Past Secrets, Present Love

by Lois Richer

  “I’m not leaving,” she told him firmly. “Not until we know something more.”

  “I’m glad.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and hugged her. “It could be a while though, Kelly. The doctors said that with this kind of injury, a person can stay in the coma for a long time or wake up the next minute.”

  “Then I’ll pray for the next minute. And the one after that.” She buried her nose in his coat, felt his lips brush her forehead. “I—I can’t lose her, Ross. Not now. Not before—”

  “I know.” He held her for several long moments until finally she drew away.

  “Go,” she insisted. “I’ll be fine.”

  But he stood there, looking down at her, his eyes dark and searching. “Don’t beat yourself up,” he whispered. “There was nothing you could have done to prevent this.”

  “I know. But it still hurts.” She stood on tiptoe, kissed him, then backed away. “You’d better get going.”

  “Go where?” he asked in pretended confusion, a smile tipping up the corners of his mouth as he brushed a finger across her nose. “Oh, yeah. I remember. I’ll see you later.”

  “Yes.” Kelly watched him leave with a lump in her throat. Then she gathered herself together, angled her chair so that she could sit beside Sandra and lean against the bed. She tucked Sandra’s hand into her own. “You’re a fighter, Sandra. You didn’t let him beat you down, don’t let this get you, either. Come on, wake up.”

  The sounds of the busy hospital faded into oblivion as Kelly stared into Sandra’s pale face. In the space of a few short hours everything in her life had shifted, changed again. Nothing was as it should be. Why? Why was it all happening?

  Kelly recalled her own words to Ross about the things he’d gone through. It had seemed so easy to tell him that God was working things out. The words had tripped off her tongue as if she knew exactly what she was talking about in his case, yet she’d fought every step of the way to accept Sandra as her mother.

  Such a silly thing to cling to! Who said a woman could only ever have one mother? Women got married all the time, adopted their husband’s mother as their own. It didn’t diminish their own mothers, make them any less loved. So what was it that she’d feared so much about letting this woman into her life?

  Alone in the hospital room, the truth would not be silenced. Kelly had never admitted to anyone the feeling of alienation she’d carried hidden inside for so long. Her parents had loved her dearly and she’d loved them back, but she’d always believed that she was somehow different. Then along came Sandra with an explanation that should have explained everything. And yet from the first moment since she’d found out Sandra was her biological mother, Kelly had fought against the truth.

  Why?

  Because you don’t trust. Because you’ve never really believed that God would care for you no matter what.

  The truth startled her, but with it came a rush of relief. Yes, that was it. She’d pushed Sandra away for several reasons, but one of the biggest was because she allowed a thread of doubt to corrode her faith. She’d let herself believe that God would take this mother as He’d taken Carol and Marcus Young away from her. But what if, instead of being a threat to her carefully controlled life, Sandra had been a gift from God, a path to security she’d never even imagined?

  Kelly closed her eyes, let her brain create a collage of hours spent together discussing Sandra’s parents, her history, her hopes and dreams—the stories every family passed down. She didn’t even know if Sandra had a sister or brother. Perhaps there were relatives of which she’d never heard. She’d deliberately closed that door because she was afraid.

  Sandra had been ready and willing to open her heart and her life to the child she’d lost so many years ago. Wasn’t it time she, Kelly, stopped clinging so tightly to what she thought she had, and let go so she could experience what might be?

  “I messed up, God,” she whispered. “I have no right to be talking to Ross or anyone else about faith when my trust in You is so meager. Forgive me, Lord. All this time I’ve been so afraid I would lose everything. Now I understand that You are the Giver of life. You have a better plan for my life than I could even dream of. Teach me to trust.”

  She stared into Sandra’s face and felt a soft sweetness unfurl inside her heart. This was her mother—a second mother who had promised to be there whenever Kelly needed her.

  “Please God, let me have a second chance. Let us have a future together.”

  A noise at the door startled her. She glanced up, saw the fury on Ross’s face.

  “How can you pray, Kelly? How can you trust in a God that would allow this?”

  “Because He’s also the God that brought us together. What else can I trust in, if not in Him? King David said something like this—who else knows me, the very inside heart of me? God saw me before I was born, while my bones were knitting together, He knew what I would be like, what I’d need.” She smiled up at him. “I made a big mistake in pushing Sandra away, Ross. I’m not going to do that again. Whatever happens, God will take care of me just like He did when my parents died, when Simon and I broke up. Just as He took care of me when someone tried to poison me. He cares, Ross. He really cares. For me and for you.”

  She sensed he needed time to think it over, so she didn’t say anything more, simply sat by Sandra’s side and waited for God to work. After a while she felt his hand curl into hers and she gave a sigh of thanks. God was at work and she could depend on Him.

  “Mr. Van Zandt?” A nurse stood in the doorway. “The police are on the phone. They’d like to speak to you.”

  Ross rose, squeezed her hand, then left the room. The door whooshed closed behind him. Kelly eased her body to a different position in her chair, marveled at the time. She’d been here most of the day. From the hallway, the hustle and bustle of a shift change could be heard. The door opened. Ross must be back.

  “What did Zach want?” she asked, leaning over to adjust Sandra’s blankets.

  “He wants you gone. Just like I do.”

  There was a burst of excruciating pain, a shower of crystal stars, then Kelly felt nothing.

  Chapter Twelve

  Ross paced up and down the hallway but his attention was focused on the room in which a cluster of people worked on Kelly. When the doctor emerged, he moved to block his path.

  “Is she all right?”

  “Stable condition, conscious, a bit wobbly but I think she’ll be fine.” The doctor massaged one shoulder. “They hit her fairly hard. She’s lucky. The damage to her head and neck could have been much more serious.”

  “She’d tell you luck had nothing to do with it,” Ross muttered.

  “Probably right. I contacted Dr. Cavanaugh about the arsenic levels. We’re treating that as well. I can tell you that she’ll probably be in here a couple of days, until I’m satisfied that her system is back up to par.”

  “Thank you.” Ross moved out of his way as a page over the speaker announced the doctor was needed, stat. As the man in the white coat scurried away, Ross resumed his course back and forth down the hall until a nurse motioned him to come inside.

  “We’re going to keep her in the same room as Sandra. We can watch both of them.” She smiled at him. “She’ll be all right, but you can stay for a while if you want.”

  Ross did want. Kelly was right. Bad things didn’t happen only in New York City. Two women had been attacked right here in Chestnut Grove, Virginia. He’d done everything he could think of to keep both of them safe and he’d failed. A question rose in the back of his mind. Had Kelly’s attacker been after her or Sandra?

  Ross waited patiently while the staff prepared the room the way they wanted, only venturing to grasp Kelly’s hand when the last of them had left and they were alone.

  “How are you feeling?” he asked quietly, staring into her big brown eyes.

  “Like someone hit me over the head.” She touched the bandage, then her hand dropped back down to her side. “It hurts. Is Sa
ndra all right?”

  “She’s fine. The same.” He couldn’t let go of her fingers until he knew for certain that she was all right. “Did you see who it was?”

  She began to shake her head, stopped, winced, and said “No. I thought it was you coming back from your meeting with Zach. I never even turned to look. I asked you what Zach wanted. A voice said, ‘He wants you gone. Just like I do.’ Then everything went black.”

  So they had been after her. Part of him wanted to be glad Sandra was safe, part of him raged that someone would dare to accost Kelly in a public hospital.

  “I’m fine, Ross. Just a headache.”

  “That’s good to hear.” Zach stood in the doorway, his face drawn tight so that the fan of lines around his eyes was emphasized. “You couldn’t place the voice, maybe remember something else that would identify this person?”

  “I was just telling Ross that I didn’t see anything.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Well there was one thing.” She rubbed her temple, eyes closed as she tried to catch the elusive thought. “It was the same voice as on the telephone, I think,” she managed at last. “I’m pretty sure it was the very same person.”

  Zach nodded. “Okay, we’ll work with that. From now on you’ve got a full-time guard. Glynis is officially taking over now.”

  The officer walked into the room, her uniform as clean and spotless as if she’d just pressed it.

  “This is getting to be a habit, Glynis,” Kelly grumbled. “I feel like a kid.”

  “I hope you don’t expect me to read to you.”

  Everyone stared at Glynis, but Ross saw the twitch at the corner of her lips.

  “No, thanks. I’m assuming you brought that cross-stitch piece with you?”

  “Right here.” Glynis lifted out a hoop with some kind of stitching on it. “If you don’t mind, I’ll work on it for a bit.”

  “Good. I’m going to sleep. Maybe that will help this headache.” She squeezed Ross’s fingers. “You don’t have to babysit me. Go and get something to eat, get some rest. You don’t look well and there’s no more room in here for another patient.”

  Her spunk caused a rush of tenderness to flood his insides. That gritty determination filled her face. She was plucky and sweet, but she probably did need to rest. He bent down, brushed his lips over hers.

  “Get some sleep, slugger. I’ll be back later,” he whispered, staring into her eyes.

  She nodded, but her hand did not release and he stayed where he was just in case she had something to add. Sure enough, a few moments later he saw the shine wash over her eyes and knew she was trying not to cry.

  “Somebody is really upset at me, Ross. I just can’t think why.”

  “Don’t worry about it, Kelly. We’ll figure it out later. Just get some sleep.” He waited till she nodded, patted her hand, let it go, then walked out of the room before he burst into tears himself.

  Zach followed. Ross let him trail behind until they were at the elevators and well out of range of Kelly’s room.

  “This is not going to happen again,” he seethed, turning on the detective.

  “I’d like to promise it won’t, Ross. I’m not any happier about it than you are, but just how do you propose we stop whoever this is?”

  “I’m going over to Kelly’s. There has to be some evidence, somewhere. I intend to find it.”

  “I’ll go with you.”

  Ross turned, ready to rant and rave at the detective until he saw the other man’s face and knew that he, too, was affected. “Good. The two of us should be able to see something.”

  He caught a ride with Zach, who wheeled out of the parking lot like a man on a mission.

  “I had Glynis stay this morning until the locksmith came. I have a key to Kelly’s house.”

  Ross glanced at the cop, surprised. Zach grinned. “Even us small town hicks have our moments. I’m thankful we had that bit of snowfall during the night. If anyone was snooping around outside after we left last night, we should be able to see.”

  “As long as the light holds up.” Ross didn’t feel much hope.

  “You don’t know Kelly’s place very well,” Zach told him. “The couple she bought it from had a thing about burglary. They put in floodlights all the way around. We should be able to get a pretty good look.”

  And they did. Enough to find footprints to a small basement window almost hidden by a pile of snow.

  “They got in here. Somebody tried to hide the evidence, but I’m pretty sure we’ll find enough inside to prove it. Careful where you step,” Zach warned. “There are more tracks here. Small male, I’m guessing. Maybe a teen, or a woman.” He pulled out a flashlight, followed the prints toward the back of the yard. “The padlock is broken.”

  “Kelly saw someone,” Ross remembered aloud, cursing himself for not believing her when she’d told him. “It was a while ago, but she said she saw a figure come out from the side yard and go down the street.”

  Zach said nothing, merely scanned the area some more using his flashlight to highlight the dark spaces. “Nothing else here, that I can see. Let’s check it out inside.”

  He unlocked the front door. They slid off their shoes, moved through to the den, the kitchen—which was now clean and spotless—through to the dining room and the living room.

  “Clear,” Zach said with a sigh.

  “Who was in here?” Ross asked. “Everything’s been tidied.”

  “Rachel, Pilar, Meg—the whole bunch of them told me they were not letting Kelly deal with the mess on her own when she came home from the hospital.” Zach made a face. “You’d think I was trying to preserve everything the way they talked. Anyway, once my men were finished, they swooped in this afternoon and scrubbed the place down.”

  The telephone rang as soon as he finished speaking. Ross frowned. If the women knew Kelly was in the hospital, they’d know she wasn’t going to answer.

  “Could be our mystery caller,” Zach said. He picked up the phone and held it so Ross could listen.

  “You see what can happen? Next time someone dies.”

  “Who is this?” Zach demanded. The caller hung up immediately. Zach punched *69 but the number could not be given. He hit his radio. “I want to know the number and location of the last call to this number immediately.” He recited Kelly’s telephone number. “Call me back.”

  They waited for several minutes before the answer came. A pay phone four blocks away. He ordered a patrol car in the vicinity to check it out but they saw no one.

  “So whoever that was on the phone couldn’t have seen we were the ones who were here,” Zach told him, brow furrowed. “You can’t see this block from there.”

  “Maybe they drove past the house first, saw the lights, decided to call.”

  “Maybe.” Zach motioned to the basement door, flicked on the lights. “Let’s check that window. I’m getting really tired of this game. This isn’t some random nutcase, Ross, and you know it. This person is clearly intent on keeping his word.”

  “Did you notice something about the voice?” Ross couldn’t quite place the niggling in his mind.

  “No. What are you thinking?”

  “That whispery tone—I thought—” He shook his head. “I don’t know.”

  “There’s the window. It’s unlatched.” After checking the floor for evidence and finding nothing, Zach secured the window. “She’s got a toolbox over there. See if you can find a hammer and a couple of nails. I’m going to make things a little more difficult for this phantom visitor.”

  Ross handed over the items, watched Zach nail the window shut.

  “It’s not a very big space,” he mused. “Our perp can’t be too big around or he wouldn’t fit through it.”

  They worked together to drag an old tallboy to stand in front of the window and thereby prevent anyone from opening it.

  “Even if someone smashes the glass, they can’t get in,” Ross said with grim satisfaction.

  “We’ll le
ave the outside lights on tonight, just so my men can clearly see if anyone is hanging around.” Zach led the way up the stairs and to the front door. “I’m going home to get some sleep. You should do the same.”

  “I will, but—” he paused, studied Zach. “Would you mind checking with your officer at the hospital first? I want to make sure Kelly is okay.”

  Zach gave him a funny look, but made the call. “She’s asleep. Everything’s fine,” he reported.

  “Thanks.”

  “You really care about her, don’t you?”

  “Yes.” He couldn’t stop the words even if he’d wanted to. “I care about Kelly Young a lot,” he admitted. “But I’m not the kind of guy someone like her needs.”

  “You mean you’re not a Christian,” Zach interpreted.

  “There’s that.” Ross nodded. “I just can’t wrap my head around her religion.”

  “It’s not a religion, Ross. It’s faith. Believing in Someone bigger, smarter, more capable than yourself. And it’s not really that hard. You make the decision to trust, you ask for His forgiveness and you are His child. Then you learn how to do what He wants.”

  “It’s funny, you know.” Ross pressed his clenched fists against his thighs to control his emotions. “Last time I went to see my mother she rambled on and on about God, how He loved her, how she was going to Heaven.”

  “Uh-huh.” Zach leaned against the foyer wall, waited.

  “This is my mother I’m talking about. Drunkard, abandoner, out of her mind most of the time now thanks to Alzheimer’s. She doesn’t even remember me.” He shook his head, anger threading through him. “Doesn’t remember me, but she knows all about Heaven. My mother thinks that just by believing in God she can wipe out the past, get a clean slate.”

  “That’s what the Bible says, Ross. ‘Though your sins be many they shall be white as snow.’”

  “It’s too easy.”

  Zach’s rueful smile softened his harsh features. “You want her to suffer some more, is that it?”

  “We did.” Ross bit his lip at the childishness of that response.