Chapter 4 #2
He was about to apologize for disturbing Colin and hang up, but his brother interrupted. “Jacob? What happened? Is everything okay with Kaitlyn?”
He raked his hands through his hair, anxious and suddenly quite tired. “She’s fine. Resting upstairs in her bedroom.”
“Did you get the results?”
“Yes.” He rubbed his forehead, then his temple, trying to keep his composure.
There was a pause on the phone, and he knew Colin was bracing himself for the news. “And?”
“None of you are a match.” He said, sorrow thickening in his voice.
The unbearable feeling of helplessness pressed down on his shoulders.
He just wanted to make his daughter all better.
Of course all of his brothers loved Kaitlyn, and she loved her uncles too, but her bond with Colin was special.
She called him her red teddy bear and his brother was always good with her, even when she was a baby.
He would come over and spend so much time with her, even taking her when times were rough between him and Sierra, and he didn’t want her in the household to witness it.
When he finally told his siblings last month, the whole family had been rocked; immediately, they had volunteered to do whatever they needed to make her whole again.
He never said it, but he was moved and honored to have them as his brothers and when this was over, he was going to make sure they knew it.
“Tell me everything, what did the doctors say?” He could hear Colin moving away from the noise.
“Just what I told you, that no one on our side of the family is a complete match for her. And they also searched the donor bank to see if anyone else was and so far, it’s come up empty.
” Jacob inhaled, struggling to find his words for the next part of the story.
“The doctor asked me again about her mother and wants me to find Sierra.”
He paused because he thought he heard Kaitlyn cry out, but when only silence met him, he returned to the conversation.
“What? Repeat that.” Colin’s voice was gruff, and he could hear his brother moving away from more background chatter as the noise lessened.
“They asked me where her mother was and if she was still alive.”
He heard Colin swear. “And?”
“I have to try and find her?” Jacob frowned, not sure what else Colin wanted him to say.
“You haven’t heard from her since she was released from the hospital and signed the papers. It’s been a while since the court was backlogged to the point you had to wait several months until the court finished processing the papers. So, what, it has been a year now?”
None of his brothers could remember the last time they saw Sierra. During his marriage, his family had tolerated Sierra for his sake, and then when Kaitlyn came along, for hers. But after the accident, they too wanted nothing to do with her.
Jacob could hear the frustration in Colin’s voice; it was comforting to have someone feel the same as he did.
“No. not a word. She kept her promise to not reach out to me ever again and to forget she had a daughter.” Jacob tightened his free hand into a fist, his voice cold and sharp.
“Could she be dead?”
“No.”
Surprise and curiosity entered Colin’s voice. “How do you know?”
“I just do.” He snapped, not in the mood to argue. It was the truth. Even though they were not together, a part of her still lingered in his mind and his heart. And his gut told him she was still alive somewhere.
Colin sounded solemn. “Do you know where she went?”
“No, I will have to search for her.” Jacob cursed, in frustration and fear because so far it had been dead ends. He had banished her from his life and had to admit a part of him had been surprised when she’d disappeared so effortlessly.
“Have you spoken to the Senator?”
“Yes.” Jacob leaned back in his chair, stared at the ceiling. He doesn’t know where his daughter is, and he doesn’t care.”
Almost losing Kaitlyn in that accident was the last straw for the Senator; he’d disowned his daughter, Sierra, without hesitation. This wasn’t a secret to the family.
“Have you asked him to come in for testing?” Hope bounced through Colin’s voice. Jacob wished he could feel the same. He nodded in response, but quickly realized Colin couldn’t see him over the phone.
“Yes, he is going tomorrow to the hospital to be tested, but I have a feeling he won’t be a match.
I will have to get her mother involved.” Anger bubbled up and rushed through him.
Kaitlyn was finally starting to emotionally heal from that night; how could he bring his ex-wife back into the picture?
But how could he not if Kaitlyn could be saved.
“When you find her, do you think she will come back to take the test for Kaitlyn? Jacob, she hasn’t even checked on Kaitlyn since she has been gone. If she ever cared about her daughter, she would have fought and not given up so easily.”
Though he confided in Colin, Jacob never told his family all that had happened at the hospital when Sierra finally woke up. “She didn’t have a choice.” The sharp edge on his words seemed to silence Colin, so Jacob tried to continue.
“She only needs to come and get tested and if she is a match, give some of her bone marrow to Kaitlyn.” He clenched his jaw, seeing red and reeling from the pain he experienced when he ended the marriage, something he too had just started to heal from.
The reality that he would have to deal with her again, opening old wounds that had scabbed over.
His voice went cold. “She won’t get to see my child or come anywhere near me. ”
“What are you going to do if she says no?” Colin pried into his business.
“Drag her back here whether she wants to or not.” He vowed, glaring daggers at the phone as if this was all his brother’s fault. “I will dance with the devil one last time to get what I need for my daughter.”
“Yes, and let me know what you need from me to help find her.” Colin’s voice sounded stronger, even though he was still hushing his voice into the phone. “With both of us looking, we should be able to find her faster and then I can go and talk to her and make sure she comes back peacefully.”
“Thanks, but I can handle it. Appreciate it.” Jacob said gruffly, his anger dissipating a bit from his brother’s support.
He didn’t want his brothers involved more than necessary, even Colin.
He straightened up in his chair. “Don’t worry, I doubt she will put up much of a fight.
Money is a great incentive especially since she didn’t walk away from all of this unscathed.
“Sierra was hurt badly in the accident and is scarred now for life. Her being obsessed with her appearance—this was a blow to her vanity. I am sure she is starving by now for a little semblance of her old life.” His tone had shifted to mocking through his rant, but he didn’t get a chance to sit smugly in his admonishment; the creak of his office door intervened.
He turned and saw Kaitlyn rubbing her eyes sleepily. Slowly she padded toward him and placed her hands on his knees. “Daddy, I had a bad dream about the accident and now I can’t sleep.”
“Come here, pumpkin.” Shifting the phone to his shoulder, Jacob pulled his daughter onto his knees with one arm. “Colin, I will have to call you back later.”
“Yes, don’t worry. Go take care of Kaitlyn and tell her, her red teddy bear loves her.” Colin’s voice was gentle, even though Kaitlyn couldn’t hear him.
“I will. Night.” Jacob laid the phone on his desk and pulled Kaitlyn into his arms, rocking her back to sleep.