She licks her lips with nervousness.
They whisk her away for an x-ray, making me out to be a liar because I can’t be with her, but then she’s brought back.
Her coloring is worse. She looks scared out of her mind.
Jesus, I don’t know what to do for her. I’ve never felt so helpless in all my life.
After what feels like hours, I hear my father behind me.
“I’m here,” he says and hurries over to us. Thank Christ. “I’m here, darlin’. Oh, my love, I’m so sorry. There now, it’s going to be just fine.”
“Tommy.” Ma clings to my father and finally lets the tears fall. “I’m so scared.”
“Shh. There now.” He kisses her forehead and looks up at the doctor. “What’s happening?”
“She’s having a massive heart attack,” he says. “We’re about to wheel her in for an angiogram so we can see where the heart is failing. If need be, we’ll perform surgery. I need permission to do so.”
“I’m her husband, and you have permission.” He kisses Ma’s cheek. “He’s going to fix you up right as rain, me love.”
When they wheel her off for surgery, Da and I walk out to the waiting room where everyone sits, waiting.
Izzy, with eyes full of tears, immediately jumps up and wraps her arms around my stomach, her cheek pressed to my chest, and I’ve never felt so relieved in all my life to see another human being.
The lump that was in my throat eases a bit.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispers. “I hate that you had to go through that by yourself.”
“She’s going to be okay.” I kiss the top of her head and look over at the others. “She’s going in for an angiogram so they can see what’s going on. She’s definitely having a heart attack.”
“Oh, Da.” Maggie hugs our father, and Maeve joins them, rubbing his back supportively.
“She’s going to be better than ever,” Da says as he pastes a cheerful smile on his weathered face. I’ve never seen him more worried or look so old. But he’s trying to be optimistic for us.
“Jace is the surgeon,” Anastasia says. She holds the baby against her shoulder. “He’s going to keep her completely safe. I’d trust no one more than Jace. He saved my father’s life just a couple of years ago.”
“See?” Maggie says. “She’s going to be just fine.”
Jace is Anastasia’s brother-in-law. We’ve met him several times at family gatherings. I’ve never taken the time to sit down to talk with him, but if Stasia trusts him, so do I.
“We should sit.” I urge Da toward a chair. We’re gathered as a family in the corner of a big waiting room.
“Actually,” a nurse says as she approaches, “if you’d like a more private place for your family to wait, there’s a waiting room over here that might be better.”
She leads us just around a corner and opens a door. The light comes on to reveal a private waiting area, just the right size for our group.
“Don’t worry, I’ll let the staff know you’re in here so you won’t miss any news.”
“Thank you,” I say to her.
I sit, and Izzy sits next to me. Shawn and Lexi are across from us with Kane and Anastasia. Maeve, Maggie, and Da take up the rest of the seats.
“Did they say how long it would take?” Maeve asks.
“No.”
“This is the worst part,” Shawn says and rubs his face with agitation. “The waiting.”
“I’ll go get coffees,” Maggie says. “Does everyone want coffee from the cafeteria?”
“They have an espresso cart not too far from here,” Stasia says. “I drank a lot of coffee from it. I would come help, but—”
“No, you sit,” Maggie says. She takes orders for three other coffees and then sets off in search of caffeine.
“Maggie needs to have a task,” Da says. “She’s a doer. If there’s ever a crisis, she’s the one bustling about.”
“I knew something wasn’t right,” Maeve says softly. “I had a hunch that it wasn’t just a tweaked shoulder, but she kept insisting that she was fine. That stubborn woman.”
“None of us knew,” I remind her. “It’s not your fault.”
“It’s my fault,” Da says. “For not making her go to the damn doctor.”
“It’s nobody’s fault,” Izzy repeats and rubs Da’s arm. She holds my hand tightly with her other hand.
Anastasia shifts the baby and then frowns at her husband. “Would you please take him for a minute? He’s only eight pounds, but he starts to get heavy.”
“Of course, love.”
“May I hold him?” Izzy asks. “I’ve meant to come see you, but something always comes up.”
“You’re more than welcome to hold him,” Kane says as he brings the baby to Izzy and gently lays him in her arms. “He’s been a little fussy today, so if you need his binky, we have it ready.”
“Aww, are you fussy, little love?” She kisses Thomas’s head and smiles down at him. “He’s already changed so much in such a short period of time.”