Page 90 of Finding Wonderland

“Thank God,” Isla cried out.

“We need to get her to the hospital. Now.”

“What about an ambulance?”

“We can drive there faster.”

Vera was already on the way down the stairs with Everleigh as Isla turned to Mason. “Can you watch Ellie and Brayden?”

“Mom, go. You don’t have to ask. Keep me posted.”

“We will, sweetie.” Isla quickly kissed Mason’s cheek as she darted down the stairs, grabbed the keys off the counter, and ran outside. Vera was bouncing Everleigh in her arms and talking to her, but it wasn’t until Isla was closer she could hear she was actually reciting the Lord’s Prayer.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s probably the flu.”

“Yeah,” Isla nodded to reassure herself and Vera. “It’s probably the flu.”

Isla sped toward the hospital as Vera cradled Everleigh in her arms. She kept checking her breathing and her pulse and Isla tried not to let her mind go to the bad place. Everleigh was going to be okay. It was probably just the flu.

After arriving at the hospital, Vera instructed the doctors what to do before Isla finally had to remind her that in this instance, she was the parent. Vera reluctantly let the doctors work on drawing blood and taking vitals from Everleigh as they stayed close by her side. She was hooked up to an IV and in a small bassinet when the doctor finally came in with the results.

“Sit down,” Dr. Donna Barnes, the pediatrician, motioned for them to take a seat. Isla knew that wasn’t good. She braced herself for what was about to happen as she held tightly onto Vera’s hand. “I want to start off by saying Everleigh is okay.”

Isla felt like she finally let out the breath she’d been holding for the last few hours.

“Thank God,” Vera whispered as she squeezed Isla’s hands. “So, is it the flu?”

“Yes, but,” Donna took a deep breath. She unclipped a piece of paper from the clipboard in her hand and handed it to Vera. Although Isla couldn’t understand what she was looking at, she knew it was the results of the blood test. “Everleigh has Type 1 diabetes.”

All the air left Isla’s lungs as her heart and stomach hit the floor. “What?”

“How did I miss this?” Vera let go of Isla’s hand as she stood. She walked over to Everleigh’s bassinet and looked down at their baby girl. “I’m her mom and I’m a doctor. I should have caught this.”

“Vera,” Isla went to her, putting an arm on her lower back as she covered her hand on the edge of the bassinet with the other. “This isn’t your fault.”

“Isla’s right, Vera.” Donna joined them by the bassinet. “You know how Type 1 diabetes works. We can’t predict it. There wasn’t anything you or anyone else could have done to prevent this.”

“But it’s genetic.” Vera’s blue, tear-filled eyes looked at her. “We used my egg. I could be a carrier of the gene.”

“Baby, stop. You didn’t do anything to cause this. Do you hear me?”

Vera nodded, but Isla wasn’t sure she was listening.

“Our baby girl is okay. She’s alive and well and we are going to navigate this new hurdle like we do with everything else in life: together. Okay?”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

“Was she lethargic when you put her down tonight?”

“No, she was fine. I fed her like usual and she drank a lot, but that’s been normal.” Isla looked at Vera, who nodded. “We didn’t know anything was wrong until the dog started barking.”

“Dog?”

“Our daughter Mason has a service dog in training.” Vera sadly laughed. “I guess Everleigh was giving the dog first-hand training.”

“Well, the dog probably saved Everleigh’s life. If her blood sugar had gotten much higher, it would have had serious consequences.”

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