Tina shook her head as she dragged the edge of her hand across her throat. “Steve, for crying out loud, the man refused! We can’t use it, so please don’t make things worse.” Tina turned back to Jeb. “I apologize for my colleagues. Any thoughts at all as to why this phenomenon is occurring?”
“No,” Jeb sighed and stared challengingly at Tina. He didn’t trust them after they had taped him after his refusal to appear on camera. “Do we understand each other that whatever Steve recorded won’t be used? Should I demand that you hand over the tape?”
“What?” Alicia groaned in annoyance and rolled her eyes. “It’s just a simple, freakin’ news story!”
“Alicia, that’s enough!” Tina snapped. She felt a hot flash beginning at her neck beneath her coat—they happened sometimes when she became embarrassed. She once more met Jeb’s stare. “I apologize, Doctor Hastings, you have my word on it.”
Kenni doubted the other woman’s apology was sincere, but she remained silent, satisfied to observe while her husband handled the situation.
“What about the stars over the hospital?” Alicia asked. “Have you noticed they are missing from most of the sky, and yet they seem to be congregated almost exclusively over the hospital?”
Jeb’s cell phone sounded with a whistle and he quickly read the text. He welcomed the interruption as he’d had enough of the grilling he had unwittingly walked into. The flu patient’s mother had returned and was causing a scene. He looked up at Alicia, Tina and Steve the cameraman. “I’m sorry, but you’ll have to excuse me. I have a situation with a patient.” With that, he turned and started down the hall.
“But I only have one more question!” Alicia called after him as he practically ran in the other direction, then she frowned and shook her head. “Damn!” She knew she had a good story, but if she couldn’t get any information from the hospital it wouldn’t matter, would simply become a ‘one and done’ story everyone would forget.
“Things can escalate around here in the blink of an eye,” Kenni explained. “I’ll show you out.”
“It must be interesting to be a nurse, and married to a doctor who works at the same facility,” Tina remarked. She noticed the obvious swell beneath Kenni’s scrubs and saw a story in the making, a human interest piece about a married couple on staff caring for pediatric oncology patients, and could be her chance to get in front of the camera once again. “And you have a baby on the way to boot? How wonderful! I’m sure you must be very excited.”
“Yes, we are.”
“Mrs. Hastings, I would love to set up an interview with you and your husband,” Tina said invitingly. “Audiences love human interest stories about local people. You and Doctor Hastings would be so appealing; I hope you’ll consider it.”
Kenni managed a smile. She knew that Jeb would never consent to such an invasion into their privacy and she had no desire to be on TV. She took the easy way out by saying, “I’ll have to get back to you on that.”
***
Lauren stared out the window of the ICU waiting room as the snow flurries fell in the darkness of the night. She marveled as they sometimes hitched a ride on a wind gust that sent them fluttering off in a different direction, a lot like watching a surfer ride in on a wave. She recalled how she and Darryl had spent the first two years of their marriage in Huntington Beach, California. It had been fun to people-watch, and Darryl enjoyed the surfers. Lauren and Darryl both were native Ohioans and the vastness and beauty of the seemingly endless Pacific Ocean had held them spellbound.
It seemed as if a million years, perhaps more, had passed since then. Michael hadn’t come along until nearly ten years into their marriage. Lauren had suffered several miscarriages before she was able to carry their son to term, and spent many sleepless nights as she anxiously awaited his arrival. She had often dreamt about what it would be like to finally become a mother, and somehow she knew that she would deliver a healthy, full-term child. She and Darryl had spent many hours praying over Michael as he grew, and both had been convinced that he was a very special gift from God, that his life had a divine purpose. They could never have suspected that one day Michael would lay suspended between life and death in a coma.
“Hi, Lauren,” Kenni called quietly, so as not to startle her as she came into the room. “Would you like some company?”
Lauren turned around and smiled at the kind-hearted nurse she had come to consider her friend. “I thought you’d be home by now,” she said. “Another long day?”
“In this business, there are many long days,” Kenni replied. She sat down in a chair near the window. “Jeb’s working late again and I’m not really in the mood to go home to an empty house just yet. I was wondering if you’d like to go out with me for dinner.”
Lauren sat down beside her and touched the other woman’s hand. “I appreciate the thought, Kenni, but to be honest, I’m really not hungry. Believe it or not, I actually went to the coffee shop and had a snack.” She laughed softly. “I know that you and your husband don’t think I ever leave this place, but I do. I’ve learned that I have to or I’ll go crazy.”
“How long has it been since you’ve actually slept?” Kenni asked. “I know we sleep sometimes from sheer exhaustion. I’m talking about restful sleep where you wake up refreshed and renewed.”
Lauren shrugged. “I don’t think I’ve slept well since Darryl died. Sleeping alone in that king-sized bed is very lonely.”
Kenni knew their bed felt empty on those nights when Jeb was at the hospital and she was alone. She couldn’t imagine what it must be like to know he wouldn’t come home again, to never again experience the gentleness of his touch as he cuddled her in his arms.
Lauren sighed. “Kenni, sometimes I feel like I’m in the middle of a nightmare. I keep waiting to wake up and find a familiar world around me. I think about Michael playing with his toys in his room, Darryl puttering around with that motorcycle while I fixed dinner. I remember sitting out on the patio with Darryl after Michael was asleep, just sitting on the glider he built for me with my head on his shoulder as we rocked to and fro. We’d sit out there and stare up at the sky until the mosquitoes chased us inside. Those days are gone forever. It’s so final!”
“That doesn’t mean there won’t be more good times and memories ahead,” Kenni offered, not sure what to say. “You know that God isn’t going to leave you alone.”
Lauren nodded. “I know that in my heart, but it’s my head that needs reassurance. With Darryl, I know that it was simply his time to go. I suppose with Michael it might very well be the same; it’s just horrible to imagine life without either of them. It seems so cruel, and then I think to myself, no wonder people get angry with God!”
“Are you angry with Him?” Kenni asked in her softest tone, not wanting Lauren to feel threatened by her question. “I’m sure He would understand if you are.”
Lauren shook her head and let a very soft, quiet kind of sigh escape. “No, I’m not angry with Him. And believe it or not, I’ve accepted that He has His purpose for whatever happens. If I have to let go of Michael, then that’s exactly what I’ll do.” She smiled a poignant half-smile. “It’s easier to accept what may happen, much easier than fighting it or trying futilely to change what will be.”
Kenni squeezed Lauren’s hand tightly. “It’s not over yet, my friend. God has been known to make His move at the very last moment, so this can turn around.”
Lauren appreciated Kenni’s attempt at reassuring her. Despite the fact that she had a critically ill child, there was still a spark of hope in her heart. She had no control over what had happened so far, or what might lie ahead. She had made peace with it, it was the only way she could get through the endless days and anxious nights while they waited for whatever it was that God might do.
“I’m not without hope,” Lauren said softly, “Hope is all I have left.”
Chapter 25
Kenni was on her way out of the hospital, ready to go home after visiting with Lauren. She stifl
ed a yawn as the elevator doors opened to the lobby. Her husband had his hands full with two extremely ill children and the fear-crazed father of the sicker of the two children; it was looking like it was about to be another night at home alone. Kenni accepted and supported the demands of her husband’s career, the importance of what he did, but she missed him when they weren’t together; she doubted that would ever change. She made her way down the quiet corridor toward the exit that led to the gated parking lot designated for medical staff. During a shift change it was a busy stream of those off shift and those coming on, but between shifts, like now, there were few people around and a male voice calling out her name startled her.
“Hey, Kenni! Kenni Hastings!”
She stopped at the sound of the remotely familiar voice coming from behind her—it sounded like Alan Springfield, who Kenni had seen briefly on the day of Michael’s surgery. As far as she knew, Alan had flown back to Boston the following morning. She turned around and her eyes widened at the sight of him.
“Alan, didn’t you go home the other day?” Kenni noticed a woman standing beside him, a tiny little thing—perhaps a size one at most—wearing long frosted-blonde hair with bangs that framed her honey-brown eyes. Her hair was perfectly mussed, sexily tousled and she was as expertly made up as any model on a magazine cover. She looked to Kenni like an actress she had seen on one of the evening entertainment/tell-all TV shows.
Alan, on the other hand, was uncharacteristically disheveled; his blond hair appeared to have been raked repeatedly by anxious fingers instead of combed. His face was swarthy with dark-whiskered stubble, but his contrasting dark eyes sparkled despite his unkempt appearance.
“It’s been absolutely wild!” Alan said excitedly with a smile as he threw his arms around the very startled Kenni and embraced her. “Where is your hubby? I’ve got to talk to Jeb right away!”
Alan seemed to suddenly remember his wife and motioned her near. She looked painfully uncomfortable, a pout on her glossy pink lips. Her coat was a shade of chocolate brown suede with a black fur collar and Kenni knew was expensive and real; she disapproved of wearing fur and it repulsed her. The black leather boots and matching purse appeared to be custom made.
“I’m sorry,” he apologized to his wife and took her hand. “Kenni, this is my wife, Leslie.”
Mrs. Leslie Springfield’s smile looked more like a pained grimace as she wagged her head at her husband before facing Kenni. “You’ll have to excuse him; he’s been like this since yesterday. I humored him and here we are, in Brannan’s Point, Ohio on the night before Christmas Eve instead of with our family and friends.”
Kenni read the tension between Alan and Leslie in their body language and had no idea what to say. “It’s nice to meet you, Leslie,” she managed and then turned to Alan. “Jeb has a few children in crisis right now and it’s anyone’s guess how long he’ll be. What brings you here, Alan? Could it be that Jeb is expecting you but forgot to tell me?”
“God,” Alan replied and when he smiled it was as if the sun was illuminating his face with an unusual glow—not like a suntan, but radiance that was difficult to describe. “I’ve had an experience I will never forget and I’m not the same man!”
Kenni repeated, “God?”
“Oh, it’s quite a tale.” Leslie rolled her eyes with a sigh of undisguised revulsion. She frowned, embarrassed by her husband’s behavior. “And he insists on making a fool out of himself by telling the entire world about it. Please don’t encourage him, Candy.”
Impatience flashed fleetingly in Alan’s eyes, so quickly it was hardly noticeable. “Looking at it from your point of view, then yes, I see why you’re skeptical. I’m not making this up, Leslie! Why on earth would I say I met an angel if it didn’t happen? Why would Alan Springfield, the agnostic unbeliever, make this up?” He laughed softly. “If I wanted to annoy you, I could find other ways. Baby, I’m telling you that what happened to me was real.”
Leslie rolled her eyes again, and it was obvious to Kenni who had ignored the erroneous name she had called her, that she preferred to be elsewhere.
“Alan, I’m tired and I’m starving. Find me a motel, drop me off, and then you can do whatever the hell you want to.” At the rude, condescending sound of her own voice in her ears, Leslie blushed and met Kenni’s curious gaze. “Forgive me, you have no idea what my life has become since this…thing supposedly happened.”
Kenni had not been grocery shopping yet and wasn’t sure what she had at home that would make a meal for them. “We can go somewhere and eat if you’d like,” Kenni offered and realized she was hungry too. “Jeb is going to be awhile. If you’d like to stay at our house, you’re more than welcome.” She looked at Leslie. Her guess was that Alan’s model-like wife had been raised among the silver spoon set of Boston society and would not be impressed by the modest home she and Jeb both loved and enjoyed. “If you’d rather stay at a hotel, by all means don’t worry that I’ll be offended; I’m just ready to get out of here after a long day. If you’d like, I can pick up a pizza on my way.”
After some bickering back and forth, Alan and Leslie decided to find a motel first, and then come to the Hastings’ home to wait for Jeb.
***
Jeb wondered what was in store for the evening as he drove the compact rental car that scarcely contained his long legs. Kenni had called to fill him in about Alan’s arrival, and his claim that he had seen an angel. She also told him that Alan’s wife appeared quite frustrated by the entire matter, as if her husband had flipped out. She was also clearly unhappy to be in Ohio with them. ‘Openly hostile,’ were Kenni’s words.
Moments later, Jeb was in the comfort and warmth of his home, and in the loving arms of his wife as she welcomed him. She looked adorable in red and gray sweats, the beloved Buckeye colors of his alma mater, her hair pulled back in a ponytail.
“How are things here?” he asked before their lips met in a ‘hello’ kiss. He sighed at Kenni’s shoulder shrug that showed him she had no idea what was going on with their visitors. “What do we have to eat, Kenni? I’m starving.”
“We have pizza.” Kenni smiled as it was Jeb’s favorite food. “I’ll put some in the oven for you.”
“Thanks, Baby.” He kissed her once more and then entered the living room where Alan and his wife, whom Jeb had never met, sat on the sofa staring disinterestedly at the unfamiliar faces of the local TV personalities who covered the greater Miami Valley news.
Alan was on his feet the second he saw Jeb. He embraced him and shook his hand as if they hadn’t seen each other in ages while Leslie rolled her eyes, clucked her tongue and made no attempt to hide her contempt.
“Alan! Would you stop it? You’re embarrassing yourself, not to mention how you’re making me feel!” she snapped, unable to contain her anger and frustration. Leslie held her head in her hands for a few seconds as if in physical pain. “I think I’m going to lose my freaking mind!” she cried before she dropped her hands and met Jeb’s curious stare.
“Jeb, this is my charming wife, Leslie,” Alan introduced her, wearing an expression that could best be described as a sneer. “It’s me she’s mad at, not you.”
Jeb managed an awkward smile for the woman dressed in a dark gray tunic-length sweater and black skinny jeans. They had never met, but he had imagined that Alan’s wife would look like the clearly distressed woman who sat on his couch. “Hi, Leslie, it’s nice to meet you,” he greeted her cordially.
“Pizza will be ready in a few minutes, Love,” Kenni announced as she exited the kitchen and handed Jeb a large glass of soda. They sat together on the love seat and looked curiously at their unexpected guests.
“What’s going on, Alan?” Jeb asked, figuring that was as good a place to start as any. “Kenni said that you’ve seen an angel.”
“I think he’s watched too many TV shows!” Leslie snapped and continued to stare at the TV set as if the others weren’t there. “This whole freaking thing is ridiculous; I don’t know why
in hell we’re even here!”
Alan sat on the edge of the couch, his eyes still twinkling and his features illuminated despite the obvious distress Leslie displayed. Jeb wasn’t sure of what had caused it, but couldn’t deny what he saw with his own eyes, that something had affected his former roommate.
“Jeb, I swear to God, I was visited by an angel last night! I was in my office at home when I saw something out of the corner of my eye,” Alan recounted with one leg bouncing up-and-down in excitement before Leslie reached out and grabbed a hold of his knee, forcibly stopping him.
“It just… showed up?” Jeb asked and leaned back into the loveseat, his hand entwined in Kenni’s.
Alan nodded. “This is the part where Leslie thinks I’ve lost it,” he said. He shot an impatient look at his wife and then returned his gaze to his old friend. “A big teddy bear was sitting on the chair next to my desk, with a red bow tied around his neck and the sweetest expression on his face. He had these green pinwheel eyes!”
Jeb couldn’t help but smile and took a swallow of his drink to hide his amusement over a story he knew personally.
“Then what happened?” Kenni asked, squeezing Jeb’s hand.
Leslie glared at Kenni. “I can’t believe you two are encouraging him. I thought people from Ohio are supposed to have common sense, be down to earth.”
“The teddy bear called my name,” Alan continued undaunted by Leslie’s interruption. “At first I thought I was tired; that I’d simply fallen asleep. Then there were these swirling golden flares…they looked almost like sparklers, you know, the fireworks we had when we were kids? And then, suddenly, the teddy bear was gone, this young man with blond hair and the most luminous green eyes I’d ever seen sat in its place. He told me his name was Brownie, and that he was an angel sent by God.”
Leslie held her hands over her ears. “I don’t want a husband who is a crazy zealot because of something he dreamt up! I don’t want to be married to some…Jesus freak who will tell this story to everyone he comes in contact with and have people thinking I’m crazy too because I’m his wife!”
BROWNIE: An Angel's Visit Page 35