The stash of money from the duffel bag Henry had given me to deliver was securely locked away on the boat. And even if I’d had it with me, I didn’t think the locals would accept American bills as it was too inconvenient for them to go into Manzanilla and have it converted. The people in the town had a simple existence and even something like taking a day to ride across the canal and get into town would be an inconvenience to them.
After saying goodbye to Chase and Jackson as they embarked on another fishing expedition, I locked the front door of the house and went into the small village. I hadn’t asked Chase where to go, mostly because I knew he wouldn’t be a fan of the idea of me wondering around the town unsupervised, but I didn’t want to worry him by sending him on the particular errand by himself.
I paid a ferry to take me across the canal and then a small, motorized cart to take me into the main part of the city. My Spanish was still lacking but I had picked up a few more basic terms from watching Chase navigate over the past weeks. During some of my time alone at the cottage, I’d found a guidebook in one of the bookcases and knew exactly where I needed to go.
I pulled the book from the cross body bag that Chase had purchased for me at the market and showed the destination to my driver. He smiled and nodded that he knew where to go and we set off into the heart of the city and a short time later he deposited me in front of the local farmacia. I asked him—at least, I think I asked him—to wait for me at the curb and then hurried inside.
Even though I knew Henry’s men wouldn’t be able to track us in the small, remote city, it still clung to the back of my mind that there was a chance someone could be watching. Or, if Henry’s men arrived, all they would have to do was show a picture of me to the locals and possibly be given details about this visit. It was best to keep a low profile.
The pharmacy was a small shop, smaller than the front vestibule of most banks back in California. As soon as I stepped inside a woman, speaking rapid Spanish, came over to me to offer her assistance. I stumbled through a brief introduction and the woman’s eyes went wide. She held up a finger to me, said something that I couldn’t understand, and scurried off through a partitioned doorway into the shop next door to the pharmacy.
I glanced around, suddenly feeling very out of place, and was relieved when a moment later the woman reappeared with a tall man. The man offered me a handshake and I took it, starting to introduce myself again in Spanish.
The man smiled. “It’s nice to meet you.” I smiled, relieved that he spoke perfect English. “How can we assist you today?”
I swallowed and looked between the two of them. “Well, basically, I’ve been feeling sick lately and more tired than usual. I’m not sure if I need some vitamins or maybe some kind of antacid. Where would I find those items?”
The man relayed the information to the shop owner and she nodded before rapidly firing off what sounded like a series of questions in response.
“Do you think you have food poisoning? Any vomiting or other…bathroom problems?” The man looked slightly embarrassed at the delicate question.
I shook my head. “No, mostly I’m just tired and then sometimes in the morning, before breakfast I feel like I want to throw up but I haven’t yet.”
After another brief translation exchange, the man smiled at me and I noted his gaze dropped to my stomach. He drew his eyes back to mine and asked, “Have you taken a pregnancy test?”
His soft-spoken question hit me with the force of a Mack truck.
Pregnant?
I shook my head. “No, no…no that’s not possible, I’m afraid.” But even as I said it, the pieces in my mind all started clicking together. The room began to sway as I realized that not only were my symptoms right on the money with the way I’d felt when I was pregnant with Jackson, but I’d also missed my period. In all the chaos I hadn’t realized it before, but standing there in the middle of the pharmacy, I counted backward and realized that I was ten maybe even eleven days late. That fact was the most damning as normally someone could set a calendar by my schedule.
Shit. I was pregnant.
“Oh my gosh.” Whatever strength I had left drained away, and I stumbled to the left before I braced myself against one of the metal shelving units.