Path of Destruction (Broken Heartland, #2)(60)

“Gran. Dear Jesus.” He clamped his eyes shut and prayed for the memory to be erased. Nope. Still there. “Dad,” he’d hollered, heading into the other room.

But then there was the clicking, the unmistakable sound of the gas stove waiting for someone to hit the ignite button. How long had the gas been on? He wasn’t sure, but with his grandma, there was no telling. Grabbing one of the aprons his mother owned only for show, he wrapped it around his disoriented grandma and steered her away from the stove.

His dad stormed into the room and shook his head. “What in God’s name is going on in here?” His eyes turned to where Gran sat in the kitchen chair Hayden had placed her in.

“Just making pancakes,” was all she said, her thousand-yard stare landing far away from either of them.

“I turned the gas off,” Hayden offered. “But I don’t know how long it was on before I did.”

His father sighed loudly. “Come on, Mom. Let’s get you dressed.”

She mumbled something Hayden couldn’t make out. He wished for the millionth time that his grandfather were still alive. He would’ve handled this, would’ve made sure she was never in such a degrading situation. He could practically hear the old man cussing all of them in his head. They weren’t doing right by her, weren’t taking good enough care of her. But Hayden didn’t know what else he could do. He felt like a kid trying to play grownup every time he tried to help her.

Before he could flee the scene of the crime, Hayden’s mom rushed into the dining room, blocking the exit.

“What’s going on in here?” Her voice was sharp-edged and unforgiving. “Was she cooking? Did she set anything on fire?”

“Stop talking about her like she isn’t here—like she isn’t a person,” Hayden grumbled. He placed his head in his hands, knowing that this was likely the end of the line for Gran and that there wouldn’t be much he could say or do about it. He’d failed her, worse, he’d failed Pops.

“Little Hayden loves pancakes. Doesn’t he, Edwin? I swear he ate six full-sized ones yesterday.”

Hayden’s heart broke in half when he saw the hopeful way his grandmother looked at his father. They’d met with her doctor after the storm and he’d explained that sometimes she truly wasn’t there—she was somewhere else and the reality she saw was real for her.

“Yes, he does,” his father answered in a resigned tone that matched how Hayden felt. “But we can make him some another time, okay? Right now, let’s get you dressed.”

“She could’ve burnt the entire house down. Could’ve burnt herself badly,” his mother piped up angrily. “This has gone far enough.” She leveled Hayden with a pointed look. “If the two of you won’t man up and do what needs to be done, then I will.”

“She’s not a dog, Mom. You can’t just put her down because she inconveniences you. Think about what Pops would’ve—”

“I know what he would’ve wanted, son,” his dad cut in gruffly. “And this isn’t it. Her confused and putting herself or any of us in danger isn’t what he would’ve wanted. Believe me.”

Hayden did believe him. And he knew he’d played his only card one too many times. “So, what? Gran just gets shoved off into some home for invalids now?”

His emotions were too close to the surface. After all the drama with Ella Jane, the confusing encounter with Cami, and now this, he was at his limit. He’d tried so hard to stop being the selfish punk kid who’d missed out on being there for his grandparents. He’d tried to make up for that by taking care of Gran, being the best friend he could to Cami, and being as patient as humanly possible with Ella Jane. But none of that seemed to count for a damn thing right now.

After his dad had basically told him that he was calling Golden Acres that very morning and there was nothing he could do about it, Hayden had left for school feeling worthless and dejected. To add insult to injury, he’d been on his way to first period when Cooper had accosted him.

“You kiss her?” he’d asked in place of a greeting.

Hayden wasn’t sure if he was asking about Cameron or EJ. “Which her are you referring to, Joe?”

Cooper had glared at him as if he’d just insulted his mother.

Hayden put a hand up. “I’m really not in the mood for this to—” he’d started to say when Brantley Cooper had punched him directly in the face.

A few guys from the team had started shoving Cooper and a fight was about to break out when Hayden sat up with a hand in the air. “Enough. I’m f*cking fine. Move along.”

Most of them did.

“Not you,” Hayden said when Cooper glared down at him. “You help me up. We need to talk.”

Shockingly enough, Cooper held a hand out. Hayden let himself be yanked to his feet before lifting his book bag from the ground.

“Wanna do me a favor?”

“I just did,” Cooper responded with ice in his voice. “I didn’t knock you out cold.”

“Yeah. Thanks.” Hayden rubbed his throbbing cheekbone and checked his jaw. Still clicked. “It’s about Ella Jane.”

The two of them continued walking down the hall as if nothing odd had transpired. “Oh yeah? What about her?”