A Beautiful Funeral (The Maddox Brothers #5) - Jamie McGuire Page 0,43
were messy and rough and sometimes deaf, but I handled it. Shepley didn’t think I’d never made a mistake, and I loved him even more for that. I could lose my shit, threaten, yell, and cry, but my boys didn’t want perfect. They wanted present.
Shepley pulled into the parking lot near the ambulance bay, and we unbuckled the kids while Travis carried Abby into the Emergency Room. Someone must have called ahead because a nurse was already at the door waiting with a wheelchair.
Trenton fell behind, holding Jim’s cane in one hand and hooking his dad’s arm with the other. After Abby had settled into the seat, she waved to her in-laws and then to us, blowing a kiss to the kids as the nurse wheeled her inside. We had just stepped through the sliding door of the ER waiting room when they disappeared behind double doors. Travis was walking next to Abby’s wheelchair, holding her hand. He was encouraging Abby to breathe, telling her how good she was doing, and how amazing and strong she was. We followed them until they slipped behind the doors. That was when Jessica looked up at Agent Blevins, enormous and towering over us all, and began to cry.
Trenton kneeled beside her. “Mama’s okay, baby girl. She’s done this before. You just don’t remember.”
“Are the babies going to be okay?” James asked.
“There’s just one this time, buddy,” Shepley said, mussing his nephew’s hair with his fingers.
“They haven’t even named it yet,” Jessica cried.
Trenton picked up Jessica and carried her away from the double doors, her gangly legs hanging loosely while he walked. She laid her head on his shoulder, and he flattened her tangled hair against the back of her head, kissing her temple and swaying from side to side.
“You okay, Jim?” I asked, touching his shoulder. He still looked half-asleep and a bit confused.
“I guess they’ll tell us where to wait?” Jim asked.
I nodded. “I’ll ask someone. You can sit if you want.”
He looked around for the closest chair and chose one next to Trenton, who was still standing with Jessica in his arms.
“I’ll go,” Shepley said, kissing my cheek.
He approached the admissions desk, waiting for the clerk to finish up with an elderly couple. Once they walked away, he began speaking with her. She seemed pleasant, pointing and nodding and smiling. Shepley patted the desk a couple of times before saying thank you and then returned to us.
“They’re taking her to the maternity wing on the third floor. They said we should go to the waiting room up there.”
“Then that’s where we’ll go,” I said.
Agent Blevins was in my peripheral, using his tiny radio, I assumed to update the person on the other end of our whereabouts. I knew he couldn’t tell us any more information, so I tried not to dwell on it. An entire department of people in the FBI knew more about what danger our family was facing than we did. The very principle, even beyond a sound reason, infuriated me, but I had to focus on Abby.
We found an elevator and crowded inside—all eleven of us—including Agent Blevins. The elevator dipped a bit when he stepped on, but he didn’t seem worried. Olive pressed the button, and the doors swept shut. The kids were uncharacteristically quiet while the red digital number above the door climbed with each floor. Finally, the door opened, and Trenton stepped off, the rest of us filing out behind him.
Trenton immediately fished out his phone, looking at Agent Blevins. “Have you heard from Perkins yet?”
“He’s arrived at the location. He’s currently waiting for Mrs. Maddox to enter the vehicle. There is a security guard presenting a small problem.”
Trenton smiled. “That’s Drew. He’s the bouncer. Good kid. I should call her. Tell her it’s okay to leave with him.”
Agent Blevins touched his ear. “She’s in the car, sir. Agent Perkins will deliver her to the hospital shortly.”
Trenton seemed satisfied and put his phone away before approaching the nurse’s station. A woman with big green eyes and a platinum blond bob led us to the waiting room, even though most of us knew where it was already. Travis and Abby’s third child would be the sixth Maddox grandbaby born in Eakins. We were very familiar with the maternity ward.
“In here,” the nurse said. “Snacks and drink machines are out and around the corner.” She gestured to the hall and to her right. “Someone will be in to update you as soon as they know something.”