The Three Wise Guides by Terri Reid

Chapter One
    The alarm
clock buzzed loudly and Mary O’Reilly, snuggled under several layers of
blankets, blinked opened her eyes and automatically reached across the bed to
slap it off.   The sharp pain in her arm
quickly reminded her of the weeks of recuperation at Cook County Hospital and
nearly losing her life.   She closed her
eyes, the memory of the shooting was still vivid enough to cause her to tense
up and break into a cold sweat.
    Remembering
what her psychiatrist, Gracie Williams, had counseled, she took deep calming
breaths and tried to concentrate on the positive things in her life.   She pictured her family and her rapid
heartbeat slowed a little. Her parents, Margaret and Timothy O’Reilly had
always been there for her.   Their steady
example, constant love and unwavering support had helped her achieve all she
had in her life.   She knew that no matter
what she tried, they would have her back and would be there to applaud,
encourage or console her.  
    She smiled
as she pictured her three brothers.   As
the youngest and the only girl, she had made her life work thus far an exercise
in proving that she was just as capable as they were.   She had joined the police force not only
because she loved the work, but also to show her brothers that she had what it
took too.   She had bested them with her
grades in college and the Academy.    Her
shooting range scores were better and even her
hand-to-hand combat techniques were sharper, although their additional height
and weight gave them an advantage.
    Tom and Art,
the twins, made the competition fun.   They were always willing to involve her in a shenanigan, especially when
it would involve the other twin. The two young men had already developed a
reputation at the station for being practical jokers.
    When she thought
about her oldest brother, Sean, she unconsciously rubbed the bandage that covered
the still healing entry wound. Sean was on the stake out with her.   Sean had boldly run across the street to
protect a little girl who had inadvertently stepped into the middle of a drug
bust.   And because of his bravery, Sean
had immediately been made the target for the crazed crack head, Jose Martinez,
and his gun.   When she stepped out from
behind the protection of the squad car and between Sean and the gun, she hadn’t
hesitated for a moment. It was part of being a family.
    The reminder
of the stake out and the shooting caused her breath to catch and her anxiety to
rise, but she fought past it as she pushed the blankets aside.   Like so many other challenges in her life,
she knew she was going to overcome this residual fear.   All she had to do was tough it out and move
past it.
    “All I need
is to get back out there,” she whispered to herself as she walked to the
bathroom. “Once I’m back on the street, I’ll be just fine.”

Chapter Two
    The scent of
breakfast cooking and the sounds of her family arguing over the kitchen table
brought a wide smile to her face.   Dressed in her uniform, she hurried down the stairs and stopped at the
kitchen door.   Looking at her family
gathered around the table reminded her suddenly of the last time she saw them
gathered together.
    Somehow she
was in the air above them as they waited outside the operating room.   She remembered looking down on her motionless
body on the operating table and then somehow moving beyond the room to the
hall.   She watched them from the ceiling.
Her mother had been crying , her father’s large beefy
arms wrapped around her as she sobbed.   Her father had looked old, his face drawn and tired.   Even her brothers had been without their
constant good humor as they sat and watched the clock on the wall across from
the couch and chairs in intensive care.
    They had
been worried about her; they were still worried about her. But today was her
first day back on the job and she couldn’t let their fears compound her
own.   She needed to go back.   She needed to push past the