She kept talking about everything and anything that came into her head, even reminiscing about their schooldays. She had to leave the room shortly afterwards when two doctors came in to check on Angel.
Lexi took the opportunity to call Mel although it was very late in New York. Mel answered on the first ring.
“Oh God, no!” she cried as Lexi described Angel’s condition. “It’s all my fault for saying those awful things to her in Florida.”
“Don’t be silly, Mel. This is no one’s fault. I’ll be in the hospital all night. I’ll let you know if there’s any change.”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to come out?”
“No, there’s no need. There’s nothing you can do here. I’ll keep you informed.”
* * *
“It’s touch and go with her,” the doctor informed Lexi after he had examined Angel. “We pumped out her stomach but she must have been taking barbiturates for quite some time. On top of that she had enough alcohol in her blood to kill someone so slight. She’s had a lucky escape.”
Lexi looked at him numbly. “Is there nothing you can do?” she asked, unable to conceal her anguish.
“It’s up to her now,” a younger lady doctor said gently. “It’s good if you can keep talking to her. It may help to get through to her.”
So Lexi stayed the night, sitting in an armchair beside the bed, all the while talking to Angel, willing her to wake up. Barely able to keep her eyes open, she nodded off from time to time but thanks to the lovely nurse who kept her supplied with coffee throughout the night she managed to stay awake most of the time. It was around seven the following morning when she felt Angel squeeze her hand. At first she thought it was her imagination but then she felt it again.
“Oh Angel, honey, it’s okay. Wake up, darling. Lexi’s here,” she cried. She stood up and stroked Angel’s hair and face and her heart leapt as she saw Angel’s eyes flutter.
She rang for the nurse as she’d been told to do and within seconds she was in the room talking to Angel and rubbing her hands.
“C’mon, Angel, wake up. C’mon, girl. Lexi’s here,” the nurse was saying loudly.
At last Angel opened her eyes. She smiled wanly at Lexi and tried to say something but couldn’t with the mask over her mouth.
“It’s okay, Angel, it’s okay,” Lexi cried, smiling through her tears. “Everything’s going to be all right.”
Two other nurses hurried in and bustled around, administering to Angel.
“Do you want me to leave?” Lexi asked, standing up and moving out of their way.
“No, you’re fine there. Keep talking to her. It’s good for her to hear you and know you’re here.”
When they had finished Angel looked wanly at Lexi and reached for her hand.
“You’re going to be okay now,” Lexi assured her, taking the frail hand and squeezing it.
Angel smiled at her then closed her eyes and fell asleep.
“She’ll be okay now,” the nurse assured Lexi. “She’ll sleep now for hours. Why don’t you go and get some sleep yourself?”
“I suppose I should. I could certainly do with a shower but I don’t like to leave her. Look, I’m staying in the Four Seasons. Could you call me if she wakes? I could get here in ten minutes. Here’s my number.” She handed her card to the nurse.
“Angel’s a lucky girl to have such a friend,” the nurse replied, putting the card in her pocket. “We almost lost her, you know.”
“I know,” Lexi said sombrely.
Chapter 23
Brenda was having a wonderful flight, oblivious to all the drama. She enjoyed the complimentary champagne and delicious meal with wine as she thought about her holiday. She’d had a wonderful time and felt rejuvenated but now she had to face reality again. She would have to forget about Troy and how he’d made her feel if she was to settle back into her normal life.
Having finally acknowledged the problems in her marriage she knew she would now have to do something about it, if it was to be saved. The first step would be to sit down and talk with Bob and she resolved to do that as soon as possible. Happy with her decision, she watched a movie and feeling sleepy, activated the lie-flat bed and slept for the rest of the flight. She would be eternally grateful to Lexi for booking her business class.
Feeling refreshed, she came through the arrivals at Dublin Airport to find no sign of Bob. She looked around, wondering where he might be and after ten minutes called his mobile.
“Where are you?” she asked.
“I’m on my way. Go and have a coffee,” he said gruffly. “I’ll be at departures in about fifteen or twenty minutes.”
“I can see you’re obviously delighted to have me home,” she muttered as she heard him hang up.
Fifteen minutes later she was standing in the freezing cold at the departures entrance but there was still no sign of Bob. Ten minutes later, her toes and fingers numb, she saw his taxi pull up.
He got out and kissed her perfunctorily on the cheek as he put her suitcases in the boot.
“God, it’s freezing,” she exclaimed as she sat into the car.
“Welcome to the real world. You’re not in Florida any more.”
She detected the sarcastic note in his voice and stayed silent as he manoeuvred the car into the early morning traffic.
“You couldn’t have come in at a worst possible time,” he grumbled as they were caught up in the commuter traffic on the M50.
She was tempted to reply that she wasn’t responsible for the Aer Lingus schedule but she bit her tongue and stayed mum. The last thing they needed now was an argument. She had hoped that he would be pleased to have her home and that they could start afresh but that was obviously not the case. He uttered not a single word as he drove her home except to mutter about the “bloody traffic”.
“Any news or scandal since I left?” she asked, hoping to thaw him out.
“None,” he replied, lapsing into silence again. He never asked her once what she’d done or even how she’d liked New York. She’d hoped he might have told her she was looking well or that he liked her coat but he didn’t even seem to notice. It was obvious he was still resentful of her trip so she didn’t dare say anything about it. She was hurt and turned to look out the window so that he wouldn’t see the tears in her eyes as she tried desperately to stop them falling.
When they arrived home he took her cases out of the car and left them on the front doorstep. He opened the front door and then turned back, heading to the car.
“See you later,” he said as he got into it.
“Aren’t you coming in?” she asked, shocked.
“No, somebody in this house has to earn money rather than spend it,” he said spitefully, and then he was gone.
Brenda hoisted the heavy case and bag inside, feeling angry and hurt. How could they possibly solve their problems if he wouldn’t even talk to her? Bob had built a wall around himself which excluded her and she had no idea how she could get through it. She made herself some tea then sat down at the kitchen table and wept. Then she went upstairs and climbed into bed. She slept until midday and when she’d showered and dressed in warm clothes she tried calling Lexi to say she was home, safe and sound. There was no reply from her home phone and Brenda left a message. She then tried Lexi’s mobile but it was turned off.
She felt deflated as she roamed around the empty house which suddenly seemed small and poky after Lexi’s mansion. The grey wet weather didn’t help nor the fact that she couldn’t get warm. She thought back to the constantly warm sunny days in Florida and felt a pang of regret that she couldn’t be back there. Adding to her depression was Bob’s behaviour that morning which had disturbed her greatly.
She knew he’d been resentful of her trip but now it had gone far enough. She couldn’t believe he was being so childish. She Skyped Alex and was delighted to find her online. She smiled brightly, trying not to let her daughter see how despondent she was, as she told her all about the trip.
&
nbsp; Her sister Jean arrived just as she’d finished.
“I am simply dying to hear all about it,” she cried as they hugged.
Brenda put on the kettle and made some sandwiches as she started to describe the fabulous time she’d had.
“I’m green with envy,” Jean exclaimed. “It sounds like heaven.”
“It was. It was the trip of a lifetime but I’m having withdrawal symptoms,” Brenda smiled ruefully. She omitted any mention of Troy although she was tempted to tell Jean about him. She finally told her about Angel and her drink problem.
“That’s so sad. I remember how I envied her when we were at school. She was so beautifully dressed and I wanted to look like her more than anything,” Jean said. “Just goes to show, beauty doesn’t buy happiness.”
“No. She’s still beautiful but very unhappy. It’s a pity because it caused a rift between us in the end. She and Mel had a dreadful row and she rushed off back to LA in the middle of the night.”
“Oh, no! That must have been awful. You four were always so tight-knit. I envied that too.” Jean sighed.
Brenda then went on to tell Jean about Bob’s welcome that morning. “I don’t know what the hell is wrong with him and he won’t talk to me about it.”
“Well, he was acting very strangely while you were away. I invited him over numerous evenings for dinner but he replied that he was busy every evening. I even invited him to lunch the three Sundays you were away but he didn’t come.” Jean frowned. “I don’t know what’s bugging him, sis, but something is.” She hesitated, “I don’t know if I should mention this but I did see him in Ryan’s pub with that young one who works in the taxi office. You know the one I mean – tits hanging out, skirt up to her arse.”
“I know who you mean. Bob often goes out for a jar with the other drivers after work. She probably tagged along. I wouldn’t worry about that.”
“Maybe, but what was he so busy doing every evening if he couldn’t come for dinner even once?”
Brenda got up and paced around the kitchen. “I don’t know. I wonder where he was eating? I left a freezer full of cooked meals for him but they’ve hardly been touched.”
“I think you should ask him what’s going on,” Jean suggested matter of factly. “Sounds fishy to me.” She looked at her watch. “God, I better run. Mrs Brady is coming in for her colour at two and you know what an old biddy she is. She’ll hit the roof if I’m not there.”
“I’ve brought you a present from New York but I haven’t unpacked yet.”
“Oooooh, lovely. Don’t worry, I’ll get it next time. Call and let me know how your talk with Bob goes.”
“I will. See you tomorrow, sweetie.”
“Three weeks in the States and you’re talking like one of them already, sweetie,” Jean laughed as she ran out the door.
* * *
When Lexi got to the hotel she rang Mel and told her what the doctors had said. “It was an overdose but they’re not sure if it was intentional or an accident. They say she must have been abusing drugs for quite some time.”
“She was. I feel so guilty. I knew it and I should have done something about it.”
“Mel, stop it!” Lexi said harshly. “This is not your fault. She wouldn’t listen when we tried to talk to her. There was nothing you could have done. She has to take some responsibility for her own actions.”
“What’s going to happen now?”
“I don’t know. I’ll meet with the doctors later. I suppose she’ll have to go into rehab.”
“Will she agree?”
“I guess after this scare she won’t have any choice.”
Lexi rang Consuela to give her the good news that Angel was now conscious and sleeping.
“Gracias a Díos,” she cried, her relief obvious. “I come see her now?”
“No need to come in until this afternoon, Consuela, as the nurse told me she’d be sleeping till then.”
“I very happy, Miss Lexi. I come visit then.”
Lexi also called Marvin to tell him what had transpired and it gave her great comfort to hear his voice.
“It’s very lonely here without you,” he said. “When do you think you’ll be home?”
She felt warmed by his words. “I really can’t say. It depends on Angel’s recovery.”
“I miss you.”
“I miss you too, Marvin.”
When they’d hung up Lexi, counting forward eight hours, saw that it was mid-afternoon in Ireland. She called Brenda who was unpacking at the time and was delighted to hear Lexi’s voice.
“I left a message on your home number to let you know I’d arrived home safely,” Brenda said.
“I’m not in Florida, I’m in LA.”
“You’re where?” Brenda gasped. “What are you doing there? When I left you were making your way to Tampa.”
“It’s a long story,” Lexi said, exhaustion almost overwhelming her. She explained about Angel to Brenda who was shocked and upset at the news.
“Will she really be all right?” Brenda asked worriedly.
“Yes, it was touch-and-go for a while but they’ve assured me she’ll be fine. She’ll have to go into rehab for quite some time but hopefully after that treatment she’ll be back to her old self.”
“Oh, I do hope so. Poor Angel! Give her my love when she wakes up.”
“I will of course. You got home okay?”
“Yes, I had a lovely trip.”
Lexi then took a very welcome shower and crawled into the comfortable bed, exhausted. She set the alarm for noon and seconds later was fast asleep.
* * *
Angel was still sleeping when Lexi got back to the hospital but her breathing was now stable and the colour was back in her cheeks. The doctor arrived to check on her and proclaimed himself satisfied that she was out of danger and that she could come off the ventilator. He spoke gravely to Lexi and said that Angel would have to go to rehab and be weaned off her addiction to alcohol and prescription drugs.
“She’s very lucky, you know. If her housekeeper hadn’t found her when she did, she would not have survived.”
Consuela arrived shortly after and when Lexi assured her that Angel would be okay she burst into tears. She admitted that Angel had been drinking heavily, saying that she’d found a hoard of empty whisky bottles in her bedroom. She’d also found her greatly depleted stash of Prozac and Ambien.
“I think she die,” Consuela said tearfully, “but I pray all night and Díos, he listen.”
Lexi put her arms around the shaking woman. “Thanks to you, Consuela, she’s going to be okay but she might have to go away for a long time, to get better.”
Consuela nodded. She understood. She went in and sat with Angel while Lexi went for something to eat. When she came back the two women sat quietly, watching Angel sleep.
* * *
It was mid-afternoon when Angel opened her eyes. She looked very much better than she had earlier and when she saw Lexi and Consuela by her bedside, she started to cry. She became very emotional when they told her that she had almost died.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” she whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Did you mean to do it, Angel? Did you want to take your own life?”
“No, no,” Angel cried, struggling to sit up.
“Thank God for that!”
The nurse, who had come in, gently pushed her back down on the pillow.
“You must take it easy now, Angel. No upset.” She looked at Lexi disapprovingly. “There’ll be plenty of time to talk in the next few days. Now you must get better.”
“Sorry,” Lexi said, slightly ashamed. “I didn’t mean to upset her.”
“That’s okay,” the nurse said. “The doctor would like to see her now, if you don’t mind?”
“Of course,” Lexi replied, blowing a kiss at Angel as she and Consuela exited. She took the opportunity to text Mel and Brenda to assure them that Angel was awake and recovering well.
* * *
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Brenda was relieved when Lexi texted to say that Angel was awake and had pulled through. She couldn’t imagine what they would have done if she hadn’t. That was one positive thing in the day, she thought, as she wondered where Bob was. He usually finished at five o’clock and she’d been expecting him home shortly after. It was now six thirty and there was still no sign of him. It hurt her to think that he was obviously avoiding her.
She had taken out two of the chicken curries she’d left for him in the freezer and had reheated them and boiled the rice to go with them. Eventually, she ate her own. No point in having two spoilt dinners!
She was sitting reading when she heard his key in the door.
“Hi, what’s for dinner?” he asked, poking his head in the living-room door.
“Good evening to you too,” she replied icily. “Your dinner has been in the oven since five thirty.”
She heard him washing his hands and going into the kitchen. She started to get angry and by time he’d finished eating and reappeared, with a beer in his hand, she was ready to confront him.
“Okay, enough!” she said, looking at him directly. “I want to know what’s going on.”
“What do you mean?” he asked, avoiding her eyes and turning on the TV before slumping in his armchair.
“You know bloody well what I mean! You were never here when I called. You didn’t call me on my birthday and now you’re acting like the wronged party.” She glared at him but he continued to look at the TV screen.
“Look at me!” Brenda cried, turning off the TV. “We need to talk. Why didn’t you eat any of the meals I left for you to have while I was away? Where did you eat every evening? I’m curious. Tell me the truth.”
“Well, I went out with the guys to Ryan’s most evenings and it was easier to eat there.”
“Yes, Jean said she’d seen you there.”
“She did?” he asked warily.
“Yeah.”
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