Page 28 of Waiting for Devon
“Thank you,” the child replied in a serious, grown-up voice. Then her dark eyes grew round with fright, and she began to wheeze. “Oh, Mami! The bread! I lost the bread!”
“Shh,” Devon responded as she tried to calm the little girl. “I brought the bread to your mother.”
After a terrible coughing spasm, Téa grew quiet and still. Devon checked her temperature again. It had dropped to 100 degrees. She spoke softly to the child and had her giggling within a few minutes.
When Lincoln returned with the groceries, he astounded both Inez and Devon as he brought in bag after bag. There were sacks filled with hamburger, roasts, steaks of different cuts, pork chops, chicken, fish, and hot dogs. An abundance of apples, oranges, grapefruit, bananas, grapes, and plums spilled out of another bag. Soon the counter was filled with potatoes, celery, peppers, cucumbers, corn-on-the-cob, carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli. Boxes of dry goods were added to the array of food being sorted and put away.
Inez began to sob when Lincoln surprised Téa with a special treat worth more than gold…a popsicle. As she gazed in wonder at the various bottles of juice and gallons of milk, Inez said, “I don’t know how to thank you, Dr. Brooks. I can never repay this kindness.”
“You can repay me by keeping yourself and your daughter healthy,” Devon replied as she wiped away her own tears. “In fact, you can go grocery shopping whenever you’d like. I set up an account for you.”
“You’re too kind, too kind,” Inez sobbed.
News of the miracle happening in apartment332 spread through the building. Mothers carrying infants or holding toddlers by the hand begged Devon in either Spanish or English to examine their children. She couldn’t say no to any of them, and as a result, had to send Lincoln back to the hospital for more supplies as she treated several different types of infections and injuries. He also made two more trips to the grocery store.
When the flow of people finally ebbed, Devon rubbed her stiff neck and glanced at her watch. Her eyes grew wide with shock when she saw it was well past eight o’clock. She announced their departure, gave Inez a bottle of prenatal vitamins and promised she’d check on the small family the following day.
Lincoln invited Devon to sit in the front with him and smiled sheepishly at her as he drove toward the estate. “I have a confession to make, Dr. Brooks.”
“Oh?” she wondered and stifled a yawn. Lord, she felt alive. She hadn’t realized how useless she’d felt until tonight. In fact… She sat up a little straighter. An incredible idea took root.
“I didn’t use your credit card. Everything is being charged to Jasper Barrington.”
At first Devon gasped, then she laughed. “If you think that’s bad, Lincoln, wait until old JB hears what I’m going to ask him when we get home.”
As soon as the missing couple entered the house, a frantic Mrs. Peters hissed, “Where have both of you been all this time? You were expected home hours ago. Mr. Barrington is getting ready to call the National Guard. Come on,” she urged as she yanked Devon by the arm. “The whole family is waiting in the living room.” She opened one of the double doors and thrust Devon inside.
Reed’s gaze swungin Devon’s direction as she stumbled through the door. Gathering her composure, she faced the small group waiting for her. “I am so sorry for being late. Please forgive me if I have caused you any unnecessary worry.”
Unnecessary worry?Reed’s jaw clenched.
Jasper was speaking to the police department, but when he saw Devon, he said abruptly, “Never mind, Captain Angelo. Miss Brooks just arrived. Thank you for your time.”
Blair emitted a soft cry of relief and rushed to embrace Devon, but Shane’s face contorted with anger which replaced his initial concern. “Where the hell have you been? We’ve been worried sick for your safety. You can’t run around alone in Dallas. Especially now, since your picture has been plastered all across the nation.”
Reed remained silent while the knot of fear, which had grown and twisted around his gut as the hours passed with no word, now slowly dissipated. His pulse returned to normal, but his heart leaped with an overwhelming gladness when he saw her come through the door. Even so, he kept his face impassive when his eyes met hers, extinguishing the worry and the fear.
Addressing Shane, she retorted with a hint of defiance, “I wasn’trunning around aloneall over Dallas. In fact,darling, I was on my way home from your office when I saw a little girl collapse on a side street and I stopped to help.”
“Where?”
“Third Street.”
“Third Street? You could have been mugged or worse, Devon,” he chided.
“I saw a child in need of help. I didn’t consider what street she was on or the type of neighborhood. I’m glad I did, too, for she had an upper respiratory infection. She was out getting a loaf of bread for her pregnant mother. It…” She paused, swallowed, and glanced at Reed. “It was the only thing they were going to eat for the entire week.”
“Well, that explains where you’ve been for an hour. What about the rest of the time?”
Reed could sense Devon’s irritation with her fiancé, and she answered with false sweetness, “I’m about to explain that, honey. I had to go to Dallas General Hospital to get a medical bag in order to treat Téa Rodriguez. I stayed long enough to make sure she would be all right, and I also examined her mother, Inez. She’s due in two months, and I was worried about the lack of prenatal care. While I was there, I sent Lincoln to the grocery store to get plenty of food for them.”
“And?” Shane prompted. “What happened then?”
His brother’s impatience bothered Reed, and he wanted to slug him.
“Something I had no control over. Other needy families found out I was in the building and came to the apartment in a steady stream. I had no idea what time it was. Again, I apologize for any worry I may have caused.”
“You couldn’t have taken a minute to answer your damn cell phone? And what about Lincoln? He didn’t answer his, either.”
