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Suzy continued towards Main Street, passing the town hall before reaching the drug store. Inside, she found Mr. Stone talking to the cashier. Ducking behind one of the shelves, she snuck back to the office supplies and grabbed a notebook and pack of pens. She popped her head up to see if he had left. Whew. It was clear. She took her purchases to the cashier and added some bubble gum.
Chewing her gum, she stepped outside and started for home. She had just gone beyond the town hall steps when she heard her name being called. She turned and spotted Mr. Stone coming towards her.
Crud.
She pasted a smile on her face. “Mr. Stone, what a surprise.”
He stopped a couple feet from her. “I wanted to check in to see how things are going at your mother’s house.”
Double crud. “Fine.” Her cheeks hurt from keeping the smile on her face. She held up her shopping bag. “Bought some supplies so I can make a game plan for the clean up.”
He frowned at the bag. “Make a plan? You haven’t started? You only have...”
“Twelve days, I know.” She shifted her weight to the other foot. Wanted to leave, but it would probably be considered rude. “You don’t have to worry.”
“Still I think I’ll check in on you early next week.”
She shook her head. She didn’t need to be checked on like a child. She could do this. She was capable. Strong. “You don’t have to do that.”
His frown deepened. “Something tells me that I should.” He looked her up and down. “I won’t keep you.”
“So I can go home and work on the backyard? How kind of you.” She blew a bubble and let it pop. “Have a splendid day, Mr. Stone.”
“Likewise, Miss Bylin.”
* * *
WILL NOTICED TORI’S car outside the hospital when he arrived after work. He locked his car and walked up to the entrance. The coffee stand in the lobby called his name, but he’d need to sleep later. Not that he’d had much luck the past three nights.
Tori stood at the door of their mom’s room, leaning on the wall. Head down, arms crossed. Will went up to her and put his arm around her shoulder. “Everything, okay?”
Tori looked up at him, the skin below her eyes puffy and dark. She looked tired. Lost. And a little scared. “The doctor is giving her an exam now. I think they’ll be moving her to the nursing home soon.”
“Already?”
“They’ve done all that they can do here. She needs to recuperate in a home.”
Will nodded. He’d expected this. With the plans in place to send her to the Lake Mildred seniors’ home, it wasn’t a matter of if but when they moved her there. In his mind, the sooner, the better. Then they could all move forward. “Good.”
Tori shrugged. “I guess.”
“It’s a positive sign. Shows that she’s improving.” He rubbed her arm. “It’s going to be okay.”
“You can’t guarantee that. Her hip is repairing, but she still has cancer.” She held her hands to her face. “She could die. And then where would I be?”
“She’s too stubborn to die.” But did he really believe it? Yes, his mom was one tough cookie. But cancer had a way of making the strongest person frail and helpless.
He couldn’t think like that. Had to stay positive. Had to focus on the mission: getting his mom into the home and healed so she could start chemo. That was the plan. That was the goal.
Tori looked up at him. “I haven’t heard from our sisters. Have you?”
Will shrugged. “Are you really surprised by that? They’ve made it clear they don’t want anything to do with Ma or us.” He shook his head. “When’s the last time they were here for Christmas? Or even called.”
“Carol calls Ma every month.”
“To ask for money.” He hit his fist against his thigh. “I don’t get it, Tori. Ma didn’t do anything to deserve this. What did she ever do to them?”
“She didn’t protect them from Dad.” She frowned. “Sometimes it wasn’t the belt that hurt most. It was the names.”
He could still hear his dad’s voice after all these years. Loser. Worthless. Useless. Good for nothing.
“That wasn’t Ma’s fault.”
There was surprise etched on her face. “You’re defending her? That’s a switch.”
“I’m not that harsh.”
“Except when you want her to do what you want.”
He knew that would come back and bite him in the end. He took a long, deep breath. “She has to go to the home. She can’t live on her own and expect to get better. You know it as well as I do.”
“Sure, but you were so...” She seemed to be searching her brain for the right word. “Cruel.”
Had he been? Is that how they’d seen him? “Tough love isn’t cruel. It’s necessary.”
“And I’m sure Dad would have said the same thing.” She pushed off the wall. “I need some air.”
She started to walk down the hall. Will called after her. “Am I really like Dad?”
His sister stopped and turned. “Sometimes,” she said, and then she turned back and kept on walking.
* * *
WHEN SUZY DROVE UP to the seniors’ home, she noticed the ambulance near the entrance. The lights weren’t flashing, so that was a good sign. Maybe a new patient arriving? Or an old one leaving? She checked the ambulance but noted no one was inside.
In the break room, Suzy punched in and checked the assignment sheet before arriving at her usual station. As she walked, she pulled her hair back into a ponytail and secured it with a rubber band. There was activity down the hall. Two medics were pushing an empty gurney and she waved at them as they left.
A new patient then.
Which meant she’d be spending most of her evening monitoring the room and answering the tons of questions her new patient would have. She smiled. She loved meeting people.
Carly came up to her at the station. “Is it almost seven already? No wonder I’m tired.”
“We get new blood?”
Carly glanced down the hall and nodded. “You’ll like her. She’s feisty. Right up your alley.”
Suzy nodded. “The family?”
“Worried, of course.” Carly leaned in. “The son is a real looker, FYI.”
They shared a giggle then squelched it as the person in question strode out of the patient’s room. Mr. Stone. Suzy’s giggle died in her throat. Couldn’t she get away from the man?
He approached the nurses’ station. “Miss Bylin, thank God you’re here.”
She frowned. That wasn’t the reaction she’d been expecting. “What can I do for you, Mr. Stone?”
“My mother is being...” He sighed. “Difficult. Could you give me a hand?”
Carly looked between Suzy and Mr. Stone, questions written on her face. She nudged Suzy who nodded. “Of course. Let me just get my things, and I’ll meet you in her room.”
After he left, Carly spoke, but dropped her voice. “You know that guy?”
“A little.” She shrugged and grabbed her tablet. Turned it on. Wound her stethoscope around her neck. “If you need to take off before I’m finished, I’ll just read over your notes later.”
“You go ahead. Let me know what happens.” Carly winked at her.
Suzy shook her head as she walked down the hall to room twenty-three. Inside, Mr. Stone and his sister glared at the older woman in the bed. She took a deep breath and rushed in. “Am I in luck or what? A new friend in my wing.”
The woman merely stared at her, her upper lip clenched behind her lower. This was going to be a tough one.
Suzy clicked on the room information, but obviously Mrs. Stone hadn’t been there long enough for her files to get uploaded. She placed her tablet on the side table and moved around the bed instead. Noticed the stiff way her patient rested, favoring her right side. “They give you a new hip?”
Mrs. Stone turned to look at her children. Her son shook his head. “Repaired a fracture.”
“Those aren’t any fun, are they?” Suzy fussed with the pillows behind Mrs. Stone’s head though they looked fine. She observed how her new patient stayed quiet. Sullen. She warmed the stethoscope on her hand then placed it on Mrs. Stone’s chest. Moving into a facility could cause anxiety, and she wanted to check her heart. She paused a moment, listening. Sounded normal. “At least you’ll belong to me while you get better.”
Mr. Stone cleared his throat. “That was my request.”
She jerked her head up and stared at him. Interesting. Maybe he didn’t think she was so hopeless after all. “Well, thank you. I’m thrilled to care for your mom.” She tugged at the blanket and smoothed it out. Then she checked the leads for the monitors to make sure everything had been hooked up right. “Can I get you something, Mrs. Stone? Glass of water? Piece of pie?”
“You can get me out of here.”
Suzy laughed as if that was the first time she’d heard that. “Absolutely. Once the doctor gives you the all clear, I’ll be glad to wheel you out to your car.”
Mrs. Stone turned her face away from them. “Until then, get out. Leave me alone.”
“Can’t do that, I’m afraid. You’re my new best friend.” She addressed the family. “Is there anything I can get you two? The chef makes strawberry pie on Thursdays. I can go snag a couple of pieces.”
The sister nodded. “Ma loves strawberries.” She smiled at her mother. “Doesn’t pie sound good?”
“I want to go home.”
Mr. Stone shook his head again. His voice came out low and sounded almost dangerous. “Ma, we’ve been over this.”
“You’ve been over this. You’re the ones imprisoning me here.” Their mom looked out the window.
“Does that make me your warden, Mrs. Stone?” Suzy made a face. “I’ve been called a lot of things, but not that. Mr. Stone called me flighty the other day.”
Mrs. Stone looked her up and down. “My son is usually right.”
Suzy considered this and agreed. “You’re probably right. But once we get to know each other better, you can let me know what you think yourself.” She winked at the older woman who again turned away.
“So about that pie. Who’s up for it?” She pulled out an imaginary order pad and pen. “I can bring some coffee to go with.”
The sister grinned. “I think we could all use some. Right, Ma?”
Mrs. Stone rolled her eyes. “You do what you want. Obviously, it doesn’t matter what I think anymore.”
Yep, a difficult one. Suzy looked at Mr. Stone. “Think I’ll grab your son to give me a hand. We’ll be right back.”
He followed her out of the room and down the hall towards the main entrance and the kitchen. “I’m sorry about my mother.”
She stopped to look at him, noticing the bags under his eyes. Here was a man who loved his mom. It made him less forbidding. More...attractive. She shrugged. “You don’t have to apologize. I’m used to that.”
“She’s not usually that nasty.”
“She’s just had her life turned upside down. Anger is normal. Almost expected.” She opened the door and let him pass in front of her. “She needs a few days to adjust, then she’ll be back to almost normal.”
He looked at her. “Almost?”
“Mr. Stone, her life will never be the same even after she leaves here.” She went to the refrigerator and pulled out three pieces of pie and thrust them at him. “She has to learn a new normal.”
He nodded as he juggled the plates. “This is why I requested your section. I saw the way you handled the trauma the other day.”
“Just doing my job.” She grabbed a tray from below the coffee station, poured three Styrofoam cups of coffee, and added packets of cream and sugar to the tray.
“She needs some sunshine too, and I thought of you.”
She smiled at him. “I like that. Sunshine. Much better than warden.” She looked at him right in the eye. “Or flighty.”
“Miss Bylin, I—”
“Suzy, please. If I’m going to take care of your mother, you might as well call me by my first name.”
He nodded. “Suzy, I apologize for calling you that.”
She’d heard worse, especially from some of her angrier patients. “Like I said, I’ve been called a lot of things.” She arranged the tray and took the dessert plates from him. Added forks and napkins beside them. “Now this looks fabulous.”
He followed her back to room twenty-three. Suzy placed the tray on the bedside table with some flair. “Your dessert, madam.”
Mrs. Stone glanced at it then shook her head. “I’m not hungry.”
“We’ll leave it for later in case you change your mind.” Suzy passed a plate of pie to the sister along with a fork. “If you need anything else, I’ll be your waitress tonight.”
Will took a fork from her. “Thank you, Suzy.”
Mr. Stone attempted a smile, but it didn’t quite work. She had a feeling he wasn’t used to it. She grinned instead. “You betcha. Enjoy.”
