Sharon’s Wolves(66)

He stood at the foot of the bed and leaned forward, holding himself up with his hands on either side of Mimi’s legs. He spoke in a hushed tone. “As soon as we can get her to shift, we’ll do so and let her body do what it needs to recover. In the meantime, we’ll use modern human medicine to keep her stabilized.”

Melinda still held Mimi’s gaze. The woman’s focused stare was all she needed. It was more important that she be at the meeting of the citizens of both towns in the high school auditorium. Reluctantly, she accepted this news and straightened her spine. She lifted Mimi’s hand to her lips and kissed her knuckles. “Get better. I love you.” As she turned around, she nodded at both her half-sister and her mother and then left the room. It would take her over forty minutes to get to Cambridge. She needed to concentrate. If Mimi thought she was needed at the meeting, Melinda would have to take her word for it.

»»•««

“Mimi’s awake,” Sharon informed her mates as she set her cell phone on the table.

Cooper turned from the sink to face her. “Thank God. How is she?”

“She had a stroke, as they suspected. But the good news is she’s alert and seems to understand and recognize Joyce, Melinda, and Laurie.”

“That’s good.” Jackson wrapped his arms around her from behind, pressing her into the island.

She came to life under his touch. No matter how many times either man touched her, she still felt a tingle rush through her body. “Melinda’s on her way here. And word has spread. There should be a crowd at tonight’s meeting at the high school.”

Dozens of volunteers had come to the junior college yesterday to cold call the long list of citizens living in both Sojourn and Cambridge. Joyce had also spoken with the women in her support group. Laurie’s friend Mary and her partner Jazmine had informed all the families whose kids went to their preschools. Sharon’s parents had contacted everyone they could think of.

What they needed was a huge turnout to demand the fracking stop immediately.

Jackson set his chin on Sharon’s head. “Any headway with the fracking site?”

Cooper shook his head as he leaned against the counter next to the sink. “No. They’re stubborn. They insist they aren’t the cause of the series of small quakes. Even though one of their drills blew out of the mine and collapsed, injuring several men and creating a plume of water and a gas leak, they’re sticking to the story that it was an isolated incident. They believe the smaller earthquakes preceding the accident caused the drill to dislodge.”

Sharon cringed. “That’s so crazy.”

“It’s common,” Cooper added. “Happens all over the country. They stand to lose a lot of money if they stop drilling, and God forbid they ever admit how dangerous fracking is.”

“The unknown scares the hell out of me,” Sharon said. Her entire body had been on alert since Friday night, and it was only getting worse. Even though she wasn’t the one with sensitivities, she felt the unease. She wouldn’t want to be in Melinda’s shoes, or any of the other women in her family.

With Mimi in the hospital, her daughter and granddaughters had been with her nearly every moment. They had to be out of their minds between worrying about Mimi and concern for the intentions of the spirits.

“It does me too. And until three days ago, I had no idea half of this craziness was even a thing.” Jackson squeezed her tighter around the middle.

She twisted in his arms until she faced him, tipping her head back to look into his eyes. Her hands wrapped around his middle. “I can’t imagine how insane this is for you. Thanks for not wigging out and running for the hills.”

He chuckled. “I’ll leave the running in the hills to the two of you. I’m not equipped for it apparently.”

She smiled. “Have I mentioned how much I appreciate your wit and flexibility?”

“A few times. But I’ll take all the praise you want to dish out.”

A phone rang behind her, Cooper’s this time. It seemed every few minutes someone called.

“Stuart.” Cooper’s voice was deep and serious as he answered his boss.

Sharon spun to the side to watch him on the phone. She had begun to read his emotions by his stance and the expression on his face.

“The mayor? Okay. Good… We’re expecting hundreds of people at the meeting…” Cooper’s face scrunched up, and he inhaled sharply. “How many? Shit… Yeah, I know. I’ll stay in touch.” He ended the call and set the cell on the island.

“What is it?” Jackson asked before Sharon could force the question out herself.