The Pieces We Keep by Kristina McMorris

Author:Kristina McMorris [McMorris, Kristina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Contemporary Women
ISBN: 9780758281166
Google: TXRcAQAAQBAJ
Amazon: 0758281161
Barnesnoble: 0758281161
Goodreads: 17166248
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2013-01-01T05:00:00+00:00

35

There was nothing surprising about the statement, only the way it suddenly applied to Audra’s life.

Energy is neither lost nor gained, only transferred.

It was a fundamental law of physics—more scientific than spiritual. Maybe that’s why her mind kept revisiting the quote since the day she finished the book. And to think, when Dr. Shaw had forced the thing into her hands, she had no intention of even cracking the cover. Now select passages were imprinting themselves on her brain like galactic secrets on an ancient scroll.

In Jack’s bedroom, she placed his laundered shirts in a drawer. When she pushed it closed, she imagined storing her mystical theories inside. There would be ample opportunity to obsess over them at the next session with Dr. Shaw, after his return from a conference in Vegas.

Audra smiled at the vision: hundreds of suited shrinks parked around poker tables, analyzing each other for tells.

She just wished their festivities hadn’t been planned for this particular week. The result was six days of waiting until Jack’s next appointment, a delay intensified by today’s meeting with Russ. For that’s when she had learned of the race they were in: a sprint to uncover the source of Jack’s behavior before a judge and evaluator presented speculations of their own.

She closed the curtains over the darkened windows, just as Jack appeared in his pajamas.

“Hey, buddy. You finish your routine?”

“Yep,” he said softly, and climbed into bed.

“Brush, floss, and flush?”

He nodded. He had covered it all.

“You sure? Because if you did happen to skip the toilet flushing, I’ll have to sentence you to ...” She twisted her lips, deciding. “Five full minutes of severe and merciless tickling.”

He smiled widely, as if recalling the tickle attacks he used to love. He’d giggle and wiggle even before being touched, just from clawed fingers near his sides, toes, or tummy.

But the memory didn’t last. His expression retracted and lips went level. All throughout dinner he appeared to be wrestling with a thought, yet each of her inquiries had met a dead end.

“Remember,” she said again, “I’m here if you want to talk. Okay?”

He scratched the skin at the edge of his cast and simply said, “I know.”

When it came to Jack, she was becoming one of those old Chatty Cathy dolls that spewed the same few sentences over and over.

With an internal sigh, she pulled up the covers, leaving the sheet loose enough for his feet to burrow free. He used to sleep cocoon-style, blankets drawn snugly under his chin. These days he required more space, as though ensuring the option to escape.

“Just one more day till the weekend,” she reminded him.

“Yep.”

“You know, on Saturday, Tess and Grace wanted to join us for a picnic. How’s that sound?”

“Good,” he said, but nothing else.

Audra nodded. “Good.” She smiled and kissed his forehead. “Sleep well,” she told him, consciously opting against bidding, Sweet dreams. It would be enough to see him rest through the night without an episode of terror. After three straight weeks, one could only hope.

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