by Sharon Sala
Mavis had a momentary flashback of facing the anger of Johnny Pine when his little brother had been injured at this school. She didn’t want to relive that.
“Yes, ma’am. We take our responsibilities very seriously here.”
Alice gave the kids one last encouraging look and was leaving the office as the first bell rang. She couldn’t look back or she would cry. She needed to ignore what other people thought of her and not be so touchy. Life had put her on this path, and she was doing her best not to fall off.
The chilly air felt good on her face as she exited the school, and then she headed toward Main Street. Walking back would give her time to shake the chip off her shoulder. She was pleased at how friendly people were as she walked through the neighborhood.
An older woman who was outside picking up a paper waved at Alice. She waved back and walked on as the lady went back inside.
A few houses down, a woman was trying to get her kids in the car. Alice heard the mother fussing and the kids whining. They were going to be late for school, she thought, and kept moving.
She was a block off Main when she met an older man walking his dog and thought of Booger, their gentle giant.
“Morning, miss,” the man said.
“Good morning,” Alice said. “What a sweet little dog.”
“Thank you, ma’am. This is Petey. He’s a Yorkie.”
Alice grinned. “Hi, Petey,” she said, then stepped aside to let them pass.
By the time she got to Main Street and headed north, her heart was lighter. Shopkeepers were outside sweeping in front of their stores. As she approached, they stopped to let her pass, wishing her good morning. She’d been hiding in her house for so long, struggling with the shame of their situation and then her health, that it felt good to be seen.
She passed a travel agency and a pharmacy and was coming up on the newspaper office when a passing car suddenly honked. She looked up and saw one of the ladies who’d brought her groceries waving. She waved back, trying to remember her name.
Oh yes…that was Rachel. Rachel Goodhope.
She noticed the time as she passed a bank. It was moving toward eight thirty. The kids would already be in class.
God, please let this day be a good one.
She saw a store in the next block and smiled at the name. Bloomer’s Hardware. She wondered how many times the owner had been teased about that name. But as she got closer, she saw a sign in the window. HELP WANTED. Her heart skipped a beat as she began walking faster.
“It won’t hurt to try,” Alice muttered, and went inside.
The man behind the counter looked up and smiled. “Good morning. Welcome to Bloomer’s. How can I help you?”
“I’m hoping I can help you,” Alice said. “I saw your sign in the window.”
Fred Bloomer shifted gears from customer to applicant.
“Have you ever worked in a hardware store?” he asked.
“No, but I’ve worked in retail and as a checker in a supermarket, and I need a job. I just enrolled my kids in school and was on my way home when I saw the sign. My name is Alice Conroy,” she said, and extended her hand across the counter.
Fred’s mind was racing. Right now, nearly everyone in town was mad at him for firing Melissa, and this woman was new in town. Chances were he wasn’t going to get another applicant for months—until people had time to let bygones be bygones.
“Can you work a register?”
“Yes, but may I look at yours to see if it’s very different?”
“Come this way,” he said, and she circled the counter for a closer look.
“It’s a newer version than the ones I’ve used, but with a little coaching, I see no problems.”
“Do you want to fill out an application?” he asked.
She didn’t hesitate. “Yes, sir.”
He ran to the office and came back with an application. “Fill this out and bring it back.”
“I’ll fill it out now, if you don’t mind. I don’t have a car so it’s easier to do it here rather than make two trips.”
He frowned. “Why don’t you have a car?”
She lifted her head. “My husband is dead. Our car burned up with the house he was in.”
Fred blinked. “I’m sorry.”
Alice shrugged. “So am I, and I don’t need a car to get to work on time.”
“Fill out the application,” he said.
So she did, and when she was finished, she handed it to him, then waited while he looked it over.
This was the fastest decision about hiring an employee that Fred had ever made, but he was desperate, and from the sounds of her story, so was she. Something inside him felt like this was a test of his conscience, and if he failed again, he was going to be in trouble.
“So, when could you start?” Fred asked.
“Tomorrow, but what does the job pay, and do you pay twice a month or only once a month?” she asked.
Fred became a little cagey and wanted to start her off at minimum wage, but then he remembered her situation.
“Well, I was paying my other clerk ten dollars an hour, although she’d been with me for nineteen years, and I pay twice a month.”
“Why did she quit?” Alice asked.
“Oh, it’s a long story, and hers to tell,” Fred said, not wanting to scare Alice away before she began. “I need a clerk, and I’m willing to pay that much again if you work out.”
Alice couldn’t believe it. That was sixteen hundred dollars a month before taxes.
“That works for me. One other thing. I don’t know what time you close, but because I am a single parent, I can work Monday through Friday, no weekends, and will have to leave by five because of my children coming home from school.”
Fred stifled a groan. He’d be on his own on Saturday and have to close every night. But it was his fault he was in this fix, and he needed the help.
“Then eight to five, Monday through Friday, at ten dollars an hour. We’ll make this a six-week trial period, and if you work out, then it will be permanent.”
“That’s fair,” Alice said. “I’ll take it.”
They shook hands again, but this time Alice was grinning. “I appreciate the opportunity and I will not let you down,” she said. “See you tomorrow morning at eight.”
“Tomorrow at eight,” Fred echoed, and shivered as he watched her leave. She’d just said the same thing to him that Melissa Dean had said on the day he hired her: I will not let you down. He considered it a sign, and this time, he wasn’t going to mess things up.
Alice waited until she reached the sidewalk before she started to grin, and then she couldn’t stop. She walked the rest of the way home in a fog before it hit her. This would certainly change what Jewel Easley was setting up for her. As soon as she got home, she’d call Jewel and let her know. If she didn’t qualify for assistance anymore, then so be it. Charlie was right. They were figuring things out.
Chapter 19
It was a little before eleven a.m. when Ruby entered the hospital. Her heart was racing, and there was a knot in the pit of her stomach. Seeing Peanut was an emotional trip, but she didn’t want to convey her anxiety to him. By the time she rode the elevator up to the critical care floor, she felt calmer.
“Good morning,” she said, as she passed by the nurses’ station.
Rhonda looked up and smiled. “Morning, Ruby. That turquoise looks good on you.”
“Thank you, Rhonda,” Ruby said, hoping the color would brighten Peanut’s day. It was why she’d worn it.
He was asleep again as she entered his room. It had been four days since the shooting, and while the remnants of her kidnapping were fading from her face, the bandage on the side of his head was an ugly reminder of what had happened.
Ruby put her purse on the window ledge and then leaned over and kissed his
cheek.
His eyes opened.
“It’s just me, Ruby,” she said, and caressed his cheek.
He reached for her hand. “You came back,” he said.
“I promised I would.”
His eyelids dropped again, and then a few seconds later, they opened.
“You’re my girl?”
Ruby tried not to let it bother her that he was already uncertain again.
“Yes, sweetheart, I’m your girl.”
He looked at her hair, then her face, and then the sweater she was wearing. “So pretty.”
She smiled. “That’s what you keep telling me.”
“I do?” Peanut said.
His confusion was still bothering her, so she changed the subject.
“It’s a bit chilly outside today. I’ll be ready for warmer weather when it finally comes.”
He was watching the way the words came out of her mouth, how her lips shaped as she spoke, and how peaceful the look was in her eyes. Even though he didn’t remember her, she felt safe—like he knew he could trust her.
And then a pain shot through his head, moving from one temple to the other so fast and so sharp that it felt like he’d been stabbed.
“What’s wrong?” Ruby asked.
“Head. Pain,” he mumbled, then light flashed before his eyes, and in a panic, he tightened his fingers around hers. “Help mupple worp!”
Ruby’s heart skipped a beat. “Peanut?”
He groaned. “Pluralrolabout,” he mumbled, and then his hand suddenly went limp.
Alarms on his monitors began going off, and two nurses were already running toward his room as Ruby cried out, “Help! Help, somebody, help!”
She still had hold of his hand, afraid to let go for fear he’d go too far away to come back.
Rhonda glanced at the readouts as she checked his pulse, then looked at the other nurse. “His pulse is erratic, and his blood pressure is spiking. Get his doctor in here stat,” Rhonda said.
The other nurse ran for a phone.
Rhonda glanced back at Ruby. “What happened?”
“I don’t know! He was talking, then said his head hurt. After that, his words quit making any sense.”
Ruby heard a page go out all over the hospital as nurses swarmed Peanut’s room. She backed into a corner and didn’t move for fear they’d make her leave.
It felt like forever, but it was only a couple of minutes before a doctor raced into the room. He saw the readings, flashed a light in both of Peanut’s eyes, and then tried to get him to respond, but it was useless.
“I need a CT scan on his head, stat. I’m not sure what’s causing this, but my first guess would be that he’s thrown a clot. Get them on the phone, and let them know we’re coming down,” he said.
“Yes, sir,” Rhonda said, and headed for the nurses’ desk.
“What does that mean?” Ruby cried.
The doctor turned, startled that she was there. “We’ll know more after the CT scan,” he said.
When they wheeled Peanut out, Ruby started to follow.
“No, Ruby. I’m sorry, but you can’t go.” Rhonda took her by the arm and led her in the opposite direction. “You need to go to the waiting room. Someone will let you know what’s happening as soon as they get a prognosis,” she said.
Ruby staggered there on shaky legs, too scared to cry. Thirty minutes turned into an hour and counting before Rhonda came into the waiting room and sat down beside her.
“What’s wrong?” Ruby asked.
“There’s a blood clot in a part of the brain that controls speech. Doctor thinks it might have something to do with his memory loss as well. They’ve already taken him into surgery.”
“They’re going to operate? Oh my God! I thought they tried to dissolve blood clots.”
“It’s always the doctor’s call as to the urgency and need,” Rhonda said. “The doctor will come give you an update after surgery. Keep the faith, Ruby.”
Ruby felt like she was going to throw up. When one hour moved into the next without a word, she started to cry. She was still crying when her phone began to ring, and when she saw it was Lovey, she answered without thinking.
“Hello.”
Lovey Cooper frowned. “Are you crying? What happened?”
“Oh, Lovey, it’s Peanut. I came to visit him this morning. While I was here, a blood clot came loose and went to a part of his brain. He’s been in surgery for close to two hours.”
“Oh lord! Why didn’t you call me? I would have come to sit with you.”
“Because you can’t do anything for me or him except pray. Just pray for him, Lovey.”
Lovey hung up, then called their pastor and told him what was happening. The pastor started a prayer chain, and that’s how the people in Blessings found out Peanut Butterman’s life was still in danger.
Ruby clutched her phone as the room began to spin. She rolled over onto the sofa and closed her eyes, willing the vertigo to stop. She was still there when she heard footsteps. Someone was coming into the waiting room, but she couldn’t move. Then she felt a touch on her shoulder.
“It’s just me,” Lovey said, then scooted onto the sofa beside her.
“Oh, Lovey,” Ruby whispered. “This can’t be the end.”
* * *
More than five hours had passed since they took Peanut to surgery. Ruby had paced and prayed, gone through anger and guilt, and for the past hour she’d been standing at the window overlooking the parking lot of the ER, numb to everything around her.
Lovey suddenly called out, “Ruby!”
Ruby turned around as a different doctor in surgical scrubs entered the room. She couldn’t tell by the look on his face what he was going to say, and didn’t wait for him to speak.
“How is he?” she asked.
“I’m Dr. Rousch, the neurosurgeon who operated on Mr. Butterman. He came through surgery. For the time being, we have him in a medical coma. We’ll monitor his progress, and as he heals, we’ll slowly bring him out of it.”
“Thank God,” Ruby said. “Will he come back to critical care?”
“No. He’ll be in the ICU during this time with no visitors allowed.”
“I understand. Would it be against protocol if I called the ICU to check on him?”
“That would be fine. I’ll make sure to note on his orders that you are allowed to receive updates on his progress.”
Tears blurred Ruby’s vision. “Thank you. Is there anything else you can tell me? Barring problems, what would you say was a normal recovery time?”
Rousch hesitated. “There isn’t really a normal when it comes to head injuries. I won’t venture a guess.”
It wasn’t what she wanted to hear, but she understood. “One last thing… Thank you for saving his life.”
He smiled. “Go home and get some rest,” and then he was gone.
Ruby looked at Lovey, then shook her head in disbelief.
“Come home with me, honey,” Lovey said. “I don’t want you to spend the night by yourself.”
Ruby needed to be alone with this. “Thank you, but no. I have too much to do before work tomorrow.”
Lovey didn’t bother to hide her surprise. “You’re going to work tomorrow?”
Ruby shrugged. “I’ve been off a week. I can’t see Peanut. What good would it do to stay home alone and lose my mind?”
Lovey started crying. “This is breaking my heart.”
Ruby put her arms around her best friend’s neck and hugged her.
“You are the sister I never had,” Ruby said. “Thank you for caring.” Then she got her purse.
“I’ll walk out with you,” Lovey said.
They rode the elevator down in silence, then walked out into the parking lot, got into their respective cars, and drove away.
The wonderful aroma of pot roast filled the air, reminding her that the meat she’d put in the slow cooker early this morning was most likely done. She changed her clothes and went to the kitchen.
The roast was indeed done. She turned off the heat in the cooker without realizing she was crying until tears dropped onto the backs of her hands. Her world was crashing, and she had no way to stop it.
She dropped to her knees, rocked back on her heels, and screamed.
* * *
But while Ruby’s world was coming apart, the chaos of Alice Conroy’s was coming to an end. She’d called Jewel Easley at DHS the moment she got home. Jewel was both surprised and delighted that Alice Conroy was making a real effort to support her family.
“I guess you’ll have to cancel our assistance,” Alice said.
“Not cancel, but adjust it some. You’ll still qualify for SNAP because you have children, and we’ll see how the rest is affected when I enter the new data. However, huge congratulations on the new job.”
“Thank you for coming to our rescue,” Alice said.
“You are so welcome,” Jewel said. “You’ll get a letter with your card and information on what you do qualify for. You’ll still be able to qualify for Medicaid as well.”
“Oh, that is such a relief,” Alice said.
“Call me any time you have concerns,” Jewel said, and disconnected.
When the kids came home from school, they were full of excitement. Alice had milk and cookies waiting for them.
Delighted by the luxury of a snack, they began to talk, so Alice listened and rejoiced for them while saving her own news for when they were through sharing their day.
When Pitty-Pat accidentally dropped the last bite of her cookie, Booger bolted toward it and licked it off the floor before anyone could react. Pitty-Pat didn’t know whether to cry about losing her last bite or laugh at their dog, and when Charlie gave her his last bite instead, she popped it in her mouth and giggled.
“So, guess what I did today while you two were in school?” Alice said.
They both turned to stare.
She grinned. “I got a job. I start tomorrow.”
