Nubbin but Trouble Read Free Page B

all this worrying was for nothing.”
     
    I appreciated what she was trying to do, but I honestly didn't feel like this was going to end well. If the stories of this freak storm were true, that meant he'd be exposed to the elements. He was a strong man, a real man's man, but he was also an elderly gentleman with a host of medical problems. I wasn't naive enough to think that he'd be able to survive for any amount of time without proper food, shelter, and his medications.
     
    “Did Kathy happen to mention if he took anything with him? I mean, what was he wearing? Did he pack a bag? Does he have access to money? I know, generally, they wouldn't have much money on them, if they were allowed to have any at all. How is he getting around?” I had more questions than I'm sure anyone would have been able to answer, but they needed to be asked. I trusted that Charlie had asked the same questions of staff, but since he was leaning more toward the grumpy side of his personality, I wasn't going to call him back and ask him. Nope. He owed me an apology, as far as I was concerned.
     
    Tina shrugged. “I don't know. She didn't say anything about that kind of stuff. Do you want me to call her back?”
     
    NO! I couldn't guarantee that I wouldn't let her have an earful if I asked Tina to call her back.
     
    “That's probably not a good idea right now. You don't want her to get defensive on you. I really think I should make the trip. I survived one storm over there. I should be able to survive another. Besides, in another couple of days, it will be May. You can't tell me that Mother Nature is so cruel that she'd let more snow fall.” I said, not realizing that I'd soon eat those words.
     
    It was Tina's turn to roll her eyes. “Sometimes, you're so California. Anything can happen in the Plains. Snow, rain, tornadoes, you name it, it can happen. I don't mean to tell you what to do, but I really don't think you should try and make this trip, especially with Gertrude.” She warned me, referring to my car. My old Honda's name changed on a daily, sometimes hourly basis, depending on how she ran at any particular moment. Just when I thought she'd be able to last another few months, she would stop running and I'd have to scramble to figure out how to pay for another major repair.
     
    I'm not going to say that I wasn't considering packing a bag and hopping into my car to go to Nebraska, but I may or may not have made a quick mental check of how much money I had in both my checking and savings accounts to pay for repairs. Seeing as those numbers weren't favoring on the side of a spending splurge, I had to do some quick thinking to make a trip east even remotely possible.
     
    “I won't take Gertrude. I'll just rent a car. That will be a lot cheaper and, hopefully, won't require repairs every three hundred miles or so.” I said.
     
    Tina opened her mouth to speak, but stopped suddenly when Noah entered the room. With a shrug and a hug, she said, “Be careful and keep your phone on you at all times.”
     
    I adored Tina on so many levels, but one of the biggest reasons I adored her was because she understood that there would be no way of convincing me to do anything that I didn't want to do and no way to talk me out of doing exactly what I wanted to do, no matter how crazy or treacherous the road would be.
     
    “I will. I promise.” I said, making a mental note to follow through on that promise. I wasn't always very good at keeping my phone anywhere nearby or charged. My cell phone was good for convenience, but horrible all at the same time. As a mature, single woman, I didn't like to be tethered to my phone or any other device, much to the chagrin of my loved ones.
     
    As I turned to walk down the hallway to my bedroom, I heard Tina call behind me. “Just so you know, I'm texting Ruby right now. You might want to let Diana know what you're up to as well, before I let her know.”
     
    And that, ladies and gentlemen, was the story