Sweet Vidalia Brand (16 page)

Vidalia turned too, sinking into a chair because her knees were too watery to hold her up any longer. “I knew it. I knew something was wrong with him. What is it Jason?”

Jason stayed standing, though everyone else sat. “It’s a blood condition. He’s known for three months now.”

Joey and Rob looked at each other and then at Jason again.

Vidalia said, “He’s known what, exactly, for three months now, Jason?”

Jason lowered his head and swallowed hard. “That’s he’s dying.”

“God no,” she whispered.

“How long have you known?” Joey asked softly.

“Since I got here.”

“And you didn’t tell us?” Robb demanded. “How could you not–”

“He wanted to give you a Christmas to remember,” Vidalia interrupted. She met Jason’s eyes. “That’s it, isn’t it? He was going to tell us all right after the holiday. But he didn’t want that news to ruin it. He wanted us all to have one wonderful, perfect family Christmas with him.”

“Almost word for word what he said to me,” Jason said, wiping a tear away from the corner of his eye before it could spill over.

“So this is...this is it? His time is up?” Vidalia asked.

“This fits what the doctors told him.”

Vidalia lowered her head, her girls were all around her, hugging her, touching her, holding her, patting her.

The ER doors opened and a grim faced doctor she didn’t know–she’d have so preferred someone she knew–came to stand among them. “He’s stable for now. We’ve got him settled in a room, and he’s comfortable.”

“I just can’t believe there’s no cure for him, Doctor,” Vidalia said. “He’s got more money than God. Surely somewhere in the world there’s a cure for this–”

“There
is
a cure, ma’am. He needs a bone marrow transplant, but he’s got a rare blood type and none of his sons are matches. He’s on the waiting list, but I’m afraid he’s run out of time.”

That buzzing sound came into her head again, and she heard nothing else. Nothing at all as she stood there with her gaze turned inward. And when she focused outward again they were all staring at her, and Selene stood closest of all. Searching her mother’s eyes, she said, “I have a rare blood type too, or so they tell me every time I give a pint. You should test me. Shouldn’t they, Mom?”

Vidalia met Selene’s eyes.

“I can do math, you know,” Selene said. “And I look a little like Joey.”

Vidalia could feel the realization of what Selene was talking about blinking into each person’s head in that waiting room. Her girls were looking at her in shock, and Bobby’s sons were staring at her in dawning realization, as well.

“Yes,” Vidalia said, nodding slowly. “Yes, Bobby and I had...one night together all those years ago, and yes, there’s a very good chance that was the night Selene was conceived. I was married, I was lonely, I was drunk, and.... No. No, you know what? I was in love. That’s what I was. I was in love with the man I was meant to be with. And I couldn’t be with him, and that was the tragedy. Not the affair. Not the pregnancy. Not even the lie I’ve told all this time. The tragedy is that we were meant to be together and we couldn’t be, and now we can be and he’s...he’s–”

“He’s found a donor,” Selene said softly. “I know it. I can feel it.” Turning, she kissed her husband hard. “I love you, Cory. And I’ve gotta do this.”

“I know you do. I’ll call your friends, get them to fire up their cauldrons. I know the deal.”

She smiled, and turned to the doctor. “Take me to the bone marrow drilling rig, Doc. It doesn’t sound like we have time to waste.”

The doctor looked befuddled, but seemed to be getting it. Before he could lead her away, Joey shot forward and hugged Selene hard. “I have a sister,” he said, sort of into her hair, but everyone heard it.

She seemed startled at first, but then she softened and hugged him back. “I always wanted a big brother,” she said, looking him in the eye, then past him at the other two. “Looks I got three of them now.”

Vidalia’s paralysis broke as her youngest pushed through the double doors, and she lunged forward, caught Selene’s shoulders, and held on. “Honey, wait. You don’t have to do this. To risk–”

“I’m doing it, Mom.” She smiled broadly, kissed Vidlia’s cheek. “Merry Christmas.” Then she looked back at her four sisters and stuck out her tongue. “Top that, bitches.” She winked and sashayed through the double doors that closed behind her.

Vidalia sat down, suddenly aware that everyone in this room now knew the secret she’d been so afraid of for so long. They all knew she’d been unfaithful to her husband. They all knew she’d sinned, given birth to another man’s child and lied about it. They all knew she wasn’t perfect.

Melusine pressed a styrofoam mug of cocoa into her hand and sank into the chair beside her. Edie sat in the one on other side, leaning on her shoulder. Maya and Kara knelt in front of her, holding her hands. “It’s okay, Mama,” Maya said.

“It was such a long time ago,” Kara added.

“And our father had kids by two other women,” Mel said.

“That we know of,” Edie added. “And he was secretly married to one of them.”

“It’s really okay, Mom. We love you. Nothing’s changed,” Maya said.

“Something’s changed,” Mel said. “We know you’re human now, like the rest of us. Frankly, I like you better with a few flaws.”

“And it explains a helluva lot about Selene,” Kara said.

“Really. I thought she was left by Gypsies, not McIntyres,” Edie added, and they all laughed.

Vidalia sighed, and a good deal of the tension that had been pulling at her back and shoulders melted away. She looked toward the ER doors and waited, and prayed.

Then, remembering, she dipped her hand into her pocket, where she’d dropped the small black velvet box Bobby Joe had worked so hard to fish out as he lay there on her living room floor. She had a pretty good notion what was inside, and it made her throat tighten till it was hard to breathe past her tears.

She wasn’t going to open it and look inside. She was going to wait for Bobby to show it to her himself. Until then, she needed a little one-on-one time with the Lord.

“I need to find out if this place has a chapel,” she whispered.

“I’ll find out, Vi,” Cory said softly, and he went to the nurse’s desk to ask.

Vidalia knelt in the hospital chapel in front of a stand with a statue of Jesus, who looked down at her with his serene, wise eyes. There were other statues, symbols of other faiths all around this room. But Jesus was her guy. Always had been.

She knelt in front of Him, bowed her head, folded her hands, and let her tears flow. She couldn’t talk. Not for a long, long time. But her sobs seemed to dissipate when she heard, off in the distance, a clock striking the hour. On and on it struck. Midnight.

She blinked her eyes dry. “It’s Christmas. It’s the perfect time for a miracle. Oh, I know, Lord, I know—I was wrong to keep this secret. And now to find out that telling it was the only way to save him. Could’ve saved him long before now, too. Oh, please don’t let it be too late. Please let it be in time. I am a good woman, Lord. I am not a perfect woman, but I am a good woman. I’ve never asked you for much. For anything really, at least not for myself. I deserve this. You make sure my Selene is okay through this, Lord. And if you can find it in your heart, let Bobby and me have our time together. And when you have to call us home, call us home together, too. We’ve spent way too much time apart. You made us for each other, after all. I’m just sorry it took us so long to realize it.”

A car passed by outside, and the headlights blinded her. But as they faded, their light passed slowly over the face of the statue. And for the barest moment, she could’ve sworn He’d smiled at her as, from the distance, church bells rang in Christmas.

“Mama!”

Vidalia didn’t turn at the sound of Kara’s voice in the chapel doorway. She stayed perfectly still, and maybe braced herself a little for what was to come next.

“Mama, you have to come.”

Blinking away her tears, she took a deep breath. “Thy will be done,” she whispered. “Amen.” Then she got to her feet and was surprised how hard it was to straighten her legs. She’d been kneeling there far longer than she had known.

Kara put an arm around her shoulders, holding her close and walking her out of the chapel and through the hospital corridors. When they reached the waiting room, Edie came to her other side, also holding her, and Mel and Maya crowded close too. “A nurse said to gather everyone. Said the doctor would be out to talk to us momentarily,” Maya whispered.

“She didn’t say anything else?” Vidalia searched the eyes of each of her daughters, but they all just shook their heads.

A small group of people passed by, carolers, all dressed in Victorian garb and carrying songbooks and looking a bit lost. Vidalia barely noticed them because the doctor came out through those double doors then and met her eyes.

“They both came through the surgery just fine,” he said, smiling a little. “Your daughter is a strong woman, Mrs. Brand. She’s already in recovery and arguing with the nurses.”

“I’ll go calm her down,” she said, softly.

“You’re not allowed–”

“In the recovery room. I know. I’ve broken that rule anytime one of my brood has been in there, and you’d better believe I’ll be breaking it again momentarily. Now tell me, doctor, Selene is fine, thank you Lord. How is Bobby?”

The surgeon’s exasperated smile turned more serious. “Bobby’s condition was pretty serious going in. He was weak. But the transplant should stop his disease from progressing any further. And in a few days, when Selene’s marrow starts producing healthy new cells in him, we’re gonna see rapid improvement. Right now, he’s still critical. Keeping him alive long enough for those cells to do their work is our mission now.”

She sniffled a little, nodded hard. “I’ll go into that recovery room now.”

“You’re really not supposed to–”

“There’s no point, Doc. She’s going,” Maya said.

“Might as well lead me to a sterile gown, one of those hideous hats, a mask, some gloves. And don’t forget those bootie things to go over my shoes.” The doc blinked at her, but she reached out a hand and clutched his arm. “And Doctor, thank you. Thank you more than I can ever say.”

“Merry Christmas, Miz Brand.”

“So far, it’s just that. Let’s hope it continues to be.”

Vidalia walked into the recovery room to see Selene, standing beside a patient’s bed, muttering something softly under her breath. A charm, a prayer, a healing rite...she didn’t know which, but she appreciated it, whatever it was. A nurse was heading her way, stern eyed, but Vidalia picked up the pace and stepped into her path. “Leave her be,” she said. “I’ve got this.”

“She shouldn’t be up–”

“It’s Christmas. That’s her...that’s her father. You let it be.”

The nurse seemed to hesitate, but then sighed and threw her hands in the air, turning and walking dramatically away. Smiling, Vidalia went to stand by Selene’s side, slipping an arm around her middle.

“We sure do have some mighty big Christmases in this family, don’t we? The twins, in the middle of the holiday blizzard. Little Tyler, coming into the family. And now this. You got yourself a father.”