The Charm Bracelet

by HILL, MELISSA

  Carole shook her head. ‘Goodness Holly, it’s a bit like searching for a needle in a haystack isn’t it?’

  Jessica frowned. ‘Not necessarily. Trust me, I do this every day. Ms Mead will approach me with some request like “can you call that person who I saw at that restaurant in October?” And I have to figure it out. It isn’t impossible. You already have quite a few clues, now you just have to try and put them together.

  The blonde-haired girl leaned closer to the counter and again started inspecting the charms individually, pausing when she came to the one in the shape of a skyscraper. Holly had noticed it before without any sort of recognition.

  ‘Hmm.’

  ‘The skyscraper? I was thinking that was maybe where she worked or maybe she could even be an architect, or—’

  Jessica was already shaking her head. ‘No, no, it’s not that. It’s not a skyscraper.’

  Holly’s brow furrowed and she exchanged a glance with Carole, who gave her a confused shrug.

  ‘But it looks like a skyscraper … sort of art deco, like the Chrysler Building, although I don’t recognise it … ’

  ‘But it’s not. It’s an apartment building,’ Jessica said with conviction.

  ‘What? How do you know?’

  ‘Because there are four of them, exactly like this, in a row on Park Avenue. I walk by them every day.’

  Holly’s mouth dropped open. ‘Are you sure?’

  ‘Yes, I’m sure. This is what my job entails, noticing things. I would bet you a million dollars that the owner of this bracelet lives in one of those four buildings. Or used to.’

  ‘Oh my goodness … ’ Holly felt like hugging the girl in front of her.

  ‘Yeah, but those buildings are sure to contain hundreds of tenants,’ Carole pointed out. ‘What are you going to do? Go door to door?’

  Jessica was already shaking her head. ‘No it’s much simpler than that. If the person does still live in that building, all we have to do is compare those lists that I brought against those addresses. From there, the list may well be narrowed down even further.’

  Holly felt like cheering. ‘Oh my God Jessica, you’re brilliant!’

  Jessica smiled and waved a hand. ‘No sweat, that’s why they pay me the big bucks,’ she added sardonically. At that second, her phone buzzed and, looking down at the screen, she grimaced. ‘Speak of the devil … ’ She turned away and headed towards the dressing room, walking fast and speaking even faster. ‘Of course, Ms Mead. Absolutely, right away. Yes, the caterer has already confirmed for New Year’s Eve and he understands the constraints. Yes, he understands that too, as does the florist. Yes, they know it’s an annual thing – same time, same place.’

  Same Time, Same Place …

  Just then something clicked in Holly’s brain, but her train of thought was quickly interrupted when at that moment her own phone buzzed from her inside pocket. She looked at the display. It was Kate.

  Holly turned away and pressed the green button on her BlackBerry, connecting the call. Seconds later, all colour drained from her face. ‘Oh my God, is he OK? Hold on, I’ll be right there.’

  ‘Holly, what’s going on? Carole asked, concerned. ‘Are you OK?’

  She was already grabbing her coat. ‘Yes, but Danny’s not. He’s at Lennox Hill Hospital. He had an accident at the Rockefeller Ice Rink. I have to go.’

  But what the hell was he doing there in the first place? Stupid, stupid Nick … she knew she should never have …

  ‘Is he hurt?’ Carole pressed.

  ‘He needs stitches. Kate couldn’t stay on the phone for long, and well, I just have to … oh God, I still have so much to do here,’ she cried, tears welling up in her eyes.

  ‘Holly, just go, I’ll take care of all of it. Go take care of your son.’

  Her mind whirling, Holly grabbed her things. ‘Oh God … Jessica, thank you for everything, and thank you too Carole. I’ll be in touch … ’ With that she rushed from the store, hailing a cab before she was barely out of the door.

  Chapter 22

  A few minutes later, she threw open the doors to the Lennox Hill Emergency Room and hustled to reception. Breathless, she dinged the small silver bell on the counter. ‘Excuse me!’ she said frantically, unable to make eye contact with a nurse behind the counter.

  The young redheaded woman at reception snapped her gum and turned bored-looking eyes in Holly’s direction.

  ‘Um, excuse me,’ Holly continued, feeling the blood pound through her veins and tension sweep across her chest. ‘I’m looking for my son, Danny Mestas he was checked in just a little while ago by Kate—’

  ‘Holly, over here!’ called a voice to her left. It was Kate.

  Thank God.

  ‘Kate, oh my God,’ Holly cried as her friend rushed towards her and enveloped her in her arms. ‘What happened? Where’s Danny? Is he OK? What happened?’ she repeated, thirsty for answers.

  Before Kate began, she turned to the bored-looking nurse. ‘It’s OK, she’s Danny’s mother, the boy I checked in.’

  ‘Sure,’ the nurse said, shrugging.

  ‘Tell me Kate, is he all right?’

  ‘Shh, shh, the doctor’s with him now. Sit down, and I’ll tell you everything.’

  Holly took a deep breath as she tried to relax herself. It wouldn’t do Danny any good to see his mother in a state. She took two more deep, stabilising breaths and wiped her sweaty palms on her jacket. She couldn’t help it, though: worrying about Danny was something that she did as naturally as breathing. After all, it was just the two of them. Or it should be.

  ‘Was it Nick? Did he do this? I can’t believe I let him—’

  ‘Calm down,’ Kate insisted. ‘It wasn’t Nick’s fault.’

  ‘Well, I think I’m as calm as I can be when I’m told my child is in the ER.’

  Kate took Holly by the elbow. As they walked to where Danny was being inspected by the doctor, she filled her in. ‘So we were at the ice rink, Danny and Nick were skating, and then, well, Danny got involved in a bit of horseplay with some of the other boys out there. From what he told me afterwards, they were simulating a Rangers/Islanders hockey game … ’

  ‘Oh Lord … ’

  ‘Anyway, so one thing led to another, and things got a bit too rough, and well … ’ Kate pulled aside a curtain that separated a small portion of the triage area from the rest of the ER. ‘He doesn’t look that pretty, but the doctor says he will be fine.’

  Holly’s breath caught in her throat as her son was revealed. Lying on an examination table, as a doctor gingerly inspected an arm, Danny looked as if he had been the victim of a dozen two-hundred-pound NHL defenders. The right side of his face was swollen, with black and blue bruises settling in, his lower lip glossed over with what seemed to be an antibiotic cream, and his eye puffy as if he had been punched in the face. The worst thing, though, was his arm, which was now being carefully cleaned and set in a cast.

  ‘Holy shit!’ she exclaimed as she laid eyes on her boy before throwing a hand over her mouth at her outburst. ‘I mean, holy cow.’

  Danny opened the eye that was not swollen and regarded his mother. ‘It’s OK Mom, you can say that; I know what I look like,’ he smiled weakly.

  ‘How did this happen? Who did this?’

  ‘We were just playing.’

  ‘Just playing? This is not just playing! This is grievous bodily harm!’

  Danny put a meek hand up. ‘It’s no big deal, Mom, I’ll heal.’

  Holly was about to launch into a protective tirade over how this could happen when the doctor spoke up.

  ‘Ms O’Neill?’

  ‘What? Yes, I’m sorry, I mean, yes, I’m Holly O’Neill, his mother.’

  ‘I’m Doctor Chapman,’ the man said, smiling kindly. ‘And in Danny’s defence, it looks a lot worse than it is, but—’

  ‘There’s a but?’ Holly said, feeling exhausted.

  ‘He does have a concussion. Just a mild one.’

  ‘A concu
ssion.’ She looked down at Danny and ran a hand across his forehead lovingly. ‘I can’t believe this.’

  ‘I’m OK, Mom.’

  Holly sighed. ‘Danny, there’s a reason hockey players wear helmets and protective gear. It’s because of stuff like this, and those guys still end up getting hurt!’ She rubbed her temples. ‘So what’s the prognosis, doctor, what should I do?’

  Doctor Chapman was finishing with the cast. ‘Well, we would like to keep him overnight for observation. The bruises on his face and the broken arm, which is only a hairline fracture, those will heal on their own, but we want to make sure his head is OK. We will move him to a room upstairs, and of course, you can stay.’ The handsome doctor smiled kindly.

  She nodded. ‘OK, thank you.’ She breathed a sigh of relief and delicately planted a kiss on her son’s hand. ‘Danny, you scared the life out of me, do you know that?’

  Kate put an arm around her. ‘I’m sorry about this, I really am. I should have told him to stop.’

  ‘Never mind that, where was Nick in all of this?’

  Danny’s eyes were downcast. ‘It wasn’t Dad’s fault.’

  Kate moved her aside. She spoke quietly. ‘It was and it wasn’t. It was Nick’s idea to go skating, but then he got a call – some emergency with his girlfriend and the baby - and had to leave. He wasn’t there when Danny ran into trouble. He doesn’t even know that it happened.’

  Holly was in two minds whether to be annoyed at Nick for leaving early or relieved that she didn’t have another battle to face. Still, if there was an issue with the baby, she could hardly blame him and she hoped everything was OK. She shook her head at Kate. ‘I suppose it could be worse. I only have to worry about one boy. As the saying goes, if I had a girl, I would have to worry about all the world’s boys. I’ll take concussion over that,’ she said wearily, giving her friend a hug.

  She knelt back down by Danny’s bed. ‘And you, mister, don’t scare me like this ever again. Don’t you know my heart couldn’t handle it if anything bad happened to you?’

  Danny grimaced. ‘I’m sorry, Mom, I’ll think it through next time.’

  Hours later, Holly and Danny were settled in a room in another wing of the hospital and Danny was sleeping peacefully, under the doctor’s watch because of the concussion, and due to his own exhaustion and some strong pain medication.

  Holly, however, was struggling to get comfortable on the hospital-issued cot next to his bed, and she was having a hard time feeling calm. Too many scary thoughts were going through her mind, and the idea of anything serious happening to Danny terrified her. With a bubble of panic in her chest, she closed her eyes and fitfully tried to sleep, only to toss and turn, remembering all the other situations where she had been worried about the welfare of her child.

  ‘Anyone who ever said having a child was easy was clearly crazy, or a liar,’ she muttered under her breath, remembering what her mother had said when Holly first told her that she was going to have a baby.

  ‘You never stop worrying, ever,’ Eileen told her. ‘From when they are just a tiny baby, to the time they become a teenager and then an adult. It never stops. You’ll see.’

  Holly swallowed hard and fought back her tears, remembering several moments where this particular sentiment rang true, but then she remembered something else and modified the thought.

  Her mother was only half-right. It wasn’t just when they were babies that you started worrying. It was long before that.

  Manhattan, February 2001

  Holly placed the small white plastic stick on the marble counter of the sink and sat down on the edge of the claw-foot tub that Nick had insisted on having installed just two months before. The behemoth, usually so comforting when filled with warm water and bubbles, now chilled her as she sat on its side. She felt hesitant to touch it, as if it was pulling all of the cold from outside where a New York February was in full swing.

  She swallowed hard and stared at the pregnancy test on the counter. It was the first time that she had ever taken one. And this was the first pregnancy scare that she had ever had.

  She was five days late. She was never five days late.

  Holly knew that while she might be punctuality-challenged in her day-to-day life, her period did not subscribe to that particular personality trait. That was one area of her life where she was like clockwork. Until this month.

  The idea of possibly being pregnant was so remarkably new to her, she still couldn’t get her head around the idea.

  What was more, she didn’t know exactly what she would do if it happened to be positive.

  Another thing that she and Nick hadn’t spoken about.

  Sure, their relationship was good. And she enjoyed living with him. Their new apartment was practically palatial compared to her place, which she was subletting now. If they wanted a baby, there would be room.

  She always knew that she would want children someday. So why on earth, two years into their relationship, had they never talked about this?

  Holly didn’t consider herself a shrinking violet, not by any means. And she certainly was in love with Nick. Maybe it was just because the opportunity for that talk never seemed to be there.

  Just as their marriage conversation had more or less started, and stopped, that night in Vegas, expectations over where they were going, together, was never directly addressed, or more often than not revolved around what they (Nick) were going to buy, or where they (Nick) were going to live.

  Putting her head in her hands, Holly sighed deeply and fought back the tears that were threatening to spill, based on sheer frustration and fear.

  ‘When did we stop communicating? Did we ever?’ she moaned.

  Allowing a few tears to make trails down her cheeks, she looked up at the sink.

  Nevertheless, things would change, starting today. No matter what the result, there would have to be more talking about big life events, and not just work.

  Holly took a deep breath and stood up. She took two quick steps towards the sink and put both hands on the counter, as if steeling herself for what would come next. She closed her eyes ever so briefly and thought of how her life could change in the next couple of seconds.

  Holly shifted her hands ever so slightly, and her charm bracelet dinged on the marble surface. She opened her eyes and looked down at the test.

  It was positive.

  Hours later, as she lay curled up on the bed she shared with Nick, she heard the front door open. Looking at the clock, she realised that she had been lying there thinking for hours. And in that time, she had come to a decision. But first, she had to tell Nick.

  ‘Babe?’ he called out. Immediately she could hear something in his voice. There was a jubilant edge to it. Few days passed without some new development or triumph at work. Nick was rarely in a bad mood; never did he come home angry at a boss, or frustrated with some new piece of corporate legislation. He loved what he did. But that might just be the problem. It was a one-track mindset, and it didn’t allow for any other life developments to take place. Nick’s job was the third person in the relationship.

  So he might have news today, but this time, she did too.

  ‘Holly? Are you home? The front door was unlocked and … ’ Nick entered their bedroom and turned on a light. ‘Hey … what are you doing n the dark?’ A touch of concern entered his voice. ‘Are you OK?’

  Holly turned to look at him, and it was as though she was seeing him for the first time. She noted his dark hair, and his eyes – two deep oceans of blue that still made her heart thump. His broad shoulders and muscular arms that were so good at holding her. His kind smile. All the things that had attracted her in the first place.

  And now, he was the father of her child.

  ‘Holly? Hey, are you there?’ he said with a smile on his face. He waved a hand as if trying to get her attention.

  ‘Sorry, just spaced out for a moment. Listen, Nick … I need to talk to you … ’

  Nick smiled and crossed the room
in four quick steps. He sat on the bed next to her and held her hands. ‘Great, because I have something to say to you too. Today was a huge day, Holly, just huge—’

  ‘Really, can we just wait a second, I really need to talk to you … ’

  It was as if he hadn’t heard her.

  ‘You will never believe what happened. I can barely still believe it myself. It’s going to change everything. It’s going to change our lives … ’

  ‘Well, I have something to say and I’m pretty sure it’s going to change our lives too… ’

  It was as if Holly was invisible, or mute. ‘I mean, we thought there was a possibility of this happening, but never did we think in a million years it would happen so fast. I mean, a year and a half! A year and a half in business and now this … ’

  Holly sighed heavily and clenched Nick’s hands with more force, practically digging her nails into his palm. He didn’t notice.

  ‘Nick,’ she said sharply.

  ‘We were bought by Yahoo!’

  ‘I’m pregnant.’

  ‘Yahoo! Can you believe … wait, what did you say?’ he said, his smile fading. He dropped her hands and placed his palm down, on his legs, as if trying to wipe off whatever she had just exposed him to.

  Holly felt her chest tighten as Nick’s eyes grew wider.

  More quietly this time she repeated, ‘I’m pregnant.’

  Nick sat there for a moment, shaking his head, as if it couldn’t be possible. As if the sheer biology wasn’t possible. The silence went on long enough until Holly grasped eagerly for Nick’s hands, shaking them.

  ‘Say something, please.’

  ‘I … I don’t know what to say. I hadn’t exactly planned on this … ’

  ‘Well that makes two of us,’ Holly countered. ‘I’m just as shocked as you are. But … I know what I want to do.’

  Suddenly, his eyes bore into hers intently. ‘What?’ he asked hesitantly.