Heather took a seat across from him. “Yes, we do Michael; there was a man, and he ...”
“Evelyn is sick.”
Heather could see the devastation on his face and the worried look in his eyes. “How long?”
“I’m not sure ... I went to take her breakfast, and when I woke her, she was running a fever and covered in sweat.”
With those words, Heather rushed upstairs toward Evelyn’s room with Michael following closely behind. With a gentle knock, she pushed the door open and grabbed the temporal thermometer before situating herself on the edge of the girl’s bed.”
“I didn’t know what to do, so I went looking for you. Linda is gone this week helping watch the Bradbury kids while their parents are gone.” He raked his hand through his hair.
Heather passed the instrument across Evelyn’s forehead before glancing at the display to examine the results. “Ninety-nine degrees.”
“Is that high?” Heather watched the muscles in Michael’s jaw clench tightly together.
“Well, it’s not usually considered a high fever, but—”
“It’s high with her weak immune system,” Michael cut her off.
“Exactly what I was thinking,” Heather replied as she placed her hand on his arm. She gave him a reassuring smile before stripping the blankets from Evelyn’s bed.
“I'm going to get her medication. Can you change her into something cooler?” Michael's voice wavered with concern.
“Absolutely.” Without hesitation, she gently shook the girl’s arm. “Evelyn, it’s Heather. How are you feeling, sweetie?”
She hurried over to a dresser and began searching for something cooler for Evelyn to wear as the girl slowly stirred. “I don’t feel good, Heather.” Evelyn’s eyes remained closed.
Even in her weakened condition, Evelyn stubbornly insisted on changing her clothes by herself. She tried to remove her top as Heather rummaged through the dresser. But she only peeled it halfway off before a heavy sigh escaped her lips, and she gave up, her arms awkwardly tangled in the sleeves. As Heather returned to her bed with a new set of pajamas, Evelyn could see moisture glistening around the nurse’s eyes.
“Oh, sweetie, let me help you.” Heather gently freed Evelyn from the tangled mess and had just finished dressing the girl when Michael returned.
“What can I do to help, Miss Parks?” Michael looked at her with helpless eyes. “I mean, if there's anything ... anything at all.” Heather stopped and looked at him. She knew he needed something to distract his worries.
“Grab me the basin under the sink and fill it with cool water. Then grab me a clean rag. We’ll try to cool her off that way.”
Michael shook his head and raced out of the room to get what she had requested. Evelyn’s body began to shiver uncontrollably, and Heather knew her fever was rising.
Mr. Robbins kept the basin steady as he barged into the room and hurried over to Evelyn’s bed. He set the tub down near the foot of the bed, and the two went to work dabbing her face and body with the cool water. After several minutes, they sat next to Evelyn with anxious anticipation before repeating the routine several more times until her body stopped shivering.
After an hour had passed, Evelyn’s fever began to break, and the exhausted pair decided to take a break and eat lunch. Michael went downstairs and asked Miss Jamie to prepare a quick meal for them and set it in the hall outside Evelyn’s room when she was done. He didn’t want to be far from Evelyn and figured it would be the perfect solution to satisfy their pangs of hunger while they relaxed and shared what was on their minds.
Heather had found out about the sale of the chapel, and he knew she would be grilling him with questions. A year ago, he had felt very strongly about removing the church. But after meeting Heather, his perspective changed, and he began having second thoughts about the sale. She had shown him the importance of it and what it meant for people in the community, and now he wasn’t sure he had the heart to follow through with the transaction. But too many wheels had been set into motion, and he wasn’t sure he could do anything to stop the sale.
He showered quickly and put on a pair of shorts and a plain T-shirt. He searched through the storage room and found a folding wood table that would hold their food. He set it up in the foyer and sat in the large wingchair as he waited patiently for Heather. His mind raced with answers, answers to questions he knew she would ask. Michael didn’t want anything to place a wedge into their growing relationship, and he had hoped she wouldn’t find out about the sale of the chapel. But now the pastor had let the cat of the bag, and the strength of their friendship was about to be tested.
Heather kept her lips pressed tightly together as she gathered some clothes to take a shower. She felt both anxiety and anger. Anger at Michael for being the mastermind behind the sale of the chapel and anxiety about Evelyn’s health. It had been twenty-four hours since their visit to the theme park, and now she was sick. While she wasn’t completely sure, she was willing to bet Evelyn had caught it from the boy coughing behind them. But she could have caught it from anywhere in the park. Whatever the reason, Heather knew she had to keep a watchful eye on the girl.
Heather showered and dressed in a simple pink nightgown and black bathrobe. She made her way back toward Evelyn’s room and noticed Michael sitting in a chair in the hallway. Her eyes drifted to the tray of food on the table, and her lips turned up into a smile. He knew they would be hungry after caring for Evelyn, and he was thoughtful enough to have food brought up for them. Her heart softened at his act of kindness as she walked toward the foyer and took a seat in the chair opposite him. Heather’s gaze bounced around the room, except at him.
Michael could feel uneasiness grow inside his stomach. He couldn’t help feeling anxious about how it would all play out. He had worked so hard to deepen their relationship, and he didn’t want their discussion to end on a bad note. After thirty seconds of awkward silence, he coughed and finally began to speak.
“I know you’re upset Heather ... about the church thing ... I started that project long before you began staying here. When I realized how much God and the church meant to you, I tried breaking the contract. But it was too late. I’ve been trying to stall the transaction for months now, trying to find any way to discourage the buyer from following through ... but someone started digging around in the city records and brought the land issue to the attention of City Hall. It wasn’t me, I promise.” He held up a hand as if he were taking an oath and held his breath as he waited for her reply.
Heather continued staring at the plate in front of her as she used a fork to play with her food. “I believe you, Michael, but there has to be something we can do. Pastor Avery can’t conduct a service in a small back room, and I don’t blame him. There’s only room for about a third of the congregation and that would mean he would lose the rest of the church. It breaks my heart to see how he’s put so much time and sweat into building that church only to see it all go down the drain.” Her face grew grim as she spoke.
It seemed the sale would break not only the pastor’s heart, but hers as well. Michael could almost hear her words echo in the back of his mind. It was her special place. For him, the sale was just another business transaction, another pot of gold to add to his growing portfolio of wealth. When he started the drive to eliminate the chapel from Crystal Cove, he had pushed aside the tiny voice that begged him not to follow through. He didn’t know if it was the Holy Spirit calling out to him, or whether he felt guilty for getting even with God, but it didn’t matter. He had made up his mind to rid the small community of any reminder that a God existed.
But now things were different. Heather was here, and what she had said to him when she was attacked had made a lasting impression. Her words were like a soothing balm to his soul, and he was no longer angry at God, just confused with everything that he was going through in life.
“I’ll see what else I can do, Heather. I’ll talk to the mayor about the land and try to work something out. I haven’t called on a favor for helping bail him out of a real estate mess ten years ago. Maybe this might be the time.” His lips turned up into a smile. “I’m really sorry about all this.”
Heather could tell by the look in Michael’s eyes that he was being sincere. It seemed with each passing day she knew him that the stiff business personality was slowly fading into a kinder and more understanding one.
She returned a shy grin. “I think I should check on Evelyn and see how she’s doing.” She gained her feet and quietly slipped into the girl’s room with Michael right behind her. She stood next to the bed and leaned over to watch the rise and fall of Evelyn’s chest as she remained sound asleep.
“She seems to be resting now. That’s a good sign, isn’t’ it?” Michael whispered to her. Heather nodded and drew her hand toward the door. They both exited the room and returned to the foyer.
“We’ll have to give the medicine some time to work. She seems to be doing better, so hopefully the fever will break. I’ll stay with her for the rest of the day and make sure she’s okay.”
Michael rested a hand on her shoulder. “Thanks for taking such good care of her. I’m ... I mean ... we’re so glad you came to take care of her. You’re the first nurse who’s cared so much about her, and Evelyn really looks up to you.”
Heather gave him a smile. “You’re welcome. Evelyn is a good kid. She deserves the opportunity just like any other child, to live a full and normal life, and I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure that happens. You don’t have to thank me, Mr. Robbins; I’m just doing my job.”
“Well, you’re doing a fine job at it, and we all thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”
His words warmed her heart.
“I’ll be in my study doing some work, so just let me know if there’s anything you need.” He turned to head downstairs.
“I will, Mr. Robbins.” Her voice trailed after him as she watched him disappear downstairs. She followed the hall back down to her room and began tidying up the mess she had left on the bathroom counter earlier in the morning. Methodically, she started putting things back in their place, reorganizing everything just like she did for all her patients. She spent the rest of the day in Evelyn’s room, keeping her head cool with a damp washcloth, feeding her dinner, and reading her stories until it was the girl’s bedtime. By the end of the evening, Evelyn’s fever had dropped below one hundred, and Heather breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed Evelyn’s body was capable of fighting the infection, and she hoped the fever would break by the next morning. After saying a good night prayer with the girl, Heather returned to her room and collapsed onto her bed for the rest of the night.