Chapter 17
SEVENTEEN
When my aunt and uncle noticed Hayden standing next to me, their eyebrows shot up.
I suppressed a smile. “Good morning,” I said, stepping out onto the porch and giving them a brief hug. “This is my employment officer, Hayden,” I said, then added, “It’s his birthday.”
Hayden shot me a look, the barest roll of his eyes, but he offered his hand anyway. My uncle shook it, giving him a polite nod. “Happy birthday,” he said gruffly.
“Thanks. Nice to meet you both,” Hayden replied, just a hint of color rising on his cheeks.
My aunt’s gaze lingered on Hayden a little longer than was strictly polite.
“Shall we head out?” I said quickly, ushering everyone off the porch and pulling the door shut behind us.
We walked in pairs, my aunt and I in the middle, Hayden and my uncle on either side. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught my aunt sneaking a not-so-subtle look at Hayden, then meeting my gaze with a wink that made my cheeks burn.
I shot her a look of warning, only to be saved by my uncle breaking the silence, asking Hayden where he was from—not the safest topic, I realized too late.
Hayden fielded the questions smoothly enough, keeping his answers clipped and polite. “Grew up at sea, mostly. Ended up here about three months back. Been working around the islands since.”
He didn’t elaborate, and his steady voice didn’t invite more. My aunt asked if he liked it here.
“It’s… different,” Hayden replied to that, with a faded smile. “Still getting used to it.”
That was all he offered. My aunt and uncle seemed to catch the signal and let the subject drop.
Crossing the bridge, we checked through the barrier with our rings and began the long climb up the main island’s slope. The grade quickly left us winded, conversation fading into the rhythm of breathing and trudging feet.
We reached Martha’s gates with ten minutes to spare, but I buzzed the intercom anyway. A moment later, the gates swung open to let us in.
Jack and Bea stood with Martha at the door.
They squealed the moment they spotted us.
Bea, wearing the same neat braid as last week, and a stylish blue halter neck dress, jumped into my arms, barely even registering the tall stranger standing next to me.
I scooped her up, dropping kisses on her face.
Martha welcomed us in and led the way toward the children’s room. Inside the sunlit atrium, we all crowded into the glass elevator.
“Tani,” Martha began quietly, pressing the button for the upper floor. “I thought you’d want to know… I tried to take Bea to visit your parents last week. She’s been asking for them.”
I glanced down at Bea, surprised. “Oh? Did you get to see them?”
Martha’s expression shifted, lines of concern deepening. “No. We weren’t allowed in.”
My heart sank. “Why not? What did they say?”
Bea piped up, her little face clouding with frustration. “They said we couldn’t see them!” She hugged her arms around herself, frowning.
“Well, it wasn’t quite that simple, sweetie,” Martha said, brushing a comforting hand over Bea’s head, before returning her focus to me.
“We arrived at the hospital and asked to see your parents, but were informed by a nurse that they have been quarantined. They recently contracted a contagious fever.”
I almost choked. “F-Fever? What kind of fever?”
Martha gave a sad sigh. “The nurse didn’t specify. Just said they caught it off another patient. One of the most recent arrivals. Your parents weren’t the only ones in their ward to contract it. There are six currently sectioned off.”
A quiet curse slipped out before I could stop it. My parents had gone into the hospital to heal broken bones. Now there was talk of contagion?
“When did you visit them?” I asked Martha.
“Wednesday,” she replied.
“How can I contact them? Does the hospital have a number? I need to talk to them!” I felt desperate to visit them, but if they were contagious, I couldn’t risk getting ill myself. That could set us all back by who knew how many coins. And it sounded like the nurses wouldn’t even allow me.
“Yes,” Martha replied. “I can help you with that. I don’t have the number to hand, but I’ll make a call and get it for you. In the meantime,”—she swung open the door to Bea and Jack’s room, gesturing for us to enter—“why don’t you make yourselves at home?”
My heart still raced as I sat on Bea’s bed.
I exchanged glances with my aunt and uncle, who looked equally concerned as they sat down on Jack’s bed.
I just hoped my parents had made some recovery since Martha and Bea visited on Wednesday, because this was the last thing they needed.
Staying at that hospital was miserable enough without catching someone else’s illness.
Though, it was hardly a wonder. A constant flux of strangers went through that place, people from all kinds of backgrounds that Fairwell was scooping up.
People on the brink of desperation. Of course, some of them would be diseased, and given the lack of space there, it was no wonder that viruses spread.
But I doubted this would have happened if they’d been at Beauchamp Hospital. From what I’d seen of the building, there were no shared wards and every surface was spotless.
I wondered how much it would cost to transfer them both there. If bronze status was the bare minimum just to keep us under one roof, I could only imagine how high the bar was set for a transfer to a fancy hospital.
I rubbed at my temples, a stress headache coming on. “Dammit,” I mumbled.
“Who are you?” Bea demanded suddenly, staring at Hayden with all the gravity a three-year-old could muster.
I glanced up to find her regarding him as if he were a suspicious package. Hayden, who’d quietly taken the spot beside me on the bed, shifted his weight, visibly unsure how to handle a toddler’s scrutiny.
“I’m, uh, Tani’s friend,” he managed, clearing his throat.
Bea frowned, turning her laser focus to me. “Where did you meet him?”
Her tone was almost accusatory, and I couldn’t help a small smile. “Just… around the island,” I said, hoping to steer her away from any mention of work. “He’s new here too.”
“What’s his name?” she pressed, not looking away from him.
“Hayden,” he answered for himself, offering a hand. She eyed it, then shook it with the formality of a tiny diplomat.
“Is he your boyfriend?” Her lips curled in a sly grin.
I groaned inwardly—should’ve seen that coming. “No, Bea, he’s just a friend.”
She didn’t look convinced. “He’s handsome,” she declared, glancing between us as if solving a puzzle.
I wanted to bury my face in a pillow, but Hayden took it in stride. “Thanks,” he said, giving her a small, crooked smile, his expression half-amused, half-bashful.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see my aunt clearly enjoying the show. I fixed my gaze on Bea’s favorite toy train, seizing on the distraction. “Hey, want to show me your train set?” I asked quickly.
Before she could protest, I took her hand and led her away, silently grateful for the save.
Hayden wasn’t off the hook for long; soon, Jack wandered over and pressed a second toy train into his hands.
In no time, Hayden was kneeling with Jack and my aunt and uncle by the track, tentatively joining their play.
All the while, worry for my parents burned at the back of my mind.
I didn’t want to dwell on the subject verbally now, in front of Bea, and my aunt and uncle clearly didn’t either, but having no idea what kind of fever they had or how it could be treated ate away at me.
Hayden seemed to sense that I needed space to deal with it, and he remained on the other side of the room with Jack.
I could barely even focus on what Bea was saying to me.
When Martha returned an hour later with a tray of drinks and sandwiches, and a number, I let out a sigh of relief.
After placing the tray on a low table, she came to kneel next to me on the floor and tapped the number into my phone’s address book.
“This will get you through to the right person,” she explained.
Then it was a waiting game. I wanted to cherish the short, precious time I had with my sister, but I couldn’t stop watching the clock for the end of our appointment. I ate three sandwiches just because it was free food and I needed to tank up. I could barely appreciate the fresh ingredients.
When it was time to go, I crouched down beside Bea and Jack. “I’ll see you both next Sunday, okay? And hopefully by then, Mom and Dad will be well enough for a visit.”
Bea squeezed my hand, face earnest. “Promise?”
“I promise I’ll come,” I said, hugging her tight. Jack clung to my side until Martha gently pried him off with a smile.
Hayden ruffled Jack’s hair and gave Bea a little wave. “Bye, troublemakers. See you soon.”
We exchanged quick goodbyes with Martha in the hallway, and then I hurried outside, barely waiting for the gate to finish sliding shut.
My phone was already in my hand as I leaned against the cold post, dialing the hospital’s number, heart pounding while I waited for someone to pick up.
Hayden lingered a half step closer than usual, hands shoved in his pockets, posture loose but his gaze fixed on me.
The question in his eyes was clear: Are you okay?
“Dora speaking,” a female voice suddenly spoke in my ear.
I sighed in relief, then pressed the “loudspeaker” button so my aunt and uncle could hear the conversation.
“Hello, Dora. My name’s Tanisha Lockwood and I’m calling about my parents: Rey and Norine Lockwood.
They were recently sectioned off with a fever.
I’m calling to find out how they are. Are they still quarantined? ”
“Yes, they are,” she replied.
My breath hitched. “Can I speak to them?”
“All patients in the quarantine area are resting,” she replied apologetically. “I can pass on a message, but I suggest you call tomorrow morning. Hopefully by then they’ll have more strength to talk.”