I won’t have to worry about hurting my father for my own selfish purposes, and the Lord will get all the glory.”
Marilee smiled. Logan Callahan was one terrific guy―one definitely worth waiting for!
* * *
Cynthia Matlock lay in the uncomfortable hospital bed, listening to the voices just outside her room. The door stood wide open. Did they think she was deaf? The two female attendants spoke about her as though she were already dead. “Pain-in-the-neck patient,” they both called her. Well, the two of them were the lousiest excuses for caregivers she’d ever seen!
“Water!” Cynthia croaked. “I need water!”
A good minute passed and she cried out again. Finally, one of the women stepped back into her room.
“What part of ‘no’ don’t you understand, Mrs. Matlock?” The dark-headed attendant had a bite in her voice. Her sharp, blue eyes sparked with one thing, and one thing only―irritation.
“I’m thirsty. Don’t you get it?”
The woman huffed. “You’ve got a G-tube which means everything that goes in, comes out. No water. Only ice chips.”
“I’m dying,” Cynthia lamented. “How can you deny a dying person water?”
“Doctor’s orders,” she stated callously before exiting the room.
Alone once more, the story of her life, Cynthia cursed her two daughters for admitting her to this atrocious place!
Chapter Five
After a tour of Arbor Springs Healthcare Center, one of Lakewood Enterprises’ facilities, Allie seated herself in the dining room across from Evan Jacobs, the company’s CEO.
“Can I get you a cup of coffee?” he offered, “and maybe a sweet roll or something?”
“No, thanks. I’m fine,” Allie fibbed. In truth, she wasn’t “fine” at all. Depression gripped her after seeing scores of elderly patients tied into wheelchairs and lined up in corridors on the second floor. Alzheimer’s patients wandered the hallways on third, and cancer patients moaned in agony on the fourth. The wards were dark and dreary, and Allie had noticed that most patients wore miserable expressions as though they had been handed a life sentence to be fulfilled at Arbor Springs. Allie found herself secretly hoping and praying that she’d never end up in one of these places.
You’re going to have to help me through this, Lord Jesus…
“Do you have any questions?”
Giving herself a mental shake, Allie looked across the table at the young man with reddish-brown hair and bright hazel eyes. Smartly dressed in a suit and tie and an easy smile, Evan appeared just as chipper now as when they’d entered Arbor Springs. Obviously, he’d gotten used to the sights and sounds of this facility. But would Allie ever grow accustomed to them?
She spoke up at last. “I don’t have any questions at the moment, but I’m sure that’ll change once I get my bearings.”
He smiled amicably. “Probably.” Pulling several pieces of paper from his attaché case, he slid them across the table to Allie. “Let me give you some particulars.”
“All right.” She scrutinized the documents in front of her.
“First, you should know that we have about a hundred and ten patients in this facility. There are three distinct classifications of patients―elderly, subacute, and long-term. Many of our long-term patients are terminally ill and, unfortunately most don’t have family members who can care for them or the income to hire someone and that’s why they’re here.”
“Why aren’t they in hospitals or hospices?” Allie had to ask.
“Too expensive. That’s the number one reason, but health insurance coverage might be an issue for them as well. Here at Arbor Springs, we accept government funding to help pay for some of our patients’ expenses.”
“I see…” Arbor Springs is a dumping zone.
“Now if you’ll look at that next piece of paper I gave you,” Evan continued, “you’ll see a copy of the state’s inspection. Officials came through several
Marilee smiled. Logan Callahan was one terrific guy―one definitely worth waiting for!
* * *
Cynthia Matlock lay in the uncomfortable hospital bed, listening to the voices just outside her room. The door stood wide open. Did they think she was deaf? The two female attendants spoke about her as though she were already dead. “Pain-in-the-neck patient,” they both called her. Well, the two of them were the lousiest excuses for caregivers she’d ever seen!
“Water!” Cynthia croaked. “I need water!”
A good minute passed and she cried out again. Finally, one of the women stepped back into her room.
“What part of ‘no’ don’t you understand, Mrs. Matlock?” The dark-headed attendant had a bite in her voice. Her sharp, blue eyes sparked with one thing, and one thing only―irritation.
“I’m thirsty. Don’t you get it?”
The woman huffed. “You’ve got a G-tube which means everything that goes in, comes out. No water. Only ice chips.”
“I’m dying,” Cynthia lamented. “How can you deny a dying person water?”
“Doctor’s orders,” she stated callously before exiting the room.
Alone once more, the story of her life, Cynthia cursed her two daughters for admitting her to this atrocious place!
Chapter Five
After a tour of Arbor Springs Healthcare Center, one of Lakewood Enterprises’ facilities, Allie seated herself in the dining room across from Evan Jacobs, the company’s CEO.
“Can I get you a cup of coffee?” he offered, “and maybe a sweet roll or something?”
“No, thanks. I’m fine,” Allie fibbed. In truth, she wasn’t “fine” at all. Depression gripped her after seeing scores of elderly patients tied into wheelchairs and lined up in corridors on the second floor. Alzheimer’s patients wandered the hallways on third, and cancer patients moaned in agony on the fourth. The wards were dark and dreary, and Allie had noticed that most patients wore miserable expressions as though they had been handed a life sentence to be fulfilled at Arbor Springs. Allie found herself secretly hoping and praying that she’d never end up in one of these places.
You’re going to have to help me through this, Lord Jesus…
“Do you have any questions?”
Giving herself a mental shake, Allie looked across the table at the young man with reddish-brown hair and bright hazel eyes. Smartly dressed in a suit and tie and an easy smile, Evan appeared just as chipper now as when they’d entered Arbor Springs. Obviously, he’d gotten used to the sights and sounds of this facility. But would Allie ever grow accustomed to them?
She spoke up at last. “I don’t have any questions at the moment, but I’m sure that’ll change once I get my bearings.”
He smiled amicably. “Probably.” Pulling several pieces of paper from his attaché case, he slid them across the table to Allie. “Let me give you some particulars.”
“All right.” She scrutinized the documents in front of her.
“First, you should know that we have about a hundred and ten patients in this facility. There are three distinct classifications of patients―elderly, subacute, and long-term. Many of our long-term patients are terminally ill and, unfortunately most don’t have family members who can care for them or the income to hire someone and that’s why they’re here.”
“Why aren’t they in hospitals or hospices?” Allie had to ask.
“Too expensive. That’s the number one reason, but health insurance coverage might be an issue for them as well. Here at Arbor Springs, we accept government funding to help pay for some of our patients’ expenses.”
“I see…” Arbor Springs is a dumping zone.
“Now if you’ll look at that next piece of paper I gave you,” Evan continued, “you’ll see a copy of the state’s inspection. Officials came through several
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