Escaping the Past

“Oh, you!” Lou growled as she sat forward and quickly remembered the events that had just transpired. “Your mom…”

“Is waiting to see us, I’m sure. Feel up to it?” he asked gently. His voice was soft and his gaze wary.

“Absolutely. Can I go, too? Or do you want some time alone with her?” She lifted herself from his lap and stood in front of him. She brushed her hair from her face. His only response was to take her by the hand and go through the double doors leading to the elevator and then the ICU. The nurse pointed to a curtained area and they both poked their heads around the corner.

Brody walked to the right side of the bed while Lou walked to the left. Mrs. Wester was huddled amid the covers, her face as white as the sheets around her. Some of the blue tint had receded since the scare in the ambulance, so she looked more like herself. She woke briefly when Lou took one hand and Brody took the other. Her eyes opened slowly.

“Hey. My two favorite people,” Mrs. Wester said softly.

“How are you feeling?” Lou asked quietly, still holding her hand.

“With my fingers. How about you?”

Brody chuckled softly. “I see you’re feeling better.”

“I’ll be back up and about in no time, I’m sure.” Her determined statement didn’t quite reach her eyes. “You two should go home and get some rest.”

“We will. We just wanted to say goodnight, Mom.”

“Goodnight, son. ‘Night, Lou,” she muttered, her eyes closing as she spoke.

Brody released her hand and checked the IV bag that was pumping into his mother’s frail arm. “What’s that?”

Lou asked.

“This one is a Lasix drip to help with fluid buildup and allow the heart to pump more normally. The other one is dextrose, saline, and potassium. The Lasix depletes potassium in the body so you have to add it back in.” Lou looked at him with what must have been a blank look on her face. He groaned and said, “So, this one is sugar, water, and something like bananas. Make sense?”

“Clear as mud, Doc,” she mumbled. “Will she improve with this?”

“She’ll improve for a while.” His voice was soft as he bent over the bed and brushed the hair from his mother’s forehead and then kissed her gently. “But not forever.”

Lou raised Mrs. Wester’s hand to her lips and kissed it, then placed the hand back on the covers.

“Ready to go home?” Brody asked.

“Whenever you are,” Lou replied.

Lou and Brody walked through the sliding doors and toward the parking lot. The pavement was blackened and damp with rain. Lou’s shoes made slapping sounds as she walked toward the car.

“Mary? Mary Smith? Is that you, child?” Ssomeone called from across the parking lot and Lou heard quick footfalls approaching. A hand with skinny fingers clutched her arm. Lou turned and looked into a face that had been roughened by the hands of time. Her heartbeat quickened.

“I’m sorry. Do I know you?” Lou’s tongue nearly refused to work.

“Mary Lou, it’s me, Mrs. Downy. I lived next door to your family when you lived on Broad Street. That must have been about eight years ago.”

Lou raised her nose a few inches and she assumed a rigid pose. “I’m sorry but you must be thinking of someone else.” She removed the older woman’s hand from her arm and turned to walk away.

Mrs. Downy said softly, “I’m sorry. I had you mistaken for someone I used to know.” She said something more, but Lou didn’t hear the words, because she was already in the Jeep with the door closed, sweat beading her forehead.

Brody walked over to the driver’s si

de door and motioned for Lou to move over. She hesitated briefly and then slid across to the passenger’s seat.

Brody slid into the driver’s seat and held out his hand for the keys. “Are you okay? You’re not going to faint on me again, are you?” he asked, backing out of the parking space.

“No! Of course not. Once in a lifetime is plenty.” She’d never live it down if she did it more than once.

Brody raised a hand in mock surrender. “Hey, I’ll take any excuse I can get to have a woman sprawled across my lap.” His attempt at levity eased some of the tension that hung in the air like a wet blanket.