And finally, the memory of John’s marriage proposal to Alice and the joy of hearing her say yes. At that moment, John’s entire life made sense. Knowing she would become his wife gave meaning to all his struggles.
The swirl of memories ended with the confrontation with Pearl and Frank at the island. Now Joe saw more than just a glimpse of what had happened. He felt as if he had lived the experience, with details to accompany the emotions. As John, he registered a pang of guilt; he should have taken Frank more seriously. He’d made the mistake of pegging Frank as a simple farm boy, hotheaded but unlikely to pull the trigger. He’d misjudged him, and Alice had paid the price when she stepped between them.
When John realized all was lost and that she was slipping away, he held her tightly and begged her not to go. He’d had only a few minutes to grieve her death before he realized the bullet that had killed Alice had pierced him as well.
Joe felt John’s anguish because it was his own. And then, a new memory, which felt like a dream within a dream. John’s own injury was not nearly as bad as Alice’s, but without medical attention, the blood loss was devastating. John felt himself get light-headed and weak. Pearl and Frank were useless, not knowing what to do. He didn’t fault them. It was too late to get help. It was dark, and they’d had no medical training. He remembered thinking he was dying, and he felt the sorrow of knowing he was leaving his mother behind.
And then, a sense of utter tranquility. John closed his eyes in the earthly world and opened them in a different, better world. There was pure white light and beautiful music, and best of all, Alice aglow, standing there to meet him, her hand extended.
Joe was jolted awake, confused to find himself in a hospital bed. The room smelled like disinfectant, and although his room was quiet, he heard beeping and talking and the rattle of carts in the hallway being pushed to their destinations. His chest was securely bandaged, and his left arm was in a cast. His head felt like it had been compressed by a trash compactor. He was fully conscious now but still foggy.
When he turned his head to one side, he spotted Kathleen, reading. He watched her for what seemed like a long time before she noticed he was awake. She closed the magazine. “Hey there, Joe. Ready to join the world?” She gave him a soft smile.
He blinked. “You’re still here.”
“Of course I’m still here. Where would I go?”
“I don’t know.” He looked around the room, letting it all come into focus. “You’re a good friend, Kathleen.”
“Well, I certainly hope I’m more than that,” she said, allowing herself a small grin.
Before he could address that statement, she went on to explain that the police officer wanted to question Joe, but based on Kathleen’s statement and Joe’s injuries, it seemed certain that Ricky’s death would be categorized as accidental self-defense, and no charges would be filed against her. “It was a good thing I filed a police report for abuse when we were married. At the time, it didn’t seem to do much, but having it on record established a pattern of violence that’s now in my favor. Not that any of this is in my favor,” she added ruefully.
“I’m sorry,” Joe said.
“Why are you sorry? You didn’t do anything wrong. If anything, I should be apologizing to you for what you’ve gone through. I look at you and want to cry.”
“That bad, huh?”
“Temporarily.”
A long pause. “What time is it? What day is it?”
“It’s about eight thirty on Sunday morning. The Barn Dance was last night.”
He let that one sink in. He’d been out a long time after the surgery. “Did anyone call my parents?”
“I called your grandmother, and she called your family. They’re on their way.”
“Did my dad actually talk to Pearl?”
She nodded. “That’s what she told me. She said it was like a miracle to hear his voice. They had a pretty good talk, according to your grandmother.”
Joe suddenly missed his family and wanted to see them. Best yet would be if he could see them all together—all the important people in his life in one place. Kathleen, his dad and mom, Linda, Pearl, and even Marcia and Howard, everybody in one room, and all of them getting along. He wanted Linda to see their grandmother’s house and the old family photos. He wanted to take the whole lot of them to the Pine Cone and say something to make Doris smile. The fact that his dad and Pearl had spoken to each other was a good sign, a start.