She slid her hands into her pockets and watched the street in front of her. “Yes, it was. I’m glad we did it. We had a lot to celebrate.”
“Did you hear that Tate Osbourne got drafted? He had to register today, and he’s waiting to find out where he’ll be assigned.”
“He’s a mechanic? I thought he went to college.”
“No, he worked for the Toyota dealership before the outage. He’s hoping they’ll let him stay in the area, since he’s got a girlfriend here. Man, I wish I knew more about fixing cars. I’d love to help with the effort.”
She smiled as they turned up her driveway. “You do help. You’re the busiest guy in Oak Hollow.”
“Yeah, well, I have a lot to prove.” He set the chairs down in her garage and leaned them against the wall.
“You don’t have to prove anything, Mark. If people don’t see what kind of person you are, then it’s their loss. Not yours.”
He leaned back against the dead Expedition. “Yeah, well. That says easy, and does hard. But your endorsement means a lot.”
She hadn’t thought of her friendship as being an endorsement, but she supposed there was power in that, since she’d nearly been one of his father’s victims. She wished it helped more.
“So are you okay about Craig?” he asked.
She shrugged. “Yeah. Tonight got my mind off him.”
“Good.” He smiled. “You’re an awesome dancer.”
She nudged his shoulder and looked up at him. “So are you.”
Their eyes met, and she was struck at the paleness of his in the darkness. She had always liked his eyes.
Her heart pounded as she looked up at him, and her mouth suddenly went dry. She felt her face flushing under his gaze.
That shyness flushed over her again. “Thanks for carrying the chairs. You’re my hero.”
She saw him swallow, felt him turning to her. Then he was in front of her, hands in his pockets, his gaze feathering across her face.
He was going to kiss her — but he hesitated, giving her the chance to pull away, to make some excuse, to hurry inside.
Instead, she stood where she was, looking up at him as her heart stumbled.
Slowly, he lowered his face to hers. His hand came out of his pocket, and he touched her face, tipped her chin up to his. She closed her eyes as his lips touched hers. Her fears and grief melted away.
The kiss was sweet, soft, undemanding. But her heart slammed against her chest. She pulled back and looked up at him, surprised at her own reaction. He gazed back, his eyes probing, as if wondering if he’d made a mistake.
She smiled, and that hint of fear in his eyes faded. He grinned back at her.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he whispered.
She tried to think of something pithy to say, but came up with nothing. Swallowing hard, she whispered, “Good night.”
“Lock up,” he said as he left her garage.
She pulled the door shut and locked it, then stood in the dark for a moment, reliving that kiss, relishing the thrill of it. Knowing better than to think about it too much, she touched her heart and headed inside.
K
AY SPENT HER TIME AT THE PARTY ATTENDING TO
E
LOISE,
who had become so ill that her skin had a deathly pallor. She was skinnier than Kay had ever seen her.
Eloise had trembled as she flirted with Sarah and Luke. When Eloise pulled Luke into her lap, Kay feared her bones would splinter under his weight. Yet there was joy on Eloise’s face as she laughed with the children.
As she helped clean up after the party, Kay found Derek talking with some of the neighbors. She pulled him aside. “Derek, tell me about Eloise’s cancer. She’s getting worse, isn’t she?”
He glanced at Eloise, talking with friends from her wheelchair. “I can’t do any of the usual tests without an MRI and CT scan, but it’s clear to me that her cancer has spread. She’s got a lot of pain in her head, which tells me that it’s probably made its way into her brain, and she’s having chest and abdominal pains. From the sound of her lungs, I’d say it’s there too. We haven’t been able to do the chemo treatments every three weeks like she needs because we can’t get enough in. The companies who make it have had to slow production, and they haven’t been able to transport it. Then there’s the money issue. No one can afford it. I’m hoping the government will do something about it soon.”
Ironic, Kay thought, that the illegal drugs were getting in more easily than the lifesaving ones. Too bad Tamoxifen wasn’t sold on the streets.
“But Kay, even if we could get the chemo, I doubt it would help her now. She’s advanced stage four. The best thing I can do for her now is keep her comfortable until she dies.”
Kay was stunned. “So she needs hospice care?”
“Frankly, yes. But the outage has put most of the hospices out of business.”
She blinked back her tears and looked across the way to the frail woman. “How long do you think she has?”
“It’s really hard to say, but I’d be surprised if she’s still with us a month from now.”
The news hit her hard, even though she had expected it. When Kay wheeled her home, she stayed and helped Eloise get ready for bed.
Eloise was grateful. “God has blessed me so much to have friends like you,” she said. “Just think what this outage has done for us. Before, we didn’t know each other well. Now we’re like family.”
As the woman got into bed, Kay pulled her blankets over her. Though it was still muggy and hot, Eloise seemed constantly cold.
“And those precious children you’ve taken in. What a joy to have them around. They’re just precious. And that poor little Aaron has the weight of the world on his shoulders. I’ve been praying that he’ll let God shoulder it with him. I can’t wait to see what God makes of him.”
Kay sat down next to her on the bed. “Eloise, how do you always have such a sunny outlook when things are going so badly for you?”
Wisdom twinkled in the woman’s moist eyes. “Because so much is going right. I have twenty-five dollars that I didn’t have a few days ago. Brad and Judith got me to the disbursement and kept me in the shade the whole time we were in line. Tonight we had a lovely celebration. And you’re here now, ministering to me. How can I complain?”
Kay laughed softly. “I don’t know,
I
always seem to find a way.”
“Well, then, you need to sit down and make yourself a list.”
“A list? What kind of list?”
“A list of things you’re thankful to the Lord Jesus for. You’ll see how many good things he’s given you.” She took Kay’s hand and gazed into her eyes. “God told us to give him thanks
in all things
, and to praise him continuously. Even in our trials. There’s power in that praise, Kay. You need to teach that to your children.”
She smiled. “I have to get it through my own head first.”
Eloise patted her. “Don’t feel bad. I didn’t teach my son that, either. Didn’t know it then. But oh, if I had it to do over — I’d do so many things differently.”
Kay felt as though she sat at the feet of someone who knew God so intimately that she should record every word. “What would you do differently, Eloise?”
She thought for a moment. “I would have made my son understand that I didn’t need this big house and all the fine furniture. But I guess that’s the mark of success in child-rearing — if they don’t need you anymore.”
Kay inclined her head and frowned at her friend. “Is it?”
She breathed a laugh, and that sadness fled. “No, it isn’t, but like I said, what do I have to complain about? He’s healthy and happy and has a life of his own. He’s a good, good boy, Clark is. A trial lawyer up in Boston. He’s very busy, you know.” Her voice faded out. “I wish I could see him one more time. I think I have things yet to teach him.”
Kay couldn’t imagine dying without her children.
“Besides,” Eloise added, her eyes growing moist. “I miss him an awful lot.”
“Does he know how sick you are?”
Eloise dabbed at her eyes. “No, I didn’t want to worry him. And I’ve only gotten one letter from him since the outage. I can see that God’s working in his life through this. Maybe the Pulses have brought him closer to the Lord. God may be answering my prayers for his salvation, even as we speak.”
When Kay left Eloise for the night, she started writing a letter to Clark. Doug came into the kitchen and peered over her shoulder.
“What’s this?”
She told him what Eloise had said.
“She’s so wise,” he whispered. “Makes her seem richer than the rest of us. Even when she’s losing everything … even her life.”
Kay sighed. “I don’t want her to be alone, Doug. Either we need to bring her over here, or one of us needs to stay with her at night.”
“We don’t have any extra beds,” Doug said, “but I suppose we could give her our room, since we couldn’t get her up the stairs. One of us would have to sleep on the couch so we could check in on her at night.”
It all seemed so complicated. She doubted Eloise would agree to it. “She’d be more comfortable in her own home,” she said. “What if I slept over there at night? I’m not needed here after I get all the kids to bed.”
“Not needed?” he teased, nuzzling her neck. “What about me?”
She kissed him. “You’ll be all right.”
His eyes turned serious. “I don’t really like it,” he said, “you and her over there alone. I wouldn’t agree to it unless Jeff went with you.”
“But she’s been by herself all this time. We never worried about her then.”
“You’re right. God has protected her. But I’d feel better if Jeff was there with you, anyway.”
“Okay, I’ll tell him. I’ll go pack an overnight bag, after I write a letter to her son.”
“Her son?”
“Yes,” Kay said. “It’s time I let him know that if he doesn’t come, he may never see his mother again.”
E
ARLY THE NEXT MORNING
, K
AY TOOK THE LETTER SHE
’
D
written to Clark to the post office.
“You’re just in time,” Mrs. Lipscomb said in her gruff voice. “I was just heading to the train station, so it’ll go out today.”
“Great!”
Mrs. Lipscomb checked the return address. “You Deni Branning’s mother?”
Kay nodded. “Yes, why?”
The postmaster went to a box and began digging through the packs of mail.
“Knowing how your daughter pines away for her boyfriend, I try to pay a little more attention to your mail,” she said, “so here’s the pack of it. Nothing from him, though.”
“Thank you.” Kay took the bundle, fighting back her amusement at Mrs. Lipscomb’s interest in their daughter’s drama. She flipped through the letters and saw one with the return address of Tuscaloosa. Maybe it was from the Gatlin family!
She hurried back out to the sunlight and tore into the envelope.
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Branning,
I’m writing to let you know that your letter to the Gatlins didn’t reach them. Six months ago we bought their house and they moved to Atlanta, Georgia. Their address is below. I’m sorry it didn’t get to its destination. I hope this helps.
The Andersons.
“Oh no!” She felt like throwing something. All that time wasted! Now she would have to start all over. What she wouldn’t give for the defunct FedEx! Or better yet, a telephone with directory assistance. Mrs. Lipscomb came out the door, rolling her cart of mail to her truck.
“Mrs. Lipscomb, wait! I have to send another letter!”
The woman looked annoyed. “Well, let’s have it.”
“I haven’t written it yet. Please, can I borrow an envelope and a stamp? I’ll pay you back this afternoon, but I have to get this out today. It’s to the parents of Jessie Gatlin.”
Mrs. Lipscomb paused. “That girl that was murdered?”
“Yes. I just got her parents’ address. I need to get it in the mail, to let them know what’s happened.”
“They don’t know, huh?”
“No, they have no idea. And we haven’t known how to reach them until now.”
The woman turned and started loading the truck. “All right,” she muttered. “But I don’t have time to wait. Train’s leaving. You can ride with me and write it on the way. Load your bike in the back while I go back in and get another load.”
Kay did as she was told, then wrote feverishly until they reached the train station.
T
WO WEEKS PASSED AS
K
AY AND
J
EFF SLEPT EACH NIGHT AT
Eloise’s house. The woman was getting sicker, and sleep was sometimes elusive. Tonight she had struggled to relax, despite the pain that gripped her. When Eloise finally fell asleep, Kay tiptoed back across the house and lay down on the couch in the living room. She tried to get comfortable, but she missed her own bed, the rhythmic sound of Doug’s breathing, and the warm feel of his body next to hers.
Kay’s sleep each night had been sporadic as Eloise retched and retched, and Kay sat with her, holding her head and cleaning her up. Fatigue ached in Kay’s bones from the vigil night after night, while continuing to do her work at home during the day while other neighbors took turns being with Eloise. But her friend had offered her so much over the last few months. It was the least Kay could do to be there for her now.
Eloise had given Jeff the room upstairs that she had decorated for her son and his wife in case they ever came to visit. But they never had. Jeff managed to sleep through all the suffering downstairs, but Kay had called him once or twice to help when Eloise fell. He always responded quickly. But mostly she let him sleep, because he was usually exhausted from working so hard. The chicken coops were almost finished, and the chickens they had ordered would be delivered any day. Even Aaron had gotten caught up in the building, taking special pride in the structure at the back of their yard, and he looked forward to the eggs they’d be able to eat when the chickens started laying. She hoped they’d have the chance to experience the thrill of that before they found their relatives.
Kay watched the mail each time it was delivered, hoping for something from the Gatlin grandparents, or from Clark, Eloise’s son. By now he’d probably gotten her letter informing him of his mother’s condition. She supposed it was too soon to expect a reply, but time was running out.