Page 49 of Roots of Redemption (Hicks Creek #4)

Chapter Forty-Three

Wade

I pace the length of the waiting room, my boots scuffing against the sterile tiles.

The hum of fluorescent lights and the distant murmur of hospital staff only add to the suffocating tension.

Sutton sits on a stiff plastic chair, her gaze following me like a lifeline.

Every few minutes, she reaches out to squeeze my hand or brush her fingers against my arm, grounding me just enough to keep me from unraveling completely.

Benny and Jared arrive first, their faces pale and drawn.

Benny claps me on the shoulder, his grip firm but silent.

Jared just nods, his usual jokes conspicuously absent.

Frank, Tommy, and my parents follow soon after, each carrying the same mix of worry and exhaustion.

My dad looks like he’s aged ten years in the last hour, and my mom keeps wringing her hands, her lips moving in silent prayer.

“Any news?” Frank asks, his voice low and gravelly.

I shake my head, unable to find the words. Sutton answers for me, her voice steady despite the weight in her eyes. “He’s in surgery. They’re working on his spleen and stitching up the worst of it. They said his leg should heal fine, but it’s going to take time.”

Frank nods, his jaw tightening. He glances at Sutton, and for a brief moment, there’s an unspoken understanding between them.

The waiting stretches on, each minute feeling like an eternity. I’ve walked the same path across the room so many times, I’m sure there’s a groove forming in the floor. Sutton lets me pace, her patience endless, but she’s always there, pulling me back when I stray too far into my head.

Finally, the door swings open, and a doctor steps inside. He’s a tall man with salt-and-pepper hair and tired eyes, his scrubs stained with what I’d rather not think about. Everyone stands as he approaches.

“Caleb’s out of surgery,” he begins, his voice calm and professional.

“There was significant damage to his spleen, but we were able to repair it. He lost a lot of blood, but he’s stable now.

His leg was a clean break, and it was set well out in the field.

With time and physical therapy, he should recover fully. ”

The collective sigh of relief is almost audible. My mom bursts into tears, clutching my dad’s arm as he murmurs reassurances. Frank mutters a quiet “Thank God,” while Benny and Jared exchange relieved glances. Sutton squeezes my hand so tightly it almost hurts, but I don’t mind.

“When can we see him?” I ask, my voice rough from hours of silence.

“He’s in recovery now,” the doctor says. “Once he wakes up, you’ll be able to see him. It shouldn’t be too long.”

We settle back into the waiting room, the tension easing but not disappearing entirely.

Time drags again, but eventually, a nurse appears to lead us to Caleb’s room.

The sight of him hits harder than I expected.

He’s pale, his face bruised and scratched, and there are bandages wrapped around his torso and leg.

An IV drips steadily into his arm, and the machines around him beep softly.

“He’s going to be okay,” Sutton whispers, her hand resting on my back. Her voice is soothing, but I can’t tear my eyes away from my son.

Caleb stirs, his eyes fluttering open. It takes him a moment to focus, but when he does, he gives a weak smile. “Hey, guys.”

“Hey, yourself,” I say, my voice thick. I step closer, careful not to jostle anything. “You scared the hell out of us, you know that?”

“Sorry,” he mumbles, his voice hoarse.

My mom leans over to kiss his forehead, her tears falling freely now. “Don’t you ever do that to us again, Caleb Wade Callahan!”

He chuckles weakly, wincing as the movement pulls at his injuries. “I’ll try my best, Grandma.”

Frank steps forward, his expression is stern but his eyes soft. “What the hell happened out there, boy?”

Caleb’s brow furrows as he tries to piece it together. “The cougar. It came out of nowhere. It went for Thunder first and clawed him up pretty badly. He spooked, and I… I fell off. Broke my leg, hit my head.”

He pauses, his gaze distant. “The damn thing came at me then. Got me good on the side and back. I shot at it a few times and scared it off, but it kept coming back. I thought I was done for. It was like… on something, but…the strangest thing it had on a collar.”

“A collar?” I say, my throat tightening. I push the thought away. He had a really traumatic experience, and I shouldn’t be focusing on the trivial things. “What happened?”

His eyes widen slightly, his voice dropping to a whisper. “I… I don’t know. Something else showed up. Big, brown, and fast. It grabbed the cougar and flung it like it was nothing. Then it… it tore it apart. I’ve never seen anything like it. It looked back at me with these big, red glowing eyes.”

The room falls silent, everyone exchanging uneasy glances. Frank’s the first to speak, a sly grin tugging at his lips. “Skunk ape. Told you so,” he says, looking pointedly at Sutton. “There’s more out there than you think.”

Sutton rolls her eyes, but there’s a flicker of doubt in her expression. “Let’s focus on the fact that Caleb’s alive,” she says.

Caleb chuckles softly, his eyelids drooping. “Whatever it was, I’m grateful. Don’t think I’d be here without it.”

“Rest now,” my mom says, brushing his hair back. “We’ll be here when you wake up.”

As Caleb drifts off, the room settles into a quiet hum of whispered conversations and soft footsteps.

I sit by his bedside, Sutton’s hand in mine, and for the first time in hours, I feel like I can breathe again.

Whatever happened out there, we’ll figure it out.

Right now, all that matters is that Caleb’s alive.

“We’ll head back to the ranch and make sure everything is tightened up,” Benny says.

“I’m going to go with them. Will you be all right?” Frank asks Sutton.

She nods slowly, shock written all over her face. “Yeah, Dad.”

The others all head back home, while my parents go to the waiting room to sit. Sutton leans into me.

“That was so scary.”

“Thanks for…everything. You were so quick to know what to do, and you handled it all.”

“Human medicine and animal medicine are the same.” She shrugs as she looks away quickly.

“Don’t blow off compliments.”

I take one of her hands in mine before I tug her into me as closely as possible.

“I’m just glad he’s okay.”

“Me, too,” I murmur as I kiss the top of her head. “Thanks for staying with me.”

“Where else would I be?”

“I know I haven’t…exactly been really good at any of this.”

“Now isn’t the time, Wade.”

“I know, but…I need to say this.”

She blows out a breath before she nods her head. “Go ahead then.”

“I love you, and I haven’t been good at any of this. Okay, maybe some of it. I make mistakes because…I don’t know what I don’t know, but I want to know.”

She giggles and shakes her head. “I haven’t been good at any of this, either. I’ve been overwhelmed and so convinced that you’re only interested in a rescue project. I reacted when I thought you were treating me like my dad does and…I…I can’t live like that.”

“I was so scared about losing you that I didn’t think about how I sounded or how I was treating you, and I’m sorry for that.”

“I was so focused on how this couldn’t work and I haven’t been looking at the positives. I’m only seeing everything as a negative.”

“Well, that’s the best part of all of this,” I chuckle as I tip her chin up. “We can learn it together.”

“I don’t know if any of this is a good idea. We’re…”

“A good team. We have a connection like I’ve never felt before. I’m not sure why you wouldn’t think it’s a good idea. Your dad isn’t going to lose the ranch and…I hear Doc Lucy is thinking about retiring, which means that…”

“Is that why you paid off the balloon payment?” she hisses as she pulls away from me. “Because you thought it would force me to stay here?”

“What?”

“You heard me,” she says softly, her eyes darting to Caleb before she stands up.

She crosses her arms in front of her chest before she turns her back to me. I can see her trying to steady her breathing before she turns back around.

“I can’t…you shouldn’t have paid it without talking to me. I am not a rescue project. You can’t be a partner to someone if you do big things like this without so much as a conversation.”

“You would have told me no. You wouldn’t have taken the help.”

“You’re damn right. I wouldn’t have. Especially now. Now, it feels like the only reason you did it was so that you could hold it over my head and make me stay.”

“You can’t really believe that.”

“I don’t know what to believe,” she murmurs. “You’re over here talking about staying and Doc Lucy’s practice. Not once have you asked what I want to do with my life. Why is it that I have to be the one making the sacrifices?”

“I didn’t—” I start.

She shakes her head and holds up her hand to stop me. “I need some fresh air.”

She walks away, and I let her. She needs room to breathe, and so do I. I close my eyes and inhale slowly.

I can see where she’s coming from. I also know that she’s scared, and I have to give her a minute to process all of it. I shouldn’t have dumped it the way I did. Again.

I also know she’s right; I should have talked to her about it all.

There’s a vibration beside me, and I look down to see that Ronnie has sent her a text message.

“House is all set up for you. Double the salary, Sutton. I need to know ASAP when your start date is going to be and when you’ll arrive in Wyoming.”

“Wyoming?” I repeat.