In the bedroom that had been his growing up, Grant reached for his cell phone and was startled to find numerous missed calls from his mother and Janey. As he listened to the voice mail message from Janey, his heart slowed to a crawl as he heard about the accident at the marina.

Appalled that he’d slept through their frantic phone calls, he got dressed as quickly as his fumbling hands would allow and went into his parents’ room, hoping his father had left the keys to Mac’s motorcycle where Grant could find them. Finding no sign of them there or downstairs, he ran out the front door, heading for town.

All he could think about was getting to his father. He couldn’t die thinking Grant was a drunken loser. Grant would rather be dead himself than have to live with that memory of his final hour with his beloved father.

Despite the painful objections from his head and stomach, Grant kept running until a horn beeping beside him caught his attention. Ned and his cab. Grant had never been happier to see anyone in his life.

“Git in, boy,” Ned called.

Breathing hard and sweating, Grant slid into the old woody station wagon.

“Yer mama sent me to find ya when ya didn’t answer yer phone.”

“Thanks,” Grant said, embarrassed again to have slept through their calls. “How bad is it?”

“Pretty bad. Yer daddy was bleeding all over the place. Out cold.”

“God,” Grant said. “I can’t imagine this world without him.”

Ned sniffled, and Grant looked over as a tear rolled down a wrinkled cheek.

“He’ll be okay,” Grant said, reaching out to rest a hand on Ned’s shoulder. “He has to be.” Grant couldn’t conceive of any other outcome.

“I was cranky with him earlier,” Ned said, swiping at his face. “He was bustin’ my balls like he does. Wish I hadn’t sniped at him.”

“You two have been sniping at each other for sixty years. He wouldn’t want it any other way, and you know that.”

“Suppose yer right.”

They arrived at the clinic, where the family gathered in a waiting room. His mother was sitting with Mac on one side and Janey on the other. Maddie, her mother, Joe and the new woman from the marina restaurant were with them.

“Oh, Grant, there you are,” Linda said. “I was worried when I couldn’t reach you.”

“Sorry.” Grant went to his mother and hugged her. “What’re they saying?”

“Cal is in with him now. We’re waiting to hear.”

Grant went rigid at the news that Abby’s so-called fiancé was treating his father. Didn’t that beat all?