Chapter 10 #2
After having lunch with his brother, he told him about the application for new playground equipment, and they worked on the things that were coming up in the following weeks.
There were three luncheons that Ace needed to attend, as well as the meeting with the water board.
They wanted to upgrade their system in reading meters, and they were both all for that.
As it was now, someone had to walk to each of the houses to read the meters, and that was a long process.
Tank contacted one of the people that he’d been talking to about it and was getting information from him about getting things upgraded.
It sounded just like something that they needed to invest in.
The water company would be able to help with the costs, and that made it worth his while to get rolling on what needed to be done next.
They talked about the trip to Florida and decided they were going to go even if no one else in the family went.
He had all the information from Lisa about what resort they were staying in, as well as the dates to go.
Making the reservations right then, he was surprised to hear that others had done the same thing and gone ahead and booked their reservations too.
“Like I told the other Savages that have booked, we can get you all on the same floor, but we might not be able to get you rooms close together. That’s the best we can do for right now.
I hope you understand.” He said he was just happy to be going and being on the same floor as the others.
“Good. We’ll do the best we can to accommodate you all together, but we’re busy that week as there are a lot of schools out on Spring Break and wanting to come here to enjoy the lovely weather.
I’m to understand that you guys have a lot of snow your way. ”
“Yes, we had about nine inches just the other day, and they’re predicting more than that over the next week.
I’m ready for summer.” She said she’d never lived anywhere but Florida and didn’t get snow where she lived.
“That sounds heavenly. I would love warm weather all the time. My feet are freezing all the time.”
After getting off the phone with the woman, he told Ace that they were booked.
It was still far away yet, but it was something to look forward to when the time got closer.
As soon as he was ready to call it for the day, Ace told him that he was ready to go home as well.
They were still unpacking things that they’d gotten from the other house and were pitching out most of what had come to them.
It was nice having a furnished house for work, but he couldn’t wait until he had his own place.
Looking through the houses for sale in their area, Tank was able to find two that he thought would work.
He set up a time to go and see them over the next couple of days and was surprised that the realtor was able to show them.
She said that the roads would be cleared by then, and she was looking forward to working with him.
He said that he was glad that he was going to be able to buy a house right now.
After hanging up the phone, he felt good about what he was doing.
Ace would be next in finding himself a house, and he was going to be there for him as well.
Now all he needed to do was find a mate, and he’d be set for life. He wondered how easy it was going to be and decided that he didn’t care if it took forever. He was going to enjoy looking for her as much as he was finding her. She was going to be his everything.
~*~
Beth was bored. She had been sitting in the hospital room for the last two days watching her sister, and she wasn’t entertaining her. Of course, she was dying, but that didn’t mean that she had to sleep all the time.
“You know you can leave if you want. I didn’t ask you to be here in the first place.
” She said she was her sister and wanted to be there for her.
“No, you don’t. I hear you mumbling about how much you hate being here.
I can die with you here or not, Beth. It’s not like you’re going to be able to save me from anything. ”
“Well, aren’t you just cheery. I want to be here, but it’s taking so long.
” She knew that as soon as the words left her mouth, she shouldn’t have said it.
“I’m sorry that you’re dying, but they told me that you’d only have six weeks to live.
I had no idea they were going to keep giving you medication to keep you sleeping all the time.
Why are they doing that in the first place? ”
“I’m in a great deal of pain all the time.
They’re making me comfortable. Why don’t you go out and get yourself something to eat?
It’s better than you taking pop shots at me because I’m taking too long to die.
” She said that she didn’t say that. “You did. But that’s all right.
If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather be alive than dead any day of the week.
Just leave me to it and go out and have fun. ”
She thought about it for about five minutes and decided to do just that.
After making sure that Helen didn’t really care if she stayed, she left the room before she could change her mind.
She didn’t stop at the desk and tell them that she was leaving, as they had gotten testy with her when she’d asked them for something they were giving her sister for her backache.
The chairs weren’t all that comfortable, and she knew she was going to have to see someone about it before too much longer.
Putting her face up to the air to try and get the smell of death off of her, she reached into her bag to get her phone. Of course, it was Serenity again. And she’d not ask about her but their sister. She’d been the one who had stayed with their sister when things had been trouble for her work.
“I’m leaving now to get there.” She said that she’d left Helen in her room so she could get something to eat.
“You left her all alone? What sort of person does that to their sister, Beth? She’s dying.
There will be no second chances when she’s gone.
You should be asking her for her forgiveness instead of running off every chance you get. ”
“She told me to leave her alone.” That wasn’t quite right, but that’s the story that she was sticking with. “Besides, you can sit with her for a few days. I’m sick of being cooped up in the room with her. It smells like dead people.”
“That’s because she’s dying.” She heard a car door slam, and there was someone else that Serenity was talking to. Something about the airport. “I’ll be there in about two hours. If you’re not there, I’m going to be pissed off at you.”
“Be pissed. Helen said that I could go, and I did. She doesn’t need me to hold her hand all the time.
Half the time, she doesn’t even know that I’m there.
They keep her so doped up all the time, and she’s sleeping it off.
” Now that her outing was ruined, she decided to treat herself to getting her nails done.
It was something that she needed anyway, and no one was there to stop her.
“I have things to do, so I’m not going to be there when you get there.
Just know that I have a back pain from sitting around all day while you were out doing your thing. ”
“I was working.” Rolling her eyes at her sister, she decided that she’d had enough. But Serenity apparently had more to say to her. “She’s going to die, Beth, doesn’t that mean anything to you?”
“She’s been on the verge of death for the past six months.
Either they find a cure for her, or they just leave her alone.
It’s boring sitting around the hospital room anyway.
” She knew that she was pissing her off, but didn’t care.
She’d been sitting with her for the past two days, and nothing had changed.
“I might not even show up tomorrow either. You sit with our dying sister. I’ve had enough. ”
After closing the connection on the phone, she put her phone away, but not before muting it.
It’s not like she gave Helen cancer. It was just one of those things that had happened.
Hell, she didn’t even smoke. Hailing down a cab, she got in and asked the driver to take her to the mall.
Surely, somewhere in there, she would be able to find a shop to do her nails for her.
Maybe she’d get her hair done as well while she was at it.
Helen had been diagnosed with cancer about a year ago.
After having chemotherapy, they said that she was cured.
Well, not cured, but they’d done all they could for her.
Then, about a month ago, she’d fallen, and they found that it was in her bloodstream and that it was too far gone for them to do much for her.
She had missed some of the conversation with the doctor when he’d been telling them about the cancer, but they only gave her five months to live.
Beth had had no idea that it was going to be the full five months when she said she’d take her turn and sit with her.
She’d also had no idea that it was just sitting with her while she had drugs pumped into her body, either.
Helen was talking to the woman who was doing her nails about her sister when she nearly took her finger off. She asked what she was doing when she saw the blood on her finger. There wasn’t much of it, but enough that she thought they should give her the nail job for free now.
“How can you just sit here and act like it’s an inconvenience to you that your sister is dying?
Have you no heart at all?” She told her that it was none of her business what she did with her sister.
“It wasn’t until you told me about it. I mean, good Christ woman, she might only have hours to live, and here you are getting your nails done instead of being with her when she takes her last breath. ”