Wings of Deception (24 page)

It was a tough year for him but he had learned much from being a single father. That and the church kept him so busy he had no time to feel sorry for himself and time had been his friend for truly his pain had lessoned.

He watched Gem as she plopped down on the grass that surrounded her mother’s grave, trying to catch a cricket that was hopping frantically to get away from her. He laughed
and it felt good.

Yes, he missed Kim still, but the desperate mourning was not there as it was the last visit. He swung Gem up in his arms and said, “Gem, you are so like your mother, yes you are!” Whatever Gem was babbling back at him could be anyone’s guess, but
Dwight
liked to think she was agreeing with him.

Before they reached the car his cell
phone
rang. It was
about
Carol
. H
e was needed at the hospital so he buckled Gem in and headed there. It sounded serious and he did not want to waste time calling a sitter. Of course as soon as he got there Jean took her over
. H
e went in to find Joe and Brenna both in tears.

Carol was comatose and her body was shutting down.
Dwight
prayed with them. He prayed that God’s will be done and for
the
strength
for them all
to accept that will.

Jean volunteered to take the baby home so
Dwight
could stay with Joe and Brenna. Several relatives and friends waited in the waiting room for any news.

It was a long murky night and they could hear distant thunder that promised to bring relief with a good rain storm.
By
midnight
everyone had left going home
,
sure that by morning it would all be over. Left to
themselves,
Dwight
, Joe and Brenna sat close to Carol’s bed.
Dwight
and Joe both tried to get Brenna
to get
some rest on the sofa turned cot, but she refused to leave her post watching while Carol struggled
for
each breath and terrified that each one would be her last.

The night
passed slowly
and eventually Brenna dozed in her chair
,
while
Dwight
and Joe talked in hushed tones…until the monitor sounded its alarm and Brenna woke with a cry that was more
like
a loud moan. Nurses rushed in and after checking everything and finding no sign of life, pulled the cover up over Carol’s head. One left to call the doctor, the other stayed to help
Dwight
console the broken
-
hearted parents.

It was recorded that Carol Bowler died at three-thirty
-seven, July nineteen, two thousand and ten. Exactly three minutes later a cry from beneath the sheet sent Brenna into a dead faint and
Dwight
and Joe and the nurse into shock
ing disbelief
.

The nurse reacted
quickly
and jerked the sheet off Carol’s face. A sleepy looking little girl looked
up at
her and said, “I’m thirsty.”

The nurse had pushed the call button to the station almost simultaneously with uncovering Carol so that the other nurse appeared back on the scene. The chaos worsened when the doctor arrived in a disheveled state to get there as fast as possible.
Dwight
was holding Brenna trying to revive her
,
while Joe
almost broke his neck getting to his little girl.

She had not uttered a word for three days
.
S
he had had no intake of food
n
or
drink for almost forty-eight hours, but here she was
now
asking for a drink!

The doctor moved to where he could get to Carol and examine her while the nurse held her head and gave her sips of water.

“Carol, this is Dr Walker, I am going to take a look at you, is that alright?”

“Uh-huh.” She laid her head back down with the nurse’s help.

Brenna came to and huddled close as she could on the other side of the bed with Joe holding her for support.

“Oh God, she is still alive, our baby is not dead Joe
,
she is still alive. Thank you Lord!”

She was crying and Carol looked worriedly
toward the sound of her mother’s voice
, “
Don’t cry
Momma
?
I’m not dead
‘
cause
Jesus told me I’m not ready to come live with him.
Heaven is so beautiful and I wanted to stay with Him but He said not yet.
”

Brenna burst into a fresh bout of tears.

The doctor was conversing with the nurses who adamantly insisted there was no
life in Carol
when they came in response to the alarm. He believed them
. Alt
hough he was baffled at the fact
that
since
they had
disconnected the drip providing her with pain meds
,
she
was not
screaming with pain. Instead she almost acted as if….

“I’m sleepy, Poppa can I go back to sleep now?”

“Yes you can my baby girl, you just close them eyes and go back to sleep.
Me
and Momma, we going to be right here when you wake back up. I promise.”

Dr Walker instructed one of the nurses to stay in the room and went out with the other one and
Dwight
.

“I have never seen anything like this and I have seen a lot. You know it is only a reprieve for she cannot live in the condition her body is in. No way. I do not even understand how she is tolerating the pain.
Dwight
, what are you thinking
?”

Dwight
was fighting doubt himself but it gave way to his unshakable faith that God was the only one who could know what had happened or what might happen. He shook his head and said to them, “Todd,
I think we have just witnessed a miracle
,
whether
Carol lives or dies, tonight she and those two people in
there with her got a miracle from God. I think I am going to go home now, I
am
sure you will call me if you need to.”

“I am going to hang around till morning,” He looked at his watch. “It will be daylight soon anyway.”

“Thanks, tell them I will be back later today
,
unless they need me
before
.”

He left the hospital and found that the promised rain had come and gone
,
leaving a sweet savor in the air and he breathed it in deeply thinking,
God, I know
that
you would not tease those poor people
,
so
I am going to start right now praising you for Carol’s healing
. You are a wonderful and awesome God and I am thankful that you have heard our prayers!

Carol slept as sound as she could with her parents touching her and whispering for the next couple of hours. The magnitude of what had happened had not hit them yet but when the room filled with the light of the day and Carol sat up in her bed rubbing her eyes, they too realized that something extraordinary had happened in the wee hours of the morning
,
in the small hospital room in Philadelphia, Mississippi.

The fact that Carol was hungry
and demanded something to
eat
,
further convinced everyone including the doctors
,
that something had changed with Carol’s condition.
She was given a very light meal before
she was subjected to test
s
. A new MRI was ordered and every doctor
connected with the hospital
was eager to see it.

Word spread at the speed of modern day technology and within hours anyone who had a phone
,
computer
or
was connected in any way, knew about
Carol’s
radical
turn for the better.

When the MRI came back showing nothing but scar tissue where the tumor had been, the
entire
medical world took notice. Philadelphia was overrun
with
media, news reporters and curiosity seekers and Carol was a national news item. Two days after her parents thought they were going to say good bye, they instead secretly took Carol with the help of family and friends away
,
where Carol could regain her strength.

Dwight
had
missionary friends in the southwest part of Mexico
who
welcomed them
so that
in privacy Carol
could recuperate. Her sight had not returned to normal but Joe and Brenna were thrilled that she was alive and knew God was
answering their prayers.

                                                                                       EIGHTEEN

Sheila’s move went smooth
ly
and Honey welcomed her into her home with enthusiasm
.
W
hen the
complete
story unfolded concerning her last year in New York,
Honey
proved to be a good friend to the younger woman. It was another reason Jacks wanted to have her
to
stay
with Honey,
knowing that the emotional support
she
could give
would prove invaluable
.
He was
right;
the fact
that
both were Christians gave them a
common
bond that grew into a strong friendship.

Sheila got settled in her new surroundings and job easily and began looking for a place of her own
right away
though she was assured there was no hurry.

She was introduced to the members of the church
Dwight
pastored and began making new friends. She and Jean were of the same age group and both single so they hung out and became best
of
friends. Her life was slowly navigating back to one she was comfortable with
and
though she could never go back to the person she was before Morgan, she was
excited at the possibilities her new life offered.
The wonder of Carol’s miracle embedded within her a new faith in God that she so desperately needed and Jacks was relieved to see some of the old Sheila return.

He had worried that Morgan’s damage to her might be permanent
but with her settling
in
so well, he concentrated on his upcoming meeting in New York with a man he was curious to meet
.
 
He told himself to leave things alone but something would not allow him to let it go.

The two weeks passed quickly
.
Sheila’s move and his work where he was accomplishing much.
The ACAA quietly dropped the Bowler case which he was glad to have happen
,
for he no longer believed Carol was a victim.
Her
medical turn for the better caused him to
speculate
for he had never before witnessed a miracle but now could not deny
they did happen
,
for
she had
surely
been given one. However
,
it had occurred he was still sure there was
some
reasonable
medical
explanation for it. For if God
were
responsible, would He not have healed
her eyes
too?