Page 37 of I Found You
“I know you don’t want to hear it, but that really is amazing, what you’re doing for her. You are so good, Maeve. You were born to be a mother. I don’t know where you get it from. Lord knows it’s not me.”
“Here, I’ll show you a picture.” I felt like a proud mama, digging for my phone so I could show off my baby girl.
My face dropped, and I felt the blood drain from my body. Wyatt had called. Over and over again. Something was wrong. I could feel it.
“Oh no. Oh…” My hands were shaking. I needed to call Wyatt back, but I couldn’t put in my PIN number. It took me four tries, but finally, I was able to unlock my phone and bring up his number.
“What’s wrong? What happened? Is Jane okay?”
“Jane’s sick. We’re at the hospital.” I didn’t hear anything else after that. Wyatt was still talking, but I was already out of my seat.
“I have to go,” I told Josie, panic rising in my chest. “I have to go.”
“Go. Take care of whatever you need to.” Concern was etched on Josie’s face.
I ran out the door as fast as I could.
“Wyatt? Wyatt, are you still there?”
“I’m here. Maeve, I’m so sorry.”
“Where are you?”
“We just got to the hospital. They’re bringing her to the pediatric emergency room.”
“I’m on my way.”
I had to be buzzed into the pediatric emergency room, and as soon as I heard the doors unlock, I flung them open. Wyatt was standing in front of a room, his face a reflection of the fearand shock that I felt. I ran to him, flinging my arms around his neck, holding on to him like he was my lifeline.
“Where is she? What happened?”
“I’m so sorry, Maeve,” he repeated. Wyatt led me into the room directly in front of us. Jane lay in a bassinet, tubes and wires connected to her small frame. “She wouldn’t stop crying, and she was getting a fever, so I thought I would give her a bath. That’s when I saw the rash, and her skin was freakishly pale. When I couldn’t get in touch with you, I called Luke. He called Scarlett, and the next thing I knew, there were EMTs taking Jane to the hospital.”
“Thank you, Wyatt. Thank goodness you were there. Thank you so much,” I said through small sobs as I tried to keep some composure.
“Two fucking hours. I couldn’t keep her safe for two fucking hours,” Wyatt grumbled, his face in his hands.
“Hey, don’t do that. You did great. I never should have left. I knew Jane wasn’t feeling well.”
“You couldn’t have known that she was going to take a turn so quickly.” Wyatt wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head.
I tried to take a breath, but my lungs felt like an accordion. Tears streamed from my eyes like they were full-fledged faucets. “I need to call Kara,” I said, pulling out my phone. I opened my messages app and closed it. That wasn’t what I wanted to do. Emails. No. Messages again. “Oh, my goodness, I can’t even think. My head is spinning. Where is my phone?”
“Hey, hey. Just sit. I’ll let Kara know what’s happening,” Wyatt said, gently taking my phone from me. A few seconds later, Wyatt was leaving a message for Kara, quickly filling her in on the situation.
Jane looked so small and fragile as I sat in the chair next to her and held her hand. Wyatt stood next to us, neither of us talking.
I should have been there. Wyatt must have been completely freaking out, and I wasn’t around. I was never leaving my phone on silent again. Who was I kidding—I was never leaving the house without Jane again. I tried to tell Wyatt how grateful I was that he was there and able to get her the right care, but he just pinched his lips in a tight smile, not saying anything.
A nurse came into the room to take Jane’s vitals and discuss the current treatment plan with me. Sometime while we were talking, Wyatt disappeared.
16
Maeve
Five hours.
A lifetime.
