Grace took a step nearer the bed and smiled warmly, “My name is Grace Powers. I live next door to you. Your new arrivals dug a hole beneath the fence between our two houses. I was just returning them when Emily mentioned you weren’t feeling very good. I don’t mean to pry, but I wondered if there was anything I could do for you.”
Victoria tried to push herself up in the bed once more, but her strength just wasn’t there. Stupid drugs! Grace saw her struggling and hurried to assure her it was unnecessary, “Please, don’t wear yourself out.”
Jane stuck her head in the door right then, “Hi. I’m Jane from next door.” She glanced at the bald woman lying in the bed, and then forced her eyes to look away. Finding Emily’s eyes, she directed her comments to the little girl, “I’m about ready to pour the batter into the pan. Do you want to come help me?” Looking back to the woman in the bed, she offered, “I offered to make Emily some pancakes for breakfast. I hope you don’t mind, but I searched through the kitchen cupboards.”
“No, I don’t mind.” Emily looked at her mother who slowly nodded her head, “Go on, sweetie. I’ll just talk with Grace for a moment.”
Emily hugged her mom and then left the room as Jane closed the door. Grace took a breath and then asked, “Cancer?”
Victoria nodded, “Yeah. I had my last chemo session yesterday. I’m in full remission, but they insisted on doing the chemo and radiation as a preventative.”
Grace spied a folding chair propped against the wall and retrieved it. Unfolding it, she situated it next to the bed and sat down, “What type of cancer?”
“Breast. They…,” Victoria paused, not having had to explain about having her entire left breast removed to anyone but the medical staff. It was an odd conversation to be having, let alone with a virtual stranger.
Grace nodded her head, “I understand. My mom had pancreatic cancer while I was finishing high school. She didn’t make it.”
“I’m sorry for your loss.”
Grace was amazed at the compassion she saw on the sick woman’s face. “Thanks. I’m glad you’re in remission.” The room grew silent for a moment and then Grace asked, “Is Emily your only child?”
Victoria smiled, pride evident on her face as she bragged on her little girl, “Yes. Do you have any children?”
“A little girl who’s four. She’s in your kitchen right now, most likely trying to figure out a way to convince us both she needs to have her very own puppy.”
Victoria’s eyes dimmed, “Gosh, I forgot all about the puppies. Could you get Emily for me?”
“Was there something you needed done?” Grace offered. “I could call your husband or…”
“I haven’t fed or watered Shelby this morning, and I’ll have to find something to stick under the fence. Maybe there’s a loose brick… And, there is no husband. Never has been.” Never would be! Not now! No man would want her now!
“I’m sorry! Uhm… it looked like Emily might have already fed the momma dog, there was plenty of food in her bowl when we put the puppies back. As for the fence, I already filled it in. We’ll block it up with something a little stronger this afternoon when the guys stop by.”
“Guys?” Victoria asked.
Grace smiled, “Yeah, my boyfriend and Jane’s fiancé. Between the two of them, they should be able to puppy proof the fence between our yards.”
Victoria closed her eyes as the pain wracking her body and head became too much to push away.
Grace watched as her skin took on a grey tinge and the skin around her mouth and eyes grew tight. She’s in so much pain! “Victoria, do you have something you can take?”
“I can’t,” she gasped, fighting to push the pain away as she’d done so many days in the past. “Not with Emily at home. Usually I take her to school and then if I need something, I have a few hours for it to wear off. I knew I couldn’t drive her today, so she’s missing – again. She’s missed so many days of school this year…”
Grace watched the weary woman, remembering how sick the chemo had made her own mom. The cancer had been bad; but the chemicals used to treat it had been even worse. Causing mind-wrenching body aches, joint swelling, and overwhelming nausea. All combined together they were horrid. And then came the massive headaches. Worse than any migraine, and almost untreatable without completely being knocked unconscious.
She watched Victoria and knew instantly she was near her breaking point. She needed to take something to make the pain go away while her body absorbed the load of chemicals it had received yesterday.
“Victoria, I know you don’t know me, but I would be happy to run Emily to school for you. That way you could take your pain meds and get some relief before this afternoon.” She could see the woman about to refuse and then softly laid a hand upon her arm, “Please. We both know you need to rest. And Emily’s pretty worried about you. Who’s going to care for her if you get so ill they have to put you in the hospital?”
“She sleeps in the room with me. We’ve already been down that road when I had my surgery. I’m a registered nurse. Before I got sick, I worked on the oncology ward, treating women just like myself. I never in a million years thought I’d be on the receiving end.
“When I had my surgery, several friends tried to get Emily to leave the hospital with them, but she adamantly refused to go. My co-workers did what they could – setting up a cot in the employee lounge, but Emily refused to leave my side, so they set up a cot in the room for her to use.”
“What about school?” Grace asked.
“She goes when I can take her. The bus doesn’t come here because we’re too close to the school, but I can’t let a nine-year old walk two miles each way!”
“She seems very intelligent,” Grace offered, wondering which school the young girl attended. Simpson Preparatory Academy, along with three public schools, was within the two-mile distance Victoria had mentioned. It would be great if she went to the same school as Dani.
“She is. They were talking about trying to move her ahead in her studies, but now, she’ll be lucky if she can move to the next grade.” Tears filled Victoria’s eyes as the impact her illness was having on her daughter was once again revealed. “I hate this!”
Grace was close to tears as well. Having done the single mother thing and just come through a horrible scare with her own daughter, she could understand where Victoria’s emotion was coming from. Her heart had stopped when there had been a possibility that Daniella might have leukemia. When the tests had come back negative, she’d been so relieved and thankful, she would never forget that moment. It was as if her life had been given back to her.
“I don’t have time right now, but I would love to spend more time talking to you. Why don’t I take Emily to school today, and pick her up this afternoon as well? That will give you a chance to let the chemicals wear off.”
Victoria looked at the woman sitting beside her bed and decided she must be some sort of angel sent to save her and her daughter. She was so used to doing everything on her own; she didn’t have any idea of how to accept the kind offer without breaking down in tears. You don’t have to do this on your own today!
Unable to keep the emotion at bay, she let the tears fall from her eyes and nodded, “Thank you. I know I shouldn’t do this, but something tells me I can trust you.”
Grace nodded her head, lying a gentle hand upon her arm, “You can. I’ll watch over Emily as if she were my own. I promise.”
Victoria nodded, “I believe you.”
“Which school does Emily attend?” Grace asked, already trying to calculate how late Daniella was going to be now.
“Simpson Preparatory Academy. At least for right now. They said they would do what they could to help with her missing so many days, but I…”
“Hey, you’re in luck. Daniella just started pre-school there this term. I can take Emily to school today and I’ll let her teacher know what’s going on.”
Once again, Victoria was brought to tears by the generosity of the wom
an from next door. Thank you! “I don’t even know what to say, but ‘Thanks’.”
Grace smiled at her, “No thanks needed. Tell me where your pain pills are.”
“In the bathroom, top shelf. I didn’t want Emily to...,” her voice died off as a horrible cough consumed her.
Grace entered the bathroom, finding the bottle of pills, and then filling a disposable cup with water. Returning to the bed, she asked, “One pill or two?”
“Two, please. The first few days are always the worst.” Victoria took the pills and the cup of water, grateful when Grace gently lifted her head up from the pillow so she could swallow the pills.
“I remember. My older sister did the majority of the care for my mom, insisting I finish school, but I still remember how bad it could get. Do you need me to put a waste basket next to the bed?” Grace remembered the nausea that would plague her mom the first few days after a chemo round. As if losing your hair and being wracked with pain wasn’t enough to go through!
“No, I finished all of that yesterday.” Victoria handed back the empty cup and tried to keep her eyes open. She was so tired!
“Good.” Grace returned the pill bottle to the bathroom cabinet, wetting a clean washrag and bringing it back. She gently wiped Victoria’s forehead, returning her smile with one of her own. One done, she folded the chair up and put it back against the wall and then pulled the walker that had been leaning next to it over and opened it up.
“Please do yourself a favor and use this if you need to. I’m going to grab the girls and get them to school. I’ll have Jane stop by and say ‘Hello’ for a minute before she heads to work. When I come back this afternoon, be prepared to tell us how we can help you out until you have your feet back under you. And before you politely decline my offer, please know that I can be tenacious when I want to be. Neighbors help each other. End of story.”
Grace didn’t wait for the shocked woman to reply; she smiled at her and then left the bedroom, shutting the door behind her. Well, this had certainly added another element to her life, but added it had been. Grace had never shied away from a challenge, or offering help when it was needed, and she wasn’t about to start now. Daniella was going to see what it meant to “Love your neighbor” in living color.
Chapter 3
Grace arrived at the school with both girls, Emily having dressed herself in the required school uniform of plaid skirt and polo shirt. Jane had worked her magic on her tangled hair, and she now sported two identical braids, tied with matching ribbons on the ends.
The pre-school classes had already left for the butterfly house, but the school secretary offered to call Mr. Simpson and let him know that Grace would be bringing Daniella over shortly. While Grace went to talk with Emily’s teacher, Daniella stayed with the secretary and watched the fish in the large saltwater tank that greeted the children each morning.
Grace explained what was happening with Emily’s mom, and the teacher promised to compile of list of homework the child needed to work on to catch up with the rest of the class. Grace and Jane would both pitch in and see that she finished the school year with the rest of her classmates.
After dropping Daniella off at the butterfly house, she ran a few errands. She then went grocery shopping for both households, arriving back at the school just in time to pick up both little girls.
“Dani, how was the butterfly house?” Grace asked as she pulled away from the school.
“Momma, we gots to see a canterpull morphisize.”
Grace laughed when she saw Emily’s expression of confusion. Interpreting, she asked Dani, “Do you mean you got to see a caterpillar metamorphosis?”
“That’s what I said!” Dani told her.
“No you didn’t. You said…”
Grace saw the look on her daughter’s face and hurried to interrupt the tantrum she could see was forthcoming, “So Emily, did you have a good day at school?”
“Yes. My teacher gave me a big envelope to give to momma, and made me bring my books home.”
“That’s good, honey. I talked with your teacher and Jane and I are going to help you get caught up on your school work. Your momma’s pretty worried about that.”
“Oh.”
“So, tell me what needs to be done when you get home.”
“Well, I need to play with Shelby and give her some time away from the puppies. Momma says it helps her tolerate them better. But usually she just gets on my bed and sleeps. She never wants to play anymore.”
Grace laughed, “She will. She’s just tired right now. Pretty soon the puppies will be old enough to eat puppy food, and she won’t be so tired all the time. How many puppies are there?”
“Nine.”
“Nine! I want one!” Daniella informed her mother.
“We’ve already talked about this, Dani.”
“The puppies can’t go to new homes for two more weeks. Momma said they have to be at least eight weeks old. She was talking about starting to wean them this week…”
“What’s wean?” Daniella asked Emily, curiosity written all over her face at the new word.
“It means they won’t nurse anymore, and they’ll eat puppy food.”
“What do they eat now?” Daniella asked, and Grace cringed as she struggled to figure out a way to explain. She didn’t have to as Emily gladly took over the task of explaining how the puppies currently ate.
Daniella listened attentively and Grace knew there would be questions asked later when it was just she and her daughter. For now, her curiosity had been assuaged and she turned her thoughts to other things.
Michael was waiting in the driveway when they arrived home, and she smiled at him as she put the car into park and got out. “Hey, I didn’t expect to see you for another couple of hours.”
Michael gave her a brief kiss on the cheek, and then opened the back door and helped Dani unbuckle her car seat. “Hey, Princess. How was the butterfly house?”
“Awesome! I saws a canterpull...”
“Caterpillar, silly,” Emily corrected her with a shake of her head.
Michael looked at the newcomer and then back at Grace. “New friend?”
“New neighbor. Emily, this is Dr. Michael Simpson. Michael, this is Emily from next door.”
“Hey, we have a Mr. Simpson at my school,” Emily offered with a smile.
“He’s my brother.”
“Really? That’s cool. Hey Dani, wanna go see the puppies?” Emily asked, already dragging her heavy backpack across the lawn.
Daniella looked at Grace and when she nodded, she took off running after the older girl. Michael watched her leave, and then turned and looked at Grace, “Somehow, I feel like I’ve missed something.”
“I’ll explain everything while you help me unload the groceries,” Grace promised with a smile.
“I can do that.”
Michael and Grace made short work of unloading the groceries and storing them away. When the only bags left were the ones that belonged next door, she picked two of them up, gesturing for Michael to grab the rest, “Come with me. Dani’s probably already worn out her welcome with Shelby.”
They entered the back yard through the side gate, hearing the chatter of little girls as they rounded the house. Daniella sat in the middle of the back yard with Emily, surrounded by nine little bundles of fur. Shelby had climbed back into the kiddy pool for a much needed nap.
Michael took in the scene and then nodded towards the adult dog, “Shelby, I presume?”
“Yeah. Poor thing. She’s resorted to sleeping in the pool to get some rest.”
“Momma, I don’t want one puppy now,” Daniella informed her as she drew closer.
“You don’t?” Grace asked in surprise.
“She wants to keep them all. She said you wouldn’t let her have a puppy because it would get lonely all by itself.”
Michael laughed as he whispered, “Now I can’t wait to see how you get out of this one!”
“Oh, shush! You’re no help! Danie
lla, whatever you and Emily have cooked up, it isn’t going to happen.”
“But momma!”
“Don’t go there, Dani.”
“But Miss Grace, she only wants to keep three puppies! Not all of them!”
“Emily, thank you for clarifying that.” Not! “Have you checked on your momma yet?”
Emily nodded, “She’s sleeping really sound and I didn’t want to wake her up. I checked to make sure she’s still breathing and everything…”
Michael was horrified upon hearing the little girl’s words, and turned and headed for the open patio door. When Grace immediately followed him, he waited for a space of a heartbeat before he demanded, “Explain. Please.”
Grace saw the concern on his face and hurried to fill him in. “Emily’s mom, Victoria, is just finishing up chemo for breast cancer. She had her last chemo session yesterday and it made her really sick.”
“Why isn’t the woman in the hospital?” he asked, trying to keep his voice down.
“Because she has no one else to look after Emily. She’s in full remission, and she told me she usually does well enough to handle things, but this last dose looks like it really did a number on her.”
“Where is she?” Michael asked, switching into doctor mode that fast.
“Michael, she’s in the back bedroom, but I should warn you – she’s a registered nurse who worked on the oncology floor prior to getting sick. She’s not being careless or neglectful, okay?”
Michael closed his eyes and then nodded his head. “Sorry. Have I told you how much I detest cancer?”
“The fact that you’ve dedicated your life to treating that very disease was kind of a big hint,” she told him, hugging him close. Stepping away from him a moment later, she headed down the hallway, “I need to check on her for myself.”
Michael followed her to the door and then whispered, “Why don’t you go in and see if she’s awake? I don’t want to make her uncomfortable, but if she’s still sick, please let her know I’m here and would be happy to see if I can make her more comfortable.”
Grace leaned up and kissed his cheek, “Thank you. I’ll just be a minute.”
Romance: New Beginnings (Young Adult and Adult Romance, Christian Christmas Fiction book as a Love Story) (Second Chances Trilogy 3) Page 2
