The Memory Child (16 page)

Tim reached for a bottle and twisted off the cap before handing it over with a smile. “I learned this trick the last time we moved. FYI, the bottle opener is always the last thing you’
ll find.”

Brian tipped back his beer and enjoyed the cool liquid as it slid down hi
s throat.

“So, are you here to shoot the breeze or do you feel like unpacking?” He swiped at his mouth and set the bo
ttle down.

Tim he shook his head. “Are you nuts? I paid someone to unpack our place the last time. Almost saved our marriage too. Moving is stressful, especially when you have a hormonal pregnant wife. Where is she, by the way?” He leaned his elbows down on the counter and glanc
ed around.

Brian groaned. “At the spa. And seriously, you paid
someone?”

“Yeah.” Tim laughed. “They offered a package I couldn’t refuse. I’m surprised they didn’t include it
for you.”

“They did.” Brian’s lip quirked with the
admission.

“And you turned
it down?”

Brian shrugged. That much was obvious. Maybe he could call them see if they could add it back on at the last minute? Wouldn’t Diane be surprised if she came home to find most of the unpacking
completed?

“Listen, I came here for
a reason.”

Brian took another swig of his beer and waited for the ball to drop. He
knew it.

“I don’t think Marie is working out. We’re getting complaints from the London
office.”

That wasn’t what he was expecting. Of course Marie was working out. He talked to her all the time, walking her through anything that popped up that she couldn’
t handle.

“Why is this the first I’ve heard this? I’m in touch with her daily, Tim. She’s doing fine. Not even a hiccup. Everything is on track. Where’s this com
ing from?”

The look on Tim’s face took Brian aback. He could tell this was a struggle for his boss and that he didn’t necessarily agree with what he was asking. Wouldn’t be the first time Tim had to do the dirty work for William Harper, the COO of Harper and
Wainright.

“I see. No need to say more.” Brian sighed. He knew he’d already lost t
he battle.

Tim shrugged. “William would feel more comfortable if you were heading this up instead o
f Marie.”

That was what he
figured.

“What about my no-travel request until after the baby
is born?”

Tim shook his head. “I’ll make sure that it’s not ex
tensive.”

Brian’s fist clenched. “Even one week is too much. Come on, Tim, this is the least you could do for me.” His original reasoning wasn’t really valid; he wasn’t concerned about Diane anymore. The pregnancy had so far been without complications, and other than the oddly intense mood swings, Diane literally glowed. She was happy and was even excited about their baby’s arrival. He couldn’t wait till they went furniture shopping for the nursery. But he wouldn’t be able to do that for her, with her, if he wasn’t here. And here was where he wanted to be. No questio
ns asked.

“Will would just like you to head over there, take a look at things, and make sure everything is okay. He trusts you. If you say it’s good, then he’ll ca
lm down.”

“I’ve already said everything was good.” Brian crossed his arms and leaned back. He knew he’d have to go if Tim insisted, but he’d make sure it wasn’t withou
t a fight.

“The main concern is that she’s not telling you everything. Please? Go for a week. That’s it. Take a look at the systems in place, talk to the staff, work with her hands-on a bit, and then come back with a glowing report. Diane’s halfway through her pregnancy
, right?”

Brian nodded. “She’s just under thirt
y weeks.”

“So you’ve still got time. Take a week to finish unpacking, then head ove
r there.”

Brian sighed. Diane wasn’t going to be thrilled when she found out. She’d originally argued with him about his decision not to travel, but the further along she got in her pregnancy, the more she seemed to appreciate having him around. How was he going to tell her he was about to leave and that it might be for longer than he wanted? He knew Tim and William—when they said something would only take a week it usually ended up taki
ng three.

“I really don’t have a choic
e, do I?”

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Diane

Present–June

M
ake it stop. Please make it stop.” I barely made any sound with my plea and yet the pounding in my head tripled. I couldn’t move; there was a heaviness to my body that left me unable to even shift slightly in my bed. The room was damp and I couldn’t stop
shivering.

I was
so tired.

“Can you take som
e water?”

The bed dipped as Nina sat
beside me.

“I don’t think I can move.” I groaned as a wave of nause
a hit me.

“On a scale of one to ten, how ba
d is it?”

I heard the rustle of pages being turned and the slight scratch of a pen. She was recording all this. Again. Every day it seemed like she needed to know how I was feeling, what I ate, how much I ate—I complained about it, saying I didn’t need a nursemaid, but she just laughed and said once a nurse, always
a nurse.

But I didn’t need a nurse.
I needed—

“Seven. Maybe an eight.” I cracked open my eyes and the room spun. “Oh God, Nina, I’m going to get sick.” I forced myself up and on my side, just in time to retch into the bowl Nina had read
y for me.

I ha
ted this.

“Why won’t this stop?” I wiped my mouth and sank slowly back until my head rested on m
y pillow.

Nina placed a cold cloth on my forehead and I groaned in relief. At least three times a week this happened, and it was always after a pill Nina gave me the night before. A pill she said would help with my
headaches.

“You’re a liar,” I
whispered.

“I think it’s time to rework your dosage. You’re getting worse, not better,” she
muttered.

“How about we just stop the pills?” I cracked my eyes open again and caught the frown on
her face.

“We can’t do that. The withdrawal is too hard on your body. But we’ll do a gradual decrease and see if that helps.” She sat up and pulled up the covers. “Get some sleep now. I promise when you wake up, you’ll feel much
better.”

“I can’t do this anymore, Nina.” I closed my eyes and sighed. I just wanted
to sleep.

“Shhh. Try t
o sleep.”

I turned my head and focused on my breathing. In and out. In and out. Voices drifted in as the door closed behind Nina leaving the bedroom. I just made out Charli
e’s voice.

“How is sh
e today?”

“Better. I think it’s
working.”

That caught my attention. Was that relief in Nina’s voice? Didn’t she just tell me she thought I was gett
ing worse?

“Any me
ntion of—”

“None.”

“That’s a first. Tha
t’s…”

I couldn’t hear anything else. Their voices drifted away as I lay there. The only sound I heard was the jackhammer i
n my head.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Brian

September 2013

T
he wind blew across their path, stirring up the leaves in
its wake.

Hand in hand, Brian and Diane headed down their street. It was a nightly ritual they’d started, these evening walks. All they needed was a dog to join them, and they’d blend right in with the rest of their neighbors. He’d mentioned it last night while they were in the park and Diane said she’d think
about it.

For the first time since they’d been married, she hadn’t laughed at the su
ggestion.

On his way home from work today, he’d noticed a new coffee shop that had opened a few blocks down and suggested they walk down and try it ou
t tonight.

“Hey, neighbor.” A head popped up from beneath the hood
of a car.

“Car t
roubles?”

Brian liked their neighbor of two doors down. They’d met Chad and his wife, Natasha, earlier in the summer at the community gar
age sale.

Chad scratched the top of his b
ald head.

“One year I’d like to own a car that doesn’t give me problems.” His lips twisted while he wiped his hands o
n a cloth.

Diane snickered and Brian caught what she’d seen. Chad had grease on his hands and his forehead was covere
d with it.

“Um…” Brian pointed to Cha
d’s head.

Chad glanced at his hands and shrugged. He scrubbed at his forehead but it only smudged t
he grease.

“Tash?” he yelled over his
shoulder.

“What’s up?” Natasha, his wife, rounded the corner and started to laugh once she saw he
r husband.

Brian looked down at Diane and they bot
h smiled.

While Chad looked like a big ox with his large stomach and tree trunk arms, his wife was a dainty piece of china who barely reached his
shoulder.

“Are you trying to make us look like rednecks? It’s bad enough you keep buying junkers to fix up. Do you need to look like one?” Natasha groaned as she came outside. She bypassed her husband and headed down to the
sidewalk.

“It’s a beautiful night for a walk, isn’t it?” Natasha reached out for Diane’s hand. “I’ve been meaning to come over with some baked goods, but Chad said that made me look too desperate.” Natasha shrugged. “So, I figured I’d wait till you were home one day and invite you over fo
r coffee.”

“Coffee would be nice.” Diane smiled and leaned i
nto Brian.

He wrapped his arm around her. He really wanted them to make friends here. More important, he wanted Diane to make some friends. Women she could chat with over coffee and swap baby sto
ries with.

“Hey, buddy, how are you?” Chad grabbed Brian’s hand and c
rushed it.

Brian knew right away Chad would be a guy to relax with. From the overalls to the beer belly to the bandana stuck in the back pocket of the overalls, the guy reeked of grease and sweat. In a good way. It would be nice to have a friend who wasn’t in the corporate world, who didn’t wear a suit and tie every day, and who wouldn’t talk incessantly about the newest computer software on t
he market.

“Are you a tinkerer?” C
had asked.

Brian grimaced at the thought but Diane answere
d for him.

“Only when it comes to co
mputers.”

“Ahh.” Chad nodded. “A computer nerd.
Gotcha.”

Brian shrugged and glanced at their house and yard. Chad must have a nice comfy job to afford this place. It was larger tha
n theirs.

Natasha slapped Chad on the arm. “And what do you call yourself?” Her arms crossed over her small chest as she glared up at he
r husband.

Brian had to bite his tongue to keep the smile off
his face.

“A computer geek with attitude.” Chad winked over at Brian before he placed both hands on his wife’s cheeks and ki
ssed her.

Brian chuckled. He never would have taken Chad as working in the same fie
ld as him.

“Where are you guys headed?” C
had asked.

Brian glanced down the street but Diane cut him off before he co
uld speak.

“There’s a new coffee shop we’re going to check out. Care to
join us?”

Natasha beamed a huge smile but shook her head. “I just took
an apple pie out of the oven. Why don’t you join us for a slice
instead?”

“Oh, wait a minute now.” Chad glared at his wife. “You’d better have made more than one pie if you’re going to be offering my dessert to everyone on the
street.”

Brian caught the twinkle in his eye. “Come on now, what’s a little pie between neighbors?” He couldn’t help b
ut tease.

A teasing glint appeared in Chad’s eyes just before Natasha nudged him in the ribs to keep
him quiet.

“If you’re sure we’re not putting you out?” Diane glanced up at Brian. He smiled down at her. He couldn’t have planned this night any better if h
e’d tried.

A full stomach and an hour later, Brian was in Chad’s garage pretending to admire the engine Chad was obviously working on. Brian had never been mechanically inclined and had no idea what Chad was talking about, but he nodded and grunted in what he hoped were the appropria
te places.

“I imagine you do a lot of traveling in your position?” Chad’s unexpected question caught Brian by
surprise.

“A b
it. Why?”

Chad slammed the hood down and leaned against t
he grille.

“I left my last job because of that. I couldn’t handle the travel. I got tired of sleeping in lumpy hotel beds and eating fried food all the time.” He rubbed his belly. “Although you wouldn’t
know it.”

Brian knew the feeling all too well. “So, what do you
do now?”

“Same thing, just no travel. I own a consulting company now and have a good team. We work with small companies that can’t afford an in-hou
se tech.”

Impressed, Brian got Chad to talk more about his company and how he’d gone about setting it up. One day he might do the same.
One day.

“Listen, with the baby coming, if you ever need us to keep an eye on your place or help out, just let us know. I know what it’s like to not be around when your wife calls at two in the morning with a flooded
kitchen.”

Brian didn’t know wha
t to say.

“I mean it, buddy. We’re here if you need us.” Chad slapped Brian on the shoulder. “Come on, if we don’t get back in there, the girls will start planning double date
s for us.”

When they entered the kitchen, Diane’s face had gone pale white and he caught the small shake of her hands as she lifted the coffee mug to
her lips.

“What’
s wrong?”

Natasha glanced over to them, stricken. “I’m so sorry. I thought y
ou knew.”

“Knew what?” Brian rushed over to Diane and placed his hands on her shoulders. He could feel her body shake beneath his touch. She wasn’t one to normally get rattled, so it wo
rried him.

“The baby’s room…the baby died.” Diane looked up at him, her eyes brimming with tears. “The baby died.” She blinked and tears trickled down
her face.

“Oh God, Tasha. Why did you have to tell her?” Chad
groaned.

“I thought they knew. I’m s
o sorry.”

Brian heard her apology but he didn’t respond. He was too focused on Diane. He knelt beside her and took her hands. They were frozen. He rubbed them, trying to get the blood circulating to warm
them up.

“Diane, honey. It’s okay. Why don’t we go home and get you into a nice hot bath? You’re freezing.” When she gripped his hand hard,
he winced.

“Brian, the baby died in that house. And the mother got so depressed they had to move just to get away from the reminder. What if that happens to our baby?” Her eyes closed and her body swayed. Brian’s anxiety level rose at the thought of her pas
sing out.

“Come on, baby. Let’s get you home.” He put his arm around her and helped
her stand.

“We never should have moved here,” she whispered against him as he led her out of
the house.

“It’s going to be okay. Don’t even think that way. It’s all going to be okay.” Brian tried to comfort her. He ignored his own misgivings as they walked up to their fr
ont porch.

How could he not know? How could the Realtor not tell him? He never would have bought the house o
therwise.

As he helped Diane up the stairs and got her bathwater ready, an overwhelming sense of guilt ate at him. What could he do now? How could he make thi
s better?

The paleness of her skin and the shivers that took over her body told him there was nothing he
could do.