Fly Away Read Free Page A

much.
    But how could he not look back here, of all places? They’d come to this hospital for
     surgery and chemotherapy and radiation; they’d spent hours together here, he and Kate,
     promising each other that cancer was no match for their love.
    Lying.
    When they’d finally faced the truth, they’d been in a room, here. In 2006. He’d been
     lying with her, holding her, trying not to notice how thin she’d become in the year
     of her life’s fight. Beside the bed, Kate’s iPod had been playing Kelly Clarkson. Some people wait a lifetime … for a moment like this.
    He remembered the look on Kate’s face. Pain had been a liquid fire in her body; she
     hurt everywhere. Her bones, her muscles, her skin. She took as much morphine as she’d
     dared, but she’d wanted to be alert enough so that her kids wouldn’t be afraid. I want to go home, she’d said.
    When he’d looked at her, all he’d been able to think was: She’s dying . The truth came at him hard, bringing tears to his eyes.
    “My babies,” she’d said quietly and then laughed. “Well, they’re not babies anymore.
     They’re losing teeth. It’s a dollar, by the way. For the tooth fairy. And always take
     a picture. And Marah. Tell her I understand. I was mean to my mom at sixteen, too.”
    “I am not ready for this conversation,” he’d said, hating his weakness. He’d seen
     the disappointment in her gaze.
    “I need Tully,” she’d said then, surprising him. His wife and Tully Hart had been
     best friends for most of their lives—until a fight had torn them apart. They hadn’t
     spoken for the past two years, and in those years, Kate had faced cancer. Johnny couldn’t
     forgive Tully, not for the fight itself (which had, of course, been Tully’s fault),
     or for her absence when Kate needed her most.
    “No. After what she did to you?” he’d said bitterly.
    Kate had rolled slightly toward him; he could see how much it hurt her to do so. “I
     need Tully,” she’d said again, softer this time. “She’s been my best friend since
     eighth grade.”
    “I know, but—”
    “You have to forgive her, Johnny. If I can, you can.”
    “It’s not that easy. She hurt you.”
    “And I hurt her. Best friends fight. They lose sight of what matters.” She had sighed.
     “Believe me, I know what matters now, and I need her.”
    “What makes you think she’ll come if you call? It’s been a long time.”
    Kate had smiled through her pain. “She’ll come.” She’d touched his face, made him
     look at her. “You need to take care of her … after.”
    “Don’t say that,” he’d whispered.
    “She’s not as strong as she pretends to be. You know that. Promise me.”
    Johnny closed his eyes. He’d worked so hard in the past few years to move past grief
     and fashion a new life for his family. He didn’t want to remember that terrible year;
     but how could he not—especially now?
    TullyandKate . They’d been best friends for almost thirty years, and if not for Tully, Johnny wouldn’t
     have met the love of his life.
    From the moment Tully had walked into his run-down office, Johnny had been mesmerized
     by her. She’d been twenty years old and full of passion and fire. She’d talked herself
     into a job at the small TV station he’d run then. He’d thought he’d fallen in love
     with her, but it wasn’t love; it was something else. He’d fallen under her spell.
     She had been more alive and brighter than anyone he’d ever met. Standing beside her
     had been like being in sunlight after months of shadow-dwelling. He’d known instantly
     that she would be famous.
    When she’d introduced him to her best friend, Kate Mularkey, who’d seemed paler and
     quieter, a bit of flotsam riding the crest of Tully’s wave, he’d barely noticed. It
     wasn’t until years later, when Katie dared to kiss him, that Johnny saw his future
     in a woman’s eyes. He remembered the first time they’d made love. They’d been