He was gone before she could argue, and Cathy was hurting too much to care. She raised the footrest, then leaned back in the recliner and closed her eyes.

* * *

Duke was on a mission. It bothered him that Cathy was alone in this place. No friends, no vehicle, no job, just here with no plan or purpose. He drove straight to the pharmacy.

LilyAnn looked up when she saw him walking in and smiled.

“Forget something?”

“Not exactly,” he said. “I need a couple of those gel packs that you freeze for ice packs, and a tube of that icy-hot stuff for sore muscles, and a bottle of pain killers. I also need to rent one of those rolling walkers…you know, the kind with a seat and a basket beneath it.”

“That’s all back in the pharmacy area. Let’s go see what we have available.”

Duke followed her.

Mr. Phillips, the pharmacist, was behind the counter, and when he saw them looking at crutches and walkers, he came out to help.

“Exactly what are you needing, Duke? And do you want to buy or rent?”

“Rent,” Duke said. “It’s an injury that will heal. I want one of the walkers that has hand controls and wheels, with a seat and a basket beneath it.”

“Yep, I have three of those for rent. They call them Rollators, and they’re in the back. Follow me and take your pick.”

“I’ll get the rest of your stuff and have it at the register,” LilyAnn said, and left the two men alone.

Duke followed Phillips into the back room, and after trying out all three to make sure they rolled easily, and that the hand brakes would set, he picked out the royal blue one.

“How much do these rent for?” he asked.

“I don’t have much call for these. I’ll rent it for fifty dollars a month. Can you swing that?”

“Yes, and I’ll be responsible for getting it back to you, too.”

“You must have someone real stove up at home.”

“No, it’s for a woman who took a fall this morning. She didn’t break anything, but she has a badly swollen ankle, and I know her hip and shoulder have to be hurting, too.”

“Well, that’s real nice of you, Duke. Who got hurt?”

“Her name is Cathy Terry. She’s new in town and renting one of Dan Amos’s houses. I actually saw her fall.”

“The lady with the curly red hair?” Phillips asked.

Duke nodded.

“I see her jogging past the store almost every morning. I’m sure sorry she’s hurt. Here, let me send her a box of chocolates as a get-well from all of us here at Phillips Pharmacy.”

“That’s really kind of you,” Duke said.

Phillips smiled. “Chocolate fixes a multitude of ills. Sometimes it’s even better than the pills I peddle,” he said, and picked a box of assorted chocolates and carried it up front to add with the other things. “LilyAnn, the chocolates are on the house. Don’t bother ringing them up.”