A FATHER'S RESCUE
Chapter Twelve
He felt a sudden urge to go into the ward, to
see for himself who lay in that bed, but before he could speak Mrs. Wallace was
tugging at his arm. "Well, it looks as if I won't have to ask you to keep
watch after all. Come, let's you and I have a talk."
David gave Michael a sympathetic grin as the
older man was practically dragged away, and entered the room. To his
astonishment, Rose was sitting up in bed; instead of looking happy to see him,
she appeared overly anxious. There was a wild, feverish look in her eyes and it
barely seemed to register his presence. "What is it, darling?" David
took both her hands in his, and she pushed them away.
"I have to go...that man...I have to see
him."
"What man?" David became more and
more alarmed as Rose attempted to put her feet on the floor. "Please, you
have to stay in bed. Doctor's orders."
"No!" she screamed at him. A nurse
tending to a patient at the opposite end of the ward stared in their direction.
"I heard his voice...he's out there."
David grasped Rose's shoulders to prevent her
from struggling. "Who's out there?"
"My father," she replied, and she
didn't sound delirious at all. "I heard his voice. He's here."
"Rose, you told me you don't even really
know where he is now. You're just mistaken. Besides, you aren't strong enough
to get out of bed yet. You don't want to get sicker, do you?"
Rose looked at David, calmer now, and shook
her head. "Good. You can find out another day if you really know that man
or not. Let's get you back in bed properly now."
Normally, Rose would have felt belittled and
childish, but she was too ill and exhausted to protest being taken care of.
After she was all tucked in, David asked if she wanted something to eat.
"No, I don't think so. I'm more tired
than anything. I'll take a nap. But please wake me up when Mrs. Wallace comes
back. I want to thank her for staying here. You too, David. You didn't have to
do this."
"Yes, I did. We're friends, aren't we?
And you're sick. I couldn't leave you here alone."
"Thank you again. I do appreciate it. I
really need that nap now." Rose snuggled down more and was soon asleep.
David just sat watching her, waiting for Mrs. Wallace's return. Soon David
began to wonder just how long a break she intended to take. Moments later,
David heard her voice in the hall. She was still talking with Michael, but they
parted at the door and he left for home. The landlady stepped inside looking
much more at ease than earlier.
"Well," she announced, "I do
believe I have found a new building superintendent."
She pulled up a chair that had been sitting
unoccupied beside the next bed since the time Rose was first admitted.
"Any change in her condition?"
"She was awake for a short time
there," David said, distracted. "Tell me something," he asked
after a few seconds of silence. "What do you know about the new
tenant?"
"Not very much," she replied.
"Why do you ask?"
"Well, you spent so much time with him
just now. I thought maybe he shared some of his background with you. Where he
came from, if he has any family here, a surname at least."
She considered his comments briefly, then
said, "Come to think of it, he didn't tell me much about himself at all.
We were so busy talking about the building. And about me. The man is a
wonderful listener."
Of course, David thought sarcastically. Aloud
he said, "He looks somewhat unhealthy. Are you sure he'll be able to
handle the responsibilities of the new job?"
"Sure he will," Mrs. Wallace
snapped, and he saw at once the admiration in her eyes. He didn't know what to
make of it, so he bit his tongue.
In fact, the landlady seemed so taken with
this new tenant, so unlike she had been with the rest of them, that David had
absolutely no clue what to say on that subject at all, and so he changed it.
"Rose wanted me to wake her when you got
back, but will you be staying until she wakes up on her own?"
"Yes, so there's no need to interrupt
her rest. I know you rushed right over. Why don't you have your turn down in
the cafeteria?"
"No, thank you. I'm really not hungry.
I'd really like to just wait for Rose to wake up, too. She was acting so
strangely before..."
"Strange how?"
"I hadn't seen her that widely awake
since I brought her. She was listening to you and Michael talking in the hall.
She insisted to me that she recognized his voice. She wanted to get out of bed
and come out there to see if she was right."
"That is strange. Who did she think he
was?"
"Her father," David answered
simply.
Mrs. Wallace looked very concerned.
"Maybe she's more sick than we thought. That fellow just came here. Her
father? That's crazy!"
"I don't think it would be smart to say
that around Rose once she's awake. She was very insistent. She was sure. I
could see it in her face. She's told me she misses him so much. If that really
were him, it would make her so happy."
"I don't think you should be wondering
until you have some proof. Right now we just need to keep focusing on Rose, and
that's it."
She stood, groaning at the aches in her
muscles. "Well, no use in both of us sitting vigil. I'd best be getting
back. Unless you need to return to work?"
She looked at him expectantly, and David
shook his head. He'd given his excuses to his boss and offered to switch shifts
with another driver. The intensity of his feelings for his fragile neighbor
left him feeling confused and even shaken--and he couldn't bear to leave her
side for any length of time.
The landlady shrugged. "Well, it's
decided, then. Shall I set you a place at dinner?"
"No, that's all right, thank you,"
he said, keeping his eyes on Rose.
Mrs. Wallace said her good-bye and left the
ward. David never would have guessed that she was ready to burst. Imagine all
the juicy gossip she had to share! First a romance blossoming under her
roof--she'd have to keep an eye on those two--then the possibility that her
new, well-mannered tenant could be the little miss's long-lost father, come to
New York to find her just when she needed him the most.