TAXI DELIVERY

by Brooke Williams

  Jed searched the computer for the hospital that had been closest to the parking garage and dialed the number listed under their patient information tab.

  “Patient information, this is Deb,” the voice on the other line answered after three rings.

  Jed cleared his throat. “Um, yes, I was wanting to get some information on a patient of yours.” Jed closed his eyes, realizing that his statement was rather dumb and generic. After all, it was why the number existed.

  “Okay,” the forgiving voice on the other end said, “what is the patient’s name?”

  Jed heard a few key strokes clang through the phone as the woman pulled up a new screen on her computer.

  “That’s the problem,” Jed continued. “I don’t really know.”

  The silence over the line felt like eternity as Jed waited for Deb to instruct him on what he was to do next. “So…” Deb continued, finally breaking up the pause. “I take it you’re not a member of the patient’s family?”

  “No,” Jed confirmed. “Not exactly.” Not at all was more like it, though he felt as though he should be at least an extended family member after what he had gone through with the woman in the back of his cab.

  “I’m sorry,” Deb began, sounding sincerely apologetic. Jed was pretty sure that she had been chosen for her position for just this reason. She was obviously very good at what she did. “We can’t disclose information to anyone about any patient unless they are immediate family AND have been cleared by the patient.”

  “I see,” Jed said, unable to say much more.

  “Can I have your name, please?” Deb asked.

  “My name?”

  “Yes, sir. What is your name?”

  When Jed didn’t answer, Deb continued with an explanation.

  “I can run your name through our database to see if anyone has cleared you for visits or to receive information about them. That way, in case whoever you are calling about wants you to know more about them, we could work the system that way.”

  “I see,” Jed said without any hope at all. He hadn’t exchanged names with the patient in question. She no more knew his name than he knew hers. But he decided it would be rude to end the conversation with Deb so early. She was doing her best to be helpful. “I’m Jed. Jed Leida.”

  Jed listened as the woman typed away on her computer on the other end. He rubbed his hand across his chin, feeling the stubble the day had brought.

  “Ah, yes,” Deb said, “you have a visitor clearance after all.”

  “I do?” Jed said, sitting up in his chair.

  “You are not cleared to receive patient information over the phone, but you ARE cleared to visit one of the patients we have in residence here.”

  Jed could almost hear the smile in her voice. She had succeeded for him and she was just as happy about that as he was. “Could you tell me one more thing?” Jed asked, hope inching its way back into his voice. “What is her name?”

  “The patient’s?” Deb asked.

  “Yes,” Jed replied, realizing how strange this whole conversation had to be for Deb. How often did someone call to ask about a patient whose name he did not even know only to find out he had been cleared to visit her?

  “I know it’s none of my business,” Deb said as Jed heard more keystrokes sounding through the phone. “But you wouldn’t happen to be the cab driver I’ve been hearing so much about, would you?”

  “I do drive a cab…” Jed said, trying not to give away more than the woman already knew.

  “I’m sorry,” she said as the typing stopped. “It’s just that the patient you’re cleared to see is the very same one who…” Deb paused.

  “I understand,” Jed interrupted. “You can’t give out information. But it’s okay. Yes, I was the cab driver. I was with the woman who gave birth to her baby in the parking garage…in the back of a cab…my cab.”

  “I just knew it was you. Oh, she’ll be so delighted. She just called down to patient information half an hour ago. She saw you on the news and learned your name and wanted to give you clearance right away on the off chance that you would check in on her. I think she really wants to see you. Visiting hours start first thing tomorrow at 9.”

  Jed shook his head. Things had lined up way better than he had hoped. He didn’t dream that he’d get to see the woman again. He just assumed that he would hear that she and the baby were fine and then they would all move on with their prospective lives.

  “I’ll be there,” he said with certainty. “Are you able to tell me her name?”

  “Now that I know who you are,” Deb answered, “and that she wants to see you, yes, I can do that. I can’t give you any of her medical information, of course.”

  “Of course,” Jed responded. By then, all he really wanted to know was her name. The rest would come later when he visited the next morning. Though he assumed she must have been doing okay if she made a phone call to patient information just half an hour before.

  “Her name is Sadie. Sadie Walker.”

  Sadie. “Thank you very much,” Jed said with enthusiasm. “You’ve been so very helpful.”

  “Not a problem at all,” Deb responded. “See you tomorrow Mr. Leida.”

  Jed hung up the phone. It had been quite a day. He planned on driving the cab until the dinner rush was through and then spending the evening studying until his brain hurt. Instead, he picked up a fare first thing this morning, delivered a baby, got interviewed by a news station, and headed home. It certainly had been far from what he expected out of his day. And he felt as if the craziness of the day was only the beginning somehow.

  Sadie Walker had needed him in the backseat of that cab. She needed him to ensure her baby’s safe entry into the world. And now, for whatever odd reason, Jed felt like she needed him still.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Everyone told Sadie that babies were a lot of work. It wasn’t that she hadn’t believed them. It was just that she hadn’t ever had an opportunity to be around one for more than an hour or two. Sadie only babysat for one kid growing up and he was well out of diapers. And when she saw other people’s babies, they were easily pacified by a gentle rocking, a bottle, a pacifier or a toy.

  When Sadie first learned that she was pregnant, she knew she was in for a life change. She was bringing a person into the world. A person for whom she would be responsible to care for and love. But no one told her what lack of sleep would do.

  Sadie was still in the honeymoon phase with her new baby though. She spent the night feeding her, holding her, rocking her and gazing at her. The baby cried quite a bit and Sadie didn’t blame her. She had been warm and comfy in Sadie’s womb and she had been thrust into the cold harsh world in a very unconventional manner.

  Sadie’s only hope was that she would calm down and settle in to daily life. It wasn’t going to be easy either way, but Sadie truly didn’t know how she would manage a baby with the ability to scream so loud Sadie’s ears felt as though they would burst.

  A couple of nurses had offered to take the baby to the nursery for an hour here or there overnight. They told Sadie she needed to conserve her strength for when she went home and the real work began. The nurses all sounded like they knew what they were talking about, but still Sadie refused. She had brought the little girl into the world and now that she was here, she was going to spend every possible minute with her.

  By the time the sun came up over the horizon, Sadie felt as if she had spent a life time of minutes with the new baby. She knew the nights were going to be longer as the days passed, but she didn’t care. She would do what needed to be done to keep her daughter happy and healthy.

  The nurses’ shifts changed and a new nurse came in to take blood pressures and check up on the patients. She looked the chart over and then glanced at the baby, who was finally asleep in Sadie’s arms.

  “She looks very peaceful,” the nurse said. “Does she have a name yet?”

  Sadie bit her lip. She had been thinking about it all night long and going
back and forth. She didn’t want to give too much away, but she was certain no one would guess just from the meaning of the name.

  “Ellison,” she said, making the final decision.

  “That’s lovely,” the nurse smiled. “What about a middle name.”

  Sadie looked up to the ceiling. She hadn’t gotten that far. She was naming her baby Ellison because the name mean “son of Elias.” It would be the only connection the girl would likely ever have to her father. Since her first name had meaning, she wanted her middle name to mean something as well.

  “What about Leida?” she asked, testing the name out loud.

  The nurse frowned. “That’s unusual. Ellison Leida,” she said, looking down at the little girl.

  “Yes,” Sadie said, looking at the little girl as well. “Ellison Leida Walker.”

  The nurse nodded and marked the chart. “I’ll get the information to the office. We can get started on the official birth certificate now.”

  Sadie nodded and thanked the nurse after she took her blood pressure and asked about her pain level. She hadn’t even thought about the birth certificate. What was she going to do when they asked who had fathered her child? Was she going to list him on the certificate? She certainly couldn’t lie and there was always a father.

  Ellison woke up, yawned, and started to cry, distracting Sadie from the very real decision she was soon going to have to make.

  * * * * *

  Jed arrived at the hospital a few minutes before the visiting hours opened. He hadn’t slept well because he couldn’t stop thinking about all of the so-called coincidences that seemed to be lining up in his life. He had been working on a day he was supposed to have off, for one thing. A pregnant woman had climbed into HIS cab, of all the thousands of cabs in New York City. She had a baby in it, went to the hospital and then cleared him to come see her. He didn’t have to call to find out about her, but he did. And somehow, the world had orchestrated a second meeting between the two of them.

  Jed wasn’t one to believe in coincidences. These things that were lining up were not due to coincidence at all. God was moving. Of that he was sure. He didn’t know what was going on or what God was planning, but there was something about the woman…Sadie…that God wanted Jed to figure out and possibly even protect. It had to be why Jed felt so drawn to her. He couldn’t let her go even though he had no real reason to seek her out again.

  Jed waited outside the hospital watching the second hand of his watch tick until the big hand reached the 12 indicating that it was 9 o’clock. He didn’t want to seem too eager but he didn’t want to waste another second. It was Sunday so Jed had the day off. He gave himself one day a week to decompress. No work. No classes. No plans. Though he did often use the time to study and catch up.

  Jed quickly read the hospital directory inside the front door and learned that the maternity ward was on the third floor. During the short elevator ride, he took note of what he was doing.

  It was all a little bizarre. He met strangers every day, but he never visited them at the hospital later. What was he going to say to the woman? This Sadie? What if it was awkward after what they had been through together? By the time the elevator opened on the third floor, Jed reassured himself that he was just going to check in on her and make sure she was doing okay. He realized then that he had come empty handed and he ducked in to the third floor gift shop and grabbed a small bouquet of flowers for Sadie and a mid-sized pink teddy bear for the baby.

  Jed’s next stop was at the information desk near the maternity ward.

  “I’m here to visit Sadie Walker,” he said, testing the name out and liking how it sounded as he spoke.

  “And you are?” the receptionist asked.

  “Jed. Jed Leida,” he replied, drumming his fingers on the desk impatiently and smashing the teddy bear up against the flowers.

  “You’re cleared,” the woman said after working the mouse around on the computer in front of her. “Room 304,” she continued, pointing down the hall.

  “Thanks,” Jed said over his shoulder as he headed in the direction in which she indicated he should go.

  He had only known Sadie for a few brief moments and he hadn’t known her name while they were face to face. But he couldn’t wait to be reunited with her. He wanted to see that light sparkle in her eyes again and confirm for himself that she and her baby were okay. After that, he was sure he could move on. His part in her life would be one she would always remember, but it would be over. The protectiveness he felt towards her would likely come to an end once he saw that she was safe and sound.

  Jed gently knocked on the door to room 304. “Come in,” he heard a voice call from the other side. He slowly swung the door open and stepped inside, holding the flowers and teddy bear up in front of him.

  “Are you up for visitors?” he asked when he saw Sadie in the bed holding a wrapped bundle in her arms.

  “You came!” Sadie proclaimed, starting to shift around on the bed so she could get up and greet him.

  “Don’t get up,” he said waving his free hand, “please. Just stay where you are.”

  Sadie settled back into the bed and smiled at Jed, who was shifting awkwardly from foot to foot.

  “I don’t think we ever properly met,” Jed began. His nerves were on edge since he had been through so much with this woman and knew so little about her. “I’m Jed Leida.”

  “Sadie Walker,” she replied, extending her free hand out to Jed. Jed half rose and shook it, feeling a sting of electricity as their hands met. Before he could process the sudden shock, Sadie went on. “You’re famous, you know,” she said, glancing up at the blank TV screen. “I saw you all over the news.”

  “Yeah,” Jed agreed. “Sorry about that.”

  “No reason to apologize,” Sadie replied, glancing down at her newborn. “It’s not like you could tell them anything about me had you tried. But thanks for not going into details either way.”

  “It’s nobody’s business,” he said.

  Sadie nodded.

  Jed suddenly remembered the items he had stopped to get for Sadie and her new daughter. “Oh,” he said, looking at the bouquet in his hand as if it had just appeared there. “These are for you.”

  Sadie smiled kindly. “Would you mind putting them over there?” she asked.

  Jed looked at the nearby windowsill, which was already filled with flowers and balloons. He had been so taken by the sight of mother and child that he didn’t even notice the room was already full of gifts. “Wow,” he said. “Who are they all from?” He hoped she had a lot of family and friends nearby that were showering her with gifts and treating her as she deserved to be treated.

  Sadie shrugged. “Well-meaning New Yorkers, I guess,” she said. “People are just sending them to the hospital under various names. I’ve been called ‘Parking Garage Mom,’ ‘Taxi Delivery Lady’ and plenty of other things. My name hasn’t been released, but it hasn’t stopped perfect strangers from congratulating me. It’s pretty strange.”

  Jed agreed. He was glad that Sadie was able to protect her privacy amidst the sensational story of which she had been a part.

  “This is for your little girl,” he said, showing Sadie the teddy bear after he placed the small bouquet he bought at the gift shop among the many others.

  “I’ll let you give that to her yourself,” Sadie said, holding the bundle out to Jed.

  Jed took the baby, instantly remembering how she had felt when she had first been born. She was much cleaner now, but she felt the same in his arms. As if she just fit and belonged somehow.

  “She’s perfect,” he said, gazing at her sleeping face.

  “Her name is Ellison,” Sadie supplied, not filling in the rest of her name just yet.

  “Ellison,” Jed said as he stroked her tiny little fingers. “That’s beautiful.”

  Jed was transfixed by the little bundle he held. He felt like he and Ellison were in their own little world and he wanted to sit there and hold her all day. H
e had plenty of family members who had plenty of children. It wasn’t his first time holding a baby. And yet, usually babies simply cried when he took them. He would coo at them a bit and then hand them back over to the parents and that was that.

  “She likes you,” Sadie said, coming up behind Jed and peaking over his shoulder.

  “How can you tell?” he asked. “She’s asleep.”

  “Exactly,” Sadie said with a smile. “Listen, I’m really glad you came by. I wanted to thank you for everything you did for me…for us.”

  Jed couldn’t take his eyes off the baby, but he made a face to tell Sadie that he hadn’t really done that much.