Ryan's Crossing Read online

  The mother looked at Brittney gratefully with tears in her eyes. She nodded. “Thank you,” she whispered.

  As Brittney carefully held lines and wires, Grace’s mother crawled into the bed and reached out for her daughter. “Come here, baby.”

  Brittney gently covered the two up with a blanket and then faded into the background with Ryan.

  Chapter 15

  RYAN GRATEFULLY SIPPED THE COFFEE Nicole brought him. Standing outside Grace’s room, he watched as Brittney said her final goodbyes. The sweet child died at 11:43pm, content in her mother’s arms.

  Brittney walked out, rubbing her eyes.

  “Want some coffee?” asked Ryan.

  “No,” said Brittney in a low, tremulous voice. “I just want to go home.”

  “Come on. I’m driving you home. No argument. I’ll come up again tomorrow and bring you back here to get your car. I want to stop in and see Josh anyway.”

  Brittney just nodded.

  Ryan put his arm around her and guided her to the locker room where they shed their isolation gear. Then he led her down to the parking lot and put her in his Mustang.

  At her condo, he walked her to the door. “Are you going to be okay tonight?”

  She sighed. “Yeah.”

  “Call me in the morning when you wake up.”

  “You need sleep too.”

  “B, this is non-negotiable. Call me.”

  “Okay. Thank you… for everything.”

  “You’re welcome. Good night.”

  Ryan watched her go in, then got back in his car and started for Crossing.

  Well, at least that situation’s resolved. Maybe not a great ending, but at least the stress of not knowing is over.

  Ryan thought about Brittney’s concern and care for Grace. She’s quite a woman. Smart, compassionate, quick-witted.

  Pictures of her came to Ryan’s mind without effort: curled up on the porch swing, laughing during the card game, talking with him in the kitchen. Thoughts of settling down in one place had never been in Ryan’s top priorities. But Brittney is worth considering. The thought almost surprised him. Is this part of Your plan, God?

  Ryan mulled over this for a few minutes. “This sure would be easier, God, if You spoke to me like You spoke to Gideon.”

  You have not because you ask not.

  The verse echoed through his mind. Ryan hesitated to ask God for much of anything. “You’re not Santa Claus.” And I don’t want to seem greedy.

  Ryan waivered until thoughts of his sister came to mind. Rachel-Amber seems so relaxed with her relationship with You, God. She talks about You like she really is Your daughter. I guess that’s a key difference. She’s accepted the gift of being Your child. I’m still stuck on the fact that You are God. Ryan sighed.

  “Okay, my dad wants to be someone I go to for advice so I’m guessing You do too. Can you please tell me what to do with my career? Should I stay in McWilliam? Or move to Portland? Or some third option I’m not considering right now? Like the clinic in Crossing. Is that a viable option?”

  Ryan waited for a moment to see if something would happen. “Well, I guess even Gideon had to wait until morning for his answer.”

  Ryan woke up in the morning to voices downstairs in the hardware store. He rolled over onto his back, rubbing his face. Ugh. I feel awful.

  A knock sounded on his door. “Yeah?”

  His Mom peeked in. “Ryan, honey. I’m sorry to wake you, but Daniel is downstairs with Eleni.”

  “Who?” Ryan opened one eye to look at his mom.

  “Sorry, honey. Daniel is the cook over at the diner, and Eleni is his four–year-old daughter.”

  Ryan closed both eyes again. “Okay. Cook and daughter. Got it.”

  “Eleni’s hurt, and there’s no one at the clinic yet. Word’s gotten out about what you did for Joshua the other day, and, well, he’s wondering if you’ll take a look.”

  Ryan groaned. “What time is it?”

  “About 9:20.”

  “That late? What time does this clinic of yours open?”

  “Usually 9:00, but sometimes the doctors don’t make it down until later. Especially around weekends.”

  Ryan searched through his groggy brain to remember what day it was. “It’s Monday, Mom.”

  “Yes.” From the tone she used, it was clear she wondered what difference that made.

  Is Monday really considered “near” a weekend rather than the start of the work week? He looked at her. Apparently so, since she’s still looking at me. “All right. Tell them I’ll be down in a minute.”

  “Thank you, honey.” She closed the door.

  “Mom!” said Ryan.

  “Yes?” She opened the door just a crack.

  “Can you get me some coffee, please? The stronger, the better.”

  “It’ll be waiting on you.”

  “Thanks,” muttered Ryan. He sat up in bed and ran his hands through his hair. What a way to start the day. He grabbed a pair of jeans and picked a clean t-shirt out of his suitcase, sliding it on as he walked down the hallway.

  “You look like morning sunshine,” said Thomas with a mischievous smirk.

  Ryan looked at his dad and raised one eyebrow. “Thanks. Coffee?”

  Thomas pointed to a cup on the counter. “How’s the child?”

  Ryan clenched his jaw. “She died about midnight.”

  Thomas grew solemn. “Sorry to hear that, son.”

  “Yeah. Me too.” Ryan looked into his coffee for a moment and then took a couple of gulps before heading downstairs. He saw a man and child standing near the back of the store with his mom.

  “Daniel, this is my son, Ryan.”

  Daniel shook Ryan’s hand firmly. “Thank you for seeing us. She fell this morning on an icy patch. As long as we don’t touch her arm, she’s fine, but she starts to cry whenever she has to use it.”

  “What’s her name again?” said Ryan.

  “Eleni,” said Daniel.

  Ryan crouched down to get eye level with the girl. “Hi, Eleni. How are you?”

  “Your hair is sticking up,” said Eleni with just a hint of disapproval in her voice.

  “Yeah, well, you got me out of bed this morning,” said Ryan as he ran a hand over his hair.

  “You slept late,” said Eleni.

  “I was trying to. How about you tell me what hurts.”

  “Nothing.”

  “Hmmm.” Ryan rubbed his unshaven chin. “What if you tell me what hurts if you move it.”

  “My arm.”

  “Can I take a look at it?”

  Eleni looked at her father. “It’s okay, beautiful one,” said Daniel. “He will help you.”

  “Tell you what. You let me see your arm, and when I’m all done, if your dad says it’s okay, we’ll take a walk over to the general store and get a candy bar.”

  Eleni’s eyes got big, and she looked at her dad again. He nodded at her, and she looked back at Ryan. “Okay.”

  Ryan looked at the girl’s arm, feeling around the ulna and radius. “Does that hurt at all?”

  She shook her head, but as he got closer to her elbow she began to cry. “Ow. Stop, please stop.”

  Ryan stopped touching but knew he needed to get a look at her elbow. “Eleni, I need to pull up your sweater so I can see your elbow, okay? Can you help me?”

  With Daniel’s help, they slowly pushed the sweater above Eleni’s elbow. Ryan looked closely and didn’t see anything wrong. He pushed a little on her arm closer to her shoulder. “Does it hurt up here at all?”

  She shook her head.

  Ryan took her hand in his and felt normal body temperatures in her fingers. “Now, that wasn’t too bad, was it?”

  She shook her head again.

  “What is your favorite toy?” Ryan gently held onto the child’s hand while he moved his other hand to her injured elbow.

  “I like my building blocks!”

  “Blocks, huh?” Without breaking eye contact, Ryan slowly pul
led her arm down, straightening the arm with her palm facing up. “Do you have wood blocks, or are they different colors?”

  “Oh, they are all kinds of different colors. But my favorite is the yell—”

  Ryan quickly bent her elbow, pushing her hand up to her shoulder and hearing the faint pop of the bone moving back into place.

  “You bent my—Daddy, he bent my arm.” Eleni stood there bending and straightening her arm with a look of amazement. “It doesn’t hurt.”

  Ryan grinned at her and stood.

  Daniel beamed at him. “Thank you. Thank you.”

  “It was just a small dislocation. She should be fine now, but keep an eye on it. The ligaments may allow it to slip out of place again, so try to get her to go easy on it for a couple weeks to give them a chance to fully heal. A sling for a couple days would be okay if she tends to be rough on it.”

  “Yes, okay. Thank you so much,” said Daniel.

  Eleni spoke up. “Mr. Ryan. You said if I let you look at my arm, then I get candy.”

  Ryan chuckled. “Yes, I did. Will you give me just a minute to put on shoes?”

  “If I give you two, will you comb your hair too?” said Eleni.

  Chapter 16

  BRITTNEY OPENED HER FRONT DOOR on the second knock.

  “Pizza?” said Ryan.

  “What kind?”

  “Romano’s pepperoni with a side of soda, chaperone included.” Ryan moved to the side slightly and thumbed back towards his Mustang. Keith was trying to get a bag of two liters out of the back floorboard without dropping his backpack from his shoulder.

  “Lucky guess on my favorite pizza?”

  “Nope, smart detective work. I called your mom.”

  Brittney raised her eyebrows. He called Mom? “I’m impressed,” she said.

  “Hey, there,” said Keith, finally walking up with the sodas.

  “Hey, Keith. Come on in, guys,” said Brittney. From the narrow entryway, she led the way around the corner to her kitchen, leaving Keith to close the door. She went to the cabinets to get plates and glasses. Don’t get excited or read anything into this, she thought. It’s just pizza. My favorite kind. And he called Mom. I’ve got to stop arguing with myself.

  “Did you take it slow this morning?” said Ryan. He sat the pizza box and a short stack of napkins on the counter.

  “As ordered,” said Brittney, placing the plates and cups next to the pizza. “What time did I call you? About 10:00? After that I took a long shower and have just been flipping through channels on the television since then.”

  “Now it’s my turn to be impressed,” said Ryan. “You actually followed instructions.”

  Pointing at him, she said, “Don’t count on it happening a lot. How about we pray before the pizza gets cold.”

  Keith volunteered to say a quick prayer, and then Ryan opened the box so everyone could grab a slice.

  “Ryan was a hero again this morning,” said Keith as he opened one of the sodas.

  “He was?” said Brittney, surprised.

  “You talk too much, Keith,” said Ryan as he opened another soda and poured it into a glass.

  “Eleni came in with a dislocated elbow,” said Keith as he reached into the box for a steaming slice of pizza. “He calmed her down and before she knew it, he popped it right back into place! It was actually pretty amazing.”

  “Really,” said Brittney, looking thoughtfully at Ryan. “Maybe you should open up an office in Crossing.”

  Ryan held his hands up in protest. “I’m not a doctor.”

  “Dad wants him to work at the clinic,” Keith confided to Brittney.

  Ryan in Crossing. The idea pleased her, which also disturbed her. “Maybe you should,” said Brittney as she poured herself a drink.

  “What part of ‘I’m not a doctor’ is everyone missing?” said Ryan in exasperation.

  “Being a paramedic is partway there,” said Brittney. “Plus, you seem to have a natural ability for it, and you were great with both Joshua and…” Brittney’s breath suddenly caught in her throat. She took a deep breath. She was not going to be able to continue if she looked at Ryan’s sympathetic eyes right now, so she focused on her drink. “You’ve been great with all the kids I’ve seen you with. Why not finish your bachelor’s and apply for med school?”

  “I don’t know,” said Ryan, helping himself to a second slice of pizza. “What am I going to do for income while I’m in med school? That’s quite a stretch, and not exactly something people do while working full time.”

  “True,” said Brittney, moving out of the way so that Keith could get a second slice, “but you have a lot of practical experience already that will make some of it easier. When do you have to be back in McWilliam?”

  “By the end of the week,” said Ryan as he chewed.

  “That stinks,” said Keith around a mouthful of pizza.

  “Yeah. Well, I’m back to work tomorrow,” said Brittney, biting into her own slice.

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” said Ryan as he squelched a burp.

  Brittney looked at him for a moment before dropping her gaze to her half-eaten pizza. “I don’t have a choice. This isn’t a situation where she was a close relative. I’ll be pushing it asking for time off to go to the funeral.”

  “What if they don’t let you go?” said Ryan.

  “Diane’s already said she’d cover for me. Worst case, I just switch shifts with her one day.” She reached for a napkin.

  Ryan nodded as he finished the last bite of his slice. After taking a drink, he said, “Whenever you’re ready, we can go get your car. While we’re there, I’m going to stop in and see Joshua.”

  “That sounds good. How about I go get my shoes while you two clean up.” She tossed her crumpled napkin at Ryan. “Trash is under the sink.”

  “Hey!” said Keith, working on his third slice.

  Brittney giggled and walked down the hallway.

  Ryan pulled up behind Brittney’s car. She slid out of the front seat and peered back inside to thank him for the ride.

  “We’ll go find a parking space and meet you at the locker room.” Ryan said.

  Brittney nodded. “Sounds good. I just want to grab my phone, and I’ll be right in.”

  She unlocked her car door, pulled her phone out of the center console, and checked for missed calls and voice mail. Only missed Mom’s call last night. Good. She slid her phone into her purse and made her way into the hospital.

  Well, God, what do I make of all his time at the hospital yesterday, not leaving when Gracie got bad? And what about the whole calling my mom to find out my favorite comfort food? I really need Your perspective on all this. I can’t think clearly when he’s around.

  Just as Brittney made her way toward the elevators, Keith’s backpack caught her eye. She turned to see Ryan and Keith standing in the entry talking to Stephanie. The woman pursued Pete relentlessly, and now she’s got Ryan cornered? Over my dead body!

  Brittney strode over to the trio and mischievously linked her arm into Ryan’s. If he was surprised, he didn’t give her any indication. “Hello, Stephanie.”

  Stephanie gave her a cool glance. “Brittney.”

  “You two know each other?” said Ryan.

  “You could say that,” said Brittney, choosing not to elaborate.

  “Yes. I didn’t realize you knew Ryan,” said Stephanie.

  “Oh, yes,” said Brittney. “We’ve been spending a lot of time together lately.” Brittney watched Stephanie’s eyes narrow slightly. Father, forgive me, but this blonde in her Armani pants and Jimmy Choo pumps can leave my family alone!

  “Well, isn’t that fortunate for you,” said Stephanie.

  “Yes, it is,” said Brittney brightly.“We just spent the weekend celebrating Peter’s wedding.”

  “Hmmm. Yes. Well, I must be going,” said Stephanie. She pulled a card from her purse and handed it to Ryan. “Perhaps we can meet another time,” she said in a warmer tone than she had used
with Brittney. She slipped a look at Brittney before walking off, leaving Brittney seething.

  As they made their way to the elevators, Keith burst out, “Wow! She did not like you, Brittney!”

  “What did I just walk away from?” asked a confused Ryan.

  Brittney looked at Ryan and then Keith. “It’s better if I keep my mouth shut. I have trouble finding anything nice to say about that woman.” She held out her hand, palm up. “Where’s that card?”

  Ryan held up the card. Brittney grabbed it and quickly ripped it into small pieces in a fine display of temper.

  Ryan raised an eyebrow. “Glad I wasn’t going to call her.”

  “Don’t even pretend,” said Brittney hotly. “That snooty—”

  “I thought you were going to keep your mouth shut?” said Ryan.

  Brittney inhaled deeply, immediately ashamed of her behavior. “I was. Am. Ugh. Sorry.”

  “And I’m guessing all this has something to do with Peter?” said Ryan.

  “Yeah, you could say that. She’s just looking for a handsome man to hang on when she goes out about town.”

  “Handsome, huh?” said Ryan. He waggled an eyebrow at Brittney.

  She looked at him and rolled her eyes. “Don’t make me sorry for saving you!”

  “I’m not sure ‘saving’ is the right word for what happened back there,” said Ryan, grinning.

  Brittney led the way into the locker room and showed Keith how to scrub and put on the isolation gown. Diane looked up as they arrived at the nurse’s station.

  “Brittney! What are you doing here?”

  “The kid that came in Saturday night, Joshua,” said Brittney. “He’s a friend of the family. How much do you know about his case?”

  “He’s looking pretty good so far. Looks like it’s ALL and caught pretty early.”

  “What’s that mean?” said Keith.

  “ALL is a type of leukemia,” said Ryan.

  “And it has an excellent remission rate,” said Brittney. “His chances of survival are very high.” Turning back to Diane, she said, “Can we see him?”

  “Sure, just keep it short,” said Diane. “I think both his parents are in there. End of the hall on the left.”