A Measure of Mercy (39 page)

Astrid finished her plate and nursed her coffee for a few more minutes, half listening to the discussion waging around her. While she had come to feel acceptance within the group, she’d not developed any close friends other than Red Hawk, and she was never sure if he was really a friend or not. Perhaps he needed to retreat into himself in order to be able to endure all the close proximity of life in the hospital. She knew
she
needed to.

A nurse came through the door, heading for the coffeepot. “Benny is asking for you, Dr. Bjorklund.”

“I thought he would be. I am on my way.” She put her cup on the tray and headed out the swinging door. Outside the ward she paused and gathered herself, finally admitting that no matter how excited she was for Benny, she was going to miss him here. At least she would see him again in Blessing.
If you don’t go to Africa,
a little voice whispered inside her.

Why was she feeling more accepting of that possibility lately? She pushed open the door to hear children laughing. Three of them were taking turns riding on Benny’s cart, for lack of a better word. Mr. Korchensky down in maintenance had fashioned a flat platform with two wheels in back and one in front with a handle protruding through the base so it could be turned in either direction.

Benny sat on his bed, dressed in the new set of clothes the nurses had gone together and provided for him. The pants were long and loose enough to fit over the straps that held his prostheses in place so that when using his two crutches with his wooden legs, he looked close to normal. Scooting on the cart was much easier and faster.

“Hey, Dr. Bjorklund.” He waved his crutch in the air. “Works good, huh?”

“Works very good.” She stopped beside his bed. “You look all ready to go.”

“Yep.” He nodded so vigorously that his sand-colored curls bobbed on his forehead. “You are going to come see me, right?”

“When I get back to Blessing, I will see you for sure. Like I told you, Blessing is a small town, and everybody knows everybody else.”

“And you grew up there?”

“I did, and all my family and friends live there.”

“And there are cows and horses and dogs and cats.”

“And pigs and tractors and sheep and chickens.” She thought hard for something different. “And deer and birds and fish in the river.”

“And I will go to school.” He tried hard to look tough, crossed arms, hands tucked under his armpits.

“Yes, you will, and you will be so smart and learn so fast that no one can catch up with you.” They’d played this game before. It was as if he needed a preview of what life would be like in his new home. She’d never asked him about his life before the hospital, but one day she hoped he would tell her.

“Now I must go see other patients, but I’ll be back.”

He studied the first button on his shirt. “I wish you would stay here.” His whisper caught at her heart.

Astrid leaned forward and tipped his chin up so he had to look at her. “Your life is going to be good, Benny. You will have a new mother and father who will love you and make sure you have what you need. You’ll have uncles and aunts and cousins and maybe even brothers and sisters sometime. I will bring your new parents to meet you when they come.” She dropped her voice so he had to listen harder.

“I promise you, Benny.”

He sighed and sniffed, then tried to smile. He nodded one more time and rubbed his finger under his nose. “Okay.”

The morning rounds flew by, and since she was not in surgery that day, she could leave when the nurse announced with a wide smile that she had company. “They are such a nice young couple. Just right for our Benny,” she said as she accompanied Astrid down to the front desk.

Rebecca, dressed in a rust-colored traveling suit and hat that nearly matched her hair, stood when she came through the door. “Oh, Astrid.” Arms wide, the two nearly collided in the middle of the room. Gerald, wearing a dark gray suit, a fedora in hand, waited right behind her, his smile such a taste of home that Astrid hugged him too.

“I’m so glad you could come and even more that you are taking Benny. He is such a special little boy.” Astrid took both their arms. “Are you checked in to your hotel? How was your trip? Would you like a cup of coffee before we go to meet him?” When she realized she’d not given them time to answer any of her questions, she shook her head and laughed. “Pardon me. Guess I’m more excited than I thought.”

“I’ll answer,” Gerald said, beaming at his wife. “Our train trip was good.” Rebecca nodded. “And we have a room at the hotel.”

Rebecca’s eyes widened. “It’s a huge building five stories tall. We rode in an elevator so we didn’t have to climb all those stairs. Have you ridden in a little box like that?”

“Yes. It was a bit scary the first time.”

“Ja, and the second too.”

“And yes, we would love some coffee.”

“Dr. Morganstein has prepared tea and coffee for you in her office,” the receptionist announced. “She is looking forward to meeting you too.” She gestured toward the door. “Dr. Bjorklund will take you there.”

“Oh, of course. Help me remember my manners.” Astrid led them down the hall. She knocked at the office door and at the “Come in” ushered them ahead of her. “Dr. Morganstein, I have the privilege of introducing my friends from Blessing, Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Valders. Rebecca has been my friend since we were tiny.”

Dr. Morganstein met them in front of her desk and shook both their hands. “I am delighted to meet you. Welcome to Chicago and to our hospital. We are so excited to have you here.”

“Thank you.” Gerald bent his head slightly. “I . . . we have heard so much about you through the years.”

“Come, sit down, and we can visit while we have our tea, or coffee if you prefer. I want to answer any questions you might have regarding our Benny. I cannot begin to tell you how delighted I am that you are willing to adopt him. He has quite stolen the hearts of all who have cared for him.”

After they sat down, Gerald leaned forward. “I have only one real concern. Since I was a street child too, I need to be assured that there are no parents or relatives who will come to claim him down the road. I know there were none in my brother’s and my case, but there could be here.”

“We have done all we can to find any living relatives. The last we know of was a grandmother who died last year. Since the city of Chicago’s Missing Persons Department couldn’t find any more either, we have a signed affidavit that Benjamin Coreside, age six years and three months, will be legally yours after you sign the papers.”

Gerald slowly nodded. “I think it was easier in our case. We just hid on the train and got off when we got so hungry we couldn’t stand it. We thought to scrounge something to eat, get back on another train, and keep going west until we couldn’t go any farther.”

“I’m glad you stopped in Blessing,” Rebecca said with a smile.

“Me too. And that Mr. and Mrs. Valders took us in. I know we weren’t easy to raise, especially Toby.”

“I have a feeling that God has indeed brought the right parents for that little boy.” Dr. Morganstein rose and returned with a sheaf of papers. “I have here a copy of Benny’s birth certificate, his grandmother’s death certificate, and the adoption papers you need to sign. There is a copy for you and one for the city. We will take care of filing that.” She laid the papers and a pen in front of Gerald. “There is a line for each of you to sign.”

Gerald signed both copies first, pressing firmly so his signature would come through clearly on the carbon copies, and then Rebecca signed and handed them back to the doctor. Gerald picked up his coffee cup and drained it. “Dr. Bjorklund told us that we would take Benny with us today to stay at the hotel. Our train leaves fairly early in the morning.”

“That is correct, and if you have any questions, you can come back by or telephone us or write. We have Benny’s few things packed, and the janitor here has made him a sort of wagon. I’m not sure if you want to take that or not. He cannot use it outside during the winter anyway.”

“I think what we’ll do is study it, and then we can make him something similar in Blessing.” He turned to Astrid. “Does he mind being carried?”

“No, but we have tried to make him as independent as possible. The more he uses his crutches, the more adept he will become.”

Dr. Morganstein set the papers on the desk and put the copies in another envelope. “These are for you, then. Dinner is being served in the dining room, and I have an idea there is a bit of a party going to happen. You go meet Benny, and I’ll see you again in the dining room.”

When they opened the door to the ward, silence fell as all the children studied them. Astrid led the way to Benny’s bed, where he sat against the pillows, arms over his chest. He stared at Astrid, and she smiled back, packing all the reassurance she could muster into her smile.

“Benny, I want you to meet Mr. and Mrs. Valders, who have already signed the papers so that you can be their little boy. Your new name will be Benjamin Valders.”

Rebecca nodded at the boy, then at Astrid. “You can call me Ma if you like.” She sat down on the edge of the bed. “We have a room at home all ready for you.”

Gerald moved closer to Benny. “Do you want to be called Benjamin 354 or Benny?”

“Benny.”

“That is a good name. I have a brother named Toby. We had a good friend named Benny once.”

Benny stared up at him. “You’ll be my pa?”

“I am your pa.” The two stared into each other’s eyes, as if searching out some secret. Then Benny nodded. “Can we go now? I’m hungry.”

“Do you want me to carry you, or do you want to use your crutches?”

“It’s faster if you carry me.”

“Then that’s what we’ll do.” Gerald leaned forward and lifted his son in his arms. “You want to say good-bye to the others?”

“Yep.” Benny turned and waved, and as they walked the center aisle, he said good-bye to each of the children, one arm wrapped around his father’s neck.

Astrid and Rebecca nodded at each other, and then one took his crutches, the other his small valise and followed them. At the door Benny turned to Gerald and pointed down. “That there is my scooter.”

“I see.” Gerald bent over and studied the design, including moving the steering handle. When he straightened, he said solemnly, “I think we’ll leave that here for the other children, and before spring, we’ll build you one in Blessing that will work just the same. Okay?”

“Okay.”

After dinner in the dining room, where as many of the staff as were free could join in, some bringing him presents, Benny rode out triumphantly in his father’s arms. Astrid walked them to the door.

Rebecca hugged her, and she hugged Benny. “See you in Blessing,” she whispered in his ear.

“Yup. At my new house.”

“That’s for sure. You all have a good trip home.”

“We will. Oh, I almost forgot. Sophie sent you a letter.” Rebecca dug it out of her bag and handed it to her.

“Thank you.” Astrid put the letter in her pocket, fighting against the desire to ask about Joshua. Surely if he had come back, they would have told her. She waved again as they started down the street, then, shivering, turned and reentered the hospital.

“They sure seem like a nice young couple,” the receptionist said as she started down the hall.

“Yes, they are. And they will take good care of Benny.”

“Blessing is a funny name for a town. There must be a story behind that.”

“There is. Remind me, and I’ll tell you sometime. I better get back to work.”

“Yes, that is one thing that continues here all the time. Caring for patients never ends.”

Before going to bed, Astrid opened the letter from Sophie.

Dear Astrid, .

I have to write this quickly so that Rebecca and Gerald can take the letter with them tomorrow when they come for Benny. By the way, they are so excited, in fact we all are. I knew you’d want to know all that has gone on.

First, Christmas was so wonderful with all the little children enthralled with the Christmas trees and the presents and all the cookies and yummy things to eat. I never dreamed I would be so delighted watching not only my children but all the children. To think that by next Christmas we will have a baby in the house again. The twins are growing so fast, you’d think they are racing.

The wedding made Christmas last longer with the big party at the schoolhouse after the ceremony in church. Maydell made a lovely bride, and you could hear Gus give his vows. I had my doubts for a while, but the way he looked at her, you know he really does know what love is all about now. Rebecca and Gerald stood up with them. I know I wasn’t the only one wiping away tears. Why is it that weddings make us cry?

Christmas Day Jonathan annnounced the engagement of the century. He and Grace make a lovely couple, as you well know. While I still have a hard time picturing him as a North Dakota farmer, I know that those two will do great things for the deaf school. Wait until you get home and we catch up on all the plans both for the school and the hospital. I hated to see them get on the train the day after the wedding and travel to New York. I believe there will be a formal announcement there with a ball and all kinds of fancy things. Grace just smiled sweetly, yet I happen to know there is a core of steel in that twin of mine. She has needed it to overcome all she has overcome.

As I sit here in the parlor where the tree smells the best, I wish you were here too. I know you will be done with your training soon, and when you get home, I will throw a party that will be the talk of the town for months to come.

Love and chuckles from your cousin,
Sophie

———

THAT NIGHT THE clanging of fire bells woke Astrid from a deep sleep. More bells. People shouting. She leaped from her bed and into her clothes. Surely there was an emergency going on. Out in the hall she could smell smoke. Was their building on fire? No, the alarms would be going off and people shouting. An orderly ran by.

“Tenement fire. Prepare for casualties,” he threw over his shoulder.

“Oh, dear Lord, save the people.” Astrid rushed down to help set up—as they had practiced in an emergency drill—for fire victims.