The First Nine Lives of Isabella LaFelini

by Harvey, Rhonda

  IT WAS MORE than two hours later when girl Isabella emerged from her bedroom, holding her side. “Oh, man,” she said, “I am hurtin’! Look!” She lifted her top and showed Ty her swollen red and purple ribs. “That jerk really kicked me!

  Ty reached out with a trembling finger and touched her gently. “Man, that looks so sore. Maybe you should put some ice on that?”

  “Yeah, maybe. How long was I asleep?”

  “‘Bout two hours. Seriously, Isabella, that looks really bad. Put some ice on it. Your mom’s a nurse—she must have one of those freezie-things in the freezer?”

  “Yeah, I think so…”

  “Well, go lay down on the sofa, and I’ll bring it to you.”

  Ty rummaged through the freezer until he found the blue gel pack, and then he rummaged through the drawers until he found a kitchen towel in which to wrap it. But before he wrapped it up tightly and took it to Isabella, he went into the bathroom and found the aspirin. “Here,” he said gently, “sit up for a second and take these.” When Isabella didn’t put up a fight, Ty realized that she must be really hurting. She swallowed the two pills and lay back down. He bent over her and eased the icepack into position on her side.

  Even though Ty had been as gentle as he could be, Isabella gritted her teeth and made a soft sucking sound with her teeth. “Owwww, crap, that hurts.” She blinked back tears.

  “Sorry, sorry,” Ty told her.

  “No, it’s okay,” Isabella replied. “It’s not your fault that jerk kicked me. Ugh…what am I gonna tell my mom?”

  “Tell her you fell off the wall behind my house or something…don’t worry about it right now. Just lay still so the ice pack doesn’t fall off.”

  Isabella sighed. “Thanks, Ty. You’re…” she paused, unsure of how to finish the sentence. Did she dare tell him how she really felt? “You’re…you’re the best,” she finished lamely.

  “Um, thanks. Hey, Isabella, I thought about going into the basement to see if there was anything out of place, but since I don’t know what things looked like normally…”

  “Oh, yeah. Geez, I almost forgot. Ouch! Guess I shouldn’t have moved…anyway, I nearly forgot. Can you wait a little while?”

  Ty looked concerned. “Isabella? Maybe he broke some ribs? Maybe you need an x-ray? I mean, he kicked you. I can’t imagine that cat ribs are all that strong…”

  Isabella shook her head weakly. “Ty, I’ll be all right…let me just rest here with the ice pack for a few and give the aspirin some time to work. You want to go see what’s going on at the Overmans’?”

  Ty shrugged. “I could, I guess. Not sure what more I could find out…I mean, they’d notice me…”

  Isabella laughed a little and indicated her ribs. “Yeah, he noticed me, too!”

  “Well, I’ll wait for you, anyway. Wanna see what’s on TV while we’re just hangin’ here?”

  Isabella smiled. “Sure. As long as I don’t have to get up!”

  Ty reached over, took the remote from the coffee table and clicked on the television. “What do you think? MTV or something else?”

  “MTV. I think ‘TRL’ is on.” And the two friends settled in to watch a couple of hours of music television.

  It wasn’t long before Isabella fell asleep again. Ty sat and watched her sleep for a while before he stretched out in the recliner and fell asleep as well.

  The two were in the same position when Luci came into the house two hours later. She looked at them—Ty in the chair, Isabella on the sofa—and wondered what events had led up to the sacked-out teens. Luci leaned over and kissed Isabella’s cheek. She didn’t notice the icepack, which had slipped out of position, so she patted Isabella’s side.

  “Ouch!” Isabella screeched. “That hurt!”

  “What?” Luci pulled up Isabella’s shirt to reveal the bruised side. “What happened?”

  Isabella, who wasn’t yet awake, mumbled, “That jerk kicked me.”

  “Kicked you?!” Luci was loud enough to wake Ty. “Who kicked you?”

  Ty scrambled out of the recliner. “Kicked? No one kicked you, Isabella!” He shouted a little too quickly. “She fell, Mrs. LaFelini. Down the hill at the Point.”

  Isabella was now fully awake. “Yeah, sorry, Mom. I was having a weird dream. I slid down the hill at the Point—stepped on a rock and lost my footing. What are you doing home?”

  “I decided to come home for lunch—figured I’d check on Tyson while I was here. Of course, I didn’t know he’d be in my living room when I got here! So,” she directed her speech toward Ty, “I guess you’re feeling better, Ty?”

  “Yes, Mrs. L. Thanks.”

  “Isabella, let me see those ribs.”

  Isabella reluctantly pulled up her shirt, exposing her purple ribcage.

  “I think that maybe you need to get those x-rayed, Isabella. And before you argue with me, broken ribs are nothing to play with. You can end up with a punctured lung!”

  “Mom,” Isabella pleaded, “I don’t think they’re broken. I don’t have any trouble taking a deep breath. I’m sure it’s just a bad bruise. Ty gave me two aspirin and put an icepack on me—and I feel better already.”

  “Isabella, I’m your mother…but more than that, I’m a nurse. You’re coming back to work with me, and we’re going to get those ribs x-rayed.” She turned to Ty, “I didn’t see your bike out there, Ty; can I give you a ride home?”

  “Yes, thank you, Mrs. L.”

  “Okay, come on, darling daughter. Might just as well go now. The good news is you have connections and won’t have to sit in the ER for hours!”

  Isabella rolled her eyes. “We’ll take care of that thing later, Ty,” she whispered.

  “I was thinking,” he whispered back, “that we oughta go to the library and see if there’s information about what these houses have in common besides basements.”

  “Can’t we find that online?” Isabella asked.

  “Nope. Either the library or the information center. We’ll look into it Monday. Assuming your ribs aren’t broken. If they are, it’ll wait.”

  “What are you two whispering about?” Luci asked as she grabbed an apple out of the fruit bowl on the kitchen counter.

  “Nothing, Mom. Just that I think you’re overreacting. I don’t think that there are any broken bones—I’m just bruised.”

  “Let me be the judge of that, Missy,” her mother told her. “Let’s go. C’mon, Ty.”

  Isabella rolled her eyes knowingly and mouthed to Ty, “She’s crazy.”

  “No,” he mouthed back, “She’s careful. And I agree with her. It’s better to be safe.”

  Isabella sighed. Two against one was just so unfair!

  TO ISABELLA’S HORROR, her mother and Ty were right: her ribs were broken. Cracked, to be specific, but specifics didn’t really matter. They were right—and both would never let her forget it. Isabella sighed. The doctor was telling her something—and she decided she’d better focus.

  “As I was saying,” Dr. Myers repeated, as if he knew she hadn’t been listening, “back in the old days, we’d have wrapped you all up like a mummy.” He laughed as if that had somehow been funny. “But doctors have learned that compression doesn’t actually help the ribs heal any faster—and there’s always a chance that compression will lead to pneumonia by restricting breathing or even a punctured lung by pressing the broken rib into the lung. So…lucky for you, Miss LaFelini, we’re just going to let you be. However, you need to take ibuprofen as an anti-inflammatory agent—I’m actually going to write you a prescription for a dose stronger than you can get over the counter—and for some pain medication. You will have to take it easy, though…for the next four to six weeks.”

  “Four to six weeks?” Isabella exclaimed so sharply that it actually hurt her side. “Oh, come on, Dr. Myers. That’s crazy.”

  “No, Isabella, what’s crazy is your explanation as to what happened to cause this injury in the first place.”

  Isabella looked around but her mother
hadn’t returned from her call to the nurses’ station. “What…um…what do you m-mean?” she stammered nervously.

  Dr. Myers made a small smacking noise with his lips. “Isabella, I won’t tell your mother, but you need to tell me what happened. I know this injury isn’t from a fall. It’s too pointed, too directed. It’s almost like someone kicked you or hit you hard with a blunt object.”

  Isabella winced. “But I did fall. Down a rocky hill toward the water.”

  “Yeah, okay. We do have doctor-patient confidentiality here—I really won’t tell your mother, but if you don’t want to tell me, fine. I guess the origin of the injury isn’t important—unless your boyfriend hit you or something?” His eyes narrowed suspiciously.

  Isabella sighed as deeply as her injured side would allow. “Dr. Myers, I assure you that if I did have a boyfriend who tried to hit me, you’d be treating him—not me.”

  Dr. Myers laughed. “Yeah, you’re definitely your mother’s daughter! Okay, okay. Here are your prescriptions. Don’t be selling that pain medicine in the school yard.”

  Isabella rolled her eyes and shook her head. “I can’t believe they let you see patients—you’re crazy. Sheesh.”

  “Okay, okay…I guess that wasn’t funny. Listen, I am going to talk to your mom about rest. Spend the rest of the weekend in bed—or at least on the sofa. Don’t look at me that way—it’s Saturday afternoon. It’s not gonna kill you to stick around the house for a day and a half. And then limited activity for the next four to six weeks.” Isabella looked so crestfallen that he amended his statement. “Look, come back and see me in four weeks. We’ll repeat those x-rays, and if the ribs seem to be healed, I’ll release you. Okay? Compromise?”

  Isabella grinned. “Yeah, okay. Compromise. Thank you, Doc.”

  Luci came back into the exam room. “So, what did I miss?” She looked at Isabella, “By the way, Rick says he hopes you’re feeling better soon.”

  “NSAIDs, pain meds, rest—you know the routine, Luci,” Dr. Myers told her mother.

  “En-what?” Isabella asked. “And when did you talk to Rick?”

  “Who’s Rick?”

  “Her boyfriend,” Isabella informed him.

  “N-S-A-I-Ds. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Like ibuprofen,” Luci explained. “And enough of the snotty way you say ‘boyfriend’, Isabella! Bed rest?” she asked Dr. Myers.

  “For the rest of the weekend, bed or sofa. After that, restricted activity—no bikes, no motorscooters or anything like that, no running, no jumping—you know. But she really does need to take it easy this weekend. Those bruises are pretty ugly.”

  “Don’t worry, Pete—she’ll rest. No doubt about it. If I have to bring her here and put her in a bed in pediatrics, she will rest.”

  “Pediatrics?” Isabella was horrified. “C’mon, Mom. Now you’re just being unreasonable.”

  “Not unreasonable, Isabella. Serious. You will rest the remainder of today and all of tomorrow. Either here or at home. Your choice, but if I don’t think you can be trusted, you’re coming to work with me.”

  “See what you started?” Isabella glared at Dr. Myers. She sighed. “Okay, Mom. I’ll rest. Promise. Anyway you can take me home now?”

  “No, kiddo, sorry. My shift doesn’t end until midnight—and we’re short handed as it is. We’ll find a waiting room someplace for you to rest.”

  “Actually,” Dr. Myers interrupted, “I’m heading home, Luce. I don’t mind taking her to your house if you don’t mind her being there alone…”

  “Oh, can he, Mom? Please please please?”

  “On one condition: you call Tyson and have him be there for you.”

  “Wow,” Dr. Myers said, a little surprised. “You’re a pretty cool mom, Luci—you’re gonna let her have a boy over?”

  “He’s a good boy, Pete,” she told the doctor. “That and they both know I’d kill them if anything happened…”

  Isabella grinned. “Thank you, Mom. And thank you, Dr. Myers. Maybe you’re not as crazy as I thought you were…”

  “You better hope not, Isabella,” Pete Myers teased, “because I’m driving you home!”

  Isabella smiled. It was one of those times when she was really, really glad that her mom worked at a hospital! “Okay, Mom, can I borrow your cell to call Ty?”

  “Go out to the nurses’ station, Isabella; they’ll let you use the phone. I need to discuss a patient—other than my bratty daughter—with Dr. Myers, and then he’ll be with you.”

  “Okay.” She leaned over carefully and kissed her mother goodbye. “I’ll see you in the morning—or when you get home if I’m still awake. Oh, hey, what about my prescriptions?”

  “There’s a pharmacy here in the hospital,” Dr. Myers reminded her. “Second floor. Go ahead and put them in—and let them know we need them fast because I’m taking you home. Wait there at the pharmacy—I’ll meet you there, k?”

  “Yep, that works. Thanks, Dr. M. Have a good night, Mom…” and Isabella set out to call Ty before finding the pharmacy.

  Twenty-Five: Dr. Pete and the Intruder

  ABOUT FIFTEEN MINUTES later, Dr. Myers kept his word and met Isabella in front of the pharmacy counter. When he discovered that her prescriptions weren’t ready, he went behind the counter and spoke to the pharmacist. Two minutes later, he emerged with a small white bag in hand. “Okay, Miss LaFelini, let’s get going!” He offered her his elbow and directed her to the elevator and then down to the doctors’ parking lot. His white Jaguar was the shiniest car in the lot.

  “Wow…this is a nice ride,” Isabella told him as she carefully entered the small sports car.

  “Thanks. You in okay?”

  “Yeah, thanks.” Before he closed the door, he handed the seat belt buckle to her.

  “Do you need me to do that?”

  “I think I can get it…” she tried and grimaced in pain.

  “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Sit back.” He clicked the seat belt tab into its slot, closed the door and walked around to the other side of the car.

  “So,” he asked her as the car roared into gear. “Did you get your friend on the phone?”

  Isabella nodded. “Yeah, he’s gonna meet us there. I really appreciate the ride, Dr. Myers.”

  “Call me ‘Pete’—can I ask you a question, Isabella?”

  “Sure.”

  “What is it about your mother’s boyfriend that you don’t like?”

  Isabella was a little embarrassed. “It’s that obvious, huh?”

  Pete laughed. “Just a little.”

  Isabella sighed. “Well, at first, I thought it was just that I wouldn’t like any guy because he wasn’t my dad, you know?” Pete nodded, so she continued, “But there’s just something about this guy that doesn’t add up. I dunno. Have you ever just not liked someone? I mean, immediately?”

  Pete nodded, never taking his eyes off the road. “Yep. And then, like an idiot, I’ve given that person a chance anyway—and it’s bitten me in the…um…butt.”

  “Well, that’s how I feel about this guy. You seem to know my mom pretty well—have you met this guy?”

  Pete shook his head. “Nope. I saw him at the hospital a few times when your mom first started seeing him, but she never introduced us…”

  Isabella wondered why, but she decided to change the subject. “I really love this car, Dr. Myers…errr, Pete. It’s awesome!”

  Pete smiled. “Thanks, Isabella. This is what you get to buy when you work a million hours and don’t have a family to support.”

  “You’re not married?”

  Pete shook his head. “Nope. Came close once but…” his voice seemed to change, “I guess it wasn’t meant to be. She had leukemia, Isabella. She…she underwent some special experimental treatment, but it didn’t work. She…she passed away five years ago last month.”

  “Five years ago? My dad died five years ago. On July 14th.”

  “Julie died on the 10th. Pretty odd coincidence, huh?”

&nb
sp; “Yeah, I guess,” Isabella was thoughtful. “Um, if you don’t mind my asking, do you…do you date?” Of course he dates, Isabella, she scolded herself. He’s a good-looking guy—a doctor for crying out loud —with a really nice car!

  “Nah, not really,” Pete told her. “Hard to do in this line of work. I put in so many hours. It’s hard for women to understand. I thought that maybe I’d…oh, never mind.” Isabella was curious about what he was going to tell her. “Is this your street?”

  Isabella looked up. It was. “Yeah. Wow. We got here so fast! Must be the car!”

  Pete grinned. “That or the conversation combined with the pain medication. Let me help you out—I think you might be a little dizzy.”

  He eased into the driveway and jumped out of the car to help her out. “Isabella? Is that your friend?” He indicated a dark figure at the back corner of the house.

  She looked up. “No…I don’t know who that is. Dr. Myers? I think that’s a burglar or something. He shouldn’t be back there.”

  “Excuse me!” Pete called. “Would you come here please?” The figure dressed in black took off running. “Hold on, Isabella. Stay right there.” And Pete went running after the intruder.

  “Oh my gosh!” Isabella blurted aloud, reaching around to lock her car door. Suddenly, there was a dark face in the passenger window. She jumped and let out a little scream.

  “Isabella? You okay?”

  Ty. It was Ty. Isabella silently commanded her heart rate to slow, and she opened the car door. “Help…help me out of here, Ty. Did you see Dr. Myers? He just ran off after someone. There was someone in my yard, Ty. Someone dressed all in black. They were at the back corner of the house. When Dr. Myers called to him—or her—they took off. Running. And he—the doctor—ran after him. Her. Whatever.” Isabella was slightly aware that she was rambling.

  Dr. Myers returned to the car, out of breath. “I…I couldn’t catch up to him, Isabella. And I’m not gonna leave you here alone.” He suddenly noticed Ty. “Who are you?”

  “Ty. Isabella’s friend. And you are?” Ty was acting almost territorial.

  Pete smiled while still gasping for breath. “Dang, I didn’t realize I’m so outta shape. I’m Pete Myers. I work with Isabella’s mom at the hospital. C’mon, Ty, help Isabella out of the car. We’re taking her inside, and then I’m calling the police.”