Clouded Rainbow (22 page)

“Do you mean just a few hours ago or the day before?” she asked.

Det. Cleveland glanced at his watch and saw quarter past four in the morning.

“I mean the day before—about thirty-four hours ago,” the detective clarified.

“Uh. Let me see,” she muttered as she checked her records.

The manager watched on the sidelines, curious about the detective’s intentions.

“Yes, here they are,” she responded, grabbing the papers.

“Do you have a listing for Belkin?”

The name didn’t register with the manager or the hostess. She skimmed the list using her index finger.

“Yes, Belkin, party of two. Seven o’clock,” she read.

“Do you know who served them?”

“Yes. John. He’s right over there,” she responded.

Luckily for the detective, the waiter had begun a schedule change, which put him on during the early morning hours.

“What does this have to do with anything?” the manager asked.

Det. Cleveland ignored him, as he knew he was of no use anymore. The detective was focused on the waiter who had served the couple. He saw the server in the dining area and kept him in focus as he marched toward him, leaving the manager and hostess behind. As he walked into the tranquilly lit area, he slicked his drying hair back with his hands. There were only two couples dining. A man and woman in fashionable, yet borderline inappropriate, clubbing gear were seated at one table savoring their fresh Chicken Alfredo. The server named John took the order of an elegantly dressed couple. Det. Cleveland moved behind John as the couple looked at the slick man in a trench coat.

“I recommend the Italian dishes…” John added to his pitch.

“Excuse me,” Det. Cleveland interrupted.

John, curious, turned as the detective flashed his credentials. “Do you remember serving a man and woman approximately thirty three hours ago?”

“Thirty three hours ago. When was that?” John asked.

“The night before last. About seven p.m.,” Det. Cleveland explained. “The man was tall, had dark parted hair. She was wearing a black dress, had long dark hair.”

“Well, I had a lot of customers,” John said.

He had nearly a hundred guests on a good night and those descriptions could apply to many of them.

“Wine. They probably had wine. Lambrusco maybe,” Det. Cleveland added.

Then, a light bulb went off inside John’s mind. He remembered an attractive woman with a hint of feistiness in her expression as she ordered wine. She had a glimmer in her eyes when she looked at John, a hint that made him envious of the man sitting across from her. John remembered bringing them wine before their lasagna and spaghetti entrees.

“Oh yes, I remember them. They ordered Italian dishes.”

“Did you notice anything out of the ordinary? Did they say anything that stood out?”

John remembered the moment that still swirls inside his mind.

“Yeah. It was their anniversary. He got her a necklace. They looked happy together. In love,” John recollected with a smile.

Abruptly, John frowned as he wondered why this man of the law was inquiring about them.

“Why? What happened to them?” he asked.

Det. Cleveland grinned. “You just explained it all. Thank you.”

The detective dashed toward the door, leaving John with a blank expression.

“Thank you for your help,” Det. Cleveland said to the manager and hostess.

The liveliness in his movement was now vastly different from when he had entered. As he neared the glass doors, he took a moment to appreciate the calmness. Det. Cleveland knew that beyond that protective glass lay a much different world, a world consumed by a voracious rain and the site of his journey’s last leg.

22

Silence filled the nurses’ station on the recovery floor at Southern General Hospital. Jennifer was still on the computer as her other four colleagues prepared a cart for the morning medication run. Nurse Ann was somewhere on the floor, although the five nurses didn’t know exactly where she was. The nurses worked in the stillness as their soft shoes shuffled on the hard floor like feathers painting the ground. Even though their gentleness and grace had failed to generate noise, the faint sound of the tremendous rain mesmerized them. It was low and distant, but provided those out of its path with a sense of relief for the protection of a physical structure. Suddenly, a thunderous boom vibrated the building. Jennifer stopped and focused on the storm’s sensations. A flowerpot near her chattered on the counter, powerless to the thunder.

A ding from the elevator sounded, jarring Jennifer’s attention. Something about it sounded unusual. It sounded more prominent and rawer than normal like a shriek of terror. Jennifer watched the silver door, anticipating the person who filled its confined space. Then, it opened. Jennifer’s gaze fell on a frantic face covered by water-soaked hair. It was Carol.

Lois’ sister took in the openness on the recovery floor. The mess of the bustling entryway was the opposite of her new space. The incredible rain brought in more business for the hospital, a business that paradoxically didn’t want new clients. Carol had barely received a response from the flurrying first-floor information desk, and only after raising her voice did they direct her to the fifth floor. But now, Carol was in a much different world.

Jennifer stood up when she saw Carol.

“Uh, Lois Belkin. I’m her sister. Do you know where she is?” Carol asked frantically.

Her words roused the attention of the other four nurses. They all remained silent for a moment trying to digest not only the words, but Carol’s frenzied delivery. Jennifer began to gesture toward Lois’ room, but a voice cut her off, “Right this way, dear. I’m Nurse Ann.”

Nurse Ann emerged from the side hallway and gravitated toward Carol. She gestured for her to follow and shook Carol’s trembling hand on their way to the west wing. They moved quickly through the long hallway like water racing through a broken dike.

“Oh God, I just found out about her. She was just out for her anniversary. This wasn’t supposed to happen,” Carol quivered.

Nurse Ann put her hand on Carol’s back. The truth was out in the open, and Carol’s voyage to her sister’s side was almost over.

“I know this has all been very strange, but your sister is in good hands.”

Both turned the corner. While nearly fifty identical doors stood shut on both sides of the hallway, the sole door with two officers outside it drew Carol’s attention. She hoped their presence was for a different patient, but as Nurse Ann headed toward the door, Carol realized they were guarding the room that housed her sister.

“Why are
they
here?” Carol asked.

“It’s a long story.”

The two patrolmen sat up, curious about the new visitor. The men didn’t speak; they only watched. Nurse Ann pushed open the door. Carol paused between the two patrolmen like a commoner standing before a guarded queen. She was afraid to enter, terrified of confronting the condition of its occupant. Carol hoped to hear Lois’ familiar voice. However, Carol didn’t hear anything, only the eerie electronic beep of a beating heart. The heartbeat remained constant and unchanged, which further raised Carol’s level of anxiety. Then, as the group stood in silence, a muffled yet distinct sound revealed itself—the sound of pouring rain.

Nurse Ann held open the door as Carol widened her eyes to behold a sight that she could never have imagined. Her sister, the princess of the family, lay in the center of the tranquil room awaiting her prince. A cast and sling were positioned on her right arm resting on her side. Her other hand was positioned on top of the tight covers, lightly draped on her abdomen. Her hand moved faintly up and down as her lungs involuntarily filled with the cool, dry air. Carol gravitated without speech and without thought toward her sister.

“Oh, Lois,” she mumbled.

Carol placed her hand on Lois’ face. It was soft and warm, which puzzled Carol, but then she realized it probably felt that way because her own hand was cold. The constant beep echoed next to her ear as she watched her sister’s inanimate face starved of any outward life.

Nurse Ann watched on the side as the two sisters bonded. She looked at Carol’s hand petting her sister’s cheek. The added color to Lois’ face absorbed Nurse Ann, as the comatose woman seemed healthier and more alive than she had previously remembered. Then, she heard the sound of sobbing. It was much more intense than a normal cry as only a deep emotional burst could produce Carol’s gasping and rocking body. Nurse Ann walked over and placed a compassionate hand on Carol’s back, offering her touch as comfort.

“She arrived last night from the crash. I guess you heard that. Well, her condition is stable. Aside from a broken arm and some bumps and bruises, we are just waiting for her to wake up,” Nurse Ann explained.

“When will she wake up?” Carol asked through her tears.

“You can never tell with these things. Sometimes it takes days or weeks, but I do know that having family nearby helps significantly. They say that your sense of hearing still works even if you’re in a coma,” Nurse Ann said as she watched the sorrow in Carol’s face. “I’m sure now that her sister is here, she will have something to wake up for.”

Nurse Ann pushed a chair to the side of the bed. Carol sat down without taking her gaze from her sister. She leaned in close to kiss Lois’ forehead as her nostrils received a hint of an unforgettable aroma, her sister’s natural scent. It massaged Carol’s emotions and triggered a burst of memories to flow through her mind—Lois greeting her at the front door, her sister wearing a summer sundress during an afternoon shopping trip, the sight of Lois nuzzling Roger at a cocktail party. Just as quickly, the pictures regressed in time as Carol remembered running as a young girl through a summer night’s rain with the six-year-old Lois following closely. Carol felt like she was back at that night, the older sister leading the way through the water. Unexpectedly, the images vanished. Her sister’s laughter and full-of-life expression was now replaced with a stillness that she had only witnessed during Lois’ sleep. But this sleep was such that even the hand of a loved one could not wake. Carol wondered whether Lois was waiting to awaken for that one person who held the key to her heart, Roger. While Lois’ dilemma lay in front of her, Roger’s absence was even more frightening. Carol knew that Roger stood by Lois’ side the last time she had spoken to her sister, but now, only an empty space was next to her.

“Where is Roger? Is he here?” Carol asked.

“Well, he, uh…” Nurse Ann hesitated.

“What?”

Through the silence, Carol glanced back at the door where the two patrolmen were perched. A sudden chill traversed her body as Nurse Ann’s dithering could only mean something negative.

A flash of lightning bounced into the room, catching the women’s attention. Quickly, a crash of thunder chased it. Nurse Ann stared out the window as her voice echoed inside the hospital room, “A good police detective is on his way. He will fill you in.”

23

A boom of thunder ricocheted through the tall downtown skyscrapers. Rain blanketed the bustling city streets as traffic exponentially increased with the morning rush nearing. Full darkness still consumed the downtown with the barrier of clouds and rain giving the approaching sunrise a losing battle.