The Rosecross by Caiazza Francis

Author:Caiazza, Francis
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Gatekeeper Press
Published: 2021-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 55

COMPETING INTERESTS

Following my visit with Alexandria Arnold, I returned to New Castle for a week to breathe life into my ailing law practice and, more importantly, to spend some much-needed quality time with Gianna and Michele. It was an uneventful seven days that stretched into an additional three after Michele came down with a case of early summer flu. The ER doctor hospitalized Michele overnight because he was dehydrated. I remained with him, watching throughout the night as bags hanging from an IV pole delivered him fluids. At about eight o’clock the following morning, he was examined by an attending doctor who said the lab tests were normal and that Michele “was good to go.” After signing the release papers, I walked behind an aide as she wheeled Michele to the hospital entrance. Gianna was waiting at the curb. I strapped Michele into his car seat, opened the front door, and sat beside Gianna. She gave me a quick stare.

“Don’t even think about it,” she said sternly, staring through the car’s windshield.

“About what?”

“About driving to Washington today. You need to pal around with Michele—and then get eight hours sleep.”

Gianna was right. It was a good suggestion, or should I say order, her voice resolute, leaving me with no option. A day together, just father and son. It was the kind of time I yearned for as a child, alone with my father, just us two, but he was too busy, always hurrying off to his jealous mistress—the law. As Gianna appropriately recognized, I was headed down the same road. She parked the car in the driveway, smiling as she walked through the garage and into the house.

Michele and I stayed outside, playing in the yard, his chubby legs churning as I chased him, his voice screeching as he slid down the sliding board at the school playground, his eyes skyward, watching breathlessly as a kite took flight. Chili dogs and french fries at Coney Island for lunch, ice cream at Forbush’s before the merry-go-round, and Ferris wheel at Cascade Park. Six hours later, we returned home, exhausted and just in time for dinner.

“Did you guys have a good time?” Gianna asked. Michele ran toward her and wrapped his arms around his mother’s legs as her hands mussed his sweaty hair.

“Thanks,” I said to Gianna as we all hugged.

After dinner, I bathed Michele, helped him into his pajamas, and then tucked him in bed. His eyes were closed before I left the room. I turned, doused the light, leaving only the dim glare of the night lamp. I eased the door shut before giving him one last peek. At eight in the morning, I was headed east on the Pennsylvania Turnpike—on my way back to Washington.

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