Running on Insulin

Chapter 66

When we got home, Samantha said she was going to lie down. I was sure she was exhausted from the whole visit. She'd dozed off in the car.

Marie had come in with us to talk to Jenna and I.

"I really don't think you have anything to worry about in terms of Stanley's threat. He's got a big bark, but considering he has a reputation in the legal world, despite the fact that he'll be disbarred for murdering his wife, he isn't going to risk that."

"Really? You don't think so? What has he got to lose? He's facing life in prison and a destroyed career," I said.

"True, but he's still going to want to save face. I'll still look into whether we can do anything about that threat. Personally, I think it's an empty threat. But Samantha's safety is paramount. So I'll talk to my friend and see what we can do," she said.

"Thanks, Marie," I said.

I walked her to the door and as she was walking out, Josh came walking in with a bunch of grocery bags.

"Dude. We literally just went grocery shopping," I said. "You were with us."

"Ah. True. But did you buy decorations for your party?" He said.

"What party?" I asked.

"The party I'm throwing you all on Saturday. Pete and Patrick are coming. So are Brendon and Sarah. And Zack and Kala, of course. I think Gerard is going to come."

"For what?"

"Dude. To celebrate your kid! And you guys."

"I completely forgot you wanted to do that," I said. "With so much going on.... Sorry dude. Forgot."

"That's okay. That's why I said leave it to me," he smiled.

I flopped down onto the couch and turned on the TV. I needed something mindless to not concentrate on. Stanley's threat had me worried. Samantha's fear had me upset.

Luckily, we'd gotten home early enough, Samantha could still make it to her appointment with Dr. Freud. I checked the time and saw we still had an hour. I thought checking on her and reminding her might be a good idea, so I pulled myself up and went upstairs.

Jenna was gathering up laundry when I got upstairs. 

"You alright, honey?" she asked, peering at me. 

"I'm fine. A little tired, mentally, to be honest. But I'm okay. I'm going to check in on Samantha and remind  her she has an appointment with Dr. Freud today," I said. 

"Oh. That's right. I forgot," Jenna said. 

I  knocked on Samantha's door and opened it slowly.  She was lying on her bed, her eyes closed, her breathing steady. I was pretty sure she was fast asleep, and knowing how much she needed uninterrupted sleep, I hated that I had to wake her up.  Jenna followed me into the room to pick up Samantha's laundry. 

I sat down on the edge of her bed and put my hand lightly on her shoulder.  She startled awake, and jumped back, then winced and held her side. 

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you," I said. "I hate to have woken you up, but you have an appointment with Dr. Freud this afternoon, in about an hour. I wanted to remind you."

Samantha looked around the room, seemingly unsure of where she was at the moment. Her features then relaxed and she nodded. 

"I didn't forget," she said quietly.

"Since we have an hour, I was just thinking, want to leave now? We can grab a snack, or a coffee or something on the way over?"

"Sure, I guess," she said. I thought I'd take her to Starbucks, and we could just grab something through the drive thru and head over to the doctor's office. They had plenty of sugar free options. 

I told Jenna my plan, and Sam and I left.  

Sam sat quietly in the front seat of my truck, looking mostly at her fingers. 

"You doing okay, sweetheart?" I asked, looking over at her. 

She sighed. 

"I don't know," she said. "I'm still scared that Stanley is going to do something."

"Marie is going to look into whether or not we really have to worry. She's going to talk to her police friend and see what we can do.  I promise you, Jenna and I are going to do everything we can to protect you."

She sighed again. 

"I know. But I just don't know if it's going to be enough," she said. It made me sad that she was so worried.  She's 13. She shouldn't have all this hanging over her. We want to give her a life of safety and security. Of love and trust and respect. And of course, keep her healthy. 

We pulled into the drive thru line for the closest Starbucks and asked her what she wanted.  She shrugged. 

"How about a sugar free vanilla latte?" I asked. 

"Okay. Sounds good, I guess. I've never gotten anything from here before."

"I can't say that surprises me in the  least," I muttered. 

I placed our order and drove up to the window.  The barista handed us our coffees and I drove into the parking lot for a minute. 

"Thanks," Samantha said, as I handed her the coffee. 

"We still have some time, so I thought we could just sit here for a while, enjoy our coffees, and if you want to, talk. If you don't want to, that's okay, too."

"This is good," Samantha said taking a sip of her coffee. "I've never had coffee really before."

"Coffee is my lifeblood," I smiled. "I don't function without it."

Samantha laughed a little. 

"You're funny," she said. 

"I try to be," I said. "I can be a barrel of laughs. But, sometimes, I can also be a barrel of dark sadness. Believe me, I can understand some of what you feel sometimes."

"Sometimes," Samantha said. "Sometimes I feel like, I don't know."

She looked pensive for a minute. 

"Like there's a huge dark cloud hanging over me?" she said. "Like there's a storm that is about to break right over my head."

"All the time?" I asked. 

"No. Not all the time. But any time Stanley becomes a ... an issue? Then the storm clouds gather."

"That's an incredibly..." I started.

"Dumb thing to say. I know," she finished. 

"Nooooo," I said. "I was going to say, an incredibly astute and mature attitude."

Samantha smiled. 

"Well, we should probably head over to Dr. Freud's," I said. 

Samantha nodded and I put the car into drive and left.