that Hadley wasn’t in a relationship. Janice frequently lamented the fact that Hadley showed no interest in having a man in her life.
“Have you seen Mother?” Hadley asked. “Is she awake?”
“I can’t say. She was still in recovery when I went down to the cafeteria for coffee and a sandwich. After that I stopped in the chapel for a few minutes. I’m on my way back to her room now.”
“Did you by any chance talk to Dr. Gates after surgery?”
“No,” Matilda said. “The nurse said he’d talk to you when you got here. Are you going to tell Janice about the abduction?”
“Yes. I hate it, but she’s the only one who can give us the names of everyone who has a key to her house.”
“She’ll handle it,” Matilda assured her. “When the going gets tough, your mother is always tougher. And far better she hear it from you than from anyone else.”
“I know. But I’d hoped she wouldn’t have to hear it at all. I keep praying the police will call and tell me that they’ve arrested the kidnapper and that Lacy and Lila are safe and on their way home.”
“You keep on praying and trusting in the Lord, Hadley. Half the city of Dallas is praying right along with you. Even the ones who don’t pray are on the lookout for your two sweethearts ever since that first AMBER Alert was released. People around here come together in a crisis. That’s the Texas way.”
“I know,” Hadley said. “You’d think the cops would have a decent lead by now.”
Dread swelled inside Matilda like a pot of soaking beans. “If you don’t need me anymore, I think I’ll go home for a while.”
“Of course. You should. I’ll be okay. I have Adam.” She touched the man’s arm. “Sorry I didn’t introduce him sooner, but this is Adam Dalton, an old friend. Adam, this is Matilda Bastion.”
Matilda recognized the name immediately. She’d never met Adam, but she knew that he and Hadley had been engaged for a few months several years back. Janice had never approved of the relationship and Matilda figured she’d had something to do with their breakup.
She sized him up while they exchanged a greeting. The fact that he was standing by Hadley in a time of crisis was good enough for Matilda.
She looked up as a middle-aged nurse approached them.
“Is one of you Hadley O’Sullivan?”
“I am,” Hadley answered.
“Dr. Gates would like to speak to you. He’ll meet you in your mother’s room.”
Matilda said a quick goodbye and made her exit. If this was bad news, she didn’t want to hear it. Today was already hell enough.
* * *
HADLEY LOOKED UP as the doctor joined them in her mother’s room. She was only vaguely aware of Adam standing beside her, but glad he was there. His strength and confidence worked like an invisible conductor to fight off hysteria and keep her at least semi-grounded.
“The surgery was a success,” Dr. Gates said calmly. “The tumor was larger than the scans indicated, requiring more involved and complex incisions, but it wasn’t attached to any vital organs.”
“That is great news.” She leaned against the bed frame. “Will she need follow-up chemo or radiation treatments?”
“Your oncologist will go over that with you when he gets the full results back from tissue samples taken from surrounding areas. Your mother tolerated the surgery well, but with her blood pressure problems, I’d like to keep her in the hospital for at least three nights. I’ve already cleared that with the insurance company.”
“Now you’ll only have to convince Mother.”
“I’m hoping you can help persuade her. She’s a very lucky woman to have caught this in time.”
Lucky.
Under the circumstances, the word seemed so ludicrous as to be vile. Yesterday, the news he’d just given her would have been cause for celebration. Today it barely penetrated the layers of horror.
“Is Mother alert?” she asked.
“She’s coming out from under the influence of the anesthetics, but I want her to stay as quiet and as calm as possible for at least the next twenty-four hours. That means no visits from those precocious granddaughters she was telling me about.”
“I’m afraid there’s a problem with keeping her calm,” Hadley said. Her insides began to churn again and for a few seconds she was afraid she was going to have to make a run for the bathroom or risk throwing up on the floor.
While she struggled to settle her nerves, Adam took over for her. He explained the situation to the doctor much more