Madi hadn’t wanted to eat, she hadn’t wanted to live, she hadn’t wanted to do anything…except die, herself. How could she possibly express that to anyone? It was embarrassing. It made her feel insane. And yet it made every bit of sense. She imagined how her mother would feel if the same thing were to happen to her father; no, Amelia Taylor would continue to be stoic, unshakeable, oblivious to anything that rattled her tough outer exterior. And Madi felt shame, on top of all the other emotions that her soul had been consumed with since Brett told her of Hunter’s demise almost three weeks ago. Had it really been three weeks already?
Amelia drew her in for a hug, tight and emotional. She pulled back and her hard, green eyes pierced Madi’s soul as her mother whispered softly but intensely, “You’ve got to snap out of this, you hear me? It was a horrible accident. I’m sorry it happened, but life must go on now. Alright?”
Madi swallowed and nodded. Her mother had always given her girls tough love and death was no exception. She’d always wanted them to be strong, self-sufficient, not needing any man to “save” them. There’s no such thing as a knight on a white horse. You want a hero, become your own. Her mother’s principles stemmed from a mother who’d had husband after husband—yes, Madi’s grandmother had had six—and seeing the damage of heartbreak tear Grandma Kate in two.
Madi’s mother had always been a woman of doing, her accomplishments exceeding beyond what her husband had made possible for her. She was a woman of class, a woman of God, a woman of great undertakings. Amelia took on the world with speeches, books, and inspired others across the globe. It was her thing.
Madi knew this and tried not to let her mother’s words hurt her.
“Brett, a word,” her mother stated as she took Brett’s hand and led him into the kitchen and out of earshot.
Madi’s father smiled at her sudden unease and pulled her back to him, kissing her forehead. “She’s just worried about you. You know your mother; the show must go on. I swear she should’ve been a drill-sergeant. She’d have made a hell of a fine one.”
Madi and Brooke laughed at him as he moved them into the den for some cocktails. Madi nodded when Brooke asked if she wanted a cosmo.
“How are you holding up, Sunshine?” her dad asked as he took her hand and sat her down in the arm chair next to his.
“I’m doing better than I was.” She wouldn’t mention that she hadn’t bathed until just this morning when Brett had literally dragged her ass from the bed and into the shower, screaming in protest.
“It’s gonna take time, don’t listen to your mother. She’s like a damn fortress, nothing shakes her. But this is all normal stuff, ok? You’ll get through this.” His soothing voice reassured her, and Madi wondered how on earth the two of them—her mother and father—had ever fallen in love. Her dad was the most easy-going person on the planet, and her mom was ruthless, even though she did have a generous heart hidden in that “fortress” her dad mentioned.
“We gotta go get mani/pedis soon; your nails look awful,” Brooke scolded and looked to the fingernails Madi had bit into the quick. Brett had already hounded her about stopping the chewing, threatening to tie her hands behind her back. They were red but not infected, thanks to Brett. God, he’d really been an angel. What had she ever done to deserve him?
Madi frowned back at her sister, who simply replied with, “Whenever you’re ready of course.”
The thoughts of being surrounded by people, aside from her family, gave her nausea. She didn’t wanna be hounded, harassed, or have any reason to talk about how she felt to anyone. She didn’t wanna have to answer untruthfully when people asked how she was doing, said they were sorry, or spoke of Hunter’s life. She wasn’t ready for all that.
Brooke quickly shelved it and moved to her side, telling her the latest on the gossip train. A friend of hers was having an affair, the other was being cheated on, and another was pregnant.
That news hit her harder than anything else, and Madi prayed that the last time she and Hunter had made love that it had taken. They’d been trying to get pregnant for so long and to have one last sliver of him left in her life filled her with hope. She begged God to give her one final piece of him since he’d been taken so fast and so violently from her.
Amelia and Brett returned to the den, and it was as if nothing had ever transpired; they were both smiling. Madi’s mother came over and took her hand, squeezing it gently. Relief flooded through Madi; her mother wasn’t mad at her.
“Ready to eat, baby? I made your favorite.”
Madi nodded and she and her mother moved into the dining room, arm in arm.
Brett sat down next to Madi and Brooke across from her, while her parents took either end of the table. Grace was said and Madi smiled as her mother passed around a heaping plate of beef tips. Her mom always made the best, slow simmered all day in homemade beef stock, shallots, thyme, and some other herb she’d never shared with them. Madi topped her rice with a decent scoop and added some roasted vegetables to her plate. As she dug in, her taste buds hummed for the second time that day; suddenly, she was a young girl again, back home without a care in the world. She smiled over at her mother and thanked her. It truly touched her that her mom
