If I’d only had a superhero’s extrasensory vision, I would’ve been able to detect the steam billowing from Cookie’s ears.
We made ourselves comfortable and time passed. I looked at my watch. Carl had been in the operating room for almost three hours. I said a prayer for him and one for Adam, holding my beads from Greece and drank another bottle of water.
Ted, Max, and Luke, who had been deep in a powwow on the other side of the room, approached me and sat down.
“What’s going on, gentlemen?” I asked.
“You should be very proud of your sons,” Ted said.
Max and Luke grinned and I said, “I am! I’m very proud of my boys. Why are you telling me this?”
“We’re coming home to take over Dad’s business until he’s well,” Luke said.
“And I’m coming out of retirement until Adam is back on his feet and ready to resume his duties,” Ted said.
Cookie butted in and said, “Well then, you’re not coming to the Galápagos with me.”
Ted looked at her like she was off her rocker.
“Ted, thank you. Boys! You can’t do that!” I said. “You’re both supposed to graduate in May!”
“I got a special leave,” Luke said. “All of my professors said I could make it up in summer school and still graduate, but I’ll walk with the next graduating class in January. If I want to walk.”
“I don’t know,” I said and thought it didn’t seem right to yank Luke out of Atlanta like that.
“I got a family emergency dispensation, but I wasn’t as lucky with my professors about course work,” Max said. “Premed is a special kind of hell. But if I go back in June, I can graduate in December.”
“Are you boys sure you want to do this?” I said.
“One hundred percent,” they both said.
I wanted to weep with joy. These were good boys. I had raised really good boys.
The door of the lounge opened again and in walked JJ and Tasha.
“Oh, my God!” I said. “I can’t believe you’re here! I was going to call you, but everything happened so fast!”
We all hugged and kissed.
“I wasn’t going to let you go through this without Tasha and me!” JJ said. “What are families for?”
“How did you even find out about Adam?” I asked.
“Kiki called me and told me the whole story. How else? She was very worried, and so is Aunt Anna. I decided that we should just get on a plane and come give you some support.”
“Oh, JJ! Thank you! Thank you so much. And Tasha, thank you too. I’m so happy you’re here. I want you to meet Cookie and Eve.”
“So! You’re Cookie?” Tasha said. “You look just like I thought you would.”
“Oh? And how’s that?” Cookie said.
“Gorgeous! And you’re Eve! You look just like your beautiful mother!”
Cookie and Eve liked nothing better than a compliment. Who didn’t?
JJ said, “So what’s the story? Is Adam still in the operating room?”
“Yes, and he still has a few hours to go, I think,” I said.
“But the doctors expect a good outcome?” JJ said.
“Yes, but Adam’s going to have a long recovery in front of him,” I said.
My boys had been standing by politely waiting for their chance to say hello to their aunt and uncle.
“Uncle JJ?” Luke said.
“My God, you’ve become a man! Look at you! All grown up!” They hugged and then JJ turned to Max. “And look at you! You’re an adult!” Then they hugged.
“Thanks, Uncle JJ, it’s so good to see you.”
“Well, when our cousin Kiki called me from Greece and told me what was going on I looked at Tasha and said, ‘We have not been doing a good enough job for Eliza and her family. We get so wrapped up in our own stuff that it’s ridiculous. We’re going. Start packing.’”
“That’s exactly what happened. And I decided something, Eliza. I’ve been a lousy sister-in-law and aunt to these beautiful boys. Ever since I went on the board at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, all I do is go to meetings. I’m in my car driving back and forth to Boston four times a week! It’s ridiculous. We’re going to see each other more often. And I want Luke and Max to visit us too. I’d love to take them to the big city and show them all around. Have you boys ever been to Boston?”
“Not since we were little,” Luke said.
“He’s right. We must’ve been what? Five?” Max said. “Can we go to a Sox game?”
“Absolutely!” JJ said.
JJ and Tasha settled into a sofa with bottled water and a magazine and we all resumed the wait. We talked about Greece and Kiki and how amazing and historical Corfu was. I showed them all my pictures. And then came the news about Carl.
“He’s in the recovery ICU,” the doctor said. “He did just fine and we don’t expect any complications.”
“Can I see him?” Eve said.
“She should let the man rest,” Cookie said.
“Hush,” Ted said. “That’s her husband.”
Cookie pressed her lips to one side of her mouth, looked at JJ and Tasha, rolled her eyes, and shook her head as if to say, he thinks he knows everything.
The doctor said, “As soon as he’s awake, we’ll come get you.”
“And my husband? Adam Stanley?”
“I think they’ll be winding the surgery up shortly. I’ll come let you know, or someone will.”
There was nothing left to do except continue to wait.
Someone came to get Eve. Carl was awake and asking for her. She left Daphne there with Cookie and went to see him. Two more hours went by. We had sandwiches from downstairs and the kids got pizzas. We watched CNN and then I Love Lucy reruns. We talked, played cards, and paced the floor.
Then Ted came to me and sat down.
“I’m sorry for what I said, Eliza. I was so worried I couldn’t think straight.”
“It’s okay, Ted. It really is.”
Finally, word came that Adam was in the recovery ICU as well. I broke down in tears—tears of gratitude, tears from stress, and tears of exhaustion. Ted gave me a giant hug and so did the boys and JJ. We were all so relieved. And so grateful.
About forty-five minutes later a nurse came to lead me to his room. He was in an ICU room right next to Carl. Our whole group went there together. Everyone stood outside the plate-glass window while I went inside.
There he was, stretched out in his bed, attached to more monitors then I thought could possibly be needed by just one person. But his eyes were open, and although he was still groggy, he was awake. The joy I felt was indescribable. I leaned over him.
“Hi!” I said in a whisper.
“Hi,” he whispered back.
“Sweetheart,” I said, “you’re going to be all right.”
“I love you,” he said.
“I love you too,” I said. In my heart, I had forgiven him for everything.
“It was Carl?”
“Yes. He was your donor.”
“Gotta let the son of a bitch take me on the tennis court, I guess,” he said and smiled again. In fact, it seemed like neither one of us could stop smiling. Adam’s color was improving by the minute and I was happy, no, overjoyed, to see it.
“Nah,” I said. “Just buy him dinner.”
“I’m gonna live, Eliza.”