Jericho

by Ann McMan

  “And that’s my cue to exit.” David leaned across the desk and kissed her on the top of her head. “Don’t worry so much,” he said quietly. “I actually can behave myself when it really matters.”

  She laid a hand on his forearm as he stood up. “David?”

  He stopped and looked at her.

  “It really matters.”

  He nodded. “I know it does, sweetness.” He winked at her. “I’ll see you tonight.”

  She watched him retreat down the back hall as the front door to the clinic opened and a distressed-looking and very pregnant Isobel Sanchez entered with both of her young sons in tow. Maddie got up from her seat behind Peggy’s reception desk and hurried into the waiting room to meet her.

  “¿Qué pasa? Are the boys sick?”

  “No, no, Doctora. They are well. Bien. It is me.” She hesitated. “Much . . . blood. Estoy sangrando.” She raised a hand to her forehead and looked nervously down at her little boys. They stood half behind her and gazed up at Maddie with luminous eyes.

  Maddie took her by the arm to steady her. “How long? ¿Por cuánto tiempo?”

  “Dos horas.”

  “I’m going to call an ambulance—llamare a una ambulancia. Can you walk?” She gestured toward her examination rooms. “¿Puedes caminar a mi sala de examinación?”

  “Sí.”

  “Is anyone with you?” Maddie gestured toward the parking lot.

  “No. Ellos no me pueden esperar. No one.”

  “¿Dónde está Carlos?”

  “Working. En casa esta noche.” She hesitated. “To-tonight.”

  Maddie nodded and turned to the children. “Come with us. I want to make your mother feel better.” She crooked a finger to indicate that they should follow her. “Voy a ayudar para que tu mamá se sienta mejor.”

  “Gabriel, Héctor—vamos.” Isobel leaned heavily on Maddie as they started down the hallway, but after only a few steps, she half collapsed. There was a pop, followed by a gush of brownish liquid that pooled about their feet.

  Maddie recognized the meconium-stained fluid at once, but hastened to reassure Isobel. “The baby is coming. Se roto la fuente de agua.” She directed her into the first room on the left and helped her up onto a padded table. Behind them, the boys looked terrified. They huddled next to the door, trying not to look at the murky liquid on the floor. Their brown eyes were like saucers. Maddie grabbed some clean towels from a closet and placed them around Isobel’s legs, then turned to the boys.

  “Come in and sit.” She pointed to two chairs in the room. “Sientate con tu mamá. Don’t be afraid. No tengan miedo.” They shyly entered the room and perched on the ends of the chairs.

  Maddie walked back to the hallway and knelt next to the puddle of brownish fluid. She dipped the end of a towel into it and held it to her nose. It smelled vaguely like Comet cleanser. She dropped several towels on top of the wet area and stood up and grabbed the receiver for the wall phone in the hallway. She quickly punched in the emergency number for the Jefferson EMT service. They answered on the second ring.

  “This is Dr. Stevenson. I have a twenty-four-year-old woman here in my clinic. She’s in the thirty-sixth week of her pregnancy and has just sustained a meconium aspiration. I need immediate transport to the Wytheville ER, and an OB-GYN surgical team standing by for a probable emergency C-Section. I can stabilize her here. Tell the paramedics to use the clinic’s rear entrance. We’ll be waiting on them. Right. Yes. None. That’s right. Thanks.” She hung up.

  Inside the examination room, Isobel was quietly reassuring her sons. “No tengan miedo. Tu mamá esta bien. Tu papá estará aquí, pronto. Sean valiente.”

  Maddie stood there, holding the telephone and deliberating for only a moment before she punched in another number and raised the handset to her ear.

  “Hello?”

  “It’s me. How good are you with kids?”

  Syd laughed. “Is this some kind of radio quiz?”

  Maddie sighed. “I wish. Look, I need your help. Now. Right now. Can you be at my clinic in ten minutes? I’ve got an emergency on my hands, and I’m here alone.”

  “I’m on my way.” Syd hung up.

  Maddie walked back into the examination room and washed her hands before slipping on a pair of latex gloves and approaching the table. “Let’s see what kind of entrance your little one is about to make.” She gave Isobel what she hoped was an encouraging smile. “Everything will be just fine. Todo estara bien. We’ll take good care of you.” She looked down at the two boys. “You, too. Ustedes, también.”

  SYD ARRIVED AT Maddie’s clinic just as the EMT truck was backing toward the rear of the brick building. She walked in the main entrance and met Maddie in the hallway that led to the examination rooms. She noticed the wet towels on the floor between them.

  “Thank god,” Maddie said. “Perfect timing.” She wrapped an arm around Syd’s shoulders and stood with her a moment in the waiting room. “I owe you big time for this one. A very pregnant Isobel Sanchez is here with her two sons, and her water just broke. She’s alone and doesn’t have anyone to keep the boys until her husband gets back from Tennessee tonight. If she agrees, would you be willing to keep an eye on them until I can get back from the hospital? It shouldn’t be more than a couple of hours.”

  Syd nodded. “Absolutely. I’m happy that you thought to call me.”

  Maddie smiled and gave her shoulders a squeeze. “Great. C’mon. I’ll introduce you to them.”

  Syd was anxious and intrigued as they approached an illuminated examination room. “Syd, this is Isobel Sanchez, and these are her sons, Héctor and Gabriel. Isobel is on her way to Wytheville to have her baby, and her husband is on his way back into town from Bristol. I’m going to ride with her in the ambulance, and we were wondering if you would be willing to keep Héctor and Gabriel company until their father can get back, or we can find a neighbor to help out?”

  Syd smiled at the two boys. They looked wary, but curious. “Of course.” She looked at Mrs. Sanchez, who seemed barely more than a child herself. “I’ll be happy to stay with them. Don’t worry.”

  Isobel gave Syd a grateful smile. “Thank you. Usted es muy amable.”

  “I’m happy to help.” She hesitated. “Con gusto le ayudo.”

  Maddie smiled at her proudly, before leaving the room to greet the EMTs at the back door.

  Syd knelt next to the chairs where the two children were seated. “Hola. Me llamo Margaret. Trabajo en una biblioteca. ¿Les gusta leer?”

  They both nodded.

  Isobel encouraged them. “Héctor. Gabriel. Vayan con la señorita. Debo ir al hospital ahorita, pero el Papá de mis hijos llegara a casa pronto.” The boys looked at Syd nervously. “Vayan con la señorita—ya. Go.”

  Syd smiled at them encouragingly and held out her hands. The boys stood up and shyly took hold of them. She walked them out of the examination room and toward the lobby as the EMTs entered through the back door with a gurney. Maddie approached her and held out her hand. She was holding a set of keys. “Why not take the boys to my place? They can play with Pete.” She smiled at her. “It’s well known that golden retrievers are fluent in every language. I’ll be home just as soon as I can get her settled, and have an ETA on her husband.”

  Syd let go of Gabriel’s hand and took the keys. “No worries. We’ll all be just fine.” Maddie gave her hand a warm squeeze before releasing it. “Are the guys still coming by?”

  “Yeah. I’ll call them on the way to Wytheville. They can give me a ride home.” She looked back toward the examination room. “I need to go. With that amniotic fluid compromised, Isobel is sure to be facing an emergency C-Section.” She hesitated for just a moment. “I can’t thank you enough for this.”

  “Don’t even think about it. I’m glad you called me.” She took Gabriel’s tiny hand again. “Give me a ring when you can and let me know how she’s doing.”

  “Will do.” Maddie knelt next to the boys. “Be good for Miss Murphy.
Tu mamá estara bien. No tengan miedo. Don’t worry.” She rubbed them both on the tops of their heads and stood up. “See you later on.”

  She turned around and walked back to join Mrs. Sanchez.

  Syd smiled down at the boys. “Do you like dogs—yellow dogs? ¿Quieren jugar con un perro amarillo?”

  They nodded in unison.

  “Let’s go, then. Vamonos.” She led them across the lobby and out to her waiting car.

  MICHAEL WAS IN a quandary about how he should conduct himself, once they all met up later at Maddie’s. He needed to be mindful of Syd’s confusion about her fledgling attraction to Maddie. He needed to help insulate Maddie from her full-blown attraction to Syd. And at the same time, he needed to somehow short-circuit any of David’s continuing attempts to push the two women together.

  And he needed to do all of this in secret.

  Right, he thought. A complete no-brainer. He was halfway home with groceries for the evening when his cell phone rang. It was Maddie.

  “Well, hello. I was just thinking about you.”

  “That’s good, because we have a slight change in plans. I couldn’t reach David.”

  “No worries. What’s up?”

  “I have an emergency, and I’m actually on my way to the hospital now. Syd is already out at my place with a couple of additional dinner guests.”

  “Really?” He was surprised. “Who?”

  “I’ll let her explain all of that. But I’m hoping you guys can go on out there a bit sooner than we planned and give her a hand. She’s actually babysitting some patients of mine. I don’t know how long they’ll be there. Their mom’s in labor and their father is out of town.”

  “Oh, gotcha. She’s keeping them at your place?”

  “Yeah, it seemed easier. Do you think you could go on ahead and help her out? Maybe feed the kids some pizza?”

  “Sure. No problem.”

  “I was hoping that maybe David could give me a ride home from the hospital. My car’s still at the clinic.”

  “No sweat. Just give us a shout when you’re ready, and one of us will come and pick you up.”

  “You guys are the best. I knew I could count on you.”

  Michael laughed. “Some raucous New Year’s Eve this is turning out to be.”

  “You got that right. Look, I need to go, we’re turning into the hospital.” She paused. “Oh, one last thing.”

  “Yeah?”

  “How’s your Spanish?”

  DAVID AND SYD were losing the card game. Losing badly. Across the kitchen table from them, Héctor and Gabriel had mounting books of cards. David groaned as he was forced to draw yet again from the dwindling deck.

  Héctor giggled. “¡Vaya y pesque!”

  David rolled his eyes. “Yes . . . that’s right. I’m fishing. Again.” He eyed Syd as he tried to stuff the newest card into his burgeoning handful. “I think these two are shysters.”

  “Don’t look at me. I’ve got more cards than you have.”

  The phone rang. Michael left the center island where he was rolling out pizza dough to answer it. “Happy New Year,” he said, holding the handset to his ear.

  “How are things going out there?” It was Maddie.

  Michael turned to the card players. “Great. I’m just about to get the pizzas in the oven, and your two favorite partners in crime are getting their tight little butts kicked in a cutthroat game of Go Fish. How are things where you are?”

  “Isobel’s doing just fine. She had a C-Section about an hour ago and is in recovery now. The baby is strong and healthy—a little girl.”

  “Oh, that’s great. Hang on—I know Syd wants to talk with you.” He turned to the table and held the phone out toward Syd. “It’s Maddie, and she’s got good news.”

  Syd jumped up from her seat and went to take the phone from him.

  “Hi there. Tell me everything.” She perched on a kitchen stool.

  “Hello yourself. It’s all good. Isobel and the baby are both doing fine. She had a little girl, and she’s beautiful. I just saw her.”

  “Oh, that’s wonderful. Did she have the C-Section?”

  “Oh, yeah. It was unavoidable. They couldn’t wait on a vaginal delivery. There was too much risk of having the baby take that infected fluid into her lungs.”

  “Has her husband arrived yet?”

  “Yes, he just got here about twenty minutes ago. He’s with Isobel now. I told him to stay at the hospital as long as he wanted to, and gave him directions to my place. He’ll be by later tonight to get the boys.” She paused. “How are they?”

  “They’re fine. We’ve been playing cards.”

  Maddie chuckled. “So I heard. Don’t bet the farm, okay?”

  “Oh, I promise. Are you coming home soon? We’re about ready to feed the kids.”

  “Yeah. That’s another reason I’m calling. Do you think David would come and pick me up?”

  Syd smiled and turned to nod at David, who was watching her expectantly. “If it gets him out of this card game, I think he’d volunteer to Simoniz your Jeep.”

  Maddie laughed. “Tell him I’ll wait for him at the ER entrance.”

  “Okay.”

  “I can’t thank you enough for this. I know it was a lot to ask.”

  “Don’t even go there. Besides, Pete deserves most of the credit. You were right about his effect on the boys. They relaxed immediately when they got here and started playing with him.”

  “Told ya. I’ll see you soon, okay?”

  She nodded. “Bye.”

  David was already on his feet, putting on his coat and fishing his car keys out of a zippered front pocket.

  Syd turned to the boys. “¡Usted tiene a una hermana pequeña! Su mamá es fina, y su papá estará aquí pronto.”

  They smiled as they nudged each other. Then they looked at Michael with concern.

  “¿Cuándo comemos nosotros pizza?” Gabriel asked, seriously.

  Syd sighed. “Men. You’re all alike.” She looked at Gabriel. “Yes. Soon. Pronto.”

  They nodded and continued playing cards.

  “And with that. I am outta here. I should be back with our wayfaring Sawbones in about an hour.” David headed toward the back door.

  “We’ll go ahead and feed the kids,” Michael said. “Then we’ll eat together and celebrate when you two get back.”

  David waved as he walked out of the kitchen. “And get ready to pop a few corks—we’ve got some serious catching up to do.”

  MADDIE AND DAVID got back shortly after eight-thirty, just as Syd finished settling the boys down upstairs in one of Maddie’s guest rooms. At first, they were reluctant to go and lie down, but when she suggested that Pete looked really tired and needed a rest, they quickly volunteered to go along and help keep him company. Pete happily cooperated and hopped up onto the foot of the big double bed in Maddie’s old room, and snuggled down between them. Syd knew that the boys would likely be sound asleep in minutes. She tugged the covers up over them and kissed them both on their foreheads.

  “Have a nice nap. Duerma bien.”

  They nodded and closed their eyes. She walked out and left the door ajar, so they could see the light from downstairs if they woke up before their father arrived. As she started down the hallway toward the back stairs, she smiled when she heard Maddie’s voice drifting up from the kitchen below. She paused for a moment in Maddie’s bedroom as she listened to the quiet sounds of talking and the unmistakable clink of wine glasses.

  She was happy. It felt right to be there—comfortable and right. Right in ways that were both exhilarating and terrifying. She knew that Maddie had probably had her choice of several dozen people who could have helped her out with Isobel’s children—yet she had called her. Why? Was it because she spoke a little Spanish? Was it because she was coming by her house later anyway?

  She turned her head at the sound of Maddie’s silvery laughter. Or was it because she wanted to share this with me? With David and Michael—and me? He
r thoughts drifted back to her conversation with Michael that morning. He was right—Maddie did need them. And they needed her. They were like a family—a curious, cobbled-together, but warm and comfortable family.

  She looked around Maddie’s bedroom. It was like an extension of her: tidy but lived-in, spare but tasteful, functional but personal, and punctuated with surprising flashes of color.

  Yes. It felt right to be there.

  She walked to the stairs and slowly descended into the kitchen.

  MADDIE LOOKED UP with a broad smile as Syd walked in.

  “So you made it.” Syd smiled back.

  “Oh, I’d never miss out on an opportunity to stuff myself on pizza and champagne.” Her blue eyes sparkled as she held a glass out to Syd. “Join us in a toast?”

  Syd went to stand beside her. “And just who might we be toasting?” she teased, as she took the glass.

  David lifted his glass toward the ceiling. “To the newest little Sanchez, who just made her world debut two hours ago, but still managed to look older than Dick Clark.”

  “Hear, hear,” Michael agreed, clinking glasses with him.

  “I’ll drink to that,” Maddie said, locking eyes with Syd.

  “Me, too.” Syd laughed.

  They all drank together. Michael set his glass down and turned to the oven. “Now clear a space, this pizza is beyond ready.”

  “And I’m beyond ready to eat,” David said as he took his place at the table. “C’mon you two—siddown.” As they took their places, side by side, David topped off their glasses. “So tell me, Cochise, was it hard for you to hand her off when you got to the hospital? I know how much you luuuuv to wield those sharp little knives of yours.”

  “Nope. I was a good little family practice physician and meekly got out of the way.” She plucked a Kalamata olive off the relish tray on the end of the table.

  “Oh, yeah. I forgot,” David said. “Your track record with surgeons is serious bad news.”

  Maddie shot him a dirty look before she removed the pit from her mouth and flicked it across the table at him.