“I’m fine. No different than any other new mother,” Clara said, though the dark circles under her eyes betrayed her. She looked exhausted.
“Lack of sleep is a concern for all new mothers,” Charlie said. “It can have a profound effect on a person’s well-being. What about naps? Are you able to get any rest during the day?”
“Sometimes, there’s a place on the farm that I like to go,” Clara said, her voice softening. “It’s real nice. Dark and cool and quiet.”
“That’s good to hear,” Charlie said, nodding encouragingly.“It’s important to take care of yourself, Clara. For the babies’ sake as well as your own.”
Evie’s heart melted as she watched Charlie, his concern and compassion so evident in his every word and gesture. He scribbled something on a prescription pad and handed it to Clara. “This is for some medicine that will help you feel better soon. Be sure to finish the bottle. A lot of people stop taking antibiotics too soon.”
Evie cleared her throat, drawing Charlie’s attention. “I think we might have some samples.”
Charlie caught on quickly. “Yes, yes, we do. More than we can use. Evie, would you mind getting those samples for Clara? And maybe some pain meds.” He took the prescription from Clara and handed it to Evie.
Stepping into the hallway, Evie was startled by the intensity of the babies’ cries. So loud. So demanding. Poor Clara, she thought as she took samples out of their packages to fill a small bottle. She returned just in time to hear Charlie ask Clara a question, speaking in a gentle voice. “Have you had any moments where you felt completely overwhelmed? Or times when you felt like you just couldn’t cope?”
The room grew quiet, and Evie and Charlie watched as Clara seemed to gather her thoughts, the pause stretching longer than they expected. Just as she opened her mouth to answer, the door flew open, and in came Annie, struggling with the double stroller and two wailing babies, screeching at the top of their lungs. “They won’t stop crying! I’ve tried everything—I don’t know what else to do!”
“Neither do I,” Clara said with a sigh, rising from the exam table to take the stroller from Annie’s hands.
“Clara, wait,” Evie said, gently touching Clara’s arm. “Here are the meds you need. Take them as soon as you get home. In fact, Annie will get you a glass of water and you can start the meds now. You’ll feel so much better by this time tomorrow.”
Clara took the amber-colored container from Evie, managing a weak smile before following Annie back to the waiting room, the sound of the babies’ cries echoing down the hallway.
Evie turned to Charlie. “I think I’ll ask Dok to follow up with her.”
“Good idea,” Charlie agreed, his brow furrowed with concern. “She seems pretty fragile.”
Fragile! Just the word Evie’d been looking for to describe Clara Zook.
Annie was in the middle of her lunch break, nibbling on a sandwich, when she heard the familiar creak of the office door. Gus stepped inside, a big grin on his face and a brown paper bag in hand.
“Hey, Annie,” he said, walking to her desk. “I brought you something.”
She set her sandwich down and eyed the bag curiously. “Gus, you didn’t have to do that.”
“Oh, but I did,” he said, his grin widening as he started pulling out a variety of over-the-counter remedies. “Look, I’ve got motion sickness bands, ginger chews, peppermint oil, even some of those acupressure wristbands. I figured we could try a few different things, see what helps.”
Annie felt touched by his thoughtfulness ... and pressured by it. “Gus, this is so sweet of you, really. But I’ve tried all of these before and, well, none of them worked.”
Gus’s face fell just a bit. “You’ve tried them all?”
She nodded, giving him a small, apologetic smile. “Nothing helped.”
For a moment, he was quiet, his brow furrowed in thought. “What about drugs? I could go get some over-the-counter meds.”
She shook her head.
“If they won’t work, I’m sure Dok could prescribe something.”
She shook her head hard. “No drugs.”
“Why not? Why would you say no to something that could help?”
“I don’t want to take any drugs.”
“Okay. Hold off on drugs for now.”
Not fornow, Annie thought.For good. No drugs.
