Asher (Ashes & Embers 6)

When she nods, I grab one of my favorite photos of us sitting in the grass with five-year-old Kenzi. I don’t think she’s ready to know that her own daughter is now an adult.

I hand the frame to Ember, and she holds it in her hands, studying it intently.

“Thas you?” She points to me in the photo.

“Yup. That’s me.”

“Who’s her?” She lays her finger over her own face.

“That’s you.”

“Me?”

“Yes. That’s you.”

“Thas me, Ember?”

“Yes.”

Her eyes move to Kenzi, who’s sitting in her lap in the photo. We’re all smiling and laughing. A perfect little family having a perfectly happy summer day at the park. We asked a random woman to take our picture. I remember that day like it was yesterday. We fed the ducks, and Kenzi wanted to bring one home and let it live in the bathtub. Ember came close to letting her.

“Who is little?”

I take a deep breath to brace myself for what may come next. “That’s Kenzi. She’s our daughter.”

Her hands tremble as she clenches the frame. She turns to me with such a look of overwhelming confusion in her eyes that I wish I hadn’t let her see the picture.

“Daughter?”

“Yes. See, she looks like you. She loves you and misses you very much.”

The picture falls from her hands into her lap, and she begins to shake her head wildly back and forth.

“No no no no no,” she sobs.

Without thinking, I sit on the bed and pull her into my arms, gently cradling her head in my hand to stop her thrashing.

“Shh...don’t cry. It’s all going to be okay.”

Clinging to my shirt, she buries her face into my chest. She’s like a bird in my arms—frail, delicate, and trembling.

But damn, having her so close is pure heaven, and I don’t ever want to let go.

“Nobody...in head. Gone.”

“It’s okay,” I whisper, pressing my lips to the top of her head. “You’re here. I’m here. You’re going to get better.”

She turns, and her forehead presses against the side of my neck, awakening a thousand memories. I close my eyes and savor the warmth of her familiar flesh against mine.

“Scared.”

Me too.

I hold her a little tighter. “Things will get better. The doctors have a great plan. You have family who loves you. When you’re ready, they’ll be here. We’re all going to be here for you.”

After a few minutes, her trembling subsides. The grip of her fingers on the collar of my shirt loosens. Her gasping sobs turn to soft, even breaths.

She’s fallen asleep against my chest, wrapped in my arms.

All I can do is hope it’s a sign that the heart always knows where its home is, no matter what.

Chapter Nine

“Your mother’s awake.”

I spent almost forty minutes on the drive from the hospital to Kenzi’s house rehearsing how to tell her the news about Ember. But as soon as she opened her front door, my mind turned into a blank wall.

“Wh—what?” She stares at me with her mouth half-open as I walk into the foyer and head for the living room. This is a conversation I need to be sitting down for.

Kenzi follows and sits beside me as Tor wanders in with the cat perched on his shoulder.

“Dad? What did you just say?”

“Your mom’s awake.”

“What?” they say in unison.

“The medication worked. She just...woke up.” I exhale a sigh that’s been pent up in me for hours and look from Kenzi to Tor, who are both wearing equally shocked expressions. “She’s talking a little and is aware. It’s surreal.”

“Oh my God.” Kenzi gasps and covers her mouth with her hand.

Tor puts the cat on the floor then sits between us, putting his arm around Kenzi. “Ash...you don’t look too good, man. Have you been sleeping at all? When did all this happen?”

“No.” I shake my head. “I haven’t been sleeping. I don’t even know what day it is.”

“Mom’s awake?” Kenzi repeats. “Like really awake this time? Not staring at the ceiling?”

“Yes. She’s completely wide awake.”

“Holy shit,” Tor says. “How is she? Did you say she can talk?”

“Can we go see her? Right now?”

“No, you can’t visit yet.”

“Why not? Daddy, I need to see her.”

I run my hand through my hair and squeeze the back of my neck. My head is suddenly pounding, my heart racing. “There’s more. Give me a minute to get my thoughts together.”

“Dad, you’re scaring me.”

Exactly what I was afraid of. Traumatizing my little girl even more than she’s already been since the day Ember fell off that cliff.

“Give him a sec, Kenz.” Tor kisses her cheek then puts his free hand on my back. “Relax, bro. You’re all tweaked out.”

“I know. I’m sorry. This is...”

It’s indescribable.

“Don’t apologize. Your wife just came out of a fucking coma. You can be as fucked up as you need to be. We’re family.”

I nod and lean forward, resting my elbows on my legs. “Everything’s happening so fast. The doctors and nurses are shocked. She’s very weak but coherent. She’s having trouble talking, but the fact that she can talk at all is a miracle. She definitely understands what we’re saying and what she wants to say.”