Epilogue #2
“She woke up. They took out the breathing tube but she can’t speak.
The doctors say she’s doing surprisingly well.
But I can tell that she doesn’t remember me.
I sat by her bed and she looked at me but I could tell she didn’t know why I was there.
I was a stranger to her. The doctors said I shouldn’t overstrain her with information.
Many people with brain injuries and amnesia get upset if relatives try to make them remember, so I’m supposed to take it slow.
She was asleep most of the time after she initially opened her eyes.
” She peered into my eyes. “I can’t imagine forgetting you or Finn or Mum.
It seems absolutely horrible. I hope she remembers soon. ”
“I can’t imagine forgetting you or Finn either. You’re such an integral part of my life now.”
Aislinn squeezed my thigh. “I hope Imogen’s connection to me is strong enough to pull her back, to remind her of who she is and who her family is.”
I stroked her arm. “Don’t think that all the responsibility rests on your shoulders.
I’m sure there are many more factors playing into Imogen’s amnesia.
And maybe her brain is using amnesia to protect her from the past. I’ll help you however I can, but I think you’ll have to take into consideration that Imogen won’t ever be the sister you knew. ”
Which wasn’t a bad thing in my opinion, but of course, I didn’t share my thoughts. Her amnesia was a problem though. My investigations still hadn’t led to any hints about her attacker, and more importantly about the instigators of the attack on Aislinn.
“I know. The doctors say her brain injury contributes to the amnesia, but sometimes other parts of the brain take over the tasks from injured parts.”
“What about Finn? Will you tell him?” I had my own thoughts about the matter, but even if Aislinn and I cared for Finn together now, I still always let her have the final say. It was strange for me to let others decide, but in this case, it felt like the right thing to do.
Aislinn sighed. “I’ve been thinking about it since I got the call today, but I’m torn. She’s his mother, but he’s too young to understand what’s going on. If he finds out she’s awake, he’ll want to see her, and if she doesn’t remember him …”
“He’ll be heartbroken,” I said. “Do you want my take?”
“Of course. You and I are both taking care of Finn, so I think we should decide together.”
Fuck, I tried to hide how much this meant to me. I was turning into a sap. “I wouldn’t tell him yet. Let’s wait a bit. Not just because it would hurt Finn but also because the knowledge that she doesn’t remember her own son might unsettle Imogen too.”
“You’re right. Things are good as they are in Finn’s life. We’ll tell him once Imogen is more stable.”
Aoife came to New York a week later. This time she accepted the flight as a gift, even if she still insisted on paying back the rest of the money that she owed Five-Leaf Clover.
Finn thought she was here to see him and to help Aislinn with last-minute wedding shopping, which was both true, but mainly she spent time at the hospital when Finn was in daycare so Aislinn could keep working in her restaurant. She was still reserved but definitely nicer than in the beginning.
One evening, about ten days after Imogen woke from the coma, Aislinn and I sat on the couch. Her days were even longer now as she spent even more time at the hospital. She was exhausted.
“Should we cancel the wedding? We can have it next year when things have calmed down,” I said.
My father would be furious and would definitely chew my ear off.
His guilt trip would be out of this world.
Everything was already set up. Imogen’s state had improved very slightly; she stayed awake for longer periods of time, reacted with facial expressions and her eyes when she was spoken to, and made base sounds, but she couldn’t speak yet and didn’t recognize Aoife or Aislinn.
Aislinn raised her eyes and shook her head. “No. I have been looking forward to renewing our bond in Ireland. And I don’t want to offend your father.”
I nodded. It wasn’t the reply I’d hoped for. “I want you to enjoy the day. If you’re worried about your sister, I don’t see that happening. You probably didn’t enjoy the first time, and I don’t want this time to be clouded by worry too.”
She smiled slightly. “I didn’t enjoy our last wedding, though the dancing was nice.
” She touched my cheek. “I want this wedding. I don’t want to postpone it.
There’s no guarantee that Imogen is going to be better next year.
Life needs to go on, for us and for Finn.
And I won’t let anything ruin our special day. ”
“Nothing will. This is our day.”
Her eyes softened. “You know, I don’t think I ever apologized to you for using our marriage and you for my own purposes in the beginning.
I was so focused on finding Imogen, I didn’t even consider your feelings.
To be honest, I wasn’t sure if you had any back then.
” She let out an embarrassed laugh, then smiled apologetically.
“And now? What do you think? Am I an emotionless brute? ”
“You can be,” she said, then nudged my shoulder. “But to me and Finn, you are kind and loving, and that’s what matters.”
I kissed her. Life kept putting hurdles up for us, but so far we’d jumped them together.
Irish weather gifted us with sunshine, warmth, and a light breeze on our wedding day in late August. We’d decided on an outdoor wedding, though the staff had been prepared to move everything inside if rainfall erupted.
A dozen huge marquees had been set up on the lush lawn overlooking the ocean right in front of Devaney Manor for dinner and dancing.
Everyone was dressed festively, as if they were about to attend a horse race; the women wore cocktail dresses, flamboyant hats, and other headdresses while the men were dressed in tuxedos or kilts.
The pastor who’d married off most Devaneys in the last forty years took our vows right at the cliffs with all of our guests surrounding us.
I knew less than ten percent of them, but it didn’t matter.
I was happy that Finn, Mum, Maeve and her family, Mrs. Byrne, Gulliver, and my estranged family from Kenmare were present.
Imogen still wasn’t fit enough to travel such a long way.
and I doubted she would have felt comfortable being surrounded by so many people she didn’t know, myself included.
She still didn’t remember anything, but she was dealing surprisingly well with it.
Lorcan had assigned her a constant bodyguard so she didn’t have to see too many new faces that confused her further.
Lorcan’s face lit up when he saw me in my wedding dress as I walked down the aisle toward him with Finn at my side.
Finn’s hand in mine was sweaty, or maybe it was my hand.
We both were nervous with so many eyes on us.
“Focus on Lorcan and the ocean,” I murmured under my breath to take away some of his—and my—nervousness.
I’d picked a similar wedding dress like last time, only with a bigger underskirt and more embroidery, and this time I wore a veil as was tradition in the Devaney family .
When I reached Lorcan, he took my hand from Finn who was beaming. Lorcan patted his shoulder and Finn’s pride made him look about ten inches taller. Later he handed us our rings as we exchanged our vows. This time, I felt them deep inside my heart and I meant every word.
Lorcan had proven his loyalty and love in the last few months.
He was by my side and had become a partner at my side that I’d never dared to hope for.
When we kissed, a swarm of seagulls flew over our heads with excited screeching.
One of them dove down toward one of the guests and ripped the particularly shiny and flamboyant hat from her hair.
The woman screamed bloody murder and tried to grab the hat, but the bird was quicker and flew into the sky.
I giggled, unable to hold back the sound at the ridiculous scene. Callahan and Caden pulled guns and aimed at the seagull but missed the screeching bird.
My eyes widened, and Lorcan shrugged. “They’re already too drunk to hit their target.” I wasn’t sure if I wanted to see a bird being shot from the sky on my wedding day, though the scene was really too good to miss.
After another round of shots, the bird dropped the hat and flew away. Unfortunately, the bird’s screeching and the overall excitement had triggered the wolfhounds, and they dashed toward the falling hat, thinking it was prey. Once they reached it, they ripped it apart within seconds.
The woman clutched her heart in utter shock, but Thomas quickly moved to her side and began talking to her. Soon, she was cackling. He sent me and Lorcan a quick wink before his face became his usual controlled mask again.
“I’d call that a good start to our wedding celebrations. It’ll only get more chaotic after this. That’s a Devaney family tradition.”
I bit my lip with a happy smile and leaned against Lorcan as I watched Finn grin as he chased Mum toward the dogs.
People began to congratulate and hug us as we made our way down to the marquee where the reception with sparkling cider was taking place.
My small white purse with embroidery that matched my dress held my phone, which had started vibrating.
I glanced inside and saw it was a message from Imogen, congratulating us.
I knew she must have asked her bodyguard or a nurse to write it, and I was incredibly touched.
Lorcan squeezed my hand and kissed my temple.
Lorcan and I accepted glasses with the sparkling cider from the waitstaff.
For the first time in a long time, I felt completely at ease.
I beamed up at Lorcan as we both raised our glasses.
Lorcan’s eyes reflected the same contentment that I felt.
Finn appeared at the front of the guests with a glass of apple juice, and Lorcan motioned him forward.
He rushed over and settled between us as we finally took our first drink as a married couple.
Most of the guests downed their cider in one deep gulp. Then, applause and whistles washed over us. Finn jumped up and down excitedly. I couldn’t stop smiling.
I knew life would keep throwing challenges at us, but Lorcan, Finn and I would handle them together.
The End