Free Every Day After by Laura Golden Page A

Mr. Hinkle aggravating her on purpose by making her serve soup at the mission. I tried to be funny in a few spots, but all I got from Ben was one measly chuckle.
    Main Street was empty, not unusual for a Sunday morning. Everyone was too busy getting dressed for church to be out and about, but if you were still in town when church let out, the scene would change. Cars would zig and zag this way and that on their way home from church, and the non-churchgoers would crowd into Powell’s around noon to get the Sunday special—a chicken dinner for thirty cents. I say non-churchgoers because all the saints in town went straight home after church for Sunday dinner with family—same as we had before Daddy left.
    As it was, the only thing in the streets besides me and Ben was a blue Buick, and it appeared to be coming right at us. Only one man in town drove a car like that.
    I felt Ben tap my arm, trying to get my attention. “Listen, Lizzie, I been needin’ to talk to—”
    I brushed his hand away and squinted at the car. “Is that who I think it is?” I watched as the car parked in front of us. Through the window I could make out a pale face with a thick mustache. I watched as lengthy limbs unfolded from the car. Yep. The very man I didn’t want him to be. The last person in Alabama I wanted to run into besides Erin. He came toward us, his long legs taking even longer steps.
    “Hey, Dr. Heimler,” said Ben. “Headed to church?”
    “Not this morning, I’m afraid. I’m on my way to the Martins’. One of their boarders is expecting and started having pains this morning. Still too early for that.”
    I tried not to look the doctor in the eyes. I prayed he hadn’t pulled over for me. My prayer fell on deaf ears.
    “This is my lucky day, Lizzie. You’re just the person I needed to see. How’s your mama?”
    “Fine.”
    “Well, Mrs. Sawyer certainly seemed concerned about her this past Friday. She asked me to go see her, but I’m sorry to say I’ve had my hands full with patients. Some good help is what I need.”
    “Mama’s all right. I think she’s real tired, that’s all.”
    Dr. Heimler stared at me with his near-black eyes.“Well, sometimes fatigue can be a sign that something else is wrong. Why didn’t you ask me to check on her?”
    “I didn’t want to trouble you,” I lied, trying to say as little as possible, even though I’d already gone off and said too much.
    “Well, just the same, I’ll be by to see her. If there’s something wrong, the longer she goes without a doctor, the worse she’ll get.”
    “Yes, sir” was all I knew to say. I didn’t want to get into an argument with Dr. Heimler over exactly what would happen to Mama if I let him look at her. I knew he’d just up and cart her off to the hospital whether I wanted him to or not.
    We all stood in silence for a few seconds before Dr. Heimler broke it. “Well, I’d best be heading on. You let your mama know I’ll be over to check on her by Friday. I mean it.”
    “Yes, sir,” I said, though I didn’t intend to let him set a toenail in our house.
    Dr. Heimler tipped his hat. In less than a few seconds he was folded back into his car and driving down the street. When his car rounded the corner, I turned to Ben. He was shaking his head at me.
    “What?” I asked.
    “I don’t know, Lizzie. Don’t ya think maybe the doctor could help your mama? Maybe you should’ve told him the truth.”
    I stomped off toward Powell’s. “No, I shouldn’t have. You know what’d happen if I did.”
    Ben caught up to me. “What?”
    “He’ll put Mama in the hospital with all the crazies, and then what? She’ll be alone, and I’ll be sent away to the you-know-where.”
    “What if he can help without the hospital? I ain’t never heard of Dr. Heimler sending somebody away like that.”
    I looked at Ben. I needed him to understand. “I can’t chance it. Maybe he can help her, but what if he can’t?”
    Ben didn’t reply; he just shook