Chapter 2 - The Scar Emily Had Forgotten
That evening Emily sat at the edge of Maya's bed examining a mark she hadn't thought about in years.
It rested low on Maya's left side, barely visible unless someone knew where to look.
A pale line no longer than two centimeters.
Emily touched it.
Maya flinched.
"Sorry."
"It's okay."
Emily leaned closer.
"I remember this."
Maya looked at her.
"From when?"
"You were a baby."
"What happened?"
Emily tried to pull the memory together.
"You had a fever. I was sick too. Your father took you to urgent care."
"Which urgent care?"
"I don't remember."
"What did they do?"
"He said they took blood."
Maya looked down at the scar.
"Blood doesn't leave that."
Emily didn't answer.
The silence frightened them both.
Downstairs, the garage door opened.
Robert was home.
Maya sat up.
"Don't tell him I asked."
Emily stared at her daughter.
"Why?"
"Please."
A mother's instincts could survive years of compromise.
They could survive arguments, disappointments, routines, excuses.
But there was one thing they could not survive.
Fear in a child's voice.
Emily nodded.
"Okay."
Robert entered the bedroom ten minutes later.
He had changed his expression before entering.
Emily could tell.
It was something she'd recently begun noticing.
The smile came first.
Then the eyes.
"How's my patient?"
Maya gave a small shrug.
Robert placed a paper bag on the desk.
"I brought soup."
"Thanks."
Emily watched him.
"Where were you?"
"Office."
"Your secretary said you left at four."
Robert paused.
"You called?"
"I needed to know whether you were coming to dinner."
"I had a client meeting."
"Which client?"
He looked at her.
"Since when do you audit my schedule?"
"Since our daughter started fainting and you keep acting like it's inconvenient."
Robert's face hardened.
"Not in front of Maya."
"Why not? She already knows you don't believe her."
"I believe she's uncomfortable. I don't believe every stomach pain is a medical catastrophe."
Maya looked away.
Emily stood.
"We have an appointment tomorrow morning."
Robert's eyes flashed.
"With who?"
"Dr. Keller."
"Cancel it."
The words came too quickly.
Emily stared at him.
"What?"
Robert recovered.
"He's a general practitioner. Maya should see a pediatric specialist."
"You just said she didn't need a doctor."
"I'm saying if you're going to do this, do it properly."
Maya's pulse accelerated.
Emily folded her arms.
"Do you know someone?"
"No."
"Then Dr. Keller is fine."
Robert walked toward the doorway.
"I'll take her."
Emily and Maya both spoke at once.
"No."
Robert stopped.
Maya's face drained.
Emily noticed.
Robert noticed that Emily noticed.
Something invisible changed in the room.
Emily stepped toward him.
"I'll take her."
Robert smiled faintly.
"Fine."
He left.
Maya didn't speak until his footsteps faded.
Then she whispered, "He doesn't want me to go."
Emily turned.
"I know."
The next morning, Robert was gone before sunrise.
He left a note saying he had an emergency conference.
Emily drove Maya to Dr. Keller's clinic at eight-thirty.
The examination took twenty minutes.
Dr. Keller pressed gently along Maya's abdomen.
When he reached the upper right side, Maya gasped.
Emily stood.
"That hurts?"
Maya nodded.
Dr. Keller pressed again more carefully.
His expression changed.
"How long?"
"Three months. Maybe longer."
"Any weight loss?"
Emily answered.
"About eleven pounds."
"Appetite?"
"Bad."
"Nausea?"
"Sometimes."
"Menstrual changes?"
Maya nodded.
"Yes."
Dr. Keller sat back.
"I want bloodwork today, and I want abdominal imaging."
Emily's stomach tightened.
"What are you thinking?"
"I'm not thinking anything specific yet."
Which meant he was thinking several things.
He printed orders.
"I'd like an ultrasound first."
Maya looked at her mother.
Emily squeezed her hand.
They were walking toward the parking lot when Emily's phone rang.
Robert.
She declined the call.
He called again.
And again.
On the fourth attempt she answered.
"What?"
"Where are you?"
"Doctor."
Silence.
"Which doctor?"
"Why?"
"Emily."
"Dr. Keller."
Robert cursed under his breath.
"What did he say?"
"He ordered tests."
"What tests?"
"Bloodwork and an ultrasound."
Robert said nothing.
Emily stopped walking.
"Robert?"
"I'm coming home."
"Why?"
"We need to talk before you do anything else."
Emily's skin prickled.
"The ultrasound is already scheduled."
"When?"
"Tomorrow."
Robert's breathing changed.
"Cancel it."
There it was again.
No suggestion.
No concern.
An order.
Emily looked at Maya.
Her daughter was watching her.
"No."
"Emily, you don't understand."
"Then explain."
"I can't over the phone."
"Try."
Robert lowered his voice.
"There are things about Maya's medical history you don't know."
Emily felt as if the sidewalk moved beneath her.
"What things?"
"Come home."
"Tell me now."
"I said come home."
He hung up.
Maya whispered, "Mom?"
Emily stared at the dead screen.
Then she looked at her daughter.
"We're not going home."
"Where are we going?"
Emily started walking toward the car.
"To get your bloodwork done."
Behind them, across the parking lot, a man in a black sedan lifted a phone to his ear.
Neither Emily nor Maya noticed him.
But he had been waiting since they arrived.
And when Emily's car disappeared around the corner, he made a call.
"She scheduled the scan."
The person on the other end responded.
May you like
The man looked toward Dr. Keller's office.
Then he said, "Tell Thorne he has twenty-four hours."
