Carter Grayson by Sandi Lynn
I sat there, slowly closed my eyes for a moment, and tried to process everything she just told me. I didn’t want to believe her. She had lied to me about her parents from the beginning and she was lying about everything else. I’d had enough, so I got up from the table, went to her room, and opened the door in a fit of rage.
“You are a liar!” I pointed at her. “You lied about your parents and you’re lying about everything else. Did you just make up that bullshit about them being killed in a plane crash to make yourself feel better from being abandoned?” I shouted. “I’m calling the airlines and sending you home. I can’t deal with you anymore.”
She sat on the edge of the bed and stared at me while I yelled. She didn’t move and she didn’t speak a word. In fact, she didn’t do a goddamn thing. She didn’t even flinch. Just as I was about to shut the door, she spoke.
“Year 1997. New York. Flight 4211. Kenneth and Margo Anderson.”
I slowly shook my head at her, shut the door, and went to my room. Pulling my phone from my pocket, I called the airlines to book her a flight back to New York.
“What the hell do you mean no flights are going into New York?”
“I’m sorry, sir, but both LaGuardia and JFK have experienced severe power outages and we aren’t sure when it will be restored. Electric crews are telling us maybe sometime tomorrow.”
“You have got to be fucking kidding me.”
“I wish I was, sir. Thousands of passengers are stranded at the moment and a ton of flights have been canceled. My advice would be to check back tomorrow.”
“Thank you.”
In a fit of anger, I threw my phone on the bed and climbed into the shower. When I was finished and got dressed, I picked up my phone and called my private investigator.
“Carter, how are you, my friend?”
“Hey, Charlie. I need a favor.”
“Sure, man, what’s up?”
“Can you see what you can dig up on a plane crash back in 1997? Apparently, there was one in New York, Flight 4211.”
“I think I remember that. Give me a few hours and I’ll call you back.”
“Thanks, Charlie.”
After ending the call, I went back to Zoey’s room and opened the door.
“Don’t you know it’s rude to enter someone’s room without knocking?” she spoke.
“I paid for the room, so technically, I can do whatever the fuck I want. I called the airlines and apparently there are no flights going in or out of New York right now due to some major power outage at both airports. So we better get on the road to the Grand Canyon and I’ll call again in the morning.”
“I don’t want to go with you.” She folded her arms.
“I don’t care. You’re not staying here by yourself. Nora wanted you to come on the trip and since you’re here and can’t go anywhere else, you’re going to help me scatter her ashes over the fucking Grand Canyon!” I sternly spoke. “So let’s go!”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Zoey
He walked away and I looked around the room.
“Really? Power outages in both airports? Come on. Why the hell are you doing this to me?”
I took in a deep breath, grabbed my purse, and followed him outside to the SUV. The drive to the Grand Canyon was probably the longest drive of my life. Even though it was only supposed to be an hour and a half drive, the GPS took us a different way, which extended our time by forty-five minutes. Needless to say, Carter was not happy.
We drove along Desert View Drive and stopped at Grandview Point. It was terribly crowded.
“What the hell,” Carter spoke.
“Keep driving to Moran Point. It’s a few miles down the road.”
“And you think there will be any less people there?” he spoke with an irritated tone.
“It doesn’t matter about the people. It’s where we have to go.”
“Let me guess, Nora told you to go there?” he spoke with sarcasm.
I didn’t reply. I just rolled my eyes and stared out the window. When we reached Moran Point, Carter immediately found a spot to park the SUV. We both climbed out, grabbed one of the urns, and walked the trail up to the point where we were lucky enough to find a spot where nobody was. Once we reached the top, I stood there and looked out into the picturesque wonder that sat before me.
“Wow. This is like something out of a painting,” Carter spoke as he held the urn against his chest.
“It’s beautiful. No wonder Nora wanted this to be one of her resting places,” I said.
Carter removed the lid from the urn and held it over the edge for a moment before slowly tipping it forward and letting the ashes fall over the depth of the canyon.
“Rest in peace, Nora,” he spoke.
I looked over at Carter, and standing next to him was his sister, smiling as she watched her ashes scatter. She lightly placed her hand on his shoulder. He looked over and then at me.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing,” he spoke with a bit of panic.
He placed the lid back on the urn and took a seat on the ground. We both sat there in silence for about thirty minutes, taking in the beauty that nature had formed.
“I think we should grab something to eat and head back to Sedona,” Carter spoke.
We drove for about an hour and pulled into a restaurant called The Steak House. After we were seated, Carter’s phone rang.
“Excuse me, I need to take this,” he spoke as he got up from his seat and walked away. A few moments later, he returned, sat down in his chair, and stared at me with a weird look on his face.
“Is everything okay?” I asked.
“Yeah. It was just business,” he spoke as he placed his napkin on his lap.
I could tell something was wrong by his tone of voice.
“Was Nora there with us at the Grand Canyon?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” I lied.
“I swear I felt a hand on my shoulder while we were standing there. You said she was with us in Lake Tahoe. So, if you were telling the truth, then you would have seen her at the Grand Canyon. So, please, Zoey, tell me the truth.”
“I don’t know, Carter. I didn’t see anyone.”
There was no way I was going to tell him in the middle of the restaurant. This man was a ticking time bomb and I wasn’t about to set him off.
“Okay.” He took a sip of his water. “Is there anything you want to talk about?” he asked.
“No.”
“Why not?”
I looked at him in disbelief. Just a few hours ago, he was believing I had a mental illness, called me a liar, and tried to send me home. So why the hell would I want to talk to him about anything? He had some nerve asking me that and going about as if he did nothing wrong. He’d said a lot of things to me since the first day we’d met and I had chosen to overlook ninety-nine percent of them, but what he said about me lying about my parents to make myself feel better for being abandoned crossed the line and that was something I couldn’t overlook or forgive him for.
“I have nothing to say to you, Mr. Grayson.”
He took in a sharp breath and sat back in his chair.
“This is because of earlier, isn’t it? I’m sorry.”
“You’re always sorry, but it doesn’t change things. You can say you’re sorry a million times over, yet you continue to say things that hurt me over and over again. You don’t want me on this trip and I don’t want to be here. So, tomorrow morning, I’m calling the airlines and getting a flight back home to Connecticut. I’ll pick up the rest of my things in a couple of days.”
“Fine.” He nodded. “If that’s what you want.”
“It is.”
“Fine,” he spoke with an attitude.
We finished our dinner in silence and then climbed into the SUV and headed back to the Enchantment Resort.
“That call I took earlier at dinner. It was my private investigator, Charlie. I had him do some digging on that plane crash you told me about,”
“Good for you.” I sighed.
“Everyone on that flight was killed, except for one survivor. A child. A five-year-old girl. But her name was kept out of the papers to protect her identity, and then shortly after the crash, she disappeared. That little girl was you, wasn’t it?”
I looked at him as tears filled my eyes, but I couldn’t speak. I turned away and looked out the passenger window.
“Zoey, I’m so sorry. I can’t even imagine.”
He reached his hand over and softly placed it on mine, which was resting on my lap. I pulled away.
“Please talk to me,” he spoke in a tender voice.
“Yes. I was the little girl who survived the crash of Flight 4211. The only survivor out of 525 passengers, including my parents.” A single tear fell from my eye.
“I don’t know what to say to you except how sorry I am.”
“Don’t be. That was twenty years ago.”
He pulled up to the valet at the Enchantment Resort and we climbed out and went to our suite. The moment he opened the door and I stepped inside, I started to go straight to my room, but felt his hand grab my arm and stop me. I looked at his hand and then at him. He pulled me into a tight embrace and I didn’t know what to do. He didn’t speak a word. He only held me in the middle of the living area.
After a few moments, he broke our embrace and our eyes locked on each other’s. He brought his hand up and lightly cupped my chin.
“I don’t want you to go home tomorrow. I want you to stay and finish this trip with me. To be honest, I don’t think I can do it alone. Please,” he spoke in a begging voice.
“You can do this alone, Carter. In fact, I think you need to.”
“That’s your decision, then?” he asked.
“Yes. I’m sorry.” I looked away.
He swallowed hard and walked over to the sliding glass door. Placing his hands in his pockets as he stared out at the beautiful view of the canyon, he spoke, “I understand and there’s no need for you to be sorry.”
“Thank you,” I quietly spoke and went to my room.
Taking my phone from my purse, I called the airport and was able to get on a flight back to Connecticut at eight a.m., which meant I would have to leave the hotel around four thirty, since it was a two-hour drive to the airport.
Chapter Thirty
Carter
She was leaving in the morning and I wasn’t happy about it. Knowing what I knew about a piece of her past made me feel an overwhelming sadness for her. There was nothing I could do about it now. I had pushed her away and to the point where she couldn’t even finish the trip with me. I didn’t blame her one bit, though. I wouldn’t want to be around someone like me either. I intentionally did everything I could to make her see that I wasn’t who she thought I was. That the man I once was, was gone. I’d let her sleep for tonight, but come morning, I’d ask her one more time to stay and come with me to Seattle. I wasn’t looking forward to that drive at all, especially alone.
The next morning, I awoke around seven a.m., quickly took a shower, and went to see if she was up. When I walked into the kitchen area, I saw a white piece of paper sitting on the counter. Picking it up, I held it in my hand and read it.
Carter,
I managed to get on a flight that leaves at eight a.m., so when you read this, I’ll already be gone. Please drive safe to Seattle and have a safe flight to Hawaii. You can do this alone. Just remember that this is what Nora wanted and you’re doing it for her. Take the time alone and reflect on all the memories that you and Nora made. Remember, memories are a treasure and they were made with love. Embrace them.
Zoey
I took in a deep breath and set the letter down. She was gone already and there wasn’t a goddamn thing I could do about it. Anger rose inside me and I needed to get out of here. Grabbing my bags, I checked out of the hotel and told the valet to bring my car around.
“Excuse me, Mr. Grayson,” the valet gentleman spoke. “There seems to be a problem with your vehicle.”
“What kind of problem?”
“It won’t start.”
“You’re kidding me.” I sighed.
“I wish I was. We’re going to try to jumpstart it.”
“Fine. Can you please hurry? I have to get on the road.”
While I stood there waiting, I pulled my phone from my pocket and debated whether or not to text Zoey. What would I say to her? I’m sorry? She didn’t believe that anymore.
“Excuse me, Mr. Grayson?”
“Did you get it started?” I asked as I put my phone back in my pocket.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t. It won’t start. You’re going to need to call a tow truck.”
“Listen, I need to start heading to Seattle. I don’t have time for this shit.”
“Is there anything we can do for you?”
“Get me another car!”
“The nearest rental car place is about an hour from here. I can have someone drive you there, but I would call first to make sure they have a vehicle to rent.”
“I’ll do that, thank you.”
I huffed and pulled my phone from my pocket. Looking up the nearest rental car place, I dialed their number only to find out they didn’t have one car available for rent.
“How the hell can a rental car company not have a rental car?” I asked in irritation.
“I’m sorry, sir, but this is one of our busiest times of the year. We will have one available in a couple of days if you would like to be put on our list.”
“I don’t have a couple of days!” I shouted. “Just forget it.”
I placed my hand on my head and paced around the lobby of the hotel. Now what the fuck was I going to do? I looked up at the ceiling and spoke, “Sorry, Nora. I have no choice.”
I called the airport and was able to get on a flight to Seattle that departed at four forty-five p.m. I did check with the airline I was flying with to make sure there wouldn’t be a problem traveling with Nora’s ashes. The only requirement they had was that the ashes had to be checked in a luggage bag. So, I headed to the hotel gift shop to see if I could find a box that would fit the ashes and my suitcase since the urn was way too big. After finding the perfect box that had little pink-colored roses on it, I transferred her ashes from the urn and tucked it safely into my suitcase. While I waited for the car service to pick me up, I placed a call to the rental car company and had them send a tow truck to the hotel for the SUV.
After I arrived at the airport and checked in, I decided to grab something to eat since I was going to be stuck here for another four hours, and I was starving. The only thing that sounded good was Panera, since it was only one of three food places in the area that seemed normal. When I walked inside, I scanned the small space to see if there were any tables available. “What the hell?” I spoke to myself.
“Zoey?” I walked over to where she sat.
“Carter! What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be on the road to Seattle,” she spoke in shock.
“And you are supposed to be back in Connecticut already.”
“My flight keeps getting pushed back because of mechanical issues with the plane.”
“Well, the SUV wouldn’t start, and when I called the rental car company to rent another vehicle, they didn’t have any.”
“What?” She laughed. “How is that possible?”
“Apparently, it’s their busiest time of the year. So I had no choice but to catch a flight to Seattle. It doesn’t leave until four forty-five.”
“You’re stuck here for another four hours?”
“Apparently, I am. How long are you going to be here?”
“I have no clue. Last time I checked, the lady was rude and told me that they’ll keep the passengers updated as they get information.”
“Would you mind if I sat with you? There doesn’t appear to be any open tables.”
“Not at all. Did you order your food yet?” she asked.
“No. I’m going to do
“Thanks, but I’m good.” She smiled.
I gave her a smile back and went up to the counter to order some food. I couldn’t believe she was still here, but I was happy to see her.
Chapter Thirty-One
Zoey
I looked around the area I was sitting in for a sign. Any sign that someone was here watching us. My plane with the mechanical problems and delayed flight status, and Carter’s SUV not starting and no rental cars available were more than a coincidence. It was nice to see a familiar face here, even if it was his. He seemed a little bit different today and I couldn’t put my finger on why.
“I still can’t believe I ran into you here,” he spoke as he took the seat across from me.
“I believe it.” I smiled.
He gave me an odd look, smiled back, and began eating his sandwich.
“I apologized to Nora in case you’re wondering. I told her I didn’t have a choice but to fly to Seattle,” he spoke.