Chapter 13: Paid Through Spring

Keaton was on Heidi's front step at seven on Saturday morning, holding two coffees and drinking neither.

Heidi stood in the doorway in her scrubs with her arms folded.

"You get four minutes," she said. "The bat is in my trunk."

I came into the hall in a sweatshirt, with my hair still flat from the pillow.

"Tess," Keaton said. "I have to tell you something before somebody else does."

"Emmett told you to."

He flinched. "Yes."

"Then say it."

He said it on the step, with the steam going out of the cups.

Maple Court had not been paid in four months. He had pulled the money out of the budget two years ago and told me the company covered it.

"They were going to move her yesterday," he said. "To a state home, two counties over."

"They didn't move her," I said. "The nurse said it was paid through the spring."

"Emmett paid it." Keaton looked at the cups. "Thursday night, from the hotel lobby. Thirty-eight thousand, and six months ahead."

Heidi said a word I won't write down.

"He made me promise to tell you myself," Keaton said. "He gave me until this morning."

I thought of Friday.

I thought of six hours beside Emmett in a closed hardware store, with his hand on my back and June's letter in my lap.

He had known the whole time.

"Go home, Keaton," I said.

"I put my car up for sale last night. I'm going to pay him back."

"Pay for your own mother's bed," I said. "That's all I want from you."

He nodded and went down the steps, and he left both coffees on the rail.

I drove Heidi's car to the hotel in the sweatshirt.