by H. H. Fowler
“Yes, I am serious. I want to bring him home to live with us...in a more permanent arrangement. But I won’t push it, if you’re not okay with it.”
Michelle stood to her feet and paced away from Leroy. For a while she’d sensed that this was what Leroy wanted all along. That faraway look he often got in his eyes when he talked about his two adult sons leaving the nest had always led Michelle to believe that her husband longed for another son – his and Ellie’s son. And even though she’d been preparing herself to face this conversation one day, it still hurt to hear Leroy confess it. A sobering fact was that that child was her husband’s and there was nothing she could do to change that.
“And that’s not all,” Leroy said, as he stood too and came up behind Michelle. “Ellie has been sending me emails for the last six months, begging me to spend more time with her and our son...I am sorry that I’m just telling you about this now...”
Michelle whirled around and restrained Leroy with a nasty stare. But her reaction was cut short by shouts coming down the hall from where they stood in the waiting area. The ruckus of paramedics wheeling one gurney behind the other was not unusual in an accident and emergency situation. However, it was the voice of one of the victims that pulled Michelle’s attention front and center. She stumbled out of the waiting area and edged the hall just as one of the gurneys was approaching. The victim was a young man, who’d been strapped down and was now yelling at the top of his lungs.
“Do you know who I am? I play for the Denver Broncos….let me up out of this bloody thing! Can’t you see that there’s nothing wrong with me? Let me up!”
Michelle almost passed out when she saw that the young man was Eric. Were her eyes failing her? Why was her son strapped to a gurney with blood on his face? She picked up her steps and began to run alongside the gurney, leaving Leroy behind to battle his confusion. Eric’s gaze flew to Michelle, who was already firing off a dozen questions at the paramedics about the circumstances surrounding her son. Eric was so overcome by his mother’s concern that he started to cry.
“Mom, get me out of this place! There’s nothing wrong with me. Tell them that I don’t like to be restrained.”
“Eric! Honey, I’m right here with you!”
One of the paramedics was annoyed by Michelle’s presence, who was only obstructing their efforts in getting the victims to the A and E physicians. “Ma’am,” he said to her. “Would you please excuse us? He has suffered a concussion that could take a turn for the worse...”
“I want to be with my son!” Michelle cried.
“There’re two other victims following closely behind,” the paramedics yelled. “Please get out of the way before you’re hurt! The doctor will come out and see you when your son is stabilized.”
Leroy finally caught up with Michelle and pulled her to a safe spot just as the second and third gurneys were closing in. And as the gurneys slipped by, it did not register right away to Leroy nor Michelle that the victims, which reposed in silence amidst the pandemonium, were the bodies of their younger son and his fiancée. It was not until Michelle took a second look that she realized the gravity of what she had just seen. She pushed against Leroy’s chest and began to scream, but no sound was coming out of her mouth.
Chapter Sixteen
Twenty Minutes Later
Michelle paced the floor in the waiting area like a woman gone berserk. The surgeons, the nurses, no one, really would say anything to her about the prognosis of her sons, and of course, Rachel, whose injuries looked to be the worst of the three. At least she hadn’t heard anyone say that they were dead. She paused and cast an irritable eye at Leroy, who was on his cell phone with Sheriff Josiah Nixon, pressing for answers that could only be provided by the eyewitnesses to the accident. When Leroy finally disconnected from Nixon, Michelle attacked him with her impatience.
“Please tell me Nixon told you what happened to our children, because no one here is saying anything to us.”
“He was not at the scene of the accident…”
“But he has to know something, Leroy. What the hell was he doing when the call came in? He should have known that they were our children in that car.”
“If Nixon had known, don’t you think he would have called us a long while ago?”
“Whose side are you on?” Michelle snapped. “You know well enough that every second counts and if help didn’t arrive in time, our children could –”
“Don’t say it,” Leroy intercepted. “I am frightened too, but we can’t put blame on anyone until we fully understand what happened to Eric, Sean and Rachel on that interstate.”
Michelle yelled. “Haven’t you heard a word I’ve said? No one is telling us anything! And I can blame whoever I want. Those are my sons!”
Leroy shot Michelle a guarded look. He knew she wasn’t being rational at the moment and he too would be in her shoes had he not been trying to hold it together for his family.
“Well, as I was about to explain to you,” he continued in gentle tones, “Nixon wasn’t at the scene, but he received a report from the officers that were there.”
“And?”
“Well, Sean was pulled out of the wreckage in an unconscious state and remained that way up to the time he was loaded into the ambulance. Eric was delirious and fought with the paramedics –”
“I don’t blame him,” Michelle said. “They had no reason to strap him down like he was an animal out of the wild.”
“Come on, Michelle. We know how aggressive Eric can become, especially when it comes down to being examined by doctors. He hates doctors and he hates blood. Those restraints may have been for his own good.”
Michelle waved her husband off with another question. “And what about Rachel?”
“She was unconscious too when the paramedics put her into the ambulance. It could have been much worse, Michelle, much worse.”
“Are you serious? This is as worse as it gets!” She pressed the sides of her head to control a pounding headache, which felt as if it was about to send her out of her mind. “How did Nixon explain the accident happened?”
“According to the eyewitnesses, Sean smashed into the guardrail. The car spiraled out of control and then was hit by a pickup truck.”
“I don’t understand why God would allow this to happen to those children…”
Michelle’s voice cracked and that was Leroy’s cue to pull her into his arms to console her. “We are always praying to God to protect our children from such physical dangers,” he said. “I can’t explain why God would allow this accident to happen, but I can assure you that God will give us the strength to get through it and somehow, He will get glory out of this circumstance. Take my word for it: God will bring us out of this.”
Michelle buried her face deeper in Leroy’s chest, not entirely convinced of her husband’s efforts to soothe her. Her mother was fighting to maintain life at seventy-three years old. Then to see her boys, along with Rachel rolling in on stretchers was more than Michelle could stomach. At the moment, she didn’t see at all how God could receive glory out of this. And it looked as if she wasn’t alone. Marching up the hall all wide-eyed and nervous were Rachel’s parents, Minister George White and his theatrical wife. When Mrs. White suddenly dropped to her knees and screamed out her daughter’s name, Michelle knew they would be in for a long night.
****
Dominic bent over the crib and studied the sleeping faces of his twin boys, Aiden and Amir. They’d been told that the twins were a perfect blend of him and Tayah, but the longer Dominic studied his sons’ faces, the more of himself he saw in their features. They had the makings of his thick, slightly arched brows, his straight nose and dusty pink lips – all together, fine specimens who would one day be the desires of many women’s hearts.
It was surreal for Dominic, staring at his sons like that. He couldn’t believe that he was a father, but more importantly, the father of Tayah’s children. The woman he’d loved from the moment his lazy gaze landed on her.
He’d heard many times how having a baby could change a man inside out, forcing him to set his priorities in order. But having Tayah as his wife had already helped him to become a better man. By the time Aiden and Amir came along, Dominic was prepared to give them all of the love and care that a father could give.
Dominic’s whole aim was to please Tayah and to help make life much easier for her. That’s why he hadn’t a problem babysitting the twins while she visited her grandmother at the hospital. However, that had been almost five hours ago and Dominic was becoming a bit anxious. If there had been a problem, he reasoned, Tayah would have called him by now. She was as responsible as she was accountable to her family and Dominic took solace in that. His wife would soon return with good news that Grandma Delores was recuperating just fine. He left the nursery to find something to eat.
Upon entering the kitchen, Dominic blinked several times and thought that he was seeing double. Tayah was standing at the sink with her back turned to him. To say that he was startled or confused would not adequately describe how he felt at that moment. He hadn’t heard her car pull into the driveway or the sound of her entering the house. Did she sneak in, not wanting him to know she was home? That thought troubled Dominic, but no more than seeing his wife looking so distraught.
“Honey?”
Tayah nearly pitched out of her skin. She dried her tears before turning to face her husband.
“I didn’t hear you come in,” Dominic said.
Tayah cleared her throat. “The house was so quiet; I didn’t want to wake the babies.”
“Thankfully they’re still asleep. You don’t look as if you’re in the right frame of mind to deal with them anyway.” Dominic stepped forward to close the distance between them. “Is everything okay with your grandmother? Why are you crying?”
Tayah swallowed her response in time before she made a fool of herself. She had planned to go to the hospital after her visits with Sheriff Nixon and her ex-husband, Phillip, but Tayah hadn’t any idea that she would leave the prison infirmary in such an inconsolable state. So much so that she’d forgotten to fulfill her hospital run, and instead, drove straight home. She brutally chastised herself for allowing Shaniece to rope her in with that manipulating email.
Now Tayah was faced with a dying ex she was not ready to forgive and the voice of God pressing her to give in. A dormant struggle that had all of a sudden surfaced at the top of her to-do list. But she dared not tell her husband about her miserable day – not just yet. Maybe never. Because as far as Tayah was concerned, she wasn’t going to see Phillip ever again. A very stupid mistake it had been.
“You are scaring me, honey,” Dominic prompted. “What did the doctor say about your grandmother? Is she going to be alright?”
“I don’t know…”
Tayah walked away, realizing she would be followed. But she knew by the time she made it to the living room, she would have thought of something else to say to get her husband off of her back.
“What do you mean you don’t know?” Dominic questioned as he curbed his steps in front her. “You were crying as if something terrible had happened.”
“Do you love me?”
“You know I love you, Tayah. What does that have to do with what’s going on now?”
“Just answer the question.”
“I did answer the question.”
“No you didn’t. You’re annoyed and you only said that to get your own answers out of me.”
Dominic stood back and stared at his wife. “Why are you trying to pick a fight with me? You intentionally did it yesterday and you’re doing it now.”
“Why are you calling this a fight? I asked you a simple question. You were the one to get annoyed…”
Dominic took hold of Tayah’s shoulders and gently squeezed them. “Honey…stop. This is not you. Something is messing with your mind and I demand that you tell me what it is right now.”
“There’s nothing messing with my mind.”
“So, you’re gonna lie to me now?”
“What’s the matter with you?” Tayah fired back. “You’re making a big deal out of nothing!”
Tayah walked off again with a persistent Dominic behind her.
“If it was nothing, you wouldn’t be acting the way you’re acting.”
“Dominic, please!”
“I am not letting this go. I want to know why all of sudden my wife is in this funk, which is causing you to question our marriage and my love for you. Don’t brush me off, because I know you’re hiding something from me. You, of all people, know how secrets can destroy a relationship and I can’t believe you’re standing there being dishonest with me. I would never hide anything from you, especially if I knew it would ruin our –”
Tayah flailed her hands in defeat, interrupting Dominic’s thought provoking speech. “Alright, Dominic, I’ll tell you! I did not go to the hospital to see my grandmother. I visited the prison to see Phillip. Are you happy now?”
Dominic’s expression morphed from a look of confusion to a look of shock that dithered somewhere between disappointment and suspicion. He did not get an opportunity to tell Tayah how he felt, because the phone rang and Tayah was all too happy for the intrusion. She left him standing in the hall, only to return with a worried expression. The caring husband in him suddenly abandoned his own hurt to comfort his troubled wife.
“That was my father on the line.”
Dominic asked in a hesitant tone. “Are you about to tell me that Delores passed on?”
“No, my grandmother is coming along just fine – surprisingly. My brothers, along with Rachel have been in a terrible accident.”
“Oh, wow…will they be alright?”
“I don’t know. My parents are waiting for the doctors to return, hopefully with some good news.” Tayah shook her head in an exasperated manner. “This is so crazy.”
“What is?”
“All of what’s happening to my family. I thought we’d been through the worst…I never imagined the possibility that I could lose my grandmother and my brothers at the same time. This must be a nightmare for my parents.”
“And for you as well.” Dominic gave his wife a sympathetic look as he pulled her into his chest for a warm hug. “I think you should go to the hospital to be with them,” he told her. “I will continue to babysit the twins. Take as long as you need to.”
“Are you sure?”
Dominic pressed his forehead against Tayah’s. “I’m sure. We’ll talk about this later. All you need to know is that I love you more than you could ever dream and don’t you ever question that again. I’m your support and I will always be here for you – no matter what.”
Tayah wiped the tears that were now profusely falling down her cheeks.
“And while you’re gone,” Dominic continued, “I will be praying for you and the family. Don’t worry, babe. God has great plans for Eric, Sean and Rachel…they are not going anywhere, anytime soon. You just watch and see how quickly they will bounce back from this.”
Too overcome with emotion, Tayah silently released herself from her husband’s embrace, grabbed her car keys and hastened through the front door.
Chapter Seventeen
10:11p.m.
“Mr. and Mrs. Paxton, and Mr. and Mrs. White…I’m Doctor Jeremy Stanford. Could we all sit for a moment? I have some news to discuss with you about your children.”
Mrs. White folded her arms, her gaze showing a strong level of defiance. “No, thank you. I would rather stand. This is my daughter we are talking about.”
“Your daughter isn’t the only victim involved in that accident,” Michelle said. “Have a seat and listen to what the doctor has to say.”
Mrs. White went on. “With all due respect, First Lady, you can’t imagine what my husband and I have been going through with this ordeal…”
Michelle’s nostrils flared at the words, obviously spoken without much regard. “For heaven’s sake, Tammy, sit your butt down and shut up! My mother and both o
f my sons are laid up in this hospital, fighting for their lives. So it’s not only you and your husband who are going through an ordeal.”
Embarrassed, Tammy quietly eased down on a chair and tucked her feet out of the way. The men were caught off guard with Michelle’s rebuke. They, however, kept quiet and kept their eyes on the doctor.
Doctor Stanford took in a deep breath as he studied the frightened expressions before him. “I will do my best to explain all of what I know at this point, because this is very difficult for me to put into words.”
“Whatever it is, just tell us,” Leroy prompted.
Doctor Stanford spread his hands and said with his eyes wavering between the Paxton couple, “Both of your sons have taken a turn for the worse. Initially, Sean’s surgery appeared to have been a success, but a CT scan showed that there could be considerable damage to the brain, which is, unfortunately, continuing to swell.”
“What does that mean?” Michelle asked.
“Well, there’s a decrease in the amount of oxygen going to the brain. It’s called Cerebral Hypoxia. And depending on how long the brain is deprived, it can cause a coma, seizures, and even brain death.”
Michelle’s eyes watered at the news. “Are you saying you can’t do anything else for him?”
“At this stage of the swelling, it is difficult to pinpoint the cause of concern. But Sean is nineteen years old, very young and I’m hoping that will help him pull through this precarious phase. At least he seems to be responding to the IV fluids. That’s a good sign.”
“What about our other son, Eric?” Leroy inquired.
“And about our daughter?” Tammy cut in.
Doctor Stanford continued as if he was directly reading off of the chart in front of him. “Eric has been placed on a breathing machine, because his lungs have suddenly collapsed. But we assume that this will be a temporary fix, once we correct the internal bleeding. As for Rachel, well…” Doctor Stanford paused to gather his wits, because the look that Mrs. White was giving him was enough to make him want to run for cover. “I’m sorry, but Rachel has succumbed to her injuries…”