A Watch in Time – Chapter 8, Part 2

A WATCH IN TIME

A Full Length Short Story by Golden Keyes Parsons

Chapter Eight – Part 2

Click here to start with Chapter One

…“Following orders and trying to prevent the spread of the flu.”

“Well, you won’t do it by using the same spoon for each man without disinfecting it between doses. You’ll be spreading it.”

The nurse scowled. “This is the way we always do it.”

“Not anymore. Go get some alcohol and disinfect between each dose.”

The nurse hesitated, then scuttled away grumbling, after Lily Kate took the bottle of castor oil from her and replaced the cap. A lot of good this is going to do anyway. She turned and spoke to the men. “Listen carefully to what I’m telling you. Wash your hands frequently, and keep them away from your face. And don’t eat or drink after anyone else. That’s the best preventative of all.” She tucked the bottle of ill-tasting liquid into her purse, and hurried toward the next mess hall.

Lily Kate entered the stuffy hall, and gaped at what she encountered—so many patients crowded into the space that men had been placed side by side on cots with each soldier’s head and feet in opposite directions. There was hardly room for her to move up and down the aisles. A young dark haired corporal grabbed her hand. “I’m mighty thirsty, ma’am. Could you possibly get me something to drink?”

She moved from one soldier to another wiping their foreheads, giving them a sip of water, trying to ease their discomfort. Every soldier’s pleading eyes, grasping hand, soft voice reminded her that Clay might be in need of a similar gentle touch from a nurse in a foreign country, and she poured herself into her duties. Leaving the base late that afternoon, she shuddered as she walked by caskets stacked like firewood against the outside wall of the chapel.

Upon arriving home, bone-weary and ready to rest, she headed for the credenza where Garnet left the mail every day. Unfolding the newspaper, the headlines jumped out at her. FLU EPIDEMIC DEATH COUNT EXCEEDS BATTLE COUNT. After her day at the base hospital, she believed it.

She shuffled through the stack of letters. Nothing from Clay. It had been two weeks. What if something had happened to him? The authorities wouldn’t know to contact her unless they opened the watch to find her name and address. She didn’t even know how to get in touch with his family. All he had told her was that he was from Chicago—so much she didn’t know about him, yet she knew his heart. She knew his soul. And she loved him.

“Katherine, is that you?”

“Yes, Mother.”

With the mail in her hand, Lily Kate walked into the parlor where Garnet sat surrounded by boxes. “I’ve been going through some things.” She held up a hand-smocked white long christening dress. “Awwww, here are some of your baby clothes.” She placed the dress on the back of the couch and picked up a pair of tiny shoes. “Aren’t they sweet?” Garnet continued to sort through the contents of the box. Lily Kate sat down on the couch next to her looking through the rest of the mail. Garnet turned and looked at Lily Kate with a knitted blanket clutched in her hands. “You were so precious to us—the best thing that ever happened to us.”

Lily Kate probed. “So I just ‘happened’?” She smiled at the older woman.

Flustered, Garnet laid the blanket next to the dress. “Oh, my goodness, you know what I mean.” She patted Lily Kate’s hand. Then she grasped hold of it and held it to her cheek, looking intently in her daughter’s eyes. “My dear child. I want you to know that I pray for you—every day I pray that you will find your destiny. As you travel through the years, find your destiny.”

What does she know—or suspect?

Garnet suddenly bent over again and rummaged in the box. She turned to Lily Kate with something in her hand and announced triumphantly. “Look, I found it. Aunt Lillian’s album.” She laid it on her daughter’s lap.

Lily Kate jumped up, and the album thudded to the floor. “No! Take it away!” But it was too late. The whirlwind enveloped her, and Garnet’s calling to her faded into the eddy.

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Join us next Friday for part 1 of chapter 9.

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