bed, her hands folded in her lap and her head bowed. He cleared his throat, careful to not surprise her, but the shock was his own when she turned around.
“Erin?”
She stood and walked to him and Shania, her gaze darting between the two. “I had no idea you’d be coming.”
“It never dawned on me that you’d be here, either.”
She shrugged and said, “It’s a good job to have while I finish getting my RN degree. I checked in on him daily to make sure he was getting his medication and had eaten. I called his son who lives in California last week, and he made the call to hospice.”
“I’d like you to meet my partner, Shania. This is my twin, Erin.”
“I’m sorry we have to meet like this, but it’s wonderful to meet another one of Rory’s siblings.”
Shania shook her hand and Erin smiled in response. “It’s nice to meet you, too.”
A sound at the doorway had all three turned to see Bobby enter. With dignity, they carefully placed Mr. Tonika into a body bag, and then onto a stretcher. A small group of apartment residents had gathered outside, reverent in their soft whisperings as he was rolled to the street and placed into the back of the ambulance.
Erin had followed them out, and Rory turned to her. “Are you going to be okay?”
“The hospice nurse and I will stay together here to make sure the apartment is secure and the manager puts a lock on the door. Mr. Tonika’s son is flying in today.”
He leaned down to hold his sister’s gaze. “Erin, I didn’t ask what you were going to be doing. I asked if you were going to be okay.” She didn’t speak for a moment, and he hesitated, knowing he needed to get the body to the hospital but not wanting to leave her.
Finally, she nodded. “Yes, Rory, I’ll be fine. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen death, you know.”
Knowing her experience as a combat medic was similar to his, her words were very true. She had seen death. But it didn’t mean it got any easier. Reaching out, he squeezed her hand. “I’ll talk to you later. I want to make sure you’re okay.”
She offered a sad smile, then jerked her head toward the ambulance. “You’ve got to get going, and I’ve got work here to do. I’ll talk to you later, bro.”
With a final squeeze of her fingers, he jogged to the driver's side and climbed in. Shania was on the radio to the hospital, giving the details and their ETA. Looking to the side, she asked, “Your sister is beautiful. And seems real sweet.”
“She is. I lucked out. I’ve got three sisters, and all are wonderful women.”
“Yeah, but you’ve got that look in your eye. You seem worried.”
“I was just surprised to see her here, that’s all. It took her a while to figure out what to do when she got out of the Army, but when she decided to go for her nursing degree, she started working at a free clinic. That job went bust when the doctor in charge was caught dealing drugs.”
“Oh, lordy!”
“When she told me she was going to be a home health nurse, I guess I thought more in terms of checking people’s weight and blood pressure in between their doctor’s visits. It didn’t dawn on me that she’d be sitting bedside vigil with someone who’s dying.”
“It takes a special person to be able to do that,” Shania said, shaking her head. “If your sister has got that kind of heart, she’ll be fine.”
Rory remained silent as he continued driving to the hospital but hoped Shania was right. As soon as they re-entered the station, his phone vibrated. Grinning, he answered. “Hey, beautiful.”
“I hope you look at the caller ID before you answer that way, or I might be jealous that you’re calling everyone who calls you ‘beautiful’.”
“Only you, babe. What’s up?”
“I’ve just gotten off the phone with one of the city’s buildings inspectors. That was a lesson in futility.”
Her exasperation came through loud and clear. “Look, Sandy, I know what Dad told us has you all spun up, but those days were a long time ago. I’m not naïve. I know there are payoffs and handoffs and illegal dealings, but what makes you think Partridge Tower wasn’t inspected correctly?”
“I don’t really have any proof, you know that. Just suspicions. I heard crackling behind one of the light switches, so I took pictures behind wall plates and fuse