Affinity House

by Ruth Hay

  At first, they put it down to sunstroke, and went back to their townhouse to rest and recuperate.

  The next day Eve was no better and her friend began to get alarmed. Her temperature was spiking worryingly. That’s when Eve decided to return to Canada alone.”

  “Was she worried about paying excessive hospital rates in the States?”

  “I imagine so, Mavis. In any case, we will go to London Airport and wait for her flight to arrive. As there’s no telling what kind of condition she will be in, prepare for anything. If necessary we will take her straight to Emergency.”

  “Right. I will tell Honor what’s happening while you get out the car. I’ll collect supplies from the medicine cabinet on the way.”

  There was some delay before the plane from the States arrived via Toronto Airport. Mavis and Hilary grew increasingly worried as the hours passed. The huge and crowded Toronto facility was not the most welcoming place for a person who was feeling ill. Hilary calculated the number of hours Eve had been travelling and paced around the corridors in London’s more friendly airport to relieve her stress.

  One thing was for sure. Whatever illness had driven Eve to leave in the midst of her holiday must, by now, be much worse.

  When the passengers finally deplaned, Mavis and Hilary were gazing through the terminal windows straining for a first glance of their friend.

  It was immediately obvious which passenger was Eve. She was draped in blankets, and helped down the steps from the small plane in the arms of an attendant. A wheelchair, hastily summoned from the airport was there to take her inside. Hilary and Mavis danced from foot to foot until they could get close to her. The staff person related the story.

  “We were reluctant to take her on board in Toronto as she was clearly very ill. We had a medical persona assess if she was contagious and he said she was not, but he recommended she be taken to hospital as soon as possible.”

  “Thank you! Thank you so much for caring for Eve. We will take over now and she will be going to Emergency right away.”

  Eve was not responsive when Mavis spoke to her. She managed to get a sip of water in her mouth but was reluctant to do more before the doctors saw her. Mavis sat beside Eve in the back seat of Hilary’s car with the heater blowing warm air. Eve did not open her eyes all the way to London Health Sciences Centre on Commissioners Road.

  By some good luck, the Emergency Department was not overwhelmed with patients and Eve was admitted after a quick assessment by a doctor. When Hilary explained that she had the same high temperature for days now, the doctor isolated her in a separate room until preliminary tests could be done. He stated that Eve’s present confused and uncommunicative condition was of concern. He advised the two women to return to the waiting room as it would take some time to check everything out.

  “Do you think he’s afraid we have caught whatever it is Eve has?” murmured Mavis, as they paused by the metal button on the wall near the security doors that allowed exit to the outer areas.

  “I can’t say, Mavis. We must wait and see. I don’t think we were in contact with Eve for long enough to contract anything major. Remember that a doctor in Toronto declared she was not contagious.

  Just in case, they took two seats far from the nurses’ booth where most of the activity was centred.

  As soon as Hilary phoned home to advise Honor about their situation, she set out to find coffee and sandwiches. It looked like they were in for a long night.

  Mavis thought there was nothing more disorienting than a waiting room in Emergency as the hours progressed and more patients were unloaded from ambulances and hustled straight into the Emergency area behind the huge doors.

  “We were lucky to arrive before the rush, Hilary. Ambulance patients get priority.

  How long do you think we will be here?”

  Hilary glanced at her watch. It was well past midnight and there were no spare seats left in the waiting room. She was about to say something comforting when her name was announced. They approached the nurses’ booth and were confirmed as the couple who brought in Eve Barton.

  “Go on through,” said the nurse as the doors opened for them. “The doctor is ready for you.”

  They went through to the room where they had left Eve and found her bed empty. They looked around for the doctor who had admitted Eve and found him attending to another patient. When he caught sight of them hovering nearby he led them out into the hallway and informed them that Eve had been formally admitted to the hospital for further examination.

  “The high temperature is of some concern but she also has a tender area near her abdomen. It could be an infection she has contracted, but we need to investigate more closely before I can give you a definite answer. He gave them her room number and told them to call the nursing station later in the day when there would be more information about Eve’s condition.

  Hilary and Mavis clutched each other for support.

  “At least she’s safe home, and in the right place to get help,” said Mavis. It was small comfort.

  The cold early morning air refreshed them enough to hold back tears.

  They made short work of the drive back to Harmony House with Eve’s luggage, as the roads were empty of traffic.

  They found Honor waiting for them with hot drinks and warm sympathy.

  “You two must get some rest. I have alerted Vilma and Jannice. We will stand by for phone calls until you wake. Also, Jannice says if there is home nursing to be done for Eve, she will take a compassionate leave of absence and look after her.”

  They were too weary to comment. Hilary let one tear drop down her cheek and Mavis managed a weak smile before they went to their respective tower rooms and fell into bed, grateful that they were not facing this calamity alone.

  Mavis’s last clear thought before she drifted off to sleep was ……this is what Harmony House is all about.

  Chapter 11

  The atmosphere at Harmony House was dark and gloomy despite a sunny day that offered to melt the topmost layer of snow and bring warmer temperatures.

  Hilary and Mavis slept well into the late morning hours and by noon they were eating porridge made by Jannice who had taken a day off and insisting she would go to the hospital with them.

  “I see you two are not in the mood to eat, but the porridge will put a coating on your stomachs as my Mam always said.”

  The unspoken meaning was that the women would need sustenance in case of bad news ahead of them.

  There was no delay. Moments after they called the nurses’ station and learned Eve could have visitors, Jannice offered to drive while Hilary and Mavis sat in the back of the small car.

  Mavis wondered if there was enough room for Eve inside.

  Hilary wondered if Eve was likely to be coming home with them at all. She was experiencing an unsettling premonition of bad news which she was valiantly trying to ignore.

  The doctor spoke to them before they were allowed to see Eve.

  “We are still doing tests but initial symptoms indicate your friend may have liver cancer.”

  There was a horrified silence in the room as Jannice, Mavis and Hilary absorbed this information.

  “But, she was in perfect health just a few weeks ago. How could this happen?”

  The doctor turned her compassionate eyes to Hilary and said liver disease has few symptoms initially.

  It would not be obvious that there was anything wrong until the later stages.

  Jannice recovered first.

  “What stage do you think Eve has reached?”

  “I do not want to speculate until we have more results. Your friend’s fever has diminished and she is quite able to tell you herself how she feels. Go in and talk to her now. She knows what I have told you but be hopeful. There’s much that can be done.”

  Three women stood in the hospital hallway and summoned their strength for Eve’s sake. Inside, they were reeling from the shock, but each of them had dealt before with relatives suffering from serious i
llness and they knew how important it was to be optimistic.

  “Right then, ladies! Let’s rally around Eve and do whatever we can.”

  With Jannice’s admonition in mind, they wiped away tears, and straightened shoulders, and advanced into the private room where sun poured in from the windows and Eve was sitting up in bed with a smile on her face that was the best sign they could hope for.

  They sat on the bed or in the chair nearby and asked all the questions while Eve explained what she could.

  “I was fine, honestly! Kylie and I had hours in the museum and I adored Georgia O’Keefe’s paintings. The flowers were astonishing, of course, but there was so much else there to wonder at. I spent the evenings sketching and drawing ideas for my next paintings and went to bed happy.

  I was anxious to return to the museum the next day but we had to queue to get tickets and the sun was very hot outside. When we got into the galleries the air conditioning was quite cold and I shivered for a bit. When I felt faint, I put it down to being over-excited, but later I began to feel quite unwell.

  Kylie wanted to take me to a doctor in Santa Fe but I had heard horror stories about extortionate fees and I persuaded her to let me go home on my own.”

  “Did you have the fever then, Eve?”

  “I felt ill but the fever got worse on the plane. I really can’t remember much of the journey until I saw your two familiar faces at the airport. I know someone helped me at Pearson to get to the plane for London. I am just so glad to see all of you and know I am home safe again.”

  They occupied the remaining time with news about Vilma’s trip to Jamaica and the surprise she had when she discovered Braden was a man.

  Eve laughed and there was more colour in her cheeks.

  Mavis thought it was a good sign of recovery when Eve asked for her sketch book and pencils to be brought on their next visit.

  I can’t imagine they will keep me here long, but I can make use of the remaining time. I have so many ideas in my head.”

  A nurse arrived to check Eve’s temperature and to give her some medicine so the trio left with promises to return with art supplies and bed jackets and anything else Eve wanted.

  As they walked through the hospital corridors toward the exit, Jannice remarked that she believed the nurse had administered a pain medication.

  Hilary stopped and turned to her with a surprised look on her face.

  “Do you think she’s in pain? I couldn’t see any sign of it. She looks recovered.”

  “She may not be telling us everything,” interjected Jannice. “They would not prescribe pain pills unless there was a good reason. We don’t know everything yet. Wait for more information to come.”

  They had to be content with Jannice’s logic, but doubts lingered.

  Until they had Eve safely back in Harmony House they could not be sure of her recovery. Liver cancer was a very scary diagnosis despite what they saw and heard in that hospital room.

  It was three more worrying days before Eve returned to her own room at Harmony House.

  She returned with a diagnosis of stage three liver cancer and a proposed program of chemotherapy to start in the following week.

  Everyone stayed positive but Eve was beginning to understand how ill she was and the knowledge frightened her. She kept the fear at bay by painting furiously on her easel by the window.

  She was banned from the kitchen and Mavis took over the task of buying supplies and cooking nutritious meals for all the residents.

  Vilma ordered fresh delicacies and frozen prepared meals to be delivered from the delicatessen in town. She sat with Eve whenever tea and cookies were planned, in order to interrupt her art work and make her rest. Vilma found this a good distraction from her own worries about her future and she listened while Eve described O’Keefe’s Black Iris and White Bird of Paradise works.

  “I will never be able to paint like that,” she confessed. “But she has inspired me to be more adventurous. I would like to do some new work before…...”

  Vilma felt a shiver run down her back as the sentence tailed off. It was as if Eve had a presentiment about her illness and the limited time she had left. She quickly turned the discussion to the weather and the prospects of an early spring but in her heart of hearts she was afraid for Eve and decided not to repeat the incident to Mavis or Hilary.

  Honor was consulting a variety of online sources about liver cancer and compiling a dossier of treatments, their premier hospital locations, and their effectiveness rates.

  Jannice was making a request at work for an extended leave for compassionate reasons. She had seen patients with liver cancer before, and she wanted to be fully available if Eve needed individual care during the chemotherapy.

  Life seemed to go on as usual, but beneath the surface there was concern and fear.

  Hilary was the one chosen to take Eve to the cancer clinic for her first session of chemo. The atmosphere was uplifting and positive if you ignored the many headscarves and the worried partners who accompanied the patients. While Eve was being ministered to in a comfortable chair, Hilary took the chance to speak privately with the doctor assigned to her case.

  “How do you account for the sudden onset of this liver problem, doctor?”

  The response was honest and non-committal at the same time.

  “We can’t be sure. It could have been coming for a long time and only recently began to show symptoms. It could be the result of a long period of extreme stress. The body reacts differently to stress in different people.”

  Hilary thought back to her first view of Eve Barton and the soft hat she wore then, pulled down over her forehead to conceal the injury to her head caused by her husband’s violent behaviour to her. It was difficult to reconcile the present Eve with that pitiful figure, but there was no doubt she had undergone stress for years before Mavis rescued her.

  Hilary decided to ask no more questions, and she resolved to rally all the strength and faith she could in order to steer Eve through this crucial medical experience.

  She knew she did not have all the knowledge that might be required, but with the expertise and goodwill residing in Harmony House, many things could be accomplished. It remained to be seen how well Eve would tolerate the sessions of chemo.

  Hospital nurses and doctors had reinforced what Honor learned online. Many patients sailed through the chemo and had few distressing symptoms. Hilary could only hope and pray that Eve was one of the lucky ones.

  Before a month had passed, Eve was back in Harmony House. The chemotherapy had failed.

  Eve was unable to tolerate the pain it caused and further investigations revealed there were other sites in her body where cancer had taken a grip.

  A hospice was mentioned by the doctor in charge.

  At this point, the women of Harmony House rebelled.

  “She’s coming home with us,” demanded Mavis, through tears that roughened her voice.

  “I will rent a hospital bed and anything else she needs for her comfort,” insisted Vilma.

  “She will be made pain free for however long she survives and we will be by her side.”

  Jannice spoke in the knowledge that she was competent to co-ordinate medical services, and to administer a morphine pump under the supervision of a visiting nurse. She had already received permission to take a leave of absence from her current home care position.

  Hilary was immensely grateful that Jannice had the expertise that would allow Eve to have this option.

  Everyone would rally round to make Eve’s last days as comfortable and pleasant as possible.

  Hilary was relieved to have this united support and, once again, she blessed the day she and Mavis had concocted the scheme to find a home for themselves and other compatible women. She could only marvel at how well they had selected these women. At times of stress, they always drew together in mutual compassion. She wondered how many families had the benefit of such support and doubted whether any families in today’s world could find
members who could devote time and energy so willingly. Jannice’s home care job demonstrated how few family members were free to dedicate themselves to their elders. Many had families of their own and jobs that were necessary to maintain a roof over their heads. Other families were spread out over the earth these days and could not give the twenty-four hour care that was sometimes required.

  Hilary decided she would take on the role of ensuring every person at Harmony House who is involved in Eve’s care, would, in turn, be cared for by her. She would monitor schedules and ensure regular breaks. If the weather improved, she would insist on Eve getting outside for even a few minutes to breathe the air and see the beginning of spring arrive in Mavis’s garden.

  She was not good at bedside stuff, herself, but she would ensure the others lacked for nothing.

  If music should be needed to lift spirits, she would supply it from Mavis’s collection.

  If special foods were required, she would obtain them, online if necessary.

  She would enlist Honor’s help to keep ahead of laundry. Eve’s room should always be bright and fresh with the flowers she loved.

  If Eve expressed the desire to see friends or acquaintances from her earlier life, Hilary would find them and convey them to her bedside.

  She would do all that any person could do to make this transition from life to death as easy as possible.

  Chapter 12

  Everything else was set aside while Eve was spending her last days in Harmony House.

  Vilma encouraged Andy to stay at the farm and get on with the building work. She did not want his presence to disturb the established routines around Eve that were keeping all in the house on an even keel.

  There was an atmosphere of solemn peace interspersed with laughter and fun when Jannice entertained Eve with her family tales or Mavis loaned Marble to sit comfortable by Eve’s side purring in contentment.