The Yellow Packard Read Online Free PDF Page B

steps, Johns solemnly said, “So would I.”

Chapter 4
    T he six-foot-tall, dark-headed young man had shed his suit coat more than two hours before. Now his blue-and-red-striped tie loosened around his thin neck, and the sleeves of his wrinkled white shirt pushed up almost to the elbows of his long, athletic arms, George Hall was wearing out his brown wing-tip shoes as he paced from one end of the eighteen-foot-long waiting room to the other. Another, much more seasoned, veteran of the childbirth experience sat in a far corner chair, his feet casually propped up on a table, a smirk on his face, and an eyebrow raised at Hall’s nervous energy.
    “You’re going to wear out the floor if you keep that up.” The stranger laughed. “And your shoes aren’t going to last long either.”
    “Yeah, I know,” the expectant father admitted while continuing his trek toward the far wall. “But this waiting is just too much. I’ve never been through anything like the last five hours. I wish she’d hurry up.”
    “I’m sure your wife is doing all she can to accomplish your objectives. So why don’t you just sit down and read the paper or something? Of if you need to walk, take it outside. The sidewalks are probably lonely this time of the night, and they might enjoy your long steps a bit more than the nurses and I do.”
    George stopped momentarily and glanced up to the wall clock. Three thirty! Why did the baby have to pick the middle of the night to be born? Surely midmorning or even late afternoon would have been much better for everyone. Then a cold chill ran down his spine. If this long, unpredictable night was any indication, raising this child was not going to be easy! What had he gotten himself into? Suddenly thoughts of dealing with a troubled teen restarted his involuntary exercise program. His walk across the room was stopped in midstride when a middle-aged nurse sauntered down the hall and into the room. George quickly looked her way, his nerves taut with anxious hope, but her eyes didn’t catch his nor were her words the ones he wanted to hear.
    “Mr. Sims,” she announced with a smile as she looked at the other man, “congratulations. You have another daughter. I think that makes five if I remember correctly.”
    The small man with the thinning blond hair grinned, uncrossed his legs, stood up, and stretched. “Just can’t seem to get this right. Keep trying for a son and always end up with another girl. Guess I’ll have to take that Babe Ruth baseball glove back to the store for a doll. Again!”
    “That’s the way things often turn out,” the woman teased. “And there’s nothing wrong with girls. I used to be one.”
    Ignoring the woman’s joke, George quickly moved toward her and chimed in, “Excuse me. Is there any word for me?”
    She nodded and grinned. “Yes, the word is patience !” The nurse shook her finger at Hall before smiling and turning toward the other man. “Now, Mr. Sims, why don’t we walk down the hall so you can meet your latest. Do you have a name picked out?”
    “What’s your name?” he inquired.
    “Elizabeth.”
    “That sounds all right to me.”
    A deeply disappointed George didn’t hear the woman’s response. Exhausted and alone, and now overcome with fear that he might not be up to being a parent, he gave up his pacing and collapsed into a wooden chair. He needed sleep, but he knew his nerves wouldn’t let him nod off, so he picked up the newspaper. It was opened to an advertisement for an estate sale and auction in the same town where he and Carole lived—Oakwood. Though he had no interest in the event, he scanned the long list of furniture, jewelry, kitchen items, and books. Nothing captured his attention until his deep-set, hazel eyes neared the bottom.
1936 P ACKARD F OUR -D OOR S EDAN , 6,200 MILES, EXCELLENT SHAPE, YELLOW EXTERIOR AND GRAY INTERIOR.
    He reread the listing three more times, the last time out loud. Tossing the paper into the chair beside