to settle down a bit, and I was finally able to get out of bed. “I’ve been through some stuff, too. Not drugs, but … personal stuff.”
“I didn’t tell you my shit to get all personal. You asked. I answered.”
“I’m sorry. It’s not an easy topic for me.”
“It’s okay. I get it.” Stuffing her cigarette butt into the cup beside her, she blows off the last of her smoke. “Look, I wanted to ask you, I have something going on this evening. I don’t want to make a big fuss and have them call in another nurse. Any chance you can keep an eye on her tonight? Just until about ten, or so?”
“What if she has a nightmare? I mean, I don’t even know what to give for medications.”
“Half her medications are sugar pills.”
“Seriously?”
“She had a bad addiction to Valium for a while. Sometimes, there’s just no reasoning with her. When she has those nightmares? It’s mostly me settling her down. Haven’t had to give her anything in months.”
“Here I thought you guys were over-medicating her, or something.”
“If we don’t give her anything, she freaks the fuck out. One sugar pill?” She smacks her hands together. “She’s down like it’s the real deal.”
“That’s crazy.”
“So is she. Anyway, is it cool if I sneak out a couple hours?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“If she has a nightmare, you mostly just have to hold her down, so she doesn’t hurt herself. But watch yourself, too.” Her lips twist with a smile. “Woman’s got a nasty left hook.”
“Okay.”
“I’m gonna go now.” Pushing up from the chair, she grabs the cup full of cigarette butts from the railing of the balcony. A day’s worth, I’d bet. “If she asks where I went, tell her I had to run out to renew a script, or something. That’ll make her giddy. And thanks for this,” she says, before slipping back inside.
“No problem.”
Shit. There are a number of things I suck at, but lying certainly takes the cake. As Nell makes her great escape, the door to what I presume is Laura’s bathroom clicks, and I head back in.
“Nell, please help me to bed!”
Awkward smile plastered to my face, I enter her room and stride toward her. “Nell went to grab a script. She asked me to help you.”
“She’s supposed to tell me when she leaves. Suppose I had a heart attack just now. Or a stroke. Are you equipped to deal with that? Certainly not.”
Definitely not, but I don’t bother to tell her that would be the case whether Nell informed her, or not. Instead, I pull back the covers and steady her arm, while she scoots herself up onto the bed.
“Will you read to me, Isa?” Laura tucks the blanket around her and lies back on the pile of plush pillows behind her.
“Of course. Any requests?”
“That one.” She points toward a murder mystery in the stack beside her.
I open the book, and something flutters out from the pages of it. Bending forward to grab what looks to be a photograph, I reach out and turn it over. On the other side is an image of two young boys, no more than ten, I’m guessing, standing side by side. By the color of his hair and eyes, it’s clear the one on the left is Lucian. Arm wrapped around the back of Lucian’s neck, the other boy wears a wily smirk on his face that makes me smile. Wet hair and sand scattered over their shirtless chests suggest they’re at the beach.
“What is it you have there?” Laura asks.
I hand off the picture to her, and her eyes crinkle with the smile she gives. “Oh, look at this. My Lucian and his best friend, Jude. Ten years old in this picture, if I recall.” The smile on her face withers to a frown. “Such a shame, what happened to that boy.”
“What happened?”
“Ah, it was all over the news, his father being so well known. The two were playing down in a cave. Must’ve been about four years after this photo was taken.”
“How old is Lucian now?”
“Oh, let’s see.” Tapping her cheek, she looks away, seems contemplative for a moment, and I wonder if she’ll remember, at all. “He’s going to be thirty-three in December.”
Thirty-three. Strange to think that I wasn’t even born when that picture was taken. “I’m sorry, go on.”
“So, anyway, they liked to explore. Boys, you know. One of their favorite games was chicken. Seeing how long they could wait out the tide. Well, the tide came in