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“A call? Here?”
“Yes. On the church phone. I heard it ringing as I went by; otherwise, she wouldn’t have gotten through.”
“Who?”
“Your mom.”
Charlotte’s eyes widened when she caught on. She had a cell phone, but it was blocked, and she hadn’t given the number to anyone from her past, including her mom. Charlotte had arranged for her to call the church if she needed anything, but that was a long time ago. Normally, she spoke to her mom once a week, often on a payphone. This was the first time she’d called here.
“Thanks.”
“Let me know if you need anything. If your mom needs any help.”
“I will.” She’d never explained to anyone at the church why she couldn’t give her mom her personal number. They’d been content to believe her story that her mom didn’t like cell phones, preferring to talk to everyone on a landline.
Charlotte hurried toward the office and saw the receiver lying on the desk. “Hello? Mom?” she said before it was pressed to her ear.
“Charlie? I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to get through to you.”
“It was good timing. Church just finished. Is everything all right?”
“No.” Her mom sniveled. “No, everything is very, very bad. I don’t know what to do. It’s horrible.”
It was impossible to know if the emergency was real or imagined. Charlotte had spent hours on the phone with her mom over the years calming her fears.
“Mom, why don’t you tell me what’s wrong, and we can figure it out together?”
“It’s Maddy.”
Charlotte held her breath. She hadn’t spoken to Maddy in months. Their last conversation had been an icy exchange.
She often prayed for her sister, knowing the work she did was dangerous, and she’d found it easier over the years to leave it with God—although, after the dream she’d had this morning, a sickly fear clung to the back of her mind, and the reality that something really was wrong sent a shock of adrenaline through her that made her whole body tingle in alarm.
She took a breath, reminding herself that her mom often blew small details out of proportion.
“I’m sure she’s okay. Have you spoken to her?”
“No. That’s—”
“Stop there, Mom. You know how your thoughts get the better of you. Until you speak to her, there’s no way to know if something has happened.”
“This isn’t like that. I know what you’re thinking. I know I get upset a lot. But this is different. The hospital called.”
“She’s in the hospital?”
“Yes.”
“Are you with her?”
“You know I would be if I could.” Her mom had battled extreme anxiety ever since her dad had died. Going into a big city hospital would be out of the question, but Charlotte had thought for a brief moment that maybe she would go if it was serious. Maybe it wasn’t that serious.
“Of course you would go if you could. I know that. There isn’t anything you could do there anyway.”
“That’s what I thought. But I don’t want her to be alone.”
“I’m sure she’s not. She’d have friends with her.”
“I hate to think of her with people who only like her. She should be with people who love her. Would you go see her?”
