Danielle Steel - Rogue

It was easy to find Sam in the ER. He had a broken arm and leg, two broken ribs, and a concussion, and he looked as though he were in shock. He wasn't even crying. And Charles was wonderful with him. He went into the operating room with Sam when they set the leg and arm. They couldn't do anything about the ribs but wrap them, and the concussion was mild fortunately. Maxine was beside herself as she waited. And later that afternoon, they let her take him home. Charles was still with her, and Sam was holding both their hands. It tore at her heart to see the condition he was in, and they settled him in her bed. They had painkillers to give him, and he was very groggy. Jack and Daphne were beside themselves when they saw him. But he was all right, he was alive, and all the damage would repair. The mother who had been carpooling called and apologized profusely, they had never seen the car coming. The driver had been devastated too. But not as much as Maxine. She was grateful it wasn't worse.

Charles stayed and slept on the couch, and took turns watching Sam with her. They both canceled their patients for the next day, and Zelda kept running in to check on Sam too. Maxine went into the kitchen for a cup of tea at midnight. It was her shift with Sam, and she ran into Daphne, who glared at her.

“Why is he sleeping here?” she demanded, referring to Charles.

“Because he cares about us.” Maxine was tired, and in no mood for Daphne's comments. “He was great with Sam at the hospital. He was in the operating room with him.”

“Did you call Dad?” Daphne asked pointedly, and Maxine had had enough.

“Yes, I did actually. He's in goddamn Morocco, and no one can find him. He hasn't returned my calls. So what else is new? Does that answer your question?” With that, Daphne looked hurt and stormed off to her room. She still wanted her father to be something he wasn't, and never would be. They all did. Jack wanted his father to be a hero, and he wasn't. He was just a man. And everyone, including Maxine, wanted him to be responsible, and somewhere where one could find him. He never was. And this time was no different. It was precisely why they were divorced.

It took Maxine five days to locate him in Morocco. He said there had been an earthquake there, a bad one. And suddenly Maxine vaguely remembered hearing about it. But all she'd thought about for the last week was Sam. He had been miserable with the ribs, and had a headache for several days from the concussion. The arm and leg weren't as bad since they were in casts. And Blake sounded upset when she told him.

“It would be nice if you were somewhere where I can call you, for a change. This is ridiculous, Blake. If anything happens, I can never find you.” She was not amused, and very angry at him.

“I'm really sorry, Max. All the phone lines were down. My cell phone and email haven't worked till today. It was a nasty earthquake, and a lot of people got killed in villages not far from here. I've been trying to help out, organizing airlifts of supplies.”

“Since when have you been playing Good Samaritan?” She was seriously pissed at him. Charles had been there for her. As usual, Blake hadn't.

“They need help. There are people wandering the streets with no food, and bodies all over the place. Look, do you want me to fly in for Sam?”

“You don't need to. He's okay,” she said, calming down. “But it was scary for all of us. Particularly him. He's asleep now, but you should call him in a few hours.”

“I'm sorry, Max,” he said, sounding sincere. “You've got enough on your hands without dealing with that too.”

“I'm all right. Charles was here.”

“I'm glad,” Blake said quietly, and she realized that he sounded tired too. Maybe he really was doing something useful in Morocco, although it was hard to believe. “I'll call Sam later. Give him a kiss from me.”

“I will.”

And he did in fact call Sam several hours later. Sam was thrilled to talk to his dad and told him all about it. He said Charles had stayed in the operating room with him, and held his hand. He told Blake that his mom was upset and the doctor wouldn't let her come in, which was true. She had nearly fainted, worrying about her son. Charles had been the hero of the day. And Blake promised to come and see Sam soon. By then, Maxine had read all about the earthquake in Morocco. It was a big one, and two villages had literally been destroyed and everyone in them killed. There was even extensive damage in the cities. Blake had been telling the truth. But she was still upset that she hadn't been able to reach him for their son. It was typical of Blake. He never changed. He would be a rogue to the end of his days. Or a flake anyway. Thank God she had Charles.

He was still sleeping on the couch by the end of the week, and he had been there for all of them every night after work, and he had been so good with Sam. They both agreed that it was a good time to share their plans with the kids. It was time. It was June, and school was out.

Maxine gathered everyone in the kitchen on Saturday morning. Charles was there with her, which she wasn't entirely convinced was a good idea, but he wanted to be there when she told them, and she felt she owed it to him. He had proven himself with Sam, she couldn't shut him out now. And the children could unburden themselves later to her, if they had anything to say about it.

She sounded a little vague at first, talking about how kind Charles had been to them in the last several months. She looked at each of her children as she said it, as though trying to convince them as well as remind them. She was still afraid of their reaction to the news. And then there was nothing left to do but say it.

“So Charles and I have decided to get married in August.” There was dead silence in the room and absolutely no reaction as they stared at their mother. They looked like statues.

“I love your mother, and you,” Charles added, sounding stiffer than he meant to. But he had never done anything like this before, and they were a daunting group. Zelda was hovering in the background.

“Are you kidding?” Daphne was the first to react, and Maxine answered her seriously.

“No. We're not.”

“You hardly know him.” She spoke to her mother and ignored Charles.

“We've been dating for almost seven months, and at our age we know when it's right.” She paraphrased Charles, and Daphne got up from the kitchen table and walked out of the kitchen without another word. They heard her bedroom door slam a minute later.

“Does Dad know?” Jack asked.

“Not yet,” his mother answered. “We wanted to tell you first. Then I'm going to tell Dad, and Grandma and Grampa. But I wanted you to be the first to know.”

“Oh,” Jack said, and then disappeared too. His door didn't slam, it just closed, as Maxine's heart sank. This was even harder than she thought.

“I think it will be good,” Sam said quietly, looking at them both. “You were very nice to me at the hospital, Charles. Thank you.” He was being polite, and he looked less upset than the others, but he wasn't thrilled either. He could easily figure out that he wouldn't be sleeping with his mother anymore. Charles was going to take his place. It was upsetting for them all, and as far as they were concerned, their life had been fine before Charles. “Can I watch TV in your room now?” Sam asked. None of them had asked details of the wedding, or even when it would be exactly. They didn't want to know. And a moment later, Sam had left on his crutches, which he was managing very well. Charles and Maxine were alone in the kitchen, and Zelda spoke up from the doorway.

“Congratulations,” she said softly. “They'll get used to it. It's kind of a shock. I was beginning to suspect that's what you two had in mind.” She smiled, but she looked a little sad too. It was a big change for them all, and they were used to the way things were, and liked them that way.