Not Just another Jane Doe
Chapter 10: Sibling Rivalry
At 9:30 the next morning the whole Raydor/Flynn entourage showed up at Dr. Jamison's office including Louie and Patrice. The receptionist's eyes were wide with surprise. "Hello, everyone may...I help you?"
"It's okay Della, I'm expecting them," said Dr. Jamison.
"But aren't you supposed to be doing the Fr..." Edward cut across her to avoid her violating the medical privacy laws.
"The person we had booked for this morning is unable to make it. So this lovely lady will be using that time slot. Captain Sharon Raydor, meet Della Freeman my receptionist."
"Nice to meet you, Della."
Having been with Dr. Jamison since before he married, Della looked like she was seeing a ghost. "Yes, she does look like her doesn't she?"
"Is...my looking like your, um...departed wife going to be a problem for you, Doctor?" Sharon asked bluntly.
"It was disconcerting at first, I won't lie to you even after Beverly warned me of it. But as I so rudely stared at you yesterday I began to see subtle differences. Your hair is lighter then hers, longer, you have freckles and she didn't. Also you wear your glasses more than she did and her face was wider. The biggest difference is that you are with the Lieutenant here, you have a marvelous family and extended family who would fight for you tooth and nail, if I or anybody else tried to make a move on you. Laura...only had me. So to answer your question, no it won't be a problem." He extended his arm in the direction of his procedure room and said, "after you."
Sharon looked him in the eye, long and hard searching for what she didn't know. He stared back, smiling at her. She finally grabbed Andy's hand and followed the good doctor into the office. It was surprisingly large and sparse, with only a doctor's procedure chair, two stools and a large screen TV. She had opted to have Andy there and Beverly, but not her children. She didn't think Savannah could handle it and didn't want to exclude her. So she decided it would be better if all of her children stayed out with Louie and Patrice. Also if Beverly had a last minute emergency, Patrice could stand in for her.
Beverly showed up at the last minute, Andy sat in the reclining patient chair and lifted Sharon onto his lap. She had his chest against her back and her legs were on either side of his. Her head was against his shoulder blade and neck. His arms held her tightly.
Sharon and Andy were given protective glasses to wear and so was Beverly. The doctor numbed her throat and the medication she had taken at 9 that morning was starting to work. The ocean video was put on and she used it as her focal point. As Sharon concentrated on the ebb and flow of the tide, the seagulls flying over the ocean, the procedure seemed to take only seconds instead of the twenty minutes they said it would and then it was over. "Well, you did great Sharon! It's all over."
"It's all over?" Her voice was still hoarse.
"Yes, it's all over!"
"What did you do with what you cut off?"
"It vaporized. The heat from the laser scalpel vaporized it."
"That's ...amazing!"
Dr Jamison chuckled. "Yeah it is pretty amazing, now go on and have a nice life Sharon."
"Thank you. So much!"
"Remember, rest today and maybe tomorrow. Try not to use your voice too much. Eat soft foods and as much ice cream and smoothies as you want. Then business as usual on Wednesday," he said.
They went out to the waiting room; her children and her team from Major Crimes quickly surrounded Sharon. Everybody hugged her and kissed her on the cheek.
"Well, Lieutenant it looks like I'll be coming back sooner then we thought, at least temporarily."
"Glad to hear it Captain, glad to hear it!"
The next couple of days Sharon rested as she had been told to and visited with her children. Emily had decided to stay in town even though her mother's recovery time was cut short. The afternoon they came from the tonsillectomy procedure Sharon had fallen asleep on the chaise lounge while Emily and Savannah were sitting on the couch. Savannah looked at Emily, "you don't like me much do you?" She asked in a soft voice.
Emily looked at the little girl next to her, "I don't know you yet, so I haven't formed an opinion."
"Yeah, you have and you don't like me."
"Savannah, it's not that I don't like you, it's that ...I'm jealous of you."
"You are jealous of...me? How come?"
"It's not that I begrudge you my mothers love and help in your situation. You really need her and I know she needs you, she needs to be needed but it's how she is with you..." Savannah looked at her puzzled. "Um, when I was a little girl my Dad left my mom, me and my little brother. He left us with no money and my mother had to ask my grandparents for help, just until she was on her feet again. They wouldn't give her money, I guess because they were afraid my dad would wheedle it out of her. But they helped her out in other ways by babysitting, allowing us to stay in the guesthouse until she could find a place she could afford. She took a job with FID, where she was hated and treated badly so she could afford to feed us and put us through school. She was there for us. She was at every recital; every game and she tried to be there to put us to bed at night. She tried to show us her love in so many ways. But she couldn't hide the sadness in her eyes; no matter how hard she tried."
Savannah could see the sadness in Emily's eyes as she relived old memories. "At night we could hear her crying, even though the door and the pillow she was holding onto muffled it. She was so hurt by my dad and the people at work who hated her, that in order to survive she built up walls to protect herself from being hurt again. When she built those walls she shut everybody out and from then on nobody knew the real Sharon Raydor. Not even us. She's tried to protect us from our dad's failings and the bad things he did especially what he did to her."
Emily took a deep breath before continuing, "mom pushed us to find our dreams and fulfill them. She taught us not let anybody get in the way of that, like my dad did to her. She wanted to be a lawyer, but first my dad talked her into her into working to put him through law school. She became a police officer because of the benefits and the steady income. Then she became pregnant, twice and he blamed her. She was and is a wonderful mother. When I see her with you and Rusty I see a joy-fullness that wasn't present when I was your age. I think it was because she was so busy trying to get through one day to the next. She had to be mother and father to us and it must have been exhausting. With you and Rusty, she doesn't have to be mother and father. She's got Andy and between the three of you the walls have been broken down, we see who she really is."
She smiled as thought of the good times, "she was pretty wonderful when I was growing up, but she's amazing now. I guess I'm jealous because she can give you more attention then she could give me when I was growing up. I think I'm kind of an attention junkie, no matter how much I get I need more. Maybe that's why I became a Ballerina, hmm?"
Savannah looked sad. Emily put a finger under her chin, looked her in the eye and asked, "you know what?"
"What?"
"I remember when my brother was born, I was so disappointed cause I wanted a sister. I learned to love him and we are close but I always wanted that little sister. Now I'll have two little sisters."
Savannah smiled then. "Do you think you'll ever love me?"
"I think so. In fact I'm pretty sure of it. It's already happening."
"Really?"
"Wait here."
"What? Why?"
She finally found what she was looking for , she smoothed the ribbons in the dolls hair and brushed off the dust , she made sure she had both shoes
"Just wait here." Emily went into the attic and found her stuff, she looked in all the boxes. She finally found what she was looking for, she smoothed the ribbons in the dolls hair and brushed off the dust, she made sure she had both shoes then took the doll downstairs. "I guess I should have asked you before, do you like dolls?"
"I had to leave my doll in Mexico, I miss her. Why?"
Emily brought the doll out from behind her back. Would you like this one? Her name is Sharon Rose. My grandmother makes dolls and she patterned several after my mother at different stages of her childhood. I've got three more. Would you like her?"
"Yes! I love her! She's so beautiful! She looks kinda sad though."
"I don't know if she's sad or just not smiling. Grandma says she found mom sitting on a bench at their cottage in the Hampton's and she was looking out at the ocean with this expression on her face, wearing a green dress just like the one the doll is wearing. Grandma took a picture, made this doll and the clothes that went with her." She handed the doll to Savannah, who took it with reverence. "She's all yours."
"Thanks Emily, thank you so much! She's beautiful! I'll take good care of her!"
"She's made of bisque so you had better." Savannah hugged her soon to be big sister and Emily hugged her back. "Listen, I'll give you my phone number, my Facebook page and my Skype address so when you want to talk to me you use any one of those. If I don't answer, leave a message and I'll call you back. We'll have to get you a phone though before I leave. Now that mom is getting better, we can go shopping."
"Do you think I'll be able to see you dance, someday?"
"Well, I'll be here in November doing the Nutcracker, Nicole's boys are going to be in the production too. You'll see me dance then. I'll be doing the dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy."