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“If it’s that painful, then maybe you shouldn’t talk about it,” I suggested. I hated seeing her so upset. And it wasn’t good for her health either. I could hear her begin labored breaths. I turned on the oxygen tank and put the mask over her nose and mouth. “Now, take a few deep breaths.”
She did as I said, and slowly her breathing came back to normal.
When I removed the mask Anya instructed me to sit as well. I did and she said, “I need you to do something for me. Something very important. I can’t trust anyone else to do this except for you.”
“Anya, I’m here for you. Always. You know that.” She wasn’t just a job to me any longer. I had been her 24/7 caregiver for three years. The only time I took off was on Sunday afternoons, when the doctor sent one of his nurses to sit with her so I could at least attend dinner with my family. This kind of time together had created a different kind of bond between us. One built on trust. This was the first time she had voiced those words.
“Good. I need you to go to Tabiq,” she said.
“Where?” I had never heard of that place. Then again, I wasn’t all that well-traveled. Unless it had a great beach, it wasn’t my vacation spot.
“Tabiq. It is a country that most people have never heard of. I need you to bring this to my son Mayson.” She handed me an envelope.
Son? I never knew you had one.
“Wouldn’t it be easier to mail it?” I asked.
“No. I need you to give this to him when he’s ready to receive it,” she said.
What the hell does that mean?
“I’m confused.”Very confused. “You mean I am not just going there and handing it to him?”
“I haven’t spoken to him in many years. Not since he was a young boy. If you hand it to him, he may never read it. I need you to go and get him to understand that I need him to read this letter,” she explained.
“Why would he listen to me? He doesn’t know me. Shouldn’t you send maybe...” I turned to Mr. Cain and said, “your lawyer?”
She shook her head. “No. He will not accept anything Mr. Cain has to say. He will insist on his older brother Orion being there.”
“You have two sons?” I said, surprised.
“Yes. Orion and Mayson. But Orion is...stubborn.”
Like his mother?
“If you haven’t seen him in years, maybe he’s changed,” I said. I knew that I wasn’t the same person I was when I was a kid. Thank goodness for that because I was a spoiled brat. My father gave me everything I wanted. He called me his little princess. My mother had other names for me.
“He has. He’s...a wonderful man. He’s about to get married to a beautiful woman named Raya. He’s happy and his life is full.”
“That’s a good thing, right?” I asked. Sounded so to me.
“It is, but he is also full of resentment towards me. Rightfully so. If he learns what I am doing, contacting Mayson, he will put a stop to it. Then I will lose both of my boys forever,” she sobbed. “There is so much I need to say to them. Explain why I left. You are the only one who can get him to listen.”
She was giving me a lot of credit. I could barely convince stubborn patients to take their prescribed medications, and I was theirnurse. How was I supposed to talk someone, who didn’t know me at all, into trusting me and reading whatever she had in that envelope?
“I’m not the person for that task. You should ask someone else,” I stated.
“Crystal, you know I have no one. And I’m getting sicker. I want to make amends for what I have done. It is my dying wish. Please do this for me,” she pleaded.
I wanted to tell her that she wasn’t dying but her prognosis wasn’t good. The doctor made it clear that Anya had given up hope and without that, her will to live had dwindled as well. Maybe this is what she needed to rekindle her spark for life. Hope. Family. Two powerful things that medicine couldn’t provide.
Damn it. I’m really going to do this, aren’t I?
It wasn’t for any other reason than to give Anya a reason to fight for life and not to give up.
“I’ll do this but only on one condition,” I said.
“What is that?” she asked.
