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Back at the Institute

1/19/2025

Grace read the report from Dr. Hu as Dr. Wisler finished up a call.

“Yes, we need those W-2’s to go out for the staff.” She gave Grace a faint smile. “Julz, you can’t hold me hostage like that. Of course, I like Marti’s brisket. Yes, I can come on Sunday if you promise to get those out today. Say hi to Seth and Heysh for me. I’ll see you then.”

“Your accountant makes a nice brisket?”

“Her neighbor is making the brisket. We all have dinner together occasionally.”

“That sounds nice.” Grace handed her the report. “Thank you for getting me in contact with Dr. Hu.”

“Clearly, she was pleased with your work, but there was this irregularity about Ms. MacInnes.”

“Yes, I’m sorry about that. I didn’t realize I was crossing any ethical lines.”

“Hmm.” She thumbed through the report. “Skirting the line, but still.”

“Yes, she told me we can’t be too careful.”

“Quite true, but I’m interested. Why approach the line with this one patient among Lian’s roster?”

She dipped her head and sighed. “It’s a little embarrassing.”

“Grace, you’re young and you have a loving heart. You didn’t actually break any rules. You don’t need to be so embarrassed. Did Lian scold you about this?”

“No, she was just trying to protect me from myself. I appreciate that she let me know.”

“So, about this girl, Sarah?”

“She reminded me of you.”

“How so?”

“Well, the red hair to start, and…”

Dr. Wisler reviewed the report. “What else, Grace? Lots of people have red hair.”

“Doctor, she was so sad. It actually broke my heart to see her. I mean, I felt empathy for all of Dr. Hu’s patients. Sarah just…”

“Mm-hmm. What did you do that approached the line?”

“My neighbor had given me his business card so we could arrange to swap lunches because he was having a craving for gołąbki.”

“So, you gave Sarah his card?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“You see, she was a photographer for the Santa at our department store and she tripped on something and fell. Leo helped her back up. He was so ridiculously in love with her.”

“Love?”

“Weird, right? He had never seen her before, but he said he got some kind of rush when he held her hand. I figured if someone felt that way about me, I’d like someone to tell me. I gave her his card. I said he was very interested in her. I told her it was totally her choice. She could rip up the card and throw it away if she wanted.”

“She didn’t?”

“No, she called him and now she’s basically my sister.”

Dr. Wisler sat a moment trying to figure that out. “Okay, that’s clearly a story in itself. I’m assuming that Lian counseled you on the potential harm that could have come from that?”

“Yes, she said that despite how it turned out, it might not have.”

“True. Being kind is a good thing, but–”

“I need to look ten steps ahead before I go and do something.”

“Grace, nobody can envision all possible eventualities of an act of kindness. That’s not a reasonable standard to hold yourself to.”

“Her concern was that Sarah’s condition might worsen if she and Leo got into an argument or if they broke up.”

“That’s still a possibility, but as long as she’s in treatment…”

“And she’s joining my church.”

“Support structures matter. It seems like you did her some genuine good. Still, she’s a redhead and was very sad. This made you think of me?”

Grace hung her head.

“No, I suppose it’s a fair assessment. I haven’t had a lot to smile about for quite a while now.”

“I certainly don’t want to make it worse by prying.”

“Your empathy is an asset, Grace. Don’t squash it for my sake. God knows, I have my issues.”

“I didn’t know it when I gave her Leo’s card, but she lost both of her parents.”

“It was hard enough just losing my dad, but then my brother…”

“I’m really sorry. I didn’t–”

“It is what it is, Grace. We lose people. The closer they are, the more it hurts.” She dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. “How was the light thing? Did your family win this year?”

“I guess it depends on how you look at it.”

Dr. Wisler smirked. “You’re a rather complicated person, Grace. Please explain.”

“Well, things worked out great with Leo and she decided to join the Catholic church. They didn’t know for sure if she was baptized, so my parents volunteered to be her godparents. They kind of adopted her. So our moms decided that this year both families would put on a combined light show in honor of joining Leo’s family to ours.”

“Unofficially.”

“Until after she’s a member of the church and Leo can propose. There’s no chance those two aren’t getting married.”

“Nothing is ever guaranteed, but I take it they’re a very compatible couple?”

“Yes, and my cousin Mandy is dating his brother, Chris, and we set up his other brother, Joe, up with a girl we know from church.”

“So, the families really are uniting in a big way.”

“Yes, we got our dads to bury the hatchet and it’s going to be amazing. Chmielewskis, Gajewskis, Murrays and Gallaghers, all one big happy family. Mind blowing, really.”

“So, the combined light show?”

“It was amazing. You should have seen it. They did the usual thing with the dancing lights synchronized to the music, remote controlled bells and to top it all off, a hundred-fifty drones.”

“It sounds fantastic. It didn’t win?”

“I was shocked. I’ve never seen such a thing and we learned that some guy with a donkey got the trophy. Both our dads were devastated.”

Dr. Wisler chuckled. “A donkey? How do you beat a drone show with a donkey?”

“Honestly, I have no idea. We saw the video, but there wasn’t any sound. I don’t really get it. The worst part was that Mr. Light had his daughter playing Mary.”

“Mr. Light?”

“Gary Light. He’s a mail carrier and he’s an EMHC at our church.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t know what that is.”

“Oh, I forget what it stands for, but he helps with the Eucharist. I’ll look it up and let you know.”

“That’s fine. I get it. What’s the matter with his daughter playing Mary?”

Grace looked side to side and leaned in to whisper, “She’s pregnant.”

“Okay?”

“No husband. His daughter is an unwed mother, and he’s got her being the Blessed Virgin Mary. I’d expect him to be in trouble with Father Tom, but instead he gets the Light Fight trophy.”

“Hmm, I suppose I can see why that would ruffle some feathers.” She leaned back and put the report down. “Dr. Hu is very grateful for the work you did, and I’m very grateful that you’re back.”

“I’m glad to be back. I was pretty apprehensive about going home, but it was such a positive time, Dr. Wisler.”

“Clearly, you had a holiday to remember. I hate to spoil your good mood, but Ricky has been waiting for you to get back.”

“You know what? Even Ricky can’t spoil my mood. I’ll go see to him.”

“Thank you, Grace. I’m glad you’re back.”

Grace left the office. Dr. Wisler waited for her to get a suitable distance down the hall before she jumped on her phone. “Hello, HEARTH. May I speak with Mr. Awesomeness?”

“M.A. here. It’s your dime.”

“Connor, nobody likes a wise guy.”

“I have copious evidence to the contrary. To what do I owe the extreme pleasure of your call?”

“My intern just got back and said you gave the trophy to some guy with a donkey. I’m dying to know how a donkey and an unwed mother beat a light show and drones?”

He cackled maniacally. “What’s it worth to you?”

“What kind of superhero resorts to blackmail?”

“Well now, nobody is blackmailing anybody. This is purely quid pro quo. I’ve got the quo if your quid is worth it.”

“What do you want?”

“Pizza and a movie?”

“Okay, hustler. Done. Now spill. She said there wasn’t any sound. The visuals must have been pretty striking for that to work.”

“No, the guy had parametric speakers set up, so the audio was transmitted right into your head with bone conduction. Big trucks driving past and we could hear perfectly.”

“That sounds interesting, but still.”

“The presentation was quite moving. That family up the cul-de-sac were ringers. The mayor said they’ve been passing that trophy back and forth for years. I wanted to see something other than dancing lights and pre-programmed drone cartoons in the sky.”

“Bone conduction?”

“Yeah, it was wild. Like having speakers inside of your head that environmental noise couldn’t sound over top of.”

“This business with the unwed mother seems to have caused a stir.” She checked her door to ensure nobody was coming to interrupt.

“I wasn’t going to judge–”

“That will be the day.”

“Okay, fair. I was judging the heck out of him. He’s an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion at the local church, so his daughter, being pregnant without being married, was making the grape vine jangle. He played it off as that she was going to be Mary one way or another, but Polka Pete figured he was trying to shame her for it by making her ride the donkey back and forth for the whole show.”

“Polka Pete? Who is Polka Pete?”

“Local DJ. Community icon. Very nice guy.”

“Okay, thanks for the inside scoop. See you… When?”

“I dread to ask, but when are you actually free?”

“Hmm, maybe Thursday?”

“HEARTH, book it before she backs out.”

“I’m hanging up now.”

“Love you.” He said and made kissing noises.

She hung up and covered her smile with Dr. Hu’s report.

“Hey, Ricky. What’s going on?” Grace had switched her shoes for the rubber clogs stored outside of his room.

“Good golly, Miss Grace. You surely are a sight for sore eyes.”

“Yeah, I just got back.”

“Home for the holidays? That’s what I heard.”

“Sure did.”

“Had a nice time, I hope.”

“Yes, thank you. It was, surprisingly, very nice.”

“Turkey and all the trimmings?”

“The whole ball of wax.”

“Santa was good to you, too?”

“Sure, I got a new sister.”

“I assume your mama is getting on in years. Is that safe?”

“She’s not pregnant. My sister is a grownup. There’s a story to it.”

“I ain’t going anywhere, ma’am.”

“Dr. Wisler said you’ve been waiting for me.”

“I’ve been a good boy, Miss Grace, but I heard you were soon coming back.

“And you wanted me to discharge you. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know the deal, Ricky.”

“See, now, that’s double the pleasure for me, ma’am.” He pulled a box from the shelf. “I get to spend time with a charming young lady playing a game.”

“And if you win, I get the thing and discharge you. Don’t be gross about it or it will be the last time.” She pointed at him.

“No, ma’am. I’m not a guy to take advantage. This is on the up and up. I wish I could get such consideration from the others.”

“They remember, Ricky. It’s hard to play checkers with a guy who pulled some of the nonsense you got into.”

“Folks need to let bygones be bygones. I’m the one stuck in here all the time for forty to life.”

“Alright. Set up the game. What do you want to know?”

“Is it snowing out?”

“Yesterday. I waited until it stopped so I wouldn’t have to drive in it.”

“What else did you do that was fun?” He moved his piece.

“My brothers did a big fancy light show for Christmas. Drones and everything.”

He jumped one of her pieces. “Gotcha. So, what’s up with your new sister?”

“She’s going to marry one of my neighbors, but she’s got to join the church first so he can ask her. Her folks died a while back, so my parents unofficially adopted her to be her godparents for the religious training.”

“That was downright kind of them. Are you okay with it?”

“Sure, she’s nice, and she needed some family to look after her.”

“Truer words, ma’am.” He moved his piece and frowned when she jumped it.

“Really sad. Her parents were killed here in the city.”

“You don’t say. It wasn’t me, was it?”

“Not unless you were throwing two hundred pound bags of coal.”

“Oh, that was Krampus. Real sick ticket, that guy.”

“Is he in here somewhere?”

“Nah, he up and disappeared about five years ago. Real shame about your sister’s folks.”

“Yeah, she’s finally healing. Darn it. How’d you win already?”

“I have a sneaking suspicion you let me, Miss Grace. Be honest now. You’re the only one who will still discharge me. You’re sweet on me. Aren’t you?”

“Ew! You’re too old.”

“No need to be hurtful now. I ain’t likely to get any younger sitting around up here.”

“No, you won fair and square. Stay here. The bucket is right outside.”

“Well, now, you ain’t figuring on dumping a bucket over me.”

“No, I need something to dip the sponge in. I’ll be nice if you will.”

“Do unto others. That’s right Christian of you, ma’am.”

“I try.” She stepped outside and took a deep breath. ‘God, he’s such a perv.’

She put the big rubber gloves on and filled the bucket with water and some lemon juice. She pulled the probe from the corner of the alcove. ‘Who invented this contraption?’ It had a long metal shaft with a rubber-coated handle and had a thick sponge fastened on top.

Grace sighed and returned to his room with the probe and the bucket. “Merry Christmas, Ricky.”