Page 4 of Accidental Irish Daddy

Oh, fuck, is hecrying?

“It’s your ma, lad. She’s…I just found out she’s got cancer.”

A cold chill passes through me and my mouth goes dry. I pull the car over, parking the car off to the side. “What?”

“She’s got cancer, son. They say…well, they say it’s bad.”

“How bad?”

“The doctors say she’s got stage four ovarian cancer. They…they don’t expect her to make it the rest of the year.”

I can’t even comprehend what he’s saying.

Cancer? Stage four? Since when? How?

Why is this the first time I’m finding out?

I swallow and it feels like a lump in my throat. “Is she in hospital? Where is she?”

“No,” he replies. “She’s acting the prick…being her old stubborn self. She says she doesn’t want any help, and she wants to die at home. Son, she’s been dealing with this for months.Months. She didn’t tell a soul. The only reason I found out is because I happened over, and she was passed out in the toilet. I took her to the hospital and…and that’s when they told me.”

I’m going to throw up.

All this time, my ma never said a word. She’s just been dealing with this alone. “Da…where is she now?”

“At home. She won’t answer my calls. We had a bit of a row about it and…”

“It’s fine,” I say. “I’m on my way over there. I’ll handle it.”

“Thank you, son.”

I hang up and turn the car around, bound for Ma’s house.

***

“Mr. Duncan, I won’t mince words with you. Your mother’s condition is…well, it’s terminal. There’s not a lot that can be done for her at this stage.”

It’s been a few weeks since Da called me about Ma’s condition.

I’ve pretty much taken over her care. Taking her to the doctor was the first step since she wouldn’t tell me anything about what’s going on with her.

Ma’s being as stubborn as ever about all this.

It’s taken me most of the week to get her to evenseea doctor.

Da wasn’t kidding about her being stubborn.

In the last few weeks, every attempt I’ve made to get her to see her own doctors has fallen on deaf ears. She just keeps saying that she can take care of herself.

She can’t. She really can’t.

Last night, I found her passed out again on the floor next to her bed. I moved her into my place this morning.

And even after that, she fought me. She’s been fighting me all day.

I’ve finally convinced her to see the best oncologist in town…only to now hear what we already knew.

Ma turns to me, giving me a silentI told you sowith her eyes. She turns back to the doctor. “Thank you so much for letting my boy waste your time. He can be so stubborn.”

---