Page 67 of In the Arms of a Hero

“That’s an excellent suggestion,“ Belle agreed.

Belinda nodded, and the three women walked into the bedroom and shut the door behind them. Turning, she faced the two nurses. “I assume you want to look at the wound to see how it’s healing?”

“Yes. But first, I have some information we need to go over.”

“Absolutely. If you don’t mind sitting on the bed,” Belinda said.

Karen laughed and shook her head. “That’s fine.”

For the next few minutes, they reviewed the paperwork for home healthcare, and Karen explained what she would be doing. “To start with, I will be coming by twice a week to check on your wound, answer any questions you have, and make sure you’re healthy.”

They went through her basic needs for daily living, and she explained how she could shower and wash her hair with Aaron’s help. They then reviewed her medication, went over her list of symptoms, and Karen took her blood pressure and other vital signs. Belle assisted Belinda in sliding out of her splint and shirt, allowing both nurses to look at her wound.

As Karen looked at her wound with such a concentrated expression, Belinda suddenly felt self-conscious. “I guess you don’t get a lot of bullet wounds to check on out here on the Eastern Shore, do you?”

Karen’s dark brown eyes moved from the wound over to stare at Belinda, her expression of concentration falling slightly. “Not here, no. But I saw my fair share of them.”

Belle spoke. “Karen served as an Army nurse.”

Belinda felt immediately contrite. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to be insensitive.”

Karen waved her hand dismissively. “You weren’t! It was years ago. I can definitely tell you that it was a very clean wound, and your surgeon did an excellent job stitching you up.The wound looks good, so please keep doing exactly what you’re doing.”

After a few more minutes, Belle helped her into her shirt and sling. Belinda walked them to the front door and said goodbye. She was now as comfortable with Karen as she was with Belle and looked forward to seeing her again.

She smiled at Arthur as he watched TV. He looked up and immediately asked, “Can I get you anything, sweetheart?”

She couldn’t help but smile at hearing the endearment fall from his lips. By getting to know Aaron’s father better, she understood where Aaron’s goodness came from. Shaking her head, she said, “No, please keep watching TV. I think I’ll use Aaron’s computer to get a little work done.”

“Is there anything I can help you with?” Hayley asked. She inclined her head down toward her laptop. “I finished one job and am not in the mood to start another, so I can easily help you do anything you want.”

“I thought about signing on and looking at my photographs. I understand that the police are looking, but I know my subjects and my settings so well. Maybe there’s something I’ll see that they could miss.”

“I don’t think that’s a bad idea at all. Do you want me to look, too?”

“We could look together?”

Hayley grinned and nodded. “That sounds perfect.”

Perusing the wedding photos, she had to admit having Hayley with her was fun. Even though they were looking for something untoward, she and Hayley were already plotting what would be the perfect pictures when she and Sam got married in a few weeks.

Hayley looked at her, worry in her eyes. “You know, I really want you as the photographer, but there’s no pressure. With what’s happened to you, I don’t want you traumatized, and Icertainly don’t want you to hurt yourself while trying to take pictures.”

“Nothing is going to keep me from taking the pictures when you get married to Sam. We’ll be inside the church, the reception is in their hall in the basement, and there’ll be plenty of deputies around to keep an eye on things when we take the outdoor photos.”

With that settled, the two women continued going through the pictures. She said goodbye when it was time for Hayley to pick up her children after school. Tired, she went back to the bedroom and took another nap. When she woke up, Arthur was talking to Ivy, who had shown up after work.

She laughed when she walked out. “I never know who’s going to be here when I get out of bed.”

“Arthur told me that you and Hayley were looking at pictures earlier. I take it you didn’t have any luck?” Ivy asked.

“We were only looking at the wedding photos, and there’s nothing. Nothing in the crowd. Nothing out on the bay. Nothing but beautiful wedding pictures.”

“Well, I’m sure that the detectives are going back further. I just don’t want you to stress yourself any more than you already are.”

Just then, Bess walked in carrying items from the bakery with Aaron and Andy on her heels.

Now, surrounded by her and Aaron’s families, she watched as they plated the food and settled, comfortable in each other’s company. It was the type of evening that she and Bess would’ve had with their parents when they were still local. She knew that eventually when her grandmother passed, her parents would probably come back to the shore. But for now, still surrounded by family and love, she couldn’t think of anything better.

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