by Susan Vance
She hung up the phone before Emma could say another word. Ten minutes later Marilyn and Howard were at Emma’s door. Emma let them in and looked at her father. She felt badly for getting him out of bed knowing he had to be at the store early in the morning.
“Hi, Dad,” she said, putting her head down. “I’m so sorry Mom got you out of bed. I’m so sorry. I got scared, I guess. I know this hasn’t happened in a long time. I’m sorry,” she said over and over. “I don’t get it. That was all kid stuff. This should be a happy and exciting time for me. I am happy, so why do I think I see someone that isn’t there? I’m not a kid anymore. What am I suppose to do?” she asked begging for an answer.
“Sweetie, I wasn’t even in bed yet. Mom and I were having some ice cream. We didn’t even have our pajamas on.” He sat at the kitchen table. Marilyn sat in the chair next to him. Emma stayed standing, leaning against the counter.
Emma knew her father was lying, but she also knew he didn’t want her to feel this was too big of a deal. It was a big deal. Emma could see that her mother was pale and her hands were shaking. She watched as her father took his wife’s arm and gently gave her a squeeze. Emma trusted them completely, but she needed answers. She felt they had them, so why didn’t they just come out with it.
“So, Sweetie,” Howard said. “Listen to me. This man you think you saw upsets you, I know that. When you get stressed sometimes this happens. You think your date tonight wasn’t stressful, but in a way it probably was, just a little. It’s to be expected. It will be okay, I promise. Now, tell us about your big date tonight with this fireman.”
“Dad, why do you want to change the subject? I’m not stressed out at all. Well maybe, a few hours ago I was really upset when Jason was almost two hours late.”
“What? He stood you up?” Howard asked angrily.
“No, Dad, he didn’t stand me up, honest. He got called in to the station and he left my number in his car. He called when he got the chance and he apologized. I completely understood and we went out and had a nice time. I just wish Jody hadn’t said anything about it. I wanted to see if it was going anywhere first. Wait until I call her tomorrow. She just can’t keep a secret.” She giggled softly to herself. Emma really didn’t mind that Jody told. She loved her sister and they were close. She knew that Jody was excited for her.
Marilyn said, “Tell us about Jason. All we know is that he’s a fireman. Is he from Clayton?”
“I think so. I forgot to ask him. His mother lives here and he has two brothers and a sister. They’re scattered about, but his sister will be home from college next year, I think. His father isn’t living. I’m not sure if he told me how long ago he passed away. I think one of his brothers lives in Europe. I wasn’t paying close attention.” She sighed. “I guess I was too busy looking out that stupid window.”
Howard said, “Sweetie, if you see this man again I want you to call me right away. Whether he is real or not, at least give us a chance to see for ourselves. There are many people that look alike so this is most likely a coincidence, but I would really like to see. If he should come around the flower shop then call me right away. I’ll come right over and check him out. I don’t want you to worry about any of this. I think you are most likely mistaken about seeing him so often or you are just a little stressed out. You have to promise to call me just the same. Okay?”
“Dad, it wasn’t him. I know it wasn’t the same man that came to the shop looking for a job. I know that. It’s just that I keep thinking it’s him. This is so stupid. What’s the matter with me,” she pleaded.
“Honey, Dad’s right and so are you. I’m sure it isn’t the same person. We believe you. I swear I have seen so many people that looked so similar and I thought it was the same person. This will all be fine. You were smart to call us. You never know these days. There are a lot of weirdo’s out there. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”
“I had such a nice time tonight with Jason. Why am I doing this, Mom? It’s confusing. I want a normal life. Why am I so afraid, sometimes?” Emma cried not able to let it go.
Howard stood up and took her into his arms. “This will pass, Sweetie. Sometimes the past catches up with us for a brief moment. Because you don’t remember very much from when you were a small child a flash back once in a while hits you hard. Remember what your doctor said about these events. Just try and breathe through them and please promise no matter how un-real you think it is—call us, please. We’ll always be here for you. We love you so much.”
“Come on, Howard,” Marilyn said, “we should get home. It’s getting late. Lock your door, Emma. Get some rest. If you need us you know you can call anytime, right?”
* * *
Later that night Emma had a nightmare. She hadn’t had one like it in many years. When she was young, the nightmares were frequent, but as she got older they seemed to all but disappear. They were always the same, but she never told. It was four in the morning when she awoke screaming. She wished she were small so Jody would jump in her bed and comfort her.
“Shhh,” Jody would say, “No one will harm you while I’m around. Shhh. It’s just a bad dream. A very bad dream. Shhh, don’t cry. Mommy’s coming. Mommy’s coming to save you.”
Chapter Eight
Becky was waiting out front as Emma drove around the corner to the back of the store. She came in through the back service door and then walked through to the front to let Becky in.
“You’re late,” Becky said looking at her watch. “You told me to come in at eight, remember?”
“I know what I told you, but I over slept a little. I’m sorry you had to wait for me. Don’t worry. I’ll clock you in at eight, okay? Let’s get those boxes open and put out the new stuff,” she said, pointing to the stack of boxes in the back that arrived late on Friday. Becky was muttering something under her breath. Emma couldn’t help but react. “Becky, you’ve got to stop being so serious. Being late isn’t good business, but honest, I didn’t sleep very well last night. Get over it, kid. Whose shop is this, anyway?” She smiled. “Marie will be here soon to help you. I want to put the nesting boxes on the floor and stack them one on top of the other. These are going to go fast.”
Becky went right to work opening up the boxes and setting all the things out that Emma had ordered.
Emma watched Becky as she worked. She was happy Becky had walked into her life. “I’m really going to miss you when school starts. I love having you here. You’re such a good worker,” she said, smiling at Becky and patting her on the shoulder. Emma noticed a few of her piercings were missing. She hoped the rest would disappear at some point. Emma started unpacking some other boxes and placing the pieces on the counter for Becky to arrange on the shelves in front of the window.
“Becky, the little ceramic angels should be placed together on the maple table over by the cooler. You can hang the dragonflies under the silk trees. What do you think about putting the ceramic boxes with the painted rose petals on that table over by the window?” She turned to point towards the window and caught herself looking out across the street making sure he wasn’t there.
“Emma, Emma? Hello? Earth to Emma,” Becky was calling her and Emma didn’t seem to hear her. She was still looking out the window and seemed to be in some kind of trance.
“Emma,” Becky shouted even louder this time, startling Emma causing her to drop one of the ceramic boxes. It went crashing to the floor breaking into pieces.
“Oh, no,” Emma cried. “That was my favorite piece. Darn it. Becky, why did you yell like that at me? Are you trying to give me a heart attack?” She was smiling, but clearly upset about breaking the little box.
“I’m sorry, I was calling you and you just kept looking out the window. It was as if you weren’t here. Didn’t you hear me calling you?”
Emma didn’t know what to say. She really hadn’t heard Becky calling her. What in the world is the matter with me, she thought. “It’s okay, I’ll order another one.”
At little lat
er while Emma and Becky were busy putting everything in its place Emma went over to the window, put the open sign out and un-locked the door. Down the block she saw a man coming towards the flower shop. As he got closer she could see it was the same man that had been popping up everywhere. She felt a cold chill go across her skin as she reached down and re-locked the door. Who is he? Why is he always showing up? This is scary—very scary. The man continued on down the street and Emma never got a close look at him. It could have been him, but now she wasn’t sure. Emma went into her office and sat down. She couldn’t shake it off. She put her hands over her ears and closed her eyes. She put her elbows on her desk and then put her head down. She had a bad headache. It was right above her eyes and she suddenly felt very thirsty. She wanted some water. She stood up and the room began to spin. Her legs felt weak and she felt as if she would be sick. She walked over to the door and everything went black.
“Emma,” Becky cried out.
About that time Marie arrived for work and saw Becky leaning over Emma’s body slumped on the floor. “Oh, for heaven’s sake, what happened?” Marie screamed as she un-locked the front door with her key. She ran straight to the phone and called 911. She could see blood running from Emma’s forehead and Becky was crying. After she spoke to the 911-operator she ran to Emma’s side. “My God, what happened, Becky?”
“I don’t know. I don’t,” Becky said sobbing. “Emma was in her office and then I heard this crash. I turned around and saw her hit the floor. She knocked over a planter. I think she passed out. I think she hit her head. She was acting strange just a few minutes before that happened.”
“What do you mean strange?” Marie wanted to know, but the paramedics came rushing through the door and Becky didn’t get a chance to tell her.
“Move aside please,” said one of the paramedics rushing over to where Emma lay. Marie picked up the phone to call Marilyn who answered right away. Marie explained what had happened.
“Ask if they’re taking her to the hospital and which one,” Marilyn demanded. “Go find out if. . .never mind, I’m on my way.”
By now there was a fire truck, an ambulance and two police cars parked in the street. The paramedics were working to stop the bleeding coming from Emma’s forehead and she was coming to.
“What’s going on? Why are you here?” Emma cried. She was terrified and she looked around to see who was there.
“Stay calm, Miss,” one of the paramedics said trying to look at her forehead. “You had a fall and bumped your head. We’re taking you to the emergency room. Try and stay calm now. You have a cut on your forehead that’s going to need stitches. Just relax—we’ll take care of everything.”
Marilyn and Teri arrived with Howard just minutes behind them.
“Emma,” Marilyn screamed looking at Becky. “What happened? Somebody needs to tell me what happened.”
Marilyn was crying and her hands were shaking. Teri put her arm around her and walked her over to where Emma lay. Just the sight of Emma on the floor like that was enough to frighten anyone. Emma reached up to touch her forehead and felt the warm liquid with her hand. She looked at the blood on her hand and began to scream. The paramedics tried to calm her. Emma became hysterical. She was screaming and putting her hands over her eyes. Howard was now kneeling over Emma moving the paramedic aside. Emma’s face was covered with blood mixed with tears. She had smeared it all over her face making it look much worse than it really was. The wound was open and still bleeding and Emma was quite a mess.
“Excuse me, Sir,” one of the paramedics said, “but we need to get this bleeding stopped. We’ll need to transport her to Clayton Regional Medical Center. She’s going to need stitches and most likely a sedative to calm her.”
Marilyn pleaded, “Our daughter has a problem with the sight of blood, but we have never seen her like this. Please help her.”
Emma was still screaming and then, suddenly, she stopped. She began shaking her head from side to side, whimpering softly over and over, “Please don’t hurt them. Please don’t hurt Mommy.” She continued to shake her head, then her eyes rolled upwards and she was very quiet. She simply stared outward and didn’t speak at all. Marilyn was crying and Teri was in disbelief. Howard said he wanted to pick Emma up off the floor and put her in a chair or just hold her, but the paramedic asked him again politely to step aside. They put Emma on a stretcher and rolled her out to the ambulance. Jason came running up to the ambulance looking to see if it was Emma inside.
“Emma? My God, what happened?” he asked looking around for someone to answer his question. All he could see was her bandaged forehead and blood in her hair. She never looked up at him and he was searching the crowd trying to find someone that could tell him what happened.
Jason had heard the call come through on the scanner and even though this wasn’t his call he knew it had to be Emma’s flower shop and rushed to get there as fast as he could.
Marilyn climbed into the ambulance. A policeman shut the door and the ambulance drove away.
Jason stood there not knowing who was who or what had just happened. Then he noticed Howard. “Sir, please, could you tell me what happened to the owner of this store? How badly was she hurt? I’m a friend of hers. My name is Jason Scott.”
“Hi, Jason, I’m Howard Jenkins, Emma’s father. She mentioned she had a date with you last night. I figured when I saw the fireman’s uniform it might be you. Everything’s okay. Emma fell and hit her head. She has a gash in her forehead and it appears she might have a concussion. We’re on our way to the hospital right now. Would you like to go with us?” Howard asked, as he was walking towards his car with Teri.
“Thanks, but I can’t. I need to get back to the station.” He reached in his pocket and pulled out a card. He handed it to Howard. “Would you please call me when you know something? Please let her know I was here and that I’ll come see her later at the hospital if they keep her. Please let me know. I feel badly, but I shouldn’t be here in the first place. I really need to get back now.”
“Sure, I’ll call you as soon as we know something.”
By the time Howard got to the hospital Emma was in x-ray, after that she had a cat scan. Marilyn was with Emma. Howard and Teri sat on hard chairs in the waiting room wondering how things were going.
After what seemed like hours, an emergency doctor wearing green scrubs came out of the back. “There appears to be no concussion, but we will need to keep an eye on her for a while. She seems to be in shock. Could someone tell me what happened?”
“We don’t really know,” Howard said. “Her employee said she heard a noise and turned to see Emma fall to the floor. That’s all we know. When can I see her?”
“You can see her right away. Her mother should be in there with her now. It’s the second door on the right,” the doctor said pointing down the hallway.
Howard and Teri went down the hall and found Emma’s room. They were shocked to see her lying in the bed staring up towards the ceiling. Howard looked at his wife and began to cry. He was not the kind of man that would normally cry like this. Especially not in public, but this was his daughter that he loved with all his heart and she was in trouble.
“I knew something terrible was going to happen. I just knew it,” he cried.
“Mom, did you call Jody?” Teri asked moving up next to the bed.
“Yes, she’ll be here just as soon as Ryan gets home to watch Louie. She should be here any minute, I would think.”
“Emma’s date from last night was there as the ambulance drove away. He’s coming by later to see her,” Howard added.
“Oh, Howard, he can’t see her like this.” Marilyn said. “Emma would never want anyone but us to see her like this. Poor, Emma. It’s starting all over again, isn’t it?” Tears rolled down her cheeks as she reached for her husband and fell into his comforting arms.
Jody came running into the room. “What happened?” Her eyes flew open. “Oh, Emma, I’m here, I’m here.” Ignoring the family,
she rushed to Emma’s side. Jody knew Emma better than anyone and she could see that Emma was in trouble. Jody sat on the edge of the bed. “Mom, Dad, can I have some private time with her? Please?”
Marilyn understood what Jody meant. She led the family out into the waiting room.
Jody closed the door and pushed Emma over in the bed enough for her to climb in beside her. She brushed the hair from Emma’s bandaged forehead. Her hair was sticky and stiff from the dried blood. She kissed her cheek and held her gently.
“Shhh, Emma, I’m here. Shhh, no one will ever hurt you while I’m around. Shhh, Emma, shhh. It’s just a dream. A very bad dream. Shhh, Mommy’s coming. Mommy’s coming to save you.”
Jody softly spoke those words over and over until Emma began to respond. She gently rocked her in her arms and quietly wept for her sister. Within a few minutes Emma was becoming alert and looking around.
“What happened? Oh, my head hurts,” she said reaching for her forehead. She found the bandages and looked at Jody who was now sitting on the edge of the bed.
“It seems you tripped and fell, hitting your head on a planter as you went down. You put a pretty good gash on the top of your forehead. Mom said they did some awesome stitches. Don’t worry, their up in your hairline so they won’t show. You were lucky,” Jody said looking relieved.
Emma was still groggy, but had the mind to say with an impish smile, “Thanks a lot for telling Mom and Dad about my date with Jason.”
“I’m sorry. I should’ve let you tell them, but I was so excited about for you I lost control. I sure hope you had a good time with your fireman.”
Emma was touched and told her so. She was feeling better and was sitting next to Jody on the edge of the bed by the time her parents and Teri came back in.
“Hey, look whose feeling better,” Howard cried. “Oh, by the way, I met your beau this morning. He said he would come by to see you later if they keep you overnight.”