Chapter 2: Goodbye John

John sat quiet until mid morning. His thoughts swirled one into another in a confused medley, as he tried to figure a way to undo the damage his act of hatred had caused his small family.

A stranger looked in through the open door and knocked. "Hi. I'm George, the man Mister Coulter sent to fix a broken door." He grinned and added, "I bet it's this one right here, right?"

John gave the man a tired nod. "Hang a solid core door and reinforce the frame." He thought a moment. "How did Steve know I needed a door fixed?"

"Your Missus called him." George took his measurements and left to find a sturdier door.

A woman in her forties stuck her head in the opening. "Hi, I'm Peggy Summers from the temp agency. Are you John?"

He nodded. "Yeah." He saw a slightly overweight woman in a white slacks and blouse. She appeared to be a friendly and energetic person.

"Where do you want me to start?" I don't do doors. However I guess the guy I saw outside is taking care of that job for you. What happened?"

"A cop stomped me last night." John waited for her to scream and head out running.

She stared at him hard. "Oh god, you're that John Patterson. You're the one who was beaten by the San Diego cops and some others. You're suing just about everybody in sight for more money than Bill gates ever dreamed of having."

"Yeah, that's me, the old punching bag himself." He sighed. "Can you help me into the shower? I'm pretty grungy right now."

She looked at John and shook her head. "Sorry, I don't do the bath thing with anybody but my husband. I'm a temp, not a hooker."

"Well fuck." John's exclamation echoed in the living room.

She grinned. "Sorry, not that either. I'm a house keeper, not a hooker."

"Elaine told me she called the temp agency and asked for a nurse to help me while I recover." He leaned back and closed his eyes.

Peggy began to laugh. "I think I know what happened. There are two of us who are both named Peggy Summers that work out of Trask Temps. There is me, the chubby, aging, very much married housekeeper Peggy Sue Summers. And then there is Peggy Ann Summers, the LPN who works out of Trask Medical Temps. One idiot handles both bookings. She is the boss's newest flavor of the month."

"Please, would you straighten things out?" It hurt to concentrate on what the woman said to him.

"You'll still need someone to do your housework. How about I do your cleaning and the other Peggy, Peggy Ann, will scrub your goodies and whatever?"

"Okay, please get her here as quick as you can." John leaned back and closed his eyes. He thought, Will this damned female just shut up?

The sound of a power saw woke him a little layer. John wasn't aware he had dropped off to sleep until he woke up. A new female in a nurse's uniform sat on the couch. "Hi, I'm nurse Peggy. You already met Housekeeper Peggy."

"I bet you're John." John liked what he saw. The pert, twenty-something woman was well put together. Her compact body and even features reassured John she could handle the job. Even better, her voice was not an irritant to his ears.

"Yeah, I'm John Patterson. You want to help me into the bathroom. I got to go bad." He felt embarrassed to ask a strange woman to help him onto a toilet.

"Housekeeper Peggy" Laughed and got busy in the kitchen.

"Nurse Peggy" helped him limp into the toilet, pulled down his shorts and eased him onto the stool. "Call me when you're finished."

"Yo!" John called minutes later, "I'm finished." She helped him back to his recliner.

After the house cleaning was finished, John paid Peggy Sue and watched her leave. John and Nurse Peggy shared beer and the television until nine that evening. He noticed she seemed to be uncomfortable. "Is something the matter?"

"Ah, well..." She sat on the couch and frowned. "I don't know how to ask you..."

He gave her a look of exasperation. "Why in hell don't you just come right out and say it? What's the matter?" John's pain made him impatient.

She took a deep breath and answered him. The words came out in a big rush. "My boyfriend kicked me out of the house last night and burned all my clothes except what I have on. I don't even have a change of uniforms."

"Well, I guess you can stay right here, for the present. Okay? That's no problem." He noticed she still had a hesitant air about her. "There's something else, isn't there?"

"Kind of," She blushed and continued, "After the wrong Peggy got sent out I lost my temper and yelled at that dim bulb the boss hired to dispatch calls. Of course she went and cried on his shoulder. He sort of fired me."

John nodded. "Yet you're here. What happens when they send out another Nurse Peggy?"

She blushed and gave John a guilty grin. "I ripped the referral out of the work book. There is no record there was ever a request for anyone to be sent here." She looked embarrassed, as her eyes met his.

John fought to keep his face expressionless. All it would take was one laugh to start the agony in his back again. "You're hired."

"What?"

"I need someone and you're qualified. You have no other commitments. You're hired. Take the third bedroom upstairs, the one not occupied, and move in. Okay?"

John tried to sit up and shift. Sharp pain shot through his chest on the left side. He screamed and passed out. He tried to say, "Oh Christ," as the world disappeared.

The paramedics came. Peggy Ann Summers stood back, helpless to do anything except watch. With smooth efficiency, John was loaded into the waiting ambulance. After a brief argument, Peggy locked the front door and rode with them. John was oblivious to it all.

It hurt to lie there with his eyes closed and it hurt to try to open them. Everything was a dull ache. He tried to say, "Damn." Finally, he tried to open his eyes.

The first thing he saw was Peggy, Nurse Peggy, he corrected himself. Sunlight streamed in through the window. He was in a hospital room. "Whu ... What happened?"

"You almost died," Peggy told him. She looked like hell, John decided.

Steve Coulter appeared at the foot of his bed. "John, why didn't you go to the emergency room?" Steve looked troubled.

"When?" Steve's question made no sense. "What emergency room?"

"After that cop beat you." Steve stared at his client for a moment, and then asked, "Do you remember you received a beating?" His stare became more intense. "Well?"

As John's mind became clearer, he asked, "Which beating?"

Steve's demeanor became more intense. "Christ, do you remember when that Chula Vista cop kicked in your front door? Please John, it's important. Try to remember."