wants to go full guns on a defense, so we’ll want also want a billing consultant. Frankly, I’m sick of the government using their hazy Medicare regs to send honest-minded, hard-working business people to prison.”
“Atta girl. I’ll make some calls and we’ll get started on Monday.” He stood. “It’s four o’clock. Let’s shut down for the day. You’ll need a weekend to relax if you’re going to hit the ground running next week.”
Brett agreed. She reached over to shut off her computer but paused to open Outlook one last time. No word from the Phillips family. Oh well, she would have to find a way to make Medicare billing seem juicy since she didn’t seem destined to be working on a new murder case anytime soon.
Chapter Six
Ryan swore she would swallow a bottle of pills before she would ever resign herself to living in a place like the one looming before her. She forced herself to open the creaky front door. The assault on her senses nearly sent her running. Sour, musty odors gagged her and the muted color of the dingy carpet and out-of-date wallpaper combined to create a dull, dusty impression. The effect was like looking through a haze. She imagined that was how the residents of Pine Grove Nursing Home saw the world every day.
“Hello, Ms. Foster. Your aunt will be so happy to see you.”
Ryan offered a forced smile. She didn’t agree. Eunice Foster didn’t do happy, and she didn’t tolerate happy in others. And that, Ryan thought, is why this godforsaken place is perfect for her. Only a strong sense of duty forced Ryan to make these regular Saturday visits. Besides, Eunice was the only family she had. Leonard would be proud of her fostering that connection in the months running up to the election.
Many of the rooms she passed were decorated with various knickknacks, designed to minimize the institutional feel. Eunice’s room was stark in comparison. Ryan bet her aunt reveled in the institutional feel. It was orderly. It was consistent. It was impersonal. It fit Eunice to a tee.
When she arrived at the door, she saw her aunt sitting in a stiff-backed chair, a Bible resting open in her lap.
“Hello, Aunt Eunice.” A slight nod was Ryan’s only hint her presence was acknowledged. At least she was consistent. Ryan pulled up a chair and took a modicum of pleasure at the flick of annoyance in her aunt’s eyes. “How was your week?”
Eunice made a show of closing the Bible and setting it on the small table beside her bed. Every tiny motion was designed to show Ryan her visit was an intrusion. Ryan knew she would never win. If she didn’t show up every Saturday, at exactly the same time, her aunt would be angry, and Ryan would never find forgiveness.
These visits were painful, but Ryan didn’t dare cut them short. She wasn’t sure what would happen if she did, but irrational childhood fears snagged her in their grasp. She and her parents hadn’t reconciled before they died. Although her aunt didn’t really know her at all, without her, she was all alone. An hour of painful silence in this room was worth the comfort of knowing she wasn’t completely on her own.
*
“Hey, Brett, can you pick Lori up from work and bring her to Mom and Dad’s? I had to drop her off this morning, and I’m stuck at Stacy’s volleyball tournament. If they keep winning, I’m never going to get out of here.”
Brett laughed. Despite his pretend tone of annoyance, she knew her brother John was in heaven. His oldest daughter Stacy was the star setter on the Highland Park High School volleyball team. John was her biggest fan. “Sure, what time? And you and Stacy better show up at the house eventually, or Mom will bring dinner to the sidelines.”
“We’ll be there, but we might be a little worn out. We’ve been here since the crack of dawn. Lori should be done by five. She brought a change of clothes, so you gals can head straight over. We’ll be there as soon as we kick everyone else’s a—I mean
“Atta girl. I’ll make some calls and we’ll get started on Monday.” He stood. “It’s four o’clock. Let’s shut down for the day. You’ll need a weekend to relax if you’re going to hit the ground running next week.”
Brett agreed. She reached over to shut off her computer but paused to open Outlook one last time. No word from the Phillips family. Oh well, she would have to find a way to make Medicare billing seem juicy since she didn’t seem destined to be working on a new murder case anytime soon.
Chapter Six
Ryan swore she would swallow a bottle of pills before she would ever resign herself to living in a place like the one looming before her. She forced herself to open the creaky front door. The assault on her senses nearly sent her running. Sour, musty odors gagged her and the muted color of the dingy carpet and out-of-date wallpaper combined to create a dull, dusty impression. The effect was like looking through a haze. She imagined that was how the residents of Pine Grove Nursing Home saw the world every day.
“Hello, Ms. Foster. Your aunt will be so happy to see you.”
Ryan offered a forced smile. She didn’t agree. Eunice Foster didn’t do happy, and she didn’t tolerate happy in others. And that, Ryan thought, is why this godforsaken place is perfect for her. Only a strong sense of duty forced Ryan to make these regular Saturday visits. Besides, Eunice was the only family she had. Leonard would be proud of her fostering that connection in the months running up to the election.
Many of the rooms she passed were decorated with various knickknacks, designed to minimize the institutional feel. Eunice’s room was stark in comparison. Ryan bet her aunt reveled in the institutional feel. It was orderly. It was consistent. It was impersonal. It fit Eunice to a tee.
When she arrived at the door, she saw her aunt sitting in a stiff-backed chair, a Bible resting open in her lap.
“Hello, Aunt Eunice.” A slight nod was Ryan’s only hint her presence was acknowledged. At least she was consistent. Ryan pulled up a chair and took a modicum of pleasure at the flick of annoyance in her aunt’s eyes. “How was your week?”
Eunice made a show of closing the Bible and setting it on the small table beside her bed. Every tiny motion was designed to show Ryan her visit was an intrusion. Ryan knew she would never win. If she didn’t show up every Saturday, at exactly the same time, her aunt would be angry, and Ryan would never find forgiveness.
These visits were painful, but Ryan didn’t dare cut them short. She wasn’t sure what would happen if she did, but irrational childhood fears snagged her in their grasp. She and her parents hadn’t reconciled before they died. Although her aunt didn’t really know her at all, without her, she was all alone. An hour of painful silence in this room was worth the comfort of knowing she wasn’t completely on her own.
*
“Hey, Brett, can you pick Lori up from work and bring her to Mom and Dad’s? I had to drop her off this morning, and I’m stuck at Stacy’s volleyball tournament. If they keep winning, I’m never going to get out of here.”
Brett laughed. Despite his pretend tone of annoyance, she knew her brother John was in heaven. His oldest daughter Stacy was the star setter on the Highland Park High School volleyball team. John was her biggest fan. “Sure, what time? And you and Stacy better show up at the house eventually, or Mom will bring dinner to the sidelines.”
“We’ll be there, but we might be a little worn out. We’ve been here since the crack of dawn. Lori should be done by five. She brought a change of clothes, so you gals can head straight over. We’ll be there as soon as we kick everyone else’s a—I mean
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