C10 Things are getting messy

The doctor held up his hand as Troy opened his mouth. "Whether you have a mistress or not, I don’t care. In general, it is none of my business. Right now, there’s a woman in your life, other than your wife who is endangering my patient’s life and the life of her newly formed unborn children.

“If you fail to fix this, their blood will be on your hands. I’ve advised your wife against going home but she insists that she’s safer there than she is here. She’s on a mild tranquilizer now but in her condition, it isn’t recommended.

“She had a severe panic attack and if we hadn’t gotten to her when we did, she would have hyperventilated and lost consciousness." Doctor Kugara paused, his handsome features becoming graver as he looked Troy straight in the eye.

"She is in a very fragile state. If you want her and the baby to make it, she can be under no more stress of this degree. As her partner, you must monitor and avoid stressful situations.

“The more stress she endures the more likely she will develop eclampsia and require complete bed rest or forced induction of labour regardless of what stage of development the baby is at."

Troy swallowed. A nagging thought in the back of his mind told him it was all his fault, and it was completely related to what he’d read in his wife’s diary. Trying to swallow again Troy found his throat dry and constricted.

He looked at the floor his feet were on trying to determine what type of flooring he was standing on while quelling the surge of panic that hit him. He didn’t know exactly what eclampsia was but he knew it wasn’t good.

A nurse walked past them and curiously watched for as long as she could before continuing on her way. Machines beeped and footsteps squeaked and echoed down the corridor as the rest of the hospital went about its business.

Troy cleared his throat and looked his wife’s doctor in the eye, "She’s coming home. At least there I can guarantee her privacy and monitor strictly who goes in and out of my house. Is there any bill to settle or any papers I must sign?"

Doctor Kugara admired his patient’s husband’s confidence. He hoped it wasn’t based on pride alone. If anything lethal happened to Eve the blame would inevitably fall on her husband’s head.

He motioned that the husband should follow him with a quick motion of his left hand. The gold of his wedding band caught in the harsh florescent lights flashed quickly before disappearing under the doctor’s lab coat.

Troy followed with confidence, he didn’t feel, in his step. His mind raced as he calculated the possible permutations. Looking closely at one of the documents Doctor Kugara had handed to him to sign Troy penned his special signature.

The rest he initialled. Standing he bid the obstetrician goodbye and rushed to the nurse’s station to sign the release forms and cover shortfalls if there were any.

As he thumbed through his wife’s bill he noted that she had required emergency care two more times than he was aware of. Before he let himself delve into the possible reasons why he hadn’t been informed he walked into his wife’s hospital room.

The sight of her hooked up to machines monitoring her vital statistics halted his steps. She opened her eyes and he smiled. The smile didn’t reach his eyes.

"I don’t care. I want to go home." She pouted with her arms folded over her chest.

Troy’s deep laughter filled the room. Trust Eve to shoot from the hip, as usual. The pout was a dirty play on her part and Troy felt his heart clench and jump as heat stirred in his loins.

‘She’s sick you pervert!’ He told himself sternly. ‘Just get her home and when she is relaxed, she will tell you what happened,’ Troy told himself.

Eve looked at her husband as he laughed. She knew well enough not to trust what her visitor had said completely.

The frightening part was that her visitor’s son did indeed share a physical resemblance with Troy. Every time that child smiled Eve’s heart skipped a beat. That smile was all too familiar.

She closed her eyes as Troy kissed her forehead and told her he was taking her home. Eve smiled in relief. She knew that tone of voice. His decision was final, no one except her could change his mind and even then, she’d have her work cut out for her.

Within minutes he had her packed and ready to go. The drive home was a silent one. As she looked at her husband as he drove, she noted that he was driving calmer the closer to their home they got.

She missed the boys and hoped they would be home; after all, they had school tomorrow. She looked out her window and sighed. The Jacarandas weren’t in bloom yet but they would be soon. She loved driving down the lilac-coloured avenues.

Troy glanced at his wife. He’d pay a million dollars to know what was on her mind. "Penny for them." He said softly as his left hand changed down gears.

He’d opted to use his wife’s car. For some reason she loved manuals, still. He watched her carefully as the car came to a halt at a set of solar robots. As the light turned green Troy heard her sigh again.

"I miss the boys. I was hoping to see them when we get home but knowing you, they’re probably still at your mother’s or they’d be with us, not so?" her head was against her window and her eyes were closed.

"But some peace and quiet would be nice. Lying in your arms would do me a world of good." Her head shot up and she looked at him a pout forming on her lips.

"Unless you have to prepare for tomorrow’s board meeting..." it wasn’t quite a statement, but he knew that she was hoping he’d say his time was hers.

Tearing his gaze from hers he quickly checked the side and rear-view mirrors before indicating his intention to turn right and change down gears.

"I’m willing to make the time for you." He watched her close her eyes and nod as yet another sigh escaped her lips.

The rest of the trip to their home was quiet as she asked him about his work, his colleagues, and his friends. As he filled her in on who was doing what and how well his team was doing, he realized that she was smiling at him.

Almost as if she were proud of him. His stomach and heart did synchronized somersaults.

All too soon he parked her car in the driveway as close to the front door as possible. Pulling the key out of the ignition he hurriedly undid his seat belt and rushed to her side of the car. As he walked to the passenger side, the gardener opened the door and held out his hand for her to take.

Troy observed his wife take the hand and get out of the car slowly. The gardener took Eve by the hand and handed her to Troy as if she were made of glass. From the corner of his eye, Troy saw the house hand open the front door and swipe his tag against the security beacon.

The urge to hold her in his arms overwhelmed him and he found himself putting her arm around his neck and his arm under her legs. A familiar feeling set his body on fire as she clasped her hands around his neck and snuggled into him.