“Fine.”


“Excuse me…” Rose inhaled sharply as the nurse made a note on her chart. She felt dopey but scared at the same time. “Wha…what happened?”


“You were hit by a car last night. You’re very lucky that your boss was driving by and saw you. She brought you to the hospital.”


“My boss? Kim found me?”


“Oh, I don’t know her name, deary. I wasn’t here last night. I work the day shift.” She carefully cleaned the skin around the neat row of stitches on Rose’s cheek. “You were in surgery for quite a while and you’re in the recovery room right now. We just need to make sure you’re stabilized and then you’ll be taken to your room.”


“My legs?” She tried to sit up but that only served to increase the intense pain she was feeling in her lower extremities.


“Both your legs were broken. The surgeons worked for hours last night putting the bones back in place.”


“It hurts.” Rose lifted her head to see the stark white of full leg casts.


“They’re giving you something for the pain in your IV,” the nurse said. “I’ll let the doctor know you’re awake.”




The instant the nurse left the room, Rose broke down in tears. Her face and ribs hurt but it was nothing compared to the excruciating agony her legs were in. She didn’t even want to think about the hospital bill, which no doubt was increasing with every hour that she spent there. She reached over to pour herself a cup of water from the plastic pitcher on the stand next to the bed but the movement caused so much pain that she was unable to complete her task. Whatever they were giving her for the pain was also making her limbs feel extremely heavy and it didn’t take long for Rose to fall back into an uneasy sleep.



* * *

Veronica pulled the Mazda into her driveway and parked it next to the garage. To her great annoyance, removing the key from the ignition did not shut the engine off. Instead the blue car continued to sputter and wheeze before for a minute before finally dying. “Well, Cat. I think it’s safe to say that the next place this piece of shit will go is to the junkyard.”


“Mrrow?” The feline replied as she tried to climb onto the tall woman’s lap.


“No no no. This isn’t petting time.” She tucked the cat under her arm and opened the door.

“Come on, let’s see if Maria can find something in the kitchen for you to eat.”


As she exited the car with the cat in tow, Veronica glanced over at her three car garage. The middle door was unlocked and through the half-moon window she saw her Porsche. She silently thanked her cousin Frank for helping her out. The cat squirmed in her grip. “Oh no you don’t. I’m not running all over the neighborhood looking for you.”


Ronnie opened the sliding glass door and entered into the kitchen. Once inside she set the orange and white kitty on the floor. “Maria? Maria are you here?” The keys to the blue car were tossed on the counter.


“I’m here,” a voice from the living room called.


“We’ve got company,” Veronica responded.


Maria was an older woman working on her thirtieth year with the Cartwright family and was near and dear to Veronica’s heart. Jet black hair had long ago given way to a salt and pepper combination and her middle age spread made her lap perfect for whenever the young children came over. Maria walked into the kitchen. “It’s not good for you to be out all night, Ronnie,” she chastised. “If your mother knew…”


“I wasn’t out whoring around, Maria,” she responded, pleased with the shocked reaction on the older woman’s face. She unzipped her jacket and tossed it over one of the stools next to the cook’s island. “Do we have anything here to feed-”


“Mrrow?”


“-a cat?” She finished.


Maria looked down at Veronica’s feet to see the orange and white feline rubbing against her. “Oh my. You brought home a cat?”


“It’s not a permanent arrangement. He’s only going to be here for a few days while his owner is in the hospital.”


The housekeeper bent down and picked up the now purring feline. “I hate to tell you, Ronnie, but he is a she. What’s her name?”


“I don’t know. Call it Cat for now.”


“Hi sweetie, what a pretty kitty you are,” Maria cooed, holding the happy pet to her ample chest.

“Would you like some tuna?” She carried the cat over to the pantry and pulled out a can. “Hmm, doesn’t that sound nice?”


“I don’t think he, I mean she’s ever had tuna before. I think she’s only had dry food.”


“Oh…well then.” Maria put the can on the counter and set the cat gently on the floor. “It’s not good to take her from dry right to canned. It’ll be too rich for her. I can mix them together.”


“I didn’t bring any. I guess we’ll have to get her some food.”


“Well, I’ve already been shopping this week but if you want I’ll run out now. I can start lunch when I get back.” She wiped her hands on her apron and reached for the ties.


“No, that’s fine. I’ll go out and pick up some food for her. I guess we need a litter box too.”


“You took a cat without even getting a litter box? Ronnie, what am I going to do with you?”


“Well, her box was dirty and I wasn’t about to touch it.” Veronica protested. “Look, just make me a cup of coffee while I go take a shower and change. I’ll run out and pick up the things the cat will need.”


“I’ll make you a list. Knowing you, you’ll get the box and forget the litter.”


“Funny,” came the sarcastic reply, although in fact she didn’t think about getting stuff to put in the litter box. “I’ll be back down in a little bit. Try and keep fuzzball off the couch and away from the antiques, okay?”



* * *

The mall was busy for a Wednesday afternoon and Veronica ended up parking at the far end of a row. A quick press of the button on her keychain and the bright blue Jeep Cherokee’s doors locked and a warning light on the dash indicated that the alarm system was armed.


It took her fifteen minutes to navigate her way around the mall until she found the pet store. Once inside, she walked down the isles until she found the cat supplies. Racks and shelves of everything from fake mice and scratching posts to catnip and collars vied for her wallet. Veronica hated shopping and when the teenage clerk offered to help her pick out things for her new pet, the raven haired woman readily agreed. The result was seventy-five dollars worth of litter, toys, food, catnip, and various other items that the young girl insisted were necessary for a happy and healthy cat.


After finishing her shopping, Veronica went to the hospital to check on Rose. She wasn’t at all prepared for what she saw. The sheet covering the young woman’s legs outlined the full length casts. A nasty looking row of stitches surrounded by an equally nasty looking bruise covered one cheek and dried tear streaks prominently showed on her face. An IV with several bags hung from one side, giving the injured woman the fluids and pain medications she needed. A catheter disappeared under the blanket. Veronica’s heart ached for the pain that Rose was in as well as the pain that she would go through as she recovered, knowing deep inside that her recklessness behind the wheel was the only reason the young woman was here. As if sensing her presence, the reddish-blonde head turned and green eyes focused on her. “Hello.” she said politely, her voice a bit raspy.


“Hello Rose. How are you feeling?”


“Lucky to be alive I guess,” she croaked, her eyes trailing over toward the water pitcher. Veronica immediately walked over and poured some into the yellow plastic cup.


“Here.” She handed the cup over but then quickly reclaimed her grip on it when she saw the young woman’s hand shake. “Let me help.” Together they got half the cup down Rose’s throat before Veronica returned it to the small stand. “Do you remember anything about the accident?”


“No, not really. I was running…some men were chasing me…I got out of the park and ran out into the street…that’s all I remember before waking up here.”


“You don’t remember anything about the car that hit you?” Veronica prodded. “The color, the type of car, the driver, anything?”


“No, nothing. I’m sorry. Are you with the police?”


“No.” Inwardly Veronica breathed a sigh of relief. Rose couldn’t remember what happened. With a little luck she might just be able to pull this off.


“Oh, then I suppose you’re here to talk to me about the bill?” Rose asked, deciding that the beautiful, well dressed woman had to be a hospital administrator, despite wearing a jacket. Perhaps she had just on duty, Rose reasoned.


“Actually, I do need to talk to you about that but-”


“I have no money,” she interrupted. “I don’t have kids, I don’t qualify for any programs.” She gave a defeated sigh. “I’ll give you whatever I can each week but I’m afraid it won’t be more than five dollars or so.” She resigned herself to giving up her bus fare to help pay for the impossible bill.


“You don’t need to do that,” Veronica said, amazed that someone with obviously little or no money was so quick to take financial responsibility for the hospital bill. “Perhaps you’d better let me explain.” Rose nodded. “My name is Veronica Cartwright. I own Cartwright Corporation. I um…I found you after the accident and brought you here. When I realized that you didn’t have insurance, I told them that you worked for me. Cartwright has an excellent benefits package including medical coverage. You won’t have to pay a cent for your care, I promise.”