"Jenny, you know the prayer plant that you keep on the dining room table? Do you remember taking that plant out of my room the first time you used the cart?"
"I sure do." She laughed.
"What's so funny?"
"I remember it like it was yesterday. I brought my car to the front of the hospital entrance, so I could load the plants from the cart. It was only going to take a few minutes, but this ugly man honked his horn and yelled profanities at me because he couldn't drive around me. Nasty profanities, River. I had the big planter in my hands and almost dropped it when he honked his horn. I got angry and told him how rude he was. I would have been sick if I had dropped that beautiful planter on the pavement."
"Oh, wow, Jenny. I guess you would remember." I was excited that she verified my memory of the video. "Another thing. You put little sticky notes on the floral cards with the dates the flowers and plants were delivered. Are you sure on those dates? You had January 6 as the day the big planter was delivered."
"I'm sure, River. I know you don't remember much of the first week or two, but one of us was with you all the time during visiting hours. It was mostly Papa Ray, Hal, Carlee, and me. Sometimes, it was Amy Martin, Manny, or Max. After I got the boys off to school, I would stay with you until three o'clock. That's when I had to leave, so I could pick up the boys from school and be home with them. The others took turns staying with you each night until visiting hours ended at ten.'
"I wrote down the info for each flower or plant delivered while I was there, and then the next morning, I made a note for anything delivered after I left the day before. I specifically remember the first time I saw the prayer plant. It was on top of your nightstand, and it was the same morning that I first loaded plants in the car to take them home. That means that someone delivered it sometime after I left the day before."
I had known it for years, but it still amazed me how anal Jenny was about details that most people wouldn't give a second thought. She was very proud of the organizational skills that kept Tolley House running smoothly while I lived there. After speaking with Jenny, I had no doubt that the mysterious prayer plant was delivered to my room on January 6, the day before the bank deposit on January 7. The big question remained unanswered. If Jenny was on video taking the plant out of my room past the security checkpoint on January 7, how did the plant get into my room on January 6 without also being on video?
Jenny didn't intend to let me go before I explained the reasons for my strange questions. When I finished telling her about the bank deposit, the matching handwriting, and the hospital security log and video, she was into solving the mystery almost as much as I was. She had more thoughts on the prayer plant.
When Jenny first saw the plant, she thought it was very unusual for someone not to take credit for such an expensive arrangement. On the same day she took the plant home, she questioned Hal, who was with me the night of January 6 and should have seen the prayer plant when it was delivered. When he saw the plant on the dining room table, he told her that it was not in the room at ten o'clock when he left for the night. With that information, Jenny deducted that the plant was delivered after Hal left, but before she arrived at eight o'clock the next morning. She assumed that someone dropped off the plant at reception on the first floor, and that the person at the desk had someone on staff deliver it to my room after visiting hours.
"Jenny, that may be true, but it doesn't change anything," I reasoned. "The fact is that whoever took the plant to my room and whatever time it was, it should have been caught on the video camera that ran twenty-four hours a day."
"What if you didn't see all the video?"
I let her question hang for a moment while I thought. "You mean like the video skipped somehow? Screwed up?"
"Maybe. Maybe not." It didn't take me long to understand what Jenny was suggesting.
"Jenny, that's kinda crazy, isn't it? You think the hospital doctored the video?"
"I think that it's quite a coincidence that the person who delivered that plant is not on the log or the video. Remember that whoever bought the expensive arrangement didn't want to take credit for it. In addition, we have to assume that someone took a deposit slip from your nightstand where the plant was placed, and anonymously deposited a large amount of money in your account the following day."
"It's a lot of coincidence, for sure," I agreed.
"If that isn't strange enough, think of this, River. You said that the hospital administrator and the security chief, with no prior notice, took hours out of their days to help you search their records for someone who delivered a plant to your room almost seven months ago. Even with Papa Ray with you, that's a stretch. At most, I could see them having someone in the security department help you in a place like the basement."
"So you're saying that you think they're hiding something?"
"River, I don't know for sure. I don't know why they would alter the video. All I'm saying is that it appears someone had a reason for guarding information, and someone had a reason for anonymously depositing money in your account. It's no stretch for me to imagine the same person bribing a poorly paid security guard to look the other way and lose any evidence of the visit."
"I have to believe that it was my mother," I said. "If you saw how closely the handwriting on the floral card matched the writing on the nametag from my baby blanket, you would believe the same. It's possible that she bribed the guard."
"Yes, it's possible, but I hate to see you get your hopes up, River. Even if it was your mother, and even if you were able to find her, it might not end the way you want."
"Like I told Papa, I'm not counting on us having a loving relationship as mother and son, but I won't know what's possible if I don't try. It would mean a lot to me just to have some answers. Just to know who my parents are and why they dumped me."
"River, I hate to cut you off, but I need to go before I ruin dinner. I'll give this some more thought. Call me later if you need to talk."
"Thanks, Jenny. Say hello to Hal and the boys for me."
***
At dinner, I asked Papa the same question that had been on my mind since I woke up from my nap, and I shared my phone conversation with Jenny. Just as I did, Papa felt dumb that he had not noticed that the prayer plant delivery was missing from the video. He was also puzzled when he attempted to find a logical and innocent answer. Papa said that if we didn't mind stretching our imaginations that we could believe the video system blinked at the exact time of the delivery and then swiftly recovered. Neither of us believed that possibility.
Papa agreed with Jenny that Mr. Edmunds was more helpful than he expected, and he proposed that we visit the hospital again the following day to ask for his explanation of the missing plant delivery.
Putting the mystery to bed for the night, we relaxed in the den and attempted to watch television. Papa sat in his stuffed rocker, and I curled up on the couch with a pillow under my head and one between my legs to relieve pressure from my spine.
We watched an old sports movie about a freshman college basketball player struggling to fit into his new world and maintain his scholarship, despite the fact that his coach wants him to renounce it. The freshman has a beautiful girl as his tutor. They fall in love, and love conquers all when his grades go up along with his jump shot, which saves the team's undefeated season. The auburn-haired girl was beautiful enough to succeed in temporarily distracting me from thoughts about the plant, the video, and my mother, but it made me miss Carlee even more.
I had just drifted off to sleep when the doorbell startled me. It was almost ten o'clock, so I thought it had to be one of the farmhands, but when Papa answered the door, I heard a young woman's voice. It sounded so familiar that I sat up. I turned to see Jean Simmons, my favorite nurse during my hospital stay. I was surprised to see her and curious about why she would come out to the farm so late. Papa knew Jean from the hospital and didn't hesitate to invite her into his house.
After I offered Jean a seat with me on the
sofa, Papa asked if he could get her something to drink. It was funny to me that Papa always offered a drink as if he thought that visitors needed liquids to sustain life for the hour they were there. If he had caught a burglar in his home, he would have offered him tea or coffee while waiting for the cops. Jean declined and said that she was only staying long enough to give me a little information. Suddenly, she was not smiling nearly as much as she was.
"What is it, Jean?" I leaned closer to her, anxious to hear what she would say.
"I think I'll read in the study a while," said Papa.
Jean put her hand up as if to pull Papa back. "No need to do that. It's concerning River, but I know he would share it with you anyway." Papa nodded and sat in his chair.
"Jean?" I was growing impatient.
"Okay, first, I'm begging you not to involve me or my sister in what I'm going to tell you. I don't know if you realize that Mr. Edmunds' administrative assistant is Jan Palmer, my sister. If it gets back to the hospital that we told you any of this, we will lose our jobs."
"Okay, Jean," I agreed. "Tell me."
Jean glanced at Papa and he nodded, indicating that he agreed not to cause them trouble.
"Jan told me about your meeting with Mr. Edmunds and Mr. Floyd, and I know what they showed you. Earlier tonight, Jenny Mackey called me and asked questions about hospital procedures. She specifically asked about a certain plant that someone delivered to your room. It wasn't until Jenny called me that I realized how important it is for you to find out what I know."
My muscles tensed, as I tried to be patient enough not to grab Jean and shake the information out of her. "You can trust me, Jean. Just tell me what you're talking about."
"On January 6, I worked second shift, which you know ends at ten, same as visiting hours, but that night, the head nurse asked me to work over a couple of hours. I was helping at the other end of the hall, and when I checked the patients at your end, I started with the two rooms past yours. When I came from the second one, I saw a woman walk out of your room. I only saw her from behind, and I called out to her, but she didn't turn around or stop. I checked on you and saw nothing wrong. You were asleep, and the only thing different from the previous time I checked you was a huge, new plant on your nightstand. The fancy one with the praying hands."
"That's more confirmation that I got the plant on January 6," I said to Papa. "And a woman delivered it." Papa nodded. I told Jean to go on with her story.
"I asked Eddie Chapman, the security guard, who the woman was and why he allowed her access to your room after visiting hours. He acted ignorant and I checked his log. Hal Mackey was the only one to sign in on the log after six o'clock that night. The only activity afterwards was Hal signing out of your room at ten. When I asked Chapman why he didn't have the woman sign the log, he continued to act as if I imagined her. I reported the incident to the head nurse. Later that week, I heard that Chapman no longer worked there. The head nurse took me into her office and told me that I was never to discuss what I saw with anyone.'
"As far as I knew, all Chapman did was allow a woman to bring you a plant after visiting hours. You were fine, Chapman no longer worked there, and I dropped it. It all came up again when you visited Mr. Edmunds. My sister overheard a disturbing conversation between him and Mr. Floyd about our late night visitor. The woman bribed Chapman so that he would allow her to visit you after hours without signing the log."
"We thought of that, didn't we, Papa? How about the security camera?" I asked.
"I suppose the woman didn't know about the security camera, and Chapman knew that no one would see the woman on the video unless they had a reason to look for something specific."
"When Mr. Floyd was dealing with Chapman's security breach, he discovered that HR had failed to do a background screen, so he ordered one to have on hand in case his department was audited. When the background screen came back showing that Chapman had failed to mention a criminal record and prison time on his application, Mr. Floyd had to advise Mr. Edmunds. They wanted to avoid any negative publicity, the possibility of a lawsuit, or the board finding out. I think they also worried that one of us who worked on that floor might use the violations against them. They made sure that there was no evidence that a patient's security was violated, including editing the video of the woman's visit to your room."
I was furious with Edmunds and Floyd. I believed that my mother was on the surveillance video, and they destroyed it. "Those assholes may have cost me the chance to see my mother for the first time. To have some clue how to find her."
"River, watch your language." Papa said it softly, but I knew he was never happy with profanity.
"I'm sorry," I said. "It just upsets me."
"River, I'm sorry, too," said Jean. "If I had known what it could mean to you, I would have told you. Since I saw no harm to you, and Chapman was not there to endanger anyone else, I did what I was told and put it out of my mind."
"Jean, you had no way of knowing," said Papa.
I worked up a smile for Jean. "He's right, Jean. As soon as you knew it was important, you told me. Thank you."
"River, you've had such a hard time. I wanted to do something to help."
"Jean, you said you saw the woman from behind. Is there anything you can tell me?"
Jean paused to think. "My impression was that she was a tall, well-dressed lady, maybe middle-aged. She had dark hair that was either professionally done or possibly a wig. I had a cancer patient with a wig that looked almost identical. She wore a long, dark coat and high heels. It all looked expensive to me, and she walked confidently with good posture. I'm not sure I'm making any sense."
"It makes sense to me," I said. "When they found me in the hospital waiting room, there were people who described a tall, young woman with dark hair.”
“Maybe it was her,” offered Jean.
I had an idea. "Jean, where can I find this Eddie Chapman guy? Do you know where he lives? He talked to her. Since he talked to her, he might be able to tell me more, if he would."
Papa interrupted. "Whoa, River. Did you hear the part about his criminal background? Let's take some deep breaths and get a plan together of how we need to approach this."
"Okay, Papa," I said. "Jean, do you know where he lives?"
"No, but I can find out for you. My sister can get the information, but she might have to wait until Mr. Edmunds leaves. I'll call you by five o'clock tomorrow."
At the time, that didn't sound soon enough to me, but I told her that I would appreciate her giving me the information as soon as she could. I knew that as anxious as I was to speak with Eddie Chapman that the next day would be a long one.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
The morning after Jean Simmons' visit to the farm, I woke up tired. It had been impossible for me to sleep well when I kept waking and wondering what Eddie Chapman could tell me about the woman I believed was my mother. I was glad that Papa had planned a busy day that would make the time pass quicker while I waited for Jean's phone call.
After breakfast, Papa and I did a final check on the food and supply list for the booster club's summer football camp, which would begin in four days. Deer Lake Farm was hosting the first of the three sessions for thirty-two junior high school boys. Helping Papa and me, there would be coaches from the junior and senior high school teams and a few senior high players.
So that the camp was not all hard work and drills, Papa planned a few fun activities, including an afternoon hike to Deer Lake for a swim and a picnic. In the evenings before the boys went to bed, they would gather around a campfire to roast marshmallows and listen to Papa and Manny tell ghost stories about the Long property. Papa knew that after the boys heard the stories that most of them would be less likely to wander away from the safety of the barn during the night.
When we finalized our shopping list, Papa took Lewis with us to town to make our purchases for the camp. Lewis was one of the Mexican-American brothers who had been living and working at the farm for years.
He was a big guy and good to have around when Papa needed extra muscle for chores such as carrying, lifting, and loading. I think that Papa wanted to make sure that I didn't do anything strenuous.
We did our shopping in three different stores, saving the grocery store for last since we would have refrigerated items that could spoil in the heat. After we parked the truck in the grocery store lot, we walked together to the entrance. I was using my cane as I often did.
About two weeks prior to that day, pain from my back shot through my leg and caused me to fall in a parking lot. I decided that falling was more embarrassing than using the cane, so even when I was having a good day, I normally used the cane in public.
As we walked to the front of the store, I saw a boy sitting on one of the sidewalk benches to the left of the entrance. Usually, old men sat on the benches and swapped stories while their wives shopped inside, but I thought it was probably too hot for the regulars. The closer I came to the bench, the more familiar the blond-haired boy looked, and I soon recognized Tyler Thomas.
About the time I reached him, Tyler sat up and leaned back. He couldn't have looked more miserable than he did. When he saw me, Tyler pushed off the bench and threw both arms around me. Not only did he continue to hold me tightly to him, he was obviously sobbing. I motioned to Papa and Lewis to go on in the store so that Tyler would not be any more embarrassed than he already was. It was hard for Papa to walk away from his friend's grandson, but I assured him with my eyes that I would take care of the boy.
"What's wrong, Tyler?" I whispered to his ear.
Tyler eased back and then guided me towards a bench farther away from the door of the grocery store. He nervously looked to the store entrance, then back to me. I sat down, and Tyler slowly sat on my left side so that I blocked the view of him from anyone coming out of the store. The way he eased down on the bench, I wondered if he was already on his uncle's bad side.
My Name Is River Blue Page 36
