Here for You

by Pat Simmons

  “Come on. Let’s walk to the courtyard café and get the ladies something to eat and drink.” Marcus nudged him.

  “Yeah.” Nicholas trailed Marcus to the elevators. Once inside, he turned to Marcus. “Nobody knows this, but the night she told me about the lump, I had planned to propose.”

  “Planned?” Marcus frowned. “Have you changed your mind?” He didn’t look pleased.

  Nicholas didn’t like the insinuation. If he had gone ahead, he doubted Rachel would have remembered. “From what I’ve heard you all say, you and Tabitha didn’t start off as friends. Did you walk away from your wife when things got crazy with Miss Brownlee?”

  “Of course not!” Marcus seemed mad that Nicholas would assume such a thing.

  “I’m glad we have a common understanding. One thing I have learned from her is how to love hard.” He smiled. “For the record, I haven’t changed my mind. When I propose, I don’t want anything else on her mind but to say yes.”

  Nicholas thought about a portion of the wedding vows: until death do us part. Lord, I don’t like that option.

  When the outpatient procedure was over, all of them left the medical center the same way they’d entered: not knowing. Until the pathology report came back, the waiting continued. It had been a long, stressful day.

  Rachel was back in her condo, sitting in the living room with her sisters by her sides while the men talked. Finally, Nicholas announced he had to leave for Bible class. He squatted before Rachel. “You know I love you, right?”

  As she stared into his eyes and whispered, “Yes,” he noticed the light in her eyes was dimmed.

  “Remember, I’m praying. Okay?” He waited until she nodded, then he stood, and Marcus walked him to the door. “I’ll check on Rachel later,” Nicholas told him.

  Nicholas yawned as he slipped behind the wheel of his Maxima and headed on I-65 South toward Brentwood. He rubbed his neck a couple of times as he drove on autopilot, his mind lingering on Rachel. He was beat after getting up early to be with Rachel and had barely slept the night before.

  His heart would be heavy tonight, knowing the reason why she wasn’t attending the Bible class with him. He prayed that the test would come back negative.

  Nicholas was ten minutes away from church when his brother called. Nicholas grunted.

  “Hey, Bro. Is everything okay?” Karl asked.

  If only you knew. Nicholas tried to sound upbeat. “Yeah, I’m almost there, my dear brother’s keeper. What’s up?”

  “Well, brace yourself for rumors when you get here.” Karl didn’t sound happy.

  Suddenly, Nicholas was alert and frowned. “Rumors? What kind of rumors?”

  Karl spoke to a couple of church folks in the background before rejoining the conversation in a low voice. “It’s about you and Rachel. Someone said they spotted you and Rachel leaving an OB/GYN’s office and she might be pregnant.”

  “What?” he roared and had to jam on his brakes to keep from running a red light. “You can stop right there.” Nicholas didn’t have to guess the culprit. How dare Leah try to smear Rachel’s name with lies?

  “First off, Rachel is not pregnant by me or any man. Second, she needs prayer badly right now. She’s facing some unknowns, and it would crush her to hear those nasty things. I’m not at liberty to share what’s going on with her, so please pray that this trial will pass from her. When I get to church, I know who I need to confront.”

  Karl exhaled. “Thanks for clearing that up.” He paused. “Although I know you, I also know how much you love Rachel. The temptation is real for singles.”

  “Yes, the struggle is real,” Nicholas agreed. “God is helping us.”

  “Glad to hear you say that, because…I know you’re mad, but remember God is calling us to a higher standard when it comes to conflict resolution. We’re still charged with ministering to the troublemakers with the love of God.”

  Nicholas knew the passage in Luke 17 well. “Thanks for the reminder. I’ll calm down and think before I speak. I’m turning into the parking lot now.” He thanked God for his baby brother’s wise counsel, because he knew exactly where Leah Clemens sat in Bible class.

  By the time he parked and walked through the church doors, Nicholas had cleared his head. Stepping into the pew that he and Rachel often claimed, he bowed his head and asked forgiveness for his attitude. He glanced at the monitor for the lesson reference and ignored any curious stares directed at him.

  Pastor Mann taught from Ephesians 6:1–5: Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens…

  How timely, Nicholas thought.

  The pastor emphasized, “We should never rejoice to see someone suffer. That is not God’s will.” He cited examples of how people could be cruel to one another. “As a companion text, read 1 Corinthians 6:11.”

  I hear You, Lord, Nicholas thought. Please let Leah hear You too, or whoever was the offender, if I’m wrong. Although he grasped everything that was being taught, he kept his fellow church member in view. He wouldn’t let her leave without confronting her.

  Finally, after the closing prayer, he made a beeline to where Leah was chatting with some other women. They seemed to part like the Red Sea when they saw him coming.

  He greeted them with a smile. “Sorry to interrupt, but do you mind if I have a word with you, Leah?”

  They scattered but not before casting a suspicious look her way.

  Leah leaned against the wall, clutching her Bible to her chest. Lifting an eyebrow, she smirked. “Why, Minister Adams, what can I help you with?”

  Taking a deep breath, Nicholas coaxed himself to remain calm. “My brother heard rumors around the church about me and Rachel Knicely that were not complimentary. Do you have any idea how those rumors were started?”

  She shrugged. “I mentioned how shocked I was to see you and Rachel in a doctor’s office hugging.”

  “You’re letting your imagination stir up things that aren’t there,” he stated and glanced around, double-checking they had privacy.

  “I know what I saw.” She raised her voice in a challenge. Then she looked hurt. “Why did you put on this big front while we were dating that we couldn’t do this and that and not touch? I saw a lot of touching going on. You’re a hypocrite.” She pointed her finger at him.

  “Will you lower your voice?” He glanced around.

  Folding her arms, she twisted her lips. “Why, Nicholas? What makes her so special? I get it that men are attracted to women with long hair, but what about spiritual maturity? Does she have that?”

  After this trial she’s about to face, God will have taken her to a new level of maturity. “Leah, we’re all in different places in our relationship with God. The Lord was the matchmaker. It wasn’t her hair that captured me. It was her heart, and I love her.” He paused to let that sink in. “You have wronged both of us. I forgive you—and it’s not easy—for tarnishing a good name. When the truth comes out—and it will—I hope you’ll see what you’ve done.”

  A frightened look crossed her face before she humphed at him and stormed off.

  Chapter 22

  The news wasn’t good for Rachel. The biopsy revealed she had cancerous cells. Rachel had stage one breast cancer.

  A gut-wrenching moan escaped from deep within her. “No.” She would have collapsed if she hadn’t already been sitting with her sisters by her side in the doctor’s office.

  “We caught it early. That’s the good news,” Dr. Brooks said. “Now let’s discuss our game plan to attack this head-on. You will be a cancer survivor.”

  Will I? She guarded her thoughts so as not to say them aloud. How could Dr. Brooks put good news and cancer in the same breath? Rachel felt sick to her stomach, and there wasn’t much in her sto
mach. Despite not having an appetite, her sisters had forced her to eat some breakfast.

  “You have invasive ductal carcinoma or IDC, which is stage one. It’s the most common type of breast cancer, and it starts in your milk ducts and spreads as it invades the fatty tissue surrounding it. Your tissues are being tested to rule out if certain proteins may have been feeding your cancer. It’s important to know whether your estrogen or progesterone receptors are the culprits. After that, we’ll discuss the best treatment plan.”

  “Which is?” Kym asked cautiously.

  “Could be a combination of surgery, radiation or hormone therapy, and chemotherapy.”

  It was so much information. Rachel wanted to know one thing. “What are the chances of my survival—really?”

  “Your prognosis is good.” The doctor smiled. It was genuine. “Your self-examination was the key to early detection. You’ll be a survivor.”

  If only those words would come from the Lord, Rachel would have been more encouraged. Even with all the petitions going up on her behalf, she hadn’t heard a whisper from the Lord. Did the life of a survivor include a husband, a family, good health?

  Kym asked, “Dr. Brooks, although my sister and I aren’t your patients, would you recommend we get mammograms now?”

  “Yes.”

  That one word sent chills through Rachel. What if her sisters had cancer too? Her lips trembled with fear.

  “As a precaution,” Dr. Brooks added.

  Rachel sat quietly, as if she were a little girl again on the sidelines while her big sisters fought her battles. As adults, all three were a force to be reckoned with.

  Tabitha faced the doctor. “I’m in pharmaceutical sales, and I know most of those chemo drugs contain morphine and have terrible side effects.”

  Rachel sighed and spoke up. “I’m thirty years old, single, and have no children. If my cancer was caught ‘in time’”—she made air quotes with her fingers—“what are the chances of me having children one day?”

  Tabitha and Kym nodded their heads in agreement.

  “Most oncologists recommend waiting from six months to two years before trying to have a baby. That allows the drug to completely work its way out of the body,” Dr. Brooks said. “The longer you wait, the more the risk decreases of your baby being born with birth defects from eggs damaged by chemotherapy. Also, the risk of your cancer recurring is usually the highest within the first two years.”

  Lord, I’m turning to You for survival, because I’m just not convinced of my odds here, Rachel thought once they left the office.

  * * *

  It was almost two thirty, and Nicholas hadn’t heard from Rachel. He tried to give her space since her sisters were in town, but he needed to know what the doctor said.

  Hey, baby. What’s going on?

  He stared at the phone, waiting for her reply. Finally, she typed back.

  My doctor is about to declare a WAR ON CANCER.

  Nicholas’s heart dropped. He had hoped beyond hope for better news. He swallowed and texted back. When do you start treatment?

  Next week or two. Soon as some more tests come back.

  No, God, please don’t let me lose her. I’ll stop by after work. You want any of your favorites?

  No appetite.

  Not good. Nicholas would bring some of her favorites anyway, including Goo Goo clusters and a Chai’s Mystique, an all-natural ingredients Rush bowl. Rachel would eat, even if he had to force-feed her. It was time for Nicholas to call in reinforcements—the prayer warriors.

  That evening, he arrived with chicken from Hattie B’s. Tabitha greeted him at the door. “How is she?”

  “Down. We all are. I can’t wrap my head around the fact that my baby sister has cancer.” Tabitha frowned. “I can’t comprehend that.” She sniffed and stepped back for him to enter. “That smells delicious.”

  “There’s plenty.”

  “Aunt Tweet told me never pass up a free meal, so I won’t.” She mustered a smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes.

  “Rach, your knight is here,” Tabitha called out in a tease, then lowered her voice. “I hope you can cheer her up.”

  “So do I.” He set the bags on the table and began to arrange the assortment of food.

  Nicholas sensed Rachel’s presence before he sniffed her perfume. Turning around, his heart dropped at the sadness draped over her face. He opened his arms, and she walked into them. He trapped her in his embrace.

  Nicholas rubbed his jaw against her hair and whispered, “I love you very much.” Stepping back, she looked up into his eyes. He hoped she saw his sincerity. “I mean that. Come on. Eat with me.” He tugged on her hand.

  Rachel shook her head. “Not hungry,” she said.

  While Nicholas wanted to be gentle with her, her sisters wouldn’t take no for an answer. Kym’s big-sister mode kicked in, and she ordered Rachel to start slow. “Chew whether it tastes good or not.”

  While at the table, Nicholas kept an eye on Rachel as she nibbled. He was losing his appetite too, but he had to lead by example. If he pushed the food away, so would she.

  Kym joined them at the table and answered some of Nicholas’s questions. “She’s having a lumpectomy on Monday. We’ll call Jacqui to see if we can coordinate a schedule to be here with her.”

  “Don’t count me out,” Nicholas said.

  After they left the table, Kym and Tabitha tidied up the kitchen while Rachel cuddled next to Nicholas on the sofa facing the double french doors that opened to an amazing view of downtown’s skyline. He stretched out his legs on the ottoman, and Rachel chuckled.

  “What?” He smiled at her.

  “What’s with the socks?” She smiled back.

  Nicholas looked at his ankles. “Hey, my nephews gave their unc these Predators socks. They’re fascinated with hockey, so I’m representing the home team.” He grinned as Rachel rested her head on his shoulder again.

  “This is so much for me to take in. It’s surreal. Two weeks ago, my life was normal. This week, I feel like I’m fighting for my life. I keep asking God why me. What did I do wrong to deserve this? I’ve been reading my Bible, praying, and going to church, then this happens.”

  Nicholas had heard this statement more times than he could count from new converts. They thought all their trouble in the world would be over, but sometimes it was just beginning.

  “Being a practicing Christian doesn’t exempt us from life’s troubles.” Nicholas turned her chin toward him to look into her eyes. “Please don’t feel God is deserting you. He’s not.”

  “I’m so scared, Nicholas.” Her voice trembled. “I’m too young to have cancer.” Closing her eyes, Rachel rubbed her hair. Her torment was tangible.

  Doing what he did best, Nicholas pulled his phone from his belt. “Remember, God will always be our comforter.” He tapped the Bible app on his phone and scanned for Psalm 27. He began to read until he heard a light snore.

  Nicholas smirked and fingered one of her long strands until he had twisted it around his finger as he watched her. “Lord, give her peace through this storm and remind her she is never alone. I ask this with thanksgiving for all Your blessings, in Jesus’s name, amen,” he whispered, then gently lowered her onto the sofa and tucked her in with a soft throw.

  He peeked his head around the corner and motioned for Tabitha, who was working on her laptop in the loft that once held Miss Brownlee’s bedroom. “I’m heading home. She’s resting.”

  Tabitha stood and sighed. “Good. She’s been a wreck. How do you prepare for something like this?”

  “You pray,” Nicholas answered. He had to take his own counsel, because this was hard for him too.

  “Right.” She bobbed her head. “I think I’m going to let her sleep out here until she wakes up.” She paused. “Nicholas, thank you for coming into my sister’s life. She’s
changed in a good way since meeting you.” She smiled. “Please don’t go anywhere.”

  Nicholas smiled too. “I’m here to stay.”

  Chapter 23

  Pain from the lumpectomy caused Rachel’s prayers to be mixed with tears. The nerves in her left breast throbbed and radiated throughout her body. How could removing something so small have such a strong hold on her body? She was three days into her recovery, and the doctors had told her to expect leakage and other side effects.

  Although Tabitha warned her about possible side effects of hydrocodone, Rachel would risk it if it would stop the pain. After her sisters returned to their homes, Kym thought it was a good idea for Rachel to have a home health aide come during the day while Jacqui and Nicholas were at work.

  Rachel felt some kind of way when Clara Rodgers, the same woman who had cared for Aunt Tweet, reported for duty. Rachel had burst into tears. “I guess I’m dying now,” she mumbled.

  Clara consoled her. “You’re recovering, Miss Knicely, and I’m here to help you.”

  “Don’t you think it’s strange that you cared for my aunt and now you’re caring for me?”

  Shaking her head, Clara smiled. “I care for the old and the young. That’s what I’m called to do. Now, are you hungry?”

  “No. I hurt too bad to eat.”

  “I’ll need a list of meds you’re taking and how often. It may be time for another dose, so your pain level won’t become so intense. I also received a text that your sister forwarded from Minister Adams. I have been instructed to hand feed you if I have to.” She gave Rachel a pleading look.

  Taking pity on the caregiver, Rachel resolved herself to eat something. “Maybe a small bowl of Cream of Wheat. I’ll try to force that down. And please, call me Rachel. I’m not as old as my aunt.”

  “All right. Have you taken any medicine this morning?”

  Rachel nodded. “Early this morning when I woke to use the bathroom, and it’s done absolutely nothing.”

  “The food will help it circulate through your system quicker.”