“No. He’s not. His truck is here. Okay?”
Jolene grumbled. “Good” was the only word Liv could understand.
Jolene stayed for the planned two days, and then told Liv she was ready. They’d see what her times were at the next three events, and Jolene would review the videos she arranged to have taken of Liv’s rides. Then they’d get together to work out whatever kinks crept up.
The first event was three nights at the Douglas County Fairgrounds in Castle Rock. Since it was only a forty-five minute drive from the ranch, she didn’t bother getting an overnight stall for Micah.
She did well all three nights, ended up in the top two, and won seven hundred and fifty dollars.
In Pueblo, she placed second at the State Fair rodeo, which meant she had enough winnings to get her full membership in the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association. Next up was Idaho.
The tour bus pulled out of Chicago, headed for the show in Cleveland the next night.
“Go to sleep,” Jimmy said to Ben, “and try not to be as much of an asshole tomorrow.”
Ben wanted to tell Jimmy to go fuck himself, but his friend was right, he was an asshole. They’d been on the road nine days, and every part of his body ached for Liv.
After Cleveland, they had one night off, and then they’d play four nights in a row, ending in Philadelphia.
He had two days between then and the next show, in New York. He planned to see Liv no matter what. And his kids, he needed to see them too. He missed all three of them so much his heart hurt.
As much as Ben hated being away from Liv and his boys, he loved touring and interacting with the audiences every night. These were by far the biggest venues and biggest crowds CB Rice had ever seen. On stage, he was fine. The rest of the time he was miserable.
It was Sunday night, which meant Liv would be finishing up at the Magic Valley Stampede in Filer, Idaho. It would be her first event as a full member rider. She’d been worried about making enough to qualify in two months, yet she did it in two events. He was so proud of her he thought his heart would burst.
He checked his phone for the hundredth time, wishing he’d hear from her, but still nothing.
At two in the morning, something jarred him awake, and he checked his phone. There were no calls from Liv, but there was one from Renie. It had come in around midnight, followed by a text from her asking him to call her as soon as he got the message, no matter what time it was. Fuck.
“Ben?”
“Yeah, Renie—”
“There’s been an accident.”
Every muscle in Ben’s body seized, and all the air left his lungs. He felt like he was about to have a heart attack. “Tell me.”
“She’s in a coma.”
Ben’s cry woke everyone on the bus. Jimmy slept in the bunk closest to Ben. “What’s going on?”
“Oh no, Jesus. What are they saying?” Pause. “Okay, I’m on my way. I’ll get there as fast as I can.”
“What is it? Come on, Ben, tell me what it is, so I can help you.”
“It’s Liv. An accident.”
“On it.”
“Call my dad.”
They were still three hours outside of Cleveland, and by the time the bus got there, Ben’s dad would be waiting with the plane. From Cleveland, it would take another six hours to get Ben to Twin Falls, Idaho.
Ben talked to Renie again, and then to Paige. Jimmy got on the phone with Frank, the band’s manager, and asked him to cancel the Cleveland show.
At one in the afternoon, Ben walked into St. Luke’s Hospital in Idaho’s Magic Valley. Mark was waiting for him inside the front entrance, his eyes bloodshot, and his hands in his pockets.
No, no, no. Ben went dizzy and leaned against his father. “Tell me,” he managed to say.