Chapter 16 - One Last Spring

When she reached the landing, Gwen paused to catch her breath. Male voices were coming from her aunt’s bedroom, and she noticed that the door was ajar. With some trepidation, she continued forward, and after giving a light tap on the door, she pushed it open. Immediately, the two men inside fell silent, turning to face her as she walked in. A woman rose from a chair at Aunty Jane’s bedside and moved toward her.

“Gwen!” she said softly. “I’m so glad you’re home.”

Lewis may have inherited his stature from his father, but his dark hair and startlingly blue eyes were the spitting image of his mother’s. And when Mair Morgan put her arms around Gwen, Gwen clung to her. Until that moment, she hadn’t realized how much she’d needed physical and emotional support.

“How is she?” Gwen asked, pulling back a little.

Mair gave a gentle smile and took Gwen by the hand, leading her to the bed. “She’s resting peacefully.”

Gwen looked down at her aunt. Lying under the covers of her bed, with her gray hair spread across the pillow, Aunty Jane looked smaller and frailer than Gwen had ever seen her. Gwen reached out to touch her aunt’s hand. Its warmth was reassuring.

“Has she woken yet?”

Mair nodded. “She opened her eyes for the first time about an hour ago. The doctor was here, and he can tell you about it.”

The man standing next to Owen stepped forward and shook her hand. “Miss Humphreys,” he said. “I’m Dr. Edwards.”

Dr. Edwards looked as though he was in his midthirties. He wore a rather shabby black suit and shoes that had obviously seen a lot of wear. His brown hair was parted carefully down the middle, and his serious gray eyes studied her through dark-rimmed, round spectacles.

“Thank you for coming, Dr. Edwards,” Gwen said. “Do you know what’s wrong with my aunt?”

The doctor cleared his throat. “I believe your aunt has suffered a stroke,” he said, and when Gwen looked at him blankly, he explained further. “You may be familiar with the term apoplexy. For years, medical science has been trying to understand what causes that sudden, violent attack that usually ends in death. We now believe it’s caused by either too much or too little blood reaching the brain. The severity of this brain attack, as it’s sometimes called, determines the seriousness of the symptoms.”

Gwen glanced at Lewis’s parents. Were they following this? Other than her family’s exposure to the measles, she’d had very little experience with medical issues. Dr. Edward’s explanation sounded credible—in a farfetched sort of way—but she didn’t know what this meant for her aunt. “How bad was my aunt’s brain attack?” she asked.

Dr. Edwards sighed. “At this point, I’m afraid I can’t tell you,” he said. “The fact that she awoke, even for a short time, is very encouraging, but until we can talk to her, we won’t know much more than that.”

Gwen experienced a wave of panic. “But surely you can tell me something! Will she recover?”

“Recover from her current condition, yes,” Dr. Edwards said. “I believe that is probable. But I have to be honest. It’s far less likely that she’ll be just as she was before the stroke hit.”

“What do you mean?”

“Some patients experience paralysis or difficulty with the most basic physical movement. Speech and memory can also be affected. We won’t know your aunt’s condition until she’s able to respond to my questions.”

“Your aunt’s a strong woman, Gwen.” Owen spoke for the first time. “She’ll fight back from this.”

Mair nodded her agreement and squeezed Gwen’s hand that she still held. “Of course she will, bach.”

There was a faint moan from the bed, and everyone’s attention suddenly became riveted on Aunty Jane. Dr. Edwards moved closer.

“Mrs. Jones, can you hear me?” He patted her hand.

Aunty Jane’s eyes fluttered open. For a second, she stared, unseeing, at the doctor, then a look of panic filled her eyes and she gave a small cry. Gwen stepped up beside him.

“It’s all right, Aunty Jane. You had a fall,” she said, willing her voice to remain steady. “This is Dr. Edwards. He’s here to help you.”

Aunty Jane’s eyes flickered between Gwen and the doctor, but still she said nothing.

“Can you understand what we’re saying, Mrs. Jones?” Dr. Edwards asked.

Slowly Aunty Jane moved her head up and down.

“Excellent.” The doctor seemed genuinely pleased. “I’m going to test the feeling in your arms and legs,” he explained. “I don’t want you to be alarmed. It will take only a moment.”

Aunty Jane continued to lie completely still as the doctor took a pin out of his jacket pocket. He touched the pin to Aunty Jane’s right hand. “Can you feel that?” he asked.

She gave a small, mute nod, and the doctor moved to the end of the bed, pulled the bed clothes up, and touched the pin to her right foot.

“What about that?”

Gwen knew Aunty Jane was not herself when her only response to a man’s exposing and touching her feet was another slight nod. She clenched her hands. Please, God, she prayed silently, please bless my aunt.

Dr. Edwards moved over to the other side of the bed. This time when he touched the pin to Aunty Jane’s left foot, she lay quietly, unresponsive. The doctor tried again. “Nothing?” he asked.

Aunty Jane watched as he moved up to her left hand and touched the pin to her middle finger. She blinked several times, her expression puzzled.

“Can you move your fingers?” Dr. Edwards asked.

Slowly two of the fingers on her aunt’s right hand moved.

“How about your feet?”

The blanket covering Aunty Jane’s right foot twitched a fraction of an inch, but the left foot remained still.

Dr. Edwards moved to stand beside Gwen. “Do you know who this is, Mrs. Jones?” he asked, pushing Gwen a little closer to her aunt.

Aunty Jane stared at her, and Gwen watched her aunt’s mouth move as though she were formulating silent words. A tear rolled down Gwen’s cheek, quickly followed by another. A look of distress crossed her aunt’s face.

“G . . . G . . . Gw . . . e . . . en.” Her voice was soft, and her articulation painfully slow, but there was no mistaking the name.

“That’s right.” The doctor said with satisfaction. “Well done, indeed.”

Aunty Jane’s eyes had not left Gwen’s face. Gwen wiped the tears away with her hand and gave as brave a smile as she could muster.

“You’ll be feeling better in no time, Aunty Jane,” she said.

“G . . . Gwen.” This time Aunty Jane’s voice was stronger.Gwen knelt down beside the bed and reached for her aunt’s lifeless hand. “I’m here,” she said.

Her aunt’s eyelids fluttered again before slowly closing. Gwen laid her forehead against the bedcovers, feeling as though her heart was going to break.

“Well, that was very encouraging,” Dr. Edwards said.

“Encouraging?” Gwen could hardly believe her ears.

“Indeed.” The doctor was smiling. “Your aunt has feeling on at least one side of her body, recognized you, and was able to say your name. Believe me, Miss Humphreys, that is very encouraging.”

“You mark my words, Gwen,” Owen said. “She’ll beat this.”

“I tend to agree with Mr. Morgan,” Dr. Edwards said, still directing his comments to Gwen. “The fact that she tried your name again with noticeable improvement is a very good sign.”

“A little time, bach.” Mair spoke behind her. “That’s what it will take. That and some heartfelt prayers.”

Gwen got to her feet, brushed the dust off her skirt, and dug deep for some measure of courage. “What do I need to do, doctor?”

Giving her an approving look, Dr. Edwards reached into his black medical bag and pulled out a small bottle of liquid.

“I’ll leave you with some medicine and instructions for your aunt’s immediate care,” he said. “Then I’ll come back next week to check on her.”

Mair put her arm around Gwen. “And you won’t have to do it alone either. Bronwen Richards has already stopped by, offering to help. With the two of us willing to take a shift, there’s no reason for you to wear yourself to the bone. We’ll help you all we can.”

Gwen fought back her tears. “Thank you,” she said.

“You’re welcome,” Mair said. Then, with a knowing look, she added, “And when the doctor has finished talking to you, I want you downstairs in the kitchen. Making sure you don’t wear yourself out includes reminding you to eat. I daresay you haven’t eaten anything since Dai picked you up in Llanfyllin, have you?”

It seemed incredible that meeting Dai in the headmaster’s office had happened earlier that very day; it felt like a hundred years ago. “No,” Gwen admitted. “No, I haven’t, but to be honest, I’m not sure that I can manage anything at the moment.”

“I’ll not take no for an answer, Gwen Humphreys,” Mair warned. She started for the bedroom door. “I’ll have a cup of tea and some toast ready for you as soon as you’ve finished here.” Then she turned and faced Dr. Edwards. “You too, doctor. You’ll need something before you leave.”

As Mair walked out the door, Owen gave a low chuckle. “There’s no point arguing, Gwen,” he said. “The boys and I learned that long ago.”

The thought of tall, broad-shouldered Lewis being bossed around by his pretty, petite mother produced Gwen’s first smile since she’d walked out of her geometry class. Overwhelmingly thankful for the good people of Llanwddyn, who treated her like family even though she’d been gone from them for months, Gwen directed her attention to the doctor and on memorizing everything he told her.