“I have thought about it before, but I sort of told myself things weren’t bad enough to warrant seeing a counselor. Which is strange because as assistant pastor, I counsel members of the church from time to time and I encourage it, but I guess we all look at things a little differently when we’re dealing with a problem ourselves.”
Phillip’s mom patted his hand. “Everything will work out. You just make that appointment so you and your wife can get the help you need.”
“I will. Just as soon as Dad gets better,” Phillip agreed and felt a new ray of hope where he and Alicia were concerned.
A
licia had called her mother a little earlier, letting her know about Phillip’s father, and her mother had told her that she and James would stop over at the hospital when they left work. Now, she was dialing Phillip’s cell to see how everything was going. She’d spoken to him last night, once she’d gotten home and then again first thing this morning, but she hadn’t heard from him in the last couple of hours.
“Hi, baby.”
“How’s your dad?”
“He’s still about the same but thankfully not any worse, and Dr. Nicholson was in not long ago, saying that this was a good sign.”
“I’ve really been praying for him, Phillip, and my mom and James will be by this evening.”
“That’s very kind of them. And your dad called and said that he and Charlotte will be here before five.”
“You know, of course, I’m worried about your dad and your mom, too, but how are you holding up?”
“As well as can be expected, considering the circumstances.”
“I know this is hard, and I just wish I could make things better.”
“Praying is the most any of us can do, and you’re already doing that, so you’re fine.”
“Do you need me to bring anything other than the bag you wanted me to pack?”
“No, I don’t need much. Just some extra clothing and my toiletries.”
“What about your mom?”
“Her best friend has a key to the house, so she went by to pick up a few things for her.”
“Miss Thelma?”
“Oh, that’s right. I forgot you met her at the wedding. She’s just like a sister to Mom and since Mom’s brother and sister are deceased, she’s the only sisterlike person she has in her life. Then, you know Dad’s only brother is in a nursing home, suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, so it’s not like we have a lot of family.”
“It’s pretty much the same for me because my mom is an only child, and even though my dad has a sister, they don’t have a relationship.”
“I know. Your dad has talked to me about that before, and that really bothers him.”
“Well, hey, I guess I’ll let you go so I can get going. But call me if you remember something you need before I get there. I’m planning to leave the house in a few minutes.”
“Thanks, baby. And hey, I miss you.”
“I miss you, too, and I’ll see you soon.”
“You drive safely.”
“I will.”
Alicia ended the call, dropped her phone on the seat, and felt bad. Terrible, guilty, and less than the person her parents had raised her to be was more like it—because she was nowhere near home. She’d told Phillip she was going to be on her way to
Chicago but in all honesty, she was already there—sitting in a mall parking lot, waiting for the stores to open in about ten minutes. She’d known it was wrong for her to stop here, what with her husband needing her by his side, but since he seemed to be doing okay, she didn’t see where stopping at the mall for a couple of hours was going to make much difference. Plus, had Phillip told her that his father wasn’t doing well or that he was worse, she would have immediately told him the truth, that she was only about twenty minutes away.
She didn’t like lying to him the way she’d been doing as of late, but he made her feel like she had to. If only he’d stop micromanaging her spending the way he did, she wouldn’t have to sneak around or lie about anything. If only, he’d finally come to the realization that it was crazy to save every dime for an uncertain future and not enjoy some of the good things in life before it was too late. His father was genuine proof that tragedy or illness could strike at any time, and all she could hope was that maybe now, Phillip would finally see things differently. Maybe he’d realize that enjoying life to the fullest should be their priority.
After exactly two hours had passed, Alicia left the mall and was proud of the fact that the only items she’d purchased were a Nike sweat suit, something she would need in a couple of months when it was warm enough to get back out on the bike path, and a matching pair of Nike athletic shoes. Even better, she’d gotten all of it for less than two hundred dollars.
Now, she was in the car, turning the ignition, but for some reason, her car wouldn’t start. She turned the ignition again. And again and still nothing happened. It made no sound at all, and all she could hear was a slight click. She didn’t know a lot about cars, but she did know that if there was no sound, there was probably something wrong with her battery or there was
some sort of electrical problem. So, she sat there for a minute, trying to figure out what she should do next because there was no way she could call Phillip and tell him where she was stranded.
She sat for another couple of minutes and then opened the glove compartment. She pulled out the thick leather case, pulled out the service card, and dialed BMW’s toll-free number. She gave them her name and all of the other information they needed, and they told her they’d send a tow truck out right away. They’d also said they’d send someone out from the dealership to pick her up so she could ride back with them to get one of their loaner vehicles, which actually, she was very happy about because if she hadn’t owned a car manufactured by a company like BMW, she’d have had to rent some pitiful-looking rental car.
In the meantime, while she waited, she thought about going back inside the mall to browse around a few more stores but figured she’d better wait for the tow truck. Instead, she called Melanie.
“Hey, girl, I just got a chance to listen to your message and was about to call you.”
“Can you believe Phillip’s father had a heart attack?”
“No, and I’m really sorry to hear it. I see cases like your father-in-law’s all the time, and it’s never an easy situation.”
“But he’s not going to die, is he?”
“I won’t lie to you. People have died, but there are so many people who recover from quadruple bypass surgery and go on to have normal and very productive lives. He’ll probably have to be on heart and cholesterol medication for the rest of his life, but that’s a small price to pay when we’re talking life or death.”
“I just hate that this is happening. Phillip is extremely close to his father, and his mother isn’t taking this very well herself.”
“That’s totally understandable, but I’m sure he’s in good hands.”
“Yes, he’s at one of the hospitals that specialize in heart surgeries, so we’re really happy about that.”
“Are you there now?”
Alicia paused at first. “Um, no, I was on my way but my car broke down, so now I’m sitting here waiting for the tow truck.”
“That’s not good. What do you think is wrong?”
“I don’t know. But BMW is having it towed to one of their Chicago dealerships, so I’m sure they’ll get it taken care of pretty quickly.”
“Are you going to have Phillip come pick you up?”
“He doesn’t have his truck because yesterday we rushed over with my dad and Charlotte, and then I came home with them last night so I could get my car and come back over to the hospital this morning.”
“Oh, then how will you get there?”
“They’re having someone from the dealership pick me up so they can take me back to get a loaner vehicle, but I’m hoping the dealership isn’t too far away because, right now, I’m only twenty minutes away from the hospital, and I really want to get there as soon as I can.”
“Well, let me know if there is anything I can do. I have to work the next four days straight but you know I’ll take off in a second if you need me to be there for you.”
“I know that, but for now I think we’re okay.”
“And don’t hesitate to call me if for some reason Phillip and his mom have medical questions that they’re not getting answers to, and I’ll connect them with one of the doctors here at our heart center.”
“I will, and I’ll definitely keep you posted on what’s going on.”
“Please do, and I’ll check in with you as well.”
“Okay, well, I guess I should go because it looks like the tow truck is already here. They must have been very close by.”
“Take care, and call me.”
“See ya.”
Alicia waited for the truck to make its way around to the aisle where she was parked, and then she stepped out of her vehicle.
Two handsome young men got out, and the driver walked closer to her. “Are you Alicia Sullivan?”
“Yes, that’s me.”
“Sorry about your car.”
“Thanks, but it happens.”
“Here’s our card and on the back of it is the address of the dealership where we’ll be taking your vehicle to.”
Alicia glanced over it. “Thanks.”
“Do you have everything out of it that you want to take with you?”
“Just a couple of bags and my purse but that’s pretty much it.”
“Well, while you’re getting that, we’ll go ahead and start the hook-up process.”
“Sounds good.”
Alicia gathered her belongings from the car and stood to the side. It didn’t take them very long to load her car onto the flatbed and, thankfully, a representative from the dealership was just pulling up. Soon after, the towing company employees finished what they needed to do and waved good-bye to her.
The salt-and-pepper-haired man from the dealership greeted her and then opened the passenger side of the car for her. She asked him how far they had to drive and he told her about thirty minutes. Which wouldn’t have been such a big deal, except now it had been almost three hours since she’d spoken to Phillip, and she knew he was probably wondering where she was. But she
guessed there was no sense worrying herself about it because it wasn’t like she had any other options.
About an hour later, Alicia drove away in a silver BMW and headed straight for the hospital. Within minutes, her phone rang. It was Phillip, but she was now okay to talk to him because she had her story ready. Actually, she’d left him a message about fifteen minutes ago, and she was glad he was calling her back.
“So what happened to the car?”
“I don’t know. It just wouldn’t start?”
“And it stopped on you right in the middle of traffic while you were driving on the expressway?”
“Yes, and these two men had to stop and help push it to the side of the road.”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. But it took a while for the tow truck to come, and then I had to go to the dealership. I’m finally on my way now, though.”
“Good. And the reason I didn’t answer when you called earlier was that Mom and I were talking to the doctor.”
“What did he say?”
“Not much, except that nothing’s changed and that no news is good news. Oh, and your dad and Charlotte are here. They decided to miss the elder board meeting so they could come back over.”
“I’m surprised they didn’t call me.”
“They thought you were already here. And actually, I told them you should be arriving any minute, but then I figured maybe you didn’t get to leave home right when you said.”
“Actually, I left a little later but not by much.”
“It’s been good having them and Miss Thelma here for the last couple of hours because, baby…this is hard. And I really need you right now.”
“I’m only about a half hour away or less, and I’m sorry the car broke down. Otherwise I would have already been there.”
“You can’t help what happened, so don’t feel bad about that. But, baby, just get here as soon as you can because, like I said, I really need you. I wanted to tell you that so badly when you called me this morning. I kept thinking how if for some reason Dad got worse and he didn’t make it, I really wanted you here. But I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to sound like some wimp. Plus, I wanted you to get as much rest as you could and take your time getting ready because I knew we’d have to be here all day and all night.”
“I’m really sorry I didn’t leave home earlier, but I’ll be there shortly.”
“I love you, Alicia.”
“I love you, too.”
Alicia drove about ten miles and then cringed when she saw that traffic was starting to back up. It wasn’t even three o’clock yet, so she hoped there hadn’t been an accident. If that was the case, it would take her forever to arrive at her destination. She coasted along and then changed lanes, but that didn’t help much. She did this for forty minutes, and then finally she saw flashing lights. There really had been an accident.
Finally, though, it only took her another twenty minutes to drive beyond it, and fifteen minutes after that, she pulled into the hospital lot. After parking, she hurried into the building, and took the elevator up to the fifth floor.
But when the doors opened, and she walked toward the waiting area, she saw Charlotte wiping away tears and a regretful look on her father’s face.
“We didn’t want to call you while you were driving, but, baby girl, he’s gone.”
“What?”
“Your father-in-law is gone.”
“Where’s Phillip?”
“He and his mom are in with him, saying good-bye.”
“No. But I just talked to Phillip, and he said nothing had changed.”
“I know, but as soon as he hung up we heard a code being called on the PA system, and then we found out it was for him. But come on, you need to go in there because Phillip isn’t taking this well at all. Charlotte and I only left him and his mom because we wanted to tell you as soon as you got here.”
Alicia followed her father’s direction, but all she could think was that if she hadn’t stopped at the mall, she would have gotten to see her father-in-law before he passed, and she would have been there for Phillip when it happened.
She already felt guilty for lying to him in the first place, but this was the absolute worst.