“So what, she slept with him?” Saying the words made my stomach ache, but Ava was a grown woman who had been through a lot. There was little Dale could say that would taint my view of her.
“No, he was married and kept his distance, but she sure as hell tried. She ended up drunk at Pete’s, beggin’ him and talking all kinds of nonsense.”
“She was grieving. No one had any sympathy for her?”
“We all do, Nate. We knew Jake before the accident. We knew what a good man he was. Ava and Jake were so in love and so happy. He was playful with her, he doted on her, but a lot of his confidence was based on being a certain kind of man. After the accident, I think Jake felt like less of a man, so he got really mean with her. He would beat her sometimes and was verbally awful to her. Everyone saw this and couldn’t understand why Ava stuck around. She would go into town with split lips and both eyes swollen.”
I winced. “Jesus.” I had no idea it had gotten that bad, and I was surprised that Ava would have put up with it. It was becoming more and more clear to me that she had given Jake everything, even staying loyal to him after he had become a monster. The heartbreak she must have felt after what she had already endured would be overwhelming for anyone. I knew it would take a lot to open her up again but I also knew I wanted to try. I hoped that I wasn’t kidding myself or trying to fill some void of my own. “So what happened, Dale?”
“I guess when she followed that guy to the bar she was really far gone. She kept calling him Jake. She told him he could hit her if he would hold her after.”
I sucked a breath of air in through my teeth. The last part gutted me. I felt terrible for her.
Dale continued. “The bartender called Red and he had to get her at two in the morning.”
“My god. Does she need help?” I couldn’t understand why they never urged her to see a therapist.
“We’re all giving her love, and she has come a long way. That might be hard to believe. Redman keeps trying to get her to go to church. I know that’s not your thing, Nate, but I think it would help her.”
“Believing that her dead husband will spend an eternity in hell after taking his own life might be a hard pill for her to swallow. Especially since he got injured trying to save her. I’m talking about professional help.”
“There’s no magic cure for this, Nate.”
“I know, but seeing someone, talking to someone in a safe place, couldn’t hurt her either.” I was thoroughly determined to convince him.
“You have a point,” he said. “And it might also give her a way to look outside of herself.” He looked up to the sky thoughtfully before continuing. “I think we’re all hoping something will bring her out of the fog. You seem to be helping, but now you have to go back.”
“I’ll be gone for a few days. I’ll have another week before my leave is up, if I even have a job still. Who knows, I might be applying as your vet assistant soon.”
“Well, I would love to have you,” he said instantly. “We could always use an extra long arm like yours around here.” Dale’s mouth broke into a teasing grin.
“Ha ha.”
My father came walking toward us with a trout flopping from his line. “Your dear old Dad’s still got it.”
My uncle shook his head. “In the middle of the day. I can’t believe it. You’re the luckiest son of a bitch.”
“Well, throw it back. We have a few hours before we get back to the ranch and there’s nowhere to put that thing until then.”
I watched as my father pried the lure from the inside of the fish’s mouth. Once it was out, he put the small fish in the shallow water and held it until it glided out of his hand and into the depths. He held up the lure. “Here son, the hopper. It’s my old faithful. You keep that one for yourself. Use it when you come back. It works every time.” He knew I couldn’t stay away.
I took it from his hands and held it up. “Thanks, Dad.” Being there with my dad was so unlike any experience I’d had with him in recent years. We stopped in a little pub for lunch on our way to R&W ranch. Dale asked my father about work, which sent him into a twenty-minute description of a heart transplant he’d assisted on the week before. I stared up at the neon beer signs above the bar and tuned my father out while he talked. It was the first time I’d ever done that; usually I hung on his every word.
“Am I boring you, Nate?” He smiled but there was a serious edge to his voice.
“Not at all. I was just thinking about how nice it was to not talk about surgery for a while,” I said, a little edgy myself.
Dale crossed his arms and looked away. Without words, he basically said, You two work this out.
“You’re right, and that’s exactly why I thought it would be a good idea for you to come out here. Just tell me though, how’s your confidence? How do you feel about getting back to work?” His tone held true concern and I backed down.
“I don’t know. I haven’t thought about it much.”
“That’s a good sign.”
“Really?”
“Yes, I think so. Now, let’s get this kid an order of Rocky Mountain oysters and call it a day. Whaddya say, Dale?”
“Absolutely.”
“Fuck you guys, I’m not falling for that one.”
We all laughed and then my father slapped me on the back. “Glad to see you’re catching on.”