Chapter 11
CHAPTER 11
A lready with several items in his cart, Oliver walked up the aisle in Jerry’s Market, looking for Iris. Holding up a small, dark chocolate candy bar, Iris looked like she’d found gold.
“I love these things. I don’t know who makes them, but they’re the best.”
“Austria,” Oliver responded. “They’re made in Austria, and you’re right, they’re fantastic.”
“That’s what I love about this store. It has the most interesting gourmet items that you can’t get anywhere else,” Iris said. “My only problem is having the patience to wait until I’ve paid for this before eating it. I suppose it wouldn’t look good to hand the check-out person just the wrapper with no candy in it?” she asked Oliver.
He smiled at her. “Uh, no, it wouldn’t, but I tell you what, how about when we finish shopping we enjoy a nice lunch under the gazebo back at the inn? We don’t have any guests to take care of, why not relax a little before it gets too busy?”
“That sounds great. Heaven knows we’re going to be crazy busy when Maggie’s family gets here.”
“Even before then with your book club,” he reminded her.
They finished shopping at Jerry’s and returned to the inn as Millie came running to meet them, her eyes wide with excitement.
“Iris, did you hear about Linda?”
“No, what happened?”
“She’s coming on Sunday to our book club get-together.”
“Oh, that’s not good,” Iris said. “If she’s coming home early, that can only mean one thing: she’s mad and we’re all about to hear about it. Do the others know?” Iris asked.
“I called Sarah, who was going to call her grandmother, and then I called Ciara to let her know. I can’t find Maggie or Chelsea, but I think it might be better if Maggie calls Claire. Claire will get in touch with everyone else.”
Iris nodded. “Okay, let me see what I can find out and hopefully get Maggie to handle this. You calm down, Millie. There’s no point in getting stressed about something that hasn’t happened yet.”
“Easy for you to say. You’ve never been in the path of Hurricane Linda St. James,” Millie said as she walked out of the kitchen.
Iris looked at Oliver, who was laughing.
“What’s so funny?” she asked.
He shrugged. “I don’t know, it seems silly that everyone is so worked up about this Linda person. How can one person have so much power over an entire group of mature women?”
“You haven’t met Linda yet, but you will soon. Just be prepared—everything you and I prepare for the book club get-together will be inspected and criticized.”
Oliver shook his head. “No one gets to do that to my creations, Iris. I don’t care who this woman thinks she is. But why in the world would you all invite her to be in the book club?”
Iris explained to Oliver about Linda’s past attempts to start a book club, all of which had failed. “She’s going to see this as a personal failure and take it to heart. I can’t blame her, really. It’s just that Linda rubs so many people the wrong way. No one wanted to join a book club with such a controlling, and miserable person at the helm.”
“And you all think this book club will be different because…?”
Iris paused, realizing Oliver had a point. It was up to the women in the book club to put a stop to Linda’s controlling ways once and for all. With strength in numbers, surely the book club members could put Linda in her place. If not, Oliver’s words might prove prophetic, and the book club, no matter who started it, would surely fail.
Iris couldn’t find Maggie, but she found Paolo in the garden. “Hey Paolo, I’m looking for Maggie. I haven’t seen her all morning.”
“That’s because she went back to the hospital.”
“Oh, is there news on the MRI yet?”
“No, it’s not that, although she’s going to stop in to the check with the doctor to see if he has the results. I would have gone with her, but she’s meeting someone about a volunteer cancer support group. I don't know too much about it, but she seemed excited to learn more, so I encouraged her to look into it. Hopefully, while she’s there, she’ll get some good news.”
“I hope so too. Thanks for letting me know.”
“Should I tell her you’re looking for her?”
“No, that’s fine. I’ll catch up with her later.”
Iris walked to the gazebo where Oliver was waiting for her. Suddenly, the Linda St. James problem didn’t seem so important.
“Is everything okay?” he asked.
“Yes, of course, why?”
“You look like you’ve heard bad news, that’s all.”
She sat in the chair across from him and smiled.
“I’m sure everything will be all right. I’m just worried about Maggie. I think we all are.”
Oliver shook his head. “I don’t understand. Why is everyone worried about Maggie?”
Iris looked at him and realized no one told him about Maggie’s cancer.
“Maggie had breast cancer. She had surgery, chemo and radiation and seemed to beat it, but now they think the cancer might have returned. She’s been having tests, so we’re all waiting for definitive news.”
Stunned, Oliver felt terrible. “I had no idea, she never said…but then again, why would she?”
Iris nodded. “The first time it happened, I think she didn’t want to talk about it, but this time, she seems more open to sharing her feelings with all of us. Her family up north and Sarah, of course, have been calling and staying in touch. They’re very worried.”
“I can imagine. You’d never know she was going through such a difficult time. She’s got a great attitude.”
Iris smiled. “Maggie says having a positive attitude makes all the difference. I will say it feels like everyone has hit the pause button and won’t move again until Maggie gets the results. However, something is different about Maggie this time. I’m not sure what it is, but it feels like she has a different perspective on the whole thing. She certainly has kept busy. I imagine the distractions are a good thing.”
Iris and Oliver spent the next hour enjoying a light lunch with iced tea and conversation. He enjoyed the new, slower pace of his job, and found Iris delightful to work with. This new position was better than he’d anticipated, and everyone he’d encountered on Captiva Island was pleasant and welcoming.
He hated what Maggie was going through and wished there was something he could do to help her through this latest health scare. For now, he rested in the knowledge that she was surrounded by so many who loved her dearly.
Maggie walked into the hospital cafeteria and looked for Gretchen Potter. She’d answered Maggie’s call earlier in the day and was happy to meet to talk about the volunteer program. She’d first stopped in to see Dr. Renolt, and although he didn’t have the results of her MRI, he said he’d get them within the hour. The timing was perfect and she felt her time with Gretchen would settle her shaking nerves.
Getting up from the table, Gretchen greeted Maggie.
“Hello Maggie. It’s good to see you again.”
Maggie smiled. “Hi Gretchen, I didn’t think I’d be back in the hospital again so soon, but here we are.”
Gretchen nodded. “If you don’t mind, I’d love to hear what your cancer journey has been like. I can tell you mine first if you’d like.”
Maggie nodded. “Yes, please do.”
“Well, I’m thirty-four, and have breast cancer that has spread to my lungs. So, with lung metastases…”
Maggie stopped her. “Wait, I want to hear about your cancer. I do, it’s just I’d like to know more about you first. Who is Gretchen Potter?”
Gretchen smiled and looked down at the table, but didn’t answer.
“I’m sorry if I seem so abrupt. It’s just that I hate letting cancer define who we are. It’s not who I am, it’s only something that, for a brief period in my life, I’ll have. It will either be gone or I will die with it, but it still won’t define me. The illness isn’t who you are either. So…tell me who you are.”
“Okay, well, I’m a thirty-four-year-old woman, mother, sister, daughter and friend. I was born in Wichita, Kansas, and am the youngest of four. I’m a singer, or at least I was a singer before all this happened. I’m married to my high-school sweetheart, Bradley, and we have two little girls. I love kids, and so when my husband and I decided to have a family, we set about working to build one right away. We moved to Florida right after we got married and have been living here ever since.”
“What does your husband do for work?”
“He’s a contractor for a building company. There’s a lot of construction work that goes on down here.”
Maggie smiled. “Okay, now, please tell me about your cancer.”
“Well, my mammogram showed there was something, it was small, but they thought it could be cancer. The biopsy proved it, and so I had the surgery. They said they got it all out, but I had to have chemotherapy to be sure, so of course, I opted for that. That was two years ago. Then they found more cancer in my lung, so the battle continues. Fortunately, the medicine I’m taking is working, so at least I can plan things, but the reality that I will likely die from this illness is always on my mind.”
“That must have been devastating to hear.”
“It was very hard, and I wasn’t quite as positive that I’d beat it again. I’m living my life. It hasn’t been easy, but the support group has been everything to me. That’s why I tell everyone I can about it. We need to give back whenever we can.”
Maggie nodded. “How do I volunteer?”
“First, I need to know what your journey with cancer has been. Are you at least a year post treatment?”
“No, as a matter of fact, we’re looking into whether this new lump is cancer or not.”
“Oh, I see. I’m sorry, but you likely wouldn’t qualify for it yet, at least not as a person giving support and comfort to a cancer patient.”
Gretchen hesitated before continuing, “However, Maggie, you might benefit from the support yourself, if it turns out the cancer has returned.”
Maggie’s heart sank. She was so excited about volunteering, and now she was thick in the patient position again…a place she hated. All her talk of not letting cancer define her, and yet, it had excluded her from the one thing she wanted more than anything.
“What if this lump is nothing? What then?”
“Well, when was your final treatment for your original cancer, has it been more than a year?”
“Yes, it has. Is that good?”
Gretchen nodded. “It’s very good. In that case, you’d most likely be accepted into the program. Reach for Recovery is a community of people who want to be a positive support for those who are not only going through cancer treatment, or living with cancer, it’s a chance to help them see their life in a positive, hopeful way. You become an example of what life post-cancer can look like.”
Maggie felt renewed determination. She would march into the doctor’s office and hear the words, “It’s not cancer.”
She no longer believed in coincidence. She and Gretchen were meant to meet, and it was for that reason, more than any other, that Maggie felt certain there was no cancer in her body.