Angie of the Garden

Chapter Nine-2

"Not to worry, my love. But I'm sure the two of them will insist on coming here to check me out for themselves. And since you instigated their visit, it's only fair that you entertain the itty old bittys."

She was startled. Annabelle didn't know Hollis was aware of how she referred to the two elderly women. He smiled at her, and his daughter responded in kind. Then she left the room.

After dinner Hollis and Olivia sat on the veranda sipping their coffee. The lush trees and well-kept lawn were pleasing to the eye. On these occasions Hollis often wondered why fate had been so kind to him. Then the doctor's gaze found the setting sun as he wondered if Angie would visit him tonight. Olivia took notice of the detached expression on his face. As with Annabelle, Hollis felt as though he had been caught with his mistress.

"Would you like me to go inside? I seem to be competing with something or someone else for your attention. And I'm losing. I hate to lose, love."
"Not at all, darling. I was just thinking about how fortunate I've been. To live on this beautiful estate with you for my wife and Belle for my daughter is more than I ever could have hoped for."

Hollis kissed her hand. Olivia believed him, yet she knew there was more on her husband's mind than just his good fortune.

"The feeling is mutual, dear. But I've known you too long for you to keep anything from me. Now what has you so distracted these days?"
"I've taken on a quite extraordinary case. The patient exhibits all the signs of having repressed memories. But I haven't had enough time with her to find out what those memories entail. And due to some very unusual circumstances I don't anticipate having the opportunity to spend enough time with her to accomplish that. I'm concerned she might never reveal the cause of her trauma to me."

Olivia was extremely surprised, and very pleased. This was the first time she could ever remember receiving a detailed response to such a question.

"And the television show doesn't help, I'm sure," she said. "That's my fault. I talked you into that."
"Yes, I had to be dragged into the studio kicking and screaming," Hollis said with a smile. "You know what a retiring creature I am."

They shared a long laugh at his response.

"But seriously, you're spreading yourself too thin, Hollis. You're in your office until all hours of the night to compensate for the time you spend with Robin. I think you should take a hiatus from the show."

He was tempted to explain that those long nights in his Fairhaven office were due to his watching the garden for Angie's glow. Yet he knew Olivia was a skeptic when it came to the paranormal. Not only would she dismiss the idea of a visitor from the spirit world, his wife might very well have him committed.

"Things will calm down shortly. My patients are finally becoming acclimated to my new office hours, so I should have fewer m
emergencies to deal with in the future. I'll be able to spend more time focusing on the two women in my life."
"Speaking of focusing on our home..."
"Actually I said I wanted to focus on the two women in my life," Hollis corrected her.
"I know. But I had another matter on my mind. You know I love your brother." "Do you? I can't ever remember hearing you say that."
"It's such a deep feeling words cannot be used to describe it."

Hollis smiled at her.

"I just think that Sebastian should be getting on with his life," she continued. "How long is he going to stay in the old house? I intended to have it commemorated as the birthplace of Hollis Simms. We could even turn it into a museum."
"That's perfect. Sebastian can be the tour guide."

Olivia playfully put her arm around Hollis' neck as if to strangle him.

"I mean he can't live here forever. I think you should ask him what his intentions
are."
"I already know what they are. He intends to work in the bagel shop until the dual trauma of losing his job, and the woman he intended to marry, has passed. Then he'll get on with his life."
"Has he told you that?"
"He doesn't have to. You forget that I make a living at interpreting people's behavior."
"Or more precisely, making excuses for their behavior."

Then Olivia smiled at her husband. The warm summer air and the gray shades of the twilight suddenly made all thoughts of continuing the debate disappear. They sat hand in hand for quite some time without uttering a word.
Eventually Hollis stood up and kissed her.

"I do have to review some cases for tomorrow," he told her. "But I don't think it will be a late night."
"I'll wait up for you, darling."

Olivia watched him walk away before resuming her appreciation of the summer evening.
Hollis went up to his office and reacquainted himself with the patients he would see the next day. One was a woman who had developed a severe case of kleptomania. Hollis did not feel he was even close to discovering the cause of her behavior. Another patient had developed a nervous tick. Hollis was sure it was due to some traumatic event from his past that had resurfaced because of some trigger suddenly appearing in the present. He suspected it was related to a blonde woman who had just become employed at the man's workplace.

He read through the files and then looked out the window of his office. The garden was now invisible in the darkness. Hollis anxiously awaited the eerie glow that always surrounded Angie Barton when she first appeared. He was interrupted by a shout from downstairs.

"Dad, you have a phone call," Annabelle bellowed. She possessed a surprisingly loud voice and often used it to avoid walking up the stairs. He picked up the phone.

"Hollis? This is Clare."
"Well, this is a pleasant surprise. How have you been Miss Riley?"
"I'm doing all right. I've seen your show. You're really terrific on it. Everyone I know says the same thing."
"Thank you. I appreciate the compliment. But just remember that it's Robin's show. I'm only an occasional guest. She wouldn't appreciate your forgetting that. So how goes the advertising game?"
"It's a grind, but I still like it."
"Sebastian is doing well, too."

Hollis was not inclined to pry into the affairs of others. That was with the exception of his patients, of course. Yet in this instance he could not resist the temptation to find out how she felt about his brother. Hollis still believed Sebastian and Clare would make a fine couple.

"I know. I saw him recently. That's why I
called. He told me something, well, that I found a little strange. Sebastian said you were communicating with a ghost."

Hollis looked out towards the old house. His brother had revealed his secret. "Well, yes, I have to admit it's true. At least that's what she appears to be."
"I usually mind my own business, but in this case I just had to talk to you about it.
Are you feeling okay?"

Clare was genuinely concerned about the doctor. She also believed that if Hollis Simms could become delusional, then there was little hope for anyone else.

"Maybe one of the other doctors at the hospital could help you," Clare continued. Hollis chuckled to himself. He could understand why his claim to have met with one of the dead would elicit such a response.
"I appreciate your concern," Hollis told her. "And to be honest you're not the only one who thinks that I might be in trouble. But Sebastian has seen her as well, though from a considerable distance for the most part. Did he tell you that?"
"Yes."

Hollis received the distinct impression that his brother lacked credibility in her eyes.

"Do you believe in an afterlife, Clare?
"Not really. I take it you do, though."
"I've always believed there's something for us after we die. But I never thought a person could come back from the great beyond until now. This has been the most incredible experience of my life."