by Zrinka Jelic
Olivia snatched the bill from the tray before the waitress could set it down. “Let me pay for the lunch. You earned it.”
• • •
The house phone rang by the time Olivia stepped inside the foyer. Its shrill sound filled the silence where once her children’s laughter greeted her. She picked up the receiver from its cradle on the corner stand.
“Is this Ms. Olivia Owen?” A man’s baritone came through.
“Yes,” she said eagerly, hoping the caller had news of Tom.
“It’s Dr. Mason. You left a message with my secretary.”
Olivia’s insides relaxed. His secretary had assured her Dr. Mason never answered unsolicited calls. “Thank you for calling back, Dr. Mason. Do you maybe know Susan?”
“Hold that thought. Hey, babe, it’s her.” His voice drifted from the distance. Someone’s quick steps drew closer and a female’s voice thanked him “Oh my god,” a woman shrieked into the phone. “Olivia, it’s me, Susan. How on earth did you find Gregory?”
“Susan, so good to hear from you,” Olivia gasped, her composure threatening to crumble. Perhaps not all her efforts from the future life had been in vain. “It’s a long story.”
“I’ve got all night.” Susan laughed.
Her university friend had not changed, at least not from the inside. She was still a straight shooter so why beat around the bush? Go for the meat, Olivia. “Do you have two teenage boys?”
Susan sniffed after a short pause. “You seem to know a lot about me. Greg and I, we’re doing it backwards. Seventeen years and two kids later, he finally proposed.”
“Hey, congrats then.” Jealousy pinched Olivia’s stomach. Her happy times were snatched from her, and getting them back would require more than she may have in her to give.
Catching up with her lost friend took a couple of hours, but there was much to talk about. She contemplated if, how and when to ask her burning question. From Susan’s chatting Olivia concluded her friend didn’t remember their meeting in the future.
Susan’s laughter ceased and her pause turned into a long silence. “I’ve been having weird dreams about you, but they are all weird when you think about it. I see snakes in every dream and I had to look into it. They mean a new beginning.”
Olivia frowned. Interpreting dreams got to be Susan’s new leisure pursuit. And knowing her, she got obsessed about it, just as with each new hobby she picked up in the past. But Olivia couldn’t let her tongue loose and spill out her heartache, not yet. “I hope you’re right. It’s getting late. We’ll talk again.”
“You bet.” Susan ended the call.
• • •
The first week passed by in a whirl of activities. The word got out and the recruitment process commenced.
“The reception duties take too much of my time.” Jess complained. “Do you think we can afford to hire a receptionist?”
“Perhaps.” Olivia picked up the receiver on her desk. “Owen’s Recruitment, how may I help you?”
“Finally.” The man’s exhausted voice blared in her ear. “I need to speak with Ms. Owen, please.”
“Speaking.” Olivia leaned over her desk. They couldn’t have an unsatisfied client already. Their screening process was grueling, but once they represented an employee, they were positive they made an excellent match with the employer.
“Ms. Owen, you’re a hard person to find. My name is Dr. Wade. I’m calling in regards to your sister. She needs a surgery and, given her infirmity, we need her family’s consent. It would also benefit your sister if someone is with her during this time. Is there a remote possibility you could come to Vancouver?”
Olivia turned to Jess typing away at her computer. Her assistant would be more than capable of running the business by herself for a week or two. There was no way she’d make Tadem to go through the surgery with no one by her side.
Olivia drew a long breath before speaking. “I’ll be there, Dr. Wade.”
“What was that?” Jess’s habit of slowly tapping of her pencil on the paper vaguely irritated Olivia, echoing the steady onslaught of events she couldn’t stop or even slow down. “Tadem needs me.” She stared at the phone. “I have to go to be with her.”
Jess stepped to her and placed her hand on Olivia’s shoulder. “Go to your sister. You’ll be only a phone call away.”
“Thank you.” The angel had said Tadem was severely ill. A foreboding squeezed Olivia’s chest and refused to loosen no matter how deeply she breathed. “I’ll leave on the first flight.”
Deep in thoughts she couldn’t snap out of, Olivia packed for the trip. Memories of her childhood spent with her fragile sister followed Olivia on her flight, and all the way to the hospital. When she first met Tom, he had believed she returned home from attending Tadem during her surgery. Could this be the beginning of the life she had shared with him and their children? Everything would be fine. Tadem would live to see her nephew and niece. But the self-assurance did nothing to ease her nerves.
The short doctor met her in the surgical ward. “Tadem’s quite upset today. We need to get the tumors out or she’ll face the harder procedure the longer we wait.”
“I’ll talk to her, doctor.” Olivia set her small suitcase against the green wall of Tadem’s room and approached the bed. Her sister looked every bit the same as when she’d seen her in her fantasy world. Grown and heavy. “Tadem, it’s me, Olivia. Don’t be afraid, the doctor knows what he’s doing.”
“My angel,” Tadem slurred, drool rolling down the corner of her mouth. But it was the indifference in her stare that made Olivia shudder. Her sister looked at her as if she were another stranger.
Olivia regarded the nurse with a hard stare. “Is she drugged?”
“She needs to calm down before the surgery.” The nurse tucked the blankets around Tadem’s feet.
“My angel is gone. She left me. I need her back.” Tadem grabbed her hand. “Please, good lady, can you find her? I don’t want to go anywhere without her.”
“She’s been like this since last night.” The nurse shook her head. “Yammering away about some angel.”
“It’s okay, Tadem.” Olivia smoothed her sister’s scraggly hair. How dare the nurse? Had she seen Tadem’s angel, she’d shiver in her shoes. “Your angel will come back. I’m sure.”
“Here are the forms Dr. Wade needs you to sign.” The nurse shoved the clipboard toward Olivia. She stepped behind Tadem’s bed and unlocked the brakes. “It’s time we roll her into the OR.”
Olivia held onto Tadem’s hand until they reached the blue pivoting door displaying “Staff and patients only.”
“A moment with my sister, please?”
The nurse stepped away.
“Tadem, honey, look at me.” Olivia swallowed, tears burning her eyes. She had to be brave for her sister. “It’ll be all right. You’ll be out faster than you think. Okay?”
She kissed the top of her head. Tadem presented her with a grin. She appeared calmer — could be due to the drugs or her angel had returned.
The nurse grabbed onto the railing of the bed. “We have to go now.”
Olivia couldn’t let go of her sister’s hand. The bed passed through the door, Tadem’s fingers slipped out of her hold.
“Olivia,” Tadem shouted, but the gurney rolled through and the pivoting panes flapped, shutting in front of Olivia’s face.
Olivia clamped her lips between her teeth and stifled a cry. A distinct feeling this was the last time she would see her sister alive burned deep in her mind. Where in the world was their mother to give her consent for her daughter’s surgery? They waited too long.
Hours ticked away. Olivia flipped through an old magazine in the waiting area. Her presentiment increased. At the throat clearing, she snapped her glance toward Dr. Wade standing a few feet in front of her.
Sadness in his eyes and his thinned lips told her the unimaginable had happened. Grief poured over her and a long wail escaped. She wrapped her arms around her abdomen and r
ocked back and forth.
Dr. Wade sat in the chair facing her. “She was worse off than what showed on her x-rays. Every growth we cut caused massive bleeding. Had she survived today, it would have meant more surgeries, treatments, chemotherapies. Not the kind of life anyone would like to live.”
Olivia pressed her hand to her mouth, tears dripping over her fingers. She understood what the doctor was trying to convey, yet she found little solace in his words. Another night of hard crying alone in the hotel room was all that remained for her.
Through her tears, she studied her face looking back at her from the dark glass of cab’s window. Time seemed merciless and deepened the lines around her lips and eyes, despite her best efforts to buy youth in a jar.
Once alone, she sat on the bed in the chain hotel, reminiscing of her visit to this city at Christmas. How happy they’d all been. Now her son would never have a loving aunt with whom he shared his little secrets. She’d just have to tell him everything about Tadem one day and not let her pure spirit die.
“Angel? Are you here? If you can hear me, you staked your soul, so return Tom to me.” Olivia waited for any sign from the entity.
After a few moments a soft melody sounded from the distance and lulled her into a trance. “Tadem’s soul arrived in Heaven. She’s happy now and whole. Tom’s life is slipping away — only your love, if strong enough, will save him.”
Olivia clutched the pillow to her chest. “My love is strong. Please, oh, please don’t let his life fade.”
“Sleep now.” An invisible hand brushed her face and closed her eyes. The music grew fainter and so did Olivia’s will to stay awake.
She woke to a hot summer day, yet she barely paid much attention to the heat. She was dressed in her black suit she’d never thought to wear for her sister’s hastily arranged burial. A few flower arrangements decorated Tadem’s plain grave. Olivia placed a single red rose on the casket and stepped back, nodding to the priest. She laced her fingers to stop them from clutching to the fabric of her skirt. Mother’s assistant had sent the wreath of white chrysanthemum and a store bought card. No personal touch, no sorrow, only a few words of Mother’s important business in Paris and an insincere regret for not being able to attend personally.
After the funeral, Olivia headed to Tadem’s room in the residence where she’d spent most of her short life. Her few meager possessions packed in cardboard boxes waited by the door, ready to be dropped off at the Goodwill. The place was now ready for the next resident, just the way the world moved.
Olivia reached for a colorful notebook on top and flipped through the pages. The words Tom and Olivia inside hearts stood out. She lowered herself to the lumpy mattress and read Tadem’s big, round letters. In a few simple words, Tadem had detailed Olivia’s life with Tom and the children. Olivia devoured the story and burst into tears at the happy ending. Tadem must’ve written the events the way her angel told her. And knowing her sister, she would have pestered her angel to tell the story over and over.
CHAPTER 21
Seated in the Vancouver hotel’s lobby, Olivia read Tadem’s story again while waiting on the airport taxi. The pain of loss sliced through her chest as she made peace with the fact her sister was in a better place. Poor Tadem, her death could have been avoided. In her misery, Olivia had forgotten her sister — how could she be so selfish?
The woman sweeping the lobby came into Olivia’s focus over the top of the pages and she lowered Tadem’s notes to her lap. The cleaning lady stopped the mop and stared back at her. Prickles ran down Olivia’s back when she recognized the maid’s face. It was the Intelcorp employee she’d discharged from duties on her last firing tirade. Olivia stood and slowly approached her.
“I’m sorry, didn’t mean to stare.” The cleaning woman’s stringy hair hanging from the flowery scarf shook when she snapped her head and returned to mopping the spilled drink.
“Nela, right?” Olivia extended her hand, but the woman shoved the cleaning utensil in her cart and hustled to polish the wood trim.
Olivia followed her. “I can’t blame you if you don’t want to talk me, but please hear me out. I don’t work for the same company anymore.”
Nela halted and spun on her heel, facing her. In the light of the sun beaming through the high window, her facial lines stood out. “What do you want?” she snapped with her usual hard accent. “Last time I saw you, you caused me nothing but grief.”
Olivia took a step back. She couldn’t right all the wrongs she’d caused, but if she could help one unfortunate soul, the guilt on her conscience would lessen. “I want to offer you a job.”
Nela opened her mouth as if to bark at her again. She wobbled her head, her expression changed from sour to curious. “It’s my last day here and I have no other job offers. I’m interested.”
Nela’s bitter tone and accusative eyes disappeared, and Olivia continued, “I need a receptionist. Would you consider relocating to Toronto? I could help a little with your moving expenses.”
Nela shrugged, wriggled her nose and finally smiled. “Tempting. I’ll consider.”
Olivia handed her the business card. “Contact me when you make your decision, but don’t wait too long.”
Nela took the card in her dry and chapped hand. “Who am I kidding? I accept. There are a few things I need to do before I make the move.”
“Take your time. My airport ride is here, I have to go.” Olivia returned to her suitcase and waved to Nela from the door. Nela waved back.
Olivia spent most of her flight staring out the window. Easiness settled over her. Maybe being so high up put her closer to Tadem. The fluffy clouds reminded her of stories she told to her in those few rare moments they’d spent together. Her poor sister had lived a humble and short life. She deserved to be happy in Heaven.
Jess waited for her at the Toronto airport. “I’m so sorry, Olivia. Why you wouldn’t let me come to Tadem’s funeral? I’m sure it wasn’t easy for you to do it all with no help.”
“Your help was tremendous, Jess. You did what you could from here.” Olivia scrolled through her emails and smiled at Nela’s message. She opened the memo and then said, “Our receptionist will start on Monday.”
• • •
With every good deed, Olivia pictured Tom’s proud face. She could almost touch him. She would not let the angel take him away. Not until she took her last breath. Why then did she stare at the computer screen unable to focus on her task at hand? Her thumb slid back and forth over Tom’s smooth tie clip. Jess had caught her crying in the bathroom several times. Olivia had brushed her away, blaming a stubbed toe or headache. But for how long could she carry on this farce?
The door to her office opened and Susan stepped in, in her hands a cardboard tray filled with large coffee cups.
Nela locked the door and flipped the door sign to Closed. Her eagerness to please was overwhelming at times, but she settled into her routine fast.
The three women surrounded her desk. Olivia eyed them with suspicion. “What are you doing?”
“Olivia,” Susan set the tray down. “Enough with this denial. We don’t buy your ‘I’m fine’ excuse anymore.”
“What are you talking about?” she scoffed, but her friends only regarded her with harder stares. No way could she slip out of their clutches now. They had planned this.
“We’re worried. You talk to yourself.” Jess took the seat across from her desk. “Cry when you think no one’s watching, stare into the blank space.”
“I do?” Olivia arched her eyebrow. Mocking the three ladies wouldn’t work.
“It’s for your own good, so speak up.” Susan plopped on the chair next to Jess and pulled coffee cups out. “Think of this as a brainstorming session.”
Olivia drew in a deep breath. Brainstorming, right. Perhaps she could tell them a thing or two, but not the whole story. Okay, how to start? She stared at the plain ceiling then lowered her gaze at the three pairs of wide eyes. “Could you see me as a wife and a mother?�
��
“Anything’s possible.” Susan tapped Olivia’s hand, but Jess and Nela frowned and shrugged.
Olivia studied her friends’ narrowing gazes. “What I’m about to tell you will sound crazy.”
All three leaned over her desk as she pushed her story out of her mouth. She had planned not to disclose it all, but as she kept talking, the details just poured out. Except the part about the gun. Her friends didn’t need to know how close she’d come to breaking the law.
Susan clamped her hanging mouth shut. “Are you sure you didn’t dream this?”
“I’m positive. Don’t you remember holding Rosie?” Olivia swung her glace at Jess. “You too bounced her on your knees.”
Jess plucked the stir stick out of her mouth. “You must’ve dreamt that part. Last time I held the baby, I ended wearing my nephew’s lunch.” Her lips stretched in a mocking smile. “My sister forgot to tell me babies have to be burped first. Do you have any idea how much baby barf reeks?”
“I do.” Olivia masked the pain slicing her chest with a short chortle. “And I’d give anything to smell it again.”
Jess twirled the chewed up stir stick between her fingers. “I don’t think things through, that’s what you often say, so this may be nothing or it could be something.”
“Spill it out,” Susan demanded. “Because I draw a blank.”
Jess angled her chair, facing the two women. “Well, this angel took Olivia to the future, right?”
“Right.” Nela and Susan answered in unison.
“So now Olivia has to find Tom here to live her future.”
“We already know that.” Susan took a sip of her coffee and scowled. By now their untouched beverages had turned cold.
Jess raised her index finger. “We have to make sure Tom is real.”
“He is. I’m sure.” Olivia nodded. How else would she have his tie pin she’d given him in the future? Susan was right, this brainstorming proved helpful. “I don’t know where else to look.”
Jess’s eyes lit up. “You said you remember this guy from the campus. What year did he graduate?”