For Keeps (Aggie's Inheritance) (32 page)

Tina took one look and reached for Aggie’s phone.
“
Call the expert. Libby will probably know just from a description or something. She seems to know everything.
”

Feeling like a needy nuisance, Aggie punched the number for Libby and waited for the woman to answer.
“
Good morning, Libby. I’m sorry for calling so early, but we have a situation here.
”

“
What’s up?
”

Hearing the woman’s voice made Aggie disgusted. It was her opinion that no human should be anywhere near that chipper on that particular morning.
“
The twins have some kind of rash. I don’t even know what to call it to Google it. Can I beg you to come over and see? It’s either you or the clinic, and you know how they already think
I’m an idiot.
”

“
Now, silly, I’ll be over in a bit.
”

~*~*~*~

“
Just as I suspected. Chicken pox.
”
She smiled reassuringly.
“
So, who has had it and who hasn’t?
”

With a shrug, Aggie picked up her phone to ask her mother, but Vannie answered.
“
None of us have had it yet. Mommy wouldn’t let us get the vaccine
--
something about overloading the body and effectiveness. Anyway, the doctor said that it’s harder to catch now than it used to be.
”

The girl’s words sank into Aggie’s heart, weighting it down with new cares.
“
So, does that mean it’s more dangerous to get now if you don’t have the vaccine? Should I get the other kids shots right away to prevent them from getting it? School starts on Tuesday!
”

Libby put her arm around Aggie’s shoulder and led her to the kitchen.
“
Why don’t you start on breakfast? I’ll send Tina for some Caladryl and the girls will be comfortable in no time.
”
At the look of protest on Aggie’s face when she glanced at the confused and miserable little girls huddled on the couch, Libby added,
“
Don’t worry. They’re going to be fine. Getting the chicken pox when you’re still young is usually harmless. Uncomfortable, but harmless.

“
Ok… is it really contagious? Should we separate them?
”

“
Well, we can try, but it’s probably not very effective. You’re contagious for a day or two before the rash appears. All the children were in the car with them yesterday.
”

Those words didn’t help Aggie’s confidence.
“
And how long before the next person breaks out if they were exposed yesterday?
”

“
Aggie,
”
Libby’s voice was deliberately patient, and Aggie knew it.
“
They could have been exposed anytime in the last two weeks! Whoever exposed Cari and Lorna, pr
obably Corinne’s children,
”
Libby soun
ded as apologetic as she looked,
“
m
ost likely exposed the others too.
”
Smiling, she added,
“
On the bright side, if Vannie and Laird haven’t gotten them by now, they might have acquired an immunity somehow. Maybe a nurse gave them the vaccine without knowing she wasn’t supposed to or something.
”

While Aggie pulled out boxes of cereal, milk, and the leftover honeydew melon from the previous day’s snack, Libby took charge in the living room.
“
Well, now. I think we’ll turn the library into sort of a sick room. There’s no reason not to try to isolate the little ones on the off chance that they haven’t already spread it.

“
Oh,
”
she continued, hardly pausing,
“
does the clinic have their medical records? You might
consider
hav
ing
them sent
,
just in case someone gets
really sick
and you have to take
them
in.
”

Nothing, not even Libby’s chipper attitude
,
could wipe the feeling of dread in Aggie’s heart. As the children munched on their cereal, she read about chicken pox online, staring at the pictures of rashes as if they were the cause of her latest trial. She mentally calculated how long the disease could take if each child got them one at a time, and, a little over-dramatically, prayed that everyone was healthy by Christmas.

Luke arrived a while later with a bag full of items designed to soothe the children and make their ordeal more bearable. As he unloaded the items on the desk in the library, he glanced toward the living room and frowned. Aggie sat, head in her hands, the picture of dejection. Libby gave him an understanding smile and took a box of oatmeal bath powder.
“
Come on, girls. Let’s get you a nice comfortable bath, and then I’ll put pink lotion on all of your spots.
”

The other children had disappeared outside to play with the puppies. They all seemed quite determined to avoid getting what Kenzie persisted in calling,
“
the chicken
box
.
”
Occasionally, someone peeked in the window to watch the spot-covering procedure, but the Milliken-Stuart household, sans Ian, had never been so free of ever-present children. The difference was so marked that Aggie said in disgust,
“
Now Murphy will come over to accuse me of stifling them. I can hear it now, ‘It was too quiet, your honor.’
”

As promised, the bath seemed to soothe the girls, and while Aggie made calls requesting medical records, Libby covered each individual pock that she could find with a drop of calamine infused with antihistamine. Tina took guard duty over Ian and Kenzie while Luke settled the little ones in the library with a stack of books, promising to read every single one. Between two Dr. Seuss silly tales, Libby gave them each a dose of Tylenol and brought them fruit and juice to enjoy.

As Luke finished yet another story, he glanced at the girls and quietly closed the book. Each girl lay curled in her own beanbag chair, sleeping. He glanced up at his mother as she cut out flannel nightgowns for winter and said,
“
This isn’t exactly getting the basement done, is it?
”

“
I’m sure Aggie appreciates the help. She’s going to need it. I tried to downplay her fears of weeks or even over a month of pox, but I think it’s likely.
”

“
How many of us got them together, Mom? I only have a vague recollection of it at all. It itched.
”

Libby’s eyebrows drew together in a concentrated effort to remember.
“
I’m not sure, but I think it was two at a time. I know it was several years apart.
”
She glanced in the living room where Aggie clicked her way through page after page of information on her laptop.
“
Go talk to her, son. I think this is overwhelming her, and I should finish folding these clothes and keep an eye on the girls.
”

He crossed the room and wrapped his arms around his mother.
“
You’re the greatest; did you know that?
”

“
Oh, Luke
--”

“
No, really. Remember that song that Dad used to sing about wanting a girl like his dad married? That’s exactly what I want
--
a girl just like Dad’s best girl.
”
A
discernible
sadness filled his eyes.
“
Dad would be so proud of you. He loved knowing you had a heart for young mothers.
”

With pink-tinged cheeks, Libby pushed her son away saying,
“
You certainly learned your father’s gift for flattery. Go whisper sweet nothings to someone else; I’m not listening.
”

Aggie, once again, sat with her head in her hands, looking like the picture of dejection and despair. He looked back to the library and saw his mother watching. Her encouraging nod gave Luke the confidence
to try to comfort her. At first
he patted her back, trying to think of something encouraging to say
,
but then realized she was praying. Rel
ief washed over him
as Luke tugged her hand out from under her chin. Prayer was something he could handle.

Minutes passed before Aggie raised her head and smiled at him. Without a word, she rose, dragged herself into the kitchen, and he heard her pulling things from the freezer. The familiar clink of her whisk against the glass pitcher she liked to use for lemonade gave him hope that she’d come to terms with the children’s illness.

As she handed him a drink, Luke noticed that the rueful expression she’d developed as his mother pronounced her diagnosis wasn’t gone. Instead, she looked even more distressed than ever.
“
Hey, Mibs, are you ok?
”

Aggie shook her head.
“
Actually, no. I called Mom to tell her about the latest drama in this house and see what she knows about school and chicken pox and stuff.
”
Frustration was etched in her features.
“
Luke, Mom says I never had chicken pox either. I just never got it.
”
If her distress hadn’t been so genuine, she would have looked comical in her fresh waves of despair.
“
I was all over those little girls this morning, trying to figure out what the rash was. I scrubbed my hands and arms and changed my clothes but
--”
Aggie hardly paused in her frantic monologue of the day’s ills.
“
They all went swimming together, were cooped up in that van all the way there and home… If you’re contagious before you break out, then can I let them go to school on Tuesday? I mean, that’s just crazy, right? How much school will they miss?
”

“
Whoa
, Mibs. That’s a lot of maybes and what ifs. We can take it one day at a time. Mom already said she’d help; this kind of thing is her specialty. I can be here working on the basement half the time, and when I’m not, I’ll just be three streets over working on my new house, so
--”

“
You got it? You didn’t tell me! I’m so excited. Does that mean the other two sold then?
”
The awe in her voice was a familiar one. He bought and renovated homes in less time than most people managed to find a house, move in, and get unpacked.

Luke nodded.
“
I’d planned to see if you’d let Laird help me after school sometimes. He really seems to enjoy the work, and it’d be a nice way for him to earn a little extra money.
”
He took a swig of the lemonade, grateful for the refreshment, and added,
“
I really do enjoy his company.
”