Page 18 of Operation: Discovery

“Victoria, those rolls we didn’t order are evidence.” The giant man who looked like an older version of Connor stepped into the room, his steps slowed by one stiff leg.

“Thank you, Teddy. I’d wondered if that delivery was wrong. I never order rolls two days in a row. Can you take them out to the officers?” Victoria turned back to Dee. “Oh, I’d bet you two haven’t met yet. This is Teddy.” She held up her hand to present the man.

He held up one finger beside his temple as if to touch a hat that wasn’t there. “Pleased to meet you. I can’t touch those rolls or I’ll contaminate evidence more than I already have. You’ll just have to deal with officers coming into your kitchen.”

Victoriaharumphedas if he were greatly putting her out, then laughed. “I’ll be fine. But this food is getting cold. Help me put it in the warmers.”

Teddy immediately jumped in to help Victoria get all the food packed up and into metal trays, then she slid the trays into what looked like a side-load cooler. When they finished, they immediately started cleaning the kitchen.

Since they seemed to have forgotten she was there, Dee left to find Rebecca and make sure she was alright after all that had happened, Dee was no longer hungry after what had happened. Rebecca might not want any help until the evening, but there had been no care directive when she’d arrived, so Rebecca would need to tell her exactly what she wanted and needed.

She headed down the hall to Rebecca’s room and knocked gently on the door. After a moment, she heard Rebecca call for her to come in. Dee pushed open the door and found Rebecca out of her wheelchair and seated on the sofa. She’d transferred herself using a special board that she must have brought with her because Dee hadn’t seen it earlier.

“I’m sorry I rushed out on you like that. I was worried about a friend of mine who was outside.”

Rebecca nodded and gave a brief smile. “I could tell. Is he alright? That was some noise.” She motioned for Dee to sit.

Instead of sitting on the sofa and forcing Rebecca to turn to see her, she chose a chair across from Rebecca to make conversing easier for both of them. “He is. In fact, he quickly shooed me away to see to the trouble in his own way.” She tried to control hurt from entering her voice. Yes, Brendon was a man and she had to remember that men usually didn’t like to be coddled and fussed over, but she was a caregiver by nature. If she could make someone’s day easier or better by doing something, she would.

“When you left, I just decided to bring my tray down here. I haven’t returned it yet, but I finished eating. That was the best meatloaf I’ve probably ever had. I kind of assumed buffet style health food would be … gross.” Rebecca laughed. “I’m glad to be wrong in this case.”

Dee was just glad Rebecca was talking and even laughing. She’d worried Rebecca would be so withdrawn she wouldn’t find Wayside helpful, especially after what could’ve been a traumatic event. “So, tell me about what you did with Sam all morning.”

Rebecca threaded her fingers together and closed her eyes. “I met him on the front porch where he helped me learn how to do the ramp more confidently. I didn’t think he’d have a clue how hard that is to do, but his advice was good.”

She closed her eyes and leaned back, then smiled. “He’s a very patient teacher. He even had this band he could attach to the back of my chair for spotting me. We practiced going up and down the ramp together until I could do it on my own. I don’t know where the strength came from, but I did it.” She slowly rubbed her arm muscles, giving herself a brief massage.

Dee clapped because she couldn’t hold in her excitement. “That’s wonderful! Since so many of those ramps are similar, that will open up more possibilities for you when you’re out and about.”

Rebecca slowly shook her head. “I don’t know if I’ll ever get there. Everything I’ve tried so far has been too hard. The world is made for people who walk, and I’ll never walk again.”

Dee had been told not to touch any guests, unless they asked for help. That wasn’t just a paraplegic rule, but a rule for all guests. With the trauma they sustained, even touch that might be seen by anyone else as good and positive, could be terrible and traumatic for them. But she still wanted to reach out and touch Rebecca’s hand to let her know she wasn’t alone.

“You might not. I don’t know what you’re capable of. You won’t even know what you’re eventually capable of with time and work. Since your injury happened so recently, you will probably surprise yourself with how much you can do. Let’s not rule out anything just yet.” She remembered telling Brendon much the same thing.

She’d been a new nurse back then, full of excitement to help people in any way she could. He’d taken her words to heart, and they’d found themselves quickly in love. But as quickly as the feeling had come, something came between them, and Brendon wouldn’t tell her what that was. She’d felt he cared, but something about her bothered him.

“Thank you. I guess I’ll need to live on your hope for a while. I’m not ready to be wrong yet. For now, I’m just going to get through today, then tomorrow, then the next day. When I’ve made it through and things start feeling easier, more natural, then I’ll try more. I worry, though. What if things are never easy?”

Dee wasn’t one to burst anyone’s bubble, no matter how futile hope seemed, so she wasn’t about to tell Rebecca that it may never be. The truth was, easy or hard depended on the person and their mindset. “I think you’re already on that road. Just learning to transfer yourself is difficult. You did it.” She smiled. “And you had the confidence to do it, knowing I might not come back for a while.”

Dee tucked her legs under her to get comfortable. “While I’m here, we should talk about what you want from me. Connor told me that I’m here to help you and only you. If we want me to take a hands-off approach, then that’s what I’ll do. If you want more help, then I’m here.”

Rebecca tilted her head for a second and seemed to stare at her chair next to the sofa. “I think a lot of my issues and my need is centered around the fact that the chair I have isn’t meant for use all the time. It’s meant for brief transport. It’s hard when I push on the seat. It’s difficult to go places that aren’t wide enough. When I sit in it for more than a few hours, my spine hurts where I can still feel it.”

As a nurse, she knew the issues that could arise from chairs like that. Bed sores and coccygeal pressure ulcers could occur along with other issues. Even a little padding and making sure Rebecca was able to get out of the chair and exercise could help if they couldn’t find a different chair for her.

“I’ll have to see what we can do. I can’t add anything to the chair to make it softer. That would make the chair less safe.”

Rebecca nodded. “I know. But when I’m not using it, I like to sit somewhere else. I don’t need to use the bathroom since I have no bladder, so I don’t need your help to use that, but I will need your help with that.” She pointed to the backpack style bag sitting at her side.

Dee gave her what she intended as a reassuring smile. “That’s part of my job. No need to worry or to be embarrassed. If you prefer sitting on the sofa, I’ll just make sure you have what you need within reach so you’re not transferring back and forth more than you need to. Transfers are the most common way for paraplegic patients to injure themselves, so let’s not force you to do them more than necessary. Pretty soon, though, you’ll be doing it so quickly you’ll forget it was once hard.”

Rebecca laughed. “I hope so. I look forward to gaining a new routine with this new life. I’m so grateful to be free, but in some ways, this doesn’t feel like freedom yet. Before I was taken from a grocery store parking lot, I was what I thought was a tough woman. I worked in a mechanic shop with lots of guys and held my own. I guess that was pride, thinking I could handle anything.”

“Not pride.” Dee didn’t want her to go down that road with anyone but Brendon. “You had no reason to think evil was lurking in a parking lot.” Just like she’d had no reason to think it was waiting at a blood drive.

“I just want to be seen as strong again. I guess that’s my goal.”

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