Curtis walked toward his father-in-law’s room the following morning, and Charlotte just happened to be returning from the restroom. At first she considered ignoring him, pretending she didn’t see him, but she knew that would be childish and uncalled for.
“You’re still not speaking to me?” he said, stopping in front of her.
“Should I be?”
“Baby, let’s not do this.”
“Fine. How was Curtina this morning? Was she still in the same great mood she was in last night?”
“Yeah, but that only lasted for a few minutes.”
“Why?”
“Right after we finished breakfast, she asked me for her phone again, and when I told her no, she got upset.”
Charlotte frowned. “That’s really sad, and something needs to be done.”
“I agree, but what? Counseling, maybe?”
“I don’t know, because the only way that will help is if she’s honest about what’s bothering her. Versus only saying what she thinks a therapist will want to hear.”
“Very true,” Curtis said. “Maybe we can let her have her phone back, but only with some very strict conditions. There are a lot of control features that the cell phone companies offer now, so we would definitely be able to limit some of the things she does. If nothing else, we’ll be able to read her text messages and see what web sites she’s browsing.”
“Maybe, but I still think we should keep it from her for the rest of this week. At least.”
“That’s fine with me,” he said as they walked into Joe’s hospital room.
“Hey, how are you this morning?” Curtis asked him.
“I’m hanging in there. No pain, and they’ve even had me walking through the hallway. Actually, they started that late last night, after you left.”
“Good. And did you rest well?”
“I did. Well, as much as I could, given how many times my nurse kept coming in to check on me. She was only doing her job, though.”
“That she was, and I so appreciate that,” Noreen said. “She was very kind and hands-on.”
“So when are they letting you out of here?” Curtis asked.
Joe sat up in bed a little straighter. “I’m hoping today.”
Noreen shook her head. “Yeah, but I think it’ll be a while longer.”
Joe rolled his eyes toward the ceiling. “I don’t see why. I feel fine. Just like brand-new.”
Charlotte laughed. “Daddy, you just had a heart attack less than twenty-four hours ago.”
“I know, but the doc fixed me right up, and I’m good. So I’m ready to blow this camp.”
Curtis, Charlotte, and Noreen laughed, and then Dr. Simmons walked in.
“Good morning to all of you, and how’s my patient?”
“Good morning,” everyone said, then Joe added, “We were just talking about you and how I’m ready to get out of here.”
“Is that right?” Dr. Simmons laughed. “Well, you do seem to be doing well, but I think to be safe, we shouldn’t count on releasing you until Wednesday. And that’s at the earliest.”
Joe half frowned. “Wednesday? Doc, that’s two days from now.”
“I know, but you didn’t just have an angioplasty, you also went into cardiac arrest.”
“Yeah, but I feel well enough to leave, and I can walk around the house and rest at home.”
“I’m sure you can, but why don’t you just hang out here. Only for another couple of days.”
“If you say so, and I guess you’re the doctor,” Joe said.
“That he is,” Noreen said. “And I’m glad you’re listening to him.”
Dr. Simmons smiled at Noreen and then at Joe. “I’ve reviewed your bloodwork from this morning, and everything looks great. Your vitals are good also. The one thing I did want to mention, though, is that your blood pressure was very high when you came into the ER. We were able to get it down, but what this also tells me is that the medicine you’ve been taking isn’t doing what it needs to. Especially since you told me you took it like clockwork. And that means that it’s either not strong enough or you need a different kind altogether.”
Charlotte looked at her dad and noticed that he wasn’t saying anything. From the time Dr. Simmons had come in, he’d been talking nonstop, yet now he barely blinked or moved.
But Dr. Simmons continued. “So over the next two days, I’m going to see how things go. I’m trying two different pills now. Lisinopril, which is an ACE inhibitor that will work to keep your blood pressure down and help keep your heart healthy. And the second is a diuretic called spironolactone.”
“Did you know your blood pressure was high, Daddy?” Charlotte asked. “Were you having headaches or anything?”
“Sometimes,” he said.
Noreen looked shocked. “Then why hadn’t you said anything? Or gone to the doctor?”
“I didn’t think it was any big deal. Everyone gets headaches from time to time.”
“Yeah, but not you,” Noreen said. “You never complain about those.”
“Well,” Dr. Simmons said, “the important thing now is that we’re aware of it, and if these two meds don’t keep your pressure down where I want it, I’ll add a third pill.”
Charlotte watched her father, and something didn’t seem right. He looked as though he was hiding information.
“Daddy, were you really taking your medication every single day?”
“Pretty much.”
Noreen squinted her eyes. “What does ‘pretty much’ mean? Either you took it consistently or you didn’t.”
“My pressure was fine. Every time I went to the doctor it was fine. So sometimes I might’ve missed taking it.”
Dr. Simmons raised his eyebrows. “But that’s not what you told me, Mr. Michaels. Remember when I asked you about it right before we put you under?”
“I do. But sometimes I missed a few days. You know…here and there.”
“A few days?” Charlotte said, louder than normal. “Why would you do that, Daddy?”
“And how long have you been doing it?” Noreen asked.
Curtis stood in silence, not saying anything at all, and Charlotte knew it was because he didn’t want to side with them against his father-in-law. Siding with them about their wanting Joe to eat healthier was one thing, but this topic was much too tense.
Joe looked at this wife but didn’t respond.
“Daddy, how could you? Why would you put your life in danger like this? You could’ve died.”
“But I didn’t die. I’m here, alive and well. Breathing and feeling just fine.”
“That may be, Mr. Michaels,” Dr. Simmons said, “but a blood pressure patient should never stop taking their meds without monitoring. You should have been taking your pressure daily, and more important, you should’ve spoken to your primary care physician first to make sure it was okay.”
Joe was irritated and noticeably embarrassed. “Well, it won’t happen again.”
“I’m glad to hear that, and now that we know you hadn’t been taking your original medication the way you should, it might work fine. So again, we’ll monitor this new regimen I have you on and will go from there. You’re going to need to take lisinopril anyway, for your heart, so I may just keep things as is. I’ll also call your primary doctor and discuss it with him.”
“I appreciate that,” Joe said. “And I didn’t mean to cause so much ruckus this morning. Goodness gracious.”
“Maybe now you’ll do the right thing, then,” Noreen told him.
“Exactly,” Charlotte said. “You have to take better care of yourself, Daddy.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. I will. I won’t miss another pill,” he said, and then glanced over at Curtis. “You see how your wife talks to me? So when you leave, maybe you should take her with you.”
Curtis laughed and so did Joe.
Charlotte couldn’t get over her dad’s carelessness. He knew he had high blood pressure problems, so there was no reason at all why he should have stopped taking his pills. Charlotte could tell how upset her mother was, too.
Dr. Simmons chatted with them for a few more minutes, but when he was ready to physically examine Joe, Charlotte and Curtis walked out of the room.
“Your dad is funny,” Curtis said.
“Yeah. Funny not funny.”
“Well, at least he won’t likely try something like this again.”
“We can only hope.”
Curtis stood against the wall but looked at his watch.
“So you’re still going to Chicago?”
“I know you don’t understand, but yes.”
“You know you’re wrong for this, right?” Charlotte said.
“I’m not trying to hurt you or not be here for you, and I’ve already tried to explain that.”
“You can explain until the end of time, and it won’t make any difference. You could easily go see Trina tomorrow or the next day.”
“Baby, I’m really surprised that you feel this way. Knowing what my sister’s situation is.”
“And I’m surprised you’re not staying here with us, knowing what my father’s situation is.”
Curtis stepped closer to her. “Look, all I can say is that I’m sorry. And if I thought your father wasn’t doing well, I wouldn’t go. But he is.”
“You can say whatever you want. I’m still not okay with it.”
“Well, I’m sorry,” he said, “and I guess I’ll see you later. I should be back by five or six.”
“Bye.”
Curtis stared at her for a few seconds and then turned and headed down the hallway.
Charlotte watched him, but mostly she wished she could somehow get away to have herself a drink.
“Mom, can you believe Daddy?” Charlotte said, taking a bite of her scrambled eggs. She and Noreen had just sat down in the hospital cafeteria for breakfast, and Charlotte was still upset about what her father had done.
“Not really, but then a part of me can. A lot of people decide to stop taking their medication, even though they really need it.”
“I don’t get it. Daddy could’ve had a massive stroke or the kind of heart attack that could’ve taken him out of here.”
Noreen drank some of her orange juice. “I know, but thank God he didn’t.”
Charlotte ate more of her food and looked around at staff members and other patients’ loved ones and friends.
“So how is Curtis’s sister doing?” Noreen asked.
“I don’t know. About the same, I guess.”
“You haven’t asked him?”
“I did last week.”
“Charlotte?”
“Yeah?”
“Why are you so upset about Curtis and his relationship with Trina?”
“I’m not upset about it at all. I just know he should be here with me. And for Daddy.”
“But you heard Dr. Simmons. Your daddy is doing fine.”
“Well, I can’t help how I feel, Mom. I’ve never been okay with Curtis putting anyone before me. Not when I really need him.”
“But you did hear what he said during service yesterday, right? Talking about how short life is. How precious and delicate it is.”
“I heard him.”
“Then you also know that very few things are worth being mad about. But more than that, you know how much Curtis loves you and how much he’s given you. And I’m not talking about the financial part of your marriage. That’s all great and wonderful, but I’m talking about the emotional and loving aspect. You and Curtis have been through a lot, sweetheart. But no matter how bad things got, he’s always been there for you. And you’ve always been there for him. But honey, this is different, and there’s no way he can be here for you and be there for his dying sister.”
Charlotte didn’t want to disrespect her mom, so she changed the subject. “So if Daddy is released on Wednesday, do you want to stay with us for a while? Maybe even just until the weekend?”
“Oh, so does that mean you don’t like what I’m saying?”
“I’d just rather not talk about Curtis right now. I’m sorry, Mom.”
“It’s fine. And to answer your question, we’ll see. Because if the doctor says that he’s strong enough to take a ninety-minute ride, then I’d rather go home. That way I can get him completely situated, do some grocery shopping, and begin cooking him three healthy meals every day.”
“Well, I’ll at least drive over with you so I can stay with Daddy while you go to the store and then help with anything else you need.”
“Yes, that will be good.”
Noreen and Charlotte talked and kept eating, but then Noreen set her fork down and asked Charlotte a question.
“Is something bothering you? Something you’re not telling me?”
“No, why do you ask?”
“Because when you came back to the hospital last night, you seemed different. You were very talkative, and I can’t remember the last time I saw you go out in public without makeup. You’ve always been beautiful even without it, but still…”
Charlotte already had the perfect lie ready, and she didn’t hesitate. “I’m tired of having to worry about what people think of me. Going out of my way, trying to satisfy members of our church—and even nonmembers who expect me to look a certain way in public.”
Noreen rested her elbows on the table and clasped her hands together. “I’m really sorry that you feel this way. That you’re so miserable being first lady at Deliverance. Have you still not spoken to Curtis about it?”
“No. And while I know you think I should, Mom, I just can’t. Not right now.”
“I really think you’re making a mistake, but I can’t force you to do something you don’t want to do.”
“It’ll be fine, Mom. I’ll take a step back, and in time, I’ll be ready to return to the church with the same enthusiasm I had years ago.”
“I hope that’s true.”
Charlotte hoped it was, too. But to be honest, she just couldn’t guarantee it. There were so many things relating to the church that she didn’t want to have to deal with anymore, so she wasn’t sure how any of that would ever change. Then, to add insult to injury, Curtina was still causing drama, Charlotte’s father was in the hospital, and she and Curtis had argued both last night and this morning. So whether she wanted to or not, she was dealing with what seemed like every problem imaginable, and she felt like screaming.
Which was the reason she looked at her mother and lied again. “Oh no. I was supposed to call Curtina’s principal first thing this morning to see how things went last Friday. You know that was her first day back from being suspended. So once we finish here I think I’ll head outside to get some fresh air and call him.”
“That sounds like a good idea.”
Charlotte felt awful about what she’d just told her mother, but she had to figure out a way to get out of there. Alone. That way, she could go to her car and drink in peace. She needed to rid herself of all the troubles that were floating around in her head. Not later, not tomorrow, but as soon as possible.