Patron Saint of Horseshoes

By JB Clemmens

Read to find out why an empathic nun, a priest, a doctor, and a married man walk into a bar. Two generations of friends grow in faith and choose different vocations, but unite to stop attacks on children in a hospital cancer ward. Though the characters are religious, it is just a story and not about religion.

• Language: English
• Publisher: JB Clemmens
• Release date: Mar 8, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311132949

JB Clemmens

Jeanie Clemmens lives in Pennsylvania with a great dane and her husband, who takes her motorcycling. Her background is in math but she enjoys writing to exercise her right brain. Skype-ing her son in Japan and e-mailing her daughters in California and Virginia keep her close to family that she cherishes.

Book preview

Patron Saint of Horseshoes

J B Clemmens

SMASHWORDS Edition

ISBN: 9781311132949

Copyright 2014

Chapter One

If a priest, a nun, a doctor, and a married man walk into a bar, you'd expect a joke to commence as sure as 'who's there? follows knock, knock. The truth is these four actually went to O'Malley's Bar in Springdale, PA with a purpose.

Whatever the reason, the nun slumped to the floor after talking to a man and woman at a nearby high table. This was no prelude to a punch line.

The doctor knelt and took her pulse as the priest turned to the couple and quickly prayed.

Then the priest urged the man and woman to leave. In fact, he more than encouraged them to drive to the nearest hospital for their own sake, not the nun's, which they did.

The nun opened her eyes and was helped to her feet by the man who had just adjusted the ring on his left hand. Then the bartender led them to a back booth and they had lunch as if nothing happened. Who are they and what just happened?

Though the lives of Father Vincent J. Guerrin, Sister Theresa, Dr. Timothy Francis Barnes, and Matthew Barnes are intertwined, they have come to their stations by different means and for separate reasons. And while none is a saint, some come close. Their stories are of ordinary lives changed by extraordinary decisions. Beginning with Regina Theresa Petrilli, the story takes us to a summer day in 1963 in Harmarville where the children play outside until suppertime. The older kids get to leave after a sit down dinner and stay out until the street lights come on. Their Norman Rockwell family lives are almost carefree with a working dad, a stay-at-home mom, and a TV set in every home. Regina Theresa’s story is typical of young girls of the era, but her destiny is far from commonplace.

You were the princess yesterday, remember? Meg pouted with her hands on her hips. It's my turn.

Her dutiful friend and playmate of four years gave in quickly, agreeing to play the duel role of evil kidnapper and later, rescuing prince. Sorry, I forgot. Regina Teresa Petrilli grabbed the piece of timber they used for a sword and prodded the princess up the steps of the slide to the top prison tower

Meg Warren was the prettier of the two girls and reveled in the captured beauty part. Regina had a pleasant, expressive face that adapted equally to the female and

male roles they played. This was their favorite game because it ended with the prince and princess sliding down the big schoolyard slide and tumbling off laughing together.

They tried other games suited to the playground, competitive on the swings and with tag. Sometimes when they played in the Warren's backyard, they acted in parallel rather than interacting with each other. When they played dress up with gowns they were both royalty.

Mrs. Warren brought home the costumes from the Lutheran thrift shop, where she worked one day a week. She didn't work outside the home but was a volunteer for many charities and church functions. Mr. Warren was an engineer who had worked for Westinghouse in Cleveland until the layoffs began. A new job, here in Pittsburgh, had brought the Warrens to Harmarville, where the Petrillies had lived for two generations.

Soon the girls were fast friends, telling secrets, holding hands and starting Catholic school together. The Warrens determined that St. Gerard's was the best place for their daughter, even though they were Lutheran. At school, Meg was more popular than Regina, but they both took classes seriously and didn't socialize much during the day. But when Saturday came, they were either in the Warren's backyard or at the playground at St. Gerard's, five blocks away. Sometimes they walked toward the river and raced back to the schoolyard. They pretended they were teachers supervising recess, calling out warnings to the bad students they imagined were playing there.

The sky was still bright and blue as they played late into the afternoon. Mrs. Petrilli, an excellent cook, had packed them each a lunch of chicken, fresh baked bread and chocolate gob cookies, sometimes called whoopee cookies. They ate as teachers, again, commenting on the classroom behaviors of their students.

Billy cannot sit still.

Linda never reads the assignment. But when they got to themselves, they gave each other the highest marks and praise, of course. That collapsed them into a flood of giggles, resulting in their abandonment of the teacher roles, emerging as themselves.

Regina, I have a game. I brought something with me.

Is it Silly Putty or Cootie?

No, but I'm getting an Etch-a-sketch for my birthday soon.

That's fab; I wonder how those things work.

Magnets or magic, I don't know. Anyway, I got this from my mom. Since she's a homeroom mother, she has the list of everyone in our class, full names and everything. I'll read the name, them we'll each say like or don't like. Okay - Angela Arnotti.

Like, both girls responded.

Tim Barnes?

Like, Regina said a little too quickly. She didn't want to admit that she thought about Tim a lot.

Like, agreed Meg. He's a comic.

Meg continued to read the names and the girls would ponder a bit and then state their preference. That is except for one name, Seymour Rudolph, that had them shouting Don't Like immediately. It wasn't just his strange name. They thought he was a toad in looks and action. Regina felt guilty and said, Maybe he'll grow out of it.

"Regina, your empathy will get you in trouble one day," Meg offered.

There were a few names they couldn't put a face too, but, in general, if it was a boy they responded negatively. And of course the girls were 'liked'. Candace Santovich, though, had a reputation of trying to get the attention of every boy in the fourth grade, ignoring the girls. She was usually successful. The boys gathered around her in the lunch line and would later discuss the possibilities of a Candy Sandwich. Not that any of them really knew what that meant. Meg would call the boys immature; they'd argue, but soon Meg was joking with them. Regina however, ran away from the dirty talk, feeling disappointment and shame for having even heard it.

The last name on the class list was Anthony Volare. To Meg, and most of the other girls, he was a dreamboat. But he, too, was fascinated by Candace. Nevertheless, he got a thumb up, even more readily than his comic sidekick, Tim Barnes. They were the only approved boys today.

An occasional barge boom sounded on the Allegheny River, a mile away, but the silence went on for a long time. For a few moments they sat, crossed legged and still, listening to the quiet. The wind, a faraway car engine or lawn mower, and birds could be heard, but it was still and serene. The girls knew they were sharing a special moment together and smiled. Regina felt Meg's emotions and her gaze drifted to the sky, trying to see past it to outer space. But someone was calling from space - or was it nearby?

Did you hear that?

Meg shook herself and said, No. I was listening to the leaves blow in the wind.

There was no