Franco was silent for a minute, and then he asked, “How often are you with her?”
“As often as I can be. I know she knows I’m by her side. She needs our love and encouragement.”
“Not mine. I don’t seem to know how to do things right. I could be here with my son and wife living a happy life, but I chose more money and devotion to the wrong people. I lost that, but it’s not only about me. I’d give anything to be the one in that bed lifeless while she was living the good life with you. Yes, I did everything wrong. Instead of calling her more often and keeping on calling until she answered the phone, I hid in a country with no communication.”
“I don’t think you knew it was going to be that way, right?”
“I could have gone to Shijiazhuang more often. I should have, maybe then I wouldn’t have gotten myself into such big trouble.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Ric, I was in a Chinese detention center for nearly five months. No communication with anyone.”
Franco told how one of his Chinese workers had been hurt and the Chinese government had blamed Franco for faulty equipment, even though the government or someone kept taking his parts.
“Was the equipment faulty?”
“No, I had it working perfectly. The worker put the harness on wrong and it broke when he was lowered into the well.”
“Did Gini know about this?”
“No. I told my company not to tell her. I didn’t want her to worry. She would have been frantic, and there was nothing she could have done. Besides, I thought I’d be out in no time once they found out the truth. Truth? I was as honest as I could be with that government and all they did was take my parts, so I had to devise something to make things work. We lost so much time because of them, not my company.”
He paused, slowly looking down—ringing his hands. “Anyway, that’s why I couldn’t come home and straighten out our marriage before she fell for you.” He looked at Ric again. “I thought I had done the right thing, but what happened was that I lost all that I loved. Our marriage failing was all my fault.” He lowered his head and started to cry. “I hate the person I have become.”
Ric put his hand on Franco’s shoulder and tried to comfort him. He’d never seen Franco so distraught.
Franco knew he could never explain all that to Gini. Even if she heard him, even if she understood the story, she’d probably never forgive him.
Dr. Young witnessed the touching scene when he went over after work to get his dinner. He sat across the room watching the two friends dealing with what had to be the most difficult thing in life, losing their children and watching the woman they loved fight to live.
Even though Ric and Franco had only spoken briefly since their long talk in the restaurant a couple of weeks earlier, the bond between them was still strong. Ric was worried about his good friend.
It was almost 7 a.m. and Ric would soon arrive. Debbie wanted to get the bathing and exam over before he got there. She was used to him being around. His stays were getting longer and more frequent, but that was okay. She could see he loved Gini and would probably be there for her as long as she lived. But he still was just too polished for her; he still annoyed her with his good looks and charming manner. No one could be that good. There had to be a devil hidden in there somewhere.
She leaned over the bed. “Good morning, baby.” She brushed her hand over Gini’s cheek and then took the towel from under her face and replaced it with a clean one. “How are you doing today?”
Part of the morning routine was to move Gini’s legs and arms to help with circulation. Debbie would reposition her to help eliminate bedsores. The brain swelling was almost gone, and she was slowly coming out of the coma.
Debbie moved Gini’s arms. “We’re going to be moving you out of the ICU soon to a nice, light room. I know you’ll like it, you’ll see.”
“Hey, Debs,” Lisa said, coming into the room. “The furnace man called and will be at the house at eleven o’clock. I have training today.”
“I don’t see that I can go.”
“I figured; that’s okay. I called Lenny. He said he’d be glad to go to the house for us. He’ll be by to get the key. I’ll leave mine at the sign-in desk.”
“Lenny?”
“When I saw him the other day, I told him about our problem getting the furnace to work right. He said if he could help, he’d be glad to. I figured it would be good to have him there. He knows how it’s supposed to work.”
“Okay, good thinking.”
“Gini,” Lisa said quietly, picking up her hand and holding it. “How are you today, sweetie? I see some fine little hairs growing back.”
Debbie continued moving Gini’s limbs.
“Gotta go.” Lisa gracefully leaned toward Debbie and gave a quick kiss on her cheek.
“See you later, Leesy.” Debbie touched her cheek where the kiss lay. Lisa’s affection and uplifting spirit had Debbie more in love with her than ever. They were a truly happy couple, the relationship filling the void Debbie had always had in her life. She smiled as she watched Lisa seem to fly down the hall like a nimble fairy, then turned to finish up with Gini.
