by Krista McGee
“That’s terrific!”
“My sister, the star.”
“Aunt Kara, can I have your autograph?”
Kara cleared her throat and asked her brothers to let her down. She turned to Flora. “I’m sorry, but I can’t.”
The room erupted as Kara’s family shouted, “What are you talking about?” “Don’t be ridiculous!” “She’s emotional—don’t listen to her.”
“No!” Kara shouted. “Pop had a heart attack and I wasn’t here. If I had been home, I’d have found him. We always talk at night, after Ma goes to bed.” Kara began crying. “I need to be here. I belong with you guys. TV can wait. Family is more important.”
Ma waved the crowd aside and pulled Kara to the corner of the room. “Sweetie, I know this has been difficult, with your pop sick and everything. But this is your dream. I’ve never seen you so excited. Don’t give this up. Your pop wouldn’t want that.”
Flora hobbled over. “I appreciate the devotion you have to your family. My parents have been gone for two decades now, and I’d give anything to have one more day with them.”
“So you understand.” Kara looked from Flora to her mother.
“Of course I do.” Flora nodded. “But you can have your family and the show. You can fly home every weekend when you’re filming, and you can live at home when you’re not filming.”
Kara considered that possibility. But then she remembered all the articles she had read about celebrities in the teen magazines. “But what about special appearances and tours and things like that? Teens Rock isn’t going to just want me to film and that’s it. They’re going to want more.”
“Then you go,” Ma said. “Your pop and I will be your biggest fans.”
“No, Ma.” Kara shook her head. “I won’t leave you and Pop. I can’t.”
“But why?”
“I don’t know,” Kara said. “I can’t explain it. But it just doesn’t feel right.”
“But your dream . . . ,” Ma said.
“I’ll just have to find a new dream.”
Chapter 39
Addy held Kara’s hand as Flora stepped into the cab that would take her back to Orlando, back to the network. Most likely, Jillian would be chosen as the star of the new show. When Flora explained that the star’s parents wanted a Christian in the show with their son, Kara knew there was only one choice.
“Kara?” Addy watched the taxi pull away from the curb. “Are you all right?”
Kara sighed. “I will be. I think I’m going to jog upstairs, though, just to clear my head.”
“You’re going to jog up six flights of stairs?”
“Sure! It’ll feel great.”
“Is this more of your teenage rebellion?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what it is.” Kara smirked. “And when I’m done, I might even eat a granola bar.”
“You won’t be offended if I take the elevator, will you? ” Addy asked, laughing.
“No, I’m good. God and I have some stuff to talk about, anyway.”
Addy pressed the up arrow, and Kara looked around the lobby for the door leading to the stairs. Finding it hidden beside the door leading to the finance office, Kara hit the door and began running, taking two steps at a time as she prayed for help with the decision she had made.
All right, God. So what do I do now? How do I convince my family that you’re real? How do I go back to my boring old high school after being so close to having my own TV show? How do I find a church and Christian friends? How do I help Ma take care of Pop? Because you know he’s gonna be the biggest baby that ever had open-heart surgery.
Kara prayed with each step, not really knowing the answers but feeling calmer just voicing her concerns to one she knew was listening and would answer. She was surprised to look up and realize she was already at the seventh floor. She turned around and made her way down a flight of steps, slowing so her breathing returned to normal. Wiping the sweat from her forehead, Kara pressed the metal bar on the door leading to the ICU’s waiting room.
“Kara.” Addy ran to her. The room was much emptier than before.
“Where is everybody? Is Pop all right? Did something happen?”
“He’s all right.” Addy walked with Kara to the nurses’ station. “But the doctor wanted to meet with your mom and brothers and sisters.”
“Excuse me.” Kara leaned over the counter to speak to the nurse who was typing at her computer, oblivious to the fact Kara was even there. “Ma’am?”
The woman, who appeared annoyed at having been interrupted, turned to Kara. “Yes?”
“My pop is Ralph McKormick. The doc is meeting with my family. Can I go in?”
The woman turned back to her computer, pressed a button on the wall, and continued typing. The doors opened and Kara rushed through. Seeing her oldest sister’s turquoise shirt, Kara ran for the door at the end of the hallway and poked her head between Mary and Joey.
“I know this will be difficult and a major adjustment,” the doctor said. “But that’s my recommendation. I’ll go get the paperwork I was telling you about.”
Dr. Busti squeezed Ma’s arm and left the room. Kara moved aside to let him leave, then pushed through to get to her mother.
“Ma, what is it?” Kara held on to Ma’s arm. “What’s going on? What did the doctor say?”
Ma had a strange smile on her face, an unusual sight after seeing her face etched with worry the last few hours. “Everybody leave,” she announced. “Me and Kara have got some things to discuss.”
Kara looked around and saw that everyone was smiling. Joey winked at her as he went out.
The whole family has cracked under the pressure.
“Sit down, sweetie.” Ma patted the plastic seat next to her. “Are you all right?”
“Am I all right?” Kara remained standing. “Are you kidding me? What’s going on? Is Pop gonna be okay? What did the doctor say?”
Her mother pulled Kara down. “He said Pop is recovering nicely, but he’ll have to make some major changes.”
“I’m already planning his menus,” Kara said. “And an exercise routine. I’ll be Pop’s personal trainer.”
Ma patted Kara’s leg. “That’s great. He does need to change his eating habits. We both do.” Ma looked down at her full figure.
“No problem,” Kara said. “I’ll have you both ready for bathing suit season.”
“I don’t know about that.” Ma laughed. “But a size twelve would be pretty exciting.”
“What else did the doctor say?”
“Your pop isn’t a young man.”
“Sixty-four isn’t that old.” Kara was beginning to get worried.
“He’ll be sixty-five next month.”
“With good eating habits and exercise, he can live another twenty years.”
“I hope so.” Ma’s eyes watered. “But he’s got to slow down. Teaching math to middle schoolers is demanding. Very stressful.”
“He can retire, right?”
“I’ve been trying to talk him into that for a while,” Ma said. “He’s been eligible to draw his pension for the last five years. But he hates the idea of not doing anything.”
“So his new job is to get better. Taking long walks with his favorite daughter and learning to appreciate vegetables.”
“Dr. Busti said the recovery will be pretty extensive,” Ma said. “More than just a change in his diet and exercise. He’s going to need to be part of a rehabilitation center.”
“What?”
“He doesn’t have to live there, but he does need to be near one because he’ll be going three times a week for the first few months, then regularly for checkups after that.”
“There you go.” Kara shrugged. “Something to do.”
“I have a lot of respect for Dr. Busti. He knows his stuff. And he says that Pop has a better chance to recover somewhere else. Off the Island. Somewhere warmer, so he can get outside every day and walk. The doc says staying indoors too much isn’t good for him.
He could get depressed, which would make recovery more difficult.”
Kara sucked in her breath. “Dr. Busti wants us to move? But this is home. You guys have lived here my whole life.”
“The house is more than we need. But Mary could use it, what with her family growing bigger every day.”
“But where would we go?”
“You know how you said you believe in God now? ”
“Yeah, I remember.” Kara tried to understand why the conversation had suddenly switched.
“Do you believe God can do miracles?”
“Sure. Look at Pop. Look at me. Are you saying you believe too, Ma?”
“I’m saying I just saw something happen that sure seems like God was involved.”
“What happened, Ma?”
“The rehabilitation center. The one Dr. Busti recommended, the one he says is the best in the country . . . ?”
“Yes?”
“It’s in Orlando.” Ma smiled. “So I’m afraid, like it or not, we’re moving down there.”
“What?” Kara jumped up. “We’re moving to Orlando? ”
“Yes, we are.” Ma stood and hugged Kara. “Doctor’s orders.”
“So I can do the show?”
“You’d better.”
“And I can live at home!”
“And make Pop all the healthy meals you want, and make him exercise, and . . .”
“Flora!” Kara ran toward the door, tearing through the hallway. The double doors were opening to allow a nurse out, and Kara dodged the woman, ran to the elevator, and waited for it to stop at her floor. Addy stood beside her.
“Orlando. Flora. I can do it. We can do it.” Kara’s thoughts were so jumbled she couldn’t compose a complete sentence.
“No idea what you just said.” Addy turned Kara to face her. “But Flora left awhile ago. You can’t catch her. Do you have her cell number?”
“Cell number. Yes! I’ll call her. What if she already called Jillian? Oh no. I have to let her know I can do it.”
“What are you talking about?” Addy asked.
Kara dug through her purse and found her phone. She scrolled through her phone book and punched Call as soon as she came to Flora’s name. The call went straight to voice mail.
“No, no, no.” Kara began texting. “If she calls Jillian, it’s over. She can’t take it back. God, please, please, let me get through.”
The elevator doors opened and Flora stepped out.
“I was trying to call you.” Kara ran to Flora and grabbed the woman’s shoulders. “We’re moving to Orlando. I can do the show!”
Kara enveloped Flora in a hug and spun her around.
“I appreciate your enthusiasm,” Flora said. “But I am prone to vertigo, and circuitous motion is detrimental.”
“I think she wants you to put her down.” Addy grabbed Kara’s shoulders, forcing her to stop.
“Oh, sorry.” Kara set Flora down and the smaller woman held on to a chair for support. Addy scrambled to pick up the crutches that had, once again, fallen to the floor.
“I just got off the phone with Jillian.”
Kara’s heart sank. “Oh no. It’s too late. I’m too late. I’m going to be living in Orlando, watching Jillian play my part.”
“Have a seat.” Flora motioned to the couch where Kara and her mother had been sitting earlier. “Remember when we were at the recording studio?”
Kara looked at Flora. What in the world did this have to do with Jillian being cast? Was it because Kara’s voice wasn’t as good as the other girls’?
“I noticed something odd that day,” Flora said. “Jim, the manager, seemed to recognize Jillian.”
Kara remembered that. “So they knew each other. Does that matter?”
“Yes. Jim stood to lose some business as a result of this show. He has been against it from the start.”
“Then why did he help with the recording?”
“Jim is a businessman,” Flora said, “and this show paid top dollar for that day at the studio. So I did a little sleuthing. Unbeknownst to Jim or Jillian, or even my bosses.”
“And . . . ?” Kara was getting the feeling that this would end well. For her. She liked that feeling.
“It turns out that our Miss Jillian wasn’t exactly who she claimed to be.”
“Really?”
“Right after I got into the taxi, I received a call from a friend. I had asked him to look into Jillian and see if there was any connection to Jim.”
“And there was.”
“Jim is good friends with Jillian’s agent.”
The pieces were falling into place. Kara’s eyes lit up. “She knew what this show was really about.”
“She did.”
“So she pretended to be a Christian so she’d get the part.”
“Sadly, that is true.” Flora shook her head.
“But how does Jim benefit from that?”
“That’s what I called Jillian to find out,” Flora said.
“What did she say?”
“She was very upset that I had found out.” Flora cocked her head to the side. “But in the spirit of self-preservation, she confessed the whole story. She was to be cast in the role. After a couple weeks of rehearsals, she was to admit she wasn’t a Christian. Jim hoped that would force the family to remove their son from the show.”
“So he’d go back to making money in Jim’s recording studio?”
“Precisely.”
“But what does Jillian get from it all?”
“Her agent assured her that the network would let the boy leave the show and then she would be the star.”
“Wow, that’s pretty low,” Kara said. “I can’t believe she’d do that. She acted so nice.”
“She was a superb actress. It is a shame she used those skills to deceive.”
“So the show needs a Christian in this part, huh?” Kara sat up straight and cleared her throat.
“That it does.”
“So that means . . . ?” Kara raised her eyebrows.
“You are the one.” Flora smiled. “I knew it from the first day. I prayed God would show me his choice, and he did.”
Kara stood and screamed, jumping around in circles. Nurses came rushing out of the heavy doors.
“Is she all right?”
Addy held Kara down. “She will be.”
Kara kept jumping but managed to bring her voice down a few decibels. “Thankyouthankyouthankyou!”
“Don’t thank me,” Flora said. “God orchestrated all of this. And not just for this show. For you. Because he loves you.”
Kara stopped jumping and bent down to look Flora in the eye. “So now can you tell me about my costar?”
“I can do one better.” Flora wrapped an arm around Kara’s waist. “I can take you to meet him.”
Chapter 40
Are you sure it’s okay, Ma?” Kara asked. Again.
She hugged her daughter. “Pop is recovering nicely. He’ll be going home in another day or two.”
“But I don’t have to go now.” Kara looked around her living room. She couldn’t believe how much had happened in one short week. “You need help packing.”
“I didn’t have six kids for nothing.” Ma smoothed Kara’s hair. “I’ll be putting them all to work. And you too. You and Flora gotta find us a house down there in Orlando.”
“I can’t believe this is really happening.” Kara hugged her mother. “We’re moving to Orlando!”
“And you better make sure our new house has at least four bedrooms. Your nieces and nephews are gonna take turns coming down in the summers. And the whole family is coming out for Christmas.”
“Will four bedrooms be enough?”
“Well now.” Ma patted Kara’s hand. “We don’t want them getting too comfortable, do we?”
Kara laughed. “Four bedrooms it is.”
“A pool would be nice.”
“Nice?” Kara put her hands on her mother’s shoulders. “Oh, Ma. A pool is necessary f
or Pop’s recovery. And a hot tub too. Definitely a hot tub. For Pop.”
“Sure, for Pop.” Ma winked.
“All right, then.” Kara walked down the hallway. “Next time I’m here, this’ll be Mary’s house.”
Ma walked behind Kara. “This is a wonderful house to raise a family in.”
Kara looked at the pictures on the wall. Her parents and grandparents, brothers, sisters, nieces, and nephews all smiled back. A lifetime of memories.
“She’s probably going to turn it all modern.” Kara continued walking, looking in each of the bedrooms. “Rip up the carpet, replace it with hardwood. Ikea furniture.”
“Your sister has different tastes than me.” Ma smiled. “But it’s her house. She can do whatever she wants with it.”
“As long as she doesn’t take down my tree house.” Kara walked into her bedroom and looked through the window.
“We kept the ER busy with that tree house.” Ma laughed. “Remember when you tried to play Tarzan?”
Kara laughed with her. “Sure do. I was just telling Flora about that a little while ago.”
“Scared me to death, seeing you lying on the ground, your head all bloody.”
“But you were so calm.” Kara gazed at her mother. “Sam was screaming like crazy, running around the yard, yelling for an ambulance. I remember that.”
Ma smiled, a tear falling down her cheek. “He loved his baby sister. Thought it was his fault you fell—said he dared you to do it.”
“He did? I thought it was my idea.”
“It probably was.” Ma sniffed. “But he still felt guilty.”
“Oh, Ma. I’m going to miss this house.”
“Me too.”
Kara peered into her parents’ bedroom. Memories of nights spent cuddled between the two of them flooded her mind. Kara began to cry, excited about the future but sad that a piece of her past was changing.
“I’ve been praying, Kara, like you said.” Ma walked beside Kara to the kitchen.
“You have?”
“I never really thought much about God. My life was so good.”
“But God makes your life even better.”
“So I’ve heard.” Ma smiled. “I want us to find a church there in Orlando. Maybe we can all get to know God together, as a family.”
