by Shelia Goss
David faced her and said, “She’s never left my heart, and so she’ll be where I am.”
Rose beat one of her pillows and yelled, “You make me so sick. Why don’t you go back with your precious Violet? You should have never married me if you loved her that much! I hope she never forgives you!”
David stood and headed for the door. “At least she has a heart,” he mumbled.
Rose took her pillows and threw them hitting the back of his head. David turned around. “What’s your problem?”
Rose doubled over in pain. She yelled out, “Help me. David, help me!”
David assumed she was acting to get his sympathy, but the look on her face erased the doubt, she was not acting this time. After the pain intensified and wouldn’t cease, Rose insisted that David call the ambulance. He located the phone as fast as he could. “We need an ambulance at 9000 Riverfront Drive. My wife is doubled over in pain and I don’t know what’s wrong with her.”
It took the ambulance twenty minutes to get to the house. David gave her hand a reassuring tug as they placed her on the stretcher. “Rose, I’ll be right behind you in my car.”
***
Lord what is wrong with me? I know I’ve done wrong. I promise I’ll do better. Lord take this pain away. It hurts so bad. Somebody help me. Somebody hit me upside the head and put me out of my misery.
***
When they arrived at Doctor’s General Hospital, due to her celebrity status, she was rushed into a private room and didn’t have to wait in the busy emergency room. David went into the room and tried to find out her status. “I’m here for you Rose.”
The doctor entered the room. “Sir, I’m Doctor Phillips. I know this is your wife, but we have to ask you to leave now. She’s being sedated, but there’s been a lot of bleeding. We need to do some further testing.”
David followed the doctor’s orders.
While examining Rose, Dr. Phillips spotted blood. He called for assistance. “Let’s get her to ER now.”
David saw them rush Rose to surgery. Rose looked back and for a brief moment, she thought she saw a look of concern on his face. She relaxed while the medication in the IV took effect.
***
Rose was groggy when they wheeled her in from the recovery room. She remembered hearing the doctors and nurses talk. Dr. Phillips walked in with David. He took a seat by the head of the bed. Dr. Phillips had a serious look on his face. “I’m glad I have both of you here. Rose, you are one lucky woman. If your husband wouldn’t have gotten you here as soon as he did, you could have bled to death.”
Rose still felt a little shaky. “What’s wrong? Why was I bleeding?”
Dr. Phillips had a solemn look on his face. “I hate to be the one to inform you, but we did everything we could.”
“I’m still not understanding.”
“The baby. We weren’t able to save the baby,” stated Dr. Phillips.
David sat there and stared at him as if he was talking a foreign language.
Rose mouth hung wide open as she spoke, “Baby. I wasn’t pregnant. That’s impossible.”
The doctor rubbed her shoulder. “You were and we’re sorry we couldn’t save the baby. It will take your body a little while to recover. I would suggest that you refrain from having sex for at least six weeks. Follow up with your normal gynecologist afterwards and he or she should be able to give you the okay from there.” He looked at both of the shocked faces before continuing, “We want to keep you here overnight for observation. Otherwise, you should be able to go home tomorrow. I’ll leave you two alone. Looks like you have a lot to talk about.”
When the door closed, David stood up. He remained silent and that scared Rose.
Rose said, “David. The doctor doesn’t know what he’s talking about. It’s impossible.”
“To think for a moment I was feeling sorry for you being in all of that pain.”
Rose started to whine. “David the doctor is lying.”
“Rose for once in your life, tell the truth. I’m tired of pretending anyway. I’m moving on. You will be hearing from my attorney.”
Rose felt like her world was coming to an end. “We can work this out. Let me explain. You weren’t touching me and a woman has her needs. He didn’t mean anything to me. He was an occasional screw. We used protection, so I don’t know how this happened.”
David shook his head from side to side and said, “You’re pathetic. You always have an excuse. This incident was a wake up call. I can’t take this anymore. My stuff will be gone by the time you get home from the hospital.”
Rose tried to get up out of the bed, but the IV in her arm, reminded her that she shouldn’t. “David. Please don’t leave. What about the media? You’re going to make me look like a fool. Can’t we talk about this when I get out?”
David walked to the door and said, “I’m all talked out.”
“How am I supposed to get home? I have nobody.”
“I’ll call your sister.”
Rose stiffened up and said, “Don’t call her. I’ll find somebody. I can ask Carmen.”
“Whatever. It’s your choice. I can’t say it was nice knowing you, but I will say this. I hope you get everything you deserve.”
David walked out the door. Rose closed her eyes, leaned back in the bed and allowed the medicine to put her to sleep. When she woke up, she was disoriented. It dawned on her that she was alone in a hospital room.
***
Why do these things keep happening to me? Who can I call? I don’t trust too many people. The last thing I need is for this to get out to the media. Hmm. I guess I should call the baby’s daddy, but the nurses will be curious to why he’s picking me up instead of my husband. I have no choice. I have to call Carmen.
***
Carmen answered, “Hello.”
“Carmen, it’s me.”
“Hi. I was going to call you on Monday. Your interview with Channel magazine will be on the stands tomorrow.”
Rose sat on the phone in silence. She had forgotten about her interview. Now when news got out about the end of her marriage, she was going to be the laughing stock of Hollywood.
“Rose, are you still there?”
“Yes. I have a lot on my mind. I need a huge favor.”
“You name it.”
“I need you to come pick me up from Doctor’s General Hospital tomorrow.”
Carmen with concern in her voice asked, “What’s wrong? What happened?”
Rose, embarrassed by her situation, said, “David can’t pick me up. The doctor said I need to stay overnight for observation. He plans to release me in the morning so I need a ride home.”
“You still didn’t answer my question. Why are you in the hospital?” Carmen asked.
“I had a miscarriage.”
“You what? Why didn’t you tell me you were pregnant? It explains why you’ve put on those extra pounds. Why didn’t you tell me? I should have been the first to know, well after David of course.”
Rose tried not to sound frustrated when she said, “Carmen calm down. I just found out myself. I had no idea I was pregnant. Just promise me you’ll be here.”
“I’ll be there bright and early. Get some rest and I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Thanks. Bye.”
The medication took its toll again on her and Rose fell into a deep sleep. The next morning, Carmen arrived just as Dr. Phillips signed the release papers. Carmen rushed to Roses side and hugged her. Rose felt relieved to have Carmen there.
“How you holding up kid?” Carmen asked.
“I’m okay. Just ready to go,” Rose responded.
As Carmen gathered Rose’s things, she turned and said, “I need to prepare you. Apparently someone has leaked it to the press that you’re here, so we’ll have to go out the back way.”
“Can’t I get some privacy?”
Carmen looked at her before stating the obvious. “Now you know better. I’ll try to protect you as much as I can, but they wi
ll want a statement.” Carmen saw the empty look in Rose’s eyes. “Well let’s not worry about it now. First things first; we need to get you home.”
They managed to get past the reporters. Carmen made sure Rose was settled in before leaving to go home.
“Thank you Carmen for everything. I don’t know how I would have gotten through this without you.”
“I’m more than your agent, you know.”
“I know. You’re the only friend I have.”
Carmen gave Rose a sisterly hug. “Do you feel like talking about it now?”
Rose recanted to her the events of the past twenty-four hours, plus told her about her relationship with Lance. Carmen’s face was expressionless, so Rose couldn’t figure out what was going through her mind. She didn’t know if she had lost respect from the only friend she had. She cleared her throat for emphasis. “That sums it all up.”
“Rose I must admit. I didn’t expect all of this. So that’s why David couldn’t pick you up this morning. I now see why you didn’t want Lance to come,” Carmen commented.
“What should I do?” asked Rose.
“Have you told Lance about the loss?”
“No. You and David are the only ones who know.”
“Good. I will take care of the media. Just make sure you keep quiet. Don’t discuss this with anybody. I will also refer you to a good divorce attorney.”
“Divorce attorney? I don’t need one.”
“Yes you do. David will have his lawyer eat you alive.”
“I don’t want to contest it. I was tired of being ignored and treated like a second class citizen anyway. Good thing I never legally changed my name.”
“Trust me. You still need an attorney. The attorney can make sure David never discloses the reason why you guys are divorcing.”
“I see what you’re saying now. What would I do without you?”
Carmen gave her a reassuring smile and said, “Let’s hope we’ll never have to find out. Now you get some rest and I have sent for my cook to come over so you’ll have meals for the next few days. Stay in bed. Don’t answer the phone. You gave me your spare key, so if you need to talk, I’ll just come by. Understood?”
“Yes.”
Carmen left the room.
***
I feel so empty. I should care if I’m married or not, but I don’t. It’s as if David leaving me is lifting a huge boulder off my shoulders.
***
She lifted up her glass of orange juice and made a declaration. “Here’s to new beginnings.”
19
VIOLET
Violet looked around the ballroom. She admired the past six-month’s hard work and hoped the ticket sales for the night’s event indicated how successful the Charity Ball would be. She would not have been able to accomplish the event without the help of Janice and several other volunteers. The time was ticking for the event to start. While she made sure everything was in place, she spotted her date, Marcus.
“Hi. Sexy.”
Violet turned around. “Marcus. Hi Baby.”
He embraced her in his arms and planted a small kiss on her lips. “Now that’s how I like to be greeted.”
“I didn’t think you were going to be able to make it.”
“I couldn’t let your big night go by without me sharing it with you.”
She gave him a tight hug before releasing her embrace. She was about to take his hand and guide him to the other side of the room, when she noticed something in one of his hands. “What do you have there?”
Marcus took the box and placed it in her hand. “Why don’t you open it and see?”
When Violet took the top off the box, she was surprised to see a set of sparkling diamond earrings and matching necklace. “These are beautiful. Thank you,” she said, before reaching up to give Marcus a hug.
“You’re quite welcome.”
“I want to wear them now. Help me switch these out.”
“My pleasure.”
Over the past few months, Violet and Marcus had spent as much time together as his schedule allowed. He was on the road with the team, but made sure he kept in constant contact with her. Marcus was fun to be around and he was also understanding of her idea to not rush things. As he placed the necklace around her neck, the feel of his hand sent a chill down her spine. If she could survive the night, she knew that tonight was the night their relationship would go to a new level.
She turned around and placed one of her hands over the necklace. “These are beautiful. Thank you again. You’re going to make me cry all of my make-up off.”
“Now we can’t have that,” Marcus responded.
Violet pointed towards an empty table and said, “Our table is over there. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“Violet, this is your night. I understand darling. I know how to keep myself busy in the meantime.”
“Thank you,” she said before giving him a quick peck on the lips.
Violet excused herself and continued to oversee the event. Violet was making sure the food was being prepared to their specifications when Janice showed up in the kitchen. Janice stated, “I was told I would find you back here.”
“Janice you look absolutely wonderful. Lavender suits you well.”
Janice pretended to be shy. “Thank you. You are wearing the silver well yourself. I swear since we went on a shopping spree, you have transformed into a new woman. Or is it because of that tall fine hunk of a man out there?”
Violet giggled. “Might be a combination.”
“Whatever it is. I like it.”
“I’ve gone over everything and things are looking well. Now all we have to do is wait for the people to show up and the party to begin.”
They walked back out toward the ballroom. “Violet, I have something to tell you,” Janice confessed.
Before Janice could tell her anything, a man dressed in a black tuxedo informed Violet he was unable to locate the auction list.
“Janice, I’ll get back with you in a minute. Let me take care of this.” Janice stood there and watched as Violet left for the other room.
After the small mix-up was resolved, Violet walked through the lobby and was happy to see people walking toward the ballroom. As she walked in the same direction as the ballroom, she dropped the program she had in her right hand. She leaned down to pick it up and when she stood back up, she was looking David straight in the face. “Violet. You look beautiful.”
“David.”
David tried to take her hand, and because she didn’t want to make a scene in front of anyone, she gently withdrew it out of his grip. “I’m sorry. I was just trying to help.”
“I’ll manage.” She tried not to snap back at him, but failed. “Now if you’ll move, I have people I need to greet.”
At that moment, a petite woman with short cropped hair came and wrapped her arms through David’s. “There you are. I was wondering where you had slipped to so quickly.”
David looked as if he wanted to be anywhere else but in between the two women. “I want you to meet somebody. She’s the reason why we’re here tonight. Dena, this is Violet.”
Violet showed some grace and reached out to shake her hand. “Hi. Thanks for coming. Now if you guys will excuse me, I have to find someone.”
As she was walking away, she heard Dena say, “I thought you told me she was the nice one. She acted like she had an attitude toward me.”
After Violet heard her comment she decided to put extra twists in her walk.
***
Oh. I have an attitude. I swear. What she doesn’t know is I don’t want him. She can have him and his issues. Speaking of men. I better find my friend, before he thinks I’ve abandoned him.
***
As the night got under way, items were auctioned off. From the way things looked, the community center was going to be in the red for at least another year. Before the dancing was to begin, it was Violet’s duty to announce the opening of the dance floor. “Hello everybody. Once a
gain, I would like to thank you all for coming and we at Community Affairs appreciate everything you all have done. Thanks to those who gave their money and to those who have signed up to donate their time. This was the most successful charity ball yet, so give yourselves a hand and let the party begin.”
As she walked from the podium, she felt someone’s eyes on her. She ignored the feeling and took the hand Marcus extended towards her. He leaned down and whispered in her ear, “May I have the first dance?”
They danced to the next couple of songs and were leaving the dance floor, when the DJ played the newest version of the electric slide. “I don’t know where you’re going mister, but let me show you how it’s really done,” Violet said grabbing Marcus’ hand.
When the song ended, Violet excused herself to the ladies room. She was feeling bubbly from the champagne and from having fun with Marcus. She was applying some more lipstick, when she became startled to see not one, but two exact faces staring at her in the reflection of the mirror. She turned around and instead of her normal reaction of tensing up she gave Rose a hug.
Rose was stunned and didn’t react immediately to the hug. She found herself hugging Violet back. “You look so gorgeous,” Rose commented.
“Rose, I didn’t expect you here.”
“I came with Lance and I didn’t expect such a warm greeting.”
“Lance. Lance King, the music mogul?”
“One in the same. His sister works with you.”
“Yes, his sister and I are good friends.”
They continued to talk as if they were friends catching up. Violet looked at her watch again as other women started to pile in the bathroom. “I guess I better get out of here, before they send a search party out looking for me. I’m glad you came.”
“See you later,” Rose responded.
Violet didn’t respond to Rose’s last comment. She continued to walk out of the door. She surprised herself with her open affections toward Rose. “Maybe there’s hope for us after all,” she commented to herself.