The Curl Up and Dye by Sharon Sala Read Free Book Online Page A

surfaces, I guess.”
    Lily shrugged, about to agree, when she remembered something Mike told her.
    “No. He said he was dizzy. Oh my gosh! I forgot about that. He said he got dizzy.”
    “From the head injury, I’m sure.”
    “No, no, it was before he fell. Mike used to get inner ear infections a lot, and they always affected his balance. I need to tell the doctors. I should have remembered. They need to know.”
    “You can tell them later. Right now he’s where he needs to be.”
    Lily nodded as she wiped her eyes and blew her nose.
    “Is there anything I can do?” Ruby asked. “Do you want some clean clothes? I can go to your house and get whatever you need. Is there anything we can do for Mike?”
    Lily thought of what his house looked like when they left it.
    “There’s blood all over his house, and the shower door is in pieces.”
    Ruby patted her hand. “I’ll get the girls from the shop, and we’ll take care of that. Can I bring you anything from your house? Make me a list. Tell me where to find the stuff, and I’ll do it gladly.”
    Lily felt weight coming off her shoulders. “Are you sure?”
    “Absolutely,” Ruby said.
    Lily leaned over, lowering her voice so no one else could hear.
    “Mike is a private person.”
    Ruby whispered back. “Honey, we’ll just clean up, not mess into his business, okay?”
    “Okay. The back door at his house is open. The front door is unlocked at my house, too. I’ll give you a list of stuff to bring from my house, including my purse and keys. If you’d lock both houses when you’re through, I would appreciate it.”
    “Consider it done,” Ruby said, and gave LilyAnn a quick hug. “I’ll be back later with your things. Have faith, honey. He’s going to be fine.”
    Lily sighed. “From your lips to God’s ears.”
    ***
    Mike Dalton was in recovery when Lily finally made the call to his parents. It was the most difficult phone call she’d ever had to make. Just when she thought the call was going to go to voice mail, someone picked up.
    “Hello?”
    She recognized his mother’s voice.
    “Carol, hi. It’s me, LilyAnn.”
    “LilyAnn. Oh my goodness. I haven’t heard your sweet voice in ages. How have you been?”
    “I’m okay. I’m sorry, but I’m calling about Mike. He’s had an accident.” She heard a gasp, and then Carol’s voice began to tremble.
    “Please tell me he’s alive.”
    Lily groaned. “Yes, yes, I’m sorry. I should have said that first. I didn’t mean to scare you, but he’s in the hospital here in Blessings. He fell in the shower this morning. At first I thought it was just a bad cut on his head, but he passed out in the car when I was taking him to ER. The doctor said he had ruptured his spleen in the fall and came close to bleeding out. He’s out of surgery and in recovery now. I waited to call until I knew what to tell you.”
    “Oh lordy. Hang on a minute. I need to get Don.”
    Lily could hear Carol calling her husband, and then moments later she heard him pick up an extension.
    “LilyAnn, this is Don. Is he okay?”
    “I haven’t seen him yet, but the doctor assured me he came through surgery just fine. They don’t expect a problem, but—”
    “We understand… there’s always a ‘but’ with surgery. And this couldn’t have happened at a worse time for us. We’re snowed in. Literally. Until they run the snowplows on our roads, we will not be able to get out of the house. I can make a call to see if they’ll make an exception, but for now, we’re stuck.”
    “Oh no, I’m so sorry,” Lily said. “Look, don’t worry, okay? I won’t leave him on his own, you know that. I’ll take care of him until you guys can get here, and I’ll make sure he understands your situation.”
    Carol was crying, but Lily could hear the relief in her voice.
    “You are a godsend, sugar. Thank God you are just next door. Did he say how he happened to fall?”
    “He said he got dizzy. I forgot to tell the doctor, but you