Love, Mischa

by Desiree Hart

  "No, I don't know."

  "Well, I could tell it really hurt her when I told her I thought we should see other people. I'm afraid she's still mad at me about that."

  "No way to know unless you ask her." I personally knew that Lisa was still seeing Aaron and was happy with him as far as I could tell, but I didn't want to discourage Chris.

  "Could you call her for me, Tracy?"

  "I'm sorry, Chris, but that's something you need to do on your own." I saw the crestfallen look in his eyes and changed the subject. "I wonder who's taking care of Logan now." I didn't say anything about Mischa and the DNA test.

  "Tina's Mom is for now, but that's only temporary. She can't keep him long-term. Her health's too bad."

  "What about your Dad? He's Tina's brother, after all, so he's Logan's uncle."

  "He's still in California. I don't think he even knows about Logan yet."

  I thought about Lisa. Wouldn't it be nice if... I pushed the thought from my mind. That would never happen.

  I finished my shift and went home. Mischa was sitting in the recliner, reading a book in Russian. He looked up when I walked in.

  "Chris came to visit his aunt today," I told him. "He said Tina's Mom's taking care of Logan for now."

  "Well, it's good that she's able to do that."

  "She can't for much longer. Her health's too bad." I saw the longing in his eyes, and it gave me a very uncomfortable feeling.

  A few days later, Mitzi and I were eating lunch together in the cafeteria when I felt someone's finger poke me in the back. "Freeze. You're under arrest." I turned around to look into my husband's laughing face. It was the first time I'd seen him inside the hospital in uniform.

  "The pharmacy got broken into last night," he told me. "A couple of us came to dust for fingerprints. Thought I'd stop by to say hello before heading back to the station. Hi, Mitzi." "He nodded at my friend. "How's Ivan? Haven't talked to him in awhile."

  "He's fine! We're planning to have dinner together at that new Asian place on our next day off. It would be great if you guys could join us!"

  "Sounds great!" Mischa looked at me. "What about it, Trace?"

  "I'm all for it," I replied. "I'll see if I'm off and if my folks can watch the kids."

  As it turned out, luck was on my side, and several days later, Mischa and I sat across from Ivan and Mitzi at the new Asian restaurant. "It's been too long since we did this last," I said to Mischa. "We should do it more often."

  "We really should." He squeezed my hand underneath the table.

  Later, Mitzi winked at me and nudged her head in the direction of the lady's room. "Excuse me for just a minute," I told Mischa before following her there. As soon as we were inside, she grinned at me and grabbed my arm eagerly.

  "Please tell Mischa that I don't know how to thank him for introducing me to Ivan," she said. "He's the most wonderful man I've ever known. I never imagined I'd be happy with just one man for the rest of my life, but he's made me see that I really am finally ready to settle down."

  "Wow, I can't believe he's actually tamed you," I remarked. "Mischa will be glad. But wait, what about Ivan's wanting to be an Orthodox priest? Wouldn't getting married mess up his plans?"

  "I asked him about that," she replied. "He said that as long as he gets married before he becomes a priest, it's fine. He just can't get married after he becomes a priest."

  "So you two are engaged now?"

  "Well, not exactly. We've talked about it, but we haven't set a date or anything."

  By the time we returned to the table, the waitress had brought our food. Mischa and I played footsie underneath the table as we ate, and I could tell that Ivan and Mitzi were doing the same thing.

  Lisa called me the following day. "Would you like to go to the mall this evening?" she asked. "It's been ages since we've hung out together, and I'd love to touch base with you again."

  Suddenly I had an idea. "Would it be all right if I invited my brother and his girlfriend along, too?"

  "Sure, I don't see why not." She sounded a little taken aback, which didn't surprise me.

  I called Mom and asked to speak to Adam, and she told me that he and Jill had gone to play goofy golf. Thinking quickly, I called Lisa back and asked if we could do goofy golf instead of the mall.

  "Well, sure, I guess so," she replied. "Why are you acting so strange, Trace?"

  "It's too complicated to explain right now," I told her. "Just trust me. I know you won't be disappointed."

  She laughed. "All right, my crazy friend."

  Chapter 18

  L

  isa and I arrived at the goofy golf course at about the same time. Adam and Jill were, of course, already busily at play. Adam looked up in surprise when I arrived, and Jill glanced up a moment later.

  "Hi, bro," I said. "You know Lisa. Jill, this is Lisa. Lisa, this is Adam's girlfriend, Jill."

  "Hi!" Lisa smiled and extended her hand.

  "Hi," Jill said shyly, shaking Lisa's hand.

  "I've been wanting to get you two together for ages," I told them. "You have something important in common."

  They both just stared at me, surprised. "What on earth are you talking about, Trace?" asked Lisa.

  "Show Lisa that picture of your Dad you showed me, Jill."

  Puzzled, Jill took the photograph from her purse and showed it to Lisa, who gasped. "That can't be your Dad!" she exclaimed. "He's my Dad!"

  "Was your Dad in Las Vegas about nineteen years ago?" asked Jill.

  "Why...yes, he was!" Understanding slowly dawned on Lisa's face. "Do you mean to tell me that..."

  Jill laughed. "We're sisters!" Tears were in their eyes as they embraced one another. "So where's Dad now?" asked Jill.

  "He lives not too far from here," Lisa replied. "I wonder why he never told me about you. Have you ever met him?"

  "Never. My Mom never talks about him. She just gave me that one picture. I was raised by my stepfather, but he and my Mom got divorced a few months ago."

  "I'll have to introduce you two as soon as I can," said Lisa. "You know, it's funny he never mentioned you to me. I wonder if he even knows you exist."

  Jill shrugged. "I have no idea. Is he still married to your Mom?"

  "Oh, no. They got divorced a long time ago."

  "Did either one of them ever get married again?"

  "They both did. And then got divorced again." Lisa sighed. "You know, I think they still have feelings for each other."

  "Do you have any other brothers or sisters?"

  "Nope. You?"

  "I have a half-brother, Andy. He's twelve."

  By now everyone had lost interest in playing goofy golf. Jill left with Lisa in her car to see if their Dad was home, and Adam and I both went back home, too.

  When I got home, I saw that Mischa was pushing Meadow in one swing while Sage swung in the other, and Simba pranced around, barking happily. "Hey, boy!" I exclaimed as I bent down to scratch between his ears.

  "So how did the meeting between Lisa and Jill go?" asked Mischa. I'd told him of my plans before I'd left.

  "It went great! Lisa's taken Jill to meet their father. Thanks for watching the kids for me. I really appreciate it."

  "Hey, no problem at all!" He came over and gave me a quick hug and kiss. "I think it's great that you got the two of them together."

  "Yeah." I took over pushing Meadow and he went into the house.

  Later I cooked roast beef and potatoes for our dinner. After dinner, Mischa and I did the dishes together while talking and laughing and then sat in the living room watching television and playing with the kids. While we were doing that, Lisa called me.

  "I just wanted to say thanks for bringing me and Jill together," she said. "She's great. We had a blast at my Dad's. It turns out he'd been sending her Mom money to help support her all along. I asked him why he never told me about her. He said that he was afraid I'd be mad at him because of my Mom, even
though they were already divorced when he got together with her Mom."

  "Then I asked why he'd never tried to visit her or get in touch with her. He said that he'd known she was in a stable family unit and hadn't wanted to disrupt that."

  "Well, I'm glad you guys all had a nice time together," I said. My mind was on Chris and what he'd said to me when he'd come to visit his aunt in the hospital. Lisa hadn't mentioned Aaron to me at all. Perhaps she wasn't even still seeing him. At any rate, I knew that it wasn't really the appropriate time to bring the subject up, so I didn't.

  After I'd gotten the kids to bed, Mischa and I were snuggling together on the sofa watching a movie when I found my hand slowly moving southward until it reached the elastic of his underpants, then gently slipping beneath them to fondle him. When I'd gotten him hard, I slipped to my knees and tugged his shorts and underpants down.

  He gave a gasp of pleasure as I slipped him into my mouth and began to suckle him while lightly massaging his balls. When he was close, he began to grunt and thrust, and we moved to the bedroom, where we tumbled onto the bed and he quickly removed my shorts and panties, put on a condom, and entered me. Afterwards, we lay perfectly still in bed, holding one another tightly, until I heard his gentle snoring.

  ✽✽✽

  Later that month, we went to WalMart to buy Sage's school supplies. While there, we met up with Yuri, Erica, and their children. "I'm gonna be in the big school this year," Sage proudly told Toni and Sonya.

  "This is my last year there," Toni replied. "I'm going into the fifth grade. I'm gonna be in middle school next year. I can't wait! I want to be a cheerleader."

  "That's fine with me, as long as you can keep your grades up," said Erica. "You know that has to come first."

  "Oh, she'll be fine," Yuri assured his wife. "That's a whole year from now, anyway."

  Busily I searched for all the items on Sage's school supply list. After what seemed like ages, I finally had everything together, and we all headed for the check-out lanes.

  "Mama! Potty!" Meadow cried as we were standing in line. Hurriedly I grabbed her from the shopping cart and took her to the restroom.

  Fortunately, we made it there on time. "Good girl!" I praised her. When we were finished, I returned to the check-out lane we'd been in to see that Mischa and Sage were nowhere to be found.

  "We're over here, Mommy!" I turned in the direction of my son's voice to see him standing near the exit with the rest of the family. Mischa held the bags containing our purchases. I heaved a huge sigh of relief and rushed to join the others.

  When we got back home, I labeled all Sage's new school supplies and put them in his backpack, ready for the first day of school. Then I bathed both kids, read them a story, and put them to bed.

  I was watching television with Mischa when Sage called out to me about thirty minutes later. I entered his bedroom to find him lying in bed wide awake with a worried look on his face. "What is it, sweetie?" I asked him.

  "What if the kids at the big school don't like me?" he asked.

  "Of course they'll like you!" I replied. "Why wouldn't they?"

  "I don't know."

  I laughed and tucked him back in. "Silly boy, go to sleep!"

  I was almost out of the room when I heard his voice again. "Mommy?"

  With a sigh I turned back to him. "What if the teacher's mean? What if the work's too hard?"

  "Everything's gonna be fine, Sage." I went back to him and kissed his forehead. "Now go to sleep."

  Mischa gave me a questioning look as I returned to the living room. "Pre first day of school jitters," I explained.

  The following Monday morning, Mischa and I stood with Sage at the corner of our street, waiting for the bus. I saw that a slight blonde woman accompanied by a blond-haired boy of about six were there, too. The woman introduced herself as Kristen and her son as Mark.

  "Oh yeah, I remember seeing him get off the bus in the afternoon last year," I told her.

  "I recognize you," she told Mischa. "You gave me a speeding ticket a couple of weeks ago. I had no idea you lived right down the street from me."

  "Sorry." Mischa looked terribly embarrassed. "Rules are rules."

  At last the bus arrived, and I watched Sage mount the big steps, suddenly realizing how small he looked by comparison to them. Suddenly I felt Mischa's arm around me, giving me a reassuring hug. "He'll be fine, Trace!"

  I arrived at work later to find the emergency room in total mayhem. "Somebody crashed into a school bus," another nurse told me.

  My heart nearly stopped. Sage! "What school was it?" I asked.

  "I don't know," the other nurse replied. Frustrated, I asked several other co-workers the same question, until at last someone told me the name of the school. I sagged with relief to learn that it wasn't Sage's school.

  I joined the others in starting I.V. lines and applying bandages. A dozen or so of the children were seriously injured, and despite the best efforts of the emergency room personnel, we lost four of them. As I gazed at the little bodies lying there so very still, overwhelming sorrow overcame me. I thanked my lucky stars that I wasn't the one with the heartrending task of notifying the parents.

  Although I soon became busy with other tasks, the vision of the dead children haunted me for the rest of the day, and I knew it was something I'd remember for the rest of my life.

  That night, Mischa and I lay cuddling in bed after making love when he asked me about it. "Something's been weighing heavy on your mind all evening," he remarked. "What is it?"

  "Oh, Mischa, it was horrible!" Unable to hold it in any longer, I burst into tears. "Somebody smashed into a school bus this morning, and they brought all these little kids into the emergency room. They were all hurt and scared and crying, and four of them...four of them...didn't make it."

  I began to sob heavily, and he held and comforted me. "When I first found out about it, I was so s-scared..." I stammered when I could speak again.

  "I know, sweetheart. I know," Mischa murmured.

  "It could just as easily have been Sage's bus," I continued.

  "I know, darling." Tenderly he kissed my forehead. "It's all over with now. Everything's all right."

  ✽✽✽

  Several weeks after the beginning of the school term, Sage's kindergarten class went on a field trip to a farm. I volunteered to go along as a chaperone, because I thought it sounded like fun. I took Meadow along with me as well instead of sending her to child care that day. All the little girls in Sage's class gushed over her, saying how cute she was and almost coming to blows over who would sit beside her on the bus.

  We rode far out into the country, and the bus finally came to a stop on a dirt road in front of a large field that contained a barn, a silo, and a dozen or so grazing cows. "Look at the cows, Mommy!" Sage exclaimed.

  "Moo! Moo!" cried Meadow, jumping up and down excitedly.

  The farmer took us on a tour of the farm, where we saw a tractor, a baler, and a combine harvester, and then he showed us the inside of the barn, where we saw sheep, pigs, and chickens.

  "Wow, Mommy, it's really big in here!" Sage exclaimed.

  "This baby chicken just hatched this morning," the farmer told the children, passing the little ball of fluff around for each child to hold. Meadow cried when I told her she was too small to hold the baby chick because she might crush it. I distracted her by letting her pet a sheep.

  At the end of the visit, the farmer let each of the children taste some fresh milk from one of his cows, and then it was time to get back on the bus and return to the school. Meadow, of course, fell asleep almost as soon as the bus began to move. Sage chattered excitedly all the way back. "I'm gonna be a farmer when I grow up," he told me.

  "I thought you were gonna be a policeman."

  He looked thoughtful for a moment. "I'm gonna be a farmer and a policeman."

  On the way home from the school, I had to go through the drive-through at the bank, and
by the time we got home, Sage was yawning, but Meadow was wide awake.

  Chapter 19

  T

  he sky was filled with dark, angry storm clouds, but I hardly noticed them as I pulled into the hospital parking lot. I was thinking about a very sweet elderly man, Mr. Jones, who'd gone into cardiac arrest on my last shift. We'd brought him back, but he was still comatose and unstable. I really hoped that he'd survived the night. Before he'd lost consciousness, he'd been such a pleasant patient, so sweet and kind. He'd reminded me a lot of my grandfather.

  "Have you been listening to the weather?" Mitzi asked when she saw me.

  "Not really," I replied.

  "There's supposed to be a really bad thunderstorm brewing," she told me. I thought about my children, safe at home with Mischa. How I wished I could be home with them! But I had to work because I needed the money.

  After performing my regular duties, I went to check on Mr. Jones and was relieved to see that, although he still hadn't regained consciousness, his vitals were now stable.

  Suddenly I heard a loud clap of thunder, and the lights blinked off for just a second and then blinked right back on. I knew that that meant that we had lost power and the backup generator had just kicked on. I was sure that Sage and Meadow would be frightened and was glad that Mischa was there to comfort them.

  Even the flurry of activity inside the emergency room couldn't drown out the wind's angry squalls, and as more and more people came in with anxiety symptoms and panic attacks, the floor in front of the door became slick with rain water. Several coronary patients had heart attacks during the night, and one elderly man went into arrest and couldn't be resuscitated. Thankfully, Mr. Jones never regained consciousness throughout the entire ordeal.

  In the early morning hours, the storm finally abated. Although exhausted, I managed to finish my duties but was very glad when it was finally time to go home. As I stepped into the parking lot, I saw that, even though the rain had stopped, there were huge mud puddles all over the place, and limbs that had been broken off trees were scattered all about. A large tree had been blown down and was blocking the road, so I had to take an alternative route home.