Polly shook her head as imperceptibly as possible, hoping Rachel would get it.
"I don't think so. She's done for the day."
"Fine. Tell her Anthony wants to talk to her and she'd better quit ducking out on me."
"What did you want to talk to her about?" Polly barely squeaked out, ashamed that he'd caused her to sound like that.
"None of your business. Best to just stay out of it, if you know what I mean." He sauntered toward her, then brushed past her and headed for the front door.
Polly followed to make sure he was gone and then felt a cold sweat break out all over her body.
"Is he gone?" Jeff came out of the office.
"For now. That man terrifies me," she said. "I wasn't as scared when those idiots had me trapped in the barn last year. This guy could fold me into a taco and serve me for lunch." Polly put her hand out to take Jeff's forearm. She needed a little contact to maintain her stability. "Did you reach Sylvie and wave her off?"
"Yeah. And I called Eliseo, too. I thought he should know."
"I'm going to go back and check on Rachel. I think he terrified her, too."
"I know this sounds a little melodramatic, but are you going to call the Sheriff?"
"I don't want to sound like a baby," Polly protested.
"You'd rather be a taco?"
She chuckled, then took a deep cleansing breath. "Okay. Thanks. I'm better. We'll see."
Rachel was standing at the sink, her hands under running water, when Polly walked back in. "Are you okay?" Polly asked.
"Was that her ex-husband? He's huge."
"Yeah. That was him. Thanks for backing me up."
"At least I didn't have to lie. But you know Andrew is upstairs, don't you?"
"Oh, for heaven's sake. I didn't even think about that. I'm so glad he didn't come down. Is Rebecca with him?"
"Yeah. I thought Jessie was around, but he said she's not. Are they okay alone up there?"
"They'll be fine. Now that I'm breathing again, I'll figure out what is happening around here. Sylvie can't come back until she's ready to face this. Do you need any help?"
Rachel thought about it. "I need to go out and help clean rooms tomorrow after that group leaves, but I think we're fine. Ask Sylvie if I should call Hannah. I'm sure she can come help if necessary."
"I'll do that. Thanks for everything."
Polly was nearly out the door when Rachel said, "Polly? Have you thought about doing something for Sylvie getting her certificate?"
"What a horrible friend I am," Polly said as she turned around. "I know Sylvie was just so glad to be done with classes, I didn't even think about celebrating. But we can't do it here because she'd think she has to do all of the work."
"Hannah and I were talking about it. I think we could come up with something fun."
"Let's get through this and then yes, I want to congratulate the heck out of her. Thanks for reminding me. Don't let me forget again, okay?"
Rachel smiled, "Okay. I'll say something to Jeff, too."
"Perfect. He never lets me forget things."
CHAPTER NINE
A rather upset Eliseo was waiting for Polly in her office.
"Hey," she said and walked around her desk.
"You okay?" he asked, waiting to sit down until she'd taken a seat.
"I suppose. Have you talked to Sylvie?"
"Not yet. I want to find out from you how bad you think this is going to get?"
Polly slowly shook her head. "I don't know. He's scary and he's pretty intent on getting to her. I wish I knew what he wanted."
"Everybody does. Now that he's figured out where she works, it makes sense that he knows where she lives."
"But he doesn't know about you. That gives her a little breathing room."
Eliseo leaned forward and put his hands on her desk. "Do you think we're making more out of this than it is? Maybe he's in town for something inconsequential." Every once in a while Eliseo's accent broke through. Polly loved it when he did. Rather than the 'ch' sound at the end of the word, she heard the "tee-ahl" and smiled.
"Maybe. She's going to have to face him sooner or later, but I'd like there to be plenty of people around. I've known her for a couple of years and always thought of her as a warrior. Last night, just thinking about him turned her into a wounded puppy. It was awful. That man messed with her."
Eliseo remained quiet, but his fists clenched in front of her.
"Do you know about Jason?" Polly asked.
He clenched his fists again and through gritted teeth, asked, "What happened now?"
"Crap. I don't want to be the one to tell you this. I have to believe he has more sense than to make a stupid mistake but he's been suspended for a week for fighting. He beat two kids up this afternoon. That's why Sylvie was gone. She had to go get him."
"That poor woman." Eliseo deliberately unclenched his muscles and leaned back in the chair. "I thought we were handling this."
"I know. She did too."
"I've failed her."
"Oh come on, Eliseo. Jason is capable of making bad decisions all on his own."
"I thought he and I had come to an understanding. We had a really successful weekend."
"And it all fell apart last night when he found out his father was in town. He's fourteen years old and is powerless to protect Sylvie against that man. Of course he did something stupid."
"If you don't mind, I'm going out to the farm to check on them. Jason and I will come back tonight to bring the horses in. He'll probably need to get out of the house, so don't worry about trying to do the work yourself."
"Are you sure? I've done it before." It had been over a year and a half ago since she'd had to do all of the work by herself. It was a little intimidating, but it could be done.
"I'm sure. Thanks for telling me." He was up and out of the chair, then out of the office before Polly could say anything else.
She put her head down on her desk and shut her eyes. This day sucked so far.
"Polly?"
She lifted her head slightly and opened one eye when she heard Rachel's voice in her doorway.
"What's up?"
"I think something's wrong with Sarah. I just took some juice in to her and she looks terrible."
Polly jumped up from the desk and the split second that it took Rachel to move out of the way seemed like an eternity. No. Not now! She bolted out of the office and into the addition to the room Sarah and Rebecca were sharing. She didn't bother to knock, just rushed in and found Sarah Heater lying limply in her bed, barely responsive.
"Sarah? Sarah? Can you hear me?"
"Yes," she said weakly.
Polly dialed 9-1-1 and gave the information to the dispatcher.
"Sarah, we need to take you to the hospital. Something is dreadfully wrong."
"Rebecca," came the response.
"You know I'll take care of her. Don't worry."
Jeff had come into the room and said, "You go upstairs and get Rebecca. I'll wait for the squad."
"Are you sure?"
"Absolutely." He pulled a chair up beside Sarah's bed and took her hand. "You're going to be just fine, right? Now is not the time for you to leave us. Got that?" He turned back and said, "Go ahead, Polly. We'll be right here."
Polly ran back through Sycamore House and up the steps to her home. When she rushed in the front door, she stopped and took a breath before heading into the media room where she could hear Andrew and Rebecca chattering.
What about Andrew? He needed someone to take him to Eliseo's house. They'd completely forgotten about him. Polly had to shut her eyes to think. Too much information was spinning through her mind and she didn't know what to do first.
Which meant that she knew exactly what to do. She pulled the phone out of her pocket and swiped the number of the one person who would help her think straight.
"Hey, sweet thing, what's up?"
Polly slipped back outside her front door and closed it softly, ignoring Obiwan
's attempt to follow her. "Henry, I need your help. Every single thing that could fall apart today has fallen apart and now Sarah needs to go to the hospital. The EMTs are on their way and I have to tell Rebecca. Sylvie had to pick Jason up at school because he was in a fight and Eliseo has gone out to his house because that's where she is because her ex-husband showed up here and I need to get Andrew there too. Obiwan needs to be walked and I don't know what to do next."
"Breathe honey. We can do this."
"How? Tell me what to do. My brain is running on high and I can't make it make sense."
"Tell Rebecca about her mom and that you and she are going to Boone. Then, tell Andrew that I'm going to come get him and take him out to Eliseo's house, but first he needs walk the dog. Have Rachel and Jeff keep an eye on him and the place until I get there. After we are both where we're going to be, we'll talk and figure the rest of this out. How does that sound?"
That was all it took. A sane, calm voice in the middle of her panic. "Thank you. That's perfect. I didn't know how to ask you to do this. I know you're busy."
"The day is almost over. I can leave in a few minutes. You can always ask me for help. If I can't do something right away, there is somebody close who can. You're never alone, Polly."
"I know," she said. "I just forget. I love you."
"I love you too. Now go take care of your little girl."
Polly felt much calmer when she opened the door to the apartment again. Now if she could just keep Rebecca from panicking and feeling guilty because she was upstairs rather than sitting by her mother.
"Rebecca?" Polly said, walking into the media room.
"Just a sec," Andrew said without looking up. "We're almost done. I'm going to beat her!" In a second, he dropped the game control and threw his hands up in the air. "I win! I never win!" He jumped up and danced around the table. "I win! I win!"
Sirens cut through his chant.
Rebecca dropped her controller when she saw Polly's face. "Mom!"
Polly put her hand out to stop Rebecca from bolting. "We've called the ambulance for your mother. She's very sick and needs to go to the hospital. But you and I will go down to Boone, too."
"Is she going to die?" Rebecca burst into tears.
Polly didn't know what to say. She felt like she had a relationship with these kids based on truth, and promising that Sarah would be okay seemed like the wrong thing to do.
Andrew sat back down on the sofa, "I'm sorry," he said.
"Here's the deal," Polly said. "Things are really wacky in Sycamore House world today. Jessie is gone and your mom had to pick Jason up from school this afternoon. They're already out at Eliseo's house and as a matter of fact, so is Eliseo. I was going to take you out there later, but now I want to be able to take Rebecca to Boone to spend time with her mother. So I need your help, Andrew."
His entire body had crumpled in on itself, but he looked up. "What?" He looked at Rebecca again. "I'm sorry for beating you and dancing around."
Rebecca paid no attention to him, she just cried where she sat.
"I'm sure she's not upset with you," Polly said. "I need you to take Obiwan out for a walk for me. Rachel and Jeff are downstairs and you have to tell them when you go outside and when you come back in. Got it?"
"Why?" he asked.
"Because otherwise no one will know where you are. Henry is going to come home in a little bit and I want you to be ready to go because he'll take you out to Eliseo's house. Will you do things my way?"
"I can't believe they left me."
Polly chuckled. "I know it feels that way, but honestly, Andrew, today it seems like everybody has a whole lot of stuff going on. You are about the only person who doesn't have some big crisis."
"Did you know my dad is in town? Mom's scared and Jason's mad. I don't even remember what Dad looks like."
"I do know that. It's going to be okay. We just have to figure out how to get through it. Now, will you check in with Rachel and Jeff and take Obiwan out?"
"Sure." He touched Rebecca's arm. "If Polly lets you, will you call me later and tell me about your mom?"
Rebecca nodded and then stood and walked to the front door. She didn't wait for Polly, just walked out and left.
"I'd better follow her," Polly said. "Thanks for everything. You're a really good kid."
Polly trotted off to catch up to Rebecca and did so at the bottom of the steps. Rebecca hesitantly tried to approach the gurney the EMTs were wheeling out and Polly took her hand and led her over to her mother.
"Mom?" Rebecca asked.
"I'll be okay," Sarah said. "I promise. This isn't it."
Whew. At least Polly didn't have to worry about that conversation. Rebecca pulled her hand away, crossed her arms tightly in front of her and nodded to the EMT, dismissing him.
"We'll be right behind you," Polly said.
They watched the back door of the ambulance close and Rebecca turned to head for the addition.
"Don't you want to leave now?" Polly asked.
"Not without her robe and her book." Rebecca was resolute. Gone was the whimpering child who had desperately needed Polly when Sarah had first been diagnosed. This sickness was hardening something in the little girl. Polly hated to see it happen, but tried to understand that she was doing whatever she could to protect herself from the pain that was coming. She waited for Rebecca to return.
"Are you okay? You've had a rough day," Jeff said.
"I don't know. Things are falling apart around me and all I can do is react. Will you keep an eye on Andrew? He's taking Obiwan outside for me and then Henry will take him out to Eliseo's house."
"Sure. No problem. We're living in interesting times, aren't we," he dead-panned.
"No kidding."
Rebecca came back with a small travel bag and her backpack. "I'm ready," she said and continued past them to the kitchen.
"I guess I'm leaving now. Thanks for taking care of things," Polly said, and once again, followed Rebecca.
The ride out of town was silent except for the whoosh of wiper blades on the windshield. Rebecca kept her arms clasped tightly around the bags she carried and didn't say a word.
"Do you want to talk about this?" Polly asked.
"No," came the response.
"Are you angry?"
Rebecca set her jaw and then looked at Polly, her eyes flashing. "Of course I am. My mom is dying and there's nothing I can do about it. I'm supposed to be happy and sweet and go to school and play with my friends and be nice and I can't cry because it upsets her and it freaks you out and ..." She punched the bag. "I'm just a girl. Why is this happening to us?"
"I don't know, sweetie. Those are questions that have no answers." Polly reached across the seat to try to touch Rebecca, but the girl pulled back and scooted closer to the door.
"I know you're going to be my guardian when she dies, but I'd rather have her take care of me." Rebecca realized what she had just said and grimaced. "That's not what I mean."
"I know. It's okay. I'd rather have her take care of you too. And that's not what I mean." Polly gave the girl a little smile. "I think everyone would rather have your mom stick around for a long time, but if that can't happen, what will you do about it?"
"I'm going to be really mad."
"That's a normal place to start. You're going to hurt like crazy when it happens. You're going to ask God to undo it and bring her back. You're going to feel things that you've never felt before. And, Rebecca, I promise you that all of those feelings are okay. No one will be upset with you for having them."
The girl's voice was very small, "Even if I hate you?"
"Why do you hate me, sweetie?"
"Because you made my mom go to the hospital in the first place. If you had never taken me home that day ..." Rebecca dropped her head. "I know," she said.
"I know you do. It's okay to hate me right now. I get it."
"I'm sorry, Polly. I don't really hate you."
"Sweetie, your feelings are going
to be all over the place for a while. Here's what I can promise you. No matter what happens, no matter how angry or scared or hateful or freaked out you get, I will still love you. So will your mom. So will Henry and I'm pretty sure, so will Andrew."
"I let him win today," Rebecca said, looking up with a gleam in her eye.
"You what?"
"Don't tell him. He was really scared because of his dad showing up. I've never seen him like that before. He said his mom was crying last night and Jason got mad. I think that Jason scared him more than anything. Jason talked about killing his dad so that he wouldn't hurt anybody again."
"Really?"
"Andrew said Jason was just mouthing off because he was mad, but he's never been like this before."
"Jason's having a rough time right now."
"Because he is in high school?"
"I think that's part of it."
"Andrew said that he's hanging out with bad kids. Jason wanted to be cool and isn't talking to his friends from Bellingwood. It's like Bellingwood kids are stupid or something."
"Growing up is really difficult."
"I know," Rebecca said. "Jason should live my life for a couple of weeks. At least his mom isn't going to die." She huffed out a breath. "That was mean."
Polly turned to drive down Story Street. "It's probably going to take them a little while to check your mom into the hospital. Do you want to get something to eat first?"
"McDonalds?" Rebecca asked with a shy smile.
"Are you sure? We could go to a real restaurant."
"Please?"
"Okay. Fine. You're certainly a cheap date."
"Do you really think Mom is going to be okay?"
Polly could tell Rebecca was starting to relax around her again. She'd put the backpack on the seat beside her and had dropped the overnight bag to the floor.
"I'd guess that your mom knows what is happening in her body better than anyone else. If she tells you that this isn't her time yet, then you should believe her."
"What do you think is wrong? I knew she was getting weaker, but ..."
"I have no idea, but they'll figure it out. Do you want to go inside or eat in the truck?"
"Can we just eat in the truck?"
"Absolutely."
Through the Storm (Bellingwood Book 8) Page 9