Broken Things (Faded Photograph Series) (11 page)

Jack narrowed his gaze, as if deciphering the information.

“When I left here, I wasn’t a solid believer and I was an emotional wreck. But I finished college and got a good job. I met and married Erich because he was charming and his family had a lot of money. Money meant security to me. I never even thought to ask about Erich’s religious background. By then, I had put God in a box like—” She searched her mind for the right analogy. “—like you might pack away textbooks you never thought you’d use again. It was only when the physical abuse started that I―”

“Hey, Allie, you coming out?”

Hearing Nora’s voice, she glanced toward the patio doors. “I’ll be right there.” She looked back at Jack. “I’m so glad I had the chance to share this with you.” She reached out and gave his wrist an affectionate squeeze.

He stiffened beneath her touch.

Pulling her hand away, Allie stepped around him and walked out of the kitchen. Jack’s reaction was his business. For herself, she felt suddenly unfettered and free, and she knew at once that she’d accomplished what she’d set out to do.

Now her prayer was that God would use her words to reach Jack’s heart.

* * *

Jack stood in the middle of the kitchen, holding his can of cola and feeling like he’d just been in a fistfight―and lost.

So Allie didn’t have it so good either. He would have never guessed. She seemed so perfect, her life so together. Up until this very moment, he’d hated her for it.

He forced himself to inhale and exhale in regular intervals, realizing he’d been holding his breath. Allie at the hand of an abusive spouse? Jack shook the chilling image out of his head. He’d seen enough domestic violence cases in his career to know the particulars. They weren’t pretty.

He took a long drink of cola. His brief conversation with Allie made him want to know more. Where was this dude she’d married? Didn’t sound like she loved him. Why was that comforting?

Maybe because he’d never loved his ex-wife either. But he had tried.

Jack squeezed his eyes shut against the ocean of memories flooding his being.
God knows I tried
.

* * *

Hours later, with his hands on the steering wheel of his Mercury
Sable
, Logan turned onto Waukegan Road and headed for Schaumburg. The drive took about thirty-five minutes from Oakland Park to the townhouse that Marilee and two other teachers shared.

Darkness shrouded his vehicle except for the intermittent glow of the streetlight. A cool autumn breeze blew in from off the lake. But as he picked up speed, both he and Marilee closed their windows.

“I had a nice time today.” Marilee’s sweet voice wafted to his ears above the music coming from radio.

Reaching for the dash, Logan turned down the volume so he could hear her better. “Yeah, I had a good time too.” He smiled, but didn’t take his eyes off the road.

“I had the chance to speak with your dad this evening. I…” She hesitated. “I like him. I don’t feel so intimidated by him anymore.”

“Good. I had prayed something like that would come out of this afternoon’s picnic.” He glanced her way and grinned. “I’ll confess that I was surprised at Dad’s sociable mood, especially since I coerced him into coming today. He didn’t want to. But that’s what God can do―change a man’s heart.”

“So I’ve been told.”

Marilee’s voice trailed off, and Logan sensed she had more to say. “What is it?” he finally prompted.

She took an audible breath. “I hope I’m not out of line in saying this, Logan, but I think you should drop the idea of finding your biological mother. Your dad is warming up. But if you consume yourself with searching for your mother, you might lose the precious ground you’ve gained with him.”

“Consume myself?” He made a right onto Lake Cook Road.

“Logan, I know you. Once you get an idea in your brain, you’ve got a one-track mind. It’s all you think about.”

He grinned. Marilee did, indeed, know him well. Moreover, she was right about another thing―he didn’t want to hurt his dad. He desired a close relationship with him and had been working on cultivating it. Logan sensed, even more strongly after today that beneath the rocky resolve of his father’s beat an extremely tender heart―one that, Logan guessed, had been wounded far too many times. Did he dare challenge him with the past and add to it?

Logan’s thoughts plagued him until they reached Marilee’s townhouse. Located in a lively neighborhood, it was walking distance to the church and school. Pulling up to the curb, he parked, climbed from the car, and walked around to the other side where he opened the door for Marilee.

She smiled. “It always amazes me what a gentleman you are. You’re the first guy who ever insisted I stay seated until he opens the door for me.”

“Good training,” he quipped.

Her smile broadened.

Taking her hand, Logan walked her to the front door.

“Will I see you tomorrow?” With her free hand, Marilee fished her keys from her purse.

“Sure. I’ll be around all day.”

“Good.”

Logan released her hand and Marilee stuck the key into the door. She turned back to him. “I had a lovely afternoon. Thanks.”

“Sure.” He cupped her cheek and resisted the desire to kiss her.

If he succumbed to his feelings right now, he’d betray himself and everything he wanted to stand for. Besides, he would be a hypocrite in every sense of the word. He would know it in his heart, and there was at least one young lady that he knew of who lived on this block and attended the youth group. What if she saw? She would think all pastors were phonies who imposed rules on others but didn’t follow them themselves. It’d destroy her faith.

He shoved his hands into his pockets and gazed across the tiny porch. “Sometimes it’s no fun being a youth pastor, you know that?”

A mischievous spark lit Marilee’s eyes. “I wouldn’t let you kiss me,” she whispered, “even if you tried. So there.”

Logan laughed and suddenly the tension evaporated. “You’re good for me. You keep me on track.”

“I’m glad you finally noticed.” She gaze a dramatic toss of her head.

“Oh, I noticed.”

“That’s news to me.”

Marilee’s soft laughter floated on the autumn breeze. Embarrassment warmed Logan’s face. But he figured he deserved the jab for dragging his feet in this relationship.

“G’night, Logan. See you tomorrow.”

“Night.” He gave her a parting smile, wishing he could give her more.

Marilee entered the house and smiled before closing the door behind her. Hearing the lock turn, he strode back to his car.

What was wrong with him? If he had any sense he’d ask Marilee to be his wife before she got bored and some other guy caught her eye.

But would she? Would she ever leave him?

Part of Logan didn’t think so, but the other part, his most inward and guarded part, still wondered.

* * *

“Listen, ol’ lady, this is what I want you to say. I want you to say that I’m the best CNA that ever took care of you.”

“What’s a CNA?” Cynthia eyed the man who had made her last nine hours a waking nightmare. Her requests for pain medication went unanswered. She’d defecated and needed her under things changed, but he refused. Worse, he wouldn’t allow another nurse to care for her, and he had slapped her twice when she’d screamed for help. Now the flesh around her left eye felt bruised and swollen.

“CNA―certified nursing assistant. That’d be me. Now when my supervisor comes in this morning, that’s what I want you to say. Got it?”

Cynthia clamped her mouth shut. She would do no such thing.

“Can you go all day with no pain meds?” the man with slick, black hair sneered. “I’m real good at changin’ doctors’ orders.”

“All right, I’ll do it. I’ll say anything you want,” Cynthia lied, feeling the perspiration trickle off her brow. The pain slicing through her bones felt so intense, she could barely breathe. Even so, she refused to say a single good word about this…this CNA, or anyone else is this rotten place. When someone, anyone but the nursing staff, came by, Cynthia planned to holler for all she was worth. But for now, she’d hold her tongue.

The attendant smiled. “See, I knew I’d whip you into shape. You ain’t gunna give us no problems no more.” He wrinkled his nose at the pungent order filling the room. “Now I’ll just get that lazy Katrina in here to clean you up…”

* * *

Allie figured her biological clock had sprung a spring when she’d awakened at three in the morning and couldn’t fall back to sleep. For some odd reason, she felt anxious to get to work today. Even so, she made a miniature pot of coffee and lingered over her daily Bible reading before finally preparing a light breakfast and readying herself for the day.

Scanning her wardrobe, she decided on comfort, so she chose a knit navy dress with a red, white, and yellow paisley print. To complete the outfit, she pulled on a red blazer in case she’d require a more professional image.

As she headed for her office at Arbor Springs, she couldn’t believe that the clock on her rental car glowed 6:00. She yawned. It was going to be a long day. But on the plus side, this could work out for the best. She might be able to leave early and run some errands. Besides, she thought, pulling into a parking slip at the healthcare facility, she hadn’t introduced herself to the third shift employees. Maybe now would be a good time.

Allie let herself into the facility via the building’s side door, making sure it slammed shut and locked once she was inside. She strode to her office, but before unlocking its door, she glanced around the lobby and noted the security guard was nowhere in sight.

Maybe he’s on break.
She wanted to be fair and give the guy the benefit of the doubt. But suddenly she was thankful she’d come in early…and unexpectedly.

After locking her purse in a filing cabinet, Allie closed her office door and headed for the elevators. Looking at the numbers on the panel inside the car, she selected 4, thinking she might as well begin with the top floor and move down. However, when the doors opened and she stepped out, a foul order assailed her. Allie hoped she wouldn’t lose the bagel and peanut butter she’d eaten earlier. Her gut instinct was to retreat into the elevator and escape to her office. But she tamped it down.

Slowly, she made her way into the ward. The sight that greeted her was almost as sickening as the smell.

Half a dozen employees were congregated at the nursing station, a square unit in the center of the ward. They sat around a television while potato chip bags, bottles of soda, plastic cups, and an empty pan of what Allie assumed were once brownies littered the counters around the station. That wouldn’t have been entirely so bad, except for the moans and shouts for help that went ignored

“Ma’am, how’d you get up here?” A heavy-set woman ambled toward Allie. “Visitor hours aren’t till nine o’clock.”

“And a good thing, too,” she quipped.

The woman paused. Blond, with a short, spiky haircut, she wore blue pants and a matching top, called “scrubs.” Allie had recently learned some medical vernacular.

She offered her right hand. “Allison Littenberg. I’m the new consultant here. And you are?”

“Uhh…” The woman glanced over her shoulder at the station before looking back at Allie. She appeared about as guilty as a bank robber caught in the vault. “I’m, um, Jessie.”

“Jessie?”

A resigned expression spread across her wide face. “Jessie Nardin. I’m the RN up here on nightshift.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“The staff and I were just having a little Labor Day party since we had to work the holiday.”

“I don’t have any problem with that, except you might want to clean up the mess now.”

“We were just about to do that.”

Allie dipped her head. “Good. Now would you mind explaining the disgusting odor up here?”

“Oh, well…we have a lot of incontinent patients on this floor.”

A man suddenly emerged from the room to Allie’s immediate left. Cupping his hands over his mouth, he bellowed across the entire ward, “Hey, Kat, get your carcass in here and change this ol’ bag’s diapers. She’s learned her lesson. I think she sat in it long enough.”

“She’s not my responsibility,” a female shouted back. “Change her yourself!”

The attendant swore.

Allie gaped at the less-than-professional exchange. And here she’d thought Nurse Ratchet only existed in
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
.

“This is unacceptable!”

The man’s dark head spun in Allie’s direction.

Jessie waved him over. “Kenny, this is Ms. Littenberg,” A tentative note hung in her tone. “She’s that new consultant we got the memo about.”

The man’s expression crumbled, and Allie admitted to feeling a semblance of gratification. “Looks like we need to work on our customer service skills,” she said with a cynical grin, “among other things.”

He suddenly transformed into a polite young man. “Yes, ma’am.”

“For starters, I’d like to know what’s going on.” Allie folded her arms. “Why did you say this patient has ‘learned her lesson’?”

“Oh, she’s just crazy. She’s always cussin’ and swearin’ at us.”

Screams from the patient’s room made their way into the hallway. “Help me! Help me!”

Prickles of apprehension climbed Allie’s her spine. She knew something was wrong―very wrong. “Why is the woman on this floor if she’s mentally unstable?”

“Psych ward was full, I guess.” Kenny lifted his shoulders.

The patient obviously overheard them and comprehended what they’d said. “Don’t listen to him!” Her voice sounded hoarse and broken. “I’m not crazy. I’m dying, that’s why I’m here. I’m dying…” A pause. “Wish I were dead!”

Allie moved forward, but Kenny held out his palms to forestall her. “She just wants to be changed, and we’re gunna see to that right now.”

“Good.”

“No, no, don’t leave! That man’s not fit to take care of a goldfish, let alone a human being. None of these people are. Please, please, help me!”

Leaning forward, Allie tried to get a glimpse of the patient.

Kenny tried on a laugh. “Poor thing. She’s outta her very mind.”

Allie nibbled her lower lip in indecision. On one hand, she could well believe the distraught individual was “out of her mind.” But at the same time, Kenny’s behavior didn’t warrant Allie’s trust…or her respect.