It's about Time
Chapter 13
Kate was depressed, seriously depressed. It wasn't her new surroundings exactly, though her new place might have something to do with it. Maybe depressed wasn't the right word. She was hurting and it wasn't because she had fallen down the stairs, or tripped over a curb, or done some other stupid thing.
She hadn't seen Rick in an entire two weeks. All she did was mope around the apartment. One day she hadn't even bothered to take a shower. Another day she hadn't even bothered to get dressed. She'd spent the entire day naked. Not that she went anywhere.
She didn't go shopping. She didn't go out to eat. But she had used some of her precious cold hard cash to have something delivered. And even then she had mostly picked at it. What she didn't eat went into Tupperware and into the refrigerator. Which was were she was now. Standing there in a t-shirt and panties looking at what she had to eat.
"Damn it to hell!" She slammed the refrigerator door closed in disgust. She wasn't even really hungry. What she didn't fail to notice was the tears that were forming in her eyes yet again.
There was one good thing about her new place. These people had liquor and while there was beer, they also had the harder stuff. That was what she was reaching for now.
It might be vodka that had actually been made in a stinking country called Russia. However, vodka was the only thing that stinking country had going for it. That and a glass and she headed for one of the terraces. She didn't even care that it was a little cool outside, or the fact that it was misting rain. The entire weather fit her mood perfectly. SHITTY!
She missed him fiercely.
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Rick at least knew where she lived and had even spent some time in her apartment. He was willing to admit that her idea of decor was different. Though he was betting each piece held a story as to why she had it.
Strangely his taxi couldn't stop outside of the building. That area was filled with police cars, most of which still had their blinking lights on. There were uniformed officers all over the place.
Still no one stopped him from going inside and then up the elevator to her floor. And once the elevator doors opened he found still more officers in uniforms. He didn't even get a chance to step off the elevator. "I'm sorry sir, this level is closed." He was holding up his hand to keep him from stepping out. Puzzled, Rick pressed the button that would send him back down to ground level.
Once there he went outside and walked down the street where he stopped and looked up. He didn't see anything out of the ordinary. There was no smoke and no fire. The windows looked to be intact. He looked around and all he saw was police cars. No firetrucks and no ambulances. Her apartment was the only one on that floor. "What happened?"
As he kept watching he saw two men in suits with uniform officers right behind them come running out. They stopped and scanned the entire area. Rick knew that look. They were looking for someone and since he had precious little in information he chose to simply walk away.
He knew when that officer had stopped him and sent him back down that it was stupid. The fact that he'd shown up meant he knew something and any detectives that were up there would want to talk with him. It was what he would have done.
The police would be a good place to ask questions about why they were there, but he didn't need that trouble. Then a thought hit him and his heart began to race. Were they there because Kate had been found dead?
It was troubling enough that he turned back around and stopped at the corner so he could look up. The idea that she was up there lying dead somewhere pained him…a lot. It also told him a lot about what he thought of her. He was falling in love with her if he wasn't already. She was beautiful, she was tall, and she was a bit of a mystery. The biggest one was why had she run away after seeing his mural and who had been his inspiration for it.
He knew Kate was a little dark, but then he'd never met a saint or even knew if there were any. Everyone had dark parts in their past, even him.
So why was she so certain that she wasn't an angel? He saw the potential for her to be one; why didn't she?
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Rick was done with his courtyard. It had been just over three full weeks since Kate had run away and now he was sitting on one of the chairs at the small table that he had painted to make them look new again.
Everything was done. The mural was complete, the bamboo was planted, the islands were in place, the little fire pits were lit using a gel from a thirteen ounce can. He even had a few spares. He had filled the pit with water after putting in a liner. The existing pavers had been cleaned and installed properly this time. It was as perfect as he could make it. The only drawback was that the bamboo was really young. So all those tiny green leaves blocked his mural a bit too much. At least bamboo grew really fast so in a few short weeks it would be towering high above the wall. The shafts ranged from four inches round to six inches.
"Hi, guys, what do you think?" Huey, Louie, and Dewey were awake and looking the entire place over. "Sorry the pond doesn't have any fish. Maybe a few gold fish if Janelle is willing." He didn't have a pump so the water wasn't oxygenated for larger fish like koi.
He even laughed when one of them tested the water with a paw then started shaking it to get it dry again. If they ever figured it out they could jump to the island, not end up getting burnt, then jump to the bamboo and even climb it. So his mural was safe from them.
"You think she's been sneaking peeks?" He had instructed Janelle not to peek until he was done. He wasn't sure she hadn't but hopefully she hadn't seen it looking like this. In any case Rick just sat there and sipped his cold Coke that had a little whiskey in it.
"You're still an angel." Rick lifted his glass in tribute then sipped it, all the while looking at his mural.
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Her nerves were getting more jangled the closer the taxi got to the address. She was actually scared. She was tired of living with the pain of missing him. It was just that the pain of being rejected after they talked might end up being worse. She was even willing to go to the extreme of capturing him and holding him against his will.
She needed him and he could learn to like being hers. But that wasn't really what she wanted. She wanted him to want her for her sake. Not because he was her slave.
She paid the taxi and watched it leave. Then she turned to look at the building. It looked like any other New York building. Though the construction of something big right next door kind of detracted from it a bit. Living next door to that thing wasn't going to be much fun. Now or when it was done.
Her mind was trying to tell her to go away. Go back to why she'd been sent there, something she hadn't done for the last three weeks. Her thoughts were centered on only one person and he needed to be here. If she had to come back, she might not do it.
Kate pressed the doorbell and waited. Finally an older woman answered the door. She was still rather lovely. Kate had little doubt that when she was much younger she had been a real beauty.
"Hi, is Rick home?" She actually feared the worse.
"He's in his room, I think. May I ask who you are?" She couldn't just let anyone into her home.
"My name is Kate." She didn't think that would help her any but it at least answered her question.
"You're Kate!" Janelle looked her over with fresh eyes. It gave her a new reason as to why Rick was moping around the house. He was working on the courtyard, but he did nothing else. She had questioned why and had learned a little about her. She was fairly certain that Rick was in love with her.
"He's in his room. Down the stairs." She opened the door wide and stepped aside to let her in.
She watched as Kate went down the stairs and turned to go down the next set of stairs. "Good luck, my dear." Rick was such a kind soul and she only wanted good things for him.
Kate found his room and it looked the same as last time. The main area was empty. A quick look into his bedroom told her he wasn't there either. She had walked past his bathroom and decided to try the courtyard first before waiting for him to come out of the bathroom if he was in there.
Her courage was failing fast with each step she took to reach the courtyard. The place that held a mural that he had told her was essentially dedicated to her. The place she had run from last time she was there.
She saw him before she even reached the door. He was just sitting there at a small table drinking something. She could also see most of the courtyard. It looked finished to her. She couldn't see most of the mural thanks to some plants so that helped a little.
Once she actually saw him her courage returned with a vengeance. It didn't prevent her heart from pounding in her chest. Seeing him told her why she was there, beyond the fact that he didn't know where she lived now. She was there because she loved him and wanted him back. They could talk about this angel stuff and work it out.
Right now they had to get past her running away, something she'd never dreamed she would do. She had always thought of herself as being strong. However, this man had managed to make her weak.
Rick heard the door open and assumed it was Janelle coming to look since she couldn't wait any longer. But it wasn't Janelle, it was Kate. The sight of her caused him to spit his drink out. He swiped the back of his hand over his mouth then stood up quickly. "Kate!?" She was the last person he expected. His heart soared. It meant she wasn't dead like he feared. Unanswered was why the police were at her place.
"Hi." She couldn't believe she was this nervous. She wasn't some young teenager. Rick meant so very much to her. "Can I come in?" Yes, Janelle had let her into the house, but was she welcome there by him?
"Absolutely!" Rick left his drink behind and didn't stop moving until he had his arms around her followed by kissing her. He felt her stiffen at first before she melted into him and kissed him back.
Kate suddenly felt so much better. He wasn't angry with her and he was clearly happy to see her. He was still a good kisser and she couldn't resist but melt into him. When she broke from the kiss she buried her head into his chest and held onto him while his arms held her tight. She was right where she wanted to be. Now she had to work out how to stay there.
"You're alive." Rick had never been so happy about anything in his life.
That had Kate scrunching up her face. What was he talking about? "Why would I not be?" She wanted to stay right where she was but she let go of him just enough for her to look up at him.
"I went to your place after you left. I didn't want you to leave. I wanted to understand why you reacted the way you did and why you left. Your place was filled with police when I got there," Rick said and looked at her.
"Oh." She had anticipated that the police would come looking for the other officers. She hadn't planned on Rick being there when they did. It only reinforced why she had chosen to come here. If she was going to get to keep him they needed to talk. Her trepidation about what he would think after she told him was now her next biggest fear.
"You can explain later. I'm just glad you're here." Rick pulled her back into him and felt her come willingly. He stood there reveling in the feeling of having her in his arms again. It only reinforced how he felt about her. He loved her. Next came the challenge of telling her.
She was there and he would like to keep holding her but they had to move on. He let go of her and stepped away half a step. "I'm done, what do you think?" He was proud of his work.
The floor had a pattern to it based mostly on the color of the stones. The fire pits were lit and they were surrounded by water. The only painted wall was the one that had the mural on it. The house made up two of the other walls while the last wall was unremarkable concrete.
"I can't see your angel all that well." She didn't know if it was supposed to look that way.
"The bamboo is young, it'll grow at least thirty feet tall. All that leaf will be way up there in a few months. It'll leave the bamboo poles to partially obscure the mural. Basically it'll be a tease making you want to see more," he explained.
Kate looked at it with this new information. To her the bamboo was starting to look more like bars trapping it on the other side. Though he was right, it was a tease. For that reason she began to like it.
Rick risked talking about what had her running away the last time. If they couldn't get past it, they might be over and never get any further in their relationship. "You still think it's not you?"
"Yes. I mean, no. …I mean, it's not me. You don't understand." She had so much to tell him and she was sure he was going to dump her after she did. Just telling him was the only way she could think of getting to keep him. He was going to hate her.
"Then help me understand, Kate. …Please." Rick truly wanted to understand and keep seeing her. Except some of what he felt when she was near him told him it might be scary. "I promise not to freak out."
Kate feared he didn't mean it and would do a lot more than just freak out. She gathered her courage, stepping into him and wrapping her arms around him. She was there because she'd reached a conclusion. She needed to explain just who and what she was. Would he understand? Was he willing to listen to all of it?
Rick held her tight and waited for her to explain.
"Kiss me first?" Kate looked up at him. It might be her very last kiss from him.
Rick didn't understand but was more than willing to kiss her. What neither of them saw was Janelle was doing more than just peeking. She was watching them intently. She loved watching young love. These two had all of their lives together.
Then she left them alone and moved to the kitchen. That was where she found a large manila envelope with her name on it. She needed coffee first so she started the machine before opening it and spilling its contents out onto the countertop.
The first thing she found was a handwritten note.
My dear Janelle,
I know you built this home with your husband and I am truly sorry for your loss. God has a plan for all of us. Our goal is to try and understand just what that plan is. To help you understand I have a story for you.
There was a man who was trapped in the wilderness. It was winter and he was sinking slowly in a bog and he was all alone. However he had total faith that God would save him.
Then a man with a dog sled came along and offered to help the man escape. The man refused. He was resolute in his belief that God would save him. The man with the sled didn't understand but if the man wasn't willing to help him save him there was nothing he could do, so he left.
The man with the sled came back an hour later and the man that was trapped had sunk into the ground even farther. Again he offered to rescue him. And again the man refused, saying that he had faith that God would save him. Once again the man with the sled left.
A couple of hours later the man with the sled was back. By now the man's head was all that he could see. Once more he offered to try and save him. As before the man was resolute that God would save him and sent him away.
The man died. When he reached the Pearly Gates and met God, he had a question for God. "I've always believed in You. Why didn't You save me?"
God's answer was this, "What do you mean? I sent the sled to you three times."
The meaning behind this is that God sends sleds to everyone when they need them. Your job is to recognize the sled, accept the help, and let God help you. In this envelope is your sled.
Enclosed you will find a ticket for a Hawaiian cruise complete with a hotel stay on Waikiki for two days so you can enjoy Honolulu. Then a seven night cruise will take you to other Hawaiian islands. It's already paid for and scheduled. Your boss has agreed to your request for vacation time.
Also enclosed is a fact sheet and photos of a lovely condo in Honolulu that after you sell this house, you can easily afford. Look it over, take a tour of it after talking to the real estate agent in Honolulu.
In addition there's a date and time for an interview at a local hospital in Honolulu that's in desperate need for a doctor just like you. Listen to them. Listen to what they're offering. You are needed there. Let them show you the people.
Your life is far from over. Hawaii is a place where you can start a new adventure. Meet someone just like your husband or maybe someone so different that you can't ignore him.
God is sending you a sled. The only question you need to answer is this: are you going to accept it and let Him help you? I believe in you and I always will.
Your friend for life,
Richard Castle