Page 108 of The Last Straw

“My friend Jade rubbed my head and it quit hurting.”

Lola frowned. “Wait, who’s Jade? What are you—?” And then she looked at her husband and gasped. “Oh, my God! I had completely forgotten!” She cupped Bethie’s face. “What do you mean, she made it quit hurting? You never told us that.”

Bethie shrugged. “Well, she did. She made all the hurt go away.”

“I’m totally confused,” Welch said. “Who is this Jade? And why—”

“Wait. I’ll show you,” Bud said and began searching the photo gallery on his phone for the video he’d taken that day they’d gone in for burgers. When he found it, he handed his phone to Welch. “We were in Stackburgers. Just hit Play.”

Welch recognized the restaurant, and then he saw Bethie standing by a table where a man and woman were sitting. The woman was bald, like Bethie, and when she leaned over and let Bethie touch her head, his heart melted. But it wasn’t until he saw the woman cup her hand on Bethie’s head and close her eyes, that he realized what the Franklins were getting at.

“You aren’t trying to make me believe that some woman just laid hands on Bethie and healed her? In Stackburgers? Come on, now.”

“That’s not just some woman,” Lola said. “That’s Jade Wyrick. Remember? She did a live press conference a few months back revealing everything about the people who’d created her by manipulating her DNA. She said they killed the woman that gave birth to her to get her back, and the revelations were horrific and endless. After numerous attempts to kill her, they shot down the helicopter she was piloting and Charlie Dodge found her. After she healed, she put herself on public display and destroyed her personal life just to take down those people, resulting in the closure of hundreds and hundreds of illegal laboratories, and a worldwide human trafficking ring. It blew a hole the size of the Grand Canyon in global illegal activities. It was all over the news for weeks.”

Welch just kept staring at the video. “And that’s her?”

“Yes,” Lola said. “And she was the sweetest thing to Bethie. Our baby had just made a mess at the table, and we were cleaning it up and didn’t realize Bethie had slipped away. We had a moment of panic until we saw her.” Lola pointed at the couple in the video. “That’s Charlie Dodge. And that’s Wyrick. Everyone in the room knew it was them when they came in.”

Welch looked at Bethie and then stroked his finger down the side of her cheek.

“What made you go up and talk to that woman?” he asked.

Bethie patted her head. “Because she was so pretty...and she was just like me. She let me touch her head. She said her hair can’t grow back. But she said mine would, and then she touched my head and her hand was warm, and then it got hot, but the pain in my head went away.”

Welch shrugged. “I have no scientific explanation for any of this. And this video is all you have. So however it happened, and whoever set it in motion, right now Bethie is as healthy as the day she was born. Go home. Live life. And if the need arises, you know what to look for, and you know where I am. God bless,” he said and started to walk out of the room, and then stopped. “Hey, Bud, would you do me a favor?”

“Absolutely, Doc.”

“You have my cell number. Would you send me a copy of that video? I think I’m going to need it.”

Bud smiled. “Consider it done.”

Doctor Welch left the office, and a few moments later his nurse came back and escorted them to the outer office.

As they were leaving the building, Bethie looked up at her mother.

“Are we still going to get ice cream?”

Bud swung her up into his arms. “Honey, we’re going to eat ice cream today, and tomorrow, and every day we want some, forever. Okay?”

Bethie giggled. “Okay!”

“This is a miracle,” Lola said. “That woman is a gift from God.”

Wyrick was waiting in line to pick up a grocery order when she got a call from Charlie.

“Yes?”

“Are you okay?”

She frowned.

“Yes. I’m at Whole Foods, waiting to pick up our order.”

“There is a situation. As soon as you get it, come home.”

Her heart sank.

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