Someone Always Loved You

by Brooke Williams

  CHAPTER 20

  Cory unfolded his laptop on Jordan’s hospital tray table and began to scan the contents of a document he had just opened. Glancing at Jordan, he felt the guilt climb up his spine, and he moved away from the computer and returned to her side. “I’m sorry Darling,” he apologized. “I don’t want to ignore you.”

  He laid his head next to hers on the pillow and closed his eyes. He felt so close to her in that instant that he almost believed her eyes would be open when he sat up. Her presence permeated the room, and he could feel her spirit take over his heart. “I’m okay,” he felt her say. “Do what you need to do.” Cory couldn’t believe it. She was in there. He just knew she was. He had felt those words as clear as day, even though her lips hadn’t moved, and her eyes hadn’t fluttered. Bringing her hand to his lips, he said, “I hear you, Darling. I hear you. Just don’t take too long to come back to me, okay?”

  Had he really heard her? she wondered. But how? It was merely a thought. She knew she had not been capable of bringing words over her tongue no matter how many commands she gave. Jordan sank into the warmth, letting the light overcome her as her mind smiled. She and Cory had a connection so deep she didn’t have to speak for him to understand. The next time she heard his voice and felt his touch, she would try to convey her important message. Then she could rest for good.

  Cory moved back to his laptop. Jordan would want him helping people, just as she always did…and would do again, he thought confidently. He had a few things he wanted to get down in writing so he could email it to the new lawyer in charge of his big case.

  It had been hard to take a step back, but Cory knew he had done the right thing. No one needed him more right now than his wife. After Ellison died, Cory had thrown himself into his work. He didn’t regret the hundreds of people he had helped fumble their way through the various law proceedings, but he did wish he had said “no” a few more times to allow him more hours at home. Jordan had always been very understanding and used the time alone to work on her own projects. She found housing for the homeless and jobs for the unemployed; she was a saint to everyone she helped.

  Cory worked so hard over the years that he dreaded slowing down, even for the yearly appointments Jordan forced upon him. She was always reminding him about his regular dental cleaning and his annual physical. That year, his physical had been less than stellar. His cholesterol was too high and the paunch around his middle too large. His doctor forced a stress test on him to measure the effects of his lifestyle on important organs. The reports weren’t good, and Cory was ordered to eat right, rest more, and limit the hours in the office. He detected a dire tone in his doctor’s voice and knew his terms were meant to be taken seriously.

  Cory admitted only part of the test results to Jordan. She needed to know he would be cutting back on certain foods, but that was the extent of his divulgence to her. Cory substituted the large fry for a medium at lunch and switched to diet cola. He tried eating salads instead of burgers, but that didn’t last even a week. Jordan prepared wonderfully tasty and healthy meals at home, but he was available so rarely at the right time that she was seldom able to serve them.

  Just when Cory had about given up on the healthy lifestyle, he decided it would be easier to eat the quart of ice cream and just cut back on his time at work to relieve the stress. His plan was two-fold. He was about to wrap up a couple of cases in court. After those cases were finished, he would accept no new clients until his other cases were cleared. It sounded like a great plan to Cory, and Jordan was thrilled at the prospect of more time with her husband.

  With everything falling into place, Cory walked out of the courtroom, an extra bounce in his step. His case had just been resolved and the results were officially entered into the record books. He was thinking about working regular hours until a man named Earl walked into his office uninvited.

  “Mr. James?” he asked thickly, his work-hardened hands wiping the front of his shirt repeatedly as if they would come clean with enough pressure.

  “Yes?” Cory replied, setting his file aside and hoping this man was a messenger with the documents he was expecting.

  “They says you was the best,” he stated, looking at Cory expectantly. “They says you could help me.”

  It’s always something, Cory thought as he sized the man up before him. He had to be about Cory’s age, maybe a few years older, but he very obviously did not have Cory’s privileges. His clothes were tattered; his hands were cracked and dry from years of manual labor; he had the look of an everyday working man. “Have a seat, Mr….”

  “Levin,” Earl supplied, “Earl Levin.”

  Cory had just powered down his computer and had been longing for the door when Earl appeared, but he felt he should hear what Earl had to say. He was glad he did. Earl worked for a large manufacturing company that emitted fumes into the atmosphere. According to Earl, the company was regulated, and all documents said that the fumes were under the legal limit. Earl, however, had an inside track and had stumbled upon information that stated otherwise. This fact wasn’t what ultimately captured Cory’s attention. Earl believed these emissions were actually making residents of surrounding communities ill. Of course, the residents didn’t realize where the illness originated, but somehow Earl had put two and two together when he saw the papers on the true amount of emissions. Through his conversation with Earl, it was evident to Cory that the man’s exterior and speaking skills were the exact opposite of his sharp mind.

  After hearing just a few of the details, Cory was hooked. He tossed his “not going to take anymore cases” idea out the window and quickly told Earl he would research the case. Hours later, he excitedly told Jordan the overall idea behind the case. “You can’t handle this on your own,” she had said. Cory wondered how much she knew about his health, even though he had told her very little.

  Cory, however, was stubbornly determined to handle it by himself. This case could be huge for firm, the community, his career, and most importantly the individuals directly affected. Cory forgot his doctor’s orders in an instant and began working day and night. When he was home, which seemed to be fewer and fewer hours each day, he was clacking on his laptop or reading through files.

  As frustrated as Jordan was by his non-stop work, she knew Cory was doing it for the right reasons. After all, how many times had she put herself in harm’s way for the sake of others? She tired quickly of never seeing him, but she pressed on and supported him however she could. She dropped deli sandwiches off to his secretary, packed him a stash of apples, and delivered fresh coffee to him in the wee hours of the morning. Sometimes these interruptions in his day were the only chance she got to see him. As much as Jordan missed her husband, she worried about him more. His natural tan had faded, and he seemed to sweat easily, even in a cool air conditioned building.

  It was late in the evening. Even the most diligent lawyers in the firm had left the building, clicking off their office lights behind them; it was the weekend after all. One office light still glowed as Cory rolled his swivel chair from one side of the room to the other, moving between his filing cabinet and his computer. The case was about to go to trial, and he still had mountains of preparations. He knew he could do it, and more importantly, he knew he had to do it for the sake of everyone involved.

  Glancing at his watch, Cory wondered if Jordan would stop by for a visit. He hadn’t been home the night before and didn’t even have a change of clothes. She would surely be by with a carafe of coffee and a bag of fruit and sandwiches. He smiled at the thought of her as he shook his hand. His arm was asleep again. It felt tingly as if he had slept on it wrong. That couldn’t be it though, since he’d only slept a few hours on the couch early this morning. He shook his arm from wrist to shoulder and stood to stretch. Feeling lightheaded and dizzy, he hoped Jordan would be coming soon. He must be weak from hunger since he hadn’t eaten in the last twelve hours. The next thing he knew he was clutching his chest and gasping for air as he fell face down on
to the plush carpet.

  The lowly research assistant strolled down the hall, muttering under her breath. She couldn’t wait until the day she had people to do grunt work like this for her. But, she had to admit, this was a prime case, and assisting on it, whatever the outcome, would look great on her resume. Daydreaming about how far she could advance, she turned on her heal and headed to Cory’s office, her arms cramping under the weight of materials she had brought for him.

  “Mr. James!” she exclaimed, tossing the stack into the air and kneeling at his side to shake him. “Mr. James!” She kept calling his name as she pulled the phone and cradle onto the floor to dial 911.

  Jordan was exhausted. She had found herself spending more time with her nose to the grindstone as Cory worked more and more hours. Though she didn’t work that weekend, she had been outside in the yard most of the morning. Hoping to use the afternoon to catch up on inside duties, Jordan spied the stack of mail awaiting her attention. She sifted through the pile, threw the junk mail behind her, and started a neat stack of bills on the kitchen table.

  Only one envelope attracted her immediate attention. Its postmark read “Wisconsin.” Tearing into it and spilling out its contents, Jordan skimmed the first page. It was a letter from the orphanage…their son had released his information! Throwing her hand to her mouth as unexpected tears rolled down her face, she hastily turned to the next page. His address. She was holding their son’s address in her hands. The shrill ring of the phone disturbed her joy.

  * * * *

  Cory pushed the send button on his email and sat back in the creaky hospital chair. He had done his part. Now all he could do was hope for the best results in the upcoming trial. The day in court had been postponed long enough due to his hospitalization. It was now time to move on with the proceedings. Cory was confident he had transferred everything to the lawyer who had taken over for him. Normally he would worry and fret about the intricacies of the trial, but this time there were plenty of other things with which he could concern himself. Earl and the other clients were in good hands, that was the best Cory could do.

  CHAPTER 21

  Since Madison had been released from the hospital, Jay was much more attentive. He remembered the way Cory had described taking care of Jordan when she was pregnant with Ellison, and he wanted to do nothing less for Madison. He provided her with three or more healthy meals a day, all of the hot drinks she could stand, and bubble baths on demand. The only thing she could have asked was for him not to sneak out of the apartment every time she drifted to sleep, but she knew she could not stop him. Though he acted more like the man she had first fallen in love with, she knew a part of him now belonged to the woman he had put in the hospital….at least until she pulled through.

  It was one such afternoon that a brisk knock sounded at their door. Madison had been dozing on the couch and Jay was already a few blocks down the sidewalk, on his way to the hospital to peek in on Jordan. Jolting from a rather pleasant dream, Madison struggled free from the couch and lumbered to the door. Whoever said pregnant women are beautiful, she thought, wasn’t pregnant at the time.

  The open door revealed a mail carrier in full uniform with navy blue socks pulled up to his knees. He nodded to her, and, glancing at the letter in his hand, asked, “Does a Mr. Jay Bartlett live here?”

  Madison said that he did as she rested a hand on her belly. “I’m awful sorry, Miss,” he stammered. “I’m new on this route, and I dropped a whole handful of change in the truck today.” Madison waited patiently for his story to have relevance. “As I was searching out my missing quarter, I found this letter shoved way down between the seats. It appears to be months old.”

  Madison peered over his hands to glance at the letter. It looked like a normal envelope, nothing special. It was probably no big deal.

  “I just wanted to hand deliver it with sincere apologies from the post office,” he intimated, bowing his head in shame as if she were about to scold him.

  “No problem at all,” Madison reassured. “In fact, I should be thanking you. After all, you’re the carrier who found the letter, not the one who lost it.”

  He looked up, surprised by her reaction. “I guess that’s true, Ma’am!” He stuck his hand straight out and passed the letter to her waiting fingers along with a small stack of other envelopes. “Have a nice day,” he added, straightening his tie and returning to his work with a new fervor after a job well done.

  Madison turned the letter over and over in her hands, wondering if she should open it without Jay. It had been years since he’d opened a piece of mail. She always had to do it for him and sift through to find important things that she would force him to read. But this letter was from Wisconsin. Though the return address looked vaguely familiar, Madison assumed it was just junk mail. She stashed it in on the kitchen counter and returned to her nap, hoping she wouldn’t have to rise from the couch without help again.

  * * * *

  Dr. Rodriguez was leaving just as Jay arrived to check on Jordan. “How’s she doing, Evan?” Jay asked, catching a glimpse of her dark hair contrasting with the white pillow.

  “All things considered, she’s doing well. The length of the coma concerns me greatly, of course, but her vitals are strong and steady.”

  They all knew she needed to pull out of her unresponsive slumber, and each had tried his own unique method to awaken Jordan. Dr. Rodriguez had told her to fight for what was most important in her life, trying to get her to picture her husband. Cory had told her story after story about their life together, hoping she would return to him to create more memories. Jay had tried to amuse her and even guilt her into returning to this world.

  “They’re something else, aren’t they?” Jay said, referring to Jordan and Cory as he fell into step with Dr. Rodriguez.

  Evan nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. “I sometimes like to imagine that’s what my parents are like,” he said before he realized how personal his comment was.

  “You mean you don’t know your parents?” Jay asked, confused.

  “If you don’t count the fifteen plus families that took me in from time to time, then, no, I guess I don’t know my parents,” he said, regretting he had mentioned the subject.

  Jay stopped, turning to the doctor and halting him with a strong hand on his arm. He felt instantly connected to the man as their common past cemented their bond. “Dr. Rod…I mean, Evan, I’m adopted too.”

  Evan met his eyes, noticing their depth and sincerity. Maybe this was the pull he felt to Jay, a common history of never truly belonging anywhere--a brotherhood among the parentless.

  “I don’t want to pry, Doctor,” Jay said as they started down the hall again, “but maybe we could get together and talk about it sometime. I mean, I’ve never really met anyone else who was adopted.”

  “I was not adopted, Jay,” Evan admitted as he received another confused glance. “I guess I’m still an orphan. No one ever adopted me.” Evan looked away and fixed his eyes on the end of the hall before he saw the sympathy he sensed would be on Jay’s face.

  “That’s incredible,” Jay stated in awe. “Now I really want to talk about it.”

  Evan turned to Jay this time, stopping his wide stride as Nurse Ester squeezed past them and disappeared into a nearby supply closet.

  “It’s just,” Jay continued, seeing the question on Evan’s face, “that I was so young when I left Wisconsin. I never knew what it was like to live in the orphanage. I’d really like to know where I came from, and maybe getting your perspective will help me shed some light on my past.” He noticed a cloud move swiftly over Evan’s face as he spoke, and he wondered if the memories were too painful for him to face.

  “Did you just say Wisconsin?” the doctor asked, slowly and distinctly as if he was talking to someone who knew very little English.

  Jay nodded and watched Evan look away momentarily and then turn back. “Has your name always been Jay?” he asked.

  Jay shrugged. “As far as I know,” he
replied, wondering why Evan would ask such a question. Evan suddenly threw his arms around the slightly younger man and pulled him to his chest in a fierce embrace. “My prayers worked!” he mumbled. “You’re okay!” When Evan released the bewildered Jay he realized how crazy his reaction must seem to Jay. “I think we do need to talk, Jay,” he said, leading him into a nearby alcove.

  Jay waited, as instructed, in the freshly cleaned family lounge as Evan finished his rounds and told the nurse on duty to page him if he was needed. He joined Jay in the empty room, relieved that it was a slow day.

  When the doctor returned, Jay learned more than he had imagined he could about the place he was born. He found out that Dr. Evan Rodriguez was raised in and out of the very orphanage in which he began his life. He listened to how the facility was run day to day; what it was like when couples came in to adopt; and how chores were assigned. Jay couldn’t believe the insane coincidence as the doctor talked in a monologue for nearly an hour. Jay thought he would have been more likely to win a lottery with the ticket he had never purchased than to run into a product of the very same orphanage. They figured out that the doctor had been seven or eight when Jay was born.