Mercy Me by Margaret A. Graham

Author:Margaret A. Graham
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781441239143
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group

14

After seeing to Carmen, the next thing we had to do was find a place for the children. That wasn’t hard—Pastor Osborne said he would take them home with him. I knew this would tickle Betty Osborne to death.

I helped Elijah put the kids in the backseat of the pastor’s car. Then Elijah crawled in the front seat while I held the door open. “Pastor Osborne will take you home, Elijah.”

“No’m. I’m going with the chillun. It’ll be a strange place for them, and they need me to spend a little time with them till they settle in. Then I’ll get along home.”

Pastor Osborne spoke up. “Good. That’ll help Betty. But Elijah, you needn’t to walk home; whenever you’re ready to go, I’ll drive you.”

“What should I do if I need you, Elijah?” I asked.

“Maybe you could call me at the preacher’s house.”

“Sure,” the pastor said. “Esmeralda, you have our number.”

“Yes, I have it. . . . Okay, then, Elijah, if you aren’t at the Osbornes’, I’ll find you at home. Might be I have to send somebody else, though. I think I need to stay right here at the hospital.”

I closed the car door, and they eased on around the driveway. Watching them go, I wished I could be there to see Betty’s face when those kids arrived. She would light up like a Christmas tree.

I looked across the parking lot and saw Lucy Mangrum getting out of her car. I waited for her.

“Esmeralda, I couldn’t stay put,” she said as she hurried up to me. “What if that lady wakes up and I’m not there?”

“It’s good you came. Let’s go up and see her.”

When we reached Carmen’s room, they were still bathing and dressing her. As we stood in the hall, I filled Lucy in on all that was going on. I had to let her in on the fact that Carmen Miranda was not the woman’s real name. Lucy said that if Carmen spoke Spanish, she would try to find out what her name really was.

Finally we were admitted in the room. There were tubes going in and out that poor emaciated body, and the girl was still unconscious. We’d hardly sat down when there they came to take her down to X ray.

While Carmen was gone, I went down the hall and called Clara to bring her up-to-date on the situation. “Tell the women not to be calling the hospital. I’ll call you if there’s any change.” Once the W.W.s heard the children were at Betty’s, I knew they’d go over there with food and help the Osbornes any way they could.

The chair I sat in was not the most comfortable, but after they brought Carmen back to the room, I had reason to stand by her bedside. She was mumbling and from time to time opening her eyes, though I’m not sure she was seeing anything. She was kind of wild and talking out of her head. Still, I told Lucy to listen and ask what her name was.

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