Page 109 of Home Town Advantage
We sit there waiting. Vance and Maddie don’t exchange so much as a glance, let alone any words. It’s so weird. I don’t know what to make of it. Their daughter is in surgery. Surely they can come together for Francesca’s sake.
And Maddie’s parents and the McCaffreys don’t exchange any type of communication, acting like strangers. They’re the grandparents of this innocent little girl. Haven’t they found common ground at birthday parties and other life events? What is happening?
Eventually, the doctor walks out in full surgical scrubs. She removes her mask with a somber look on her face. Speaking only to Maddie, she says, “It was touch and go for a bit. The brake punctured her kidney. We tried everything, but it couldn’t be saved. She lost a kidney.”
Maddie lets out an audible sob while Curtis holds her as tears of his own trickle down his cheeks.
The doctor continues, “She can live a totally normal life with one kidney. The problem is that she’s lost a lot of blood and needs a transfusion. We used every bit that we have on hand, but she still needs more. Maddie, we have your blood type on record. You’re not a match. Curtis, you must be. We’ll need your blood. Let’s get you hooked up. Time is of the essence.”
Without thinking, and in light of the silence, I blurt out, “Curtis isn’t her biological father.”
The doctor’s eyebrows pinch in confusion, and she looks to Maddie for confirmation. Maddie nods. “She’s right. He’s not.”
The doctor asks, “Ooookay. Who’s her biological father?”
It’s silent again. Now it’s Jane McCaffrey’s turn to let out a sob. I’m so confused. Why isn’t everyone pointing at Vance?
In the wake of not one single person answering, I do. Nodding my head toward Vance, I say, “He is.”
Vance’s shoulders fall. In a low, sad voice, he admits, “I’m not. I’ve never wished more that I was than in this moment, but I’m not.” He turns to my family and whispers, “I’m so sorry.”
I exchange glances with my mother. She looks as flabbergasted as I feel. The McCaffreys don’t appear surprised in the least. They knew.
The doctor looks around in confusion. “Who is the biological father?”
For a brief moment, I wonder if it’s Finn. I can see in my parents’ hopeful faces that they do too. I know it’s not logical, the timeline doesn’t work, but I can’t help that I wish for it. If we could have one piece of him left in this universe, we’d happily take it.
Maddie crosses her arms. With a fair amount of shame in her voice, she says, “I don’t know his name. I never did. He was a stranger. He doesn’t even know about Francesa. I wasn’t able to track him down.”
I audibly gasp. My mother faints. Dad and I catch her just before she hits the ground. It feels like mayhem ensues. There are a million voices talking and shouting, but I can’t hear any of them. I feel like I’m floating above this bizarre scene, questioning everything I’ve thought to be true for the past six years.
At some point, the doctor lets out a loud whistle, and everyone goes silent. “Folks, I appreciate that emotions are high, but we have a little girl with O-positive blood in desperate need of a transfusion to survive. Does anyone here have either O-positive or O-negative blood? She can take either. We’ve completely drained our supply of both. She needs it to survive. Right away.”
My father raises his hand. “I have O-negative. Take mine.”
The doctor nods and motions for my father to follow her. Hekisses my cheek before he goes and instructs, “Look after your mother.”
I’m wordless. Unable to answer. Unable to move a single part of my body. I sit on the chair with my mother’s head in my lap as she’s sprawled across four chairs. She’s stirring a little, but I don’t know if she’s awake yet. I can’t seem to comprehend anything. I think I’m in shock.
Vance answers for me. “I’ll take care of them, Frank. Go. They’ll be fine. Thank you for doing this.”
I hear Vance talking to the hospital staff about finding some juice for my mother. He returns a few minutes later with juice in hand.
Vance and a hospital worker help my mother sit up. I guess she’s awake. Jane assists her as she manages to drink most of the bottle of orange juice and comes back to life. I still can’t seem to move an inch or utter a word.
Vance sits in the chair next to mine and then pulls me to sit across his lap. He takes my face in his hands. “Sulley, are you okay? You look pale.”
I swear I try to talk, but no words come out of my mouth. He presses his forehead to mine. “You’re scaring me.” He softly kisses my lips. “Come back to me, baby.”
It must be the wordbabythat snaps me out of my stupor. I say the only things that come to mind “Why? Why did you lie? I don’t understand. All this time. We thought…we were wrong.” My voice escalates. “Why, Vance? Why?” I’m getting hysterical.
His thumbs gently rub over my face, wiping away tears I didn’t realize had fallen. “I’ll tell you everything, I promise. Can we please just get through this? Once I know Francesca will be okay, we’ll sit down and talk. All of us.”
I want to yell and thrash. Haven’t I waited long enough for the truth? But I don’t. There’s still a little girl whose life is on the line, and that’s more important than my need for answers.
I nod, still in so much shock over what’s happened.
He pulls my head to the crook of his neck and caresses me over and over while kissing my head.
