CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SEVENTEEN
(part four)

“Where are you going?” Charlie asked.

“I’m going to see if I can do something for wife,” Aden said. “Delphie offered to stay with you kids tonight. Sandy and I will stay upstairs so Jill can fuss over her.”

Charlie felt a stab of sorrow that surprised even him.

“She’ll be back in the morning,” Aden said. “Don’t worry. Jill’s touch is exactly what Sandy needs.”

The aging hippy lady smiled at Charlie and led him to the kitchen where she made some green tea for herself. Without asking, she made Charlie’s favorite Raspberry tea and poured it over ice. She smiled when she gave it to Charlie.

“Why don’t we drink our tea then clean up a bit?” Delphie asked. “I’m Delphie.”

“Charlie,” he said.

She smiled at him. He followed her into the living room where they sat down. She got up to turn on the gas fireplace.

“Jake’s installed these fireplaces all over the house,” Delphie said. “They’re perfect for relieving the chill. Are you cold Charlie?”

“I’m okay,” Charlie said. “How did you know I was going to leave tonight?”

“I know things,” Delphie said. “That’s what I do.”

Charlie’s eyes squinted as he puzzled out what she said. Taking a drink of his ice tea, he shrugged.

“How did you know the exact time?” Charlie asked. “Nash set his alarm by it.”

“I could see the clock in the mirror behind your head in the hallway,” Delphie said. “Just a single image and a knowing that you were angry and leaving. The rest was simple. Go check yourself.”

Charlie walked over to the hallway. Sandy’s antique mantle clock reflected off the glass of a painting and was easily visible in the full length mirror in the hallway.

“I usually see exactly what I need to see,” Delphie said. “You have something you wanted to ask me. I could feel it when we were downstairs.”

Charlie looked over his shoulder to see if Nash or Noelle were still in their rooms. Discovering they were alone, he went back to the couch and sat next to Delphie.

“What’s wrong with me?” Charlie asked.

Denver Cereal continues tomorrow…

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SEVENTEEN
(part three)

Coming into the living room, Valerie carried a pot of beef stew. Delphie followed her with bowls and loaves of sour dough bread. Seeing Valerie, the boys nudged each other.

“You made all of this?” Mike asked Val.

“Delphie made it this afternoon,” Valerie smirked at him.

“You’re a movie star,” Razor said.

“I am a movie star,” Valerie said. “Right now, I’m the only person who stands between you and my husband.”

She nodded toward the big, mean looking guy. Charlie gulped. Aden grabbed the back of Charlie’s coat and pushed him out of the room. Behind him, he heard the sound of soup being dished out. Aden nudged him up the stairs.  He turned to talk to Aden at the top of the stairs.

“What’s going to happen?” Charlie asked.

“You need to be in bed, son,” Aden said. “You’re still sick. Get going.”

Charlie shuffled toward their door.

“No really, are they going to call the police?” Charlie asked.

“No,” Aden said. “The boys will get a warm meal. They can stay in the living room tonight. It’s all locked. They can’t get out. Jake’ll get them cleaned up and wash their clothes. Tomorrow morning, we’ll offer them work if they want it. If not, we’ll try to contact their families.”

“Why would they do all of that?”

“It’s what they do,” Aden said. “Your friends aren’t the first homeless people to arrive on the doorstep of the Castle. They won’t be the last. This is what Sam, Val & Jake do when anyone needs a warm meal and a place to stay.”

“How did they know they would be here?”

“Delphie,” Aden said. “She’s usually one step ahead of stupidity.”

“Delphie?”

“You haven’t met her yet?” Aden asked.

Charlie shook his head. They walked to the living room door.

“Why don’t you wait here and I’ll get her?” Aden asked. “You’d do well to talk to Delphie tonight. Go on in. I’ll meet you back here.”

“Sir?” Charlie swallowed hard.

“Yes,” Aden turned back to Charlie.

“It was my fault Nash and Noelle were awake,” Charlie said. “I was going to leave tonight. They were trying to talk me out of it.”

Smiling, Aden gave him a tight nod. He turned back to walk down the hall.

“Sir?”

“Yes, Charlie,” Aden said.

“Is Sandy going to die?” Charlie asked.

“She’s very upset,” Aden said. “We all count on her as our anchor. Each of us uses her to make our world better. She can’t do that right now. We have to make our own world’s better so she can rest. But she won’t do that until you and Sissy are safe and stable.”

“Oh,” Charlie said.

“You can make a big difference,” Aden said. “If you choose to. Think about it.”

Charlie nodded. He went into their living room and sat down on the couch. After a few minutes, Aden appeared with an older woman. The woman had a bright smile, dyed red curly hair and wore a flowing flowered dress. She looked somewhere between an aging hippy and a gypsy. Aden nodded to Charlie and moved to leave.

“Where are you going?” Charlie asked.

Denver Cereal continues tomorrow…

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SEVENTEEN
(part two)

Nash’s door opened and Aden walked in.

“What’s this?” Aden asked.

“This isn’t what you think,” Nash started.

“How do you know what I think?” Aden asked. “Noelle get to bed. Nash get in bed. Good lord, don’t we have enough trouble without you guys misbehaving?”

“Dad, we…”

“I don’t want to hear it,” Aden said.

“What about Charlie?” Noelle asked.

“Charlie’s coming with me,” Aden said.

Shrugging, Noelle went through the bathroom to her bedroom.

“But Dad!” Nash said.

“In bed now,” Aden said. “I don’t want to hear it.”

Aden grabbed the back of Charlie’s jacket and pushed him toward the door.

“Get in bed,” Aden said to Nash.

“Fine,” Nash said. “But…”

Aden glared at Nash and Nash got into bed. Aden pushed Charlie into the hall.

“Where is it?” Aden asked.

“What?” Charlie asked.

“Your pipe, your drugs,” Aden said. “I told you no drugs.”

“I don’t have drugs,” Charlie said.,”

“If you think I won’t strip search you right here, you should think again,” Aden said.

Charlie took his pipe out of his pocket. He held it out. Aden dropped the ceramic pipe on the ground and crushed it with his heel of his boot.

“Where’s Sandy?” Charlie asked. “I want to talk to my sister.”

“Your sister is upstairs with Jill,” Aden said. “You and I are going to talk to your friends.”

“My friends?”

“Seems someone named Razor is downstairs waiting for you,” Aden said. “He and his merry band of boys seem to think you’re being held hostage here. Hostage? Really? Are we torturing you too, Charlie?”

“I had a bad day at rehab,” Charlie started.

“Whoop de fucking do,” Aden said. “You’re going to have plenty of bad days at rehab. That’s why you have to go, dumbass.”

Aden grabbed the back of Charlie’s collar and pushed him through the apartment. He pushed Charlie out the door.

“Go,” Aden said.

Charlie swallowed hard. He opened his mouth.

“Don’t give me that look,” Aden said. “Your sister perfected that look. You can’t rip the heart out of me. Your sister already completed that task tonight.”

“What?”

Aden sighed.

“I’m not kicking you out. You need to tell your friends you’re not available. And it would be nice if you told him you’re also not being held hostage.”

Charlie slunk down the stairs and Aden followed. At the bottom of the stairs, Charlie saw this big guy with bushy beard and a mean look.

“This is the hostage?” Mike asked.

Aden nodded. Mike grabbed Charlie’s arm and pushed him through the doorway. Razor and Charlie’s friends stood in the middle of the Castle living room. There was another big red haired guy and the guy he knew as Jake. The old guy, Sam Lipson, stood near the kitchen.

“Your friends appear to believe they can rob the house tonight,” Jake said. “They believe you were going to let them in to.. ‘rob the rich people blind’… yes, I think that was it.”

“Punk ass,” MJ, the big red haired guy pushed one of Razor’s friends.

“I never said that,” Charlie said. “I was going to meet them. I…”

When Jacob gave him a long look, he felt like he was stripped to the bone. Jacob nodded and turned back to Razor and the guys.

“What do you want?” Jacob asked Razor.

“We’re hungry,” Razor said.

“Val’s making food for you,” Mike said.

“Charlie, you have something to say?” Aden asked.

“I know I told you I was a hostage here,” Charlie said. “My sister lives here. She and her husband are letting me stay… here… with them.”

“Anything else?” Aden asked.

“They’ve been taking care of me – food and clothing and medical stuff,” Charlie looked from face to face then looked down. “I really like it here. I was just pissed off this afternoon so I said all that stuff.”

“So your friend is fine. You’ll get a warm meal,” Jacob said. “Anything else?”

“Place to sleep?” a young boy Charlie called Jeffy said. “It’s still cold out and…”

“You can sleep here,” Jacob said.

“But you should know prick,” MJ said. “The house has premium security. You stray from this room and I’ll know it.”

The boys eyes went wide with horror at MJ.

“And… I don’t like you,” MJ said.

Denver Cereal continues tomorrow…

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SEVENTEEN
(part one)

Charlie stopped in his tracks.

Sandy was crying about… him.

He took a step back into the hall. Unbidden, his mind flashed on Sandy’s bright face. She was the light of his life. No matter what he did, she had always loved him. He remembered seeing her outside the Hotel Teatro. She was so small, tiny compared to him, but the bright beacon of her essence drew him to her like a magnet. He had ran to her just to be near her, by her side. Wherever Sandy stood was a perfect place for Charlie.

He stared at Sandy and Aden for a while before he felt a hand on his arm. He looked down to see Nash. Nash gestured toward his room. When Nash opened the door, Buster zoomed into the hallway. Noelle was sitting on Nash’s bed. Feeling left out, Charlie anger and attitude returned. He grunted at Noelle.

“We hoped we’d catch you,” Nash said.

“Catch me?” Charlie grunted.

“Delphie talked to me after dinner. She said you were leaving tonight and if you left…” Noelle panted with excitement. “You would die and Sandy would die and the baby would die. Nash set his alarm so we could stop you.”

“Why do you care if I die?” Charlie asked. “Sandy’s fine.”

“Sandy’s in trouble,” Nash whispered.

“The doctor’s worried about the baby,” Noelle whispered. “That’s why Sandy’s so upset.”

“She feels responsible for us and you and your sister,” Nash whispered. “She feels like she’s failing at everything. The doctor said the baby isn’t gaining weight like it should.”

Stunned, Charlie’s attitude slipped a tiny bit.

“The doctor wants to put Sandy on bed rest,” Noelle whispered. “But she won’t be able to help you or Sissy and us. She refused.”

“Sandy’s health is coming apart,” Nash whispered.

“Her hair is falling out!” Noelle whispered.

Realizing Nash and Noelle knew something about his sister that he didn’t, he was angry again.

“How do you know this and I don’t?” Charlie asked.

“Delphie knows stuff… psychically. She told Noelle you planned to leave tonight,” Nash said. “You won’t survive tonight. You and your loser friends will get high, but you’re still too sick. You’ll die.”

“And Sandy will be so heartbroken that she’ll lose the baby,” Noelle said.

Not willing to give up his anger so easily, Charlie said, “Why should I care about some stupid baby?”

“This is Sandy, you idiot!” Noelle said. “You may not care what happens to you, but Delphie said Sandy and the baby will die. I remember life without Sandy and I don’t want to do that again.”

“Dad’s trying to convince her to go on bed rest, but she won’t because she’ll miss your stupid rehab,” Nash said.

“She’s willing to risk her life for you but you just want to be an jerk off,” Noelle said.

Nash’s door opened and Aden walked in.

“What’s this?” Aden asked.

Denver Cereal continues tomorrow….

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SIXTEEN
(part six)

Thursday — 9:25 P.M.

Charlie woke up with a start. He hadn’t intended to fall asleep. But like always, lying on Noelle’s bed, he’d fallen asleep. He shook himself to make sure he was awake.

And angry.

He hated rehab. He wouldn’t speak to Aden in the car on the way home. He’d made sure everyone felt his rage. From snide comments to sheer defiance, he’d forced everyone into his angry world. Aden shook his head at him. Sandy hugged him and told him she loved him. Nash and Noelle rolled their eyes at him. More than once, Noelle told him to stop being such a jerk.

But Charlie wouldn’t stop.

He’d had enough of the rules and the bullshit. He was fine on his own, on the streets. He’d planned to leave after the ‘little kids’, his new term for Nash and Noelle, went to little kid bed. But he fell asleep on Noelle’s bed listening to Sandy tell a story.

Again.

Rage coursed through his veins. How could he be stupid enough to lie down? Stories were for little babies, not men like Charlie. He pulled on his new jeans and the jacket Sandy bought for him. He was leaving tonight.

No more rehab. No more rules. No more bullshit. Just his friends, his pipe and the open night. His buddy Razor was meeting him at 9:30 outside the Castle.

He slid down the hallway toward the living room. He saw Sandy sitting on Aden’s lap in a high back dining room chair. Their dinner lay uneaten on the table. Staying in the shadow, he could see them but they couldn’t see him. When Sandy flipped her hair, he saw that she was crying. Sobbing really.

Charlie felt like he’d been punched in the gut.

He’d never seen Sandy upset. She might drop a tear or two, but never like this. Her face was red. Her eyes were almost swollen shut. Sandy’s black and white cat, the one that slept with him every night, pranced on the dining room table trying to get her attention. He heard Buster, their ugly dog, scratch at Noelle’s door. Like Cleo, Buster was drawn to help Charlie’s sobbing sister.

He could only make out a word or two she said. ‘Failure’ was one. ‘Child endanger’ was another. He heard Aden’s low soothing voice but not his words. He was about to storm in when he heard:

“Charlie’s going to die. He’s going to die.”

Charlie stopped in his tracks.

Sandy was crying about… him.

Denver Cereal continues on Monday…

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SIXTEEN
(part five)

“Who is Jillian Roper?” Salvator asked.

Jill raised her hand. Awful woman snickered.

“Stand beside your chair when I call on you,” he said.

“I’m Jillian Roper, sir,” Jill popped to her feet.

“I had dinner last night at the Biatchi mansion,” Salvator said. “I understand you and your husband did some rehabilitation there?”

“Yes sir.” Jill swallowed hard.

“Can someone get the lights?” the teacher asked.

The room went dark. Jill moved to sit down, but the teacher indicated she should keep standing. An image of the room she, Jacob, Mike and the team at MLR Properties had refurbished came on the screen.

“Can you explain what you did?” Salvator asked.

“Yes sir,” Jill said. “This room had been a formal dining room. Sometime in the last two hundred years, the room was flooded. The water was allowed stand on the wood for some time. If you had seen this room, you would have thought it was impossible.”

“I thought it was impossible when they asked me,” Salvator said.

He leaned over the computer and clicked a photo of the original condition of the room.

“My husband, Jacob, brings out beauty in things that are broken or destroyed,” Jill said. “He and a crew of our guys worked for three months to restore the room to its original condition.”

“Mrs. Biatchi said he rebuilt many of the features by hand,” Salvator said.

“He’s a carpenter,” Jill said. “He likes to recreate things in the way they were originally built.”

The screen flashed to the room before Jill started her work.

“This is the blank palate you will all work with this week,” Salvator said. “First, let me show you what Jillian Roper did.”

The screen flashed a photo of the whole room. The room was a wash in Rose color. The top half of the walls were painted a rich cream color. Pink, yellow and purple flowers in what looked like wall paper adorned the bottom half of the walls. A period piece crystal chandelier hung over the twelve person mission style cherry dining room table. The table was covered in a deep maroon table covering. The floors gleamed in a cherry wash. The students shifted restlessly.

“Wait,” Salvator said. “Let’s take a closer look.”

The next photograph was a close up of one of the walls.

“You thought it was wall paper,” Salvator said. “I did as well. But look, it’s actually painted. And look!”

He zoomed in on the picture. A small human face looked out among the flowers.

“This is the owner’s youngest son,” he said. His voice was elevated in excitement. “The Biatchi’s, their four children, even the owner’s dog are hidden among this floral display. Mrs. Biatchi was over the moon. Will you tell us Jillian why you chose this?”

“At the time this room was built, wall paper was a sign of status,” Jill said. “In the high end homes, the wall paper was hand painted. Rather than paint the paper, I decided to paper the walls with a cream colored paper. My brother, Mike, and I painted the walls together. He drew the flowers and the people before he left for Prague. I filled in the color while he was gone.”

“Why put the people on the walls?”

“Mrs. Biatchi asked us to personalize the room,” Jill said. “It seemed… natural.”

“You would think all this pink makes the room feminine,” Salvator said. “The choice of the cherry floors and this table even out the pinks. Tell me about the chandelier. Where did you get it?”

“My husband found it, sir,” Jill said.

“Found it?”

“Yes sir,” Jill said. “He owns an underground utility company. They were working a job out in Northern Colorado. A contractor was refurbishing a farmhouse near Greely. They left this chandelier by the side of the road. They offered to pay Jacob to haul it to the trash. Jacob got a number of fixtures from him.”

“Was it in this condition?”

“No sir,” Jill said. “It was an original gas fixture. I had to power wash it to get the dirt, grease and tar off it. After a day of cleaning, we realized it was copper. Our electrician rewired it. We had to get a few of the crystals remade but otherwise it was perfect.”

“And why this chandelier?”

The screen switched to an image of the chandelier.

“When it’s lit, it looks like rain,” Jill said. “Even with new CFC bulbs.”

“For the garden on the walls?” Salvator asked.

“Yes sir,” Jill said. “With any luck, the copper will turn green.”

“This is a brilliant room.”

“Thank you, sir,” Jill said. “We’re proud of how it turned out.”

“You may sit down,” her teacher said. “Mrs. Biatchi will allow us to tour on Friday afternoon after you turn in your designs for the room.”

“Sir, we meet Tuesdays and Thursdays,” a man near the back asked.

“And you turn in work on Friday. When available, we’ll take field trips to see the actual redo of the rooms we work on,” Salvator said. “Is that going to be a problem?”

“No sir,” the man said.

“Good.” Salvator pointed to Jill. “This is your competition. I’d understand if you wanted to transfer. Go ahead. Ms. Roper is already well ahead of the curve. I could apologize, Ms. Roper, for painting a target on your back. This is a competitive business. If you’re talented, and you are, your first lesson is to get used to people gunning for you.”

Jill blushed.

“Let’s move on,” Salvator said.

For the next two hours, Jill wrote furiously. After the class let out, she looked over her notes to make sure she didn’t have any questions. Awful woman knocked into her shoulder. Jill looked up.

“Ahead of the curve my ass,” awful woman said as she passed.

Jill grit her teeth. She was going to win the weekly competitions if it was the last thing she did.

Denver Cereal continues tomorrow…

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SIXTEEN
(part four)

Thursday — 12:56 P.M.

Walking down the Art Institute corridor, Jill looked from door to door until she found the room for her first class on Interior Design. She’d taken an entire semester before taking this class. She was lucky to have an Interior Design class at all. A lot of schools don’t teach specialty classes until the veryend. She was about to turn into the class when a woman pushed past her and into the room.

Jill stopped. That was the awful woman who’d made fun of her all last term. The awful woman already made a joke today about whether the secretary went with them on vacation. Everyone laughed. At Jill. About that stupid lying woman. Now that awful woman was in Jill’s dream class.

“I won’t let her get to me,” Jill repeated in her head what Megan had told her. “She will not get to me.”

The teacher looked up when she came in the room. A direct descendent of the painter, Salvator Rosa was one of Denver’s top interior designers. Intimidated, Jill went toward the back of the class. Seeing the awful woman smirking in the back, she found a seat near the middle. She took out her paper, mechanical pencil and eraser. No matter who was in this class, she was not going to miss a word of what this man had to say.

“Ok, let’s get started,” the man said. “Most of you know who I am. Rather than take our time with ego, you can read the catalog about me. You may call me Sal.

“I have a list of your names,” Salvator said. “Over the next twelve weeks, we will get to know each other very well. And at the end of twelve weeks, you will know whether you have a chance of being an interior designer in this city.

“If you don’t already know how this class works, I will teach a concept a week. Every Friday, we will hold a contest for who creates the best room. Many of my colleagues say you’re too new, too young to face such pressure. But working in someone else’s home is a lot of pressure. You have to know their taste, what they like, and make them very, very happy or you will never get work again. If you can’t handle a little friendly competition now, you will never handle the pressure later.

“I can understand if you would like to transfer into Dr. Donavon’s course,” he said. “He’s one of the top academics in the field. You have this week to transfer. I’d encourage anyone thinking of transferring to do so. In this class, we will work hard. I don’t have time for egos. I don’t have time for lazy people. And I don’t have time for anyone who doesn’t want to be the very best they can be.”

Jill sat up a little straighter in her chair. She wanted to be the very best she could be. She liked to work hard. And she didn’t think she had too big of an ego. She glanced around the room to see how the other students were responding. Most students seemed excited. Awful woman sneered at Jill. Jill turned her eyes back to the teacher.

“Who is Jillian Roper?” Salvator asked.

Denver Cereal continues tomorrow…

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SIXTEEN
(part three)

“There are rats there.”

Sissy held her hands out a foot apart.

“Yuck,” Sandy said. “I hired a service that takes care of places like that. Mom signed a power of attorney over to Heather’s Mom. Heather’s Mom is helping me get everything set up. By the time Mom’s better, Charlie’s better and you’re better, the house should be ready for her to live there, and you, if you want to.”

“What about Charlie and me? Do we have to live with the rats?” Sissy asked.

“You’ll live with me,” Sandy said. “I’ll take care of you. If Mom is able to be a mom again, then you can move back with her. If you don’t want to or she can’t be a mom again, then you’ll stay with me.”

“What about your new husband? And…” Sissy touched Sandy’s bulging belly.

“We’ll live together,” Sandy said. “Aden…”

“The gym guy?” Sissy asked. “You married the gym guy? Mom said it was some  old guy but…”

“I married the gym guy,” Sandy smiled. “Nash and Noelle are his kids.”

“We’ll live all together?”

“If you want,” Sandy nodded.

“I do want!” Sissy moved to get out of bed.

“Sorry Sis,” Sandy said. “You have to stay here for a while.”

“For treatment?”

Sandy nodded.

“Are you sure I need it?” Sissy asked.

“I am,” Sandy said.

“Don’t be sad, Sandy,” Sissy said. “If Charlie gets well and I get well and Mom gets well, we could be a real family again. Like before Dad died.”

Sandy smiled.

“I need you to do something for me, Sis,” Sandy said.

“Anything,” Sissy said.

“I need you to work really hard in treatment,” Sandy said. “It will seem stupid sometimes, boring other times, and you might hate it. But this is where you need to be right now.”

“I’ll do it.”

“Good,” Sandy said. “You have to do most of it yourself.”

“I do?”

“I can only visit you a couple times a week. We’ll be here for visitation and family therapy. The doctors and your therapist are waiting for you outside the door. They let me come in to wake you. But you have to do the rest alone.”

“I can do it, Sandy. You’ll see,” Sissy said.

Sandy stood from the bed. She gave a little wave then walked to the door. At the door, she paused. Unable to stop herself, she ran back to the child’s bed. Clasping the skeleton that had become her sister, she whispered:

“Please get well. Please get well. Please Sis, for me, please get well.”

Crying, the sisters held each other. Sandy felt hands on her shoulders. The therapist peeled her from Sissy. Sandy gave Sissy another wave and walked to the door. Standing at the door, she caught her sister’s dark eyes. Sissy waved and Sandy went out the door. She made it all the way through the hospital to the front entrance where Aden was waiting for her. In his arms, she cried her heart out.

Denver Cereal continues tomorrow…

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SIXTEEN
(part two)

“Can I touch the baby?” Sissy asked.

Sandy sighed. She took Sissy’s hand and placed their hands on her belly.

“Is Charlie all right?” Sissy asked. “He seemed really happy, happier than I’ve ever seen him.”

“He started rehab yesterday,” Sandy said. “He’s not as happy as he was on Thursday.”

“He needs rehab,” Sissy said. “I know you hate her. And I know she deserves it. She’s been awful and is crazy. But I love Mom. She can’t make it without me. I should be with Mom.”

“Mom’s in a six month treatment program,” Sandy said. “We had it all set up. Social Services, the Police Union Rep and Seth went to her work. They were going to give her the option to go to rehab or get treatment at home. You know how she can be when someone tries to make her do something. Stubborn. Defiant.”

“Mean.”

“Right. The Police Union rep told her she’d lose the stipend for you and Charlie. Anyway, I guess it was chaos,” Sandy said.

“Of course,” Sissy said.

“When you collapsed… She was charged with reckless child endangerment. The Police Union rep told her it was jail or treatment. She was still being stubborn. The Police arrested her and everything.”

“What changed her mind?” Sissy asked.

“You remember my friend Heather?” Sandy asked.

“Mom works with her mom,” Sissy said.

“Right,” Sandy said. “Heather’s Mom. That’s what changed her mind. I don’t know what Heather’s Mom said, but somehow she got through to Mom. The Police took her to the treatment place. It’s a locked facility so she couldn’t get out for seventy-two hours.”

“Oh,” Sissy said.

“Get this,” Sandy said. “I’ve called every morning and every night to see how she’s doing. Last night’s the first time she took my call. She wanted to know where Charlie was and how you were doing. She told me she was sorry for everything that happened to me. She said she’s exactly where she needs to be right now.”

“We’re all in treatment,” Sissy’s eyes were luminous.

“I hope you get better,” Sandy nodded. “If you get better, we’ll go and visit Mom in a month or so. If she does well there, she can stay there up to a year.”

“What about the house?” Sissy’s voice dropped to a whisper. “There are rats there.”

Sissy held her hands out a foot apart.

Denver Cereal continues tomorrow…

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED and SIXTEEN
(part one)

Four days later
Tuesday — 11:20 A.M.
Children’s Hospital

“Where am I?” Sissy said as she sat up in her hospital bed.

“Children’s Hospital,” Sandy said.

Sandy sat down on her little sister’s bed.

“How did I get here?” Sissy asked.

“You don’t remember?” Sandy asked.

“I remember seeing Charlie. I remember meeting Noelle and Nash and Teddy and his Dad. He’s your pilot. Right?”

“He is.”

“I remember thinking I was going to see you!” Sissy said. “We went to some place…”

She shook her head.

“Everyone ordered burgers and fries,” Sandy said. “You ate most of yours then collapsed. You had a seizure at the restaurant. The EMTs thought you were stable but you had another seizure in the ambulance.”

“A seizure? I’ve never had a seizure before,” Sissy said.

“You almost died.” Tears ran down Sandy’s face. “Well, you did die in the ambulance. They were able to get your heart started. You…”

Sandy shook her head. Her hand swiped at her tears.

“My heart didn’t stop! You’re making this up,” Sissy said. “I’m not even sick!”

Overcome, Sandy began to cry into her hands. She’d promised herself she’d be the grown up, she wouldn’t cry, but this was too hard, too painful.

“You’re making it up,” Sissy repeated.

Sandy raised her head to catch her sister’s eyes. She shook her head.

“Why did I almost die?” Sissy’s voice was no louder than a whisper.

“Because you haven’t been eating,” Sandy said. “Why, Sis? Why? Why would you stop eating?”

“Well, I don’t know.” Sissy’s voice was more annoyed than defensive. “After Charlie left, Mom stopped shopping. The only food in the house was cheese. I hate cheese and the cereal ran out a couple weeks ago. She’d give me money for lunch. I always gave my lunch money to Charlie. He really needed it. He didn’t have a home like I did.”

“Why didn’t you call me?” Sandy asked. “Come by. You know where the salon is…”

“I don’t know,” Sissy said. “I thought you were mad at me.”

“Why would I be mad at you?” Sandy asked.

“Because I didn’t help you when Mom was so awful,” Sissy said.

Shaking her head, Sandy hugged Sissy to her.

“Where’s Mom?” Sissy asked.

“That’s a long story,” Sandy said. “You’re on the Eating Disorders ward, Sis. They want to keep you here until you’re well. Right now, it’s still touch and go. You have to participate in therapy and groups and…”

“How am I going to pay for this?” Sissy asked.

“You have medical insurance through Dad’s Police Union,” Sandy said. “They’re paying for most of it.”

“Oh,” Sissy said. “Will I get fat?”

“I hope so,” Sandy said.

“No really,” Sissy said. “I don’t want to be fat.”

“You, Sis, are tall and thin. You’ll probably never ever be fat. Was Dad fat?”

“No, but Mom is.”

“We don’t ever want to be like Mom,” Sandy smiled.

“Never like Mom,” Sissy agreed.

Denver Cereal continues tomorrow…