The House on Briar Hill Road

Despite being a nurse, Hayden hated the way hospitals smelled. It had nothing to do with antiseptics and medicinesas a nurse she was used to those scents. No, it had everything to do with the odor of fear that clung to the patients.A fear of an illness.A fear of pain.In some cases, a fear that came from knowing that time was short.Hayden's fear wasn't for herself, but for the woman in the wheelchair she was pushing. Kathleen Conway. Her surrogate mother. Her mentor. Her friend.Hayden wanted to say something reassuring. She wanted to say something that would comfort Kathleen, but she couldn't think of anything. Kathleen had always had a way of finding the right words. Hayden remembered one of her own most vulnerable moments, and Kathleen had been so eloquent. Even after all this time, the words had stuck."Kathleen, I've been thinking about the past." Kathleen nodded. "Me, too. I keep seeing the little girl who knocked on my door. I'm so proud of the woman she grew into, despite all the hard times she lived through.""You once told me Life isn't about where you goit's about the journey. You can live life quietly, watching the world go by too afraid to take a chance and fail. Or you can throw caution to the wind and live life to the fullest. Take chances. Sure, you'll fall on your face sometimes, but sometimes you'll reach new heights. Either way, just trying will take you to new, unexpected horizons."Take the chance."Live life out loud."Don't just watch it from the sidelines."The automatic doors swung open and the hospital smell was blown away by an April spring breeze as they headed for the ambulance bay. "Do you remember telling me that?"Kathleen looked back over her shoulder at Hayden. The older woman's once bright red hair had faded to a steely gray, but her eyes still sparkled bright blue. And her smile carried all the warmth and caring that it always had, despite her current condition. "It was so long ago. I can't believe you remember.""I haven't forgotten any of it. The good times and the bad. I remember them all." Hayden leaned around the chair and tucked the blanket tighter against Kathleen's legs.When she stood up again she immediately spotted her husband as he came into view at the back of the van. Brian towered over the transport driver who lowered the big steel ramp, which was accompanied by a loud beeping noise.Despite all the years, despite everything they'd been through and everything Hayden knew they were going to be going through, seeing Brian settled something inside her, filling a void that was present whenever they were apart.Hayden pushed the wheelchair onto the ramp. "It's time to go home, Kathleen."Brian leaned down and kissed Kathleen's cheek. "Hi, Mom." The ramp lifted the chair level with the floor of the van."Every day, I try to look back and remember a happier time. Today, I was thinking about Halloween," Kathleen said, more to herself than to Brian or Hayden, who, along with the driver, pushed the chair into place, then clamped it into safety straps.The driver went up to the front and started the van leaving the three of them in the back. Silence weighed heavily in the small space, bearing down and pressing against Hayden's heart. She felt as if all her words had now dried up, especially in Brian's presence.The van moved from the hospital parking lot onto the busy Pittsburgh street.Kathleen finally broke the silence. "Do you remember when Hayden came to the door that Halloween, Bri?"October 1975TherJacobs, Holly is the author of 'The House on Briar Hill Road', published 2007 under ISBN 9780373654192 and ISBN 0373654197.