Five Hearts: A Tale Of Faith, Love, & Destiny~

by C D Swanson

  “Right…this from a Miss size zero.” She rolled her eyes upwards and smiled.

  “I’m not a zero, I’m a size five,” she corrected her friend with feigned indignation.

  “Okay. So, compared to my size 16, do you understand why I look at my thighs?” She posed, waiting patiently for a response as her eyes darted at Sarah and then her own thighs a couple of times.

  Stop it! You’re in fine health. The doctor just gave you thumbs up on your physical last month. Why are you constantly complaining? Besides, you’re the average woman, I’m not. You’re spectacular looking, and are completely muscular. You work out and run, what else can you ask for?” Sarah waited for her friend to absorb what she’d said.

  “About 70% is fat, and the only thing that runs is my nose. Half the time my flab is running and slapping me. Where do you suppose my black and blues come from?”

  “Oh Ruth, shut-up already. You’re totally insane. You know that all the men look at you and think you’re one hot chick. So stop it already!” She waved her hand in dismissal towards her.

  “And, you don’t get any attention? Oh my poor little Miss ugly duckling! Legs up to your eyeballs, thick wavy hair down to your backside, huge green cat’s eyes…Yes, let’s pity you now.”

  “Am I complaining? I’m merely saying you should embrace who you are. We’re all different, how boring would it be if we were all the same size? And, God sees our heart and soul anyhow…that’s all I see with you too.”

  “In other words, you look beyond my fat?”she asked, with the most serious face she could muster, while blinking her eyes rapidly.

  They both laughed out of control, and then settled on the couch, when her phone rang.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey baby, whatcha doing? Can I come over?” Luke’s booming voice was almost painful to her ears.

  “Um—this isn’t a good night Luke. Ruth is here we have a problem we need to rectify immediately. It’s going to be an all-nighter. So, rain check okay?”

  “Okay, that’s two nights you’ve blown me off my young lady. But okay, you owe me big time. I’ll call you in the morning. Good luck.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Goodnight Sarah, I love you.”

  “Okay…right. Goodnight.”

  “Wow honeymoon over before it even begins, geez!” he offered in a playful, yet somewhat serious tone.

  “Luke, it’s just we have a lot of work to get started on. See you later.”

  When she hung up he looked at his phone in shock. She never did that to him before. This must be a doozy for sure. Well, he would give her the space she needed. He had things to take care of anyhow.

  He walked to his car and drove to his destination. That was the most important thing right now. Nothing else mattered. He had a date to take care of something. So that filled his head for the moment. Soon I’ll be smiling and I’ll forget about Sarah, for a little while…

  Chapter Four

  “Ruth, wake-up. I’ve completed the paperwork. It’s time to submit it. I have to be there before 9am! I have to rush, you know how it goes. And if we’re a minute late, they push it to the next day’s agenda.”

  “Wow, when did I fall asleep?”

  “Well, it was somewhere in between the patient’s bill of rights, and the extenuating circumstances of which may hinder the patient’s progress.”

  “Sorry Sarah. I was pretty exhausted.”

  “Yes, you were. Thank you so much! You gave me what I need to stop Candy’s placement in the foster care home, albeit temporarily. However, we have our temporary stay of execution.” She gathered up their emergency paperwork on the kitchen counter, before continuing, “There’s coffee, fresh croissants and jam. I’m going to get going Ruth. Please take your time?”

  “Sure, thanks. Do you mind if I shower too?”

  “Of course not…please, relax, and make yourself at home. I’ll see you later. Bye and thanks again girlfriend. Love ya girlfriend.”

  She hugged Ruth, with a croissant in her mouth, picked up her briefcase, keys and ran out the door.

  Ruth was in the shower washing her hair when she heard the doorbell ring. She rinsed her hair quickly, when out of the shower threw on Sarah’s purple terrycloth bathroom. While she scampered down the stairs, the bell rang again.

  “Hold your horses, geez,” she complained.

  Looking through the peephole she saw Luke. As she opened the door, he looked at her incredulously.

  “Ruth? Is Sarah here?” he said, with a creepy smile.

  “No, she ran to the state social services”

  “Is everything okay with her? She seemed really preoccupied last night,” he asked, while leering at her.

  “Yes, she’s okay. We needed to get a temporary stay of action pertaining to Candy. She was going to be transferred later on today, and Sarah thought it would be a hindrance to her overall health, and so…”

  “Wow, Sarah really gets too involved with these kids. I love that she does, but this is a freaking orphan and it shouldn’t be Sarah’s problem. Honestly, she takes on too many issues…the homeless, orphans, elderly, abused animals, anything else?” he dripped with sarcasm and what appeared to be an underlying fury.

  Ruth looked at Luke closely. He seemed angry and it appeared as if he slept in his clothes, they were so wrinkled. “Luke, where the heck is that coming from? Sarah’s heart and compassion is what she’s all about. Her being a social worker, is another big hint, she certainly isn’t doing it for the meager salary” she defended her best friend, and found herself becoming rapidly annoyed with Luke.

  “I know, but sometimes she just overdoes it, that’s all. I would like one normal night with her, without having to worry about her driving to a slum neighborhood, or going to the cancer ward. A normal night, just one…is that too much to ask?” he masked disgust, and threw his hands up to emphasize his point.

  Ruth saw this side of him upon occasion, but Sarah never did. And, this was a little disturbing to watch, it was making her extremely uncomfortable. There was something about Luke she just didn’t take to. Sarah was way too special and too kind to be saddled with this one. She hoped Sarah would come to that same conclusion eventually. There just was something about Luke she never warmed up to. He was a strange bird.

  “Well, is it?” he asked in a raised voice.

  “Luke, I’ve no comment, other than I love Sarah’s heart, and her concern for others. I have to get ready for work, so if you’ll excuse me,” she said in a defensive voice as she walked to the door and opened it quickly. As she did so the robe opened revealing a great portion of her thigh.

  “Wow, big girl thighs. Or, thunder thighs as we used to refer to them years ago. Not bad Ruth. You’re one big sexy mama,” he sneered while he leered.

  Ruth was shocked and disgusted at once. “Good-bye Luke,” she said coldly while gazing down.

  “See you later, thanks.”

  She slammed the door shut. What the heck does Sarah see in him? He has a smart mouth, and is very sleazy. Again, something about him didn’t sit right with Ruth. And, that comment about her thighs, how could she tell Sarah that? It would break her heart, but she would have to tell her, if anything to let her see him in a different light. It wasn’t the first time he said something off-color to her. She wouldn’t stand by and let her friend go clueless about this louts behavior.

  She walked upstairs happy Luke was out of the house. She shuddered, and quickly turned her thoughts to her friend. She wondered how Sarah was doing with the state, and said a silent prayer that it would all work out. She knew her friend well, and if she couldn’t help Candy, she would be a basket case depressed beyond belief. She was only too happy to collaborate, brainstorming as to what actions they needed to enforce, to stop a calamity from occurring. And, she was thrilled with the outcome of their work way into the wee hours of the morning. It was worth it. The fruit of their labor was enough to stall the process, albeit temporarily. Sarah had to make it to the office in ti
me… otherwise it will have been an exercise in futility. She sighed and began to pray for the best.

  Sarah ran up the steps of social services to the office of Michael De Santis, knocked on the door before boldly rushing in prior to any kind of response.

  “Sarah? What a pleasant surprise? I don’t see you on my calendar, do we have an appointment?” Michael took his glasses off and twirled them in his hands, his eyes narrowed, “what’s wrong?”

  “Mike, please this is urgent. I need your help.”

  He looked at her stunningly perfect face and saw true anguish. For Sarah to barge into his office like this, something was terribly amiss. Gesturing to a chair in front of his desk as he closed the door behind them, in a low voice asked, “Sarah, what’s going on?”

  “There’s a little girl. She’s in the hospital cancer ward, she’s an orphan…” Sarah was breathless, and speaking quickly her words rolling together, “I need your help now! This child’s in trouble…”

  “Sarah, for the love of Pete, slow down! Take a deep breath. It’s okay; we’ll handle whatever it is. We’ll do something. Okay? Can I get you something to drink?”

  “No thanks. I’m rushing because we have until nine this morning, to change the outcome of this little girl’s fate. She’s battling leukemia, and will have her last round of chemo today. Although she’s an orphan there’s some kind of snafu with the paperwork. And so she’s literally living in the cancer ward. Basically, she’s living there for two reasons…one, because of her health, and two, because she has nowhere else to go. She knows everyone in there, and they all love her. So it’s vital and crucial to her health that she not be disturbed at this time. There’s a new social worker who just started. She’s coming to discharge her from the hospital today, this afternoon to be more exact. She wants to place Candy, with her current medical status with a foster family! Do you realize how detrimental that is to her health, and her focus to get well?” She lowered her head, “this can’t happen.”

  “Is the social worker Michelle Garner?” He asked with confidence knowing the answer before she replied.

  “Yes, that’s the name.”

  He rolled his eyes shaking his head, “She’s a newbie and wants to make a name for herself rather quickly. She has the temperament of a crass hard-hearted Hannah. I didn’t understand why she’s in this field, but then I come to find out she’s the Mayor’s niece. So, that would explain a lot of things, including her attitude.”

  She jumped up and leaned forward on his desk, “Mike, please help me. I have all of the paperwork in here; I filled it out last night. And the explanation is in my report.” Sarah’s eyes were pleading, her desperation to help the child quite obvious, and painful to watch.

  With a heart of compassion and respect for the situation concerning Sarah’s plight, he didn’t have to think further, “Okay, I agree with you. In the meantime, if they say she can’t stay at the hospital, would you be willing to provide a temporary home for her? I can get you approved immediately. With a smile and reassuring wink he said in a quiet voice, “I have been known to pull strings.”

  Sarah took a second to absorb the words she just heard, before her eyes were glistening with tears. As she began trembling with anticipation, that Candy could be with her, and the process halted. She answered immediately, and emphatically. “Oh yes Michael! I would be more than willing to provide a temporary home for her, if she’s unable to stay on at the ward.”

  He jumped out of his chair grabbing the paperwork off his desk, “Okay, Sarah let’s go. That’s all I needed to hear. We always have to go in with a game plan, and a back-up.”

  “Mike?” She touched his arm and he turned to look into her penetrating huge green eyes spilling tears down her prominent cheekbones.

  “Yes Sarah?”

  She hugged him, “thank you so much.”

  “Sarah, for you, I’d move heaven and earth. Besides, if my wife heard I turned my back on you, or that orphan, I would be thrown to the curb, and have to sleep on the couch for one month or longer,” he winked.

  She smiled, as they hurried down the corridor toward the court house. She glanced at her cell phone. Luke…she forgot to call him. It’d have to wait. This was far more important to her. She loved Candy, and would do anything to help that little doll. She smiled at the anticipation of telling Candy she could stay at her home temporarily. She looked upward and offered a silent thank you to God.

  Chapter Five

  Newspaper and television reporters asked in unison, “Miss Novak, can we please have a moment with you?” It was like bees swarming, there were so many and the continuous murmuring was akin to buzzing. The only difference was they couldn’t sting her. Well, not physically anyhow. But, emotionally they could pulverize her with a wrong word or two. If truth be told, bees were a lot friendlier and less harmful.

  Miss Novak, a well-known socialite throughout the world, was popular with the press, and many others. She made millions by the time she was 25 years old. It started with modeling, and then, all kinds of business ventures. From perfume, to clothing lines, precious jewelry, even luggage with her signature pink butterfly and rainbow. She was an honest to goodness humanitarian, a real Pollyanna in the modern world. She was always promoting a cause, and always trying to help someone. Right now the homeless plight was big on her list. There were so many senseless beatings of the homeless these past couple of weeks, and she was determined to not only get to the bottom of it, but put an end to it. She stopped and faced the swarming bees, “Yes, you may.”

  “Miss Novak, how do ya plan on helping the homeless population who’ve been the target of what appears to be a completely sick mind?”

  “The city is doing all it can. And, I’m offering a big reward for the capture of this individual. This cruel twisted person needs to be behind bars and not a moment too soon.”

  “What’s the amount of the reward?”

  “Five hundred thousand dollars.”

  A cacophony of whistles went out from the crowd of bees, before the reporter continued, “wow! Hopefully that’ll spark a huge response from the citizens of New York City.”

  A strand of hair covered her eye, she brushed it back slowly and deliberately, “I’ve great faith that someone will come forward, and that this will be stopped relatively soon. Thank you all. I must be going now. Good day.” She turned from the crowd with dignity and elegance without glancing back.

  “Miss Novak?” A New York Times reporter was vying for her attention to no avail, “one more? Miss Novak? One more?”

  “Miss Novak, can I ask one more question?” The New York Post reporter walked away knowing that was the end of the impromptu question and answer session, “well, that’s that.”

  Miss Novak walked through the lightning flashes and the buzzing reporters. She entered the luxury building on the upper west side. With furrowed brows, and quivering hand, she pressed the button to her penthouse. She couldn’t help but feel heartache thinking about the beatings. She despised corrupt minds, and mean spirited people. She just wanted it to be over. She couldn’t stand people being hurt, or violence of any kind. She hardly thought about her childhood. And, it was one of which she never spoke. Her body suddenly shivered recalling her youth, albeit briefly. The elevator opened on the top floor. Fumbling for the key, she heard the scratching and barking. And as she opened the door, the little darling pups ran to greet her.

  Placing her keys on the entry desk in the foyer she purred, “Hello my Sugar, hello my Spice.”

  Her two little Mini Schnauzers jumped all over her. She went to the couch where they all had a formal hello session. Her little dolls, how she loved them both, she often wondered if she would’ve been a good mother. That was a part of her life she didn’t want to think about, it always made her sad. She was determined to think about different things, helping and doing deeds for others. She didn’t allow her mind to linger too long on that subject that made her grow pensive. The what if questions were torture. She wanted to give
back. She was guilty about so many things in her life. And so this was her way of salvaging the harm she may have caused. But, she was young, so very young. She pushed the thoughts out of her head and got up to go into the kitchen.

  “Come on my little dolls, time for your food and afterwards, a long walk in Central park. Okay?”

  They yipped in their high pitch squeaky-toy bark. She loved them and she was immersed in taking care of them. So for now, she didn’t want to relive her younger days. She pushed those intrusive thoughts from her mind. But, it wouldn’t be long before they would come crashing in once again, creating devastation. But, she always knew how to divert to other issues of importance…

  Chapter Six

  “Candy”

  “Sarah”

  Candy, once again, ran with outstretched arms, and jumped into Sarah’s waiting and loving embrace.

  “Hello my little chipmunk…how are you doing?”

  “Good, I just had a delicious breakfast. It was my favorite, blueberry pancakes and blueberry syrup.”

  “Wow, that does sound good.”

  “How come you’re here so early? You don’t come till after you’re finished working. Are you okay?”

  Her eyes and adorable face peering with concern were almost too much for Sarah to handle. Sarah’s eyes started welling up with tears. Here is this amazing child battling cancer, going through more than a young body should, asking about her! What an outstanding little doll. “Oh sweetheart, actually I have some really good news to share and I wanted to tell you as soon as possible. I’m hoping you’ll approve.”

  “What is it?”

  “How would you like to come and live with me temporarily?”

  “Oh Sarah. Yes!” She hugged Sarah tightly and began crying. “You’ll be my mommy for now, right?” Candy’s eyes sparkled like glittering diamonds as she waited for the reply.

  “Well, yes I guess you can say that.”

  “Sarah, I’ve been praying every night. I’ve been asking God to give me a mommy. I wanted you for my mommy, and He gave me what I wanted. See? He listened to me! My prayers really worked!” She hugged Sarah again.