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“I think she’ll be so thrilled, she will probably burst into tears,” Hannah answered.

“I don’t want her to cry,” Carter said with a worried frown.

“These will be tears of joy, I promise,” she assured them.

A short time later, a woman in navy scrubs walked toward them, her badge identifying her as Pam. Her warm smile took in all of them, but lingered on the children.

“You made great time,” she exclaimed. “I’m so happy you came despite the storm. We’ve all been giddy trying to keep your visit a secret from Morgan.”

“Thank you for letting us do this,” Hannah said.

“Are you kidding? It will do wonders for her morale. We’re up on the third floor. I’ll show you the way.”

Pam led them toward the elevators. As they stepped inside, Wes hesitated, fingers tightening around the gift bag. Maybe he should bow out now. This visit was for family, which he decidedly was not.

But then Carter grabbed his hand as the elevator started up, and Wes figured he could stick it out a little longer.

“I have to ask you all to wear masks,” Pam said as they stepped off on the third floor. “I’ll also have you scrub your hands well before we go in. We don’t want to pass any bugs to your mom when she’s fighting so hard to get healthy, right?”

They stopped in a small anteroom outside the unit. The kids dragged step stools up to the sink, taking the hand-scrubbing directions very seriously, soap and water sloshing everywhere. Hannah and Wes followed suit, then pulled on disposable gloves and masks.

Pam guided them into a nearby room with a table and chairs and a couple of small sofas. Colorful birthday garlands looped along the walls, and a few Mylar balloons bobbed near the ceiling. On one corner of the table sat what looked like little dolls made from inflated surgical gloves, each decorated with drawn-on eyes and smiles and topped with tiny mask “bonnets.”

“It looks like a party in here,” Riley exclaimed.

“We’ve had so much fun decorating for your arrival,” Pam said. “I think planning this has been more exciting for my staff than it will be for Morgan.”

“I doubt that,” Wes murmured.

Pam’s eyes crinkled above her mask as she smiled at him. “You’re probably right. But we have loved every minute of it. This is one of our consult rooms. I thought you might be more comfortable in here while you visit than in her small hospital room with all the machines. I’ve enlisted her nurse to tell her one of the doctors working on the clinical trial is working in here and has some questions for her.”

“Tricky,” Hannah said, giving her an approving smile.

“Nurses can be devious when we need to be for our patients,” Pam replied, grinning back. “Have a seat and we’ll bring her in.”

She looked genuinely delighted as she slipped out, leaving them in the festive room.

“I should take off,” Wes said quietly after he set down the bag of presents in a corner.

“Can you stay for a few more minutes? I would love for you to see Morgan,” Hannah said, turning to him.

He opened his mouth to tell her he didn’t want to be in the way, that this was their moment, not his. Before he could speak, the door opened.

He had met the woman once but he wasn’t sure he would have recognized her again. She was pale, gaunt as she stopped in the doorway, eyes widening with stunned disbelief.

Then her gaze landed on her children, and her face crumpled. Tears spilled over as her shoulders shook.

“Oh. Oh, my darlings. You’re here.”

Riley and Carter shot forward, then hesitated a few feet away, staring at the IV pole and the tubing.

“Can we hug you?” Riley asked, voice small, her gaze flickering nervously from the line to her mother’s haggard face.

“Yes. You absolutely can hug me,” Morgan said, opening her arms.

Riley went first, carefully tucking herself against her mother’s side, mindful of the lines. Carter dived in from the other, wrapping his arms around her waist. Morgan folded both children close, crying openly now as she clung to them.

“What are you doing here? You came all this way?” she asked, voice thick. “I thought we were going to FaceTime tonight.”