Chapter 7 - The Name on the Old Pay Stub
Mom was sitting up in bed when I returned. Her wrist was braced, her forearm bruised. She asked whether Bell had eaten dinner.
I sat beside her. "What other name?"
She waited until the nurse left. "Mara Price. At least that's what it said on her badge."
"Where?"
"At St. Bridget's Care Center. Five years ago, when your Aunt June was there. I met a young woman who helped families fill out forms. She was charming. She had three little stars on her wrist."
Harper had told me she'd spent those years at a digital agency in Denver.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"I wasn't certain. People change jobs. People change names. I thought I was mixing faces up. Then she asked me to sign that strange authorization in August."
"What authorization?"
"She said it would let her organize my accounts if I ever became sick. I told her no. She kept asking whether I knew what year it was. That's when I started keeping copies of everything."
Mom reached beneath her pillow and produced a small notebook. She'd written dates beside short descriptions: HARPER ASKED ABOUT TRUST - AUG 12. UNKNOWN CALL - SEP 3. FOUND DRAWER OPEN - OCT 14.
"I didn't want to turn you against someone you loved without proof," she said.
I slipped off my ring. The skin beneath was pale.
"You could've told me you were scared."
"You were happy," she said. "For the first time since you left your old job, you looked happy."
My chest hurt worse than any shouted insult could have managed.
Jonah had made calls while we talked. He came into the room holding his phone. "St. Bridget's confirmed Mara Price worked there. Their lawyer won't discuss why she left."
"Can we talk to somebody who remembers her?" I asked.
May you like
"One woman already wants to talk to us." He showed me a message from a retired nurse named Denise Parker.
It read: IF THIS IS THE SAME MARA PRICE, DO NOT LET HER NEAR ANOTHER ELDERLY PERSON. I HAVE THE RECORDS THEY TRIED TO BURY.
