| Chapter 10 The sound of Nick's screams filled the house. Everyone ran from their rooms to his, Tara got there first and ran in. Jade and Gideon were holding Nick down in bed as Tracy tried to calm him down and wake him up. "No, don't, please!" Nick screamed, as Tara made her way to the side of the bed. "Nick, wake up," she said, gently slapping his cheek, "It's just a dream." Nicks eyes fluttered open and he looked up at her. "It's OK, you're just having another dream," Tara said, calmly. Nick looked around, seeing everyone in the room, then sank back in the bed, "Sorry guys." "Nothing to be sorry for," Brian said, walking over to stand next to Tara. Lyn came over to the other side of the bed, "Do you remember any of it?" Nick sat up, rubbing his face with his hands, "More than I care to." Lyn reached over to take his hand, but Nick pulled it away. It had been two days since their little �accident', and he still refused to touch her. "Nick, you aren't going to hurt me," Lyn said, forcefully taking his hand in hers and smiling at him. He stared at her for a moment, then half smiled at her. Tara grinned at Lyn's persistence. "Guys, let us talk with Nick for a little while," Jade said. Everyone left the room except Tara. "Nick, tell us what happened in your dream," Gideon asked. "Um, I was back in the desert, at that oasis again. The same two men were there. It doesn't matter what I do, they always grab me and pull me in," he said, frustrated and exhausted. "What do they say to you?" Tracy asked. Nick thought for a few minutes, "I really can't remember exactly what they said. I just know that whatever it was, I didn't like it." "Do you fight them, or just try and get away?" Tara asked. "I've done both, neither one works," he answered. "And you still can't see them?" Jade asked. Nick shook his head, "No, my vision is always blurry. I can't make out any details of their faces, only that they are men." The four exchanged looks. "What?" Nick asked. "We're trying to figure out who it is. If we can do that, we may be able to help you. The more you know about them, the better chance you have," Tara said. Nick looked hopeful for the first time in a while, "Do you know who it is?" "Not yet," Gideon said. "But we're trying," Tracy assured him. Tara looked over at the clock, "Nick, you need to get up and get ready." "For what?" he asked, seeing how early it still was, "We don't have to be at the venue till three." "I know, but Stephen set up a little appearance for you this morning, remember?" she said. "No, I don't. Why would he schedule an appearance on the day the tour starts?" Nick asked. Tara smiled, "Because I asked him to. Now get ready, we need to leave in an hour." Nick looked at her confused, but got up and headed to the bathroom to get ready, just the same. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tara and Nick sat in the back of the car that Stephen had sent for them. Tara refused to tell Nick where they were going, only that he would be surprised. Nick watched outside the window, trying to get a feeling of where they were heading. The car made a turn and Nick realized they were heading for the Children's Hospital. He looked over at Tara, she smiled back at him. The car pulled in, and they got out. Tara walked up to the information center, "Is Pam Cagle in?" "Yes mame, down the hall to the left," the lady instructed. "Thanks," Tara said, as she and Nick headed in that direction. They found the office and went in. "Mrs. Littrell, Mr. Carter, good to see you," Pam said, offering them a seat. "Nice to finally meet you," Tara said, shaking the woman's hand. "Hi," Nick said, taking her hand and shaking it. "Pam, Nick really doesn't know why he's here, so would you like to explain?" Tara said. "Oh, certainly. Your management called a few weeks ago and wanted to set up a time when one of you could come and meet some of the children. Many of the kids that are here are very sick, and really don't have the opportunity to attend a concert, so from time to time we set up meetings with celebrities for them. It gives them some excitement in what normally is a pretty boring time here," Pam said. Nick was smiling, "That's great. When do we get to see them?" "Right now if you're ready?" she said, getting up. Nick was already at the door, "After you." Pam laughed as she led them down a hall and to the elevator. They got on and she punched the floor. "You'll be meeting with about twenty kids. One of the girls was taken off the list this morning, she's not doing very well," Pam said. Nick looked at Tara, then to Pam, "What do you mean by not doing very well?" "She has leukemia, and she's taken a turn for the worse. She was so looking forward to seeing you to, such a shame," Pam said, shaking her head. "Um, could I go see her in her room?" Nick asked. Pam looked at him, "Well, I'll check with her parents and the doctor. I'll go ahead and get you started with the other children, and by the time you're done I should have an answer." "Thanks," Nick said, as the elevator opened, and Pam led them to a huge play room. Nick peeked in the windows, seeing the kids inside. There was every kind of game and toy imaginable in the room. "Cool," Nick said, "I could live in that room." Tara and Pam laughed. Pam went into the room to introduce Nick. Tara looked at him, "You're doing alright?" "Yeah, I'm actually looking forward to this," he said. "Listen to your heart. You can't help them all, but He will tell you when you can," Tara instructed. Nick nodded as he heard Pam introduce him. He and Tara walked into the room. Nick spent two hours with the children, and loved every minute of it. They played games, he read them a few stories, sang a few songs with them. Tara hadn't seen Nick this care free in ages, and she was glad she'd brought him here. During Nick's time with the kids, he paid attention to his feelings, never feeling anything that told him he should help any of the children in the room. Finally Pam announced that Nick had to go. All the children begged him to stay, but Nick apologized to them, saying that next time he was in town he would come and stay all day. He hugged each child, and signed a few things for them before he left the room. As he, Tara, and Pam got on the elevator, Nick looked over, "Did you ask?" Pam nodded her head, "I did. They said it was OK, but you have to wear a gown, and you can't stay very long. Her doctors aren't expecting her to last through the night." Nick was visibly stunned, "How old is she?" "Eleven," Pam answered, "Her name is Suzie." Nick instantly felt an urgency in the back of his mind, he was anxious, but he couldn't explain what it was that was making him feel that way. He looked at Tara as the elevator opened. Pam went out first. Tara and Nick followed her down the hall. "Tara, is what I'm feeling from Him?" Nick asked. Tara nodded her head, "Follow your heart. He will tell you what to do." Pam turned to them, "That is a beautiful language. I've never heard it before." Tara smiled at her, "It's an ancient language that no one really uses anymore. We both took an interest in it, and learned it." Pam smiled, "I'm truly impressed. Most celebrities that come in here are only interested in getting their picture in the paper for doing some kind of community work. You two are the real thing." Nick and Tara both smiled at her comment. "Here Nick, lets get you suited up," Pam said, as a nurse came down the hall with a gown, gloves and mask for him. Nick put the garments on, then was lead to Suzie's room. Her parents were outside the door waiting for them. Nick walked up to them, extending his hand, "Hi, I'm Nick." "I'm Mark, and this is my wife Theresa," Suzie's dad said, shaking Nick's hand. "Thank you so much for doing this," Theresa said, "As you can see by her room, you're her favorite." Nick looked inside the hospital room to see several posters of him on the wall. He smiled, "I see that." "It broke her heart when she got sick and wasn't able to go down this morning," Mark said. "Well, let's see what we can do about that," Nick said, putting the mask on and walking into the room, followed by Suzie's parents. Tara stayed out in the hall with Pam and watched through the windows. Theresa walked over to the side of the bed, "Suzie, there's someone here to see you." The little girl opened her eyes and looked at Nick. "Hi Suzie, I hear you aren't feeling well," Nick said. Suzie stared at him, "You sound familiar, who are you?" Nick pulled his mask down and smiled at her. Suzie was in shock, "Oh my God, it's really you!" Nick laughed and sat on the side of the bed, "Yes, it's me. So, I'm your favorite huh?" Suzie blushed, "Yeah, how'd you know?" Nick looked around at all the posters, "Oh I dunno, sixth sense I guess." Suzie's parents laughed. "So when are you getting outta here?" Nick asked. "I hope soon," Suzie said. Nick looked over at Mark and Theresa seeing the heartache in their eyes. "Well tell ya what. Why don't I sign a few of these for you," Nick said, getting up and searching out a pen to sign the posters with. He signed several of them, then came back over to the bed and sat down. "Thank you," Suzie said, weakly. Nick could see the life draining from her. "Suzie, can I have a hug before I go?" he asked. The little girl smiled, and lifted her arms up. Nick bent down and wrapped his arms around the child, pulling her up to a sitting position. He held her for a few minutes, then gently laid her back down. "Now I want you to do me a favor, OK?" he said. "OK," Suzie said. "I want you rest, and when you wake up, I'm sure you'll feel better, alright?" Nick said. Suzie nodded her head, and drifted to sleep. Nick got up and left the room with Mark and Theresa. Once they were out in the hall, Nick pulled the garments off and handed them to Pam. "Thank you for doing this again," Theresa said. "Yeah, we haven't seen her smile like that in a long time," Mark said, shaking Nick's hand. Nick smiled at them, "You have a very special daughter. I'm sure if anyone can beat this, she can. I'll be praying for her." Mark, Theresa, and Pam exchanged shocked glances. They were amazed that this �star' seemed to care so much for this one child. "Thank you," Theresa said, hugging Nick, "That means a lot to us." "You're welcome," Nick said. Tara turned to Pam, "Thank you, we'll see ourselves out." Pam thanked them, and watched as they went down the hall to the elevators. Once on the elevator, Nick sank to the floor. "You OK?" Tara asked, kneeling beside him. He nodded his head, "That was so amazing." Tara smiled at him, "Yes it is. I'm glad you got to experience that." "I think Suzie knew," he said, standing back up, "I could feel it from her when we hugged. She knows she's gonna get better." "Children do tend to pick up on us faster than adults do," Tara said, as the elevator opened and they walked out. The car was waiting on them, and they climbed in. "Driver, can you run us by a flower shop on the way back?" Nick asked. "Yes sir," the driver said. Tara looked at him. "I want to send her some flowers," he said, smiling. "That would be nice," she commented. Nick came back to the car from the flower shop, smiling. Tara looked at him curiously. "They had the cutest teddy bear that was dressed like an angel. I got that for her and some daisies," he said. "Aww how nice," Tara said. Nick looked at his watch, "Good." "What?" Tara asked. "It's still early. I might actually be able to squeeze in a nap before sound check," he answered. Tara laughed, but she knew he wasn't kidding. She could see in his actions, and in his face how tired he really was. The dreams were taking their toll on him. She just hoped he would have the strength when he needed it. They arrived back at Kevin's as everyone else was just now stirring around. They walked in the door, and Nick headed for his room. Brian gave Tara a kiss on the cheek, "You have a good time?" She smiled, "Nick had a great time, so did I." "Good," he said, "I'm glad." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Nick walked into his room and crawled into bed. He didn't even bother to take his shoes off. He got comfortable and closed his eyes. Silently he prayed for Suzie and her family, and for all the other children he'd met that morning. Then he prayed for the guys, for a good show that night, and safety as they traveled to the next venue. Then his thoughts turned to his upcoming trial. He knew it would be soon, he could feel it somehow. He asked God for strength and wisdom. He needed guidance, and some control of his fear of it. He asked God to take his fear from him, and replace it with understanding. As soon as he'd asked, Nick felt the most intense peace come over him. He took a deep breath, and lingered in the feeling. Slowly he drifted into a dreamless, restful sleep. Chapter 11 |