The Secrets of Her Past

Back then excitement over seeing her husband had kept her awake and urged her to start the drive early. This time dread had caused her insomnia. She hadn’t been able to sleep, and at 1:00 a.m. she’d finally given up and decided to be productive rather than toss and turn. Fifteen minutes later she was on the road.

In the past, anticipation of the feast had made Madison’s mouth water, but today her tongue was as desiccated as a hundred-year-old skeleton.

Adam waited inside the foyer. Madison’s steps and heart stuttered. Each time she saw him it was like being slapped in the face with her highest and lowest moments simultaneously. “Hello, Adam.”

“Mom’s in the kitchen.” He strode away without acknowledging her greeting.

“Ignore his rudeness. He’s not taking my diagnosis well. I suspect his doctor friends have worried him unnecessarily with worst-case scenarios about cancer treatment.” Danny gestured for her to follow Adam.

The arrogance of Adam taking the lead seemed out of character for the respectful man she’d once known. Andrew had been the irreverent one. But Adam’s attitude was the least of her worries. She fell into step behind him, taking in the way his shoulders and biceps stretched the seams of his polo shirt, and then her eyes drifted down the inverted triangle of his back, across his firm butt and to his thighs. When she realized where she was looking she jerked her gaze upward.

Her involuntary scrutiny was merely a casual comparison of the differences between him and his lanky twin—Adam had more muscles—that was all.

The bright, sunny kitchen at the back of the house resembled a spread from a cooking magazine. Golden oak cabinets with glossy gray granite countertops and top-of-the-line stainless steel appliances lined one wall. More cabinetry made up a crescent-shaped center island with barstools separating the kitchen from a large den with a river rock fireplace at the far end. French doors in each room emptied onto a screened-in porch overlooking the water.

Knowing how much Helen had loved cooking for her family, Madison could see how she’d be happy here, but her mother-in-law didn’t look happy today. She stood by the glass-top stove, spatula in hand. She didn’t relinquish the utensil or make any move in Madison’s direction. Her flat brown eyes and tight, unsmiling mouth held no welcome.

While Danny barely showed signs of the passage of time, Helen had not aged well. She looked at least fifteen years older.

Madison forced a smile and felt her parched lips crack. This was the cold reception she’d expected. She wasn’t surprised or disappointed. “Good morning, Helen.”

The hateful words her mother-in-law had said six years ago hung between them. A dozen tense, silent seconds ticked past.

“Madison.” Helen hunched her shoulders, turned to the stove and flipped the pancakes.

Adam shoved a mug of coffee in Madison’s direction. “Have a seat. Cream and sugar are on the table.”

His barely civil tone brought a chill to the room. Danny pulled out a chair for her. Madison sat and wrapped her icy hands around the hot mug. She sipped and waited for someone to initiate conversation, but the uncomfortable lull stretched. Her pulse banged in her ears. Stalling wasn’t going to get the job done or get her on the road.

“So, Danny...your wince outside? You said it was a long story...?”

He shrugged gingerly. “We’re renovating the house. You know how I always need a project. I finally got around to tearing out that old paneling in the den and study like Helen always talked about. I fell off the ladder and cracked a rib. X-rays for that caught the spot on my lung.”

Anxiety twined through her. “So you’ve not sold your home? Whose place is this?”

“It’s Adam’s.”

She scanned the space again, seeing it from a different perspective. The furnishings had cleaner lines than the fussy, cluttered style Helen had preferred, but none of it resembled the oversize leather man-cave furniture Andrew had chosen for the house he’d bought and furnished during Madison’s last year of vet school.

You cold, selfish bitch. What kind of woman wouldn’t want to stay in a nice home like this and raise her child? What’s wrong with you?

Was there something wrong with her?

She blinked away the suffocating memory. “What’s your prognosis, Danny?”

The words popped out before she could stop them, and then she cursed herself. She didn’t want to know Danny’s chances.

“The tumor’s localized and appears to have clean edges. No sign of metastasizing into surrounding tissue.”

“That’s good.” But cancer was still scary. Another awkward pall blanketed the room. A decade ago they would’ve been teasing, laughing and talking shop throughout the meal. Andrew would have found something humorous in the tense situation. But he wasn’t here. And that was her fault.

Helen plopped a platter of pancakes, link sausages and hash browns onto the table with enough force that it was a wonder the cobalt stoneware didn’t crack. No one made a move. In the past they would have dug in, good-naturedly fork fencing over the feast.

“When can you take over for me, Maddie?” Danny asked as he seated himself.

Madison gulped coffee and scalded the back of her throat, then she looked at Adam, who stood by the window, his arms folded, expression rigid. He’d obviously not relayed her answer to Danny.

Then she looked into the eyes of the man she’d respected more than any other, a man who’d shown her the practical side of veterinary medicine. He’d been a demanding but excellent teacher, better than any of her professors. She dredged her brain for the speech she’d practiced all the way down I-85.

“I can’t, Danny. It’s a seven-hour drive each way. You need to hire someone from the service that offers substitute veterinarians. It’s a good group. They use only board-certified doctors. They’ll find someone for you.” She dug the sheet of paper from her pocket and smoothed it on the table in front of him. “I wrote down the contact information.”

Danny’s face turned mutinous—an expression she’d seen on Andrew’s several times. He ignored the page. “I want you, Maddie. You know how I do things. I taught you my methods.”

A boa constrictor of guilt wound around her. “I have a practice to run. People depend on me. I’m the only vet in a thirty-mile radius of Quincey.”

“What happened to our plan to run the office together and for you to take over when I retired?”

He couldn’t possibly be hanging on to that, could he? But then she recalled what he’d said outside about her coming back when she was ready. He hadn’t meant for a visit.

“Andrew and I were going to take over Drake Veterinary.” And her husband had made it clear on the night of the wreck that he had other plans for her. “That idea died with him. He was your flesh and blood. I’m not.”

The Drakes had proved that point by staying at Andrew’s bedside until he died two days after the accident—not once stopping by to check on Madison who’d been only two floors away. She’d grieved for her child and then her husband alone. Their absence had demonstrated where she stood with the Drakes.

“You’re still a Drake,” Danny insisted.

“No, Dad, she’s not. Madison reverted to her maiden name.”

Danny scowled at Adam, then refocused on Madison. “You’re never coming back?”

“No, Danny. I’ve made a good place for myself in North Carolina.”

He held her gaze and she had the sensation he was trying to compel her to change her mind—the way Andrew had whenever they’d disagreed. Back then she’d capitulated to her husband’s wishes more often than not to keep the peace.

When she didn’t fold, resignation settled across Danny’s features. “Can’t blame a man for asking. Pass the pancakes.”

“But—” Helen protested. Danny cut her off with a sharp glance. Helen knotted her fingers and bit her lip. Madison passed the platter and waited to see if her mother-in-law would finish what she’d begun to say, but Helen remained mute, her distress evident in each fidgety weight shift and in the fingers that pleated the dish towel.

Madison looked at Adam and found him scowling at his father, then that arctic gaze shifted to her, freezing her clear to the bone. He hated her, and sitting in his kitchen, partaking of food he’d very likely paid for, suddenly seemed like an intrusion. Coming here had been a mistake.

She rose shakily. “I have a long drive back. I’d better get started.” She took a step toward the door, eager to escape, then paused. “Danny, I’ll be rooting for you. Call the veterinary service.”

“Take care of yourself, girl. Don’t be a stranger.”

“Madison—”

“Helen, leave the girl be. You heard her. She can’t do it. We’ll be fine.”

The three Drakes exchanged looks in a silent communication that excluded Madison. “Well...goodbye and good luck.”

She bolted from the house, ignoring the rushed jumble of voices in the kitchen behind her. She didn’t slow until she’d climbed into the cab and closed the door. With her heart still pounding she turned the key and the engine protested. “Not now. Come on.”

She tried again. Crawling inside to ask for help was unpalatable. Bile crept up her throat. It took two more attempts before the motor caught. Eager to get down the road before she pulled over and emptied her stomach, she shoved the gear lever into Reverse.

A bang on the window scared her heart into a stall. Helen, her face without a smidgeon of color, stood outside the door. Desperation gleamed in her eyes. Madison gulped down her rising nausea and reluctantly hit the button to lower the glass.

“Danny made us promise not to say anything, but I can’t let you drive away when your actions could mean the difference between his life and death. You have to help, Madison. He has a sixty percent better chance of beating the cancer if he has the tumor surgically removed, then follows up with chemo. He refuses to have the procedure unless you agree to run the practice while he’s recuperating. He’s more worried about what will happen to his patients without him than he is about what I’ll do if he doesn’t—” A sob choked off her words.

An urgent need to run crawled over Madison’s flesh. “Helen, I can’t.”

Her former mother-in-law’s cheeks flushed dark red and a white line formed around her lips. Fury filled her eyes. “I will not let you do this to me again. I refuse to sit by and watch someone else I love slip away from me because of your actions.” Tears streamed down her cheeks and her breath came in snatched pants. Her entire body shook. “Can you live with another Drake death on your conscience? You have to come back for Danny. You owe us. You owe me, damn you, Madison Drake.”

Monroe. Not Drake. Madison didn’t correct her.

A chill started at Madison’s core and splintered outward like frost until even her fingers and toes felt frozen. She reached out a hand to console her mother-in-law, but Helen recoiled. “Don’t touch me.”

Madison winced at the fresh stab of pain. They’d once been so close.

Madison debated telling Helen the truth about Andrew. If she did, Helen would understand why Madison couldn’t revisit the past and the office they had once shared. She opened her mouth, then her conscience slammed the door on her escape route.

Do no harm. It was more than a professional oath. It was a way of life.

She pressed her dry lips together, leaving the damning words unsaid. She couldn’t destroy a mother’s memories of her son by telling her what a manipulative, deceitful bastard he’d been.

Helen was right. Madison would never forgive herself if her actions caused another fatality. She owed the Drakes for the kindness they’d shown her. But mostly, she owed Danny for the practical, old-school lessons he’d taught her.

Resignation settled heavily on her chest, crushing her lungs. Head spinning, she gulped and battled for air and an alternative. None came.

“I’ll do it.”

But she’d come back on her terms.

Carefully setting boundaries was the only way to protect herself, her sanity and the practice that had become her life. She wouldn’t get emotionally attached to this family a second time. And once she’d done her duty, she’d go home and try to find the peace in her life again.

CHAPTER TWO

“I’LL DO IT.”

Adam whipped around from his position by the patio doors at the sound of Madison’s voice. She stood in the doorway, her expression belligerent.

“But I’ll only give you two days a week.”

“Two days?” Danny protested. “But your practice is small and mine is—”

“I realize my rural office isn’t up to your city standards, Dr. Drake, but I’m proud of it and I’m needed there.”

Adam’s father flinched at doctor, then sadness filled his eyes.

“I’ll help you because you helped me. But once I get you through this, my debt is paid. I won’t come back.”

“Now, Maddie, let’s not be that way,” his father placated, the hurt quickly giving way to determination. “You’re family, and families stick together.”

“Mondays and Tuesdays,” she continued as if he hadn’t spoken. “I can’t afford a hotel every week. You’ll need to provide accommodations.”

Her demands and her cold tone reinforced everything Andrew had said about her career-driven selfishness. Not that his father couldn’t easily afford to provide a hotel room, and it would be best if his mother didn’t have to worry about playing hostess, but Madison was making this all about herself. What she wanted. What she needed. When it should be about how she could best accommodate her mentor.

“For two months,” she added in an irrefutable tone.

“Two—” his dad protested. “What if that’s not enough time?”

“Then you’ll call the service.”

His father mulled over her words with a frown on his face. Adam waited for him to tell her where she could shove her selfish stipulations the way he had when Adam had announced his plan to pursue something other than a veterinary degree.

“I knew you’d come through for me, Maddie.” The senior Drake crossed the kitchen and embraced the enemy.

Protests filled Adam’s mouth. He bit his tongue. He’d learned long ago that trying to change his father’s mind once he’d made a decision was a waste of time. Instead Adam focused on the success of achieving the desired outcome. With Madison’s assistance they could pursue the most aggressive and successful treatment protocol. When she eventually let them down—and she would—his father would have already had the surgery. He’d be forced to call the service Madison mentioned.

The coldhearted witch kept her arms by her sides and her fists balled rather than return the hug. Adam studied her emotionless whiskey-brown eyes and tight face and his jaw tensed with irritation. Had she no compassion?

She detached herself from the embrace. “Let me know when you’ve arranged your surgery.”

“I’ve tentatively scheduled the procedure for Monday.”

Surprise ricocheted through Adam, mirroring the shock on Madison’s face. Had his father been that certain she would agree?

“This Monday? You’re only allowing me what’s left of the weekend to make arrangements?”

“Wishful thinking on my part, I suppose, but I want to beat this disease, and the sooner we get started the better my chances,” he said with just the right touch of earnestness. But his father had always been a master manipulator. “I called the surgeon as soon as Adam told me you were coming.”

Adam watched the war wage in Madison’s eyes, and he wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d changed her mind.

“I’ll be back tomorrow night. Let me know where I’m staying.” She pivoted and stalked from the room, her slim figure as rigid as a steel beam. The front door snapped shut behind her.

Silence descended on the room. Moments later the sound of Andrew’s truck engine struggling to turn over carried to them. It took three attempts before the ignition caught.

“That went well.”

His father’s smugness infuriated Adam. “I have to hand it to you, Dad. That took balls. What made you sure she’d agree?”

“I know Maddie.”

It had always irritated Adam that he’d tried for years to win his father’s approval, but from the moment Madison had waltzed into their lives she could do no wrong in Danny Drake’s eyes.

Adam whipped out his cell phone. “I’ll make the hotel arrangements.”

“No hotel. Madison’s family.”

“The motor home only has one bedroom,” Helen pointed out.

“That’s why she’ll stay here with Adam.”

The words hit him like a sucker punch to the gut. “Me? Why?”

“I’m not putting her on the sofa bed in the motor home when I’ll probably be up and down all night, and our house is far from being habitable—with walls ripped down and wires hanging everywhere. You have two empty bedrooms.”

“I don’t want that viper here.”

“No talking about her like that. And Madison’s going to need transportation. While I like that she’s still sentimental enough to drive Andrew’s truck, it doesn’t sound as reliable as she claims it is.”

“You’re going to rent a car for her?”

“No. You’re going to drive her to and from the office. We’ll send Andrew’s truck to my mechanic and have him take his time on the repairs.”

Adam gaped at his father’s audacity. “Are you out of your mind? I don’t have time to babysit or play taxi. I have a job.”

“You have that hospital running like a well-drilled army unit. It’ll survive if its administrator cuts his days a little short while Madison’s in town.”

Was that the compliment he’d waited a lifetime to hear or just another form of manipulation? “Dad—”

He joined Adam by the window and clapped him on the shoulder. “Adam, I need you to make sure she gets to work on time each day. I can’t lose patients over this health scare. The medical bills from this treatment are going to be astronomical even after my health insurance pays its part. I don’t want to burn through my retirement paying them off. Your mother and I will need something to live on...if I make it through this.”

Damn it. He was being manipulated. But his father’s points were valid.

“We’ll have dinner together every night Madison’s here. Helen will cook all of our favorites. Just like old times.”

Old times, his ass. Life would never be the same again. If his father believed otherwise, then he was in for a reality check. And it irritated Adam that his father, who’d never been late or left the office early a single day in his career, expected Adam to do so.

“You’re asking too much.”

“Fine. Call Madison. Tell her never mind. I’ll cancel the surgery and take my chances with the chemo-radiation cocktail.”

Once more Adam had underestimated his father. Danny Drake knew which buttons to press to get what he wanted.

“Fine. I’ll handle it.”

* * *

MADISON CRADLED THE phone, marked the last name off Tuesday’s appointment roster then leaned back and massaged her throbbing temples. She was already beginning to regret her decision to help Dann—Dr. Drake.

He’s not friend or family anymore. Keep it strictly business.

A key turned in the lock, and the front door of the clinic opened. Her assistant’s blond head appeared in the gap. Piper stepped inside, scanned the empty waiting room with confusion puckering her forehead.

“Hi, boss. I saw your truck outside. Why are you here on a Sunday? Did we have an emergency? If we did, you should’ve called me.” She came around the registration counter and into the workspace she usually occupied.

“It’s not the kind of emergency that required me to pull you away from your family. I was going to call later and explain. There’s going to be a change in our scheduling for the next couple months.”

“Is something wrong? Are you okay?”

Physically, yes. Mentally, no. Madison sifted through the facts. Piper knew more about her past than anyone else. In a weak moment Madison had confided that her husband and unborn baby had died and that Madison had sworn off men and romantic entanglements forever. But that was all she’d shared, and she preferred to keep the rest on a need-to-know basis.

“I’m fine, but my former father-in-law has cancer. I’ve been shanghaied into substituting in his veterinary practice for him while he undergoes treatment.”

Worry filled Piper’s eyes. “What about our clients?”

And her job. Madison understood the concern. “I’m only subbing on Mondays and Tuesdays. We’ll operate on our regular schedule the rest of the time.”

“Where’s his practice, and is your truck up to that many road trips?”

“Norcross, Georgia, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed about the truck.”

Piper bit her lip and shifted on her feet. “Is he paying you?”

In the shock of the moment payment had never crossed her mind. “We didn’t discuss that, but I suspect not. I’m actually repaying an old debt. He helped me with my internship.”

“Madison, I don’t mean to get into your business, but you see a lot of patients on the barter system. We don’t make enough to cover that many hotel stays, and with one of your two rental cottages vacant... Can you afford to do this?”

“I can’t afford to refuse. Dan—Dr. Drake will take care of my accommodations. Piper, I’m going to need your help and Josh’s. Do you think your son would be willing to check on my critters during the day on Mondays and Tuesdays? I’ll pay him. June has me covered before and after she gets off work.”

“I can’t see why a preteen would turn down an opportunity to get paid for doing something he loves, but I think you should consider trading his help for horseback rides instead of cash. It’s something Josh really wants, and he’s crazy about Bojangles.”

“That would certainly help me financially, but I don’t want to short him.” She checked her watch. “I need to get on the road. I don’t have time to meet with Josh today. Would it be okay if he and I hammered out the details when I get back?”

“Of course. This means you’ll be missing our Monday lunches. Do you promise to eat if I’m not around to force-feed you?”

Madison grimaced. “And here I thought you loved my company and my chicken salad.”

Piper grinned. “That, too.”

“I’ve rescheduled the appointments for this week, but I’ll need you to take care of subsequent weeks’ patients when you come in tomorrow.”

“No problem. Are you sure you want to do this, Madison? It’s a big imposition, and I haven’t seen your in-laws in town or known you to visit them since you’ve lived here.”

“We haven’t kept in touch.”

“You know...being married to Quincey’s chief of police comes in handy. If you’d like, I can ask Roth to write something official banning you from leaving the state.” Piper’s blue eyes twinkled with mischief.

Madison laughed. “Thanks, Piper, but I don’t think I want a probation officer monitoring my every move, even temporarily.” She pushed to her feet. “I need to go home and pack. It’s a long drive.”

Her cell phone tweeted, signaling a text message from a number with a Georgia area code. The number on Adam’s business card. Her stomach swooped.

Flight arranged. Be at your county airport at six tonight.

Surprise mingled with trepidation because the plan was moving forward. “What do you know? The Drakes bought me an airline ticket. I don’t have to drive seven hours after all. That means I’ll have time to negotiate with Josh.”

“In that case, come to Sunday brunch and have some of Mom’s awesome shrimp and grits. You can talk to Josh before he, his dad and grandfather head for their favorite catfish hole.”

“Let’s go, then,” Madison said. She grabbed her purse and followed Piper out the door.

Flying would save her a lot of time and gas money, but it also meant she’d be stranded with the Drakes. If something went wrong she’d have no means of escape. But at the moment being without her truck was the lesser of two evils.

* * *

MADISON SCANNED THE terminal looking for a ticket counter or an electronic board listing flights, but saw neither. Although she’d never had a reason to stop by the local airport before, it was too small and too empty for her to have missed anything that important. She was the only person wandering around.