Diane Greenwood Muir - Bellingwood 06 - A Season of Change

by Diane Greenwood Muir

  Polly chuckled. “He always does and it’s good to know where he got that from.” She slipped out the side door. The temperature had dropped and she wanted to get to the school before Jason and Andrew started walking to Sycamore House.

  She was in a parking place when she saw the boys exit the building. The weather had been nice enough lately that they usually walked to Sycamore House and wouldn’t be expecting her, so she got out to meet them. Andrew was animatedly talking to a girl his age. Her hood was pulled up and a scarf wrapped around her neck. As bundled up as she was, she still used her hands as she talked. Jason saw Polly and waved, then said something to his brother and the girl. Polly wondered if this was the same girl Andrew had talked about earlier in the week.

  “I thought you might want a ride today. That wind is really cold,” Polly said when they approached her.

  The little girl looked around and didn’t say anything, but pushed her hands in her pockets and held her coat close. It wasn’t difficult to see that the coat was second-hand. It was a little too big, the pockets had small rips on their corners, and the flap over the zipper was well-worn. The girl was very neat and clean, but everything she wore was just a little off. The pants were a bit short, her tennis shoes were tight and the backpack was much older than the new styles most of the kids were carrying.

  “Do you need a ride?” Polly asked.

  “Mom should be here by now,” the girl said.

  “Polly, this is Rebecca. Remember I told you about my friend?” Andrew jumped in and took Polly’s hand.

  “Hi Rebecca. Has Andrew told you anything about me?”

  Rebecca looked up and Polly took in a deep breath. Her eyes were extraordinary, not exactly blue, but a gorgeous purple. The hair poking out from under the hood was a beautiful, sandy brown. There was a little twist to the girl’s nose and her lips were bright red in the cold air.

  “Everybody knows you,” Rebecca said shyly. “Andrew goes to your house all the time. You have horses and cats and donkeys and a dog.” She looked at her feet, “He said you find dead people.”

  “Of course he did. He thinks that’s cool. I keep telling him that it isn’t very cool at all. It’s kind of embarrassing.”

  Jason moved his feet on the pavement. “I’m going to get in the truck. Can I have your keys, Polly?”

  “It’s unlocked. Go ahead.”

  He took off and Polly said, “Why don’t you two get in the truck, too. We can warm up and wait a few minutes. If your mom shows up, that’s great. If not, I can take you home.”

  “I can walk,” the little girl said.

  “No honey, it’s cold out. We’ll give her a few minutes. Maybe she’s just running late.”

  Polly followed them to her truck and was grateful that they were all small children. She didn’t have a back seat, which meant she was limited to how many people she could carry, but if she had to add one more little girl to the mix today, they’d make do.

  The next ten minutes passed quickly with Andrew and Rebecca jabbering back and forth. They were telling a story about aliens who lived in Jason’s closet in order to explain why he could never find anything and his room was always a mess. Jason looked over their heads at Polly and rolled his eyes, but as long as the two younger kids were entertaining themselves, Polly didn’t complain.

  Finally, she said, “Rebecca, let me take you home. You can find out what happened to your mother that way.”

  “Thank you,” the little girl said. “Just go down the street here and cross the highway. I’ll show you from there.”

  Polly followed her directions and found herself on a street where she and Obiwan ran when the weather cooperated. This wasn’t the best part of town. The houses were run down and yards were never clean. Just one street over, everything changed, but back on this corner, hidden out of the way, was a neighborhood that needed help.

  Rebecca pointed to a dark green house. “That’s my house.”

  “Is that her car in the driveway?” Andrew asked. “I wonder why she didn’t come get you.”

  “I don’t know. Thanks for the ride.”

  Jason opened his door to let the girl out and she jumped to the ground and walked slowly to the front door.

  “Her mom always comes to get her, Polly. She never forgets. I think something’s wrong.”

  Polly took a deep breath. “Okay, you two stay here. Do you understand? Stay here.”

  “We will. Are you going to check on her?” Andrew said.

  “I’ll see what she wants me to do.” Polly got out of the truck and ran up beside Rebecca.

  “Is your mom okay, Rebecca?”

  “I don’t know. She wasn’t feeling very good last night, but she got up okay this morning. She said she’d be at school to get me.”

  “Let’s go in and make sure she isn’t sick.”

  The little girl stopped on the stoop, her hand reaching for the door handle. She dropped her hand and didn’t move.

  “What’s wrong, Rebecca?”

  “You always find dead bodies. I don’t want you to go in and find my mom.”

  Polly knelt beside her. “I don’t always find bodies. If your mom was okay this morning, she is probably just sick. She might need someone, though, so let’s go inside.”

  Rebecca took a deep breath and opened the front door, holding it as Polly followed her inside. The house was neat and clean, though the furniture was spare.

  “Mom? Mom? Are you here?”

  A sound came from the back and Rebecca ran toward it. Polly followed closely behind into her mother’s bedroom. The woman was trying to sit up on her bed and looked up in shock at Polly. Her skin was pale and her eyes barely focused.

  “Who are you? Why are you in my house?”

  “Mom, this is Polly. She takes care of Andrew and lives in the old schoolhouse. What’s wrong with you?”

  “I don’t know, Rebecca.” She started to drop forward, but Polly caught her and eased her back on the bed. The woman’s skin was cold and clammy to the touch.

  “How long have you been sick?” Polly asked.

  “I don’t know. It’s probably the flu.”

  “How long has she been sick, Rebecca?”

  The little girl took her mother’s hand. “It’s been a while. But she was better than this.”

  “Has she been drinking water or eating anything?” The woman looked gaunt and deathly ill.

  “I don’t know. She told me she wasn’t hungry, so I just made myself peanut butter sandwiches.”

  “Ma’am, you need help. I’m going to call the EMTs. I think you should be in the hospital.”

  “No! I can’t go to the hospital. I don’t have any insurance and Rebecca has nowhere to go.”

  Polly was completely taken aback. She didn’t know what to do for this poor woman. She had no idea what was wrong and couldn’t leave her here without any help.

  “Just a moment,” Polly said and stepped out of the room. She walked back to the living room and made a call.

  “No Polly. Just tell me you haven’t done it again.” Aaron Merritt said.

  “Not yet, but I’m afraid that if I don’t do something, it won’t be long. I don’t know what to do.”

  “What’s up?” he asked gently.

  “I’m at the house of a friend of Andrew’s and her mother is really sick.” Polly’s voice dropped to a whisper and she walked out the front door.

  “What do you want me to do, Polly?”

  “She won’t go to the hospital because she doesn’t have insurance and, Aaron, if something doesn’t happen, she looks like she could die. Rebecca said she didn’t know if her mother had been eating or drinking anything. Aaron, what should I do?”

  “I don’t know who this is, but I’ll bet Ken does.”

  “They haven’t lived here very long. Andrew said they moved in last summer or fall.”

  “If she refuses help, Polly, there’s nothing we can do.”

  “But Aaron, this is serious!”

&nbs
p; “I know, but …”

  “But nothing. I’m calling your wife.”

  She heard him take a breath. “Honestly, that might be the best thing for her. I can’t force the woman to go to the hospital.”

  “Do you think Doctor Mason would come over?”

  “Try his office. He’s a good man.”

  “Okay, thanks.” Polly ended the call and dialed information and got to the receptionist at the doctor’s office. It didn’t take long for her to explain who she was and what was going on.

  “Doc is in with patients right now, but I think he could come over about five o’clock. Will you still be there?”

  Polly glanced back at the house and at the two boys in her truck. “I don’t know. Do you need me to be here?”

  “No, that’s fine. Give me the address again. Doc doesn’t usually do house calls, but it sounds like she can’t make it to the office.”

  “I don’t think she has any insurance and I’d like to make sure that she doesn’t have to worry about this.”

  “We’ll work it out later, Miss Giller. Give me a call next week. As I told you before, Doc Mason would never let anyone go without care.”

  “Thank you. I’ll tell them.”

  Polly went back inside and to the back bedroom. Rebecca was sitting beside her mother on the bed, her eyes red-rimmed from crying.

  “I just spoke with Doctor Mason’s receptionist. He’s going to come over here at five o’clock to check on you.”

  The woman tried to protest, but didn’t have the energy.

  “It’s okay. He’s a good man and we will work out payment when you get better,” Polly said.

  “I’m so weak.”

  “You’ve been sick for a while. Your body has worn out from trying to get better. Would you like me to be here when the doctor comes?”

  Rebecca looked up at Polly with pleading in her eyes and Polly nodded. “I’ll take the boys over to Sycamore House and then I will come back. I promise.” She knelt down beside the bed. “I’m sorry, I don’t even know your name.”

  “Sarah. Sarah Heater.”

  “Okay, Sarah. I will return. And if the doctor tells you that you need to go to the hospital, we’re going to make that work. Rebecca needs you to get better, okay?”

  Sarah nodded and then lay back again. Polly pulled a business card out of her wallet and handed it to Rebecca. “I won’t be gone long, but if you need me for any reason, call. I’m only a few minutes away.”

  Rebecca nodded and took the card.

  “It’s going to be okay. We’ll make sure she gets better.”

  Polly went back out to the truck and stood beside the tailgate, taking a few deep breaths before getting in. She knew she’d be assaulted with questions. Jason and Andrew had been very patient and she owed them something.

  She barely had the door open before Andrew asked, “What’s wrong? Is Rebecca okay?”

  “Her mom is really sick. I’m going to take you two back to Sycamore House and then meet Doctor Mason here at five o’clock. I don’t know what’s wrong, but I can’t help her by myself.”

  “Will she have to go to the hospital? Where will Rebecca stay? What if something terrible happens to her?” The questions rolled out of Andrew’s mouth and Polly sighed. She’d already tossed all of those questions around in her head and had no good answers.

  “I don’t know, Andrew. We’ll hope that she gets better and if not, we’ll go from there. By the way, thanks for being patient while I was inside.”

  Jason shrugged. “I just played on my phone. Andrew wouldn’t shut up so I made him read a book.”

  Polly reached over and struffed the hair on Andrew’s head. “At least you always have a book with you.”

  She pulled into the driveway and Andrew gasped. “What happened to your garage door?”

  That was right. They always came in the front door when they walked home, so they hadn’t seen the spray paint yet. “Pretty, isn’t it!” she said.

  “Who did that?”

  “I don’t know, but we’ll get it fixed and when it’s warmer, we’ll repaint the door.”

  “At least it’s not on the front,” Jason said.

  “No kidding.” Polly drove into the garage and they all piled out of the truck. “Andrew, would you mind taking Obiwan out for me today? I want to go back to Rebecca’s house.”

  “I’ll make sure he gets a good walk.”

  “Thanks boys.” She watched them walk into the main building and sat back in her seat. How in the world did she manage to get herself involved in all of these things? Gone were the days when she didn’t know anybody except the people she worked with at the Boston Library and a few friends from college. Now she was involved in everyone’s lives. That was a lot of responsibility.

  CHAPTER TEN

  An ambulance was in the driveway when Polly returned to Rebecca Heater’s home. Doctor Mason was following the gurney holding Sarah Heater outside. Rebecca stood in the doorway with tears streaming down her face. Sarah saw Polly and stopped the EMT beside her, then weakly beckoned Polly to her side.

  “What’s happened?” Polly asked.

  “Doctor Mason says I don’t have a choice. I have to go to the hospital. But I have no place for Rebecca.”

  “You don’t know anyone in town?”

  The woman shook her head, “Only a few people at work. They won’t take her. Will you?”

  “Of course. She can stay with me until you come home and I will be sure to bring her down to see you. We can come tonight.”

  “No. Not until tomorrow. Let them do what they need to do tonight. She doesn’t need to see me any worse than I am now.”

  The young man interrupted, “We need to move out now.”

  Polly nodded and stepped back.

  “Take care of my girl,” Sarah Heater said.

  “I will. I promise.”

  Doctor Mason stepped forward and took Polly’s arm. “I’m sorry. I was done early at the clinic and decided that I needed to come over here. I’m glad I did.”

  “What’s wrong with her?”

  “I can’t say for sure until we start running tests, but her body is attacking her.”

  “Have you explained all of this to Rebecca?”

  “I did my best while we waited for the ambulance. She’s pretty frightened that her mother is going to die.”

  “What can I do?”

  “I’m going to Boone to begin the workup. She’s my patient now and we’ll do everything we can to get her home soon. If she knows someone is taking care of Rebecca, that will be a big help.”

  “I hardly know the child, but we’ll be fine. Andrew Donovan is her best friend and he spends an awful lot of time at Sycamore House. He’ll help me make her feel comfortable.”

  “Everyone in town knows who you are, Polly Giller. You take in strays and waifs of every species. It seems like Lydia Merritt has found one more person who will care for people in need. When she got you on her team, I think she managed to snag a ringer.”

  Polly laughed. “What else could I do?”

  She walked with Doctor Mason to his car and he said, “That’s the difference between you and others, Polly. You see a problem and decide you should do something. Others ignore the fact that there is even a problem in front of them. Maybe you’re like the firemen and policemen we trust. When others run out of a burning building or a bad situation, they run in. Bellingwood knows that you will always wade in. They might not understand it, but they know it.”

  He opened the driver’s door and put his right foot in, “I’ll ask Sarah to sign a HIPAA form allowing you to ask questions at the hospital on behalf of her daughter. She should be in much better shape tomorrow if you want to bring Rebecca to see her.”

  “Thank you, Doctor Mason.”

  “Thank you.” He got in his car, backed out of the driveway and drove down the street. Polly turned back to the front door and saw that Rebecca was still standing there.

  “Well, Rebecca. Andrew an
d Jason are at my house and it looks as if you are going to stay with me for a few days. Shall we pack some things?”

  The little girl didn’t move, even when Polly got to the front stoop. “Is she going to die?”

  “Doctor Mason is going to do everything he can to help her.”

  “She didn’t want to go see a doctor. I should have made her.”

  “Honey, you couldn’t have made your mother do anything she didn’t want to do. Come on, let’s get some of your things together. I think you’ll enjoy it at my house. I have a big, goofy dog and two cats and if you want to see the horses and donkeys, Andrew will take you down to the barn.”

  “Can he stay with us tonight?”

  Polly nodded. “I’ll ask his mother. Since it’s the weekend and he doesn’t have school, this might be the perfect opportunity for a sleepover.”

  Rebecca went inside and Polly followed her back to another bedroom. This room was in stark contrast to the dull, sparse decorating found in the rest of the house. Rebecca opened the door into a bright room with sunny yellow walls, beautiful floral curtains and colorful throw rugs covering the floor. Piles of pillows filled the bed, all in bright colors. A small desk on one wall was surrounded by mirrors and corkboards, filled with sketches and drawings. A small bookshelf had piles of books in it, along with painted rocks and simple knick knacks. Sarah Heater had gone out of her way to bring joy to her daughter’s life.

  “I don’t have a lot of clean clothes. We were going to Boone to do laundry this weekend,” Rebecca said.

  “Tell you what. Where’s your laundry? I have a washing machine and dryer and we can get everything ready for when your mother comes home. Do you want to strip your bed and grab towels out of the bathroom and kitchen?”

  Rebecca’s face lit up. “Yes! Then she doesn’t have to worry about that.”

  “I’ll strip your mom’s bed if you gather the rest. Do you have laundry baskets?”

  “We have one. We usually just carry it down in a garbage bag.”

  “Then, fill a garbage bag and we’ll take it to my house. How’s that?”

  The little girl tossed the pillows onto the floor beside her bed and in moments had the bed stripped to the mattress. She ran to the kitchen and came back with a black garbage bag, already stuffed with towels. Polly went into her mother’s room and pulled the sheets and blanket off the bed. She glanced around the room and didn’t see any clothing.