Cascade (30 page)

“
But…” Sandy’s voice shifted from
indignation to pain.

“
You were always trying to sit on his lap. Kissing his
cheek. I knew you were a whore! I just never knew how low you could
possibly go as to steal
my
husband from
me!”

“
I did it for you!” Sandy sobbed.
“For your child support!”

“
You are no child of mine,” the
woman said. “I will never forgive you for betraying me!
Ever!”

Jill launched into action. Pushing the woman’s
shoulders, she shoved her out of the small space.

“
Get out!” Jill exclaimed. “Out!
You are no mother! Get out!”

“
Slut whore,” Sandy’s mother spit
on Jill’s face. “You’ll get what you deserve.”

Jill slapped the woman’s face. Sandy’s nurse
ran over to the women.

“
Can you get someone to help this…
person out of here?” Jill asked the nurse.

The nurse took the woman’s arm and began to
escort her from the emergency room.

“
I’m not paying for this hospital
stay,” Sandy’s mother turned to say.

Shaking her head at Sandy’s crazy mother, she
returned to Sandy’s bedside. Sandy was sobbing
uncontrollably.

“
I should have died. I should have
died. I should have died,” Sandy repeated over and over
again.

Not knowing what to do, Jill smoothed Sandy’s
hair.

“
How am I going to pay for all of
this?” Sandy asked.

“
You’re not,” Jill said. “I
already paid for it.”

“
But…”

“
Heather and Tanesha are on their
way,” Jill said. “We’re going to take care of you, Sandy, like you
always take care of us.”

Sandy turned her face away from
Jill.

“
I’m so glad you’re alive,” Jill
said. “I know Aden is glad you’re alive. And Seth.”

“
I’m glad you’re
alive.”

Heather came through the curtain. She went to
the other side of Sandy’s bed to hold her hand. Tanesha followed
Heather through the curtain. She held onto Sandy’s toes. Her smile
said what had been repeated.

“
When you’re better, we’ll decide
what to do about your Mom,” Jill said.

“
What Mom?” Sandy asked. “I’ve
been disowned!”

“
Yeah like that crazy mess was
worth owning,” Tanesha said. “Yours is bat shit crazy. Mine’s a
crack whore. I get to see her on the corner of Colfax and Broadway.
You want to trade?”

Tanesha’s tone made them laugh. Even Sandy
smiled.

“
Sorry ladies but we need to take
her for some tests,” Sandy’s nurse said.

“
Can one person go with me?” Sandy
asked.

“
Sorry,” the nurse said. “They can
wait right here until you get back.”

“
Love you!” Jill leaned over and
kissed Sandy’s cheek.

Heather kissed Sandy’s cheek and Tanesha
patted her feet. They watched as an orderly came to push Sandy out
for her tests.

“
Tell all,” Tanesha said to
Jill.

Jill relayed the grim story.

CHAPTER
SEVENTY-FOUR

Like Greta Garbo

The next morning
Thursday — 2:30 A.M.

Trying to be absolutely silent, Jill tiptoed
into the Castle. The side Castle door made a click then a solid
‘thunk’ when she turned the deadbolt. She slipped off her Dansko
clogs and picked them up. Turning into the living room, she saw
Honey and MJ snuggling on the couch. The blazing fire cast a dance
of light and shadow on the lovers. MJ smiled at Jill when she waved
a clog at him. She moved through the room to the main kitchen then
up the stairwell to her loft home.

The loft door closed with a satisfying click.
Relieved to finally be home, Jill leaned against the door. She set
her clogs down and noticed that all the bedroom doors were closed
or partially closed. Only Katy’s bedroom door had a light
underneath it. Mike must be painting Katy’s room.

After using the bathroom, Jill stuck her head
in her office. Cleo, Sandy’s much beleaguered cat, was tucked into
a tight ball on the couch. Cleo lifted her head to Jill and meowed.
Welcoming her warm comfort, Jill picked up Cleo. The black and
white cat’s loud purr warmed Jill’s sorrow-filled heart. She
nestled Cleo in her arms while she made her way around the
loft.

Jill stuck her head into the guest bedroom.
Nash, Noelle and Buster shared the Queen-sized bed. One of the
children had started the night on the cot in a corner of the room.
They must have migrated together for comfort. She knew they were
heartbroken that Aden was in jail. Buster raised his head to sniff
at her when she laid a soft cotton blanket over them. Jill nodded
to Buster and he laid down his head. Closing the door, she was glad
they had each other tonight.

Jacob had left their bedroom door open a crack
for her. She smiled at his subtle welcome home. She almost tripped
over Sarah, the Labrador, stretched out near the door. Scooter’s
nails clicked on the hardwood as he came over to greet her. Jacob
and Katy were sound asleep in their King-sized bed. After all the
drama of yesterday, she zoomed to the bed to check that Katy was in
her pajamas and Jacob was dressed.

They were. Nothing awful going on here. Just a
small sick girl and her Daddy. She shook her head at her own
paranoia. Jacob would be so offended if he heard her fear-driven
thoughts.

Going around to Katy’s side, she touched her
child’s face. Katy was still warm. She was making a mental note to
insist Katy go to the doctor when she saw a prescription bottle on
the table with Katy’s name on it. Jill smiled.

Jacob had taken Katy to urgent
care.

Of course. Jacob was a good father. He wasn’t
Sandy’s evil father nor her own violent father. Jacob, the good
father, had cared for their baby while she was preoccupied. Of
course.

Scooter hopped back onto the bed next to Katy.
Jill ruffled his ears then crept from the room. She leaned against
her closed bedroom door and took three breaths. She hadn’t realized
how much this week had gotten under her skin. From her mother’s
horrible story to all of this bullshit with Sandy’s terrible father
and her horrid mother… Jill shook her head at her own dark
thoughts.

She heard soft jazz wafting from under Katy’s
door. Sticking her head in the room, she saw Val asleep on Katy’s
bed. Mike’s head jerked toward her. He smiled and returned to his
drawing. He’d filled the walls with a lush flower garden. He was
now drawing in fairies. Smiling at his progress, she left the
room.

The last room was empty. Jacob wanted it to be
a new bedroom for new children. They hadn’t gotten to new children
yet. Heather’s baby was due in a month or so. Sandy was due in June
and Val was due in September. It seemed like every woman she knew
was pregnant.

Jill wasn’t pregnant.

Sighing, she wandered across the open loft to
their sitting area. She turned on the gas fireplace and sank into
the couch. Cleo settled on her lap. In quiet solace, Cleo and Jill
watched the night. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been there when
she heard a sound. Looking up, she saw Mike extend a mug of hot
chocolate in her direction.

“
Thanks,” she said. Using her
index finger, she took some whipped cream from the top. “This is
exactly what I wanted.”

Nodding, Mike sat down next to her with his
own mug of hot chocolate.

“
You okay?” Mike asked.

“
Not really. You?”

“
I’ve been worse,” Mike
shrugged.

They sat in silence drinking their hot
chocolate.

“
Worried about you,” Mike
said.

“
Why?”

“
It’s too much for one person. Our
family crap. Mama’s stuff. Steve and Candy. Now Sandy…” Mike shook
his head. “Did her mother really disown her?”

“
Sandy betrayed her mother because
her father raped her when she was two years old,” Jill spit out the
venomous words. “I…”

Jill broke down. In Mike’s strong silent
presence, Jill cried for her friend. She cried for the state of the
world where a good man would be in jail and an evil one tucked away
in a motel somewhere.

After a while, she cried for
herself.

~~~~~~~~

Thursday morning — 3:45
A.M.

Rose Hospital

Awake or asleep, Sandy’s eyes seeped tears.
Her mother’s words tore her soul to pieces. She felt a vibrating
desperate pain through her whole body. Nothing stemmed the flow of
her tears. Nothing comforted her. Sandy’s entire being longed for
relief from her intolerable pain.

Her physical injuries were not minor. Her
kidneys, spleen and liver were bruised. She had stress fractures on
three of her ribs and one vertebrae. When she had collapsed, she’d
hit her head causing a slight fracture where the kid had hit her
with his backpack. They were watching her brain for signs of
swelling. They would decide in the morning if she needed brain
surgery, organ surgery or whatever the hell else.

The only good news was that the baby’s
heartbeat was strong and healthy. When she looked to her right, she
could see the blue light blip with his heartbeat. She was sure the
baby was a strong and wonderful boy. Her baby was a tiny bright
light in this nightmare.

Heather and Tanesha kept her entertained
through the move to a private room. But eventually, they had to
leave. Tanesha had to go to her new job at Denver Heath and Heather
needed to get home to Blane. When they left, and Sandy could be
more honest, the pain returned in waves. Jill’s kind words and warm
companionship couldn’t soothe her. Jill thought Aden would do the
trick. She and Jill had waited for Aden but Seth arrived with the
news. Aden was being held over night.

She’d lost her father; she’d lost her mother;
Aden was out of reach.

Even with Jill and Seth there, she felt very
alone. When Seth had insisted Jill go home, Sandy agreed to try to
sleep. She fell asleep and the tears flowed from unguarded eyes.
After an hour or so, she woke up with a gasp.

“
Aden?” Sandy
whispered.

“
Just me, Sandy,” Seth said. He
leaned forward from the chair by her bed. “Aden’s
downtown.”

“
Oh. Right.” Sandy looked right to
see the baby’s beating heart. “He’s still alive.”

“
He?”

“
I think he’s a boy,” Sandy
said.

“
I think she’s a girl,” Seth
laughed.

He came to sit beside her bed. Reaching over
her, he held a tissue box for Sandy. She wiped her tears and blew
her nose. The tears continued to seep.

“
You don’t seem okay,” Seth said.
“Want me to get the nurse?”

Sandy shook her head. She groaned at the pain
caused by the simple action.

“
Your mother came to visit
you?”

“
In the ER,” Sandy said. “She said
horrible things. Disowned me.”

“
I was afraid of that,” Seth
said.

“
How did you know?”

“
Your Dad… He… Well, I loved your
Dad, but there were a few things we disagreed on,” Seth said. “One
was your mother.”

“
What do you mean?”

“
He believed your mother was…
well, like you, but not as strong. She let things happen to you
because they were done to her. He felt like she was broken in some
way. He forgave her for the way she allowed you to be
treated.”

Sandy watched both thought and emotion move
across Seth’s face. He sighed.

“
We argued about it,” Seth said.
“I felt your mother should know, must know, from the beginning. We
should confront her, make her aware of what she’d done. But your
Dad… He felt she would fall apart or worse, abandon you. I guess he
was right.”

“
She never loved me,” Sandy
said.

“
I think she loves you. I guess I
have to believe she loves you… in her own way,” Seth said. “You
know she’s not my favorite person.”

“
She disowned me. She…”

Sandy’s body flooded with pain and emotion.
Tears streamed down from her swollen red eyes. Seth took her
hand.

“
You’ll get through this,” Seth
said. “Norsen will get out of jail. You’ll get well and have your
daughter…”

“
Son.”

They smiled at each other.

“
There’s no way for you to
understand a woman like your mother. God knows I don’t understand
her,” Seth said. “But you can love her, if you want.”

“
Maybe tomorrow. Today, I hurt too
much,” Sandy said.

“
I understand.” Seth touched her
face. “And I’m sorry.”

“
What’s going to happen to Aden?”
Hoping to wipe the overwhelm from Seth’s face, Sandy changed the
subject.

“
He’ll get out in the morning,”
Seth said. “Then there’ll be a hearing or maybe a trial. He and his
lawyer have already talked to the DA. The DA wants to get rid of
him without a lot of fuss. They’re dealing with a press nightmare
over your father. The only reason they kept Aden overnight was to
avoid the crowd waiting for him. The DA’s hoping to quietly release
him in the morning. They want to focus on your father, not
Aden.”