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He opened his eyes and saw Tori staring at him. “Are you okay, Will?”
No. Not at all.
But he nodded, knowing that’s what she needed. “We’ll figure things out.”
Their mom stirred, opened her eyes, but then faded into unconsciousness again. “She’s not going to want to go to a nursing home. And with my job and yours, plus the kids...”
“We do have two more sisters.”
He wanted to laugh. They’d be no help, but he’d give them a chance to step up. To see if they wanted to be involved or, as he suspected, would leave things up to him and Tori. “They still haven’t returned my first two calls, but we’ll see.”
“I’ve heard a lot of good things about the seniors’ home in Lake Mildred.” Tori stroked their mom’s arm, but her eyes stayed on him. “It would be close to both of us so we could visit often.”
He nodded. It would be the easy choice, but was it the right one? He’d always been good at fixing things. But to make decisions for his mom? What if he made the wrong one? In the Marines, he’d learned how to succeed, how to repair a situation. But he felt out of depth here for the first time. He needed to do some recon, he realized, to make the informed choice. “If I can set up a visit tomorrow, would you be able to go?”
She looked down at their mom. Reached out to move a curl that had fallen on her face. “I’ll make sure I can.”
At least he wouldn’t be alone. At least he had Tori.
* * *
IN THEORY, SUZY finished her shift at seven a.m.
By nine-thirty that morning, she admitted things weren’t going according to plan. She still had paperwork to complete after the ambulance left with her patient who had been complaining of chest pains. Mr. Wyckoff loved to complain, but those kinds of complaints weren’t meant to be played around with.
She yawned and stretched before continuing her report on Mr. Wyckoff, noting his earlier symptoms. Rita passed by the desk with a man and woman, probably showing the facility to potential clients. She stopped the tour at the nurses’ station. “And this is one of our favorite nurses, Suzy Bylin.”
She stood and held out a hand to the woman first. “Checking us out for your parent?” She turned to face the man and paused. “Mr. Stone.”
He looked tired compared to yesterday. Worry had etched lines next to his ice blue eyes and left bags below them. He frowned at her. “I didn’t realize you worked here, Ms. Bylin.”
“I didn’t know you kept tabs on me.” She flipped over her tablet to keep the details of her report confidential. She didn’t need this; didn’t need to see the man who could make her life miserable at home and now here at work. “But I think you’ll find that we take good care of our patients. We provide not only nursing care, but activities designed to keep up their spirits while they rehabilitate.”
“You sound like the brochure.”
Mr. Stone’s frown deepened, and she felt her smile widen. He wasn’t going to bring her down. Nope, he wouldn’t ruin her day. “I only speak the truth.”
The woman next to him nudged him in the side. “I apologize for Will. He’s not usually this grumpy, but we’re worried about our mom. She fell and fractured her hip, so now we need somewhere for her to recover.”
She was his sister then. Why that thought made her feel better, Suzy didn’t want to explore. So she focused on their visit, and reached out and touched her hand. “I’m so sorry. But I can promise that your mom will get the best care here. I’ll see to it personally.”
The sister smiled and covered Suzy’s hand with her own. “That means a lot. Thank you.” Again, she nudged her brother. “Right, Will?”
He looked at his sister then at Suzy. Blinked several times. In those ice blue eyes, she could see he was out of his depth. That what was happening was not easy for him. And that made him approachable. Relatable. Her heart softened to him. Finally he gave a curt nod. “Yes.”
Suzy continued to look at him. Wanting to soothe the wrinkles in his forehead. Remove the fear and doubt shining out of his eyes. “If there are any questions you have or anything you need...”
An alarm went off, and Suzy focused on the monitors. Room thirteen, Mr. Taber. She left them and ran down the hall. Mr. Taber was lying on his bed, eyes closed. She leaned over him to check his vitals. Still breathing. Good. She noticed that his heartbeat was weak and irregular, the numbers said forty beats per minute. Without a thought, she began hands-on CPR. Rita joined her in the room and glanced at the monitors. “I paged the doctor.”
“Good. I think it’s a drug interaction. We just switched his meds last night.” She continued her compressions. She looked up from her task and saw Will watching them. “Mr. Stone, we’ll have to finish the tour later. You need to go back to the nurses’ station.”
He nodded and walked away. After a minute or so, the doctor on call arrived and took over the situation. With the group’s effort, they were able to resuscitate Mr. Taber and stabilize his condition. Suzy went back to the nurses’ station to make notes on Mr. Taber’s condition and found Will and his sister still standing there. She pasted a smile on her face again. “Sorry about your tour getting cut short.”
“Does that happen a lot?” he asked.
“Define a lot.” She shrugged. “It happens enough. But I can guarantee we will do our best to care for your mom and her needs.”
He gave a short nod, and his sister offered to shake hands again, and they did. “Nice to meet you, Miss Bylin.”
“Likewise.” And she meant it. She could sense a kindred spirit with this woman. Something about how she smiled or her concern for her mom made something inside Suzy warm towards the woman.
Mr. Stone shook her hand also but didn’t say a word before they moved down the hall with Rita, continuing their tour.
Suzy watched them leave and then got out her tablet. She needed to finish her report and go home to sleep before she did something crazy like hug Mr. Stone just because he didn’t know how to take care of his mom.
* * *
AFTER THE TOUR of Lake Mildred’s Seniors’ Home, Will drove them to the hospital to check on their mom. He kept his eyes on the road as Tori gushed about their tour. “It’s so nice there. And everyone is so friendly. Especially that one nurse, Miss Bylin.” She paused and glanced over at him. “Do you know her from somewhere? I think she went to high school with us.”
Knew her and her mother. “I know her a little.”
“She’s so cute and bubbly. I love her already.” Tori rested her chin on her fist. “I think Mom would like it there.”
“It’s going to be a hard sell no matter where we decide to leave her.”
“You talk as if we’re sending her away forever.” She shook her head. “I’m as clueless as you, but I have a good feeling about that place. Can we afford it?”
That was the big question. After leaving the hospital the night before, he had gone through his mom’s records to find the insurance papers that spelled out how much of the convalescent care would be covered, as well as their bank statements that showed how much they could pay for. Hopefully, it would be just enough. “Dad made sure Mom would be looked after. He might not have been a warm man, but he made arrangements so we’d be taken care of.”
“Good, then it’s settled. We’ll tell her today about our plan.”
“I’m warning you that she’s not going to like it no matter what we say.” He knew his mom. Knew her independent spirit. She wouldn’t be agreeing to this so easily. “She won’t want to go.”
Tori nodded and sighed. “She can be stubborn.”
“Luckily she has two kids who inherited that from her.” He gave a smile, his first since the call yesterday. Had it really only been a day since their world had shifted? It had started as a normal day but had changed in a moment with a phone call. Nothing would be the same again. He nodded. “But I agree. That’s where I’d like her to go, too.”
The exit for the hospital arrived, and Will took the exit ramp. As they got closer to the hospital, he made a vow that he’d take care of his mom. No matter what.
But that meant convincing his stubborn mother that he was right.
She folded her arms across her chest and refused to look at him. Much like a four-year-old would. He moved so that he’d be in her line of sight. “Ma, this is not up for discussion. You can’t go home right now.”
“Yes I can. I’m a grown woman who can make her own decisions.” She looked to Tori. She gave her daughter a large grin. “Baby, you think I can do it, right?”
Uh oh. Ma was dragging out the cutesy nicknames. Stay strong, Tori. Will watched his sister, willed her to hear his thoughts. They had to remain united to convince her that their plan would work.
Tori paled and shrugged. “It’s not what I think, Ma. This is what the doctors say.”
Will let out a puff of air. He’d hoped they’d be on the same page here, but when his mom pulled out the baby card...He nodded at Tori, letting her know she was on the right track. They were only doing what was right for Ma.
“Doctors.” Their mom shook her head. “What do they know?”
Will sat on the bed next to his mom. “They know that you need to recover from this surgery. And they know you can’t do it at home on your own.”
“I’ll be fine.”
Tori sat next to Will. “No you won’t. You’ll be out in the garden when you shouldn’t be. You’ll be going back to work too soon. And that’s why you’re going to the seniors’ home.”
“I promise I’ll be good.”
Yep, a four-year-old. He took his mom’s hand in his. “It’s not forever. Just for now.”
His mom shook her head and took her hand away from his. “I can’t believe you’re doing this to me. That you’re sending me to a home and forgetting me there.”
Tori pleaded, “I’ll visit you every day, Ma.”
“You just want to get rid of me.” She covered her face. “You don’t love me.”
Tori put her arms around their mom. “Don’t say that. Of course we love you.” His mom and sister burst into tears, hugging.
Frustrated, Will got up from the bed. He had to take control of this situation before they agreed to do anything his mom asked. She might be good at manipulation, but he’d learned from the best. He summoned the spirit of his father, and let the steel surrounding his heart tighten...because it was for his mother’s own good.
“That’s enough.”
Startled, his mother and sister let each other go and stared up at him. Good. He had their attention. “You’re sick, Ma. Dying even.”
Tori gasped. “Will—”
“Unless you’re willing to fight to get better.” He crouched in front of his mom. “So do you want to go home and die? Because that’s what will happen.” He used the most serious tone he could. “Or do you want to go to the seniors’ home and fight this? Be around for your kids and grandkids? Live to see your first great grandchild?”
His mom narrowed her eyes at him. Let her be angry at him. It might give her the strength she needed to beat this.
He didn’t let up on her. He clenched his fists. “You will be going into that home. You will have chemo once you’re recovered. And when the doctors clear you, you can finally go home.” He stood. “Am I clear?”
There was a pause and then Ma sighed. “You sound just like your father.”
And by that, he knew he’d won this round.
CHAPTER FOUR (#ulink_bb448286-d8ef-5489-b368-68d328ff598f)
SUZY TOOK HER afternoon coffee onto the deck and surveyed the backyard. Two days had passed, and she hadn’t started the clean up. Twelve days remained. She still had trash bags to drive to the dump. Old equipment to throw out. And Daddy’s car to be donated or sold.
She leaned against the railing and winced. She needed more time. She needed at least another eight hours a day for the next week to get all of this done. And if she didn’t finish in time, she’d pay a hefty fine and might lose Mama’s house.
She’d lose everything.
She walked back into the house and surveyed the cluttered kitchen and dining room. She couldn’t remember what the kitchen table looked like any more. It had been years since she’d seen it cleared off. She might have done her homework there during her high school days, but that was before Mama covered it with plastic bags, boxes and the various stuff she’d collected.
Now that Mama was gone, it was Suzy’s problem to deal with.
She put her mug in the kitchen sink and rinsed it out. Placed it face down in the wooden dish rack, a purchase she’d made after moving back in with Mama. Just one thing she’d had to do out of a million last year after her mother called for help. Her mother had put off getting medical attention until it was too late, meaning the cancer would win. And all Mama wanted was Suzy.
Her cell phone rang from the living room. She carefully moved past the stacked bundles of old newspapers and squeezed between the refrigerator and numerous boxes filled with china.
She checked the caller ID. Presley. “Hey, girl.”
“You working tonight?”
Suzy wrinkled her nose. “Don’t remind me. It’s my sixth day, and I’m ready for a day off. But Candice is on vacation, so...”
“When are we going to have a girls’ night out?”
“Soon.” She mentally reviewed her calendar. “Sunday night?”
Presley groaned. “I’ve got an early Monday. When’s your next day off?”
“Tuesday. As long as nothing else comes up.” Suzy loved her job. Usually. But these crazy hours robbed her of a social life. “And we don’t have to go crazy. Even a pizza in front of the TV sounds fabulous.”
“Pizza and TV. You got it.” Presley covered the phone, muting her conversation on the other end. Then her voice came back. “Gotta go. Vet emergency. I’ll call you.”
Then she was gone.
Suzy sat on the couch and rested her head. Okay. Time to get organized. Make some lists. She looked around the living room. Mama had to have a notebook and pen around here somewhere, right?
After searching several boxes and piles, she gave up. She’d get those from the drugstore in town. A walk would do her good. Get her out. Clear her mind. Give her a moment to collect herself. And then she could come up with a plan.
She didn’t bother locking the front door. Just grabbed her wristlet purse and left. The town hadn’t had a problem with crime in years. Plus, if they wanted to rob Mama’s house, it might make things easier on her in the end.
She took a can of cat food from her jacket pocket and used the ring to pull back the top. It was easy to find the empty dish at the end of Mr. Fletcher’s deck—where it always was—and she emptied the food onto it. She called out to Snowflake, but didn’t hear an answering meow. Maybe the cat was napping in the house and would eat later. She then left her neighbor’s yard and walked down the driveway and on towards town.
The walk took less than ten minutes, but it felt good to be outside with the sun on her back. To be free from the house and its issues. To leave her grief behind for just a moment.
She passed by the elementary school where kids played on the swings and chased each other. One of the playground monitors waved to Suzy then approached her. “I’ve been meaning to stop by and see how you’re doing.”
Mrs. Drayton had been a friend of Mama’s as long as Suzy could remember. She shrugged. “I’m okay.” Mrs. Drayton peered at her, and Suzy was tempted to squirm a little. Okay, a lot. “Really. I’m fine.”
“When I lost my mother, I stayed in bed for weeks.”
Suzy hadn’t been given that choice. “It’s been six months.”
Mrs. Drayton nodded. “Call me if you need anything, sweetie. Anything.”
“I appreciate that.”
A scream from the slide got Mrs. Drayton’s attention, and she excused herself to take care of a crying child.
Suzy could appreciate the concern that people had for her, but she was okay. Usually. She’d discovered how strong she was after spending months bathing and feeding Mama. Doing things for her that no daughter should be expected to. But she’d done it with a smile because that’s what Mama had needed. And being needed had felt good.
