Mistake
Chapter 21
"Its weird how fast this mother-daughter trip has come about?" Mike remarked as he helped pack Maddie's car. He still wasn't sleeping or eating well. His temper was much shorter and it seemed like Hannah bore the brunt of it. It made Maddie nervous to leave Mike alone with Hannah.
"Yeah, since its not tourist season, Mom wanted to do something before the baby came." Maddie said.
"I am nervous about you leaving." Mike added.
"I will be fine. Just a trip to the beach." Maddie lied, hoping Mike didn't catch it.
"Still don't like it." Mike complained.
"Mike; I will be fine. The baby will be fine. You just take it easy on Hannah. You've been pretty rough on her." Maddie ordered.
"Yeah." Mike said simply.
"I mean it. Hannah is a good girl and she adores you. Be nice." Maddie said.
"Okay. You'll call me when you get there?" Mike asked.
"Yes." Maddie answered before giving him a long kiss. His hand was on her stomach and they were only interrupted when the kids came outside. Billy ran for them and wrapped himself around Maddie's legs.
"Hannah, don't let him do that! He could have pushed Maddie over." Mike bellowed. Maddie shot him a withering look and Hannah looked at the ground.
"Sorry." Hannah said simply.
"Its okay. I'm fine." Maddie said. She rubbed Billy's back and then gave Hannah a long hug.
"Hannah, please take Billy in?" Mike requested. His tone was still a bit harsh but at least he was polite. As soon as Billy and Hannah were inside; Maddie spoke.
"Mike, don't do this to Hannah. She is not to blame. No one is. It will gain you nothing to ostracize her." Maddie told him.
"Just please take care of yourself and this baby please?" Mike asked.
"I will, but I need you to take care of yourself, Billy and Hannah. Promise me?" Maddie begged. She really was thinking about taking Hannah with her but that would leave Billy in Mike's care and Maddie wasn't sure if he was capable of caring for the little boy.
"Okay. I will." Mike promised before giving her another long kiss. Maddie wasn't convinced that he was being honest, but there was little she could do. She had made sure Hannah knew to call her if she need her. Maddie gave him another long kiss before getting into the car. "Drive safe." Mike said.
"I will." Maddie said. He shut the door and after buckling her seatbelt, Maddie backed out of the driveway. She picked her mom up and headed towards Tuckers Crossing, Mississippi, a drive that took over two hours normally. Finally, they pulled into the tiny town. It was more of a wide part of the road than a town.
"Where are you going to start?" Sarah asked.
"I don't know. Is there even a police station here?" Maddie said.
"A very small one. There is also a fire station down the road. Maybe they could help?" Sarah suggested. They got back in the car and drove east, finding a volunteer fire department. Fortunately there were guys outside washing a decrepit fire truck. Maddie out of the car and walked towards them.
"Excuse me." Maddie said.
"Ma'am? Can I help you? Are you lost?" A man, about Mike's age asked. Given the insignia on his shirt, he was the chief.
"Not lost, no. I actually am looking…this sounds weird. A few years ago, a girl might have starved to death here. Her sister and little brother left her body…or what her sister thought was her body. Hannah was very young and didn't know how to tell if someone had died. I was hoping to find if she had been buried…" Maddie said, knowing she wasn't articulating well.
"Sir…that…Dr. Thompson." One of the young volunteers said.
"One of the local doctors found the young woman you are describing. She…wasn't dead. Very, very close to it. As close as anyone I've ever seen someone be and not actually die. Dr. Thompson and his wife nursed her back to health and took her in. She currently works at his office. Wants to go to nursing school. Katie is a joy." The Chief explained. Maddie was stunned.
"She's alive?" Maddie asked.
"Very much so." The chief answered.
"Where can we find her?" Sarah asked.
"Antioch. Only medical clinic there. Just keep going east. Next town you come to." The chief answered.
"Thank you." Maddie said. Sarah took the keys out of her hand and got in the driver's seat of Maddie's car. Once Maddie settled in the passenger seat, she spoke.
"You need to be prepared that Katie might now want to come back with us. She has made a life for herself. She's not a minor anymore and she and Mike had a very complicated relationship. She could refuse." Sarah said.
"She could. But, at least I can go back and tell Mike his daughter is alive and well. And we didn't lie…we drove close to a beach." Maddie remarked.
"Just don't…push. Mike may have to ease his way in." Sarah replied.
"Mike is in a bad way right now. He is treating Hannah horrible, which is odd because he adores her." Maddie said.
"Well, one way or another; this may end that." Sarah said.
"Or make it worse because he'll blame Hannah for leaving Katie." Maddie commented.
"Hopefully, Katie will advocate for Hannah if that starts to happen." Sarah said as they pulled into Antioch, Mississippi. It was a little larger than Tuckers Crossing, but they found the medical clinic easily. Maddie sent Mike a text that they were okay before she and Sarah walked into the medical clinic and approached the receptionist, an older lady with a kind smile.
"Can I help y'all?" The lady asked.
"Uh, yes. We were told down at the fire station that Dr. Thompson and his wife had taken in a young girl and nursed her back to health. We're looking for that girl, Katie Slattery." Sarah explained as she showed her an old photo of Katie.
"You family?" The woman asked.
"Sort of. Her dad and I are together. I…am trying to do him a favor. He believes she has died and is in a real bad way." Maddie explained. The woman nodded and stepped away from her desk.
"Hang on." She said before disappearing behind the door.
"What happens if the phone rings?" Sarah asked.
"I would say it doesn't here a lot." Maddie said. She took her phone back out, expecting a message from Mike. Nothing. So, she texted Hannah. Just then, the door opened and a tall, thin girl walked out into the waiting area.
"I understand you are looking for Katie Slattery?" The young woman asked. She had a pleasant smile, blond hair and blue eyes. She was wearing scrubs and tennis shoes and was in her late teens or early twenties.
"We are." Maddie said as she stood up.
"Look…I am Katie. Sheila said that you are here for my dad and he's in a bad way." Katie remarked. Her hands were in her pockets and she was shuffling from one foot to the other, showing Maddie she was nervous.
"He is. Hannah thought you had died. He's been having these dreams. He's avoiding sleep and will barely eat because she believed you had starved to death." Maddie said.
"Hannah and Billy?" Katie asked.
"They're alright." Sarah said.
"Listen; Dad and I…were not close. I can't imagine he'd want much to do with me. Besides, I have a life here. I don't know where y'all are from but I like it here. I do miss Hannah and Billy though. I wasn't sure what had happened to them." Katie said.
"He is grieving himself to death. Whatever happened before, he deserves to know that you are alive." Maddie said.
"Katie; I'm sorry; we should have introduced ourselves. My name is Sarah Rawlins and this is my daughter, Maddie. She and your dad are together and she is having a baby in a few months." Sarah said.
"Nice to meet you. So, he might be grieving himself like that, but its not for me. Maybe for Mom or Lucas?" Katie suggested.
"No, he was fine 'til Hannah told him how you had died, or rather…how she thought. He's been having these dreams and now he is very irritable. Not like himself. Hannah is bearing the brunt of it. He won't hurt her physically, but its not good." Maddie explained.
"No; he won't injure her. I can say that. No matter how badly things were going between us, he never hurt me." Katie admitted.
"You could make things easier for her." Sarah said.
"I have a job. I can't just up and leave here." Katie said.
"Actually, you can. You work hard and you are owed vacation. Besides, you might be able to check into a nursing school while you're there." An older man said as he opened the door. Given the white lab coat, he was the doctor that had nursed Katie back to health.
"Dad won't have anything to do with me and I doubt he would let me around Hannah and Billy. I abandoned them. They could have died." Katie argued.
"Katie, you and I have talked about this and you know now, they are okay. And you were the one near death. I didn't even think you would survive." Dr. Thompson said.
"Your boss just said you had time off. How about this; you come with us. You can see Hannah and Billy and if things are too rough with your dad, you can stay with me. I live separate." Sarah suggested.
"Katie, you really should. You will always wonder if you don't. And you really miss Hannah and Billy, a lot. And if the truth were known, you miss your daddy." Dr. Thompson said.
"But you need me here?" Katie remarked.
"I am capable of taking blood pressures and temperatures. Now, go pack a bag. You're going with these ladies." Dr. Thompson said. Katie sat for a moment before finally getting up and walked up the stairs that were on the other side of the waiting room.
"Thank you. I'm not sure she would have gone with us." Sarah remarked.
"Katie is a good girl. She tries to act as if it doesn't bother her, but she has missed those kids and her dad." Dr. Thompson said.
"How sick was she?" Maddie asked.
"I've never seen someone as sick without them dying. Katie was in a real bad way and she's never fully come out of it. She is not a big eater. The one thing she does talk about occasionally is her dad's pancakes. I think she misses those pancakes." Dr. Thompson replied.
"I'm sure I can get Mike to make them again." Maddie said. Both Mike and Hannah had texted that they were okay, relieving her. Just then, Katie walked down the steps with her suitcase, a rather small carry-on bag that looked older than Katie.
"Now, once you get where you're going, you call and let me know you made it. Sheila and I love you but you need to do this." Dr. Thompson said, as he kissed Katie's forehead, much like Mike tended to do Hannah.
"I love you guys too." Katie replied. Sarah and Maddie both stood up.
"We'll give you a moment. By the way, its New Orleans. Where we're headed." Sarah told him as they stepped out, wanting to give Katie and Dr. Thompson privacy. A moment later, Katie followed them out. Both Maddie and Sarah picked up that she was as nervous as a cat.