Angel of Mercy

by Andrew Neiderman

  Frankie focused on the information before him and copied down what he wanted as quickly as he could. Then he thanked Henrietta and left for the police station, anxious to a wipe that smug, condescending smile off Nolan’s ugly face.

  15

  Faye stood beside Saul Weinstein in the corridor outside his wife’s hospital room as Dr. Stanley continued to explain Lilly Weinstein’s diagnosis. Dr. Stanley was rapidly becoming one of her favorite physicians. Despite his age she considered him a prime example of the new breed: doctors who practiced what they preached: sensible diet and exercise, no smoking. He certainly didn’t look fifty-one. He stood six feet two with dark brown hair and youthful, vibrant hazel-green eyes.

  She especially admired the cardiologist for his tolerance of elderly people, whether they were his patients or the close relatives of his patients. He spoke slowly, but never condescendingly, and always struggled to be certain that his patient or the patient’s spouse fully understood what was happening, why, and what would be prescribed. He had a talent for simplifying the most complicated problems without diminishing their significance. This was only the third time she had been on special duty for one of his patients, but she sensed a mutual respect. Early this morning he had specifically requested her from the service.

  “If you have any further questions about your wife’s condition, you can certainly ask Miss Sullivan. Whatever she can’t answer for you, she’ll relay to me and I’ll get back to you,” he said. Saul looked at Faye and nodded, but not without a glint of dark worry in his eyes. He turned back to the doctor.

  “It wasn’t too soon to take her out of CCU?” he asked.

  “As I said, she no longer has any pain or discomfort, and it looks like she’s had a characteristic bout of angina.”

  Saul grimaced and shook his head.

  “You’re sure it was her heart? Not just gas?”

  Dr. Stanley nodded, but saw that the elderly man was not fully convinced.

  “Listen Saul, angina pectoris, as it is called, is essentially a symptom. We’ve ruled out hiatus hernia, gastritis, gallbladder disease.… What happened was her heart didn’t get enough blood.”

  “I saw her pressing her hand to her chest often, but whenever I asked, she’d say, ‘It’s just gas.’”

  “It’s not gas,” Dr. Stanley repeated patiently.

  “Why is her heart not getting enough blood? She eats well. She’s not overweight …”

  “One of the major coronary arteries is arteriosclerotic … It gets hard as we get older and loses its elasticity.” Dr. Stanley made a small circle with his left forefinger and thumb and held it up. He pressed the thumb against the forefinger, moving them both in and out to make the opening smaller and larger.

  “Imagine this is the artery. It has to move like this to push the blood through, see?” He gazed at Faye, who smiled, her eyes dancing with amusement. Weinstein nodded, his gaze fixed on the doctor’s fingers. “But when it gets too hard, it doesn’t move the blood to the heart fast enough, and blood carries much-needed oxygen.”

  “Then she had a heart attack?” Saul concluded fatalistically.

  “No, not in the sense you mean. Her heart muscle remains relatively undamaged. What we’re going to do is treat this artery. I’ve prescribed a vasodilator. It’s not blocked enough to warrant any surgical procedure. We’re just determining the right dosages, watching her carefully. Afterward, she’s got to watch her diet, get plenty of rest, avoid emotional strain …”

  Faye smiled at the doctor who continued to rattle off the therapy and prognosis, but something drew her back to the doorway of Lilly Weinstein’s room and she gazed almost absentmindedly at the heart monitor.

  The R wave was on the T.

  “Stat!” she screamed, and she rushed into the room to begin CPR. Dr. Stanley and Saul Weinstein came in right behind her. Weinstein gazed at the screen of the heart monitor in terror as the doctor and the nurse continued to work on his wife. In moments, the waves returned to a normal pattern and they both stepped back from the patient.

  “Nice going,” Dr. Stanley said. Faye beamed.

  “What happened?” Saul asked, his eyes wide and his face bone-white. The head floor nurse and an aide stood beside him and two other nurses had rushed up the corridor and stood in the doorway.

  “She’s all right now. Take it easy, Mr. Weinstein.”

  “But …”

  “We’re going to move her back to CCU,” Dr. Stanley said, nodding at the head nurse. She moved immediately to start the process. “Angina can be the first sign of something more serious going on. Fortunately, whatever it is, it happened here, and fortunately Nurse Sullivan was about as sharp and as effective as any nurse I’ve seen.”

  Saul looked back at Faye gratefully as she worked on making Lilly Weinstein comfortable. He nodded and let the doctor lead him out to the corridor where he would continue to explain what the possibilities were and what had to be done diagnostically now that this event had occurred.

  Faye was flush with excitement. She had literally pulled this woman back from the dead, reached out and seized hold of her as she was drifting down into the dark, sliding, slipping, falling …

  Now Faye stood beside her and watched her breathe, watched her chest lift and fall, watched her eyes move, watched her fingers twitch. She drank in all of these signs of life as if she had created it instead of saved it. In a sense she had re-created it, hadn’t she? It wasn’t blasphemous to think like this. God wouldn’t have given her the power and the perception, the skill and the talent if He didn’t mean for her to have it. She always acknowledged Him and thanked Him. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t feel ecstatic. She couldn’t wait to tell Susie about this.

  Lilly Weinstein groaned.

  “You’re all right, Mrs. Weinstein. You’re all right,” Faye reassured her. She stroked her face softly.

  “My husband …”

  “He’s right outside. I’ll send him in as soon as he finishes talking to the doctor. You two will be together shortly. Don’t you worry.”

  Faye assisted in moving Lilly Weinstein back to CCU. Once that was accomplished, her private-duty responsibilities had ended for the time being. Saul Weinstein was waiting outside the CCU when she emerged.

  “She’s doing fine. They’ll watch her very carefully now, Mr. Weinstein, and they’ll know exactly what else happened to her and what should be done.”

  “Thank you,” he said. “When she comes out again, you’ll be here? You’ll take care of her?”

  “Of course, I will, Mr. Weinstein. And I’ll be checking in with the CCU periodically to see how she’s doing. Now you relax so you don’t get sick yourself. When she comes home, you’re going to have to be strong enough to take care of her.”

  “She’s always taken care of me. Who would think she would be sick like this?” he said shaking his head.

  “Don’t upset yourself this way, Mr. Weinstein. You’ll only get sick yourself. Trust in your doctor. He’s one of the best cardiologists I’ve worked with.”

  Saul nodded. Anything this wonderful nurse told him to do or believe was fine with him. The doctor couldn’t stop raving about her and he had seen himself firsthand how good she was.

  “I’ll go see her now.”

  “Just for a little while and then go home and get some sleep.” Faye smiled, the warmth returning as quickly as it had disappeared. “Promise?”

  “I promise,” he said, smiling. “Somehow, I always have pretty women looking after me.”

  Faye squeezed his arm affectionately and walked off, never feeling more complete, never feeling happier with herself. She took the elevator down and walked through the now relatively quiet and empty first-floor corridor and paused by the doorway of the cafeteria. She felt like treating herself to a reward, perhaps one of those chocolate fudge nut ice cream bars Susie loved so much. As she leaned over to pluck one out of the freezer, she felt someone come up behind her and she turned to look into Corpsy Ratner’s smile.
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br />   For a moment the sight of someone from another hospital in which she had previously worked, someone dressed in his blues, confused her. It was as if she had been dropped back through time, or as if all that had passed since were merely a dream. She blinked rapidly and took a deep breath.

  “Hello, Faye,” Corpsy said. “How have you been?”

  “You’re … Arnold?”

  “That’s right,” he said, his smiling widening. “Arnold Ratner. We used to talk all the time in Phoenix.”

  “But what … why are you here?” He shrugged and looked around.

  “I decided to be as close to you and your sister Susie as I could,” he replied with such nonchalance that his words didn’t register their impact immediately.

  “What?”

  “I want to see Susie, Faye,” he said sharply, his smile evaporating. “There’s no reason for us not to meet now.”

  “You came all the way from Phoenix, followed us?” Faye asked, the realization of what he had done taking form.

  “Of course,” he said. “I tried to tell you back in Phoenix how much I wanted to meet Susie, how important it was that we meet and get to know each other, but you wouldn’t listen.”

  Faye started to edge herself away, moving along the freezer. She shook her head.

  “You’re out of your mind,” she told him. “You had no right to follow us here, no right. My sister is not for you. You leave us alone,” she said firmly.

  “Now listen, Faye …”

  “Get away from me,” Faye snapped, pivoting quickly to hurry out of the cafeteria. She practically jogged down the corridor, her heart racing, and she didn’t look back. She burst out of the hospital and quickened her pace even more, but when she reached the parking lot and turned down the row of cars to get to her vehicle, she heard Corpsy walking just behind her.

  “If you don’t get away from me, I’ll call the police,” Faye threatened. Corpsy stopped as if she had struck him, but instead of cowering back, he took slower, more determined steps toward her, his eyes dark and small.

  “You’re not going to call the police, Faye. You’re making Susie do things and I know about it. If you call the police, I’ll have to tell them.”

  “You raving idiot. What are you talking about?”

  “I told you in Phoenix … amyl nitrate. I know it brings on a heart attack, but its presence could be missed. And I saw Susie last night. I followed her to that house and I looked in the window. I saw her give that man something to drink and make sure his fingerprints were on the glass. Is he all right today?” Corpsy inquired with a smile, confident of the answer.

  Faye stared, but did not move or speak. Corpsy was encouraged. It was working; his plan was working.

  “Why can’t we all be friends and then … relatives? Why can’t we be a family?”

  “I don’t know what you’re saying,” Faye muttered. She shook her head. “My sister is a gentle, loving person. She doesn’t hurt people.”

  “Of course she doesn’t. I never said she did,” Corpsy replied. He looked angry. “And no one better say anything else, either.” He relaxed. “She’s just following your instructions, I know. What are you doing, mercy killings? It doesn’t matter to me,” he added quickly. “I’m sure you’re doing the right thing, whatever it is.”

  Faye stared at him for a moment. The man’s madness intrigued her, but more important, relieved her. He did like Susie and wouldn’t do anything to hurt her. They were safe … safe. She relaxed her shoulders and smiled.

  “Susie is a very, very shy young woman,” Faye said. “I tried to explain that to you in Phoenix.”

  “I know, and I don’t mean to frighten her.”

  “Then you have to meet her slowly. You can’t just burst in on her. She would be terrified.”

  He nodded, happy now that he hadn’t approached her abruptly during any of the recent opportunities.

  “I understand.”

  “Where do you live?”

  “I’m just staying in a motel here. I don’t really work in this hospital. I thought I’d tell you that so you wouldn’t be overwhelmed at the sight of me,” he confessed.

  Faye nodded and smiled. He was a patient now, a disturbed young man who needed her professional expertise. She had to win his trust and confidence, just as she had to win the trust and confidence of her patients in the hospital.

  “That was very clever of you, Arnold. You’re a bright young man. I’ll be sure to tell Susie that and describe all that you’ve done to be considerate of her feelings.”

  He beamed.

  “Will you? That’s very nice of you.”

  “Does anyone else know you came here looking for us?” Faye asked with a warm smile.

  “Just my mother,” he said. “But she won’t be upset. Whatever I want to do, she wants to do; whatever I like, she likes.” He blushed and shrugged. “I just told her I was going to Palm Springs to find the woman I love.”

  “The woman you love? How … sweet,” Faye said. “All right.” Faye gazed at her watch. “Why don’t you give me time to explain things to Susie first. She gets so nervous whenever she has to meet a man.” Corpsy nodded. “We could all have dinner and break the ice later. Would that be all right?”

  “Dinner? Sure. You just name the place. I don’t care how much it costs,” he said, visibly excited.

  “I’ll find out the name of a good place. What’s the name of your motel, and what’s your room number?” He told her and she jotted it down. “Just go back there and wait,” she said. “Don’t get nervous if it takes awhile. Susie is so afraid to meet new people, it’s going to take me awhile to build her courage and get her prepared.”

  “I understand.”

  “That’s good. You are a smart young man, Arnold. Susie needs a smart young man and a sincere young man.”

  “I’m sincere,” he declared firmly.

  “I can see that. I’ll be in touch.” She smiled at him and he watched her get into her car. She looked back after backing out of her space and smiled again. He nodded and stood there as she drove off.

  It was working; it was going to happen. In a matter of hours, he would be brought face to face with the woman he loved, and the woman, he was sure, who would love him. Never more satisfied with himself, he headed for his own car to return to the motel and wait.

  He wouldn’t just sit there and wait, however. He would decide on things: the best clothes to wear, the things he should say, and how he should behave. First impressions are the most significant, Ma always said. His fingers trembled as he inserted the key in the ignition. Was he ever excited about anything as much as he was excited right now?

  “Go on,” Nolan said. Frankie looked at his notes.

  “This er … this private-duty nurse, Faye Sullivan, took care of Dorothy Murray, and I’m pretty sure her sister was the maid who was with Sam Murray the day and maybe the night before he was found dead.”

  “Yeah?”

  “This might explain where the Dilantin came from.”

  “From the maid?”

  “Who could have gotten it from her sister because her sister is a nurse.”

  “Doesn’t mean murder. She gets him sleeping pills and later he did himself in, right? I mean, why would she want to kill the old man?”

  Frankie held up his hand to indicate Nolan should give him a chance.

  “Faye Sullivan took care of Sylvia Livingston, Thomas Livingston’s wife, and her sister was looking after Thomas shortly before his death. Thomas was at his son Todd’s house for dinner last night and no one there got the impression he was bent on checking himself out. He also used sleeping pills.”

  Nolan shrugged.

  “Violent methods turn people off. Even a depressed, suicidal individual can be afraid of the sight of his or her own blood.”

  “I know that, but there’s more. I went to the hospital and checked the employee records. This Faye Sullivan’s been around. A lot,” he added. Nolan was still not impressed. Frankie looked at h
is notes. “Before here she was in Phoenix; before Phoenix, Miami; before Miami, Richmond; before Richmond, St. Louis; before …”

  “All right, so she doesn’t hold a position long or she likes to travel. So?”

  “I called the Phoenix Police Department and I got them checking out some of the recent suicides, especially the ones that follow this pattern: husband or wife dies, Faye Sullivan was the special-duty nurse, her sister stepped in to help the bereaved who then off’d him or herself shortly thereafter. That,” Frankie punched, “would be considered a suspicious pattern, don’t you think?”

  Nolan stared. It was his way of eating crow, accepting, being shown to have been too flippant, and admitting Frankie had done good police work … most of all, admitting that Frankie did have a detective’s instincts, whereas he … he had a ways to go.

  “What did they tell you?”

  “I’m waiting for them to get back to me.”

  “Did you question the sister who’s a maid?”

  “I was going to do that right after I heard from Phoenix.”

  Nolan nodded, his face finally reflecting his admission of the probabilities.

  “What the hell could possibly be the motive?” he wondered aloud.

  “I got a feeling we won’t find that out until we lock up a case, make an arrest, and bring them in for questioning and maybe psychoanalysis,” Frankie replied.

  “Rosina’s close to breaking that car parts thievery ring over at the car wash,” Nolan said in as apologetic a tone as he was capable of. “Otherwise, I’d pull her off and …”

  “I can handle this myself,” Frankie said. “After all, it’s just a nurse and her handicapped sister.”

  Nolan didn’t say anything. Frankie smiled to himself, got up, and went to his desk to wait for his phone call from Phoenix, but a call came from Jennie first.

  “Dr. Pauling’s office just phoned. He’s scheduling you for tomorrow.”

  “What? I thought it would be more like a week to ten days.”

  “He had a cancellation and can fit you in, Frankie. I thought you’d be happy to get it over with.”