Chapter 22

Gage

When I arrived at the hospital, my aunt looked like she was ready to drop. Still, she continued to pace the small waiting area. Her normally pale skin was tan from her recent cruise. Her dark blonde hair was pulled back from her face, drawing attention to her gray roots. When she saw me approaching, her soft brown eyes warmed.

“I’m so glad you’re here, Gage,” she said in a tired voice.

I hugged my aunt, holding her close. “How is she?”

Pulling away, she let out a sigh. “Physically, they say she’s doing fine. I found her shortly after she took the pills, and they pumped her stomach as soon as she got here.”

She was focusing on my mom’s physical health. I understood why. There was no point in asking how my mom was doing emotionally. She’d tried to kill herself. Clearly, she wasn’t doing okay in that area.

“Have you been in to see her yet?” I asked.

She shook her head. “The doctors say she can have visitors, but she’s convinced I’m trying to kill her, so they recommended I stay out of the room until she’s more stable. She also won’t let go of her belief that Colin has brain cancer. I told her what you said, and Colin even called her, but she won’t believe either of us.”

I was surprised by that news. When I’d assured my mom Colin didn’t have cancer, she’d seemed to believe me.

“I’m glad you decided to stay at her place last night,” I told her as I ran my fingers through my hair. Things would have been much worse had my mom been at home alone.

“I should have taken her to the hospital yesterday,” she said on a sob.

I wrapped her in my arms again and held her close. “This isn’t your fault. You had no way of knowing she’d do something like this.”

“She had an appointment to see her therapist today, so I figured it was fine to wait,” she began around her tears.

This was too much for my aunt. She’d been taking care of my mom off and on since their early twenties. Even when my mom was doing well, my aunt lived in fear of another breakdown. There was always another breakdown.

“We need to talk about moving Mom closer to me,” I stated when my aunt resumed her pacing.

“She hates Los Angeles,” my aunt insisted. “I hate Los Angeles.”

“I’ll figure out a compromise, and we can start working on it,” I assured her. “There has to be a solution. It’s not fair that you’re always dealing with this sort of thing.”

“She’s my twin,” she stated simply. “I’d do anything for her, or for you.”

“I know you would,” I assured her. “Where’s Uncle Jess?”

“He stayed at home,” she replied. “He caught a nasty cold on the cruise.”

“Why don’t you go home, too?” I suggested. “You can’t do anything while Mom is refusing to see you. I’ll take care of everything. I’ll also see if Colin can come up to visit her. To be honest, he doesn’t leave the house much, so I’m not sure he’ll come.”

“He’s had a rough year,” she reminded me. “I still can’t believe your mom thought he was involved with that girl on the magazine cover.” Her lips curled up in a slight smile.

“It looked convincing,” I told her.

“You and your mom are the only people in the family who didn’t know Colin is gay. Why do you think your father doesn’t talk to him?”

“For the same reason he doesn’t talk to me,” I replied. “My dad’s a dick.”

“Watch your language,” my aunt warned. “I suppose in this case, the description is appropriate. The year you finally convinced your mom to let Colin visit, I was worried about how she’d react to having another woman’s child in her home. After having him there for a month, she told your dad he couldn’t have either of her boys back.”

“My mom loves Colin,” I stated. “It hurt her when my dad finally took him back.”

“That’s why he took him back,” Helen muttered. “Your mom made him mad when he called, and he took Colin away to punish her.”

I nodded, remembering the day Colin had left. It had hit us all hard. My mom had another breakdown, one that kept her away from home for nearly a year. After that, a rift developed between me and my brother. Though I knew he hadn’t wanted to leave, I was still angry with Colin. Colin was angry, too. He was angry about being ripped away from his family and angry with me for being mad at him. When we’d finally started to reconnect after his accident, it had been clear we’d both made mistakes.

“We’re all better off without my dad,” I muttered. “I’m gonna go up to the nurses’ station and ask if I can see my mom. You should go home.”

“You’re right,” she agreed. “Call if you need me. I can always head back.”

She gave me one last hug before walking toward the elevators.

I waited for the nurse manning the desk to finish her phone call.

“Can I help you?” she asked in a harried voice after ending her call. Despite her obvious stress, her smile was genuine and friendly.

“I’d like to see, Karen Addison,” I began. “I’m her son.”

“Gage or Colin?” she asked after entering my mom’s information into the computer.

“Gage,” I replied.

“I’ll call over to her nurse and see if your mom’s up for a visitor,” she told me. Without waiting for a reply, she picked up the phone. “Karen Addison’s son, Gage, is here. All right. I’ll send him back.” She set the phone down and nodded. “She’s in room eleven, straight back and on your left. Her nurse says they gave her a sedative, so she may not be very responsive.”

“Thank you,” I told her as I headed back to my mom’s room. This wasn’t my first time dealing with my mom’s mental illness, but it never got easier. Each time was as scary as the last. I worried one day she wouldn’t come back to me.

I hated the sterile smell of the hospital and the sound of the machines. When I walked into my mom’s room, the nurse looked up and gave me a shy smile. My mom’s eyes were closed, and her soft breathing indicated she was asleep.

“How’s she doing?” I asked.

“She was extremely agitated, so we had to give her a sedative,” the nurse replied, giving me another shy smile. “Someone from Psychiatry came in to evaluate her before she was sedated, and they expect to move her over there tomorrow. We want to monitor her overnight to make sure there are no residual effects from the drugs she ingested.”

I nodded but said nothing.

“I’m going to check on another patient,” she began before removing her gloves and tossing them in the trash. “Hit the call button if you need anything. I expect your mom will be out for the next few hours.”

“Okay,” I replied quietly. When the nurse was out of the room, I sat beside the bed and took my mom’s hand. “I’m sorry I didn’t see that you were having problems, Mom.”

“Love you, Gage,” she said sleepily. I wasn’t certain she was even awake, but it made me smile.

“I know you do,” I uttered.

Since my mom said nothing more, I decided to text both Colin and Bentley.

My first text was to Colin.

Gage: Mom is doing okay. They are going to transfer her tomorrow. I’m not sure how long she’ll be in this time.

Colin: I’ll be out there tomorrow afternoon. I know you need to get back to LA soon. I’m going to stay in Portland for a week. Marie is making the arrangements.

Gage: I’m glad you’ll be here. Helen isn’t handling it well this time. She’s blaming herself.

Colin: I know how she feels. I should have told Mom what was going on over the phone.

Gage: She would have found something else to fixate on. We’ve been through this before. It’s not your fault.

Colin: I still feel bad. Would you like to explain why Marie was with you when you got the call about Mom?

Gage: No. Just let it go.

Colin: Okay. If she was a man, I might be tempted to leave James for her.

My brother’s joke actually made me smile. It also made me wonder if he was trying to play matchmaker. That didn’t seem like my brother.

Gage: She’s a friend. It’s all she wants.

Colin: That’s a pity.

Gage: No. It’s a good thing.

It was true. The alternative was not having her in my life, so I wasn’t about to complain about having Bentley as a friend. At least, I hoped she was my friend. Her actions could mean nothing, but I felt like we’d bonded. My next text was to Bentley.

Gage: I made it to the hospital.

Bentley: How is your mom doing?

Gage: She’ll make it. They have her sedated.

Bentley: I’m so sorry you’re going through this.

Gage: Thank you again for everything you’ve done.

Bentley: You’re welcome. It was awkward when Colin asked why I was with you. I avoided answering him, but he’ll probably push you for details.

Gage: I told him we’re friends and to leave it at that. We are friends, right?

Bentley: Yes, we are friends. Is there anything I can do for you?

Gage: You’ve done more than you can imagine by offering.

Bentley: Message me if you think of anything you need.

Gage: Thanks.

Bentley: You can also call me if you need to talk.

I put my phone back in my pocket and looked over at my mom. She was sleeping soundly, thanks to the sedative. “She’s definitely not a whore, Mom.”

I let out a sigh as I leaned back in the uncomfortable hospital chair. “She could be the one. Too bad she won’t let that happen.”