Page 24 of Faith for the Cowboy
Lawson shook his head. “I’ve never had a choice.”
Dad nodded slowly and reached his hand up to rub his shoulder. “I realize that now. We didn’t mean for it to be that way. I guess you didn’t have a choice as a kid, and somewhere along the way, we forgot to notice that you’ve grown. You have a choice, son.” His words caught in his throat.
Lawson was surprised his father was so emotional over this. He had never seen him this way. “I, uh, I guess I appreciate that. But if I make the wrong choice, you’ll try to talk me out of it.”
“I...” No more words came from his mouth. His father gasped in pain and grabbed his left shoulder.
“Dad?” Lawson shouted, moving to his side quickly. It was just in time to catch him as he collapsed. “Dad!”
His father closed his eyes and lay limp in his arms.
“Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God,” Lawson heard the words coming from his mouth and couldn’t stop repeating them. He lowered his dad to the ground and frantically tried to think what he should do. The only thing he could do was plead, “Oh my God, oh my God.”
Finally, he reached in his pocket and pulled out his phone. His hands shook as he swiped and pressed the button for an emergency call. He had never thought he would use that system, but now he was thankful for it since he was sure he wouldn’t even be capable of pressing the numbers correctly.
“9-1-1, what’s your emergency?”
Lawson swallowed hard and managed to stop his refrain long enough to say, “Please, help. I think my dad is having a heart attack.”
“Alright, we’re here to help.”
Lawson would never recall how he was able to relay the information to the operator, or how he placed a call to Sawyer to let the rest of the family know. But in what seemed like the longest few minutes of his life, he sat on the floor of the barn, holding his dad in his arms.
And begging God to let him live.
16
Harper kept her eyes on the road and on Sawyer’s truck as she followed him to the hospital. The paramedics had checked James Macklin over, and it had been agreed for him to be taken to the emergency room.
She had still been sitting at the table with the family when Sawyer’s phone rang. He picked it up and said, “It’s Law, maybe he’s calmed down a little. Hey, bud,” he answered.
Harper had watched with the family as Sawyer’s face went pale, and his mouth dropped open. Her stomach wrenched when he said, “He says Dad’s having a heart attack.”
The room fell absolutely silent for a long moment. Everyone looked from one person to the other in shock and hands flew to mouths.
Then, as if moving from slow motion to rapid speed, everyone jumped up and moved out of the dining room. Sawyer took charge and asked the wives to gather the kids and take them to the living room to watch a movie. He took his mother and let her hold onto his arm as they rushed out of the house.
All the remaining brothers ran out the door, and Harper decided since she wasn’t a wife, she could go too.
Now, as they pulled into the hospital parking lot, Harper glanced over at Lawson. He hadn’t really spoken since they got in the truck. He had been pretty angry when he left the house, that much was obvious. Mr. Macklin had gone after him to talk. She wondered what the conversation had been about, or if he had even talked to him before the accident happened. She pulled into a parking spot and put the truck in park. It felt strange to drive Lawson’s vehicle, especially without asking him. But he was in no shape to drive and hadn’t objected.
“Do you want to go in?” she asked.
Lawson shook his head. “Not just yet. I’m sure it will be a while before we can see him. Or before they have any news. I just need a minute.”
Harper bit her lip and reached out, putting a hand on his arm. “I understand.” They continued to sit in silence. Staring out the window, Harper laced her fingers together and waited. How long, she wasn’t sure. It felt like both seconds and hours at the same time.
Finally, Lawson cleared his throat and stuffed his cowboy hat onto his head. “Alright, let’s go in.”
Harper climbed out, made sure the door was shut and locked, and then followed Lawson across the parking lot and through the doors of the emergency room. They followed the signs directing them to the waiting room. The voices of the Macklin brothers grew louder as she neared.
“Should we go and ask?” Colton said. He stood leaning against the wall with his cowboy hat in his hands.
“No. They will let us know when there is something to tell us,” Sawyer spoke up. He sat in a chair next to Lydia. When Lawson and Harper entered the room, all the brothers fell silent, but not for long. Jenson stood from where he sat next to Sawyer and put a hand on Lawson’s shoulder. “I’m glad you’re here.” Lawson gave a quick nod and took a seat. Without a word, Harper moved to Lydia and gave her a hug.
“So, no news yet?” she asked Sawyer.
The oldest brother shook his head. “We’re trying to be patient,” he chuckled. “Some of us are not very good at it.”
