32

Early the next afternoon, Hayley completed her fifth circuit of the hospital’s hallways and headed back to the lounge where Laureen and Trevor waited. Franklin had been wheeled into surgery two hours ago, and according to Dr. Sharma, he wouldn’t be out for at least another four hours. If everything went well. Please, God…

Good thing Trevor had spent the night at the farm so he could drive them in this morning. No way she could have handled driving into the city after tossing and turning all night. Between concern for Trevor’s parents and knowing he was two rooms away, sleep had refused to come.

Hayley’s steps slowed as she neared the door to the cardiac unit lounge. She didn’t want her nervousness to upset Laureen, but the hallways reminded Hayley too much of her own hospital stays. If only she hadn’t checked online information about coronary bypass surgery. Her imagination had grabbed details of the brutal yet delicate surgery and created a gruesome merry-go-round of “what-ifs.” At the door, Hayley peeked through the window.

Laureen’s head lay on Trevor’s shoulder. Both had their eyes closed. They could be sleeping, resting, or praying, none of which Hayley wanted to interrupt. She pivoted—and came face to face with Dave and Lydia Harris.

“Pastor Dave, Lydia, thank you for coming.” She fell into Lydia’s embrace, while Dave patted her back.

“We came as soon as we could,” Dave said. “Thank you for letting us know.”

Hayley gave Lydia one more squeeze and stepped back. “I’m sure Laureen would have phoned you, but the stress has exhausted her. I’m worried about her.”

Lydia slid her arm around Hayley’s waist and headed toward the lounge door. “Let’s see if we can convince her to come to our house for a while. Have any of you had lunch? I thought you might like some homemade food, so I made beef stew—enough for several families, according to my husband. It’s good comfort food.”

“I didn’t even realize it was lunchtime. My stomach’s so tied in knots, I skipped breakfast. Laureen didn’t eat much this morning, either.”

Dave opened the door. “And Franklin’s not expected to be out of surgery for a while yet?”

Hayley paused outside the room. “Not for at least four hours. But Laureen doesn’t want to go back to the farm. She needs to stay close.”

Lydia released her and entered the room.

Laureen and Trevor both looked up, and Laureen’s weary expression disappeared under a broad smile.

“Lydia and Dave. My, what a blessing to see you today. Come, have a seat. Looks like we’ll be here quite a while.”

Lydia leaned down and wrapped Laureen in a gentle hug, while Dave shook Trevor’s hand. “Good to see you again, Trevor. You have a lovely young woman and a proud mama here. I’ve heard good things about you from both of them.”

“Thank you, sir. Hayley told me what a difference you’ve made in her life.”

Hayley’s tension drained, leaving her weak—and hungry. “Lydia invited us to their house for lunch. Beef stew.”

Trevor’s eyebrows lifted, and he looked at his mother. “Sounds good to me. What do you think, Mom? It’s not far from here, right?”

“Fifteen minutes, tops,” Dave said.

Laureen rubbed her mouth with her fingertips. “That sounds lovely. I don’t know if I can eat, but I’m sure my son could make up for my lack of appetite.”

At that moment, Trevor’s stomach rumbled, and Hayley hid a grin behind her hand. His face turned a sweet shade of cotton candy pink. Hmm…maybe she was hungrier than she’d thought.

Laureen chuckled for the first time that day. “That settles it. We’ll come. Thank you, dear friends. I’ll let the nurse at the desk know where we’ll be. Just in case.”

~*~

Hayley helped Lydia clear the table after lunch while the coffee maker burbled. “That was delicious, Lydia.”

Trevor leaned his chair back and rubbed his belly. “Sure was. Really hit the spot.”

Laureen handed her empty bowl to Lydia. “Thank you, my friend. I didn’t expect to be able to eat much, but the stew was so good…”

Dave pushed his chair back. “I’ll get the coffee and then I’m taking charge of the cleanup. Feel free to take your coffees into the living room.”

Hayley opened her mouth to protest, but Dave waggled his finger. “No, you’ve done enough. My turn.”

A few minutes later, Trevor helped his mother ease onto the couch and settled beside her. Hayley scooted close to his other side, while Lydia claimed the mission-style rocker.

Laureen leaned her head back and closed her eyes. “Oh, my, this feels good. The chairs in the waiting room aren’t bad, for the first hour or so.” Then she straightened, and her hand covered her heart. “I wonder how Franklin is doing.” She pulled out her phone. “No word,” she said. “I guess that’s a good sign.”

“Yes, it is.” Lydia clasped her hands. “Dave and I have been praying ever since Hayley called, as I’m sure you have been all along.”

Laureen’s smile flashed and disappeared. “Thank you.”

Trevor’s mouth twisted, not much more than a spasm, but Hayley understood. She’d worried more than prayed. She’d bet Trevor had too. Prayer, for them, wasn’t the first line of defense yet. Unless Please, God. Please, God over and over counted.

Dave walked into the room, his large hands cradling a green mug. He lowered into the brown leather recliner. “I hope you know you’re welcome to stay here as long as you want. I know the farm is your home, but it’s quite a distance from the hospital. We have plenty of room, and our house is open to you.”

Laureen blinked several times, looked at Trevor and then Hayley. “What do you think?”

Trevor shrugged. “I don’t need a place. Mine is only ten minutes away. But I don’t have a guest room since Ryan’s living there. Thanks anyway. If you want to stay here, Mom, I’ll go get some of your stuff from the farm. Maybe Hayley could help me.”

Laureen leaned forward to meet Hayley’s eyes. “Would you stay here with me? I’d hate to leave you alone in that big, old house.”

Hayley smiled. “Of course. I’d love to.” She checked the time and nudged Trevor. “Maybe we should go now. We’ve got at least two more hours of waiting, and we could be back by then.”

Dave pulled the lever to raise the recliner’s footrest. “Sounds good. We older folks will wait here, pray, and try to relax.”

Lydia walked with them to the front door. “Before you go, I wanted to remind you of our Good Friday service tomorrow evening at seven, and invite you all to Daniel and Melody’s afterwards.” She addressed Trevor. “That’s Will Jamison’s mother and step-father. Hayley’s friend Will plays our main character, Barabbas.”

Trevor frowned, so Hayley answered. “I hope we can come—to both, but it depends on how Franklin is doing. Can we play it by ear?”

“Of course. OK, you kids drive safely, and we’ll see you in a bit.” Lydia stood in the open doorway as Hayley and Trevor descended the concrete stairs to the minivan.

Hayley walked to the passenger’s side but halted when she heard the distinct ring of Laureen’s cell phone.

Trevor froze, and all color drained from his face. His stricken gaze met Hayley’s. “Mom’s cell. Must be the hospital.” He whirled and dashed up the steps two at a time.

Hayley stood rooted to the spot. Please, God, please! After a couple of extra-long minutes, Trevor came back outside. His sheepish grin triggered a wave of relief that left Hayley weak in the knees. She climbed into the car and slumped against the seat back while Trevor got in the other side.

He took several deep breaths before turning the key.

Hayley stroked Trevor’s arm. “Not the hospital?”

“Nope. Mom’s doctor’s office. Wanted her to come in on Monday. She explained about Dad, said she’d get back to them.”

“Thank You, God.”

“For sure.” He paused. “But I wonder about Mom’s test results. Guess we’ll have to wait.”

Hayley couldn’t muster the energy for conversation, and it seemed Trevor felt the same. Silence reigned in the minivan until they’d turned off Highway 16 onto the grid road leading to the Hiebert farm.

Trevor turned slightly toward Hayley. “So who’s this Will Jamison guy? Anything I should know about?”

“He’s a friend. More of an acquaintance.” She paused. “Well, I did have a little crush on him a long time ago, but I knew he wasn’t the one for me. In fact, he married my friend—Look out!”

Trevor jerked the steering wheel and swerved around a white-tail deer standing in the middle of the road. Gravel spit and flew. “Man! That was close. Nice buck, though. Did you see those antlers?”

Hayley stared, inhaled a shaky breath. She spoke slowly and precisely, as though to a child. “No. I did not notice any antlers. I was too busy watching my life flash in front of my eyes.”

“Sorry. You OK now?”

“Yes, I guess so. Didn’t really need that today, though.”

Trevor let out a nervous chuckle. “Me, neither. But we didn’t hit it—a good thing. And we stayed on the road. Even better. God must be watching out for us.”

~*~

Two hours later, Trevor, Hayley and Laureen re-entered the cardiology waiting room. Laureen looked better, the lines around her mouth not as pronounced, so the break at the Harris home must have helped.

Hayley, however, couldn’t settle. The antiseptic odors and bright florescent lights triggered an edginess and tightened her nerves. She jumped up, paced the room, caught Laureen’s concerned scrutiny, and sat back down.

Trevor leaned over and rubbed the back of her neck. “Relax, sweetheart. Who’s in control here?”

Hayley dropped her chin to give him better access to the tense muscles at the base of her skull. “God.” His fingers found the right spot, and she moaned her gratitude. “Mm-mm, that’s good.” Don’t stop. Ever.

The door swung wide. Backlit by the hallway lights, a person wearing scrubs stood in the doorway for a moment. He walked into the room. Above a rumpled mask, tired eyes sought out Trevor’s mother. He crossed the room and sat beside Laureen.

Hayley forgot to breathe as she tried to read his expression.