Page 6 of Left Behind

Wiley frowned. “I’m so sorry. And this isn’t how I imagined introducing you to my family, but you already know my brothers. This is my mom, Shirley Pope. Mom, this is Linette Elgin. She was in the bank, and the first one I saw coming toward me after I was shot.”

Linette smiled at Shirley. “We’ve met. I was Sean’s nurse when he was shot.”

“Oh yes! I remember,” Shirley said. “And here you are again, helping another one of my sons. We are so grateful.”

“We’re the ones who are grateful,” Linette said. “He saved our lives.” Then she realized Wiley was still holding her hand, and gave it a squeeze before turning loose. “I should go. I just wanted to make sure you were okay before I went home. Take care of yourself.”

And then she was gone.

Wiley sighed. Other than the bank, this was the first time she’d spoken to him since their disastrous first date a year ago, and with family all over the place, he couldn’t say what he wanted to say.

And then a nurse came in with his release papers, followed by an orderly with a wheelchair, and he was on his way home.

***

Aaron’s wife, Dani, had been in Bowling Green when everything happened, and by the time Aaron found time to call her, she was already on her way home. She met him at the door when he got off work that evening, wrapped her arms around him, and held him without speaking until he could talk without choking up.

“Is he okay?” Dani asked.

“He will be. He has a big contusion on his chest and a cracked rib, and feels like shit.”

“Everyone’s saying he saved a lot of lives,” Dani said.

“It appears so, but they killed Mr. Trotter before he even knew it was happening.

“Why was Wiley even there?” Dani asked.

“He went in to tell them someone had damaged their ATM.”

She shuddered. “Go shower and get out of uniform. Supper is almost ready.”

Aaron tunneled his hands through her hair and kissed her. “I won’t be long,” he said, and took off up the hall as Dani went back to the kitchen to finish up their meal.

***

Linette’s plans for the day were over. She was on the verge of coming undone as she drove home, and as fate wasn’t through ruining the day, Cecily Michaels was right behind her, loaded down with grocery bags, when she got on the elevator.

Linette saw the look of horror on Cecily’s face and rolled her eyes.

“Get in. I’m not going to kill you. Someone tried to rob the bank. I was there when it happened, and I’m not in the mood to deal with you.”

Cecily entered the elevator in disbelief. “Is that your blood?”

“No. It’s Mr. Trotter’s. He’s dead,” Linette said.

Cecily blinked, and then said nothing more.

Linette didn’t know there were tears rolling down her face and wouldn’t have cared. The doors closed. She pressed the fourth-floor button and then leaned against the wall, exhausted emotionally and physically, as the car began to rise.

She got off on her floor without looking back and headed for her apartment, but was sobbing by the time she unlocked the door. The familiarity and the silence were a blessing as she headed straight for the laundry area and stripped. She tossed everything she’d been wearing into the washing machine, then made a beeline for the bathroom.

As a nurse, she considered herself capable of setting aside emotions to deal with emergencies, but today had been different. It was going to be a long time, if ever, before she forgot the sound of the bullet ripping through Trotter’s head, shattering bone and brain, then seeing Wiley lifted off his feet and falling backward from that shot in the chest.

She started to take a bath, and then opted for the shower instead and turned on the water. It ran cold before it got hot, but it didn’t matter. She just needed to be clean.

Before she went to bed that night, she scrolled through her contact list, glad she hadn’t deleted Wiley’s number after all, and sent him a text.

I know you’re hurting. Don’t be a tough guy. Take the pain pills and thank you again for what you did today. You saved a lot of people’s lives, including mine.

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