Free Walker Revenge (The Walker Family Series Book 5) by Bernadette Marie

his mother’s excitement to shift.
    “Mr. Walker, you’re all set to go home.” She
handed him a stack of papers. “Here is your discharge information.
Your appointments are all made and listed on the last sheet. Your
mother assured us you'd have some home care. That’ll help in your
recovery. Of course, there will be no walking. When you come back
for your visit, and they remove the staples from your surgery, they
can assess you then and decide on your recovery. Until then, you’ll
keep your leg elevated and bandaged as it is now.”
    “How long will that be?” He wanted out of it
now.
    “A few more weeks. Mind your nurse, and
you’ll heal faster,” she said with a wink.
    Russell gritted his teeth. How had it come
to be that his healing and his return to normality would depend on
the one woman who stole all of that in the first place?
    He was helped into a wheelchair and out to
his mother’s car. Even though he wasn’t thrilled about what awaited
him at home, he knew his father couldn’t drive fast enough, because
home was right where he wanted to be.

Chapter Nine
     
    Susan scurried around the kitchen with Lydia
in tow prepping dinner. Eric had come through the back door and
stolen food from the tray his wife had set out, which had given her
reason to slap his hand.
    Dane walked in with Gia, after having picked
her up at the airport. She’d been in Everett Walker’s office making
phone calls since she’d said hello to everyone.
    Gerald, Ben, and Dane now joined Eric in the
kitchen, and they all paced as if they didn’t know what to do with
themselves.
    Chelsea sat at the table with Lucas while he
ate his snack. She was surprised that he was eating from a plate of
cut up snacks Susan had made for him. Perhaps living with the
Walkers would be good for him. Chelsea certainly wasn’t culinary,
and Lucas needed a broader food base, that was for sure.
    But, she thought, at least it kept her from
joining everyone and pacing the room. She was more nervous than she
could remember. Even more so than when she’d first been standing in
Russell’s hospital room, holding his arm, taking his vitals when
he’d awoken that first morning.
    How they possibly heard the car driving up
to the house amongst the chatter going on in the kitchen, she had
no idea, but the entire family dropped whatever they were doing and
headed to the front door.
    Chelsea sat at the table, Lucas still on her
lap. She was paralyzed in the chair. It wasn’t appropriate for her
to run to the door. She shouldn’t be excited to see him come into
the house. Fear had her sick, knowing he was going to have that
scowl on his face that meant he wasn’t happy to see her. Why would
he be?
    Lucas squirmed on her lap until he managed
out of her arms and ran off toward the door. How was it she
couldn’t even keep up with a toddler?
    She followed him out to where everyone
gathered outside the door. He pushed through their legs and ran
straight to Glenda.
    “Oh, look who came to greet us.” She picked
Lucas up and rested him on her hip as Gerald pushed the wheelchair
to the car and helped Russell out.
     
    When Russell had returned from the service,
he’d received much of the same greeting he was receiving now. Only
then, it was just his brothers. He noticed Susan was standing next
to Eric, and Dane stood with his arm around Gia. Lydia Morgan had
moved in front of the group, and Ben had rested his hands on her
shoulders.
    Gerald had moved in and helped balance him
as he managed his way out of the car and into the wheelchair, which
was now his norm.
    As Gerald turned him from the car, he got
his first glimpse of the boy he’d been thinking of. Chelsea’s son
had run outside and right to Glenda, who had scooped him up and
planted a kiss right on his cheek.
    “I guess he was eager to meet you,” she said
as she walked toward him. “This is our guest, Lucas.”
    The little boy buried his face in Russell’s
mother’s neck. “He seems to like