“Which do you like?” I asked.
“Depends on the day,” she answered. “If I’m really dragging, I go for the regular. If you don’t mind my saying so, you look like you should go for the sugar today.”
We sipped our colas as we worked. Jeanie was right about it giving me an energy boost. My walk home for lunch took half the time the trip into town had taken in the morning.
We had been so busy with the tree the night before that I’d never shown Rosie the christening pictures Jeanie had taken. I decided to show them to her at lunch, knowing they would brighten up her day. Thinking of the smile they would put on her face made me move even quicker.
John was on the front porch, hammering away at the shutters. “I heard you came home around this time every day,” John said.
I smiled. It was nice, thinking he had timed his chores to fit my schedule. “What else has Rosie been telling you?”
“Nothing today. I haven’t seen Rosie this morning,” John answered.
My spine stiffened. “You’ve been out here pounding away on those shutters and Rosie hasn’t come out to check on you?” I asked.
I pulled Baby Girl from her stroller and hurried toward the door. John was at my heels when I stepped inside and heard the needle from her old hi-fi hitting the inside rim of a record. The tap, tap, tap of the needle against the vinyl echoed in my ears. I stepped toward the parlor. The first thing I saw was Rosie’s favorite pink and green china cup lying on the tea-stained carpet.
It seemed like I was staring at that cup forever, afraid to look up into the chair, afraid to move. John whispered, “Stay here.”
I forced myself to look up. Rosie’s white snowcap of hair rested half on the chair and half in mid-air. Her hand hung open over the arm of the chair. I watched John kneel in front of Rosie’s chair. He reached out and felt her wrist, and then her neck. “I’m going to call the doctor. You need to sit down.”
I stood there while John made some phone calls. I didn’t cry. I didn’t speak. I didn’t listen. I kept thinking I should be doing something, but my body didn’t move. I held on to Baby Girl as tight as I could and stared at Rosie. I was shaking so hard, I was afraid I would drop Georgia. John came back to us and took Baby Girl from my arms. He put his other arm around me and said, “You need to sit down.”
I was still sitting when the others arrived. First through the door was Doc Richards. The reverend wasn’t more than a few steps behind him. The sight of the reverend got me moving. I put Baby Girl in her crib and hurried into the parlor. The doctor was putting away his stethoscope, and taking out a bottle of medicine and a needle. Rosie’s eyelids were fluttering, but she wasn’t putting up an argument. I was so glad to see her even half-awake that I forgot my fears and knelt on the floor close to her chair. I balanced there, petting her hand like it was a newborn chick. I kept hoping to hear her say that everything was going to be all right.
“You’re doing fine, Rosie,” Doc Richards said in a half whisper. “We’re going to move you to your bed now. The shot I gave you is going to make you a little drowsy; let it do its job, and take a good long nap.”
I watched as they lifted Rosie from her chair and carried her into her room. Baby Girl had done as much waiting as she was able. She was demanding attention, so I hurried to her before she woke Rosie. Doc Richards was waiting for me when I came out with Georgia perched on my hip. “She is a real fighter, but not even Rosie can have complete control over her body. Her heart is weak, so spells like this one can come at any time. She’s lucky you came home when you did, but we need to make some other arrangements for her. She needs to have someone around her all of the time. Can you stay here with her until we can make other arrangements?”
I nodded and stared at Rosie’s door.
“She needs her rest now, but I left the door open a crack so you can hear her if she wants anything.”
I followed the doctor into the kitchen. He sat down and wrote a list of instructions. He sat there tapping his pen against the tabletop for a few minutes before handing me the paper. After I looked over the list he asked, “Can you read it? Do you have any questions?”
His words took me back some. “I can read,” I said.
“Of course you can,” Doc Richards said. “I was referring to my penmanship, not your reading ability.” He patted my arm.
I walked the doctor to the front door. John and the reverend met us there, and the three men walked out together. Baby Girl and I watched from the window as the men stopped on the walk. They had their heads together like hens gathered around feed. I wished I could hear the words coming out of those bobbing heads.
I brought Baby Girl into the kitchen and parked her in her highchair while I fixed her lunch. After I fed and changed her, I tucked her into her crib for her nap. “I’m sure you will have a better nap here than you have in your carriage at the store,” I said as I bent over to kiss her.
As I closed our bedroom door behind me, I remembered Jeanie. I picked up the kitchen phone and called the store. I explained what happened and was surprised to hear my voice filling with tears all over again. “Close the store and go home to Chloe,” I said, and told her where we hid the extra front door key.
“Do you need anything? How can I help? Do you want me to open tomorrow?” she asked.
“No,” I answered. “Tomorrow’s Christmas Eve. We don’t need to open, and I think we have everything we need for now. Doc Richards is sending some new medicine over for Rosie.”
“You call me if you need anything—food, diapers, company—anything you need,” Jeanie said.
When I hung up the phone, I commenced with my pacing. Up and down the hall I walked, worried that if I was more than a few feet away from Rosie’s bed, I wouldn’t hear her call me. Lucky thing our room was right across the hall. That way my pacing took care of two problems at once. I knew I would hear Rosie, and I would hear Baby Girl before her fussing filled the house.
The day dragged, but by evening Rosie was awake and looking for some soup. Her skin pinked up a bit after eating, but the activity seemed to tucker her out again. “Bring Georgia Rose over here for a few minutes, Becky,” she said, patting the bed beside her.
I sat on the edge of the bed and settled Baby Girl between us. Looking at those ladies together caused me to fill up again. I’ve never been a teary person, so I didn’t know how to lock that salty river inside. Rosie rubbed my arm. “Now, don’t you be crying on my part,” she said. “Everything is going to be fine.”
I was getting Georgia ready for bed when the phone rang. I bolted down the hall trying to stop the racket before it shook Rosie. I slammed my big toe into the table leg as I skidded across the kitchen floor. The phone stopped ringing as I reached for it. I curled up into a ball on the floor and started crying again. I think I must have let out all my tears, because just as fast as it started, the crying stopped. I limped over to the kitchen sink and threw some cold water in my face. I was looking at the reflection of my sorry self in the toaster when I heard Rosie call my name.
I hobbled down the hall and tapped on Rosie’s door. “Do you need something?” I asked Rosie.
“That was Lily on the phone,” Rosie said. “News spreads like a wildfire in this town. Even nothing news like me taking a little too much of a nap makes the rounds. She wants to come for a visit tomorrow. If it was anybody else, I would tell them to stay home, but I’m so happy knowing she’ll be leaving that house of hers. John will be driving her, so I thought maybe we could have a little lunch. Would you mind staying home tomorrow to help? It’s Christmas Eve, so you really shouldn’t be working anyway.”
I looked at Rosie. Getting all those words out had wiped her out. I couldn’t picture her sitting at the table tomorrow hosting a lunch. I thought it best to keep that idea to myself. I nodded my head. “Can I get you anything before bed?” I asked.
“Can you help me to the bathroom?” she asked.
I was afraid I would sleep too soundly to hear Rosie that night.
I made sure both of our doors were open when I crawled into bed that night. As I lay staring at the ceiling, I thought about what the doctor said about a change in Rosie’s living arrangements. A change in Rosie’s situation would surely mean a change in living arrangements for Baby Girl and me, too. Between those thoughts and my throbbing swollen toe, I had no cause to fear sleeping through Rosie’s call. I had no cause to worry about sleeping, period.
CHAPTER 28
I gave up trying to sleep before morning broke. Baby Girl had made it straight through the night without so much as a peep. I wanted to slip out without breaking that spell, but there would be no tiptoeing for me. I rested my right foot on its heel as I stood outside Rosie’s door, listening. I didn’t hear anything, so I stuck my head in the doorway to grab a peek. The glow from the streetlight slipped through the opening in the curtains and shone on Rosie’s pillow. When I was sure all was right as could be, I felt my way down the hall to the kitchen. I turned on the little light over the sink, grabbed a dishtowel, and filled it with ice. I sat down and propped my foot up on the chair across from me. I swear my toe was as big as a pig’s hoof. I set the ice on my foot, glad the towel was hiding the damage.
I was still sitting there when I heard Rosie call my name. I must have finally dozed off for a piece, because the ice was now a puddle on the kitchen floor. I hurried as best I could to Rosie’s bedside. I had hoped a night’s rest would have restored some of her energy, but it wasn’t meant to be. I helped her to the bathroom and then right back to bed. “How about some toast and tea?” I suggested.
“You don’t need to be waiting on me hand and foot,” Rosie said. “You have a baby to take care of. Where is Georgia Rose?”
“The little lazybones is sleeping in today,” I answered. “Why don’t I get your breakfast before she wakes up?” I asked it like a question, but I didn’t wait for an answer. Back in the kitchen, I cleaned up the floor and wrung out the towel while I waited for the kettle to boil. While the tea was steeping and the bread toasting, I scouted out the refrigerator and cupboards. I had never gotten to the market, but there was enough in there to put together some soup and biscuits for lunch.
I wanted to run and clean myself up while Rosie ate, but she looked too shaky to leave alone with hot tea. I found myself having to coax her to take bites of her toast, the way I have to coax Baby Girl to eat her cereal mush. On my way back to the kitchen, I poked my head into my bedroom. Baby Girl was wide awake and rolling around in her crib. Lucky thing she hadn’t caught sight of me, so I was able to deposit the tray in the kitchen before picking her up.
I wasted no time getting back to Baby Girl, so she wouldn’t fuss any. After I changed her diaper, I got to thinking that maybe I should have taken Jeanie up on her offer to go diaper shopping. Our supply was running low and I couldn’t leave Rosie alone. Even if I could slip out when Lily was here, I didn’t think I would get far with that big toe of mine.
After feeding Georgia, I decided to worry about my more immediate problems. I gave Baby Girl a quick bath and got her dressed. I pulled my hair into a ponytail and slipped into some clean clothes. I couldn’t squeeze my foot into my sneaker. A quick peek into Rosie’s room told me what I already knew. She was fast asleep again. I picked up Baby Girl’s highchair and moved it near the bathroom door. I grazed the top of my toe with it. I would have given my last dime for an empty field to scream in at that moment. Since Rosie’s house lacked any real open space, I bit down hard on my lip instead. I sat Baby Girl in her seat and put a few toys on the tray. A hot shower would have helped wake me up for the day, but between Baby Girl and Rosie there was no hope of that. I had just finished washing my face when the doorbell rang. I lifted Baby Girl onto my hip and limped to the front door.
Doc Richards was standing on the porch, carrying his bag. Although I was expecting him, the blow to my foot must have affected my head, too, because the sight of Doc at the door threw me some. I tried to calm myself. I needed to look like I could be trusted with Rosie’s care for now.
“How is she today?” he asked.
“She didn’t eat much this morning, but she got a good night’s sleep,” I reported. “She’s napping again now.”
I followed him down the hall to Rosie’s room. Doc Richards tapped on the half-open door and slipped through the opening. I peeked around him and saw Rosie’s eyes flutter open. “How are you feeling this morning?” Doc asked.
Instead of answering the question, Rosie set her eyes on me and said, “Why don’t you go out to the front room? Let our little Christmas angel soak in all that Christmas spirit hanging on that tree.”
I took the hint and limped back to the kitchen. I was stirring the pot, breathing in the soup steam when Doc joined us in the kitchen. Georgia greeted our visitor by throwing her teething ring at him. He caught it in one hand and put it on her highchair tray. He ruffled her curls and a big belly laugh rolled out of her sweet lips. “How is Rosie doing?” I asked.
“She is doing as well as can be expected,” Doc answered. “We can talk more about that after I take a look at your foot.”
I didn’t even have the energy to protest his order. I sat down in the chair Doc pulled out for me and rested my foot on the chair across the way. He started poking, pressing, and turning my foot and ankle. It hurt so much I had to bite back my tears. I was questioning the term “healer” when he finally rested my foot on the chair. “I think you have a broken toe and some bruised foot bones,” Doc said. “I can tape up your toes here, but you should go to the hospital for x-rays.”
He opened his bag and got to work wrapping and taping, while I got to thinking about what excuse I could give for not following his medical advice. I wasn’t about to leave Rosie when she needed my help so badly, and a hospital visit would cost money I didn’t have. I had no intentions of telling him about my money situation, and I wondered if I was making myself sound too important in terms of Rosie’s care. The doorbell relieved me of that effort. While Doc saved me the hobble to the door, I set the table for lunch.
Lily swept down the hall as if she didn’t really need that cane of hers. She was shooting out a bunch of whispered questions and Doc was answering as fast as he could. She stopped at Rosie’s door, took a deep breath, and gave the door a few taps. As Doc and Lily slipped into Rosie’s room, I went back to work on lunch. Baby Girl soon tired of her highchair, so I let her perch on my hip while I worked. She was still there when Lily came into the kitchen. “Do you think that is the safest place for a baby to be while you’re working on a lit stove?” she asked.
The tone of her voice told me she wasn’t so much asking me a question as she was scolding me for bad judgment. The churning inside of me let me know that I didn’t take to that kind of criticism much better than I did to Daddy’s way of correcting me. Just the same, I put Georgia back in her highchair. I learned real young to waste no time fixing my ways so the method of advising didn’t get ugly quick. I had no way of knowing how things might progress with Lily. When her hand reached out toward me, I flinched. My reaction took her back some. She stepped closer and said real gently, “I’m sorry, Becky. I don’t mean to criticize. I’m just worried about Rosie, and I’m afraid I took it out on you.”
Now those were words I would have never heard from Daddy, so I stumbled over my own tongue trying to tell her everything was fine. Lily smiled and said, “My goodness, that soup smells delicious. Is there anything I can do to help you out here? It’s been a long time since I cooked, but I take directions well.”
I had a hard time believing anyone tried to give Lily directions. She was more the kind of woman whose words everyone else followed. I thought her offer was kind, though, and said as much. “Thank you, but everything is just about ready. Besides,” I smiled, “Rosie would not take kindly to me putting our guests to work.”
Lily patted my arm. “You need to stop thinking of me in terms of being a guest,” she said, before she glided back to Rosie’s room.
I went back to wor
k. After sliding the biscuits into the oven, I picked up Baby Girl again and went down to Rosie’s room. The conversation in the room ended as soon as I passed through her door. “Lunch is just about ready,” I said. “Would you like me to bring you in a tray now or a little later?”
“I don’t want you to do any such thing,” Rosie answered. “I’ll be joining all of you in the dining room.”
Doc and Lily passed a look between them before nodding in my direction. I limped on out and got to work setting the dining room table with the good china dishes. I tied a little red bow on the stem of each glass and placed a few Christmas decorations in the center of the table. It sure didn’t look like a spread in one of those magazines Rosie was always referring to, but it was the best I could do working with one foot, one hand, and a baby grabbing at everything. I hurried as best as I could back to the kitchen, cleared the clean dishes off the kitchen table, and got the soup and biscuits ready for serving. When the food was on the table, Doc and Lily brought Rosie to the dining room.
“Didn’t I tell you she was an artist?” Rosie said. “This girl can make anything look like it belongs in a museum.”
I looked at the slipshod job I did on the table and wished I had put a little more effort into making it look festive. I started serving up the soup as soon as everyone settled into their seats.
“Do you plan to study art in college, Becky?” Lily asked as she passed the biscuits to Doc. “You’re ready to take your high school tests now.”
“I don’t have any college plans,” I answered. I stood up so fast I almost tipped my chair over. “I forgot Georgia’s lunch,” I said, and hobbled out to the kitchen.
When I came back, everyone was talking about what a good choice soup was on such a damp and chilly day. “It smells and feels like a storm’s heading our way,” Doc said. “There was no word of one on the news, but what do those fools know? My bones do a better job predicting the weather than all of their fancy instruments and computers.” Rosie and Lily laughed, but nodded their heads in agreement.
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