Page 48 of Laying His Claim
Just then, Justin rushed outside, car keys in his grip. He didn’t have to say anything more than, “Let’s go.”
The ride to the hospital was tense. It felt as if it went on forever, even though it was probably not more than fifteen minutes. Jalissa sat in the back, arms around Seb as he sat perched in his car seat. She constantly laid her hand against his forehead, fretting about whether he was getting hotter. She didn’t bother to fight back her tears. “What can I do? What can I do?” she cried. “I feel so helpless!”
Doing his best to keep under the speed limit, Justin tried to keep her calm. “It’s okay; he’s going to be okay.” But despite his words, she could hear the tremor in his voice. He was as anxious as she was.
They raced into the ER, and within moments were ushered into a room, where nurses, and then a doctor, fussed over Seb, taking his weight and temperature, asking questions until she wanted to scream. Why didn’t they justdo something?
She felt Justin’s arms around her, comforting, solid, and was grateful for the chance to lean into his warmth. He whispered into her ear, “It’ll be okay. We’ll be okay. I promise.” He reached down and brushed a tear from her cheek with a tenderness that made her love him so much more.
Forty agonizing minutes later, the pediatric consultant, Dr. Singh, returned, her face wreathed in smiles. “Mr. and Mrs. Tremblay,” she began. Jalissa as too wound up to correct her. “I have good news for you. It seems your son has a simple ear infection. It’s painful, yes, but not dangerous.”
Jalissa almost went limp with relief, and she could feel the same emotion radiating off of Justin. He squeezed her hand, and she smiled up at him.This is a man who will always be at my side,she thought.
The doctor went on. “We need to start him on a course of antibiotics. I’d also like to put him on rehydration fluids, since he’s been vomiting. Let’s keep him for a few hours, and observe him, okay?”
Jalissa wanted to hug the woman, but all she could do was nod. “Can we be with him?”
The doctor looked from one to the other. “Technically, we only allow one parent in the ER at a time.” Then she focused her black eyes on Jalissa. “You look tense. Why don’t you go for a little walk in the meditation garden for a bit, while your husband stays with your son? The fresh air will do you some good.”
About to tell the other woman that fresh air be damned, Jalissa paused when Justin voiced his agreement. “She’s right, love. You’re practically gray. Go take a stroll and catch your breath. I got this.”
She bit back her protests, nodding. “Okay. I… Thank you, Doctor.”
The doctor nodded at her kindly, then led Justin back inside the ER with her.
Fighting the urge to look back, Jalissa walked through the large sliding glass doors and into the meditation garden. The beautiful space was laid out in a Japanese style, with carefully tended hedges, gravel beds, stepping stones, and even a koi pond.
It was weird to note that this was the same hospital where she’d spent a year and a half of her life, with Sebastian growing in her belly, drawing strength from her body even though she wasn’t aware of him. How life could be funny, she mused.
“Jalissa? I can’t believe it!”
The voice behind her made her spin around. A tiny, slender woman with long black hair stood there, wearing a bemused smile. “Is it really you?”
Jalissa felt a flush of embarrassment. This wasn’t the first time this happened, and until she regained her memory, it wouldn’t be the last. “I’m sorry, I…”
The dark-haired woman smiled with understanding. “It’s okay. It’s been a while. I’m Isabelle. We were in Group together, yes?”
“Group?” Jalissa frowned at the woman.
“Support group. For the children of parents with terminal illnesses...”
Feeling as though her entire world had gone off-kilter, Jalissa could only parrot back “Terminal?” She fought for breath. “I’m sorry, Isabelle. I was in an accident and in a coma for a very long time. I don’t remember any group. I don’t remember any terminal illness.”
Isabelle looked embarrassed, as if she regretted saying anything, and stammered, “I-It’s okay. I’m glad you’ve recovered. Um, you look good. Are you here for a check-up?”
“No, it’s my son, Sebastian. He was running a fever, so we brought him in.” Jalissa gave a relieved laugh. “Turns out to be just an ear infection—”
“Your son?” Isabelle echoed. “Your biological child?”
What a weird thing to ask,Jalissa thought. “Well… yes.”
Isabelle clapped her hands together in delight. “I’m so happy for you. So relieved. The test was negative, then?”
Time slowed. Everything narrowed around her until all she could see before her was this tiny woman and a fuzzy image of Justin, working his way across the garden, toward her. “What did you say?” she asked. “What’snegative?”
“Huntington’s disease, remember? You talked a lot about not wanting to have a child or a family, because you didn’t want to pass on the disease to your children like our parents did to us. You didn’t want to burden a spouse with having to care for you for the remainder of your short life…”
Huntington’s. There it was: the missing piece of the puzzle. That’s how her father died. The name of the disease struck fear into her heart. And then, like the raging crash of a waterfall, they came pounding down upon her: all her memories. All those dark secrets that had hidden in the back of her mind like ghosts in the attic.
