For Love of Emily

by Bonnie Gardner

  It came from Emily’s room.

  Quickly, Silver pulled on her robe and covered the short distance and knocked. “Emily, honey. Are you all right?”

  A feeble whimper was the answer to the question.

  Alarmed, Silver pushed the door open and flipped on the overhead light. The bulb blew as she switched it on. She groped her way toward the lamp beside Emily’s bed, crying out as her bare foot made contact with an unidentified lying object. Finally, she reached the bedside lamp and switched it on.

  As Silver’s tired eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness, Emily moaned again. “Wha… Mom? …I’m sleepy…Where’s Dad? …I need a drink of water.” Emily blinked several times and rubbed her eyes. “What are you doing here?” the child asked, looking dazed and confused.

  “I heard you. Do you feel sick?”

  Emily pushed herself up and answered groggily. “No, I was having a bad dream. I’m so worried about my dad.”

  Silver couldn’t blame her. First she’d been taken away from the mother who’d been the only constant in her life, and now, just when she began to be accustomed to the man who was her father, he might be taken away, too.

  “Do you want to talk about it?”

  Emily bit her lip to keep it from wobbling. She nodded, her eyes filling with tears. “Oh, Silver. What will I do if something happens to my dad too? Where will I go? Where will I live?”

  The enormity of Emily’s fears weighed down on Silver like the world on her shoulders. What did she tell the child? Thad had certainly not suffered a life-threatening injury, but to a child thousands of miles away, the not knowing, not being able to see made the worry all the worse.

  “Oh, Em, I know you’re worried, but your dad’s going to be just fine. It’s only a broken leg. People have broken legs all the time.”

  “But, grownups don’t,” Emily wailed.

  Silver bit back a chuckle. “Sure they do, honey. They fall off ladders and trip over cats, and do all sorts of silly things and hurt themselves, just like kids. And they heal just as quickly, too.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Pretty sure.” Silver couldn’t give the child the absolute she obviously wanted, just in case… . No, she wouldn’t think it. Thad would be fine. He’d be home in a few days, and they’d both be able to see for themselves.

  Silver tweaked Emily on the nose then casually felt her cheek with the back of her hand. It seemed hot, or was she just flushed from being cocooned under her covers? “Listen, kiddo. I know it’s scary not being able to see for yourself, but your dad will be home in a couple of days, and when you see him, you’ll feel silly about how worried you were.”

  “You think?”

  “Yes, I think. Now, do you suppose you could try to go back to sleep?”

  “I’ll try.” Emily burrowed her covers, but instead of settling down, she pushed herself back up.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “When I was little and had a bad dream, my mom would lie down beside me until I went to sleep… ” Emily left the thought unfinished, but Silver understood exactly what she had been asking for.

  “Of course, I’ll stay with you.” Silver lay down on the bed and gathered Emily to her. She wasn’t going to panic until she was sure that the child really was sick. If she was still hot in the morning, then she’d figure out what to do next.

  A long time passed before Emily’s breathing became regular and even, and even more time went by before Silver fell asleep, as well.

  Chapter Seven

  Emily pushed a sodden lump of corn flakes to the far side of the bowl, then grimaced and pushed the bowl away. “I can’t look at this anymore, much less eat it.” She pushed the bowl again. “Please, Silver, take it away.”

  As Silver collected the bowl, Emily seized the glass of orange juice and drained it. “Bring me some more of that. I’m thirsty.”

  “Why don’t you go back upstairs? I’ll bring you something to drink and set it by your bed. You didn’t get much sleep last night. Maybe you need a nap.” Silver kept her tone light, but only the fact that she had turned her back kept her from showing her worried look. She was worried about Thad, so Emily’s concern must be tenfold. Hopefully, Emily’s concern had manifested itself in an upset stomach. Of course, the slight temperature she was sure Emily had didn’t help Silver feel any more confident. She placed the tray on the counter in the well-appointed kitchen and tugged open the refrigerator door. There was only a trickle of juice left in the pitcher. After promising Emily more, she hoped to find another can of concentrate thawing on the refrigerator door. She didn’t. She slammed the empty pitcher down on the counter and impatiently jerked open the freezer door. There stood a frozen row of juice cans.

  “A lot of good you guys do me,” she muttered as the selected the nearest can to her hand. “Now I’ll have to get you thawed before I can mix you up.

  “Why couldn’t the man buy it in jugs like everybody else?” she muttered.

  As she ran hot water into the sink and dropped the can into it, the phone rang.

  Silver froze. Could this be news about Thad? She took a deep breath and reached for the phone.

  “Hello,” Silver asked tentatively. She pushed a wispy strand of hair away from her ear and repositioned the receiver.

  Colonel Harbeson was on the line with good news. Thad was being flown in by air evac and would arrive around midday on Sunday, the next day.

  After the colonel had provided Silver with the details surrounding Thad’s arrival, he surprised her with his final comment. “Miss Burdette, you sound like you’re running on empty. Is there something I can help you with?”

  More than a little surprised by the question, Silver started to say no. Then she found herself blurting out the whole story about Emily’s worry, and her near sleepless night. “She’s been really worried about her dad, and I don’t know whether the fever she has is because of that or something else. And I have to confess, I’ve been worried, too.”

  “Well, Miss Burdette. I don’t think it’s fatal, and you sound like you have it in control. But if you need any help, you give me a call. You have the home number.”

  She reassured herself that she still had his number on the list and promised to call if she needed help. As she hung up, Silver suddenly discovered that her knees were as boneless as jelly, and she sank heavily into the kitchen chair. Knowing that it would take several more minutes for the juice to thaw, she folded her arms across the table, laid her head on them and closed her eyes.

  It seemed that she’d rested for only a moment, when a distant ringing of the doorbell interrupted her nap. The clock on the wall showed that she’d been dozing for nearly an hour.

  Confused and wondering who could be at the door that early on a Saturday morning, Silver stumbled to get it. “Who is it?” she called as she pulled her robe shut and tightened the sash.

  “It’s John and Marianne Harbeson.”

  “Colonel Harbeson?” Silver asked through the closed door. She woke up fast. With the man’s affirmative answer, she smoothed her hair. She straightened her robe one more time before she opened the door. “Has something happened?” she asked.

  The colonel was not at all what Silver expected. “No, we didn’t mean to frighten you. We just wanted to check to see how you were holding up.”

  “I thought you might need the help of an experienced mom to check on Emily,” the woman with him volunteered.

  The couple was exactly the opposite of what Silver would have expected. Colonel Harbeson was a short, stocky man leaning towards pudgy, while Mrs. Harbeson was tall and slim and walked with the grace and dignity of a dancer.

  Mrs. Harbeson introduced herself. “I’m Marianne, Miss Burdette. I thought you might need some company. I can’t do anything more than you can, but sometimes it helps not to be alone… . And, I know you must have questions.”

  Silver smiled gratefully. Though she’d experienced something like this before when her own father had been injured, she hadn�
��t been the adult in charge. The perspective was different now, and she had to provide Emily with the answers. “Thanks. There’s so much I don’t know.”

  “Do you want to get Emily? Maybe we can do this all in one step.”

  “Emily really had a rough night last night,” Silver said. “She’s gone back up to bed.”

  “Well, let’s go check on her. If she’s sleeping, you and I can talk.”

  “You can say that again,” Silver said as she led Marianne upstairs.

  Emily was asleep when they looked in. Reluctant to wake her after her restless night, Silver tiptoed away from the door. Instead, she led Marianne across the hall to her own tiny room and, sitting cross-legged on the rumpled bed, related the events of the night.

  “It sounds pretty normal to me. My kids get upset if they’re presented with unfamiliar situations. They each handled them differently, but they did handle them.” Marianne smiled. “The best thing is to be up front with her. Believe me, those kids can smell a snow job a mile away.” Marianne patted Silver on the hand. “She’s a smart kid. If you tell her the truth without trying to whitewash anything, she’ll be able to deal with it.

  “I’ll take her temperature when she wakes up later. I think I read that chicken pox was going around. If she has started getting the spots, then we’ll know for sure.”

  Silver grimaced and shook her head. “That’s all I need.”

  “You can handle anything if you think you can,” Marianne said. “And you’ll feel a lot better after a nice relaxing and pampering bath. Why don’t you indulge yourself, and I’ll keep an ear out for Emily. John can man the phones.”

  She made a shooing motion as Silver tried to protest. “Go on. You deserve a break.”

  ****

  Thanks to a shower, Silver did feel fresher. She was still tired, but at least she was alert. By the time she had dressed in fresh jeans and her favorite University of North Carolina tee shirt, she felt like a member of the human race again. She started to look in on Emily, but since she didn’t hear anything, she headed down the stairs instead.

  “You look almost alive,” Marianne commented as Silver entered the kitchen. “Maybe some coffee will help bring you to attention. I just made a pot.”

  “Thanks,” Silver responded with enthusiasm. “I need some. I never got around to making any this morning.”

  “Two things military wives learn to do early in their marriages are to make coffee and help out,” Marianne replied.

  “I remember the way everyone rallied around us when my dad got hurt in an exercise.” Silver said.

  “Oh. I didn’t realize that you had a military background.”

  “Air force. Daddy intended to make it a career, but his injury ended those plans. He worked Civil Service until he died a couple of years ago. I’ve always lived around military people.” Silver didn’t know why she was confiding all that to a virtual stranger, but Marianne was a military wife and military wives made friends quickly. It came as part of the job.

  “I assume Emily is still asleep.”

  “Oh no. I forgot the orange juice!” Silver jumped up from the kitchen table.

  “It’s okay. I saw it thawing in the sink and made it up. I put it in the fridge.”

  The older woman’s calm competence left Silver feeling inadequate. Rather than stand around continuing to feel that way, she decided to check on Emily. Even if Marianne had assured her that the child was going to be all right, she had to be sure.

  “I’m going to check on her again.” The door to Emily’s room was slightly ajar, and Silver poked her head inside. Emily was stirring. “You up?”

  Emily yawned and stretched and made a face. “Yeah,” she said through a yawn. “Have you heard anything from my dad?”

  “Not yet, sweetie,” Silver answered gently. “Don’t worry about him, though. The army is taking good care of him. Your dad will be fine.” And then we’ll all live happily ever after, she continued silently.

  “Okay,” Emily mumbled from her nest in the covers. “I’ll try not to worry.”

  Silver casually walked over to Emily’s bed and felt her forehead. She was still hot. “I think I’m going to try to take your temperature. Do you know where there’s a thermometer?”

  “In my dad’s medicine cabinet.”

  “Okay,” Silver said. “I’ll be back in a jiffy, and we’ll see if you really are running a fever.”

  As she turned to find the thermometer, Silver noticed that Emily had started scratching at her side. Was it just a garden-variety itch, or was it the dreaded chicken pox? She hoped it was the latter, but she had a feeling it wasn’t.

  ****

  Ten minutes later, Marianne Harbeson had confirmed that it was, indeed, the chicken pox. Emily had several red blotches with what Marianne had assured her were the typical spots. They hadn’t formed the blisters yet, but it wouldn’t be long.

  “Did you ladies get everything taken care of?” Colonel Harbeson asked without looking up from his phone screen as Silver and his wife entered the living room.

  “Yes, darling.” Marianne patted her husband on the shoulder then took a seat on the couch. The colonel had moved from the sofa to one of the overstuffed chairs so there was room on the couch for Silver. Marianne patted the empty cushion beside her and invited Silver to sit.

  She had already given Silver all the instructions she needed to get Emily through the common childhood disease, but Silver was still concerned. She assumed she could take care of one itchy twelve-year-old, but there was something else on her mind.

  Silver found herself blurting out her worries and fears. “I’m really worried about my job, Marianne. This is just my second year teaching. What if I have to take time off to take care of Emily and her father? I don’t have tenure, and I haven’t accrued that much vacation time.” She wrung her hands together in a hopeless gesture. “What am I going to do? Emily can’t take care of her father by herself.”

  “Don’t paint such a dark picture. Thad won’t need much watching once he’s in his permanent cast. They’ll be able to watch over each other. I don’t think you’ll miss very much time. If you’re really concerned, we can rally the wives to take shifts.”

  “I don’t think that’s necessary.” Silver laughed. “I guess I’m blowing everything out of proportion. Once Major Thibodeaux gets back, it really isn’t my problem anymore.” Though she wouldn’t mind if it was.

  With Marianne’s assurances, Silver felt better than she had all day. Then her thoughts turned to the next day and Thad’s arrival.

  “Will I have to pick Thad up?” Silver thought aloud.

  Colonel Harbeson spoke up from his seat across the room. “They’ll probably take him directly from air transport to the hospital and give him a good going over before he’s released. They won’t turn him loose until Monday.”

  “Oh. It never occurred to me that he wouldn’t come straight home.”

  “Strictly procedure. The flight surgeon here will want to check him out. Nothing to be worried about.” The colonel returned to his phone.

  “Once he’s on the ground, your problems are over. We can always get somebody to bring him home. You don’t need to worry about being a chauffeur, too,” Marianne assured her.

  “Okay. I won’t,” Silver replied. “Is there any more coffee?”

  “About half a pot. I’ll get it. You just relax. You’ll have plenty of time to be indispensable after we leave.” Marianne collected the empty mugs and tray.

  The colonel closed his magazine as his wife left the room. “Well,” he said with the inarticulateness of a man accustomed to giving orders, not making small talk. “It looks like you’ve had a real taste of what it’s like to be an army wife.”

  “And I’m not even married,” Silver added. She wondered how many fiancées would be frightened away if they got a sample of this before the wedding.

  “I suppose I have had a real trial by fire,” Silver continued pensively. “My career as an air force brat n
ever prepared me for this. There was always somebody else around to take charge. Come to think of it, there still is. Thank you, Colonel, for you and your wife coming to my rescue.”

  “It’s part of the job. We military families have to stick together.” He looked towards the door. “Here’s Marianne with the coffee.”

  Marianne placed the tray on the table and selected two mugs and carried them to where her husband sat. She perched on the arm of the chair and handed one to John.

  Silver reached for the remaining mug. “I think this will be the one that really brings me to,” she remarked as she lifted the steaming mug to her lips.

  The hot coffee burned her tongue and reminded Silver of her manners. “I already thanked your husband, but I want to thank you for helping, too. I don’t know whether I would have handled it as well without your help.”

  “No thanks necessary. Maybe someday you’ll have an opportunity to return the favor to somebody else.” Marianne patted her husband on the thigh and said, “We’ve got ten minutes to pick Kevin up from soccer practice. You ready?”

  The colonel finished his coffee and pushed himself up out of the chair. He turned to Silver as he prepared to leave. “Just remember what I told you and give us a call if you need anything. I’ll let you know just as soon as I get any new info on Major Thibodeaux.” He patted his wife on the behind and urged her towards the door.

  Silver closed the door behind her guests and leaned heavily against it. A flyaway strand of hair worried at her eyes; she blew it away, and sighed. “I don’t know whether I would have gotten through this without them,” she said to the empty room.

  ****

  Silver sat next to Emily’s bed as she was working on lesson plans for the next week. Though she’d completed them the week before, they would have to be done in more detail now in case a substitute teacher would be carrying them out. Silver paused from her writing and sighed.