Page 50 of Before You Can Blink (Rust Canyon #4)

Jett

November

Kicking my boots against the step to clear them of the remnants of the early-season snowfall, I stepped through the back door, ready for an afternoon off where I did nothing but watch Sawyer and Ellie play while their older siblings and cousins were still at school.

I hung up my hat and coat before moving into the kitchen, but frowned when I found Ellie in the room all alone, standing in a puddle. At two and a half, she was in the midst of potty training, and it would seem she’d had an accident.

“I wet, Grampa.” The toddler’s lower lip trembled, and her blue eyes filled with tears.

“It’s all right, El Belle.” I lifted her off the ground. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

When I crossed the threshold to the living room, I paused. Sawyer was building a tower out of magnetic tiles, but Daisy was nowhere to be seen .

“Where’s Gramma, bud?” I asked him.

The little boy didn’t bother looking up. “Nap time.”

I blinked at my grandson. “She’s sleeping?”

It wasn’t like Daisy at all to leave the children unsupervised. Hell, she hated to take her eyes off them long enough to use the bathroom.

Something wasn’t right.

Heart rate kicking into high gear, I didn’t give a damn that tucking Ellie into my side had wetness seeping through the fabric of my flannel. I extended my free hand for Sawyer to take. “Come on, let’s go upstairs.”

For a second, it looked like he might refuse, but he must’ve sensed my urgency, because he rose to his feet and let me take hold of his tiny palm.

The trek up the steps took forever while I kept pace with the three-year-old, and I considered just hauling him into my arms and rushing to the top, but thought better of it. I didn’t want to scare either of them when I wasn’t sure what I would be walking into when I got to Daisy.

Terrified out of my mind, I pushed into the master suite. Daisy was flat on her back in the center of the bed, still as a statue. My lungs seized, and my knees threatened to buckle as my mind automatically went to the darkest place possible.

“Daze?” I croaked out.

No answer. No movement.

Setting Ellie down next to Sawyer, I commanded softly, “Stay here with your brother.”

Heart in my throat, I padded across the room to where my wife lay. Raising a trembling hand, I brought it beneath her nose and nearly wept in relief when I felt the warm breaths fanning across my skin.

Gently, I nudged her shoulder, this time calling her name louder.

Dark eyelashes fluttered, and a groggy moan spilled from Daisy’s lips.

“Baby, open your eyes,” I begged. “Please. ”

A wrinkle formed between her brows. “Jett?”

“Yeah, I’m right here.” I caressed the side of her face.

Slowly, her eyelids lifted, but my tight chest still struggled to expand.

Eyes glassy and unfocused, Daisy asked, “Wh-what happened?”

“I was kinda hoping you could tell me, honey. Came home to find the kids on their own downstairs, and Sawyer told me you were taking a nap.”

“Oh, um.” She placed a hand to the side of her head. “Yes, I put them down for a nap a little while ago. They should be up soon. Can you go check on them?”

Frowning, I peeked over my shoulder toward the two little ones standing by the door. “No, Daze. They’re right here.”

Her gaze drifted lazily around the room, passing over the children before landing on me again. “They are? Where?”

Her disoriented state was cause for alarm.

“You know what? Why don’t you keep resting for a bit? I’ve got the kids.”

“Mmm.” Daisy’s eyes drifted shut.

I didn’t like the looks of this one bit.

Reaching into my back pocket, I withdrew my phone and immediately dialed the personal cell of Tucker Grant, who now served as Rust Canyon’s family physician, and held my breath while waiting for him to pick up.

“Hey, Jett. Everything okay out there on the ranch?”

“Not really.” I tugged on the back of my neck as I stared down at my passed-out wife. “I’m worried about Daisy. She’s acting strange.”

“Strange? Strange how?”

“Well, uh, she was supposed to be watching Sawyer and Ellie today, and from what I can gather, she decided to rest while they were taking their nap.” Pulling the phone away from my mouth, I asked Sawyer, “Did you come in here to try and wake Gramma up before I got home? ”

His little head nodded, so I returned to my conversation with Tucker.

“Guess they couldn’t rouse her, so went downstairs, which is where I found them all alone.

” Speaking of which, I needed to get Ellie hosed down and into clean, dry clothes.

“When I got here, I went to check on her, but she seems pretty confused and is having a hard time staying awake.”

Our friend and physician hummed. “I’ll have Emily clear my afternoon, and then I’ll pop over to check on Daisy. See if I can figure out what’s going on from a basic examination and, hopefully, rule out any cause for concern.”

“Much appreciated.” That’s all I gave in way of farewell before hanging up.

I ushered my grandchildren out of the room, explaining, “Gramma’s real tired.” Placing a hand on Sawyer’s head, I said, “I need to give Ellie a bath. You wanna hop in?”

He cocked his little head, narrowing his eyes. “Will there be bubbles?”

“You want there to be?”

With a firm nod, he said, “Yes, sir.”

“Bubbles it is,” I agreed.

The two of them took off running toward the Jack and Jill bathroom that used to belong to Tripp and Aspen growing up.

Following closely behind, I managed to get them stripped and into the hot water in record time, not even caring that their raucous splashing caused bubbles to spill over onto the floor.

Seated atop the closed toilet seat, I made another call.

“Yeah?” I could barely hear Tripp’s voice over the wind whipping around him outside.

I scrubbed a hand over my face, my voice coming out gruff. “Gonna need you or Penny to come pick up the kids as soon as you can. ”

My son’s immediate panic filtered through the line. “Why? Did something happen?”

“I think your mama’s sick or something. I’ve got Tucker headed this way to check her out, but I need to take care of her, and I can’t do that and keep my eyes on the little ones at the same time. Ellie’s already had an accident because she wasn’t being watched properly before I got here.”

He cursed low under his breath. “Damn. Okay, yeah. I’ll figure out where Penny is, and whichever one of us is closer will stop by and grab them. Mama gonna be okay?”

“I sure hope so.” There was no use in worrying him before Tucker got a good look at her.

“All right. We’ll be there soon.”

Turning my attention to the kids in my charge, I got them cleaned up and toweled off right around the same time that Penny’s voice called out from downstairs.

“Jett?”

“Up here!” I shouted back.

Breathless, she rounded the corner into the attached bedroom, her nose and cheeks pink from being out in the cold.

Throwing on a bright smile as her gaze landed on her children, she exclaimed, “Aren’t you two lucky!

What I wouldn’t give for a hot bath today.

It’s so chilly outside.” She hugged her arms, shaking her torso with an exaggerated, “Brrrrrr.”

Sawyer and Ellie both giggled at their mama’s silliness.

Penny’s gaze lifted to meet mine. “I’ve got them. You go where you’re needed.”

My hand came down on her shoulder as I flashed her a small smile of gratitude, eager to get back to Daisy. But I didn’t make it more than one step into the hallway when there was a knock at the front door.

That must be Tucker .

Hustling my ass down the stairs, I flung the door open, only to have swirling snowflakes whip me sharply in the face. Thankfully, Tucker crossed the threshold quickly so I could seal us both inside the warmth of the house.

Not wasting any time, he allowed me to take his coat and show him upstairs to where Daisy was still unconscious.

“How long’s she been like this?” Tucker asked, pulling a stethoscope from his medical bag.

“Couldn’t tell you. She was fine when I left this morning.”

The doctor listened to her heart before checking her blood pressure.

“BP’s a little elevated,” he remarked.

“What’s that mean?”

Tucker’s head tilted from side to side. “Could mean a lot of things, honestly.”

Great. I needed to know what’s wrong with my wife, and he was giving me the vague doctor bullshit.

Putting his instruments away, he used his hands to press on different spots on her belly, working his way down Daisy’s body. When he got to her legs, he paused with a frown before peeking up at me. “Any idea how long she’s been dealing with this swelling?”

“Huh?”

He drew my attention to her feet, which were puffed up bigger than I’d ever seen them—even when she was heavily pregnant—and my eyes widened.

“No.” I shook my head. “She hasn’t mentioned it. Daisy isn’t one to complain. As her doctor, you probably know that better than me.”

Tucker nodded. “She does like to tough things out.”

“The swelling. Is that bad?” I asked, desperate for answers.

His lips thinned, and I braced for what he was about to say next .

“I can’t be sure until after I run some tests, and I’m sorry to say we can’t do that here. Right now, my primary concern is her inability to remain conscious. It’s my recommendation that we call an ambulance and have her transferred to the hospital in Enid, where they can do a full workup.”

I stumbled back a step, my eyes wide. “An ambulance?”

“I can only imagine what you’re going through right now, Jett. But we need to get Daisy the care she needs as quickly as possible, and calling for emergency services is the best way to do that. Don’t you agree?”

She was fine this morning! I wanted to scream, but instead, I mumbled words of agreement.

“Good.” He gave a firm nod. “I’ll make the call.”

Tucker stepped out of the room, and through the static buzzing in my ears, I could barely make out his authoritative tone as he relayed my wife’s condition while requesting an ambulance. He stayed to let the EMTs in when they arrived, directing them toward their waiting patient.