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Each word was a brick, and when they piled one on top of the other, he broke. It was as simple as that, as anticlimactic. He’d been afraid of this moment for weeks—this time when his heart and his mind said simply no more—and yet now that it was here, it was nothing. No screaming agony, no crying jag that couldn’t be stopped. Just a narcotic weariness, an emptiness that ate through his bones. “No. ”
Rosa closed her eyes and let her head drop forward. It was almost as if she were praying. “This pain for you … I can barely imagine it. ”
His throat felt tight. “Yes. ”
Finally she looked up, and her brown eyes—so like Mike’s—were glazed with tears. “What will you tell the children?”
There it was. Liam sighed. “I can hardly think of it, Rosa. ”
“Sí. They have been praying for this for so long. It will break their hearts to learn that she does not remember them. ”
“I know. But it’s a small town. Not a place where secrets keep. ”
Secrets. Like a fa
mous father a girl knew nothing about.
Rosa took a step toward him. “Do not tell them yet. At least for this night. Give Mikita until tomorrow. Maybe then we will never have to tell the niños this terrible thing, sí?” She gazed at him. “You had faith in Mikaela, Dr. Liam, from the start of this, you believed in God and in her. Don’t you stop. She will need you still … maybe even more now. ”
“She has always needed me, Rosa. That’s why she married me. But before this thing is over, it will be about something else. ”
Rosa flinched.
He knew that she understood what he was going to say before he spoke. “It will be about love. ”
Chapter Nineteen
That night, after dinner, Liam tried to think of something that would take his mind off Mikaela. They were all in the living room now, ostensibly watching a TV movie, but no one seemed to be paying much attention.
At a commercial, Jacey hit the remote control and muted the television. “So,” she said suddenly, “how’s Mom?”
Liam dropped his medical journal. “Uh … the same,” he said into the awkward, sudden silence. “Hey, I have an idea. How about if we have one of our camp-out nights?”
Jacey frowned. “It’s freezing outside. ”
Liam’s laugh had a forced, brittle edge. “I know, I know. I meant a pretend one. Like we used to when Bret was little. We’ll unplug the phones and bring our sleeping bags into the living room. Roast marshmallows and make s’mores. And I’ll tell you the story of Sam McGee. ”
“That’d be great!” Bret said.
Jacey looked scared. “We haven’t done that in years. And we need the phone. If Mom—”
“I’ve got my pager. If something … happens, we’ll plug the phones back in. ”
Jacey looked unconvinced. “I told Mark I’d call him tonight. ”
Liam smiled at her. “You can live a few hours without talking to him. ”
“No, she can’t,” Bret piped up. He planted a hand on his chest and rolled his eyes dramatically. “She’ll die if she doesn’t talk to her boyfriend. ”
Jacey smacked her brother playfully on the head. “Very funny. Just wait till you stop thinking that girls have cooties. ”
“Come on,” Liam said, smiling, “it’ll be fun. Your grandma’s never done it. ”
Bret twisted around to face Rosa. “It’s totally rad, Grandma. Dad’s the best poem-teller. ”
Rosa was smiling. “He is good at telling stories, sí?”
Liam clapped his hands together. “Let’s get started. ”
