Tea and Sympathy

by Carol Cox

  Suddenly LuAnne slapped her leg, then gestured to the woman standing behind her. “Where are my manners? Do you know Ruby Merton? She showed up on your doorstep at the same time I did.”

  Kate smiled at the plainly dressed woman. “We’ve never been introduced, but I remember seeing you at some of the arts-and-crafts events around town. You make those wonderful quilts I’ve seen on display, don’t you?”

  A pink tinge stained Ruby’s cheeks. “Yes’m. I’m a quilter.”

  “You do exquisite work,” Kate said. “I’m so glad to finally meet you.”

  She gestured toward the couch. “Why don’t we sit down? I’m sorry I can’t offer you something fresh from the oven, but I’m afraid I’ve gotten a little behind on my baking.”

  LuAnne waved away Kate’s apology. “Don’t you give that a second thought. You’re the one who’s been under the weather, and what you need to do is sit down on that couch and take a load off. It’s Ruby and I who’ve come to bring you a little cheer, not the other way around, you hear?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Kate grinned meekly and followed LuAnne’s order, feeling an unexpected sense of relief as she did so. Sometimes it was nice to let someone else take control.

  Chapter Nine

  Kate made herself comfortable on the sofa. LuAnne settled on the opposite end of the couch, while Ruby perched on the edge of an overstuffed chair, looking as though she might jump up and bolt away at the slightest provocation.

  Wanting to relieve the other woman’s discomfort, Kate gave her a warm smile. “I don’t remember seeing you around Copper Mill except at the arts festivals. Do you live near here, or do you just come in for events like that?”

  Ruby’s lips tipped up in a soft smile. She clasped her hands in her lap and kept her eyes focused on them as she spoke. “Ain’t no surprise you haven’t seen me much. I don’t get into town all that often, though I probably stop in more than any of my kin do.”

  She gave Kate a fleeting glance as if wondering whether she should continue. Apparently she found encouragement in Kate’s expression, because she tilted her chin a bit and went on. “My family lives back in the hills, and we tend to keep to ourselves. Most people don’t even know we’re there.” Ruby lifted her shoulders in a slight shrug. “It don’t bother us. The only reason I started comin’ in more often is that the man who runs Smith Street Gifts saw one of my quilts and told me I oughtta put it in the show the Harrington County Crafters Guild was puttin’ on.” A happy light shone in her eyes. “It won first place. I couldn’t hardly believe it.”

  “I can,” LuAnne put in. “You’re a regular artist, only you work with bits of cloth instead of paints and canvas.”

  Kate nodded. “You do an amazing job of blending colors with the fabrics you’ve chosen. I’ve never seen any quilts quite like them.”

  Ruby’s chin lifted another notch. “It gives me pleasure to make ’em. I never knew they’d be special to anyone else but me. But when I won that first prize, a woman from Nashville offered to buy the quilt. She gave me a fair price too. That was when I started thinkin’ that if I brought in more quilts, they just might sell too. Seems like a dream that they’ve taken off the way they have. And havin’ that extra money has made a real difference to my family.”

  Her face took on a determined expression. “I’m gonna keep on puttin’ quilts in every show I can before the interest in ’em dries up.”

  Kate chuckled softly. “I don’t think you have to worry about that happening anytime soon. There are many collectors around who will appreciate their value and spread the word to even more. It’s a good thing you enjoy quilting, because I suspect you’ll be busy with it for years to come.”

  Ruby’s eyes shone at the compliment. “Thank you kindly, but I didn’t come today to talk about me or my quilts.”

  She reached into the pocket of her skirt and pulled out a small glass vial, which she held out to Kate. “This is for you.”

  “Oh.” Kate stared at the tiny bottle in confusion, then reached out for it. “Thank you.”

  Ruby’s uneasiness returned. “I shoulda said something to you straight off, instead of gettin’ sidetracked talkin’ about my quilts. You see, I came to make you well.”

  Kate’s eyebrows shot up. “Excuse me?”

  Ruby laced her fingers together and sat up as straight as if someone had rammed a poker down her back. “Makin’ quilts is my pastime, but healin’ folks is my calling.”

  Kate looked down at the little container in her hand. She glanced up at Ruby again, not knowing what to say. “Are—are you a doctor of some kind?”

  “Not exactly.” Ruby pressed her lips together and held Kate’s gaze as if ready to ward off scorn. “I’m a healer. The good Lord gave me a gift, and I aim to use it to help as many people as I can.”

  “I see.” Kate cupped the vial in her palm and let it roll from side to side. A golden liquid glimmered in the light. And she was supposed to drink that? She threw a beseech-ing glance at LuAnne, grateful beyond words when her friend rose to the occasion and filled the uncomfortable silence.

  “Ruby has a real gift with folk medicine,” LuAnne said. “You know, medicinal herbs and the like. Just last month, she fixed up a concoction that healed Ike Johnson’s horse of colic when the vet had given up hope.”

  Not knowing how to respond to that, Kate nodded politely. She turned to Ruby again. “So...how did you know I was sick?”

  “I don’t get into town much, but I have my ways of keepin’ up with things. Ain’t much that goes on around here I don’t know about.”

  Ruby offered Kate a shy smile. “I’ve heard a lot of good about you and your husband, how you’re always doin’ things for folks in Copper Mill. We need more people like you in this world. When I heard you were sick, I knew I could help.”

  “What did you make up for Kate?” LuAnne asked.

  “One of my special blends—one part each of ginger, ginseng, bayberry, and meadowsweet, with a smidgen of honey added for taste. It’s good for stomach troubles and gettin’ your energy back after a bout of sickness.”

  LuAnne looked pleased. “I remember when you made something like that for Claude Brimley. It fixed him right up.”

  “That’s right.” Ruby’s eyes shone. “He hadn’t been able to keep anythin’ down for days and felt as weak as a kitten, but that little tonic did the trick.”

  Kate stared at the bottle in her hand. The nausea had faded, thankfully, but she was thoroughly tired of being...tired. Could the amber liquid really give her the boost she needed to regain her strength?

  She pulled the stopper from the mouth of the little vial and held the glass tube under her nose. The odor wasn’t unpleasant. “What did you say was in this again?”

  Ruby reeled off the names of the ingredients. She watched Kate closely but didn’t pressure her to take the dose.

  “My grandpa was a great believer in ginger,” LuAnne added. “Did him a lot of good. I wish I’d thought about it when I first heard you were sick. It might have made a big difference in the way you felt the past couple of days.”

  Kate eyed the potion, wondering what she ought to do. If a doctor had prescribed this as medication, she would have taken it without question. But swallowing a dose of uncertain origin from a person she’d just met?

  Still, LuAnne seemed comfortable enough around Ruby. And other people LuAnne knew had gotten relief by using the same remedy, apparently without any ill effects.

  Lord, please don’t consider this an instance of putting you to the test. Kate lifted the tiny bottle to her lips and tipped it up, glad that the mixture didn’t have a nasty taste. She just wished the image of Snow White sampling the witch’s brew hadn’t popped into her mind right then.

  Kate sat quite still for a few moments after swallowing the elixir, then relaxed when it appeared no terrible fate was about to befall her.

  “Thank you.” She handed the vial back to Ruby. “I appreciate your going to all this trouble for a total stran
ger.”

  Ruby took the bottle and slipped it back into her pocket. “Think nothin’ of it. Like I said, this is my callin’. God’s given me a gift, and I aim to use it.”

  “Oh, land sakes!”

  Kate turned to see LuAnne clap her hand to her head, causing her mass of red curls to bounce like coiled springs.

  “Speakin’ of gifts, this is the reason I stopped by in the first place.” LuAnne reached into her voluminous handbag and pulled out a pint jar filled with a dark blue substance. “Here, this is for you.”

  Another home remedy? Kate hesitated before accepting the jar from LuAnne. One step outside her comfort zone was about as much as she could handle at the moment.

  “It’s elderberry jam,” LuAnne said with a touch of pride. “I made it myself.”

  “Oh, how thoughtful!” With a surge of relief, Kate held the jar up to the light coming in through the cloudy sliding door and watched the jam glow with the color of deep purple stained glass. She had heard of elderberries, at least. And eating a delightful fruit preserve was a totally different prospect than gulping down a strange liquid for medicinal purposes.

  “Thanks so much! I’ll try some later on toast. Or maybe I can talk Paul into making biscuits.” As soon as the words left her mouth, Kate’s stomach rumbled. At any other time, she would have been embarrassed, but she was too relieved at having an appetite again to let it bother her.

  Kate took heart. Maybe Ruby’s homemade remedy was working already!

  “Well, I didn’t mean to keep you up all afternoon.” LuAnne heaved herself off the couch and smoothed her pale blue polyester dress. “I just wanted to drop that jam off and see how you were doin’, of course.”

  “I oughtta be goin’ too.” Ruby stood and edged toward the front door. “I expect you’ll be feelin’ better right away, Miz Hanlon. That cure really does work wonders. And you’ll be in my prayers.”

  Kate smiled. “That’s the best medicine of all.”

  “Yes’m. It surely is.”

  SINCE THE TWO WOMEN insisted on letting themselves out, Kate remained on the couch for a few more minutes. A gentle smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she realized how much she had enjoyed the visit.

  “I was running low on contact with the outside world,” she whispered. “Thank you, Lord, for meeting my needs even before I asked.”

  Kate considered curling up on the couch for a while, then decided to go back to her bed. Slipping in between the sheets and resting her head on her comfortable pillow sounded like the most delightful thing in the world at the moment. Wobbling a little, she made her way back to the bedroom and stretched out on the mattress.

  Kate closed her eyes, but sleep refused to come. She now felt restless, wanting to get up and fix dinner, clean the house, anything but stay in bed another moment. If only she had the energy to accomplish any of those household chores! Her spirit was willing, but her flesh was most definitely too weak to get it done.

  She punched her fist into the pillow and rolled over onto her back. What was wrong with her? Surely she ought to be feeling more energetic by now. And Ruby had all but promised that her elixir would take effect soon.

  Now would be a good time, Kate thought. She sat up and leaned back against the headboard. Her head swirled with things she ought to be doing—things she wanted to do—but her body simply refused to cooperate.

  This too shall pass, Kate promised herself. Patience is a virtue, and good things come to those who wait. Having run out of clichés, she stared at the bedroom wall and wondered what she could do next.

  She stretched out her hand for the glass of water on the nightstand and caught sight of her laptop. A flicker of enthusiasm stirred. Maybe the most productive thing she could do right now was to research her illness. Like everyone else, Kate had battled a stomach bug before, but never had one knocked her down so hard or for so long.

  Maybe she had contracted some new strain of the virus. The least she could do was find out how long its effects could be expected to last. And she really ought to learn whether she was still contagious. She and Paul shared nearly everything, but this was one thing he wouldn’t want to have a part in...nor would she wish it upon him.

  Pulling her laptop over to her, Kate connected to the Internet and opened her browser. Which terms would be the best to use for her search? She tapped her fingers against the keyboard, then typed “stomach flu duration.”

  Several results appeared on her screen. Kate scrolled through the sites listed, frowning when she learned that the virus tended to hang on for only a couple of days. And the symptoms she found didn’t include the exhaustion that refused to let go of her. Was it possible she’d been suffering from something other than a stomach bug all along?

  Kate went back to the search-engine page and tried again. This time she typed in keywords for some of her symptoms. She hit the Enter key and held her breath while she waited for the results to come up. A new page opened, listing several pages of matches for her search terms. Kate started at the top and worked her way down, reading about different causes of gastroenteritis until she began to feel queasy.

  Sleep was beginning to sound more appealing than research. Kate decided she would check the rest of the results on that page in the interest of being thorough and then snuggle under the covers for a nap.

  Commanding her eyelids to stay open, she went on to the last site. When the title for the home page appeared, Kate’s eyes sprang open, and all thoughts of sleep fled from her mind. With a sense of foreboding, Kate scrolled down the page, noting the similarities between the symptoms listed there and her own.

  “This can’t be right,” she murmured. “It must be some wild coincidence.”

  She read on, expecting to find some side note that would prove her suspicions wrong. Instead, the description of symptoms sounded all too familiar.

  “I just can’t believe it,” Kate whispered. “How could that possibly have happened?”

  Setting the laptop back on the nightstand, she curled up on her right side and pulled the blanket around her shoulders. Even on this brilliant spring day, a chill seeped into her bones.

  Kate drew her knees up tighter against her chest. “Father, I hope I’m wrong about this. But if I’m not...” Before she could finish the prayer, exhaustion overtook her, and she fell asleep.

  WHEN SHE OPENED her eyes again, Livvy was standing in the bedroom doorway with a bemused look on her face. “Well, look who’s finally awake.”

  “Sorry.” Kate managed a crooked grin and pushed herself up to a sitting position. “I just can’t seem to get enough rest these days.”

  “You know I’m only kidding.” Livvy crossed her arms and leaned against the doorjamb. “I think it’s great that you’re allowing your body to recuperate like that. It’s probably the best thing for you.”

  “I suppose. But it’s hard to convince myself of that.”

  “I can imagine. Especially when you’re used to going through life on a setting of full speed ahead.”

  Kate scooted back on the mattress and caught sight of her alarm clock. Where was Paul? She needed to tell him what she’d discovered just before she fell asleep. “Isn’t Paul home from work yet?”

  Livvy shrugged. “He said he forgot to tell you he had a committee meeting this evening. He asked me if I could pop in and stay for a while until he got back.”

  Kate swallowed back her disappointment. The sense of urgency to share what she’d learned was overwhelming. Maybe it would help if she told Livvy.

  She opened her mouth, then closed it again. Though she had no reservations about sharing the startling news with her best friend, this was the kind of thing Paul should hear first. She would wait until he got home and tell them both at the same time. That would be better all around, she decided. She didn’t think she could bear to break the news more than once.

  Tears stung Kate’s eyes, and she blinked to keep them from spilling over. “It’s sweet of you to spend so much time taking care of me, Li
v. I hate putting everyone out like this. It’s really hard to feel like I need a keeper.”

  “My sister’s keeper, that’s me,” Livvy quipped with a cheeky smile. “Say, what’s for dinner? Do you know if Paul planned anything?”

  “I have no idea. Food and I haven’t exactly been on the best of terms lately. But now that you mention it, the idea of eating something sounds a whole lot more appealing than it did earlier.”

  Livvy laughed. “I wish you could see how hopeful you look right now. It reminds me of Kisses when Renee holds out one of his doggie treats.”

  She ducked and grinned when Kate tossed a pillow at her. “How would you like me to whip something up before Paul gets home? That way he can eat without worrying about having to cook. The poor guy looks wrung out.”

  “I know.” Kate felt a pang of remorse for the worry and extra work her illness had caused Paul. “But I hate to ask you to fix something here and then have to go home and do it all over again for Danny and your boys.”

  “You didn’t ask; I offered, remember? Besides, all my menfolk have plans of their own. Danny went up to Pine Ridge to pick up some shingles to replace the ones that last storm tore off our roof, and the boys are spending the night at a friend’s house, so I’m pretty much on my own for the evening. If it makes you feel any better, I’ll make enough dinner for all of us and take mine home with me.”

  “I can’t argue with that,” Kate said. She felt grateful beyond words for Livvy’s thoughtfulness. Coming home to a hot meal would mean one less thing for Paul to have to deal with.

  “So what sounds good to you?” Livvy tilted her head to one side and gave Kate an appraising look. “I don’t suppose you’re up for steak and a baked potato just yet.”

  “Ugh.” Kate made a face, and Livvy giggled. “Paul mentioned that people from church sent over some frozen dishes while I was sick, so we should have an assortment of casseroles in the freezer. One of those and a salad would probably make a decent meal for you and Paul. I’m thinking more along the lines of toast again. And maybe a banana.”