Finding Grace: The Guardian Chronicles Book One

Chapter 19. Truth and Consequences*

Chapter 19. If It Kills Me by Jason Mraz

"Go home after this, Evan. I'll come to you when I am done," Emil had said.

She wordlessly nodded again, and Emil was gone around the corner. Then she registered Mrs. Clark's keening wails, as she watched her son roll away from her.

Evan turned, and reiterated what Emil had told her to say to Mrs. Clark. She held the grieving woman at arm's length, trying to make her understand when she had more information, she would contact her. Mrs. Clark collapsed unconscious into Evan's arms, when she said she would not be able to see her son again. Evan helped a nurse lift the woman into a wheelchair, then into a bed in a room at the end of the hall. She went to the chart and, looking up the number, placed a phone call to Mr. Clark. She didn't tell him over the phone what was wrong, she just told him to hurry.

Evan settled into a chair behind the desk, called the pharmacy and ordered a sedative for Mrs. Clark, in case she woke up in hysterics. She dictated a death report on Nathan Clark, stating the cause of death as an unknown virus.

Mr. Clark arrived fifteen minutes later, in his greasy mechanic's uniform, his ball cap mangled in his hands. His hair stood on end, dirty from his day's work. Evan's heart went out to the man who was probably her age, and hearing of the loss of his son.

He pounded his head with his fists when Evan gently broke the news to him. She took him into the quiet room where a nurse was waiting with the now softly sobbing mother. He went to her side and knelt on the floor, grasping her hands in his. They cried quietly together, only looking up when the chaplain arrived and sat with them.

Evan watched as the clergyman asked if he could pray, and she couldn't swallow past the lump that arose in her throat. She turned away, and tried to call Emil's cell. It went to voice mail. She didn't leave a message.

She waited for half an hour, but the Clarks left without wanting to speak to her. They signed the paperwork releasing their only son's body to the funeral home near their house, though Evan suspected there would be complications with a typical funeral.

Evan needed to leave. She wasn't ready to walk out in the open without someone with her, so she called a security guard and asked to be walked to the car.

She met the uniformed guard in the lobby, the short walk down to the first floor sending the adrenaline rushing through her veins. She was shaking as the familiar guard walked her to Emil's car.

"Nice car," Sam, the security guard, said after letting out a low whistle.

"It's not mine, it's a friend's," Evan said.

"Your friend must trust you a lot," he said with a bright smile.

Evan tried to smile back, but was worried about the coming dusk. It was nearly five p.m. "He must. I wasn't expecting to drive tonight. He had to run off and leave me."

"He better find you. You got his nice ride. Possession is nine-tenths of the law. Have a good night, doc. Drive safe," Sam said jokingly.

She nodded, and sank heavily into the luxurious driver's seat. She hadn't driven for over a year. Thank God my old car was a stick, she thought. She started the car, adjusted the mirrors, and was embarrassed when her foot on the gas caused the tires to squeal as she backed the car out of the parking place. The security guard was laughing at her as he stood watching her back out, and she felt her face burn red in embarrassment.

She carefully shifted gears, but still managed to scratch a bit with each shift. This was no old Honda. She drove slowly the short distance to her home and by the time she got there it was dark. She pulled up in the alley behind the house, parking off the street, not wanting to be responsible for any damage to the car. Her house was dark, and seemed ominous tonight for some reason. She sat in the idling car for several minutes working up her courage to run the few yards to the back door. She had her house key ready in her hand, turned off the engine and she decided to quit being dumb and run for it. The walk from the rear drive wasn't shoveled, so she slipped a bit, but made it to the porch quickly.