The Best Friend (Sister Series, #3), page 1
The Best Friend
by
Leanne Davis
Sister Series, Book Three
Table of Contents:
COPYRIGHT
DEDICATION
OTHER TITLES BY LEANNE DAVIS
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
EPILOGUE: TEN YEARS LATER
DEAR READER
MY OTHER TITLES
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
The Best Friend
COPYRIGHT 2014 by Leanne Davis
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
Contact Information: dvsleanne@aol.com
Publishing History First Edition, 2014 Digital
Digital ISBN: 978-1-941522-05-9
Sister Series, Book Three
Edited by Teri at The Editing Fairy (teri@editingfairy.com )
Cover Design by Steven Novak (novakillustration@gmail.com)
Dedication
To the one person in the world who is forever my best friend…
My sister, Marianne Miller.
Acknowledgement:
To Teri for your amazing work editing my novels.
I could not imagine publishing without your expertise and polish.
Thank you so much!
Other Titles by Leanne Davis
The Sister Series:
The Other Sister (Book #1)
The Good Sister (Book #2)
The Best Friend (Book #3)
The Seaclusion Series:
Available from The Wild Rose Press
Poison (Book #1)
Notorious (Book #2)
Secrets (Book #3)
The Zenith Trilogy
Zenith Falling (Book #1)
Zenith Rising (Book #2)
Zenith Fulfilled (Book #3)
Chapter One
Gretchen Hendricks browsed the produce aisle of the grocery store, seeking some organic fruit that didn’t look totally unappetizing or rotten. She sorted through the pears, trying to find ones that were not too bruised or misshapen. Placing a few in her basket, she prepared to go down the next aisle to search out some hair gel. Turning the corner, she stopped dead in her tracks.
Tony? Tony Lindstrom? Her mouth dropped open in shock. Surprise. No, in complete and utter horror. When did he get back? And when did that happen? She swallowed the instant lump that lodged in her throat. Will, her ex-husband and Tony’s best friend, didn’t tell her anything about it. How could he not? The tears pricking her eyes were immediate and real. She quickly backed up and hid behind the soda pop display, scolding herself for her cowardice. She could not hide from him, but she also could not, in good conscience, turn and ignore him after seeing him. That would be an inconsiderate, mean, and heartless thing to do. That would make her the worst person ever. But… what the hell could she say to him? Hey, Tony. How are you? How did you lose your arm? Of course, she already knew how Tony lost his arm: from fighting in the war. She didn’t know the particulars yet, but obviously, he got hurt and lost his left arm.
Oh, God! Not Tony. It wasn’t fair. It was horrible. He was a good, decent man. Or at least, he had been. She hadn’t seen much of him in more than five years; but had known him since they were in middle school together. He often stayed at her house after he and Will went out drinking, or just to hang out. She was married to his best friend and he was the best man at their wedding. He came over and got drunk with her after her divorce from Will was finalized, when he was at home briefly, visiting his parents on leave.
She knew soldiers went to war, and some soldiers didn’t return. Or they returned irrevocably changed. But Tony? No. It should not, and could not, have happened to Tony. But… it did.
She straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin up. If he could fight for the country and sacrifice his arm, she could muster up the courage to face him. She wasn’t an insensitive person. She should have been able to face an old friend, no matter what happened to him.
But the churning of her stomach soon had bile climbing up her throat. Her hands trembled. Could she do this? Could she face him? And finally, how could she not?
She started down the aisle, but hesitated a few feet back from him. He stood behind his cart, staring at spaghetti sauce brands. His right hand, the one that was uninjured, came up as he chose a jar and set it into his cart. She inhaled a sharp breath when she saw his shirtsleeve pinned against his chest.
“Tony?”
He whipped around. She probably should have been louder and not crept up from behind him. It had to be a common thing for any soldier not to appreciate someone sneaking up from behind. She remembered how jumpy Will often was after he returned from special missions. She hated being married to a soldier. He was gone all the time, out being heroic. And she was stuck at home, complaining and hating his deployment; and acting the complete opposite of heroic.
She steeled her nerves and clenched her teeth to keep a polite smile of greeting and her eyes directly fastened on his. She refused to look down or avert her eyes. She would not act as if she and Tony didn’t share twenty years of history between them. Losing his arm didn’t change that.
He was almost unrecognizable. His hair was long and pulled back into a rubber band. He used to be clean-cut, sometimes even shaving his head for cleanliness. He had a full beard now that changed his looks completely. It made him look older, harsher, and more sinister. His hair and beard were light brown and his brown eyes had a small scar over his right eyebrow. She remembered how he and Will were playing in the woods near their houses when he fell and cut himself on a wayward piece of barbed wire left over from an old fence. She knew a lot of personal things about Tony. Just not how he lost his arm.
He looked much older now. Harder. More uncompromising. Wearing a flannel shirt over a t-shirt and gray sweats, she recalled how meticulously dapper and well put together he always was in the past, so unlike now. His expression didn’t change although his eyes widened barely a millimeter in reaction to seeing her. Did he not recognize her? She hadn’t changed all that much. She used to have long hair and now it was short.
“Hi,” she said directly to him. Brilliant. She was handling this with total class and dignity.
He didn’t answer her. Did something else happen to him? Were his mental faculties still intact? Did he suffer from a traumatic brain injury or something?
Finally, he nodded and said, “Hello Gretchen.” His tone was deep and low. She recalled that about him. His voice reminded her of an announcer on nighttime radio. Kind of hypnotic, almost sexy.
Her relief was swift. Okay, he could still speak and he remembered her name.
“Uh, hi. It’s been a long time. I didn’t know you were back home.”
His piercing, brown eyes drilled into her. “Yeah.”
Oh God, her eyes kept wanting to dart down. To look. It was excruciating to resist. It was like having a fully-grown elephant sitting between them. The absence of his arm was so obvious, but how could she mention it politely? She had no clue. She bit her lip and smiled. “Will didn’t mention you were… back.”
He raised one eyebrow. Gretchen was never able to do that, raise one eyebrow, but not the other. She felt like she was losing her mind, grasping at straws, or anything else to not stare, to not let her gaze fall down to his amputated arm. She could not do that without being a complete and utter heel, as well as every other awful cliché out there. It was just really hard for her not to steal a glimpse. But that was as gauche as asking someone at a funeral if he or she was feeling better.
“Will doesn’t know. I haven’t spoken to him in several years.”
“What? Since when? Why? Why haven’t you stayed in touch? You two were the best of friends. Brothers in arms, soldiers…” Gretchen stopped mid-sentence, wishing she hadn’t mentioned “arms.”
He shrugged, turning his body so his right arm was toward her. “Things change.”
What could have changed? How could Will ever turn his back on Tony? It was Tony, for God’s sake. Will and he were best friends since… forever. Long before Gretchen entered the picture, as well as after she exited.
“Holy crap, is that Gretchen Moore?”
Gretchen turned, surprised. There, walking towards her, was Donny Lindstrom, Tony’s younger brother. She smiled and allowed Donny to l
Donny was three years younger than Tony and she. He was always the smiling prankster in high school, evoking laughs from all, but never unkind or malicious. He was probably the nicest person Gretchen ever knew.
Still smiling, she stepped back from Donny’s enthusiastic embrace. “It’s Hendricks now.”
“Ahh, shit. That’s right. You went and married the bastard. He was the crazy SOB who let you go, huh? Why’d you keep his name?”
Tony shifted uncomfortably, and Gretchen saw him in her peripheral vision. She felt odd discussing Will in front of him, which was ironic. Tony was the one with whom she used to regularly discuss Will. He gave a heart-wrenching speech at their wedding reception. He was the one they first called to announce their engagement. And the first to take them out for a beer and toast their upcoming nuptials.
Now, he scowled at merely seeing Gretchen’s warm, affectionate greeting toward his fun, harmless, little brother?
“I kept his name because it’s legally my name now. He and I have long since buried the hatchet.”
Donny nodded. “That’s because you’re the nicest person alive, and the only one I know who would want to remain friends with an ex.”
Maintaining a friendship with her ex was the least of it. She also helped treat Will’s second wife, Jessie, for sexual abuse, and his sister-in-law, Lindsey, for domestic abuse. Lindsey even lived with Gretchen briefly while fleeing her husband. So it was in Gretchen’s nature to be nice. But no, that was so not true. Look how hard she found it to just look Tony in the eye and say: What happened? Are you okay? I’m so sorry that you lost your arm.
Instead, she said nothing, but chatted as if they’d just bumped into each other at the grocery store after a minimally short separation, and nothing for him had changed.
Donny grinned as his eyes ran the length of her. “You look as good as always. What the hell are you up to?”
She shook her head, smiling at him. “You’re still incorrigible. I’m a child psychologist. I work mostly with kids who have learning or behavioral disorders.”
Donny sighed. “That sounds… rather impressive. Like years of schooling and such shit. What are you now? A doctor or something?”
“Well, yes, I am.”
He rolled his eyes. “Sure, a doctor and you look like this. Sure. Uh-huh. Never one to waste your time, were you?”
She rolled her eyes right back at him, grinning at his teasing tone. “What are you up to?”
“Believe it or not, I’m an IT guy now.” That he could sit still long enough to type on a computer actually surprised her.
“Donny, we need to get going.”
They both turned towards Tony, who stood there glaring at them. Donny jumped as if Tony’s reminder just electrocuted him. “Oh, right. Sure. We’ve got to get you to the doctor.”
Not the best reply. Tony’s lips curled up and his eyes narrowed in disgust at his little brother. “Shut the fuck up, Donny.”
Donny didn’t notice or didn’t care. Heat filled Gretchen’s face as just witnessing Tony’s impatience and anger became too much for her. Quickly, she said, “I’m sorry I kept you. It was nice to see you, Tony, Donny.”
Donny rolled his eyes and waved a hand towards Tony. “Ignore his sour-ass. He blames his lack of manners, couth, and courtesy… among other things, on losing his left arm.”
The ensuing silence felt stifling. What could she add to that without making the moment even worse? Leave it to Donny to come right out and say it. She cleared her throat and fiddled with her basket handle, adamantly refusing to lift her gaze from the red, plastic handle she gripped way too tightly.
Tony spun on his heel and walked off, leaving the cart half filled with food. Donny watched him go and sighed.
“He isn’t doing too well.”
“What happened?”
“His team got hit. A suicide bomber took out a small section of his base in Afghanistan, where he was stationed. He was knocked over and had shrapnel embedded into his left arm. He lost three good friends that day too. Of course, he came home, but he hasn’t been right since. As you can probably imagine.”
“Maybe you should be a little kinder about it and give him more time.”
Donny shrugged. “Shit, we tried that. We’ve tried everything. We pussyfooted around him at first. We were all kindness and sympathy. We wept and told him how glad we were he was still alive. We did it all, but nothing penetrates the shield he’s got up now. He’s a dick. All the time. It never stops. It never wavers. It would be easier if he were shell-shocked or emotionally impaired. Hell, it would be nice to know if he had any emotions left inside him. It’s like his heart was ripped out along with his arm.”
She gasped. Donny was too much. Too forward. “It’s got to be excruciating. He lost a limb. The pain. The shock. The helplessness for anyone would be too much deal with. Let alone, a soldier like Tony. He and Will lived primarily to be soldiers. They lived for their next mission. And for each other, far more than they felt obligated to anything or anyone at home. He’s got to have some PTSD.”
Donny nodded. “Sure, sure. We’re not new to this, Gretchen. We, my parents and I, have been through all of this with him. It’s been two years now. And nothing has improved. He’s been to the VA for support, as well as counseling. He’s also been in therapy, both mental and physical. None of it makes any difference to him. He’s like a complete stranger. And a shitload of too much to live with.”
“I’m sorry. For him and for you. It must be frustrating to witness on a daily basis.”
He shrugged. “He’s pretty much lived with my folks since it happened. He was discharged, of course, since lack of one’s arm pretty much ends your career as a soldier. He hasn’t worked since. He fuckin’ sits around, doin’ nothing and bein’ nothing. It’s hard to watch, but even harder to tolerate his shitty attitude. We all try. Honestly, we do. I come by and hang with him almost daily and drive him to his doctors and various therapies. As do my parents. But we’re all about as appreciated as dogshit under his shoes for how he treats us or acknowledges our efforts. It was okay at first. Even understandable. He was thrown a cruel, awful curve ball. No doubt. And we all saluted him for that. But… there’s only so much you can say to people, and yourself, before it becomes too much. And people are only understanding up to a point.”
She shook her head as tears filled her eyes and clogged her throat. “What about Will? Two years ago? How could Will not tell me anything about it?”
“Shit, he hasn’t talked to Will in even longer than that. He won’t talk to anyone. He pretty much cut all ties with friends. And if anyone from his unit or soldiering days even attempts to contact him, he shuts it down instantly.”
“I’m sorry, Donny.”
“Yeah. Hey, why don’t you come over for dinner?”
Dinner? Just Donny and her? It was too weird. She couldn’t even imagine how awkward a dating situation could be for the boy who used to take pleasure in how often he could burp her name, or moon her. So… no. She couldn’t imagine dating Donny.
His eyes widened and he threw back his head in a laugh. He must have read the surprise and displeasure on her face. “No. Not a date! Just come over to my parents’ house. They’d love to see you. And honestly, I wonder if perhaps you couldn’t at least try to get Tony to talk. He always had the hots for you. Maybe that would cut through something that’s still alive in him. Maybe lose some of the apathy. Make him a little less of an asshole.”
A blush crept into her cheeks. Tony had the hots for her? When? As if. No. No, there was no way Donny could be correct about that statement. They never had such a relationship. There was never even one moment of awkwardness between Tony and her. So no, there was never a time he liked her. Not like that, at least. Not like having a crush. It was always Will and she. She started mooning over Will Hendricks in the seventh grade. And Tony knew that. He could never have felt anything romantic towards her. She was always Will’s. And Tony was the kind of guy who lived by staunch rules, like never coveting your best friend’s girl.
