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“You went into anaphylactic shock,” Dr. Mathers says, resting a hand on Paige’s arm. “I explained that to you earlier, but you were still groggy. You had a serious allergic reaction.”
“My chamomile allergy,” Paige murmurs. “The flowers Misha’s mother sent… The bouquet must have had chamomile.”
“Wait—Aunt Nessa sent you a floral arrangement that nearly killed you?” Konstantin asks incredulously.
Something about this is not sitting well with me. “Unless…” I ponder aloud. “Unless my mother is not the one who sent those flowers.”
Paige meets my eyes. I can see that she’s thinking the same thing I am. But for some reason, she plays it down. “We don’t know anything for sure, Misha.”
“Konstantin.” I turn to my cousin. “I need you to do some digging for me.”
Paige sighs. “That can all wait. Dr. Mathers? How’s the baby?”
I’ve been so preoccupied with Paige that I haven’t even asked about the baby. Simone steps forward with a strange expression on her face.
“You can rest easy,” she says with a nervous smile. “The babies are fine.”
It takes a minute for her words to sink in. When they do, we all look at her in alarm. Paige clutches her pendant, her eyes going wide. “I-I’m sorry. Did you just say babies? Plural?”
Simone twists her hands in front of her. “The first ultrasound I did was early. Sometimes, it can be hard to tell. One fetus was covering the other, so I didn’t pick up on the second heartbeat until today. But… yes. Congratulations,” she says as brightly as she can muster. “You’re having twins.”
89
PAIGE
“Twins run in the family.”Mama told me that one day. I forgot about it… until now.
I was sitting on the counter next to the sink. My Hello Kitty sneakers banged against the cabinet as I kicked my feet. Mom was puttering around the kitchen, talking about this and that. She was in one of her rare good moods. They got rarer and rarer as I got older and older.
“I half expected you to be a twin,”she continued.“Thank God that didn’t happen. I wouldn’t have known what to do with another one.”
You barely know what to do with me, I thought. I was only eight, but I already knew something about my family was different. Something was broken. Something on a deep, fundamental level was wrong.
“I wish I had a twin sister,”I said.
“No, you don’t. If you had a twin sister, then you’d have had to share this candy bar. Now, it’s all yours.”She pushed an old candy bar into my hand. She was cleaning out the cabinet where we stored my Halloween candy from last year. It was September, so it was a year old, at least.
I unwrapped it, thinking I wouldn’t really mind sharing my candy bar. Especially if it meant I’d get to share other things, too. My problems. My pain. My crazy parents.
Life is so much easier when there is someone by your side.
“You okay, Paige?” Dr. Mathers’s voice cuts through the old memory. “I know it’s a lot to process.”
“Twins run in my family,” I say robotically, hearing the echo of my mom’s words behind my own. “I didn’t think to mention it. I didn’t think I could have one baby, let alone two.”
Dr. Mathers pats my shoulder reassuringly. “Listen, your body has been through a lot. Since you are pregnant, we’re going to need to monitor you for at least twenty-four hours before we can release you. It’s just a precaution, but—”
“Do it,” Misha says with authority. “I want her to have around-the-clock care. I will pay whatever it takes.”
I frown. “That’s really not necessary. I feel—”
“It’s not open for discussion, Paige,” Misha intercedes firmly.
Dr. Mathers gives me another smile. “If you need anything at all, just press the red call button. One of the nurses will be right to you.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
She bows out of the room, leaving me alone with Misha.
