The Heart of Memory (9 page)

Jessie turned her back on the family whose experience highlighted the deficiencies of her own and swiped her card to unlock the door. She kept her head down and avoided making eye contact with the people who swarmed through the hall as she pushed her way through to her room. Once there, she grabbed the folder of freshman dinner info from her desk and looked up the number for The Sweet Shoppe. She called and asked the employee who answered to confirm the ice cream and toppings delivery for that evening.

“Gosh … I’m sorry. I don’t see that order in our computer. When did you say this event was?”

“Know what? Never mind.” Jessie hung up the phone, flopped to her bed, and cried.

S
AVANNAH AWOKE TO FAMILIAR VOICES.
It took a moment for her to get her eyes open, but by the time she did she was already smiling. “Hey,” she croaked.

“Ah, Sleeping Beauty awakens!” Mary gave Savannah a gentle hug, then frowned. “Okay, so, I had no idea you weren’t eating anything anymore. The nurse just told me. That really sucks — I brought brownies.”

Savannah smiled. “Make more … when I’m better … and I’ll forgive you.”

Colleen held up a stack of DVD cases. “Shaun said you were sleeping a lot, but we brought these just in case you find yourself awake and bored. All the good ones are here—
Sleepless in Seattle, Shakespeare in Love, When Harry Met Sally,
and
Dirty Dancing.
“

“Just don’t, you know, get any ideas,” said Bethany, waving a hand to the machines beside the bed. “All those cords and tubes would really get in the way.”

Andi took Savannah’s hand. “Listen, just let us know if you need peace and quiet. Or just take a nap when you want to and we can stick around until you’re awake again. We don’t want to impose, we just wanted to see you and pray with you and make sure you knew we were all here for you.”

“Love you all … you’re angels.”

“Let’s pray now—get the important stuff out of the way,” Mary said with a grin.

Savannah didn’t dare close her eyes, for fear she’d fall asleep. She stared instead at each of the women holding hands around her bed, their eyes closed and heads bowed as they interceded for her and Shaun. She was moved beyond words by their faithful friendship and sacrifice — she knew how long that drive was from the Springs — and as they spoke over her she thanked God for them and prayed that this ordeal would end in a way that encouraged everyone in their faith.

When they finished, Colleen began straightening the stack of cards and letters from fans that Shaun had brought a few days ago and now cluttered the bedside table. “So, are you really okay with visitors right now? Or do you want to sleep?”

“No sleeping,” she said. “Later. Tell me … what’s up.”

“What’s up, let’s see …” She began to regale Savannah with a dramatic retelling of the senior lunch she and Mary had helped host at church for the retirees. “I swear, I
will
get Alfred Collins and Helen Grable together by Christmas.”

“Girl, there’s got to be a better way to spend your time than playing matchmaker with senior citizens,” Bethany said with a laugh.

“They’d be … cute together,” Savannah said.

“See? Savannah agrees with me.”

“Savannah is not operating on all cylinders.”

Savannah gave a minute shrug. “She’s right.”

“Any news on when those cylinders might all be up and running?”

She shook her head. “When God’s … good and ready.”

Mary pulled a knitting project from a bag at her feet and began to unwind purple yarn. “Alex has been trying to get ahold of Shaun to go out for breakfast or something, but Shaun hasn’t returned his calls. How is he doing?”

Shaun hadn’t mentioned this to her, though she wasn’t surprised. “Not well. It’s hard on him … all the driving … me like this. I think he’s scared.”

“I would be too, if it were me. I just wish he’d get together with Alex so he could go vent, or play golf, or whatever it is men do to feel better.”

“I’ll tell him … to call … but you know Shaun … he’s private.”

“Yeah, I know. But still. He needs someone to talk to through all of this, someone that isn’t you.”

“I wanted to organize some meals for him and Jessie,” said Bethany. “Or is Jessie back at school now?”

“Left yesterday … Shaun’s always here. Not many … meals at home.”

“Well, he’s got to eat sometime. Maybe I’ll just hunt him down at A&A and bring him some sandwiches or something.”

Savannah smiled. “You’re sweet.”

“How about you?” Andi asked. “How are you doing? Like,
really
doing.”

She nodded slowly. “I know … God will … heal me … but … still scary. Pain scares me.”

Andi squeezed her hand. “Oh, Van. It breaks my heart that you have to go through this.”

Savannah shook her head. “No … it’s good … God … renewed me through this … broken body but … mountaintop faith.” She glanced at the clock on the wall. “Lots of prayer time … listen to worship music … I needed to … slow down.”

Colleen snorted. “He couldn’t have just broken your leg?”

The others laughed as Savannah smiled. “Guess that wouldn’t … have done the trick.”

“Is there anything you need, Van?” Mary asked. “Besides the obvious, which I would gladly donate to you myself if it were possible.”

“Prayer for us … and the donor’s family.”

Mary’s face fell. “Oh, gosh. Yeah.”

“Will you know who they are?” asked Bethany. “Do they tell you that kind of thing?”

“You can … correspond … anonymously … of course I will.”

Andi chuckled. “That’s a heck of a thank-you card to write.”

Savannah’s head nodded a fraction. “You’re telling me.”

Suddenly exhaustion hit her like a fist. “Gotta sleep. But stay … if you want … watch a movie.”

“We don’t want to keep you up.”

“You won’t.” She smiled. “Hopefully I can … chat more … before you leave. Shaun comes … around one. Hound him then, Mary.”

She grinned. “Perfect.”

Savannah closed her eyes, worn out from the effort of conversation, and fell asleep to a soundtrack starting in the background.

S
HAUN JUMPED AS A CLAP
of thunder took him by surprise. He hadn’t noticed the lightning with the kitchen light on. He moved the pancakes to his plate and poured two more onto the griddle, then checked the salmon in the countertop grill. He’d managed to feed himself without a single trip to the grocery store since Savannah’s hospitalization, but this was definitely scraping the bottom of the barrel. He conceded he’d need to go shopping tomorrow.

One of the nurses had called on behalf of Savannah that morning to tell him not to come up because of the storm that was expected to roll across the state. It had been sunny when she’d called, but by lunch the clouds had begun to darken. He’d almost blown off the warning and gone up anyway; but now that the rain was pouring in buckets, he was glad he hadn’t.

Instead, he was eating an entirely unappetizing dinner and reviewing some stocks he was considering buying. It had been awhile since he’d actively played the market, but it was one of the few ways he could think of that might bring in some extra money. He’d taken out everything he could when the IRS had come calling a few years back, and hadn’t had the time to research stock picks thoroughly enough to make any moves since then. But with two more bills from the insurance company and Jessie’s tuition due, he knew it was time to get back into it.

He ate his pancakes as he made them and took the salmon to his office to eat while he read up on the two stocks he was interested in. The seed money was the one problem. He could get it if he went into their retirement, but he’d get penalized, which meant losing some of the money they desperately needed. But what choice was there?

By the time the salmon was gone his choice was made. All he had to do was bite the bullet and pull the money out of his 403b. He was about to pick up his cell to call his investment company when it surprised him by ringing.

“Hello?”

“Shaun, it’s Tammy — Savannah’s transplant coordinator.”

His blood iced in his veins. “Oh God—she’s not—”

“No, no, Shaun—we have a heart.”

It took a second for his emotions to put the brakes on his grief. “Wait—a heart—for Savannah?”

She laughed. “If it were for someone else I wouldn’t be calling you.”

He darted for the kitchen where his car keys sat. “I don’t know when I’ll get there with the rain. Oh man—I never packed a bag.”

“That’s alright, just get here when you can. The heart isn’t here yet, and it probably won’t get here for another couple hours anyway; it’s up in Fort Collins right now.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“Drive safely now—no speeding.”

“Right, right. No speeding.” He hung up and ran back into the bedroom to grab a change of clothes, then shoved them into the computer bag that held his laptop.

He was on the road before he realized he ought to call people. But who? Jessie first, of course. He dialed, praying God would protect him from crashing as he drove through the storm. “They’ve got a heart,” he said when she picked up. “They said it’ll get there in a couple hours. I’m guessing she’ll go straight into surgery once it’s there. I’m on my way up now.”

“Oh my gosh! Okay, okay … we’ll finish up dinner and hit the road in about ten minutes.”

He called Alex after that, who promised to get the word out to their friends and Pastor John. Then he dialed Marisa, who had just gotten back two days prior from a visit to her boyfriend in New York. “They got a heart; it’s on its way.”

“Hallelujah! I can’t believe it! That was so fast.”

“Fast?”

“It’s only been, what, twelve days since she was admitted to the hospital the first time? Some people are on the list for months.”

Shaun had to do the math himself to believe it. Less than two weeks? It felt like a lifetime. “She wouldn’t have lasted months. God knew what he was doing.”

“Are you on your way?”

“Just left ten minutes ago.”

“I’ll call the staff and let them know. Is it okay if people come up?”

“As long as they promise to pray like crazy while they’re here, sure.”

She laughed. “You got it. See you as soon as I can make it up.”

The rain lessened as he drove, and by the time he was halfway there it had stopped completely. Without the weather to worry about, his mind was free to wander. They had a heart. Savannah had been right; God was going to heal her. Why had he doubted?

His thoughts turned to the surgery, and then to the bill that would be coming. Hopefully he’d be able to grab those stocks beforehand. If he had a minute alone, he’d leave a voicemail for the investor who handled A&A’s retirement program to find out about pulling out the funds.

Between the rush hour traffic he’d hit and the weather, it took him almost two hours to get to the hospital. It was just after eight when he ran at full-tilt from the car to the building and up the two flights of stairs to Savannah’s room. Two nurses were preparing to take her to the operating room. “I’m here, Van!” he said, squeezing her foot. She opened her eyes and smiled bigger than he’d seen in weeks. “Jessie’s on her way; Marisa’s coming up, too. I called Alex; not sure who will come up but he’s calling everyone.”

“Tell them all hi.”

He laughed. “I will.”

Tammy entered and threw an arm around Shaun’s shoulder. “You made it! What a night, huh?”

“You can say that again.”

“They’ll take her down in a minute; the heart is about half an hour away. I’ll walk you down to the waiting room and we can go over any questions you have about the surgery.”

“We’re done here, Tammy,” said one of the nurses.

“Alright then — Shaun, you and Savannah can have a minute alone.” She and the nurses left, and Shaun moved beside Savannah and held her hand.

“You okay, babe?”

She nodded. “You?”

“Better than I have been.”

“Pray for me.”

He closed his eyes and found himself speechless. Words couldn’t convey the desperation he felt for this surgery to go right. He stumbled through a prayer he was sure would make Savannah roll her eyes, but when he opened his own she was smiling wide. “See you tomorrow.”

He felt his throat threatening to close. “Promise?”

“Promise.” She squeezed his hand and he kissed her as hard as he dared.

Tammy returned. “Ready to go?”

Shaun let Savannah go and stepped back. “Not really.”

She chuckled. “Savannah?”

“Let’s get this … show on the road.”