“Okay, Talon, so we have one who has a phoenix on his left forearm, and the other has a birthmark on his arm that looks kind of like the state of Texas.”

“Yeah.”

“And you’re still determined to find them.”

“I will find them, Doc. I swear.”

I had talked to Talon before about not mistaking vengeance for healing, that he needed to heal whether he found the others or not. I thought he understood, but it wouldn’t do any harm to say it again. “You need to continue your healing, whether the others are caught or not.”

“Yeah, I know that. You’ve told me.”

“I don’t mean to repeat myself, but sometimes I think you get so caught up in finding the others that you put that goal over your own healing. You’ve come so far already, and I’d hate to see you slide backward. Revenge is not healing.”

Talon leaned forward. “I do hear what you’re saying. I really do. I know you think I’m looking for a needle in a haystack. And maybe I am. I promise, I am healing. I’m sleeping in the same bed with Jade every night now, and I don’t fear I’m going to hurt her. I know I would never hurt her. And my dreams, well, they haven’t disappeared altogether, but they are lessening.”

I nodded. It had been a while since Talon had told me about a dream. “When was the last time you had a dream?”

He shook his head. “Wow, I think it’s been about a week at least.”

“That’s good. Do you remember what you dreamed about?”

“No. I normally don’t. Unless I wake up right in the middle of it. Usually what happens is I wake up agitated and know I had one, but I don’t remember the content. Then I look next to me, and I see Jade sleeping peacefully. I caress her soft shoulder, maybe give her a kiss on the cheek. And I go back to sleep.”

“That’s great. Really.”

“Thanks.”

“So how are things going at home? I mean with Jade’s mom being there.”

He rolled his eyes. “I don’t like to say this, but she’s kind of a diva. She keeps Felicia running. And Jade, when she’s there. She doesn’t ask me for much of anything. I gave Felicia a significant raise for dealing with her.”

I smiled. “That’s generous of you.”

“No, not generous. Believe me, Felicia earns it.”

“I don’t doubt it. What do you think of Jade’s mother? Other than that she’s a diva.”

“I only really know what Jade and her father have said. She does seem to want to make amends with Jade, and I appreciate that. I don’t want Jade to have any bad feelings in her life.”

“And Jade? How is she doing?”

“There are days when she wants to strangle her mother. I try to talk her down from it, and I’m usually successful. But it’s important to her that Brooke be there and that we help her. A nurse comes in once a day for a few hours to check on her, do some PT, give her meds, and the nurse also takes her into the city overnight for more therapy once a week. It’s great for Jade to get that time off from Brooke.”

“And what will happen when Brooke is ready to live on her own?”

Talon sighed. “Jade and I haven’t had that talk yet, so I don’t know. I can set her up somewhere on the ranch, but I really don’t want to.”

“I understand. You can figure that out later.”

“Yeah. She’s getting better. Although I wouldn’t put it past her to hold on to being taken care of for as long as she can.”

I smiled. “Some people are like that.”

“I’ll tell you, Doc. Jade and her mom both have those gorgeous steely blue eyes, but other than that, I can’t imagine how this woman gave birth to Jade. They’re nothing alike. Not just in looks but in personality and demeanor. So completely different.”

“From what you told me, Jade is more like her father.”

He nodded. “Yeah, he’s a great guy. She looks more like him too.”

I glanced at the clock on the table. My time with Talon was nearly up. I appreciated his need to talk about Jade’s mom staying at the house, but that wasn’t really what we were here for. So I got ready to change the subject.

I was startled by a knock on the door. Randi knew better than to interrupt me when I was in session.

“I’m very sorry, Talon. Would you excuse me for a moment?” I went to the door. Instead of letting Randi in, I walked out into the reception area. A man I didn’t recognize sat on a chair, leafing through a magazine.

“What’s going on?” I asked Randi.

“I’m so sorry, Dr. Carmichael,” Randi said, “but he insists upon seeing you right now. I tried to explain that I couldn’t interrupt a session, but he threatened to make a scene.”

I looked over to the man. “Sir, I have no idea who you are, but this is entirely inappropriate.”

He stood, staring at me with intense blue eyes. He didn’t look happy. “I don’t rightly care about the rules, Dr. Carmichael. I came to talk to you, and I aim to do so.”

“Who are you?”

“I’m Rodney Cates, Gina’s father.”

 

Talon had been very gracious when I cut his session short. Now I sat in my office across from Gina Cates’s father. He was a tall, muscular man, average-looking, with sandy-brown hair and blue eyes. He wore a tweed jacket and jeans. He was a professor at the University of Colorado. Gina had told me all about him. I probably knew more about him than he would be comfortable with.

“Dr. Cates, I would be happy to talk to you anytime. You know that. But it’s not appropriate for you to come storming into my office and interrupt a session with one of my patients.”

“As I see it, the patient who left here is still very much alive. So I think I take precedence.”

Clearly there was going to be no reasoning with him. I mentally berated myself. He was no doubt here because of the stupid phone call I’d made the other night.

“I am so very sorry for your loss, and I am happy to discuss anything you would like to discuss. You’ll have to make an appointment. I have another patient coming in fifteen minutes.”

“Cancel.”

“Why would I do that?”

“Because again, that patient happens to be alive. He or she can reschedule.”