Absolution by John A Vanek

Author:John A Vanek
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Mystery
Publisher: Epicenter Press Inc.
Published: 2021-07-22T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY

Friday, December 6, 2002, 7:30 a.m.

On my way to the hospital chapel the next day, I called Tree for a status update. He told me that Dr. Woisnet had stopped by the jail and he had my father’s DTs under control. Although my old man continued to bitch and moan about his incarceration, at least he was alive and in good hands.

Fragments of what Emily had said rattled around inside my head all morning, and I fumbled through Mass for the second day in a row. I had intended to set up a small, understated Christmas tree in the chapel sanctuary after the service, but I was no longer in a holiday mood.

While dressing in the sacristy for my shift in Urgent Care, I realized Emily had left me a voicemail during Mass. I hesitated, then hit play. Her message was short and not so sweet: I promised RJ I’d see him tonight, so I’ll come by cab and babysit. Forget about buying the orchestra tickets.

I listened again. There was no misinterpreting her message or her mood.

I had spent the prior evening picking at the knot that the missing letters represented and mulling over Emily’s denial that she had received them. I had dialed her phone number twice, gotten her answering machine, and was told to leave a message. I didn’t. We needed to meet again face-to-face and talk things through, but her voicemail indicated that she was nowhere near ready.

My mother had been the only person who had written to me during the war, on the few days when she was sober enough to scribble a note. Electronic communication was not much of an option in those days, and telephone calls overseas to the front lines were nearly impossible. The abrupt loss of Emily’s letters was like the amputation of one of my legs, leaving me off balance, vulnerable, and without hope.

I arrived in Urgent Care fifteen minutes late for my shift. Between yesterday’s confrontation with Emily and my old man’s on-going disaster, I could not untangle my thoughts. I was distracted and unable to focus on my patients. Nurse Ochs didn’t say anything to me, but she commandeered an additional resident to help with the workload.

Lost in a dense, swirling fog of questions and roiled emotions, I picked up a chart, refocused on medicine, and walked into the next examination room. I stopped near the doorway.

A man about my age wearing bloody camouflage fatigues sat on the exam table, his hospital gown still hanging from a hook on the wall. He ran a hand over his crew cut and rolled up his sleeves, revealing a dragon tattoo, similar to the one inked on my forearm—a souvenir from the war. It was my mark of Cain, a daily reminder that I had killed my brother—a man with a different skin color, uniform, and language, but my brother nonetheless. My mind leaped back in time.

Although my patient’s face was bruised, slightly swollen, and marred by several minor lacerations that no longer bled, he looked vaguely familiar.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.