Chapter 76

“Stop it!  Get away from me!  Get away!”  Allegra’s voice carried plaintively through the heavy wooden door, lodging Richie’s heart firmly in his throat.  Without conscious thought or hesitation, he ripped open the door with the force of a mighty rushing storm, and propelled himself down the hallway in pursuit of her cries.

He found her in the break area located only steps away from her office door, a look of horror plastered across her face.  Quickly assessing the scene, Richie saw a few employees scattered around, but it wasn’t what Allegra’s sights were fixed upon.  Sprawled on his butt in the floor was David, appearing every bit as horrified as the woman above him.

“Dammit David, what did you do?!”  Richie slowed his steps and approached her cautiously, so as not to alarm her any more than she already was.  The great gulps of air she was inhaling and her huge, wide eyes showed just how unnerved she was.  Reaching out his hand for hers, he tugged gently, but she remained rooted to the spot.  Her eyes were staring blankly at Dave as though she’d never seen him before.  

David scrambled to his feet, hands going out to reach for Allegra as well.  His face was full of contrition and he apologized all over himself.  “Allegra, I’m sorry sweetheart.  I’m so sorry.”

“Stay away from her!”  Richie growled at him like an angry dog, stepping between the two of them and guarding her just as ferociously.  “What the hell did you do?”

“Move Rich.”  Determination read on David’s face more clearly than a billboard advertisement. 

“No.”  He scowled at his friend with a countenance dark as a thundercloud.  “You’ve done enough.  Stay away from her.”

“Dammit, I said get out of my way.” 

“What did you DO David?”  Richie wasn’t stepping a foot aside until he knew what had drawn those screams from her.

The two men were so intently squared off against one another that they didn’t realize she’d moved until the slamming of her office door drew their attention.

“See what you’ve done now?”  Richie accused, immediately turning his back on the other man and directing his footsteps to the door.

“Stop right there.”  A new voice had entered the fray, and it brooked no argument.  Sister Mary.  “You two get out of here with your ridiculous ranting.”

Richie radiated an aura of non-cooperation, making it quite plain that he wasn’t going anywhere.  “We had a deal, Sister.” 

With a cross shake of her head, she flipped her hand in the air.  “Fine, then wait in my office.”  She turned to take David in with her all-encompassing scowl.  “Both of you.” 

Automatically assuming that they would comply without question, she turned her attention to the clerical assistant responsible for the front desk, demanding, “Nadine, what happened here?”

The girl was fraught with worry when she offered her explanation.  “Sister, I’m so sorry.  I recognized Mr. Bryan when he asked to see Allegra, so I let him come back even when she didn’t answer her phone.  I didn’t think there’d be any harm in it.”

“Well, in the future I will expect that no unescorted visitors will be permitted past the front desk.  Now, get back to work, please.” 

Nadine hung her head and did as she was ordered.

“David, I’m only going to ask you one more time.  What did you DO?” 

Silencing Richie with her super-human nun glare, the Sister also demanded an explanation of David.   “Mr. Bryan, would you be so kind as to tell me why you were in the floor?”

Hands jammed into his pockets, David blew out a huff of disgust.  “I sent Legs a text this morning to see how she was, and found out she was coming back to work today.  Since I have a meeting around the corner at the Prince Music Theater, I decided to stop in and say hi.  She was over there getting coffee and I wrapped my arms around her for a hug, just like I’ve done half a dozen times before.”  His straw colored curls bounced when he lifted his shoulders in a shrug of perplexity.  “She freaked out and started throwing elbows and pushing at me until I hit the ground.”

Richie eyes declared ‘I told you so’ to the Sister before he gave David’s shoulder a forceful shove.  “You idiot.  That was before…”  He hesitated, abruptly conscious that employees were still milling about within earshot.  “Before Detroit.”

“Everyone, get back to work,” Sister Mary ordered, skillfully interpreting Richie’s reason for pause.  “You two - go wait in my office.”  When two contrasting heads, one dark and one light, began to shake in disagreement as they readied themselves to argue, she put up a hand.  “The choices are my office, or anywhere outside the building.  Your decision.”    Turning her back in dismissal, she approached Allegra’s office, rapping on the door once lightly before entering.

Allegra’s attention diverted from her computer screen to the woman who had quietly resealed the entryway behind her.  “What can I do for you Sister?”

The reply she sought was slow in coming as the Sister unhurriedly claimed one of the guest chairs, crossing her legs at the ankle before addressing her.  “Would you like to discuss the incident that just occurred in the corridor?”

Idle hands positioned themselves over the computer’s keyboard, albeit with a visible cringe, and her gaze fell again to the monitor.  Her shoulder was screaming as a result of the unexpected exertion, but the only outward display was a slight trembling of her hands. 

“No.”

“That’s unfortunate.   I apologize for suggesting that your participation was optional, because I fully expect an answer.”

Retaining her focus on the computer, Allegra tapped a few keys and navigated her mouse to a point on the display, clicking twice, before dropping her hands to her lap.  She resolutely set her jaw and turned, saying, “There’s nothing wrong with me.”

“I don’t recall making any such implication.”

“I just need a little time to get used to being in a crowd again.  That’s all.”

Sister Mary was blatantly skeptical.  “That’s what this was about?  You were surrounded by a crowd of unfamiliar faces and felt slightly uneasy?  Which necessitated the bodily harm of your friend?”

Allegra’s eyes sparked with anger.  She was painfully aware that she’d just displayed a serious shortfall in her coping ability, but there was no reason for her boss to be mocking.  However, this was a job that she needed and wanted to keep, so she bit her tongue with unparalleled restraint.

“As you mentioned earlier, I have work to catch up on, so if you’ll excuse me?” 

Please.  I just want to quietly bang my head on the desk until everything settles back into its original spot. 

“Actually, your workload has just been significantly lightened.”  At the questioning look she received from Allegra, she elaborated.  “You’re under no obligation to speak with me regarding your mental well-being as a result of this attack, and I will respect your wishes.  However, I am well within my rights to request that you be cleared by a health professional before permitting you to return to this office.”

A burst of temper shot through Allegra, and she thrust the desk chair backward with her feet, bouncing it against the wall with the effort.  “You can’t do this!  I need to be here.  I NEED a distraction!  YOU’RE the one who told me I had to push past it, so why aren’t you letting me DO that?”

Sister Mary’s relaxed posture didn’t change, but her eyes softened along with her voice.  “Allegra, you aren’t going past it, you’re avoiding it.  Tragedy and unpleasantness don’t just dissipate because we wish it so.  We have to find the right way of dealing with them.  This isn’t the right way.”

“You have no right to tell me what works for me.  Until you walk in my shoes and live my life, you can’t possibly.”

Rising slowly from her seat, she agreed, “You’re absolutely correct.  But I can defer to the judgment of someone who has more insight than myself.”  She reached for the notepad and pen on Allegra’s desk, jotting down some information.  “Effective immediately, you’re on sick leave.  This is the name and number of someone that I’m sure will be able to provide you with some assistance.  Call her.  Get some counseling.   If you begin the process immediately, you may return the day after Easter, pending her report.”

Sister Mary silently moved to take her leave, but paused before turning the doorknob.  “This is for your own good.”

Allegra gave a bark of humorless laughter.  “Pardon me if I don’t agree with you, Sister.”

“And pardon me if I hope you change your mind,” were Sister Mary’s last quietly uttered words before departing.

The wooden door had no more clicked shut when Allegra picked up her pencil cup, hurling it across the room. 

No one believed that she wasn’t indelibly scarred by this stupid inconvenience.  Yes, theoretically, it was a life-altering event that some never recovered from, but she WASN’T everyone!  This would NOT take away life as she knew it.  Didn’t they understand that she wouldn’t allow that to happen?

Now what was she supposed to do for the next…  she glanced at the desk calendar… twelve days?  Re-visit her childhood and blame her scarred inner psyche on her mother’s horrible upbringing?  A COUNSELOR!  What a joke.

After withdrawing her purse from the desk drawer, she banged it shut with unnecessary force, masking the sound of Richie’s entrance to the room.

“Sunshine?”

Her head popped up, eyes narrowing.  “What are you still doing here?”

Steeling himself against the anger he could see bubbling just below the surface, Richie chose not to approach her just yet.  “Mary said you might want a ride home.”

“Well, she was wrong about that too!  I don’t want anything but to be left alone!”

She tried to push indignantly past him, but he stood firm, grabbing her by the elbow.

“Baby, get a grip on the temper.  This is not where you want to do your Jon impersonation.”

“Don’t you tell ME to get a grip!” she ranted, wrenching her elbow from his grasp.   “And at least people LISTEN to Jon!”  She pushed again, and this time she was successful in at least reaching the door.  Unfortunately for her, his palmed flattened against it to prevent her escape.   

“Where are you going?” 

Overwhelmed by an utter sense of helplessness and frustration, she stomped her foot and raised her voice. “Apparently to the nut house!  I can’t come back to work until my mental well-being is ‘cleared by a health professional’.”

One of his large hands curled around the back of her neck, angling her head to look at him, then stroking gently with his thumb.  “Hey, I’m on your side, remember?”

Allegra jerked away, grumbling, “No you’re not!  Every last one of you is conspiring against me.”

His hand dropped lifelessly to his side, and, while he regarded her steadily, she refused to look at him.  “Do you think that’s the honest truth?  That the people who love you have gotten together for the sole purpose of making you miserable?” 

The stubborn set of her chin didn’t budge, but her piercing eyes found his.  He was twisting her words around, and she didn’t appreciate it.  He made it sound absolutely ludicrous, but wasn’t that exactly what they were doing?

“Baby, I’ve been standing right where you are now.  The reason was different but the good intentions were the same, and I know EXACTLY how much it feels like betrayal.  It feels like nobody believes in you, and if just one person would admit that you’re doing the right thing, it would be all the support you needed.”

“Then why can’t you do that for me?”

“Because I also know that when that many good intentions come at you, there’s some merit behind it– merit that you can’t see because you’re too immersed in it.”

She knew he was speaking from very personal experience, but couldn’t stop to appreciate the fact.  He wasn’t on the receiving end this time – she was.

“I’m not crazy!”

“Nobody’s saying you are.”

“Sister Mary is!  She gave me the name and number of this counselor, saying that I MIGHT be able to come back after Easter, depending on what this woman has to report on me!”

“Allegra.”  Richie’s voice commanded her attention with its air of authority, and his hands came to rest atop her shoulders.  When she lifted her eyes, he ordered her, “Stop and take a deep breath.”

“Don’t patronize me,” she ordered petulantly.

“I’ll stop patronizing as soon as you stop blowing this out of proportion.” 

Unwilling respect glinted in her eyes under his dogged scrutiny.  It was the first time he’d truly had to deal with her temper, and she had to admit that he’d done an admirable job.  Allegra had no illusions about how difficult she could be.    The fact that he weathered it, and was still standing here with her, was a testament to his commitment – not to mention the fact that she was actually starting to listen to him.

“All you have to do is call the woman and maybe go see her a couple of times.  What’s the big deal?”  He flashed his dimples.  “Afraid they’ll find out about the history of mental illness in your family?”