Ava Comes Home (11 page)

“We'll be in touch about the accident report. Charges may be laid. A teenage boy ran a red light. It wasn't your uncle's fault.”

“Oh, no. Thank you for calling.”

“It's a tough situation. I'm sorry.”

“Yes. Goodbye.”

Ava hung up and grabbed Lola. “Oh my god, Aunt Vi and Uncle Angus are in the hospital. There's been a car accident!”

Lola hugged her tight to keep her from shaking. “I'm sure they'll be fine.”

“I have to tell Ma.”

“No, don't do that yet. Let's find out their condition first. There's no sense in upsetting her until we know all the facts.”

Ava put her hand to her forehead, trying to think clearly. “Yes, yes, you're right. What do I do?”

Lola picked up the address book that was by the phone. “Call your sister Rose and get her to take you to the hospital. I'll stay here with your mother. The nurse is upstairs now. Don't worry, we'll take good care of her.”

Ava hugged Lola again. “What on earth would I do without you?”

“Hey, that's what friends are for.”

Ava called her sister at work and Rose came as fast as she could to pick her up. Lola waved them goodbye. “Let me know as soon as you can.”

Ava called back, “We will.”

Rose zoomed out of the driveway. “What happened?”

“I don't know. The police said a kid ran a red light and crashed into them.”

“Oh my god, this is horrible. I can't believe it. It's not fair. They're the sweetest people alive. Why did this have to happen?”

Ava buried her head in her hands. “I told her to go. If only I hadn't done that.”

“It's not your fault, Libby. Don't think that.” Rose reached into her purse. “Here's my cell phone. Everyone's number is in there. Call as many as you can while I drive.”

By the time they reached the hospital, almost all the relatives had been called. Rose parked the car in a no-parking zone and the two of them flew into the lobby and raced to the front desk.

“My aunt and uncle were involved in a car accident. The police said they were sent here, Angus and Viola MacIntosh.”

“Just a moment, please.” The woman left her desk and went to talk to someone. A few minutes later she came back. “They're still in the emergency department. I'll take you there.”

“Thank you.”

Rose took Ava by the hand and the two of them walked through several doors, oblivious of the people they passed. There was a bit of a buzz when they went by and someone called out Ava's name, but they kept going. Soon they were in a crowded annex, with the nurses' station in the middle and curtained cubicles surrounding it. There were several rooms off it as well.

The woman who escorted them left them then, saying, “Someone will be with you in a moment.”

They nodded and stood there, scared to death and set adrift. They didn't know where to look for help. They watched nurses and doctors go about their business. If one approached them, they went rigid, afraid of what might be said, but they inevitably walked on by. Finally a young doctor with horn-rimmed glasses and a stethoscope around his neck approached them. “I'm Dr. Richardson. Are you the MacIntoshes' relatives?”

“Yes,” Rose said. “Please tell me they're all right.”

He looked at his chart. “According to the police, they're very lucky it wasn't worse, but it's still considerable trauma for people of their age. Mrs. MacIntosh has a broken ankle and wrist…”

“Oh no.”

He continued. “Mr. MacIntosh has a badly broken arm. He'll have to be operated on, as he needs pins to fix it. They both have considerable bruising and Mr. MacIntosh needed several stitches to sew up a nasty gash over his eye. He also has a dislocated knee. All that said, I'm sure they can make a reasonable recovery, as long as they have plenty of help for the next few months.”

“Don't you worry about that,” Rose said. “There are plenty of us to pitch in.”

Ava nodded. “I can stay for as long as necessary.”

Rose looked at her. “Are you sure?”

“I don't care. Can we see them now?”

“Only for a minute.” The doctor smiled. “They are more concerned about each other. Please assure them they are in good hands.”

“Oh, we will.”

He escorted Ava and Rose to adjoining rooms. “Remember, only a few moments. They've been through an ordeal.”

“Thank you, doctor,” Ava said.

They went through the door and pushed back the curtains. Aunt Vi lay still on the bed, her face black and blue, hooked up to an I.V. Her eyes were closed, whether by bruising or by choice, it was hard to tell. They approached quietly.

“Oh dear,” Rose moaned. “Her poor face.”

Ava took her hand gently in her own. “Aunt Vi, can you hear me?” She fluttered her eyelids. “Yes.”

“I'm sorry,” Ava choked. “I should've gone instead.”

“Nonsense. How's Angus?”

Rose stroked her hair. “How about I go see and I'll be right back.” “Okay,” Vi nodded. “Tell the old coot I love him.”

Rose and Ava looked at each other. “I think she's going to be all right,” Rose whispered before she tiptoed out of the room. Ava kept Aunt Vi's hand in her own.

“Don't worry now. Everyone will take care of you. I'm going to stay.” Vi shook her head slightly. “No dear. You be here for your Ma, but don't stay on account of me.”

“You're more important than anything.”

“Silly girl.” Vi moaned. “This is mighty sore, I can tell you. And you know the worst part?”

“What?”

“I bought you a box of Timbits, and now they're all over the road.” Ava gave her hand a squeeze. “Timbits make you fat anyway.”

“Don't tell your Ma. Not yet.”

“She'll have to know soon.”

“Well, don't make out it's so bad. Tell her I'll be home in a couple of days.”

“You might be here a little longer, but don't worry about Ma, we'll handle her.”

Just then Bev, Maryette, and Gerard showed up. They couldn't all come into the room at the same time, so Ava backed out and let them have a turn. Rose met her in the hall.

“Uncle Angus is fine, but he's pretty woozy. I think we better let him be.”

Dr. Richardson made another appearance. “I'm afraid we can't have any more visitors. We'll let you know when the surgery is going to be and you can wait in the visitors lounge. After that, they'll be assigned their rooms.”

Ava stepped forward. “May I speak to you a moment?”

He nodded and stepped away from the others, but before she could open her mouth, he said under his breath. “I'm sorry, but are you Ava Harris?”

“Yes.”

He suddenly stammered as if he were fifteen. “I've seen all your movies.”

“Thank you.”

“I couldn't get your autograph, could I?”

Ava wanted to spit. “Of course.”

He handed her a pen and his prescription pad. “My name is Brian.”

“Brian.” She took the pen and wrote, ‘To Brian, Thank you for everything. Ava Harris.'

She passed it back to him.

“Thanks a lot. My wife will be very excited.”

She gave the doctor her professional smile. “I wonder if it would be possible to have my aunt and uncle in the same room. I know it would make them feel much better. I'll pay for it, of course. I'd also like to hire private nurses, to help with their care while they're here. My brothers and sisters have to work and they have families to look after. On top of everything else, my mother is in the final stages of cancer, so everyone has a full plate at the moment.”

“I'm sure something can be arranged. I'll contact the administration office and they can help you.”

“Thank you.”

“My pleasure. If there's anything else you need, I'd be glad to help.”

She reached out and shook his hand. “You've been very kind. I appreciate it.” She flashed the famous smile again and Dr. Richardson floated away. As soon as he was gone, she frowned and went back to her family.

They spent the whole day at the hospital. When they called home Lola assured them that Mamie was fine, that she'd slept through most of the afternoon. Uncle Angus's surgery was performed and everything went well, so the clan left finally. Their uncle would spend the night in I.C.U. and Aunt Vi was resting in their private room, knocked out on pain killers. A private nurse would be there in the morning.

Rose drove Ava back to the house. They went in together and broke the news to their mother, glossing over the details. Mamie was upset, of course, but they assured her that everything went smoothly and Vi and Angus would be back before she knew it.

After giving their mother her medication and settling her for the night, they finally went downstairs and collapsed into the kitchen chairs.

“I'm pooped,” Rose said.

Ava yawned. “Me too.”

Lola came out of the pantry with a plateful of homemade bread. “Here. Have some of my specialty. White bread hard enough to break your teeth.”

“Can I have a cup of tea with it?” Ava asked. “To wash it down.”

“I've already made some.” She went to the stove and poured the tea, bringing the mugs back to the table. Rose took her first bite and chewed for a while.

Lola looked at her hopefully. “It's not too bad, is it?”

“No. I've had worse.”

“Well, its better than the first batch,” Lola sighed. “I put the loaves to rise in the warming oven and they were glorious. They puffed up like magic.”

“Can't we have some of that, then?”

Lola shook her head. “Sorry. When I cut them open, there was no bread inside.”

“What?”

“It rose really high. It must have used up all the dough.”

They started to laugh. It felt good after such a horrible day. Despite the chewy nature of the bread, Rose and Ava ate two pieces each. They hadn't eaten since breakfast, so it filled the hole in their stomachs.

Rose downed the last of her tea and looked at her sister. “Did you mean it when you said you could stay here?”

Lola gave Ava a surprised look.

Ava nodded. “Of course. I need to make a few phone calls though.” She turned to Lola. “Trent will have a fit but I don't care. I know I can't get out of the New York gig, but that doesn't start until the end of August. Do you remember when?”

“You have to be in New York on the twenty-fifth,” Lola told her. “But what about the promotional tour for your new movie? That was going to take a couple of months at least, and wasn't there a Broadway play?”

“Promotional tours and Broadway plays can get along without me. There are about five big-time actors in this new release, so for me not to show up on TV talk shows is not a great loss. And the understudy for the play will kiss my boots.”

“Trent won't be a happy camper,” Lola frowned. “And Camilla will be scrambling.”

“Fortunately I'm five thousand miles from her office, so she can scramble away.”

“If you do stay here,” Rose said, “you'll be worked off your feet.”

Ava shrugged. “It's payback time.”

“Do you want me to stay too?” Lola asked. “I don't want to be in the way but maybe you could use an extra pair of hands.”

“I couldn't let you do that,” Ava said. “You've done enough. Go back home and have a vacation. You've earned it, chasing me around 24/7.”

“That's okay…”

“No, really. I can't take you away for months. That's ridiculous.”

“Well, let me stay for a couple of weeks anyway, until you get your aunt and uncle sorted.”

“All right,” Ava conceded. “But I need you to do something first. Would you mind going back to Malibu for a few days to pack some of my clothes and sort out the house? Tell Mercedes and the gardener to take a paid holiday. And cancel that decorator, too.”

“God, you live in another world, don't you?” Rose said.

“It's not as glamorous as it sounds. People underfoot all day.”

“Oh shut up. That is so not true,” Rose laughed.

Ava laughed with her. “I know, just thought it would make you feel better.”

“Sure, I don't mind going back,” Lola said. “I better go now, while Aunt Vi and Uncle Angus are still in the hospital. You'll need more help when they come home.”

“It's settled, then.”

“Well, that's great,” Rose sighed. “Thanks a lot, you two. This will be a big help. Who knows how long Ma can hold out? It's so upsetting.”

Ava patted her hand. “Let's get through one day at a time, eh?”

“I must go. I've got to drive Vicky to school tomorrow. She's excited; they're practicing their Grand March routine.”

“Vicky is graduating from high school this year?” Ava said. “I can't believe it.”

“What's a grand march?” Lola asked.

“All the graduating students gather before the prom and parade around the school gym in formation,” Rose explained. “It's set to music, which makes it very festive. It's a chance for the parents to see the kids in their finery. In a small town, most people know all the kids, so it's a lot of fun. Samantha and Emily are graduating too.”

“Imagine,” Ava sighed. “The prom is such a magical night in a young girl's life.”

“It might have been for you,” Lola frowned. “Mine was a disaster. The stupid jerk barfed all over my dress.”

“Mine was pretty bad too,” Rose laughed. “Not yours, Libby. You looked like a princess that night.”

“I felt like a princess, too.”

“You must have gone with Seamus.” Lola quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

Ava looked at her. “How do you know about him?”

“Sorry.” Rose looked sheepish. “I told her about him the night you arrived.”

Ava stood. “That was none of your business, Rose. Why can't you ever keep your mouth shut?” Then she turned to Lola. “When were you going to ask me about him? Or were you going to pretend you didn't know a thing about it?”