INTRUSION (Whitney Holmes Series) (10 page)

“I know my wound getting infected isn’t, but somehow I feel like I have done something to attract all this negative attention from the stalker,” I said.

“
I don’t know what you could have done,” she said.

“
I try to be nice to everyone. I don’t make fun of people at school,” I said.

“
I know, honey. Like I said, it is not your fault,” she said.

The pharmacist called my name and we went up and paid for the medicine. The doctor had prescribed Vicodin for my pain and Amoxicillin for the infection and my mom handed over her credit card and the clerk rang us up we left the pharmacy and went into the store.

“Do you need anything?” my mom asked.

“
Maybe some more ponytail bands so I can put up my hair and not get hair in my wound,” I said.

We went to the hair aisle and got the bands and I picked the package with all different colors and we went to the store clerk and bought them. We then walked over to our car and got in. It was already getting hot, the school year would be over soon, we drove home and went inside. I was tired so I decided to take my pills then go to sleep and I slept for five hours. I dreamed some wonderful dreams.  I woke up feeling a little groggy. I think the Vicodin made me sleep a lot. I went into the kitchen and my mom was making dinner.

“How does your neck feel, honey?” my mom asked.

“
Fine, the medicine is really working,” I said.

“
I know Vicodin is a little strong, but you seemed to be in so much pain, I decided to let you take it,” she said.

“
I had such wonderful dreams,” I said.

“
I think vivid dreams are a side effect,” my mom smiled.

“
I can see how people get addicted to painkillers,” I said.

“
Yes, it is horrible how people get addicted to something that originally was supposed to help them,” my mom said.

“
Anyway, what is for dinner?” I asked.

“
I thought we could have hamburgers and French fries. I was hungry for a hamburger so I pulled some meat out of the freezer,” my mom said.

“
That sounds yummy,” I said.

I went and set the table for the four of us because my dad never ate dinner with us during the work week. I poured water from the refrigerator into glasses and then I decided to call Chanda to see how school went and then I remembered something.

“Mom, we forgot to change my phone number at Radio Shack,” I said.

“
I looked it up online and I did it on the computer,” my mom said.

“
You are so smart,” I said.

“
Your new number is on a piece of paper by the computer.”

“
Cool, thank you,” I said, going over to the computer and picking up a piece of paper with a number on it.

I called Chanda on my phone and she didn’t pick up and I guess she didn’t recognize my number. I decided to run over to her house to tell her my new number before dinner.

“Mom, can I go to Chanda’s really quick? I want to tell her my new number,” I said.

“
Sure, honey, just be back in five minutes, dinner is almost finished,” she said.

I put on my tennis shoes and went next door and I felt afraid outside,  I felt so secure in my house, I knocked on Chanda’s door and she answered it.

“That was me who called before,” I said.

“
Oh, good, I was afraid I was getting some kind of prank call,” she said.

“
No, that is my new number,” I said.

“
That is a good idea to change it. Do you want to come in?” she asked.

“
No, dinner is almost ready, so I will see you tomorrow. I am going to school, I think,” I said.

“
Are you still in a lot of pain?” she asked.

“
Not with these pain pills,” I said.

She laughed and we said goodbye and I ran home quickly. I was still so nervous. When I got home, dinner was on the table. Jacob and Jordan were already seated.

“Hurry up, Whitney, we’re starving,” Jacob said.

I washed my hands and sat at my place at the table.  It was a good dinner. The boys talked nonstop about a new game they were playing. My mom and I would nod our heads, but I wasn’t listening and I don’t think my mom was either.  When dinner was over, we cleaned up and watched some TV.

We watched TV for about an hour when Jordan asked where our dad was. I looked at the clock and it was a little late for my dad.

“
Maybe he had to work late because he took that steak to the police station,” I said.

“
That doesn’t usually matter unless he had lots of work to do,” Jacob said.

“
I think he will probably be home any minute,” Mom said.

We watched TV for another hour and I could tell my mom was getting a little worried because she was rocking in her rocking chair.

“I think I will give him a call to see where he is right now,” my mom said. She got up and used our landline and called my dad’s cell.

“
That is odd. It went right to voicemail,” my mom said visibly worried now.

Another hour went by, this one slower and with more anxiety.

“I would call his job, but he doesn’t have a phone at work and everyone is gone by now,” my mom said.

“
I am sure everything is all right, Mom,” I said, not knowing if I was telling the truth. Our phone rang and we all jumped. My mom got up and answered the phone.

“
Hello,” she said.

Someone on the other line said something.

“Yes, this is Janet Holmes,” she said.

She listened for a while. Her face got white.

“I will be right there,” she said.

She got off the phone and said, “Your father has been in a horrible car accident.”

“What?” we all said.

“
Your father has been in a hit-and-run accident in his car. He has a broken arm and a broken leg. He is in the hospital,” my mother said.

“
Mom, can I come with you to the hospital?” I asked.

“
You all can come,” she said. “We need to hurry.”

We put on our shoes and went out to the car and my mom looked frightened I think we all did.

CHAPTER NINE

We arrived at the hospital and my mom asked the nurse in charge where Paul Holmes was. The nurse looked on her computer and said he was in room 312. We took off and went to the elevator and the boys were being so good, they didn’t fight over who got to press the number three button. We got to the third floor and stepped out of the elevator. The nurses and doctors were walking around looking very busy. We went to room 312 and my father’s arm and leg were already in casts.

“
Dad!” I said.

“
Honey, what happened?” my mom ran over and kissed my dad on the cheek.

“
Some jerk ran me off the road and I hit a telephone pole. The airbag went off and hit me in the face and broke my arm. I shoved my legs into the brake and one of them is broken,” he said.

“
The doctor who called said it was a hit and run,” my mom said.

“
Yes, once the creep ran me off the road, he took off,” my dad said.

Did he use the word “creep” on purpose? I wondered if it was my stalker who had hit him.

“The police are on their way over to talk to me,” my dad said.

“
Dad, did you see the person’s face at all?” I asked.

“
His windows were darkly tinted and I wasn’t expecting to get hit, so I didn’t give the car a good look. I don’t even remember what kind of car it was, except it was silver,” my dad said.

“
Are you in a lot of pain?” Jordan asked.

“
Yes, tons,” my dad said.

“
Have they given you anything for the pain?” my mom asked.

“
No, they are afraid I might have a concussion because the airbag hit me right in the face,” my dad said.

The X-ray technician came in and said they wanted to take some pictures of my dad’s back and my dad hobbled to the wheelchair, not putting any weight on his bad leg.

“He’ll be right back,” the technician said and wheeled him away.

When he left, my mom looked like she was going to cry andI went over and hugged her.

“Do you think the guy who hit your father is the same one who has been stalking you?” Mom whispered to me.

“
I don’t know,” I said.

“
I am getting so tired of all this,” she said.

“
Me, too,” I said.

I thought the stalker would cool it when he couldn’t call me anymore after I got my new number. I didn’t know he would step it up a notch in the anger department and try to kill my dad. An orderly brought my dad back in the wheelchair.

“What did they say about your back?” Mom asked.

“
My back is okay. Well, not okay. It hurts but nothing is broken. It was just really sore from hitting the brake and gas pedals.”

“
Maybe they will give you something for pain soon,” the X-ray technician said.

“
That would be great,” Dad said.

The technician helped my dad into bed and then left with the wheelchair.

“Dad, did you go to the police station today with the steak?” I asked him.

“
Yes, and the sergeant took it really seriously about the possibility of poison,” Dad said.

I felt bad about grilling him about the steak when he was visibly in pain, but I wanted to know, so I asked, “When will we find out whether or not there was poison in the meat?”

“They said they will get back to me,” my dad said. “Is Gretchen okay?”

“
Yes,” Mom said. “I don’t think she even tasted that steak that the stalker threw in the yard.”

“
She’s so smart,” Dad said.

“
Or maybe she didn’t like the smell of either the guy or what he might have put on the steak,” Mom said.

There was a knock at the door and we all looked up. It was two male police officers in uniform.

“We are here to talk to Mr. Holmes,” one of the officers said.

My mom told me and my brothers to go get a drink at the cafeteria. I wanted to argue with her, but I didn’t. I didn’t want to have to pry everything out of her later, but Mom handed me a ten-dollar bill and told me to get anything we wanted.  It took us a few minutes to find the cafeteria. It was closed, but they had a Coke machine outside and also a snack machine next to it.

“What kind of drink do you want?” I asked Jordan and Jacob.

“
Sprite,” they both said.

I got them each a Sprite and I got a Coca-Cola. The machine took large bills and gave change, thank goodness.  We had just enough money to get each of us some chips, too. There was a little table by the machines so we sat down in the chairs by the table and ate our chips and drank our drinks. I was so worried that I wasn’t really hungry.  Jordan asked me if he could have the rest of my chips since he’d scarfed his down. I told him yes and I kept drinking my Coke.  After we stayed away about a half an hour, I decided to go back and we cleaned the table and headed back to my dad’s hospital room.

The police officers were gone and my mother and father looked concerned.

“
What’s wrong?” I asked. “What did they say?”

“
The police think that the man who has been bothering you is the same one who did the hit and run on Dad,” Mom said.

“
Why?” I asked.

“
They think he might see Dad as a threat because he keeps taking things to the police.”

I ran over and gently hugged my father.

“Daddy, I am so sorry,” I said.

“
This is not your fault,” my father said.

“
I feel like I did something to attract this weirdo,” I said.

“
Well, you didn’t. Sometimes bad things happen to good people. We are the good people,” he said. “In no way am I blaming this on you.”

Jordan and Jacob gave us all a concerned look, too. Jacob looked like he was thinking about crying.

“Don’t worry, boys. The police will find this guy. There was a fingerprint on the bottom of the vase of the flowers that didn’t match either Whitney or me. All they have to do is find him and they will arrest him for harassment,” my father said. “Maybe more charges, now that he ran me off the road.”