The High Calling (11 page)

A raccoon with three cubs tumbling after it waddled along the creek, occasionally stopping to look for mussels. The bright eyes beneath the mask eventually found Kat. The animal stopped dead still and stared at her as the cubs continued to frolic. Then, seeing no harm in her, the coon turned back to the water and continued fishing with its delicate, nimble hands.

CHAPTER SEVEN

A Word From God

As Kat entered the hospital room, the sun slanted down through the single window, falling on a very young boy who lay flat on his back staring up at the ceiling. For an instant Kat hesitated but then put on a bright smile and walked over to the patient. After much indecision and soul-searching, she had finally committed to studying nursing and was now working at the small hospital not far from her home.

“Good morning, Bobby. How are you feeling today?”

“Not too good.”

“Well, I think you’re going to feel a whole lot better real soon.”

Six-year-old Bobby Joe Massey looked very small, his thin body outlined under the sheet. He had been in the small Georgia hospital for nearly three weeks, and Kat had become very attached to him.

“I’ll tell you what. Why don’t I read to you? Would you like that?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Kat picked up one of the children’s books, and as she did, Eileen Massey walked through the door. “Oh, hello, Mrs. Massey. I was just going to read Bobby a story.”

Eileen Massey smiled through eyes that betrayed her tension. “Bobby likes it so much when you read to him. If you’re going to be here, do you mind if I run to the cafeteria and get a cup of coffee?”

“You go right ahead. Bobby and I will be fine.”

Kat pulled up the chair and began to read the book about a little engine that could do more than it was supposed to. When she was finished, she reached out and took Bobby’s hand. “Now, if a little engine can do wonders, the Lord can certainly do wonders for you. You believe that, don’t you, Bobby?”

The boy did not answer, and Kat noticed that his lower lip was trembling. She gently pushed back his hair from his forehead. “It’s going to be all right.”

“I’m scared.”

“Of the operation?”

“Yes.” He looked at her desperately. “Will you be there?”

Actually Kat would not be on duty the next day, but the boy’s look was so pitiful that she smiled and said, “Well, of course I’ll be there! Friends like you and I have to stick together. I’ll tell you what, why don’t we just let Jesus know that we need Him tomorrow. All right?”

“All right.”

Kat bowed her head and began to pray. She had prayed much for Bobby, and once when she had left without offering to pray, Bobby had requested it. She prayed for the surgeons, that they would have skill and that Bobby would be made completely well. She concluded by saying, “Lord Jesus, we know you’re the Great Healer and Bobby needs you—so I know you’re going to be with him, and I thank you for it.”

Opening her eyes, Kat saw that Bobby looked almost cheerful. “I’ll be here before you go in, and I’ll be here when you come out. It won’t be long before you’re outside playing soccer.”

“I don’t know how to play.”

“Well, I’ll teach you.” Leaning over, Kat kissed him on the cheek and winked. “You try to cheer your mother up now.”

“I will, Miss Kat.”

As Kat left the room, Mrs. Massey was coming down the hall. “It means so much, Nurse Winslow, that Bobby’s come to trust you,” she said.

“Bobby and I have prayed, and I’ll be here tomorrow before he goes into surgery. Everything’s going to be fine. You just wait and see.”

Kat took the woman’s thanks and made her way to her station. She picked up her purse, said good-bye to the other nurses, and left the hospital.

As she stepped outside, her hat nearly blew off in the stiff March wind. She hung on to it and scurried down the sidewalk that led toward the parking lot. She had not gone far, however, when she heard her name being called and looked up to see Brodie Lee. He was loping easily toward her, and she suddenly thought how rarely he walked anywhere. He had more energy than any man she had ever known.

He stopped in front of her, grinning crookedly. “I’ve been waitin’ for you.”

“When did you get back, Brodie?”

“About two hours ago. I called your house, and your dad told me what time you got off.” He took her arm and propelled her along. “Come on. We’ve got some catchin’ up to do. I haven’t been around to watch you lately. Tell me what mischief you’ve been gettin’ into.”

As Brodie hurried her along toward his car, Kat reflected on their strange relationship. Brodie had been in and out of her life for the past three years. He would fly in, stay for a few days or a week, and then be gone for long periods. He had held several jobs, including flying for the U.S. Postal Service and flying transports. He had even volunteered to help the Loyalists in the civil war in Spain, spending the last part of 1938 there and staying through until the war was over in April of 1939. He hadn’t been to the Winslow farm now for several months, and as Kat got into the car, she asked, “Where have you been?”

Brodie started the car and said, “Mostly just hopping around the States, delivering mail again. After that stint in Spain, I decided to stay out of dangerous situations for a while.” He gunned the car out of the lot, breaking every
speeding law on the books, as always. “There’s gonna be a change in my life.”

“That’s good. What are you going to do?”

“I’ve decided to get a job sellin’ ladies’ shoes. Then I’m gonna marry you and sit on the front porch every day after work readin’ the paper.”

“I can just see that,” she said with a laugh. “You can’t sit still for ten minutes.”

“You just don’t know me, Kat. I actually hate activity. I’m a natural-born bum.”

“You are not! You’re the most active human being I’ve ever met. You’re like an ant in hot ashes.”

He denied all this and finally pulled up in front of a diner. “How about if you buy me lunch? I’m pretty well broke.”

Kat just laughed and shook her head as the two got out of the car, went into the diner, and seated themselves. When the waitress came, Brodie winked at her and said, “This is our anniversary. We’ve been married twelve years.”

The waitress, a small young woman with snapping black eyes, said, “You must have gotten married when you were ten years old.”

“Actually I was twelve and my wife, Gwendolyn here, was eight. She liked older men.”

The waitress laughed. “All right. What’ll you have?” She took their order and as soon as she left, Brodie started fishing in his pocket but came up empty-handed. “Give me some change, will you? I wanna plug the jukebox.”

Kat gave him some change, and he went over and made his selections. By the time he returned to the table, Frank Sinatra was softly crooning “I’ll Never Smile Again.”

“That’s the way I feel the whole time I’m gone,” he said. “I’ll never smile again until I see you.”

“That’s sweet, Brodie.”

Jimmie Davis picked up the tempo with “You Are My Sunshine,” and Brodie joined in with him, singing slightly
off-key. “I like this song,” he said, tapping his fingers on the table. “I’ve been keepin’ up with the popular music.”

Tommy Dorsey’s orchestra was next, playing an older tune, “I’m Getting Sentimental Over You.”

Brodie, who appeared to know the words to every popular song ever written, sang along with all of them. When the last song was over, he said, “You know what? I read in a magazine article about a test they did with some chimps at the Philadelphia Zoo. They played a bunch of wild jazz for them and scared the chimps half to death. They ran all over the place hiding under benches. But when they played this recording by Tommy Dorsey, the apes became tranquil and just sat there.”

“You made that up.”

“I did not! It was in the newspaper, so it must be true. I guess it proves jazz is just a fad, but ballads will never go out of fashion.”

“Or it may have proved that the chimps didn’t have very good taste.”

Brodie grinned at her. He reached over and put his hands over hers and held them until the waitress returned with their order. She put the food down, saying, “Happy anniversary.”

“Thanks, sweetheart. I’ll wait on you when you get old.”

As the waitress left, he said to Kat, “I guess you wanna ask a blessin’.”

“Yes, I do.” They both bowed their heads, and Kat said a short prayer of thanks. She was worried about Brodie, for she knew he lived a dangerous life and God was not a part of it. As they began to eat, he asked her about her own life. She told him about Bobby and some of the other patients at the hospital.

“And what’s next? Are you gonna work at the hospital until you’re old and gray?”

Kat bit into the hamburger and chewed it thoroughly. “I’ve applied to several missions organizations.”

“So you won’t be staying around here?”

“I don’t think so.”

Brodie swirled the dark fluid around in his coffee cup and then looked into her eyes. “You still tryin’ to read God’s mind?”

“I wouldn’t put it like that, Brodie. I’m still trying to find out what God wants me to do.”

Abruptly he asked, “You still hearing from that limey Braden?”

“Once in a while. I don’t know if his wife appreciates it, though. Her twins are two-and-a-half now, you know. And he loves them as if they were his kids too.”

“Wow—time sure does fly.”

“Isn’t that the truth?”

“Is he still making airplanes at his pop’s factory?”

“No. He left that position to join the Royal Air Force. He’s a wing commander.” This caught Brodie’s attention, as she had known it would. When his eyes widened, she added, “He shot down five German planes.”

“Now, that’s really something!” Admiration shaded his tone, and he nodded with appreciation. “I’d like to get in on that action.”

“Didn’t you get enough fighting in Spain?”

“It wasn’t much of a fight. The Germans had all their best planes, and all the Loyalists had was a few rickety crates. It was hard enough just to get them into the air. We had no chance at all of winnin’—not with Germany pouring their men and planes in there. Their Condor Legion was an awesome fightin’ force.”

He took a big bite of his burger. “You really should consider marryin’ me, you know. If we were married—”

“Brodie, it would scare you to death if I said yes. You know it’s true. Now let’s have some dessert.”

****

Kat got out of the car in the hospital parking lot, and Brodie leaned out the window. “Don’t forget. Tomorrow
night we’re doin’ the town. Bring plenty of money along. It may be expensive.”

Kat smiled and shook her head. He never changed. “All right. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She got into her own car and drove home, where she was energetically greeted by Michael, Samuel, and Temple. As usual, they tugged and pulled at her, each vying for her attention. They were nearly eight years old now, and she marveled at how much they had grown. They were all tall, getting their height, no doubt, from their mother.

“You should take us to the movies tonight, Kat,” Temple said. “There’s a gangster movie on. Lots of people get shot, I bet.”

“I’m not taking you to one of those awful movies, Temple.”

Samuel, the quietest of the boys, asked, “Will you help me with my homework?”

“I sure will, but you’re so smart you don’t need much help.” She reached over and hugged him, and he hugged her back. He was more affectionate than his brothers, and she could tell he was going to be a fine man.

Michael piped up, “I got an
A
on my arithmetic at school today, just like you said I would.”

“In that case, you deserve a reward.” She searched into her purse and pulled out a Hershey bar. “There.”

“Hey, what about me!” Temple yelled. “I got a
C.
”

“A
C
doesn’t deserve a candy bar. You get an
A
and we’ll see. What about you, Sam?”

“I got a
B.
”

“Well, you get half a candy bar, but don’t you boys eat them until after supper.”

The three ran off yelling, and Kat went to the kitchen, where Missouri Ann was fixing supper.

“That smells good, Mom. What is it?”

“It’s chicken potpie and some hot-water pastry, and we’re gonna have rice puddin’ for dessert. You look plumb tired.”

“I am a bit. Let me go change, and then I’ll help you.”

“There’s no need of that. I was cookin’ ’fore you were born. I reckon I can handle one more meal.”

“I know you can, but I want to help.”

“You help enough workin’ at that hospital and then helpin’ take care of these rascally boys.”

“How’s Dad today?”

Missouri Ann turned away from the stove and hesitated for a moment. “He’s still not feeling too great today.”

“I’m worried about him, Mom.”

“Well, there’s no sense in worrying. I’ve been talking to the good Lord, and He’s promised me that your pa’s gonna be just fine. And when Dr. Jesus says a man is gonna be all right, there’s no need to worry.”

“I wish I had your faith.”

“You’re pickin’ it up as you go along, just like all the rest of us.” She peeked in the oven to check on the potpie. “Oh, there’s a letter come for you. I put it on the table over there.”