I found myself trapped by my seatbelt with my car nose down in the creek bed that runs close to my house. Well, not actually, my house, but I lived there for the last three years with my boyfriend Billy LeMoine. That last name was one of the reasons I didn't marry him. Tomorrow LeMoine sounds so stupid to me. Plus, the fact he never asked could have something to do with it. Sure, I could have pushed it, but LeMoine come on. I went from just out of college to an old maid all on his dime. I don't know how long I have been here; everything seems a bit fuzzy.
That is beside the point, she knew he was a lemon and a useless piece of shit. He was the reason she was in this predicament. She had given up on the marriage proposal and left him. She finally did it and this time it was for good. The relationship has been going downhill for the last few months faster than she could climb. She knew he had no interest in her at all; she had the proof today. After three years of catering to that man and his family this is what he does to me.
Earlier today, at least she thinks it was today, he ran her off the road and she landed in this mess. She kept expecting to hear sirens, signaling someone would be down to help her any second.
"I'm up shit creek," she mumbled, looking out the shattered front window of her car. Noting the precarious angle her car sat in the creek. That damn strap was digging a groove into her shoulder keeping her trapped in her seat. Reaching out putting more strain on her seatbelt, she felt the water that sat just inches below her lap. She brought her hand up and touched the cool water to her face. It was getting hot, and the front window was shattered, but not out. Coming a little more to her senses, she realized she had been there all night. The sun was rising, not setting and she had the heat of the day to look forward to.
"You son of a bitch," Tomorrow screamed, and her head began to pound forcing her to throw back her head, it hit the head rest. Looking at the hand that held the nice cool water moments ago now covered in wet gooey blood. That was when she started to freak. She hit the horn, hoping to draw attention; but all she got was a water muffled poot and it went dead. Resting her head against the steering wheel, she tried to relax and ease the pain pounding in her head. She figures she hit the steering wheel and that was the head injury.
"You asshole," she mumbled, "You left me for dead."
Wiggling her toes, she felt them, thank God. "Ok, I'm not paralyzed so why can't I move my legs," she said, fighting the urge to cry. Her head was still pounding, and she knew that on a normal day, crying would only make it worse. She has been crying way too much as of late. She's been miserable for months trudging through her days trying to figure out how to make Billy happy. Trying hard to bring them back to the way things used to be, "damn-it girl, get it together," she demanded of herself. Realizing she hadn't tried to use her left hand; she willed it to move.
With a slight movement of her shoulder, pain shot through her. She looked past the deflated airbag where her arm lay trapped between her hip and the steering wheel. A bone was protruding out with blood congealed around the break inches from the water. The urge to throw up overwhelmed her. "No, No, No, don't do it," she admonished herself. She was stuck in here and with the heat and the enclosure, she was trapped, the smell would be horrendous she rationalized. Trying to control the heaving in her stomach she willed herself to calm down.
Placing her knuckle between her teeth, she bit down. This has been her coping mechanism for a long time. Some people cut; she bites, just enough so she could focus her attention on that pain. Not very intelligent but it worked for her as her life has gone to hell and this was the final straw. He left her here to die. She didn't need to bite; she was in enough pain as it was.
The seat belt that was holding her in the seat had slipped up threatening to choke her making her very uncomfortable. Pushing with her hips, she thought she could at least shift her weight and find some relief. She pushed with her thighs and the pain was so excruciating from her arm, her legs, her head, she shits herself without realizing she even had to go. Her body was purging preparing for her to die. Blackness overtook her vision, and she knew she was done.
She came back in moments, or so she thought, but it wasn't true. The sun was hanging low to the western sky leaving long shadows on the car. Taking in the situation the realization he really has left her for dead sent her mind reeling. No one was coming to find her. He hadn't called for help. She was dying, and her body was releasing all the… everything. She heard that the body did that. Shit or vomit it didn't matter at this point she was dying. The urge to vomit came back in earnest and she had no choice. She hurled what little she had left in her stomach all over the dashboard, adding that wonderful new smell to her pain and anguish.
When she is found as a dried-up carcass it won't matter anyway, she realized. She would be dead, and her mother would have to deal with everything. 'Oh, poor Tomorrow shit herself.' She could hear her mother whine, hoping no one else would find out.
Vomiting didn't help her feel any better. Now her head hurt worse, her arm was jostled in the process, and something was very wrong with her legs.
"Help," she called out weakly. "Oh my God, help me. I don't want to die, I'm only twenty-four." She cried out, "I learned my lesson God. I will never live with another man, especially a big jerk like Billy." Intending to or not she began to cry. She knew something was definitely wrong with her head. That was her last thought as the world went black again.
Tink, Tink, and then a roar woke Tomorrow from what she thought was a good night's sleep. Her first thought, "Oh, it is raining. That is good, we need rain." A lightning strike jerked her back to reality as pain shot through her head. That roar was the rain pounding down hard on the car. The water was rising up around her hips. One move and she was back to screaming in pain. This was not good; she knew the car was almost straight up in its angle stuck in the mud of the creek bed. She had no idea how deep it was sunk in the mud. The pressure of the water will surely move the mud away and push the car over. If this creek turns into a river she will drown trapped inside the car. She knew this as sure as she hung here. That damn seat belt was cutting off the blood flow to her brain, and the electronics are shorted so she can't even tilt the seat back. She worried that this could be her end. She has seen this creek over its banks many times. She knew this was it. She was going to drown. She mumbled her goodbyes to her loved ones and a quick prayer that it was quick and painless.
As quick as it came the rain was gone. She could still see lightning strikes illuminating the night sky as the water swirled around her car. She could also see the water in the creek was going down. The water pressure has pushed down the weeds and small saplings that filled the creek bed, but it didn't move her car. Those have been blocking her view. She must be stuck really deep in the mud she surmised. The darkness overtook her again as she passed out.
The smell is what woke her, it had to be, it was overwhelming, and again she felt the urge to vomit. As much as her body tried, there was nothing was left to throw up. All she accomplished was causing more pain to her head and arm and bringing up bile to burn her throat. She could feel it dripping from her mouth. The seatbelt wouldn't give, no matter how hard she tried. Something in the catch was broken or jammed, or the tension of her body's weight kept it in place. She was not sure which one it was she just knew that the technology was keeping her a captive and slowly killing her.
She slipped out of consciousness again.
Again, she was back visiting the land of the living. "I'm dying so why haven't I," she asked the windshield. She was becoming angrier at the situation. She expected to be in the arms of her father by now. Instead, she was hanging in a car with the sun coming up again, shining through the shattered glass. She could see down the creek the water had gone back down, and it was going to be a beautiful clear day, which means it will be hot. She hoped someone from the bridge would be able to see her down here now with the view clearer.
That son of a bitch had forced her off the road right before the guardrails. She knew she was a long way down and it would be difficult for anyone to see but she had hope. Chancing it, she took a sip of water, it tasted like creek water, not shit or puke so hope briefly returns, as she trickled water in her mouth trying to swallow with a parched throat. In hopes of staying cooler, she started trickling some over her neck, she felt it roll down her back and between her breasts, it felt wonderful, so she kept going.
She hoped she wouldn't die from dysentery as she took another sip. All she needed was to get diarrhea. She watched the water through her side window moving quickly and she noticed little tadpoles swim around the car. Some were attached to the windows eating the algae that was growing on them. They were cute little things, she thought. Some had two legs, and little sprouts of the front feet. "Not long little guys and you will be up on the shore," she told them in a soft mumble.
Her butt was starting to burn. She has been caked with shit for days now. She had an idea how a baby felt with diaper rash. The rising water had done nothing for that, except loosen it up to spread more. Trying to decide if it was worth it to cry, she heard what sounded like a child talking off in the distance.
Cocking her head to the side she listened. Was she hallucinating? 'Could it be Angels coming for her finally', she wondered. She tilted her head so she could hear better and again she heard voices that sounded like a child.
"Look at all the tadpoles. See I told you after a rain they come out. Open your jar and catch some. We can watch them grow up," a child's voice entered her death trap.
"Help," Tomorrow called out, praying she could be heard.
"What was that?" a young child asked excitedly.
"I don't know," a younger voice called back as if to say leave me alone I'm busy.
"Help me," she called out again, "Oh God please help me."
"Over there," she heard a child call out.
"Oh, cool look, it's a car way down in the creek."
"Look Joey, someone's in that car," the child called out excitedly moments later.
She called out with all the strength she had, she waved her free hand, "please I'm trapped. I was in an accident, I'm stuck please help me," she called out as loud as she could, praying they heard her.
"I'm going to get dad," a young voice yelled.
"Hang on lady my dad will help you," the younger one told her and ran off.
She saw little boy legs come down the bank and a little face looking at her, and then with a gasp she was out.
Sirens woke her. This time an adult face was looking in her window and it made her flinch. She didn't even have the energy to cry out anymore. They had come too late, she figured, and the world went to the black again.
Someone woke her, yelling a demand for her to open her eyes. The air was fresher and felt almost cool even in the heat of the day. She opened her eyes for a split second. Someone was moving her around as pain shot through her thankfully, she was gone again.
Ok, I'm not dead... and I have shit myself, how embarrassing. "Funny how some things will embarrass you even at the worst of times," Tomorrow thought, as the blackness took her deep under.
Feeling peaceful and serene no longer in pain she opened her eyes. All she saw was a blur of white. She touched her tongue to her parched lips.
"Ok, now I know I'm dead," she mumbled, and her mother's face appeared in the white. "Oh no Mom, you're dead too," she cried out softly, raising her hand to touch her face.
"No baby, you're not dead. You're still with us. You have been sleeping for a few days," her mother told her, taking her hand, stroking her cheek and kissing her fingers. "We have been so worried about you," she whined.
"Mom, Billy did this to me," she told her, trying to wrap her mind around the fact she was still alive. She was exhausted but she had to tell her before she passed out again.
"What," her mother gasped. Sounding shocked in her high-pitched whine. "He has been here for days, so worried about you. He just left the room," she said looking at the door concerned he would return and find her awake.
"No, he did this, Mom call the police. He forced me off the road Sunday evening. I was leaving him for good, I had, had it with him, and he got pissed when I left," she told her, gripping her hand as tight as she could, not wanting her to leave her. If he is around, he could hurt her again. He would be desperate to cover this up so his father wouldn't find out he did this on purpose.
"Oh, honey are you sure?" She asked with a sigh, not wanting to believe he could have hurt her intentionally. They were so worried about her, not knowing if she would ever wake up. He had been there right along with her family waiting for her to come back to them. Talking to her, begging her to come back to him.
"Mom he is not the golden boy everyone thinks he is," Tomorrow told her with her last bit of strength. Settling back, she closed her eyes to save her energy to fight going back into the darkness.
The door popped open, and Billy stuck his head in. Her mother squeezed her hand, praying he didn't realize she was awake. "Still sleeping, sorry Billy," she told him, hoping Tomorrow stayed still.
"Ok, I'm going to get something to eat," Billy told her. He could only sit still for so long and listen to her mother tell anecdotal tails about her childhood. He was close to going crazy. She needed to show them she was going to stay in a coma, or her mother needed to leave and let him finish her off before she did wake-up.
*
She would hate anyone seeing her like this. So, he would put her out of her misery to save her vanity. He has already figured out a dozen different ways to finish her off if her mother would leave the room for a few minutes. That was all he needed. The syringe in the nightstand drawer was the best one he has come up with so far. It will send an air bubble to her heart through the IV tube. He had discreetly taken it from the nurse's medicine cart as he spoke to her of his great concern for Tomorrow in the hall.
As the door closed, Tomorrow whispered, "Call them now, I know he is just hoping I don't ever wake up."
"Oh my God, I have been holding his hand and comforting him all this time. His mother has even been by a couple of times so concerned about you," Peggy Jones said as she dialed her room phone to get an outside number. "That little shit," Peggy complained as the operator answered.
Peggy told the 911 operator what her problem was and to send help and the room began to spin. Tomorrow's head was pounding as she listened to her mother explain this insanity to the operator. Thinking that this was a nightmare, and it was not over yet. She was rescued but she still was not safe. He wanted her dead. She willed herself to stay awake until someone came to hear her story. She had to be here to tell the cops about Billy. He can't get away with this.
"Ok sweetie, she is sending an officer out here right now," her mother told her clasping her hand tightly. She couldn't believe this jerk could do this and act so innocent. He has acted so concerned the last few days. Very concerned when she would wake up. What a fool she had been.
"He told us you left him over some silly fight. He thought you were with us. He was going to give you a few days to calm down. Plus, you hit his truck you had been so mad. She told her as she watched for the door to open. She didn't want him to come back and find her awake without a police officer present. She would have trouble, but she would fight him. He is bigger than she is, but she felt she could hold her own until help came. She could scream quite loud. She would be damned if he was going to hurt her baby again.
Peggy is so thankful someone from the family has been with Tomorrow this whole time. He has repeatedly offered to stay with her so she could get some rest. She was about to take him up on the offer as the days began to blur. He could have smothered her with a pillow when she went for a coke. She thought looking down on her daughter sleeping again. At least she knows she isn't in a coma anymore.
A loud knock on the door startled both of them and a young officer stuck his head in the door.
"Is she awake?" He asked, sounding breathless with a very concerned look on his face he walked in.
Her mother beckoned him in with her hand. "Yes, please come in, she just woke up," Peggy said, and her doctor came in right behind him. "Miss Jones it is so good to see you're awake. Your heart monitors told us something was going on," he announced as he looked into her eyes with a tiny flashlight forcing the officer to stand back, waiting his turn to speak to her.
"So how do you feel," the doctor asked.
"I ache, but otherwise not too bad," Tomorrow told him, weakly reaching up to her pounding head. Whatever he did didn't fix that.
"I'm Doctor Kennard. It is so good to see you awake and speaking so clearly. I'm the Doctor who was on duty in the emergency room when you came in. You had a bad head injury, and we just never know how those will turn out. It was touch and go whether we Life Flighted you out of here to a fancy Houston hospital, or keep you here close to your family," he told her, paying attention to her eyes. The slow pupil response to the light was bothering him.
"Yes, it was giving me problems as I waited to be rescued," she told him like it was just incidental.
"Do you remember the wreck?"
"I remember what happened right before the wreck and then waking up in the car. I was trapped. My legs," she suddenly realized she hadn't paid attention to them and looked down, they were still there. No one cut them off, she could move her feet. Reaching down with her good hand, she felt her thigh. The quick movements made her head begin to throb again. She laid back to try to soothe the pain, wincing and reaching up to cradle her head.
She was grimacing in pain when he assured her, "they're fine a little waterlogged. You will have some skin sloughing off for a few more days. You had lots of bruising, a few cuts, nothing more with your legs. Your arm was broken. We set that with a plate and a few pins. The exposure from the heat and the water was our biggest concern. We believe the water kept the heat down otherwise you would have baked under that Texas sun," he told her in a reassuring manner. "Do you remember when this happened?"
"It was Sunday night about 6:00 my boyfriend and I got into an argument. I packed because I was leaving him," she said and looked over at the officer and prayed he believed what she was about to tell him, "He forced me off the road into the creek and left me to die. I'm sure he was shocked I was not dead when I was found," Tomorrow told the officer.
"Are you positive about that," the officer asked as the others looked on.
"He hit my car with his truck on my driver's side and forced me off the road. He was mad I was leaving, but I had, had it," she told him reliving that fight in her mind. He was watching the football game, and he had ignored her all day. Acting totally disinterested in anything she said or did. She walked over, pushed down the footrest on his big Lazy Boy and climbed up in his lap with nothing on but his big football jersey. He said, 'babe you're blocking the game.' Pushing her out of his way he couldn't have her blocking the TV.
When she looked to see what was on TV, a big bottle of dishwashing soap was sitting on a counter as the commercial played on. That was her final straw. Their love life for the last year had consisted of him crawling between her legs as she slept grunt, grunt, groan, and he was done.
She packed her clothes, and it wasn't until she pulled her suitcase towards the front door that she got his attention. 'Where are you going,' he called out in his drawn-out Texas twang, treating it like she was just playing.
'Anywhere but here,' she told him and went out the door.
She assumes he had to think about it because it took him over thirty seconds to come after her. Her bag was in the trunk, and she was starting her car when he plowed out the door acting as if he cared.
'This is not funny,' Billy yelled, heading straight for her car. She could tell he was pissed. "Good," she thought. At least she got a reaction from him. He had better not kick her car, she thought as he charged towards her car. She rolled down her window just a bit, she yelled, "go to hell Billy, you don't want me here. Go back to your precious game," she put the car in gear and took off with flying gravel in her wake. His mommy and daddy's house sitting high on the hill reflected in her rearview mirror. She had taken her chance with the man and his money and found that life wanting. Now she was going home to her mother and starting her life over. All she wants is someone to love her and she is falling short at every turn with this man. Apparently, she has bad taste in men.
Her mother had urged her often to leave him. "If after three years he hasn't asked you to marry him, he is not going to do it period," she would tell her every time she saw her. She knew she was right. He's consumed with what he wants and what he will inherit when his father dies. Everything else was an afterthought. At this point, she wouldn't marry him anyway, the thought of him now makes her skin crawl. He tried to kill her because she was leaving him. He didn't want her but damn her ungrateful ass for leaving him. That appeared to her to be his rationale.
"Miss, do you want him arrested," the officer asked, knowing he would like to take him down to that creek and drown him.
"Oh, I don't know he left me down in a creek bed to die. I don't know, what do you think?" Tomorrow smarted back.
Billy stuck his head in the door and his facial expression told them all what he was thinking when he saw her speaking so clearly and there was a police officer in the room. "Oh, sweetheart you're awake," he said tentatively as he walked into the room, taking sideways glances at the policeman.
"Don't come any closer Billy," she sneered, raising her one good hand in protest, "Too bad for you I lived. I'm sure that is what you're thinking."
"Oh, sweetheart don't. I'm sorry we fought," Billy said as Officer Strickland put his arm out to block his approach. He tried to push past the officer so he could get closer to Tomorrow. It was a 'oh hell no' moment. The Officer stood firm and refused to let him pass. He was not getting near her again. He thought of their first meeting, it quickly flashed through his mind as the man responsible stood before him.
He was the first officer on the accident site that day. He saw how bad she looked and how near death she was. He had that connection and was feeling protective of her. He was thrilled to hear her speaking so clearly and thinking so distinctly.
"Mr. LeMoine, Miss Jones has made an allegation against you. We need to go downtown and speak to the investigator in this case," he pulled out his handcuff and took Billy by his wrist and sliding down to his thumb in case he decided he didn't want to go. He will break it if he has to. They taught him that trick in training, and he would love to try it out on him. He understands that their hand is never quite the same after. He would love for him to have a reminder of their time together for years to come.
Billy had been trying to project caring in his voice, but the flash of anger in his eyes showed a little too fast for him to actually care about her like he claimed. Everyone saw the contempt in his eyes, the anger in his voice as he continued to proclaim his love for her.
Officer Strickland was praying he could be the one to arrest LeMoine and he was. His explanation of the damage to his truck made no sense to anyone who heard. Without Tomorrow's testimony, they had nothing. He was the son of a very connected man in the area.
"Mr. LeMoine, you need to come with me. Miss Jones, I will send back a detective to take your statement," the officer informed her as he worked to secure the handcuffs on Billy. He wasn't actually fighting him, but he wasn't being helpful either.
"No need I'm already here," a man in a cheap black suit told them as he came into the room. "Dispatch says you have a complaint," he said, looking at Tomorrow amazed how much better she looked. Last time he saw her she looked like she would be dead in minutes. The wonders of modern medicine.
Her mother had raised her head a little so she could see without having to strain to look at the people in the room. He was thrilled to see her so animated.
"Yes, I do, he ran me off the road and left me for dead," she said, sounding a little less animated but determined to tell her side of the story.
"We had a feeling something like that happened. Mr. LeMoine your excuse for your front bumper was farfetched," the detective said, "Go ahead and take him to holding, I'll be right with him," he told the officer and waved his hand at Billy in a dismissive manner as he approached Tomorrow's bedside. They had listened to Billy's lame excuses long enough. Officer Strickland escorted him away from his intended victim.
The Doctor was still in the room taking it all in. She was in bad shape when she arrived, but he could tell she was a strong young woman under all that damage. He wanted to keep an eye out for this one. He stepped up before the detective got started on his questions.
"Miss Jones, we will do some tests in a few hours." He told her and turned his attention to the detective. "Please don't wear her out by asking too many questions. She has only been conscious a few minutes," the doctor admonished the detective, actually the whole group.
"No, I'm assuming it will be brief."
"Yes, it will be," Tomorrow said confidently, "he ran me off the road. He hit my car and pushed me off the road with his truck right before the bridge and I went over the edge."
"You're positive it was him."
"Yes, it was broad daylight. He was following me, honking his horn, trying to get me to pull over. I shot him the finger." Tomorrow said, looking at her mother. "That is when he hit my car, and I went along the side of the road and then I went flying down the embankment. When I woke up it was only long enough to think, oh shit. Then I woke up and it was light, and I passed out because of the pain. I shit myself and threw-up, the next day because of the pain I passed back out. Oh yeah, there was a freaking rainstorm, which scared the hell out of me stuck in that damn car. I think on the third day I heard some kids playing and called out for help. Then I was here. He ran me off the road," she told him emphatically.
"Would you tell me what the fight was about?"
Again, she looked at her mother. "The last straw. With basically nothing on, I crawled up in his lap and he would rather watch a damn ball game than pay attention to me," she said, lifting her one good arm. "I gave up, he didn't want me anymore. He cared nothing about me. Three years I gave that man, and his final show of caring is to leave me for dead in a creek bed. Apparently, I'm stupid, but not that stupid. The only thing he regrets is that I lived."
"We noticed the damage to his vehicle. He claims you backed into his truck. He claimed you did that the day you went missing. He claimed that is what the fight was about and why you took off. He claims he thought you had gone home to your mother's and was giving you and him time to calm down. That is why he didn't call you in as missing."
Trying to sit up a little more, but the pain stopped her. That pounding was back in her head.
"Ok, first I never hit his damn truck. His baby was always kept in the garage, parked smack dab in the middle. I park out front of the house out in the elements nowhere near his truck. He rammed into me and knocked me off the road," she told him and looked over at the doctor.
Tomorrow feels that she must be getting better, she just now noticed the Doctor was cute. She smiled at him.
"Sounds like he should go down for attempted murder," the doctor told the detective after seeing a little glint in her eye.
"We will present it to the DA," the detective assured everyone. "Ok Miss Jones let me go and talk with him."
The doctor shook his hand as he left the room.
"Mam, see if you can get her to sleep, she needs the rest. Miss Jones, he won't be back, so relax," the doctor told her with a reassuring smile.
She smiled back and said thank you only with her lips.
His groin flinched as he looked at her mouth. What she could do with that mouth, he was not sure but knew it would be entertaining.
"Ok sweetie, try to relax. Today will be here in an hour. Rest while you can," her mother told her with a knowing smile.
She knew her sister Today was like a whirlwind and would be here soon. She disliked Billy with a passion. Not all the way to hate, but with this information will surely slide her feelings well past hate to homicidal. She felt sorry for Billy if he gets out, she will be on his tail. She keeps a baseball bat in her car just for him, just waiting for a complaint from Tomorrow. She has always known he was not to be trusted.
"Has she been here a lot?" Tomorrow asked, trying to settle back and relax.
"About fourteen hours a day. We didn't want to leave you alone. We didn't know what he had done, but we didn't like him, as you well know. His explanation about your leaving made no sense. He calls our house all the time looking for you. Three days you're gone, and he doesn't call not once no way," her mother told her, making sure she was comfortable and pressed the button for painkillers. The nurse set it up while the Detective talked to her per the doctor's order. Tomorrow looked to see what she was doing and was out moments later.
Peggy, her mother, stood at the door with it cracked about an inch so she could keep an eye on Tomorrow's heart monitor. These last few days have been unbelievably scary. No one knew if she would come back to them whole. With her cracked open skull, the filth exposed to her broken arm and the amount of time she sat in the creek bed had everyone assuming the worst. Her airbag didn't help much. Of course, they're made for front-end crashes, not nosedive into mud crashes.
Come to think about it Billy seemed really interested in her memory and if it may not be there when she woke up. He asked lots of questions about her recovery. He seemed very upbeat and excited about her coming home. He was dismissing the fight as no big deal, Peggy thought so too, the way he described it as 'just another one of Tomorrow's fits she likes to throw when she is not getting her way.'
"She has come home a couple of times, leaving his butt behind. But the other times Billy called with-in minutes of her arrival to the house." She told her youngest daughter Yesterday on the phone.
Today is the oldest. She is twenty-seven married with one on the way. Tomorrow is twenty-four and single as of seven days ago. Yesterday is twenty-two, she is still in college, and she is on her way home from A&M Bryan Texas. Chance is eighteen he is at A&M with Yesterday and riding back with her now that Tomorrow was awake. Her parents took a chance to have another child. If it had been a girl, they didn't know what they would have named her. That is how he got Chance for a name that made sense to them.
Their father died a couple years back. He dropped dead as he walked towards his machine shop in the business they owned. Today's husband, Brice Sanders, was taking good care of the family heritage. Unlike their father, he has hired two other people to help do the job. Brice is in charge and the others answer to him. The business was doing great. Brice has expanded their scope of work and now does a lot of work for restorers of old cars, one of his much-loved hobbies. One of the reasons he was interested in working for that company.
Today met Brice when their father hired him to do the books for the business. He is a tall, handsome, loving man, and treats Today, as a princess. They didn't know what they would have done if he had not been there for him when their dad died. Brice already knew the ins and outs of the business, thank God. He is not the hands-on boss that their father was, but Brice has the right people working for them. If their father had done the same as Brice, he would still be alive; her mother complained often.
Peggy was talking to Yesterday and Chance on speakerphone as they drove back to Angleton. Everyone was excited about her waking up. They had the weekend to see Tomorrow, but they had to go right back to college. Summer school courses are compact and after a day or two, you can be totally lost.
"No, I'm telling you he left her there. Today just got off the elevator. I need to go. You two go home first I'll be there. Love you, be careful," Peggy said and turned to go hug Today. "She is sleeping for now," she told her as they embraced.
"I can't believe he did this. I knew we were right about that jerk. I called Brice and he is ready to go shoot him. They better keep him locked up," Today told her mother as she pushed to go into her sister's room. Today was the first person she called with the news that she woke up.
"Sweetie, we need to be quiet, she has had a stressful day."
"Ok Mom, just let me look at her," Today pressed, trying to pass her by. She pushed the door open, and Tomorrow gave her a sleepy wave with her one good hand. No way she could sleep with the battle going on at her door.