sally said with a sigh.

“It's
shoot
yourself,” Liam corrected.

“I won't be able to leave you alone if you talk like that,” she said, pulling into his driveway.

“You know I'm only kidding, Sal.”

“I know,” she said, giving him another long hug, “but try not to worry too much—you and Aidan are meant to be together.”

“We'll see,” he said skeptically as he got out of the car. “Thanks for bailing me out,” he added.

“Anytime,” she said with a half smile.

“Hopefully not
anytime
soon,” he said, closing the door and tapping the roof of her car. He watched her pull away, waved, and then walked toward the house.

As soon as he opened the back door, Tuck landed his big paws on his shoulders and slobbered him with wet kisses. “Hey, pal,” Liam said, holding him up. “I know, I know—I just got out of your favorite car. Unfortunately, Sally's already on her way home.” He held the door open so Tuck could go out. “Need to get busy?”

Tuck trotted down the stairs and looked up the driveway to make sure Sally was really gone; then he headed across the yard. Liam turned on the outside light, scratched Moby behind his ears, and read the note Levi had left. Then he opened the fridge, grabbed a beer, opened it, took a sip, and realized Emma had left a plate with a note taped to it instructing him to
Just Nuke!
He shook his head, feeling lucky to have them both in his life. He heard Tuck lumbering up the porch steps and went over to push open the door. The big golden trotted in, wagging his tail expectantly, and Liam chuckled. “And I
know
you've already eaten,” he said. “Levi left a note, so you can't fool me.” Tuck gazed at him innocently as if he didn't remember eating and Liam shook his head. “Nice try, though.”

He stood in the middle of the quiet kitchen and looked around at the spotless counters. He'd always thought he'd kept things pretty shipshape—for a bachelor—but Emma went beyond tidy—when it came to a neat house, she was what Coop would call “OCD.”

As Liam pulled off his shirt and turned on the bedroom light, he noticed the hospital bed was gone, and his bed, which Emma had made up with fresh sheets, was back in its original spot with Teddy propped up on the pillow.
Everything's back to normal,
he thought,
whatever that means
. He pulled the soft flannel shirt Cadie had liked to wear on over his T-shirt and realized Levi had hung the painting too. Emma was right—over his bed was the perfect spot—the painting's earthy colors went well with the color of the walls.

Liam reached for his beer, and with Tuck moseying beside him, went outside. As soon as he'd settled into a chair, Tuck rested his chin on his lap and Liam stroked his noble head and looked into his solemn eyes. “It's just you and me again, pal—like old times.” Adjusting to a house full of people had been a challenge at times, and it had made him realize how set in his ways he'd become, but now that everyone was gone, it was even harder. He looked up at the dusky sky, sparkling with diamonds, and listened to the waves tumbling to shore, and then over the sound of the ocean, he heard a faint chirp. He looked around and, in the waning light, saw a female cardinal flutter to the stone wall. She cocked her head from side to side, studying him and chirping. Moments later, she flew away.

As quickly as she'd come, she was gone, and Liam whispered, “Was that you, Cade?”

O
n Thursday morning, Levi and Emma returned to Nantucket, bringing Cadie's will with them. They were only able to spend the night, though, and after breakfast, they headed back to Boston.

As soon as they'd gone, Liam called John Alden but only got his voice mail, and when John finally called back later that day, he told Liam he'd submitted a copy of Cadie's will to the court and requested an expedited decision. Then he asked Liam about the encounter he'd had with Carlton Knox. “Don't worry,” he assured him. “It sounds like he was trying to provoke you, and although that's no excuse for hitting him, what's done is done.” His words weren't much solace, though, and after Liam hung up, he paced the floor, reliving the whole episode.

The next day, John called back and reported that—in light of Cadie's will—Aidan was going to be moved to foster care.

“Aidan's going to be so confused,” Liam lamented. “How can they keep moving him when he just lost his mom?”

“It definitely seems screwed up,” John consoled, “but I promise you, it's a positive sign. Another good thing is they accepted our request for an expedited court date. You need to be in Boston on Monday, October fifth, at nine a.m., clean-shaven and nicely dressed. And if you see Carlton Knox, stay away from him.”

“Got it,” Liam said, sounding a bit relieved.

After rattling around the house all day Saturday, Liam tightened the laces of his running shoes. Although there'd been a time when autumn on the island had broken his heart, he'd come to love the lonely desolation and silent beauty. As he ran, he lightly touched the gold band on his finger, and prayed, with all his heart, that Aidan would be allowed to come back and live with him.

The next two weeks dragged by as if they were pulling a tremendous, barnacle-covered anchor along the ocean floor. Liam couldn't believe how quiet the house was without the constant comings and goings of life . . . as they'd prepared for death.
It was ironic,
he thought,
that death could bring so much life to a house,
and so, to avoid the lonely silence, he began spending long hours at the boathouse.

The days were getting colder and he spent one entire afternoon, splitting firewood and stacking it in the woodshed behind the boathouse; then he carried several armloads inside. When the last log was stacked along the wall, he opened the creaky, iron door of the ancient Vermont Castings woodstove, crumpled up some newspaper, and started to throw it in, but he stopped when he noticed the date—Saturday, August 2—the day before Levi's opening. He smiled sadly, thinking of everything that had happened since then.
Who would've guessed life could change so much in six weeks' time?
He stuffed the newspaper in the stove, piled kindling and wood on top of it, struck a wooden match, and gently fanned the flame with the dustpan. When it started to catch, he added more wood, closed the door, turned the ceramic handle to open the damper, and listened to it crackle and hum. “Ah, Coop,” he murmured, recalling how much his uncle had loved a fire in the woodstove. “This one's for you,” he said, and Tuck moseyed over, licked his cheek, and curled up on a nearby rug.

“Now for the boat,” Liam said, turning to survey the pile of broken planks still stacked on the floor. He walked over to the sailboat and ran his hand lightly across the wooden deck. “Don't you worry,” he whispered softly, “there are some things I can't fix, but there are also some I can.”

He pulled out his measuring tape, measured some of the longer pieces, walked over to a pile of oak planking, neatly stacked in the back of the shop, pulled out a few lengths, laid them on the floor, measured again, and began the slow, meticulous process of using the broken planks to make new forms.

The hours drifted by and Liam became so caught up in measuring, cutting, steaming, and fitting wood, he didn't even notice it was getting dark . . . until there was a knock on the door, followed by a questioning voice. “Hello?” Tuck scrambled to his feet and hurried over to the door.

Liam looked up. “Hey, Sally,” he said, lifting off his safety glasses.

“Hi, you two,” Sally said as Tuck almost knocked her over. “I haven't seen you in a few days and I've been worried, so I stopped by the house with some supper, but it was dark.” She surveyed the wood scattered everywhere. “How
are
you doing?”

“We're doing,” Liam said with a sad smile. “Just trying to stay busy . . .”

She nodded. “You haven't been by for a cup of coffee . . . or any other form of sustenance all week, so I thought you might like some supper . . . lasagna, garlic bread, and salad.”

“Mmm . . . sounds good, Sal. To be honest, I haven't even thought about food.”

“Well, you need to think about it once in a while—especially after that little boy comes to live with you.”

“
If
he comes to live with me,” Liam corrected, taking the food from her. “Can you stay a minute?” he asked, pulling two chairs up to the stove.

“A minute . . .” she said, sitting down. “Have you had any news?”

“Just that he's in a foster home and our court date is October fifth.”

“Wow, that's soon!”

“Not soon enough,” Liam said, putting the food on the workbench.

“How come he's in foster care?”

“Because that's what the court decided after we presented the will. John says it's a good sign, but I'll only believe it when it happens.”

“Do you want me to go with you?”

“No . . . thanks, but I'm planning to stay over with Levi and Em, so I was wondering if you could look after Tuck and Moby again?”

“Of course,” Sally said, holding Tuck's head in her hands and looking into his soulful, brown eyes. “Do you want to come visit me again?” she asked, and Tuck wagged his tail as he happily licked her cheek.

“I also put you down as a reference, so if they call, try to say something nice.”

Sally smiled. “I will . . . even if it involves lying.” “Thanks,” Liam said with a smile. “They're coming to see the house Friday . . . and interview me.”

“Well, they'll be impressed, I'm sure.”

“I think they're visiting his teacher too.”

Sally nodded. “I'm sure Barb will only say nice things.”

“I hope so. It all seems pretty involved.”

“Well, you know what they say . . .
No good deed goes unpunished.
”

“That's for sure,” Liam said, shaking his head.

“Are you going to eat?”

He glanced at his watch. “I think I'll take it home.”

“Well, you might want to warm it up when you get there.”

“I will,” Liam promised.

She stood and pulled her jacket around her. “It's downright frigid out there . . . but it's nice and toasty in here. Coop taught you well.” She rested her hand on his cheek. “Good night, my dear. Keep me posted . . . and bring that little fellow over for a muffin or cinnamon bun when you get him back.”

“I will, Sal. Thanks.”

Sally turned to Tuck. “And I'll see
you
soon!”