Page 121 of The Way Home

Jamie glanced over his shoulder at him, then back to the empty mouth of the conveyor. “I just don’t want you to worry about anything. I want everything to go smoothly, and if it doesn’t, I will handle it. I just want to make sure—Oh!Here they come.”

The machine let out a loudding,and suitcases began rolling down the chute and onto the conveyor belt. Jamie watched it like a hawk until both of their bags appeared and were safely in his hands.

“Alright,” he sighed, visibly relaxing. Caleb studied him for a moment. He’d never traveled internationally with Jamie before. Maybe he was always like this.

It had at least been a decent distraction, because now, Caleb realized the only thing standing between him and his father was a rental car and Interstate 80.

Youngstown, Ohio wasquite odd.

Sure, it was the only town in the States that Jamie had actually seen outside of films, but there were certain things about America that he’d always assumed were exaggerations.

Like… why were there so many shops selling firearms? And fireworks? And every house seemed to have some kind of patriotic symbol on it…? What was that about?

He snorted, imagining his mother hanging the flag of England outside their house. That would be completely barmy.

Tamping down his many,manyquestions, Jamie kept up a steady stream of conversation to keep Caleb’s mind off the fact that they were thirty minutes away from the hospital. Thirty minutes away from seeing the dying father he didn’t get along with.

“Do you have a favorite restaurant here?” he asked. Caleb grunted. He’d been getting tenser and tenser the closer they got to their destination.

“There’s a good Italian place near our neighborhood,” Caleb said after a moment. “Lucini Brothers is pretty good.”

“Can we go there?” Jamie brightened. “Maybe we could invite Bri and her boyfriend.” This earned him a white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel from Caleb. Jamie blinked.

“Or just us,” he added quickly. Caleb’s grip loosened. “Just us, then.”

Caleb let out a slow breath. “I’m sorry, J. I know I’m moody as fuck. It’s just—”

“Hey,” Jamie interrupted gently. “How about for the rest of our time here, you don’t apologize, yeah? No apologies. I’m here for you. Whatever you need.” He glanced out the window. “Oh! Is that a Hooters? I’ve heard of those…”

Caleb snorted. “I have a feeling you won’t like that place as much as some other men do.”

“I’d still like to go. That and Waffle House are on my list.” That earned him a real laugh from Caleb. Truth be told, Waffle House sounded rather horrifying—and possibly dangerous, judging bywhat Jamie had seen on Reddit—but he’d go. If only to hear Caleb laugh like that again.

St. Elizabeth’s Hospital was quite an experience for Jamie. Trying his best to regulate in what could only be described as an extremely chaotic lobby, he stayed close to Caleb while he navigated where they needed to go and who they needed to talk to. After what felt like hours, they were directed to a smaller waiting room where a young woman with dark eyes and dark hair, very similar to Caleb’s, spotted them and rushed over. By her smooth, dark skin and expressive eyes, Jamie guessed this was his sister, Bri. She was trailed closely by a tall blond man.

Caleb approached, and they embraced in a hesitant, somewhat awkward hug. If not for their similar looks, you might think they were distant acquaintances rather than siblings.

“Hey, you,” Caleb muttered softly.

“Mike, this is my brother Caleb,” Bri said to the blond man. Caleb reached out and shook his hand before turning to introduce Jamie.

“Hi Jamie,” Bri said with a small smile. Her teeth were white and straight, her skin a shade lighter than Caleb’s. She seemed a little nervous when she shook Jamie’s hand, like she expected him to already be angry with her.

In an effort to be friendly, and utilizing every bit of knowledge he could about the Reed family, Jamie said, “It’s so nice to meet you, Bri. May I hug you?” Her face lit up, and she nodded immediately. As he pulled her into a warm embrace, he repeated, “Very,verynice to meet you.”

One family member down, one to go. Turning to Mike, Jamie introduced himself. Mike gave off surfer-dude vibes. “Nice accent, bro!”

Bri rolled her eyes.

“Oh, thank you,” Jamie replied, feeling slightly foolish. They all settled into the waiting room, making small talk. Jamie tried to shoulder most of it, noticing how Caleb’s leg bounced anxiously, his eyes glued to the red door the nurses kept flowing in and out of.

Jamie pulled out his best British anecdotes to keep Mikeentertained and the conversation moving. His very normal life story earned him an enthusiastic, “The British Library? Sick, dude!” followed by, “Ha! British people really do saybloody!”

Jamie smiled and squeezed Caleb’s hand, letting Mike fill the silence with talk of growing up in New Jersey before moving here. Jamie leaned toward Caleb and murmured quietly, “How do you feel about a nap when we get back to the house? You look knackered.”

Across from them, he heard Mike whisper under his breath, “Knackered, Bri.Knackered.”

Just then, a tall nurse approached them. “Family of Derrick Reed?” The room fell quiet as she gestured for them to follow her through the red doors. Caleb looked like he was ready to vomit. Jamie paused, pulling Caleb gently to a stop.