I look at Alain, surprised. “But why would they do that?”
“To create life when everything around them was death,” he says simply. “To be a part of a family again, after they’d lost everyone they’d ever loved. By the time Rose met your grandfather, she must have thought that all of us, including Jacob, were dead, and if she had lost the baby too, she must have felt very, very alone. Maybe she just wanted to create a family so that she’d have a place in the world again.”
It takes an eternity to get our bags, get through customs, and retrieve my car from the parking garage, but eventually, we’re on our way to the Cape. We’re out of Boston just before rush hour hits, and as we hurtle south on Route 3, I take my chances, weaving in and out of traffic at twenty miles over the speed limit.
I call Annie on the way, and this time, she answers. Her voice sounds hollow, but she tells me she’s at the hospital, and that there hasn’t been any change in Mamie’s condition.
“Is your dad with you?” I ask.
“No,” she says without elaborating.
I can feel my blood pressure rising. “Where is he?”
“Don’t know,” she says. “Maybe at his office.”
“Did you ask him to go with you to the hospital?”
Annie hesitates. “He was here earlier. But he had to leave to get some work done.”
It physically hurts my heart to hear her say that. I want nothing more than to protect my daughter, and it seems that the last place in the world I should be looking for potential harm is from her other parent.
“I’m sorry, honey,” I say. “I’m sure your dad must be very busy. But he should have stayed with you.”
“It’s fine,” Annie mumbles. “Gavin’s here.”
My heart lurches. “Again?”
“Yeah. He called to see if I was okay. And I told him Dad had left. I didn’t ask him to come, but he just came.”
“Oh,” I say.
“You wanna talk to him?”
I’m about to say yes, but I realize we’ll be there in an hour. “Just tell him I said hi. And thank you. We’ll be there soon.”
Annie is silent for a minute. “Who’s we? You got a boyfriend now too or something?”
I laugh despite myself. “No,” I say. I glance at Alain, who’s watching Pembroke roll by outside his window. “But I do have a surprise for you.”
An hour later, we’re in Hyannis, hurrying through the sliding front doors of Cape Cod Hospital. The nurse at the front desk directs us to the third floor, and I see Annie sitting in the waiting room, her head hung low. Beside her, Gavin is flipping through a magazine. They both look up at the same time.
“Mom!” Annie exclaims, apparently forgetting for a moment that she’s recently become too cool to greet me with enthusiasm. She jumps up from her chair and hugs me. Gavin gives me a little wave and a crooked half smile. I mouth thank you over Annie’s head.
Annie finally pulls back and notices Alain for the first time. He’s standing beside me, frozen to the spot, staring at her.
“Hi,” Annie says. She reaches out her hand. “I’m Annie. Who are you?”
Alain shakes her hand slowly, then opens and closes his mouth without saying anything. I put a hand on his back, smile at my daughter, and say gently, “Annie, this is Mamie’s brother. He’s your great-great uncle.”
Annie looks up at me with wide eyes. “Mamie’s brother?” She looks back at Alain. “You’re really Mamie’s brother?”
Alain nods, and this time, he finds words. “You look so familiar, my dear,” he says.
Annie looks at me, and then back at Alain. “Do I, like, look like Mamie looked when she was my age?”
Alain shakes his head slowly. “Perhaps a little. But that is not who you resemble.”
“Is it someone named Leona?” Annie asks eagerly. “’Cause Mamie keeps calling me that.”
Alain furrows his brow and shakes his head. “I do not think I know a Leona.”
Annie frowns, and I look up to realize Gavin has crossed the room and is standing a few steps behind my daughter. For a split second, I have a powerful urge to throw my arms around him, but I blink and take a step back instead. “Gavin,” I say, “this is Alain. My grandmother’s brother. Alain, this is Gavin.” I pause, and as an afterthought, I add, “My friend.”
Gavin’s eyes are wide. He reaches out and shakes Alain’s hand. “I can’t believe you and Hope found each other,” Gavin says.