Shane rubbed his weary eyes as he wandered the grocery store aisles plucking items from the shelves and tossing them into the cart while Carson slept soundly in the sling tied tightly across Shane’s chest.
Shane shook his head. No wonder the baby was out like a light. He hadn’t slept at all last night. Neither had Shane.
The night had been a long one. Carson was starting to teethe and nothing Shane did seemed to comfort the little guy. Finally, he gave up and called his mother at about midnight to ask for advice.
“Mom, what do I do? Carson is screaming from the top of his lungs. Obviously, he’s hurting.”
“Did you try a cold washcloth?”
“Yeah. I read that on the internet. But he’s still crying.”
“Did you use pressure? Often pushing down on the gums a little, not too hard, will relieve the ache.”
Carson’s bellows grew even more loud. “I don’t know, Mom. I just can’t seem to do anything that helps.”
She must’ve heard the desperation in his voice. “Do you want me to come?”
“Nah, that’s a long way.”
“I’ll be there soon.” She hung up before he could protest further.
Less than an hour later, he heard a light knock on the door. He opened it to find his mom standing there looking beautiful, even at this time of night. He’d always admired her. She was smart, worked hard, loved her family, and was one of the prettiest moms he knew. Really, she like had it going on. How his dad could cheat on her, he’d never get.
Shane drew Ava into a hug. “He’s still crying.”
Ava joined him inside. “I can hear that.”
She lifted a tiny bottle out of her jacket pocket. “I brought a bottle of clove oil.”
Shane scowled. “Clove oil?”
“It works. At least it did on all four of you kids.”
Shane followed her into the nursery and watched as his mom lifted his baby boy from the crib and patted him on the back. She carried her grandson to the rocking chair and sat.
“Honey, could you take the lid off?” She lifted the bottle to Shane.
He removed the cap and passed the tiny brown bottle back into her hands and watched as she covered the opening with the pad of her forefinger, tipped the bottle upside down. She lifted the clove oil, returning it to him and he took it.
“Here, sweet boy,” she cooed, as she rubbed her grandson’s gums with the oil. “This will make it all better.”
Almost immediately, Carson stopped crying. He sniffled and nestled his tiny head against his grandmother’s shoulder and almost immediately closed his eyes. He gave a last whiffle and drew a deep breath, and nodded off to sleep.
“Wow,” Shane said. “That worked.”
Ava smiled and stood. She laid Carson back in his bed and turned, motioning for Shane to follow her.
In the living room, he offered her something to drink. “I know it’s late. Do you want to catch a wink here, Mom?” He pointed down the hall. “I don’t have much furniture yet so the guest room is pretty bare. But you can take my bed. I’ll sleep out here on the sofa.”
Ava took Shane’s chin in her hand. “Thanks, sweetheart. But no, I’ll head home. I have an early morning appointment…” Her words drifted off and a tear sprouted.
“Mom? What is it? What’s the matter?” He took her by the shoulders. “You’re upset.”
Ava sighed and nodded. She confided what she’d learned about Alani, and how concerned she was over the discovery.
“Ah, Mom. Maybe you shouldn’t jump to the worst-case scenario. I mean, you don’t know it’s cancer. Right?”
Ava nodded miserably. “I called Christel and Evan arranged to have her biopsied in the morning over at the hospital.” She glanced at her watch. “Well, this morning.”
Shane placed a hand on her forearm. “Don’t borrow trouble. Let’s wait and see what the test reveals.”
His mom gave him a weak smile and nodded. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right. We’ll know soon.”
Shane drew his mom into a hug. “Everything is going to be okay, Mom. You’ll see.”
Ava met Ori, Elta, and Alani at Maui Memorial at the scheduled time and together they took the elevator up to radiology. First, a mammogram would show the parameters of the mass. This would be followed by an ultrasound-guided biopsy that would require a small incision about a quarter of an inch long under local anesthetic.
Ori, Elta, and Ava waited in the small area outside radiology after they took Alani back for the procedure. While waiting, Ava flipped through an old magazine filled with Halloween decorating tips.
“How long do you think it will take?” Ori asked. While his voice was steady, Ava could tell her friend’s son was fighting a case of the nerves.
“Evan told me the procedure would only take fifteen to thirty minutes,” she told him. She smiled with as much confidence as she could muster. Alani would want her to remain calm and help Alani’s family. If she let her emotions have full rein, she’d fall apart. That would do none of them any good.
She stared at a glossy page filled with images of porches decorated with pumpkins and mums.
Despite her determination, her insides quivered. Typically, Ava was steady-natured. The idea of her best friend being ill—perhaps more—well, it shook her to the core.
Alani was often the one to get riled over things. Yet, she had seemed so calm when the doctor wanted to see her immediately. “It’s nothing,” she claimed, yet again, as if by repeating the notion it would be true.
Evan entered the waiting area and smiled over at her. “Any news?”
Ava shook her head. “Not yet. They just took her back.” It was then that she noticed Christel standing behind him.
“I’m here for moral support,” she reported.
“We both are,” Evan said, taking a seat across from them.
Elta thanked them for being there. “How long do these things take?” he asked, apparently forgetting that she’d already mentioned it would only take about twenty minutes or so.
Evan leaned his elbows on his legs. “The procedure won’t take long. We won’t have results right away. Normally, the lab can take up to two to three days to report back. I’ve asked for a professional favor. They will be expediting Alani’s tissue samples.”
Elta’s face filled with gratitude. “I can’t thank you enough, Doctor…I mean, Evan.”
As predicted, the radiologist appeared a short while later. Upon seeing Evan, she waved him over. “Can I speak with you a moment?” She motioned to a corner of the room.
Ava felt ready to explode. That was certainly not a good sign…was it?
Seconds later, Evan returned. “I’m afraid the radiologist thinks it’s a good idea to go a step further today. There seems to be secondary lumps deeper in the breast tissue.”
The radiologist quickly provided further explanation. “Sometimes the deeper we go, the more painful. It’s better if we put Alani under a general anesthesia…but only for a very short time,” she quickly added. “We want to get really good specimens.”
Elta looked scared. He nodded. “Of course, do whatever is necessary.”
Christel’s arm went around Ava as they took their seats again. “Mom, don’t borrow trouble.”
She nodded absently. Why does everyone keep telling her that? Do they even realize what it would do to her to lose Alani? She’d become a widow only a year before. It was Alani who journeyed that with her, right by her side. Her best friend had a knack for knowing when to simply remain quiet. “Be still, and know God,” was her often repeated statement, a favorite Bible verse.
Ava attempted to calm herself and mentally repeated that now. She couldn’t. Her mind was like a whale breeching the surface of the water then crashing back into the ocean sending spraying waves in all directions. All the what-ifs haunted her until she could barely breathe.
Surprisingly, anger flooded. Why in the world had Alani brushed something like this off? Why had she waited so long to let anyone know about the lump? If today brought news they hoped would not be delivered, the delay would be the culprit. She wanted to take Alani and shake her by those thick shoulders. Cancer was nothing to fool with. Ava’s own mother had died when she was a child. She knew what a ferocious animal cancer could be…how it snuck up on you and attacked, biting until the victim was left lifeless.
Tears sprouted and she quickly wiped them away before anyone could notice.
Evan saw.
He stood and came over. “I know what you are thinking, Ava.” He knelt in front of her. “Let me warn again, we do not know what we’re dealing with. There are plenty of other possibilities beyond the worst.”
Elta nodded. “Her mother had fat cysts.”
Evan gave him an encouraging look. “Yes, like I said, we don’t know what this is until the tests tell us. That said, if the biopsy reveals anything concerning, I have plenty of connections. This is not a battle she will fight alone.”
His hand covered Ava’s. “And neither will you.”