Mute

Wide open world

-------One week later-----

        “Sam, kitten, settle down.” Jace was trying to get her to stop her manic cleaning and rearranging of things in the living room and kitchen. “Please,” He took her by her shoulders and raised her face to look at him.

        ‘I want it to be perfect.’

        ‘I know, but you are getting worked up. You need to stop for now,’ his hand drifted down to her belly again. It was comforting with the warmth of his palm. “It already looks perfect.”

        She sighed in defeat and nodded, relinquishing her cleaning rag and can of dusting spray to Jace’s hands. He placed them back under the sink and came back to her. He motioned to the couch, she plopped down and he eased down alongside her, taking her hand in his.

        “I am nervous.”

        “I know kitten, to be completely honest so am I.” He sighed, twining their fingers together, “Nonna means almost as much to me as you do.”

        “Will she like me?” She asked, laying her head against his shoulder. He lifted their hands up to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. She snuggled against his shoulder more, he removed one hand pulled her into his chest with his arm over her shoulder.

        “Nonna will love you, you two can talk to each other without an interpreter. She hasn’t ever had that.” He smiled as he rubbed his palm up and down her arm to reassure her.

        It wasn’t long before he saw a car approaching along the dirt road, Sam saw it to and was instantly up on her feet. Jace pulled the big wooden door open and pulled Sam through the screen door alongside of him. The car stopped next to his truck, his mother and Nonna smiling widely as they waved to them.

        “Kitten, take a deep breath. It is all right,” he squeezed her hand to reassure her. She looked up at him and tried to smile slightly, she really hoped these two women would like her. Jace left her standing at the top of the steps to go to Nonna’s door and open it. He held his hand out to the old woman, she took it and he helped her to her feet.

        As soon as the woman’s hand let his go they were flying a mile a minute, Sam laughed as she watched Jace tell her repeatedly to slow down. She couldn’t catch everything from that far away but she could tell he was being scolded. Nonna slapped his chest a few times, and frowned a lot.

        “Nonna, stop it. Come on so we can go meet Sam.” His mother saved him when she turned him and hugged him tight. “I have missed you so much son!”

        “I missed you too mom.” He kissed her cheek and smiled, “Sam is really nervous.”

        “Bless her heart,” his mother turned from him to the house. Nonna hooked her hand in his elbow and they all walked up to the steps. “Hello Sam, my name is Beverly, I am Jace’s mom.”

        “Hello.” She said slowly.

        “Sam, this is my grandmother, Nonna.” Jace motioned to the woman next to him. Nonna nodded politely. Sam came down a few steps closer to them, ‘Nonna, this is my wife Samantha.’

        ‘Hello. I am happy to meet you Nonna.’ Sam signed to her.

        Nonna laughed and cried at the same time, she started signing furiously. Sam had tears in her eyes as she was signing right back to his grandmother. Beverly stepped over and put her arm around Jace’s side as he watched the two women he loved so much making quick friends. He tried not to let her see but he had to wipe away a tear or two.

        “She is beautiful son.” She nudged him and he cleared his throat.

        “She’s perfect mom, I love her so much. I did things I never would have thought possible to keep her safe not long ago. I killed a guy; long story, but it’s true.”

        “You will have to tell that story later.” She sighed as she leaned into his shoulder, “I have never seen Nonna so happy.”

        There was a pause in the silent conversation in front of them, and Nonna gently spread her hands on Sam’s lower belly. The smile that lit his grandmother’s face was priceless. Beverly stepped up and her hand too joined Nonna’s on Sam’s belly.

        “Are you all right Kitten?” He asked, unable to read the look on Sam’s face. She finally looked up from the other to women to his face, a tear sliding down her cheek and dripped of the tip of her smiling lips. He climbed the steps to her side and kissed her forehead. “I told you, they love you.”

        “Oh Sam. Of course we love you, you are just perfect for Jace.” Beverly climbed the step and pulled Sam into a tight hug, Sam buried her face into his mother’s shoulder.

        “B..but, I c..can’t t.talk good.” Sam insisted.

        “That does not matter, what so ever.” Beverly took her face in both of her hands, “don’t ever question or doubt your value. I won’t allow it. You make my son happy, and for that you are a priceless treasure.”

Sam cried as she hugged his mother around the neck tightly, surprising them all. His mother held her tight, rubbing her back, and watched Jace watch the girl lovingly. He reached out, swallowing all three women in his arms around them.

        “Well who started the party without me?” Jason came to the open front door, his voice breaking the soft moment. Sam wiped away her tears and they all smiled again.

        “Jason,” Jace cleared his throat and said, “this is my mother Beverly. Mom, this is Sam’s dad Jason.” His mother nodded politely to her father, and received a smile in return. “And this is my Nonna.”

        ‘Very pleased to meat you Nonna.’ Jason signed to her.

        ‘You sign as well?’

        ‘I taught Sam to sign when she could no longer talk.’

        Jace patted Nonna on the shoulder for her attention. ‘Let’s go inside, and talk more.’ They all shuffled into the house and Jace made sure Sam was seated before he sat next to her on the arm of the couch.

‘You need to start at the beginning, and don’t you leave out anything.’ His mother signed so Nonna could be part of the conversation.

        ‘I was here in the area on a case for the Bureau. I was trying to find the head of a drug trafficking ring. He found me first, I got shot.’ He didn’t like the shock on either of the women’s faces.

        ‘Twice.’ Sam added.

        ‘Are you all right now?’ Nonna asked, he nodded.

        ‘Jason was a medic in the army. They saw me lose control of my motorcycle when I crashed, they brought me here and he got the bullets out of my back.’ His mother’s eyes round in shock. ‘I am fine now, because Sam took very good care of me.’

        ‘You said that you killed someone?’ His mother asked, Nonna looked at him in shock.

        ‘Nonna, I had to. The man I was trying to catch, he had a gun to Sam’s head. He would have killed her. I have never wanted to kill anyone, even in the service. Each time it was because I honestly had to do it. I wouldn’t have Sam now, or the baby either.’

        ‘Are you all right Sam?’ Nonna asked.

        ‘Yes, Jace saved me from that man. You can barely see the scar now.’

        ‘Show us.’ Nonna insisted, he didn’t move. ‘NOW!’

        He sighed, and lifted his t-shirt. Sam showed them the scar across his ribs. ‘It starts near his elbow, and ends there. There is no scar on his back now.’

        ‘That man did this to you son?’ His mother asked, he nodded.

        ‘What did you do to him for hurting you and scaring Sam?’

        He nodded his head no, he wasn’t going to tell that part. Sam took her thumb and slid it across her throat in a slicing motion. Nonna nodded her approval and patted Jace’s hand on Sam’s shoulders.

‘And now you are the Sheriff here?’ Beverly asked.

        ‘Yes, the state sent a trooper out to offer me the job specifically. It seems after I killed the leader all of the bad guys in the county and most of the state are terrified of me for some reason.’ He laughed when Sam giggled softly.

        ‘Why is that?’

        ‘Several of the state troopers saw the fight I had with the guy before I killed him.’ He shrugged like it were nothing at all.

        ‘Tell her what happened next.’ Sam insisted.

        He sighed in frustration, ‘they don’t need to know that. It’s too much.’

        ‘Spill it mister.’ Nonna insisted. Jason slapped his knee as he laughed, Sam was giggling again too.

        ‘Fine. After I knew he was dead and Sam was safe, I ….passed out. I woke up at the hospital. Two weeks later, after the doctor cleared me as healthy, I proposed to Sam. The next day the preacher married us.’

        ‘No dress? No wedding shower?’ Nonna asked, a highly upset look on her face. ‘Wrong! Very wrong.’

        ‘I waited long enough for her, I didn’t want something to happen to her or me without being married. I had almost lost her and that would not happen again.’ Sam hugged him tight when he finished. He bent down and kissed the top of her head.

        ‘And now I will be a grandmother.’ Beverly smiled, and patted Sam’s knee. ‘Sam, would you let us throw you a baby shower?’

        ‘Baby shower?’ She looked around at them all in confusion. ‘I don’t know what that is.’

        ‘Have you been to a wedding shower before?’ Sam nodded so Beverly continued, ‘A baby shower is the same thing, only for when a couple have a baby.’

        ‘To be honest, I don’t know how to be a mother. I don’t know what to do with a baby at all. I am kind of scared I will do something wrong.’

        ‘No parent ever knows everything there is to know, there is only common sense and the guidance of those older than us.’

        ‘I will be here to help you, and love the beautiful baby.’ Nonna told her firmly, ‘we will all help you. You won’t do it alone.’

        Sam looked around at them all, She put her index finger to her lips and then placed that hand flat on top of her other hand in an ‘s’. (Promise?) They all repeated the motions. She couldn’t help the happy tears that slipped from her eyes as she nodded.

        ‘How about we all go to dinner and celebrate? My treat?’ Jason asked.

        ‘Good, I am starving.’ Nonna seemed to jump up very spritely for someone who was almost ninety years old. They all laughed as they stood, Jace pulled Sam into his arms.

        “Didn’t I tell you Kitten? Everything is as it should be, they both love you. We will be right here with you through all of this every step of the way.”

        “I love you Jace, so much.” She tip toed up and kissed his lips and was no longer worried about facing life or the world as a Mute. Her heart now knew the language of love and that was all she would need.