This Time by Rachel Hauck Page B

the low, cool sink, trying
to control her tears. Her stomach and sides ached from crying, and
her throat burned with bile. She caught a glimpse of herself in the
sink mirror. Mud smudged her face and stained her tee shirt. Her
matted, wet hair clung to her head and her tired eyes were swollen
and red.
    A soft touch on her
shoulder made her turn around. "Here's a cold towel." Elaine
Benning's tender voice floated to her ears.
    " Thank you," Belle said as reached for the cloth and buried
her face in it.
    Elaine smoothed Belle's
hair with her hand. "The doctor said Duke's going to be fine. He's
got a nasty knot on his head and a severely broken leg, but he's
fine. He's fine."
    " Thank you, Jesus," Belle prayed, sinking down to the hard
tile floor, propping her back against the wall and succumbing to
soft tears.
    Elaine crouched next to
her and drew her into her arms. "He's sleeping peacefully now. The
doc says Burke saved his life, you know, by administering
CPR."
    Belle stiffened and her
temper flared. "Saved him? Burke is the one who refused to let me
go after him." She hopped to her feet. "I told him he was in the
southern range. I told him to let me go after him."
    Elaine stood and looked
her in the eye. "Oh, now, you couldn't have gone after your dad in
that storm."
    " You didn't see him, Elaine, lying face down in the mud,
alone and dying. My daddy…" The words faded into
sobbing.
    Elaine tried to reason with her,
explaining that Burke possibly saved her life by forcing her into
the cellar. Who would have saved Duke if she had gotten hurt in the
storm?
    But Mrs. Benning's wisdom made
no impact on Belle. Her exposed, raw emotions were in control.
    When a heavy silence fell
between them, Elaine started to leave. As she reached for the door,
Gates and Meg pushed it open and scrambled to embrace Belle.
    ***
    " She what?" Burke nearly shouted, towering over his mother
in the ER waiting room.
    " She blames you," Elaine repeated, sympathy clouding her
eyes.
    He paced around his family, his
lips pursed with anger. When he started to say something, Reese
slapped a firm hand on his shoulder.
    " Let's hear this out," he said. "Tell us what she said
Elaine." Reese shot a warning glance toward his son. "No comments
from you until she's done."
    " Well, I gave her the doctor's report and - Oh, boys, you
should have seen her." Her voice quivered and broke. "I tried to
comfort her by telling her Duke was fine and sleeping peacefully.
Then I said Burke probably saved his life by performing
CPR."
    " Then what happened?" Burke demanded.
    " Steady son, she's on your side."
    " Dad, why are there sides at all?"
    " Go on, Elaine."
    " She snapped her head up like she'd been gored by a bull.
She said if it hadn't been for Burke, she could have rescued Duke.
She told you she could find him, I guess."
    " But she didn't know for sure. The storm was right over us.
Funnel clouds were touching down and speeding toward the Bar J."
Burke's tone grew forceful and loud.
    " Burke, keep your voice down," Reese warned.
    " She'd doing this out of spite, I tell you."
    Dean spoke for the first
time. "She's tired, emotional, scared. You know how she feels about
Duke. Give her time, Burke."
    " This is ridiculous. I don't care how tired, scared, or
emotional she is, how can she blame me? It's crazy."
    " She's not thinking straight, Burke, can't you see?" Gates
joined the small Benning circle.
    Burke sank into one of the
waiting room chairs. "We talked today for the first time about our
wedding day," he began softly, detailing their chapel meeting and
the events following just before the storm. "I thought we were
getting somewhere," he concluded.
    Gates sat next to him and
placed a comforting hand on his humped shoulders. "You are, Burke,
believe me. It's a miracle that you talked today, something to be
thankful for. But right now, all she can think about is how she
could've saved her father. Blaming you for not letting her go after
him is the handiest thing she has