Safe in the Heart of a Miracle: More True Stories of Medical Miracles

by Gloria Teague

  She ran to her car, slipping on the rain-slick sidewalk in front of her house. She never missed a chance to go to the movies with her sister, but tonight she wondered if she should have just stayed home. The idea of snuggling with Bob when she watched mindless TV with him and their sixteen-year-old daughter, Lindsey, was much more appealing than going out in a cold rain to see “The Help” again. She had liked the movie the first time she saw it when she’d gone with her husband, a decision she soon regretted.

  “What? You went to see it without me? Aw, Katie, you promised we’d go together. So much for sisterly loyalty! Hmph!”

  “Oh, knock it off, Cindy. It was ‘date night’ and it was either ‘The Help’ or a kids’ movie. Sorry; I know I made a promise but there was no way I was going to watch that one. I don’t mind seeing ‘The Help’ again. Just name the day and we’ll go together.”

  “Great, a pity movie date with my sister. Okay, then let’s go tonight.”

  “Tonight? C’mon, you need to give me more notice than that, Cindy! I was going to—”

  “Uh huh, that’s what I thought. Come on, Kate, you don’t have anything to do tonight, anyway.”

  “But it’s supposed to rain.”

  “So? You think you might melt or something? You aren’t made out of sugar, are you?”

  “Okay, okay, if it’ll shut you up, I’ll go tonight.”

  She could hear the smile in her sister’s voice. “Cool beans! See ya around 6:30.”

  So here she was, at 6:00, running to her car through a frigid downpour, wishing she’d had the gumption to tell her sister she’d rather stay home tonight.

  Oh, well, in four or five hours I’ll be back home, warm and snug as a bug in a rug.

  She was about five miles from home when she saw him. Though it was hard to see through the rain speckled windows, the boy looked to be about twelve years old, standing on the side of the road, one hand shoved in his jeans pocket, the other extended in a hitchhiker’s stance, thumb pointing in the direction she was headed. His shoulders were hunched upward and the hoodie was pulled over his head to shield his face from the rain. He shuffled from one foot to the other in what appeared to be a vain attempt to stay warm.

  Kate drove past him and stopped for a red light a block away. By the time the light turned green, guilt over leaving a cold, wet child on the side of the road won over common sense and she turned around. When she pulled beside him, the boy looked into the window, saw her, and opened the door. He was so wet that her car seat was soaked through within seconds of his climbing in.

  “Why in the world are you out hitchhiking in this weather? Aren’t you a bit young for this? Not that it’s safe for anyone to hitch a ride, no matter how old they are, but … where are your parents?”

  His responding laughter took her by surprise. It sounded deeper than she’d thought it would. He pulled the hood from his head and shoulder-length dark hair tumbled out. He turned toward her just as they passed beneath a streetlight and she got her second surprise in the last two minutes. This was not a boy of twelve beside her. Oh, he was still young, possibly fifteen or sixteen, but much older than he first appeared to be. When he pulled the gun from his pocket, Kate understood the charade.

  “Well, let me see. My mom’s probably in bed with some meth head and my dad’s in the wind, whereabouts unknown at this time, as they say in court. But really, lady, I think the location of my fine, upstanding parents is the last thing you should worry about right now, don’t you?”

  “Why are you doing this? I thought you were a kid, I felt bad about you standing in the rain, came back to give you a ride.”

  “See? It worked!”

  “What do you want? If you want money, I don’t have much, maybe a hundred dollars, but you can have it. It’s in my purse.”

  “Sure, I want the money; of course I do. I like this car, lady. How much did this set you back? Or, I guess I should ask how much it cost your old man. Women always get men to pay for stuff like that.”

  “I don’t know how much we gave for it but you can have it, too. Take whatever you want; just don’t hurt me.”

  “Oh, baby, I’m going to hurt you. You better believe I’m going to hurt you—a lot.”

  “But why? I’m giving you whatever you want. Why would you have to hurt me?”

  “Everything I want?” He wiggled his eyebrows up and down for lascivious effect.

  Kate swallowed hard then turned to look him in the eyes. “Yes, everything. Whatever you want. So there’s no reason to hurt me.”

  “I’ll take whatever I want, so that’s not a bargaining chip. Besides, I want to hurt you.”

  “Why would you possibly want to hurt someone? I don’t understand!”

  “Really? You really don’t understand. Wow, you’re sure stupid. I get off on it, lady, that’s why. Even with an old broad like you. Now do you get it?”

  Tears filled her eyes and Kate began to work on a plan to survive this night with at least her life.

  “Go ahead; get the money. I have a few dollars in the billfold but there’s a hundred folded into a side pocket.”

  “Hiding money from the hubby, huh? Now that’s not very nice, is it?” The fact that she didn’t see it coming caused the shock to be greater when he leaned over to backhand her, hard, across her face. “You should never hide money from your loving husband, you cow.”

  Sniffling back tears and the copper-tasting blood, Kate sputtered, “I didn’t hide it from him. He told me to always keep a one-hundred-dollar bill folded somewhere in my wallet for emergencies. I don’t hide anything from my husband.”

  “Well, ain’t he just a regular knight in shining armor? So what does this knight do for a living?”

  Oh God, what do I say? I don’t want him to know Bob is a police officer. That might be all it takes to set him off. But if I say something like a doctor or lawyer, he might hit me again, thinking we’re part of a society he obviously holds in contempt.

  “What?”

  That got her a tap on the top of the head with the gun in his hand. “I said, what does your old man do for a living? You know—his job?”

  “He works at a steel mill on the west side of town.”

  “Well, he probably makes decent money for you to blow on silly crap.”

  “I wouldn’t do that.”

  “Oh, shut up. Got a lot of money in the bank?”

  “Some, not a lot.”

  “Well, whatever you got, I want. Where’re your debit cards?”

  “I’ve got one and it’s the red one in a side pocket of my wallet.”

  “Great. Now what’s the PIN?”

  Kate spoke so softly he told her to speak up. “What are you doing? You nervous or think you can get by with giving me phony PINs? If I gave this to a friend of mine, told him the PIN you gave me, would he be able to use this card to get money out of an ATM?”

  “Yes, he could, but you don’t have to do that. I can drive you to one, either get the money out for you or sit in the car while you get it yourself.”

  Perhaps if he’ll get out of the car to use an ATM, I can get free.

  “Lady …” he pulled her driver’s license from her billfold. “Kate Simmons, you trying to pull a fast one on me? I might be young but I’m not stupid. Don’t you worry how I get the money; I’ll figure it out. Now drive to the corner and turn right.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “Don’t worry about it, okay? I tell you which way to turn and that’s the way we go. Got it?”

  “Why don’t I just give you my keys and you can take yourself wherever you want to go?”

  His snort was rude and frightening. “Lady …” He shook his head in disgust. “You’re not getting out of this car so shut your mouth. In fact, stop talking altogether.”

  Where are we? I’m not familiar with this is a part of town. Maybe he’ll take me to the housing projects. There’d be a lot of people there and, if I could get free, I could start screaming and maybe someone would
help me.

  “Turn right at the next corner. Now take the next two rights.”

  This is away from the projects. This is near that new retirement center. Oh, even if I can get away, the residents here are too old and fragile to help me.

  “What’s your name?”

  “I thought I told you to shut up. Didn’t get the memo, huh?” He transferred the gun to his other hand so he could slap her with full force. “Think that will help you remember?”

  He turned back to the rain-splattered windows, as if making a decision.

  “No, wait. I’ve changed my mind. Turn back around. We’re going to an ATM to get money, first. Yeah, first money, then a little fun and games.” He let his eyes crawl over her and she shivered. “Oh, looking forward to it, huh? I don’t blame ya; it’ll be fun. Probably better than what you get at home from your old man.”

  “Listen, you don’t have to do this. Take the car, take the money, the debit card, the credit cards, anything you can find in the car. Just let me go and I won’t identify you to the cops. I’ll say you had on a ski mask or something, that I couldn’t see your face and, and, you were wearing gloves, yeah! That’ll give you time to get the city limits and be long gone before they even know what, or who, they’re looking for. All they’ll know is the type of car it is. I promise you I won’t—”

  Even though she saw this blow coming, it hurt just as badly as the first one did. She could feel her left eye beginning to swell.

  “Pull up to that ATM right over there. Get as much out of it as you can—whatever your limit is.”

  Kate had hoped he would have her use an ATM that was inaccessible from the car so she could take a chance and run as fast as possible, hoping to escape. No such luck. She withdrew $500.00 and pulled out again.

  “Okay, we’ll look for another one and make another withdrawal.” The next closest ATM was two blocks away.

  With one thousand dollars in his pocket, the man was feeling cockier. “Okay bitch, turn left at the next traffic signal and keep driving until I tell you to turn.”

  The car was as quiet as a tomb. Both occupants were planning their next move, both decidedly different in nature. One planned for violence, rape and possibly murder. The other planned for nothing but an escape.

  Kate had driven roughly another three miles when he barked at her to turn left. His voice had been so loud, so startling in the silence, she jumped. From the corner of her eye she saw the young man grin. He reached over and ran his hand from her knee to her upper thigh. When he ventured close to her crotch, she grabbed his hand and threw it from her. He slammed the gun into the front of her face and she felt several teeth shatter.

  But they were just teeth, right? Just dental work. She could lose the teeth, the money, the car and all its fancy technology and she wouldn’t mind, as long as she escaped with her life. She also prayed he didn’t rape her.

  As if reading her mind, he leaned over and ran his tongue from her jaw line to the edge of her eyebrow. His fetid breath nearly gagged her but she kept a tight clamp on that reflex so as to not anger him again.

  “Yeah, baby, we’re going to have fun, fun, fun. Oooh, the things I’m going to do to you would cause you to have nightmares for a long, long time. But you won’t be around to dream about me. Such a pity because I’m certain you’d never forget.

  When he reached over and began to rip the buttons from the front of her blouse, it became real that she was never going to see her family again. She was never going to caress her husband and hear him whisper his love to her before they fell asleep. She was never going to be there to help her fourteen-year-old daughter grow into a woman.

  The more the thought about this, the more skin he exposed as he ripped her clothes from her as she drove, the angrier she became. She took time to glance quickly at her attacker, saw that he had not put on a seatbelt, then she pressed her foot on the accelerator as hard and as fast as possible.

  The thug was first thrown back against the seat. “Hey, what the hell are you doing? You better slow this car down this minute or I swear to you, woman, I’ll kill you right here!”

  “Okay, I can do that.” That’s when she saw a huge oak tree and she aimed the center of the car hood to hit the tree.

  The man saw what she intended, but only had time to shout, “Stop!” before they crashed. He was thrown against the windshield but was pulling himself back as she fumbled with her own seatbelt. When her feet hit the ground she saw that she had missed her mark and there wasn’t nearly as much damage done to the car as she’d hoped. No wonder he was still conscious.

  She saw they were in a residential area, a nice part of town, but most of the houses were dark. One house was lit up and that’s where she headed.

  She’d only gotten a few feet when she heard a loud pop and she was knocked off her feet. She didn’t hesitate to jump back up and run as fast as she could toward that house. When she got there, she pounded on the door with all the strength she could find. A woman who looked to be in her seventies opened the door, took one look at her, and slammed it shut again.

  Oh, God, help me, please help me. I’m standing here on this porch and the light is shining down on me. I’m a perfect target for him if he’s looking.

  She couldn’t believe he hadn’t followed her to finish the job. She felt a throbbing begin in her forehead and she reached up to touch the spot. She pulled back a hand covered in blood and nearly fainted in terror. She renewed her efforts to get that door open. She knocked so hard she cracked a couple of the small bones in her hand.

  The door opened again, this time by another woman who took one look at her and grabbed her arm, pulling her inside. This whole time the first lady was arguing, telling her to push Kate back out the door.

  “We don’t know who she is, Sister. This could all be a scam to get in the house just to rob and kill us!”

  Kate began to sob, “I’m not part of a gang. I don’t want to hurt anyone. I’ve been shot in the head. I just need help.”

  As the ladies dialed 911, Kate remembered that the man who had tried to kill her now had her home address—where her unsuspecting husband and daughter sat waiting for her to come home after the movie.

  Kate pulled her cell phone from her pocket and called home.

  “Bob, don’t ask any questions, just do as I say, please, Honey. Grab Lindsey and leave the house immediately.”

  “Katie? What’s wrong? What do you mean—”

  Katie began to sob. “Bob, get her out of that house now. Someone will call you soon.” A police officer took the phone from her hand and smiled. “Hello? Sir? I’m a police officer. Your wife’s been hurt. I have no details yet but we’re taking her to the hospital. You can meet us there.”

  His smile was kind when he spoke to her.

  “The ambulance is here and I’m going to ride to the hospital with you so we can chat, if you feel up to it.”

  Kate nodded numbly then slipped into a coma.

  * * *

  Later Kate found out that she had remained in a coma for nearly a week. The bullet had transversed across both hemispheres of her brain, and while that did no permanent damage, it did cause massive swelling that took her consciousness with it. The doctor told her that she had no idea how close that bullet had come to taking her life.

  The doctor was blunt. “It’s only by the grace of God that you’re still with us, Kate. If I were you, I think I’d tell him everyday how much I appreciated a second chance. That young man meant to send you to Heaven that day; God just wasn’t ready to receive you yet.”

  “That young man” turned out to be a fifteen year old who had a long criminal record. True, his father had left but his mother was at work, as a nurse aide in the very hospital where Kate was taken. Kate heard that the mother sank to the floor and cried when she heard what her son had done. She sent flowers and a card to Kate’s room, telling her how ashamed and sorry she was.

  The boy was caught the same night, still driving Kate’s car. He’d stopped
long enough to pick up four of his buddies, all of whom held a can of beer when the car was pulled over. As they were being handcuffed, the police found out the other men had known about the plan to steal a car and a woman. It was to be their night’s entertainment.

  Obviously, that didn’t go along with someone else’s plan, though. Someone else had decided to hold Kate close to his heart and continue her life. After all, Lindsey needed her mother to show her how to grow into a woman.

  It’s a Long Way Down

  “Do you have your first-aid kit in your backpack, Wendy?”

  “Yes, and everything known to modern hiking women is in there. Sure you won’t change your mind and go with?”

  “Sorry, honey. If it wasn’t for this contract being up for renewal with our biggest client …”

  “Yeah, I know; you’d be there in a New York minute. But that’s one of the problems, you need to get out of New York more. Haven’t you heard the song that tells us ‘the rats keep winning the rat race?’ Come away with me. No, not to ze Casbah, but to the craggy hills and steep inclines of mountain climbing.”

  “Wendy, you know I’d love to, but …”

  She smiled and shrugged. “Can’t blame a girl for trying. I was just hoping, since it’s going to be ten days before we see each other again, I could tempt you into running away with me. Maybe next year? Will you think about it?”

  “I’ll go you one better than that. When I get to the office, I’ll submit a vacation request for two weeks off, this time next year. How’s that?”

  “Oh, Bryan, you’ll do that? You really sure you want to extreme hike with me?”

  He slid his arms around her slender waist. “Oh, baby, I want to extreme everything with you!”

  She playfully slapped his hands, then reached up to cup his face to give him a soft kiss. “Do you have any idea how much I adore you?”

  His devilish grin should have prepared her for his response. “Oh, sure. I know exactly how much you adore me. I mean, why wouldn’t you?”

  She bumped him with her shoulder, laughed, and walked into their bedroom to finish the last of her packing. “I’m so happy, sweetheart, that this time next year we’ll be going together!”