Chapter 11
There was a soft knock at the door. Liz stuck her head around the corner and asked to come in. Abbey stretched out her arms as her oldest daughter ran to her.
"Oh Mom. Why did it have to be Gus? Why? I was there. It should have been me." Liz and her mother were sobbing together.
"Shhh. Be quiet. Gus is with God and he's fine. We had him such a short time but he gave all of us such great pleasure. Shhh. It'll be okay. Your father and I will be here for you and your family. Whatever you need, we'll take care of it."
Trying to change the subject, Abbey asked about Doug. All Liz could do was to start crying again. "Mom, the doctors are not positive he'll make it. He suffered broken ribs that punctured his lungs. His heart was also crushed when the debris hit his sternum. Oh, Mom, I need him so much right now."
"Shhh. We'll deal with whatever happens. We'll help you through this." Abbey said the words, but inside she prayed that Doug would make it. It would devastate Liz to lose both her husband and her son at the same time.
Liz and Abbey stayed this way for some time.
Jed returned to Abbey's room after seeing his granddaughter. Liz had told Annie that Gus was dead. Anne started crying, with her mother holding her gently. Then someone had given her a teddy bear. She fell asleep in her mother's arms in the room next to Abbey. Although almost 14 years old, sometimes one still needed comfort from the little things.
He walked in on Abbey hugging Liz and both women crying softly.
There was then a knock on the door.