deposited the last of the crystals and returned to the front of the room.
“So we want to leave the crystals undisturbed,” she said. “And all of you should feel the effects of these amazing stones in no time. You’ll feel peppier, sleep better and be at peace with all.”
She paused as if applause was supposed to follow. She looked crestfallen in the silence and folded up her leather roll. Nurse Coldwell stepped over to salvage her pride.
“Thank you, Janine,” she said. “I’m sure we’ll all see wonderful results.”
She took the bewildered girl by the elbow and walked her back to the main entrance.
Dolly wished it were that easy. She wished there was a simple cure, an easy way for her to be the person she used to be all the time, not just during the good times like right now. She missed her house, though Andy took her home to it every week for a meal or a DVD movie. She missed her freedom, though she was free to come and go at the home as she wished when she wasn’t in some fugue state. She missed her friends, though they all came by regularly enough. Life just wasn’t the same, because even her best moments were spoiled worrying about the dark moments that might ambush her any second. If a few hunks of rock could cure that…
Well, if Janine’s visit was supposed to bring hope and enlightenment, it had instead become quite depressing. Dolly knew just the way to shake that off. She headed back to her room to finish the still life of daisies on the easel. She passed by Walking Bear on the way. She pointed to a crystal in the corner of the window.
“What do you say about these?” she asked him.
Walking Bear did not look at her. “Another crazy white woman.”
Walking Bear didn’t look even remotely Native American himself, and Dolly smiled at the irony.
Chapter Fifteen
It was a big day for visitors at Elysian Fields. Crystal Janine in the morning and an afternoon of entertainment.
Lyle Miller entered fronting a smile worthy of a TV pitchman. The owners had snapped up his offer of a free magic show for the residents, something they could boast about on next year’s brochure. “Acclaimed entertainers do personal shows” or some such crap. They thought they were using him to their own ends. Lyle allowed them their delusion.
Nurse Coldwell showed him to the day room where the staff had set up a long folding table draped with a white table cloth. He’d been specific about black and gritted his teeth as he ran his finger along the edge.
“You are scheduled for one-thirty,” she said without looking at him. “It will be after lunch so a few residents may get sleepy.”
“I will endeavor to keep them awake and entertained,” Lyle said.
“The owners should take care of this,” she fumed. “I’m a certified RN and I’ve spent half my day like some cruise ship activities director.”
Lyle put his hand on hers. She shot him a warning glare for violating her personal space. But as she looked into his sparkling eyes, the scowl on her face turned softer.
“I’m sure that my little diversion will cheer up both the residents and the staff,” Lyle said, “and make your job easier today.”
Nurse Coldwell blushed just a bit and turned away in unaccustomed embarrassment. Lyle knew that little flirtatious foray would keep her at arm’s length for the day. The little bulldog probably hadn’t been hit on since high school, even by women.
Lyle had fifteen minutes until show time. Several residents already sat in the day room, but the drool-to-patient ratio said they weren’t paying attention and wouldn’t start when the show commenced. They weren’t the ones he sensed here, the ones with the mighty whapnas .
He laid out a deck of cards, a red rubber ball and black plastic wand with as much magical power as a block of concrete. Table magic. The cheapest, oldest, stupidest stagecraft in the world. The whole idea of doing it made him ill. But today the ends justified the
“So we want to leave the crystals undisturbed,” she said. “And all of you should feel the effects of these amazing stones in no time. You’ll feel peppier, sleep better and be at peace with all.”
She paused as if applause was supposed to follow. She looked crestfallen in the silence and folded up her leather roll. Nurse Coldwell stepped over to salvage her pride.
“Thank you, Janine,” she said. “I’m sure we’ll all see wonderful results.”
She took the bewildered girl by the elbow and walked her back to the main entrance.
Dolly wished it were that easy. She wished there was a simple cure, an easy way for her to be the person she used to be all the time, not just during the good times like right now. She missed her house, though Andy took her home to it every week for a meal or a DVD movie. She missed her freedom, though she was free to come and go at the home as she wished when she wasn’t in some fugue state. She missed her friends, though they all came by regularly enough. Life just wasn’t the same, because even her best moments were spoiled worrying about the dark moments that might ambush her any second. If a few hunks of rock could cure that…
Well, if Janine’s visit was supposed to bring hope and enlightenment, it had instead become quite depressing. Dolly knew just the way to shake that off. She headed back to her room to finish the still life of daisies on the easel. She passed by Walking Bear on the way. She pointed to a crystal in the corner of the window.
“What do you say about these?” she asked him.
Walking Bear did not look at her. “Another crazy white woman.”
Walking Bear didn’t look even remotely Native American himself, and Dolly smiled at the irony.
Chapter Fifteen
It was a big day for visitors at Elysian Fields. Crystal Janine in the morning and an afternoon of entertainment.
Lyle Miller entered fronting a smile worthy of a TV pitchman. The owners had snapped up his offer of a free magic show for the residents, something they could boast about on next year’s brochure. “Acclaimed entertainers do personal shows” or some such crap. They thought they were using him to their own ends. Lyle allowed them their delusion.
Nurse Coldwell showed him to the day room where the staff had set up a long folding table draped with a white table cloth. He’d been specific about black and gritted his teeth as he ran his finger along the edge.
“You are scheduled for one-thirty,” she said without looking at him. “It will be after lunch so a few residents may get sleepy.”
“I will endeavor to keep them awake and entertained,” Lyle said.
“The owners should take care of this,” she fumed. “I’m a certified RN and I’ve spent half my day like some cruise ship activities director.”
Lyle put his hand on hers. She shot him a warning glare for violating her personal space. But as she looked into his sparkling eyes, the scowl on her face turned softer.
“I’m sure that my little diversion will cheer up both the residents and the staff,” Lyle said, “and make your job easier today.”
Nurse Coldwell blushed just a bit and turned away in unaccustomed embarrassment. Lyle knew that little flirtatious foray would keep her at arm’s length for the day. The little bulldog probably hadn’t been hit on since high school, even by women.
Lyle had fifteen minutes until show time. Several residents already sat in the day room, but the drool-to-patient ratio said they weren’t paying attention and wouldn’t start when the show commenced. They weren’t the ones he sensed here, the ones with the mighty whapnas .
He laid out a deck of cards, a red rubber ball and black plastic wand with as much magical power as a block of concrete. Table magic. The cheapest, oldest, stupidest stagecraft in the world. The whole idea of doing it made him ill. But today the ends justified the
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