Chapter 90 Gayle
G AYLE
Gayle and Loretta keep each other company while their husbands nap at opposite ends of the same hospital room. It’s warm on the ward and Gayle wipes the perspiration from her face with a tissue. She can just imagine how frizzy her hair is in this humidity. It amazes her how Loretta can still look so poised and elegant after everything she’s been through. She doesn’t have a hair out of place, and she sits tall and lithe with her legs and arms crossed. How can a woman who hasn’t slept or showered still be this glamorous in a hospital ward, of all places?
Gayle’s phone vibrates with a message and when she reads it, she almost forgets to breathe.
‘What is it?’ Loretta asks.
‘It’s Noah. He says he’s safe. Oh, Loretta, Noah’s okay! Thank God.’
‘You see?’ Loretta smiles.
‘He says he needed time to sort out his thoughts when it became clear that Mike was still no closer to accepting Chris. He said it opened old wounds and he had to be alone for a while. He feels awful about scaring everyone the way he did, and Chris has made him promise to have some counselling, but at least he’s home now. He’s ever so concerned about Mike too, bless him. Despite everything, that boy still loves his pop.’
‘This miracle happened because you attended the Mass,’ Loretta says assuredly.
‘I believe you might be right about that.’ Gayle’s hands shake in her lap.
‘Maybe now that you know your son is safe, you will finally stop shaking,’ Loretta says.
‘I think it’s because I can’t get the image of Christian with Mike’s knife in his neck out of my mind. Do you know what the policeman said? He said it was lucky for such a small blade to kill him. He said it got him right in the carotid artery. Lucky . That was his exact word.’ She sighs. ‘I’ve been praying over and over again for Christian’s soul. Do you want to know why? It’s because I’m ashamed at how happy I am about it. Loretta, I’m so happy I could dance. It’s not right, is it? I know it’s not right, but I can’t help thinking that lucky is the perfect word for what happened.’
‘You are praying for the soul of the man who tried to kill your husband. You are a good woman with a good heart,’ Loretta replies.
The tea lady interrupts their conversation when she wheels in lunch. The second the squeaky trolley is pushed into the room, Mike’s eyes are wide open and in a flash he’s sitting up in bed, eyeing off the selection of sandwiches.
He winces as he eats. ‘Hurts to swallow.’ His voice is a hoarse whisper. The doctors say it should return to normal very soon.
Gayle holds his hand in hers.
‘You have had an eventful stay at Il Cuore, signore,’ Loretta says to Mike. ‘Perhaps next year you would like to return and try again for a more peaceful vacation?’
Mike can’t shake his head fast enough. ‘Never coming back. Never, ever, ever.’
‘On the house.’ Loretta speaks over him. ‘Two weeks’ free accommodation and meals to thank you for being a hero. It is the least we can do.’
Mike’s hand freezes with the sandwich halfway into his mouth, his eyes just about popping out of his head. ‘Free?’ he whispers.
‘All free.’ Loretta smiles. ‘And we will even arrange a gondola ride with a different singer. What do you say?’
‘Can’t knock back such a generous offer.’ Mike grins and Gayle’s heart soars at the knowledge she’ll see her dear friend Loretta once again.
When Loretta returns to the chair by Signore Bianchi’s bedside, Mike whispers to Gayle, ‘Hon, when that man was choking the life out of me, all I could think about was that I was gonna have to explain to the good Lord at the pearly gates why I turned my back on my own son.’ He holds his throat, wincing again.
‘Shh, rest your voice, hon,’ she soothes. ‘We can talk about this later.’
He shakes his head. ‘I’ve got to tell Noah how sorry I am. I never should’ve made him dig that hole. I never should’ve made him feel bad about himself. I have to make it right. But what if it’s too late? What if he’s gone? It’ll all be my fault.’
Gayle thinks her heart might just explode with love for him. The cancer in her marriage has been blasted to oblivion. ‘It’s not too late, hon. I heard from him just now while you were napping. He’s fine.’
‘Praise be! What happened to him? Why’d he disappear like that?’
‘He disappeared because of us, hon.’
Mike’s eyes fill with tears. ‘Can I talk to him, do you think?’
She calls Noah, choosing the video option, and her beautiful child, perfect just the way God created him, appears on her screen.
‘There he is!’ Mike exclaims but it comes out as a whisper.
Noah looks so much like his dad, it’s as if he actually is Mike from thirty years ago.
‘So, you finally had some sense beaten into you or what, old man?’ Noah grins.
Mike wipes his eyes. ‘Son, how am I ever gonna make it up to you?’
For the first time in months, Gayle’s headache is gone.