She looked pale and felt weak, and wasn’t up to much of a conversation. But both her chart and the monitors indicated she was doing well.
Feeling better after assuring herself of that, Natalie headed for Pediatrics—where she found Cynthia working in her office.
“Sorry I’m so late,” she said by way of a greeting.
Cynthia gestured toward one of the visitors’ chairs, saying, “After you called, I started wondering if you’d actually come in at all.”
“You know, I might not have. But I promised Emma I’d be here.” And while she always tried to keep her promises, something had made her feel it was particularly important to keep that one.
“She’ll be really glad you came,” Cynthia said. “The neighbor her grandmother’s staying with phoned not long after you did this morning—to tell us that Señora Perez won’t be in today. She has some sort of chronic breathing problem, and I guess all the spring stuff in the air...”
“Or the stress,” Natalie suggested.
“I’m sure that’s part of it, too. But, whatever, if it wasn’t for you...
“Well, the parents of the other patients in Emma’s room are here a lot, which means she’s got to be feeling kind of...”
When Cynthia ended the sentence with a shrug, Natalie merely nodded. She wondered, though, whether Cynthia had been going to complete it with lonely, neglected, depressed, or another word entirely. There were certainly plenty she could have chosen from.
Forcing her thoughts from Emma, she said, “It’s turned out we will have to reschedule my hours. I’ll have to start later in the day.”
Cynthia shot her a curious glance. “Does that mean Mr. Ballantyne agreed to let you look after Robbie?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, that’s really good, isn’t it. Being able to spend more time with him while you’re sorting things out.”
“It’s wonderful,” Natalie murmured. For her, at any rate. But she knew Hank had very mixed feelings about it.
“So what hours are you thinking of now?”
“Well, how about if I start around four and stay till eight or nine.”
Cynthia hesitated for a second, then nodded. “That shouldn’t be a problem. In fact, it might even be better. If you’re here into the evening, you’ll be accessible to people who can’t make it during the day.
“And there’s a little boy we’ve been running tests on whose parents never arrive until after I leave. So if you could stop by his room later on, I’m sure they have a ton of questions.
“Let me go over his records with you,” she continued, rummaging through the stack of folders on her desk.
Once Cynthia had briefed her on little Tod Baxter and they’d discussed a few other things, Natalie headed to Emma’s room. Her three roommates all had company—two mothers and one father, she guessed.
After saying brief hellos, she sat down on the chair beside Emma’s bed.
This time, there was nothing shy about the girl’s smile. She was obviously thrilled to have a visitor.
“I heard your grandmother can’t come today,” Natalie said. “So I was thinking you must be awfully bored.”
“Uh-huh. I am.”
“Then why don’t you tell me a story.”
Emma looked at her uncertainly. “No...you’re supposed to tell me a story.”
“Oh? Really?” she teased. “Are you sure that’s the way it works?”
The little girl grinned. “Uh-huh. Positive.”
“Oh, well, then... Once upon a time,” she began in Spanish.
When Emma looked uncertain again, she said, “Since I’ve been in New Jersey, I’ve had to speak English all the time. And I miss Spanish because that’s what I usually speak at home.”
“How come you can’t talk Spanish in New Jersey? My grandma does. And my mom, too. Just not all the time, like Grandma.”
“Well, until I met you, I didn’t have anyone who’d understand what I was saying. But now I do.”
“Me.”
“Exactly.”
Emma’s glance swept over the other three girls, then she refocused on Natalie.
“If we talk in Spanish,” she said quietly, “nobody else will understand what we’re saying.”
She was clearly pleased by that prospect, so Natalie gave her a conspiratorial smile and went back to Spanish. “That means we can have all the secrets we want, doesn’t it.”
Emma shot her another grin. “Tell me one.”
“Well...it’s not exactly a secret, but it’s something none of them know. I live in a country called Guatemala. Have you heard of it?”
“Nope. But I’ve heard of Puerto Rico. It’s like a country, only...” Emma paused, clearly thinking hard.
“It’s called a commonwealth,” she said, finally coming up with the word. “And it’s where my grandma’s from.
“My mom used ta live there, too. A long, long time ago. Before I was born.”
“I’ve been to Puerto Rico.”
“Really?”
“Uh-huh. My parents took me there on a vacation, when I was a teenager.”
“I’m gonna go someday. My mom’s gonna take me. She promised.”
Natalie swallowed over the lump forming in her throat.
“But now it can’t be till my leg’s better,” Emma added, making a face at her cast.
“That won’t be too long.”
“And it’ll be all better?” she asked, her expression suddenly one of concern.
“Yes. Completely. Oh, after the cast comes off, your leg will be weak for a while. But there’ll be people to help you with exercises that’ll make it strong again.”
“So I can walk on it just the same as the other one?”
“Absolutely.”
Emma gazed at her for a moment, then nodded toward one of the other patients. “She said I’ll have a limp. Forever.”
Natalie quickly thought back to what Cynthia had said. No complications. She’ll mend just fine.
“Dr. Koehler told me you’ll be as good as new.”
“Really?”
“Uh-huh. And I’ll bet she knows a million times more about broken legs than that girl. But why don’t I have a look at your chart, then we’ll be sure.”
She rose and walked over to the door, took the chart out of its holder and glanced through it, Emma watching her.
“Just as I thought,” she said when she returned to the bed. “Dr. Koehler’s right. No limp. Not even a tiny one.”
Looking relieved, Emma said, “Good. ’Cuz if I had one I might not be able to jump rope. Or play hopscotch.”
“Are those your favorite things?”
“Sometimes. But not in the apartment. My mom doesn’t let me play outside games in the apartment.”
After eyeing Natalie for another moment, she said, “When we had the fire?”
“Uh-huh?”
“All our stuff got burned. My grandma has to stay with Señora Barreda, down the hall, ’cuz everything got burned. Our furniture and clothes and my stuffed animals and books and everything.”
“Oh, Emma, that must make you awfully sad.”
She nodded. “Even my favorite bear. His name was Teddy.”
“What color was he?”
“Brown.”
“And how big?”
Emma held her hands about a foot apart, then gestured toward the pink bear peering over at her from the bedside table. “One of the nurses gave me him to sleep with. She got him from the playroom, ’cuz I told her I missed Teddy. But he’s not the same.”
“No, he’s not Teddy. He looks like a nice bear, though.”
Emma shrugged. “He’s okay, but he’s not the same.”
She stared at her cast for a minute, then looked at Natalie once more. “Are they fixin’ our apartment?”
“I guess so. Yes, I’m sure they must be.”
“So when I’m better? And my mom’s better? It’ll be fixed by then?”
A fresh lump in her throat, Natalie reach
ed for the little girl’s hand. “Emma, even if it isn’t fixed by then, there’ll be a place for you to live.”
“You promise?”
“Yes, I promise.”
* * *
“‘SO SPARKY CURLED UP at the bottom of Billy’s bed, and they both fell fast asleep.’ Which is exactly what I want you to do now,” Hank added, closing the book.
He kissed his son good-night, but before he could push himself off the bed, Robbie said, “Daddy?”
“What?”
“We need a dog. And he could sleep with me.”
“Maybe when you’re older.”
He tried to stop the if you’re still here enough of the time thought from forming, but failed.
“How old?”
“We’ll have to see.”
“See what?”
“Well, see what Mrs. Chevalier thinks about the idea, for one thing.”
“She likes dogs.”
“Oh? Did she tell you that?”
Robbie nodded emphatically, although Hank seriously doubted the subject had ever come up. It was the sort of thing Audrey would have mentioned.
Glancing at his watch, he told himself he had to phone her as soon as he got Robbie tucked in.
He should have done it hours ago, but he’d been procrastinating—knowing that once he told her about Betty she’d ask who was going to look after Robbie the rest of the time she was away. And he had a pretty good idea what her reaction would be when she heard.
“Daddy?”
“Uh-huh?”
“Are you sure Natalie’s comin’ back?”
“Positive.”
“When?”
“Soon.”
“Then I should stay awake. So she can kiss me good-night, too.”
The horrible feeling that he’d end up losing his son entirely began creeping around in his chest once more.
“She can kiss you good-night even if you’re asleep.”
“But...Daddy?”
“Last question, Robbie.”
“Did she tell you I waked up last night?”
“Yes. When the ambulance came, right?”
“Uh-huh. But after, too. And I was scared. So she laid down with me till I went back to sleep.”
“Ah.” That explained why he’d found them here together.
“What if I get scared tonight?”
He knew he’d said no more questions, but this wasn’t a good place to end the conversation.
Robbie’s fear of the dark seemed to have been diminishing lately. Now, though, with Audrey away, then Betty...
“Robbie, we’ve talked about this a lot of times. There isn’t any real reason to be frightened. Someone’s always in the house with you. And you’ve got your night-light, so you can see that everything’s okay.”
“But there’s the monsters that hide under beds,” he whispered—as if afraid one of the monsters might hear him.
Hank got down on the floor and peered under the bed. “Nothing here except some dust bunnies.”
“There’s the ones that hide in the closet.”
He crossed the room, opened the closet door and rummaged around inside. “None in here, either. Is there anywhere else they hide?”
“They can come in the window.”
“Nothing can come in if it’s locked,” he said, walking over to it and checking.
“Locked tight. So how about this? You snuggle down and try to go to sleep, and I’ll leave the hall light on.”
“Well...’kay.”
Hank gave him another kiss, then rapidly made his escape before his son could think of any more delaying tactics.
His son. The words echoed in his mind as he walked toward the kitchen, making him reflect on just how much this situation was getting to him.
Of course, it had been from day one. But by this point, the uncertainty about how things were going to play out was a constant gnawing in his gut. If Doris Wagner hadn’t told him to wait for Natalie to initiate the negotiating, he’d have started it long before now.
He checked the list beside the phone for Audrey’s daughter’s number and punched it in. The son-in-law answered, accepted his congratulations on their baby’s safe arrival, then called Audrey.
“Hank?” she said, picking up. “Is everything okay?”
“Well...no.” Quickly he filled her in about Betty.
“Oh, that’s just awful,” she murmured. “But she is going to be all right?”
“That’s what everybody’s saying.”
“Thank heavens. Can I phone her, or...?”
“I don’t think they’d put you through just yet.”
“Then I’ll call her daughter first thing in the morning. I want Betty to know I’m thinking about her. But where does this leave you? Have you found someone else to look after Robbie?”
“Ah, yeah. Natalie’s going to take care of him.”
There was a lengthy pause before Audrey said, “Do you think that’s a good idea?”
“Frankly, I’m not entirely thrilled with it. But she offered and I didn’t have many options.”
“Oh, Hank, I don’t like that at all. It’ll give her so much time with him.”
“Yeah...well, that’s where we’re at.”
“And where are you at with...the rest of it?”
By “the rest of it,” he knew she meant Natalie’s sharing proposal.
“The same place we were when you left,” he said. “I’ve been doing what Doris Wagner suggested. Waiting for her to make the first move—and she hasn’t.”
Ordering himself to tell Audrey the rest, he added, “Speaking of moving, Natalie’s going to be staying here at the house. I hope you don’t mind that I said she could use your room, but it made a lot more sense than her driving back and forth to the motel.”
“No, I don’t mind. Betty would have been using it anyway. But...Hank, maybe I’d better come home sooner than I was planning. I could change my return booking and—”
“No, don’t do that. You stay right there with Valerie. Everything will be okay here.”
“But...Hank...”
“What?”
“Oh, I know I shouldn’t ask about this right now, with all the rest of what’s going on. But ever since Natalie came into the picture and said she wanted...
“Well, I just can’t stop wondering. If Robbie’s not going to be living with you all the time...”
Would he still want her living there? she was asking.
He’d realized, days ago, this was going to come up, so he didn’t have to think about it before saying, “Audrey, you and I get along so well that if you want to stay, that’ll be just fine.
“No, wait, that didn’t come out quite right. What I meant was I’d want you to stay. Otherwise, what would I do when Robbie was here?
“So don’t worry, huh? We’ll see where this ends up, what agreement Natalie and I reach. Then you and I can talk about the rest of it.”
“Yes, you’re right,” she murmured. “We’ll just have to play it by ear.”
After a brief silence, she added, “Will you phone me again tomorrow night? Let me know how Betty’s doing? As I said, I’ll call her daughter in the morning. But I don’t want to keep bothering her after that.”
“Sure, I’ll give you a shout before I leave for work.”
“Thanks. And, Hank, if having Natalie there turns out to be a problem, you will tell me. Immediately.”
“It won’t be a problem, so don’t worry. Just enjoy your granddaughter.”
“Oh, I already am. She’s wonderful.”
“And you’re completely unbiased.”
Audrey laughed, then said, “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“And everything will be just fine here when you do.”
“I certainly hope so. Bye.”
Thinking that he certainly hoped so, too, he said goodbye. Then he wandered into the living room, sank onto the couch and switched on the TV.
He flicked through a dozen channels without s
eeing anything that looked even marginally interesting. Finally he clicked to CNN. Maybe something major had happened in the world.
The film that appeared on the screen showed rescuers digging through rubble from some disaster. The voice-over was saying, “Authorities are estimating the death toll at three hundred but state that it would have been much higher if the epicenter had been closer to Guatemala City.”
The woman suddenly had Hank’s complete attention.
“The country has a long history of destructive earthquakes,” she continued. “In the past five hundred years, more than four thousand significant seismic occurrences have been recorded.
“Guatemala City, the largest capital city in Central America, was virtually destroyed by quakes that struck in 1917 and 1918. In 1976, an earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale claimed over 23,000 lives and caused more than two billion dollars’ worth of damage.
“In other news...”
Hank switched off the set, his heart hammering.
Obviously, he’d known Guatemala had earthquakes. But he hadn’t realized they were anywhere near as frequent or as bad.
And that was where Natalie intended to spend the rest of her life? Where she wanted to take Robbie?
He raked his fingers through his hair, telling himself to calm down.
It didn’t help. Despite Doris Wagner’s advice, he and Natalie had to start discussing the future.
* * *
HANK HAD GIVEN NATALIE a house key, but when she reached the front door she felt funny about just walking in.
She knocked as she stuck the key into the lock, then called, “Hi,” from the doorway.
“Hi,” Hank called back.
He was sitting in one of the two wing chairs in the living room. The Robert Crais novel that, earlier, had been lying on the coffee table was open on his lap—and his expression was so serious it sent a ripple of uneasiness through her.
“Is Robbie okay?” she said.
“Fine. He’s already asleep.”
“But there’s something wrong.”
Hank nodded. “There was an earthquake in Guatemala. I caught part of the coverage on CNN.”
“Oh, no. How bad?”
She no longer relived her own earthquake nightmare in vivid detail every time she heard about one, but she still got shaky inside. Especially when the quake was in Guatemala.
A Mother's Love Page 9
