Page 20 of Meet Me on Greenwood

I was grateful I’d been able to park close. Parking was never guaranteed in this area, but with the weather being so cold and dreary, people had chosen to stay home. I whistled as I thought about all the things I needed to do at the house when I arrived home after visiting Sarah. I hoped Lettie would leave a pot of leftovers so I wouldn’t have to endure the Page’s unseasoned chicken again.

Lightning flashed overhead, and I slowed on the road as the rain pelted the windows. I could barely see.

I blinked as something ran into the road, right in front of me. I had just enough time to see the whites of the person’s eyes before I hit the brakes so quickly, the tires skidded and the car veered, just missing them. Sweat poured from my brow. I jumped out of the car, my shoes sinking into the mud, as I moved to see who had jumped in my way.

My heart raced as I saw a pair of long shapely legs, and the form of a negro woman on the ground. I ran to check her vitals.

"Ma’am, are you alright? Are you hurt?"

No response, but she was breathing. I touched her skin and felt an immediate static spark, pulling my hand back quickly.

"Ma’am. I’m a doctor. Are you injured?"

Still no response. I touched the rim of my glasses to discharge the static, and attempted to touch her again. Her skin was warm, much too warm. I needed to get her out of the rain. Some kind of device had fallen out of her hand that I didn’t recognize. I collected it, hoisting her in my arms and placed her in the back seat of my car.

I’d never seen such a woman. She wore short trousers that clung snugly to every curve of her body, and a shirt so short, I’d felt the need to cover her with my jacket, but that wasn’t what had caught my attention. It was the delicate curve of her lips, a soft pink that reminded me of the azaleas that bloomed in the spring.

Now the question was where to take her. If I took her to Frissel, there wouldn’t be a doctor available. Dr. Henry Brown was out of town on business, and I knew he wouldn’t return until late afternoon tomorrow. I couldn’t take her to any of the White hospitals either, as they would turn her away.

Seeing no other choice, I changed course from Sarah’s family home and drove towards mine.

Once, I parked the car outside the home I’d been restoring for the past three years, I looked at the woman in the back. She hadn’t stirred. I pulled her out of the car, and Lettie saw me coming, opening the front door.

"Houston, who is that?" she said with alarm.

I looked down at the woman’s sleeping face. "I don’t know. She… came out of nowhere. I’m afraid I might’ve hit her with the car."

"What are you bringing her around here for? Take her to a doctor."

"I am a doctor," I grumbled.

"You know what I mean. She can’t stay here."

I did know. Tulsa was extremely segregated. Jim Crow was king here, and no one would think twice if I’d left her where I’d found her in the road.

"She needs tending and a place to stay for tonight. Dr. Brown will be back tomorrow. Come on, Lettie. Look at her. Won’t you help me?"

Lettie’s eyes slid over the woman. "Pretty thing," she noted. "Ms. Sarah is not going to like this."

I sighed. "No. I’ll meet Sarah tomorrow and apologize."

"Alright," she said, exasperated. "Bring her in. She is going to catch a chill out here."

The house, though it was a mansion, it was a crumbling structure. The only bedroom that had been restored was mine. Lettie stripped off the duvet, and I laid the woman flat on the bed, finally able to assess for injuries.

I started at the top and discovered her hair was singed at the ends. It was the kind of damage caused by extreme heat or electrical current, and it gave me pause. I'd read about lightning strikes in medical journals but never treated one. I parted her hair carefully and found a small entry point at the crown of her head. The surrounding skin was raised and reddened in a pattern that branched outward like the veins in a leaf. A Lichtenberg figure. I'd only ever seen drawings of them.

I moved down, turning over her right hand and found a matching mark on her palm. It was smaller, but it must’ve been the spot where the current had exited her body. All of her fingers were stiff and slightly swollen. I pressed along the radius slowly. She flinched even unconscious. Possible hairline fracture along the ulna. I'd need to wrap it properly.

Her pulse was elevated, but steady. Her breathing was even.

"She is lucky," Lettie said from the doorway, arms crossed, watching me work.

"Extraordinarily," I murmured, tilting her chin up to check her pupils. Equal and reactive, a beautiful brown.

What I couldn't assess was what the current had done inside her. She could wake up perfectly fine, or she could wake up different in ways that didn't show on the surface.

I pulled a chair over to the side of the bed and sat down.