AUTHOR'S NOTES: So... I maybe went a little overboard with the drama in this chapter. I'm not apologizing for it, I'm just letting you know because if any readers are parents, this chapter might hurt.
Three Weeks Ago...
Julieta couldn't calm the increasing panic that was growing inside her as she paced the surgical waiting room. The results of Mirabel's CT scan revealed brain swelling, so instead of waiting for the images of her abdomen, Mira's doctors promptly took her into surgery.
As Bruno, Agustin, and Luisa entered the room, followed by Pepa and Antonio, Juli sat down in one of the chairs. Her voice was shaky as she gave an update. "Mira has a head contusion, which is a really severe bruise on her brain," she explained as she looked at Antonio, who held onto his mother tightly. "The surgeons are going to...," she paused, her voice catching. Glancing at her husband, Juli continued, "They're going to open up her skull to reduce the swelling and drain any bleeding. Then Mira will have exploratory surgery for her abdominal injuries. Once she's stable, they'll... they'll proceed with amputating both of her legs."
"But Mira's going to be okay, isn't she?" Luisa pressed, hopefully. "After the surgeries?"
Shaking her head as Agustin pulled her to her feet and held her for a moment, Julieta looked at her family and took a deep breath before going on. "Mirabel is in critical condition. And we won't know if she'll be okay until she regains consciousness." Pulling away, she gestured to the door, trying to focus not falling apart as she spoke. "Go get some rest. There's nothing any of us can do right now. I'll call as soon as I have some news."
"Juli, are you sure you want to be alone right now?" Bruno asked, nervously.
Nodding, Julieta gave her brother a look and a brave smile as she shooed everyone away. Sitting down once more, she waited until she was certain no one would hear her before she broke down, crying.
x
Julieta was abruptly woken up by the blaring sound of monitor alarms and the announcement of a code blue. She quickly jumped out of her chair and rushed into the recovery room, catching a quick glimpse of two surgeons hurrying Mirabel back into the operating room. Trying to follow them, she was interrupted by Amita Ruiz, who firmly guided her back to the hallway as she said, "Sorry Julieta, you can't be in there right now."
"It's my baby!" Julieta pleaded, tears streaming down her face. "Amita, please! That's my little girl in there!"
"And that's why you know you can't be in there," Amita pressed as Julieta started to go back in. "Listen to me. If you go in there, you'll be too emotional and you'll just be in the way."
Just as Julieta was about to continue arguing, she suddenly dropped to her knees upon hearing one of the doctors exclaim, "Charging!" Wailing in anguish, she wrapped her arms around herself and fervently begged and prayed that Mirabel would not be lost forever. "No! No, God, please!" Hearing the call to charge the defibrillator a second time, Juli began sobbing uncontrollably, not even registering Amita kneeling beside her and holding her tightly.
x
Some time later, Julieta felt Amita helping her up from where the pair had been sitting on the floor as Dr. Emilio Norton came out with a grim expression, even though there was a relieved look in his eyes. "There was a complication from the initial surgery. Mirabel had a cardiac tamponade and she went into cardiac arrest."
"Ai Dios," Julieta breathed, burying her face in her hands and leaning against the wall as she felt her knees go weak.
"We managed to bring her back," Dr. Norton assured her, placing a reassuring hand on Juli's arm. "But she's not in the clear just yet. We'll be closely monitoring her heart and breathing in case any further complications arise." He became less optimistic as he continued. "Mirabel has been through a lot in the past day. She's suffered abdominal injuries, broken ribs, leg fractures, and head trauma... Julieta, Mira is currently in a coma. There's a chance she could wake up at any time, but the longer she remains unconscious... the less likely it is. You and your family... You need to be prepared for the worst."
x
When Mirabel was eventually transferred to the Intensive Care Unit, her family members took it in turns to visit her, and Antonio was the last one to go in.
As he tentatively approached Mira's bed, the young boy could hardly believe that the person lying there, connected to monitors, IVs, and tubes, was his vibrant and joyful prima.
Mirabel appeared pale, and a section of her head had been shaved and wrapped in bandages with tubes protruding from it.
"The doctors had to cut open Mira's skull, chest, and belly to repair the injuries she had inside. The tubes are there to drain any blood and fluid that was building up," Julieta explained to Antonio as she sat him on the bed where Mira's feet would have been. Showing her sobrino the bandaged ends of Mirabel's legs, she went on. "Because Mira's legs were injured so badly, the surgeons had to cut them off. When she gets better, she'll be able to use artificial legs."
"When is Mirabel going to wake up?" Antonio wanted to know, looking at his tia hopefully.
"I don't know, Tonito," Julieta replied, honestly. "That's up to Mira." Trying to put on a brave smile, she added, "But maybe if you talk to her, it will help her wake up quicker."
Thinking about his father's book series, Antonio looked up at Mirabel and he said, "Mira? It's me, Antonio. Papa said that he and Tio Bruno are going to start the final book about Hernando, Jorge, and The Seer. I'm sad that the stories will be over, but Papa said that the last mission is about Jorge and Hernando finding out about who The Seer really is. If you want, I can read you the other books until you wake up. I can't do voices like Papa does... is that okay?"
Handing Antonio the book he'd brought with him, Julieta settled into the chair by the bed as her sobrino began to read aloud.
"'In the old house, Jorge and Hernando were a strange pair. Hernando, his face hidden under a hooded cloak, was fearless, while Jorge, wearing an ancient helmet, was afraid of everything. They stood together, reading a handwritten letter on the kitchen table...'"
Slipping into Mirabel's room in the middle of the night, Alma sat down on the edge of the bed, taking her nieta's hand and squeezing it gently. "There aren't enough words to describe how sorry I am, Mirabel. It doesn't matter why I hurt you. I should never have said the things I did. Because of your disability, I treated you like you weren't really a part of the family." Tears sliding down her cheeks, she pressed on. "Mira, you are the most important part of La Familia Madrigal. We can survive and thrive without miracles or magic. But we can't live without you. Please, Mirabel... Please come back to us, mi vida."
"Did it really take your granddaughter almost dying for you to finally appreciate her?" murmured Julieta from the shadows as she sat up in the chair she had been curled up in. "And what if Mirabel doesn't survive, Mama? What will happen then? Are you just going to let us all fall apart because Mira was the one holding us together?" Rising to her feet, she moved into the faint light from the hallway, glaring at her mother. "What are you even doing here? Mira has been in the ICU for a week now and you have only visited her twice. Meanwhile, Agustin, Bruno, Luisa, and I have been taking turns sitting with her night and day, waiting for her to wake up."
"I witnessed your father's murder, Julieta," Alma replied, her voice steady and soft, but thick with emotion. "I lied to you before, saying that they threw his body into the river. But in reality, they cut him down and threw him on the ground right in front of me. I saw Pedro take his final breath... I watched his eyes close after he looked at me for the last time."
Finally facing her daughter, she added, "I've been terrified that I will be the one by Mirabel's side when her heart stops beating... When she joins your father... Julieta, Mirabel could die. You and I both know that... and you know why we don't want to admit it. Because we're both afraid of being the ones with her when she takes her final breath." Turning back to Mira, Alma admitted, "When Mirabel's door faded, I believed it was a sign that her life would be too short for her to need a Gift. I have been pushing her away for years, thinking it would hurt less when she eventually passed."
"But now the... th-the time might be coming and..." Julieta's voice caught in her throat as she sat down on the other side of the bed, taking Mira's other hand. "Mama, if Mirabel dies... there's nothing that will make the pain any less."
"I need Mira to live, Juli," Alma whispered. "I need to make things right. I'll never forgive myself if my nieta dies because of me."
It was nearly two weeks after the Madrigal home fell and as Bruno sat with Mirabel, he found himself struggling to keep his anxiety at bay. There wasn't much wood in the hospital that he could knock on, and the medical staff got testy at him if he threw salt.
Sitting crosslegged in the chair next to Mira's bed, he fidgeted with the hem of his new ruana as he talked to his comatose sobrina.
"Julieta gave me a new ruana because I had to use mine to stabilize your and Isabela's injuries when the house collapsed. She's also been trying to help me gain weight. And she's been trying to keep Isabela occupied, but your sister blames herself for you getting hurt... Your grandmother also believes she's at fault, and she's not entirely wrong, but... I suppose we all want someone else to be responsible, because otherwise... we're all to blame in some way. We all played a part in causing the cracks. But assigning blame won't fix things. We need to change, but nobody knows how."
Bruno reached across to the nightstand, performing his familiar 'knock on wood' routine before knocking on his own head. He leaned back in his chair, a sadness washing over him as he added, "Yeah, I'm still doing it. Ever since you created that ritual for me... sometimes it's the only thing that snaps me out of whatever mental freeze I'm trapped in." He held Mirabel's hand and gave it a comforting squeeze before saying, "You were always so good at helping everyone. I don't think any of us realized, until now, just how much you did for us."
Leaning back after covering Mira up more, he sniffled a bit as tears welled up in his eyes. "I just wish we'd done more to help you, you know? You shouldn't have had to be responsible for taking care of the entire family."
Before Bruno could say anything else, the monitors blared an alarm, indicating a rapid drop in Mirabel's oxygen levels along with a sharp increase in her heart rate.
Jumping up and darting out into the hallway, he shouted, "I need help! Please, someone!"
Two nurses hurried into the room and Bruno backed away, quickly, doing his 'knock on wood' routine again, using a small tree in a planter nearby. Before he could go back into Mirabel's room to ask what was wrong, the nurses where rushing Mirabel out of the room and down the hallway to the elevators.
"Wait! Where are you taking her? What's happening?!" Bruno wanted to know, hurrying after them as one of the doctors joined them.
"Mirabel's oxygen levels are dropping," Nina Amaro replied as Bruno slipped into the elevator. "We're taking her up to Radiology. She may have a blood clot in her lung."
Once the elevator reached the appropriate floor, Bruno stayed behind as he watched Mira being whisked down the hallway and through the double doors to have more scans of her chest.
Bruno had to take a series of deep breaths in order to regain his composure before he could consider his next course of action. His priority was to locate Julieta and inform her about the situation, but as his apprehension increased, his mind became paralyzed with thoughts of the worst possible outcomes.
Before he could try and jolt himself out of his thoughts, the elevator opened again, revealing a bedraggled Julieta finishing a cup of coffee before tossing it in a waste bin. "Bruno, what's wrong?" she asked, immediately, recognizing one of her brother's anxiety attacks. "Breathe, Brunito."
But calm wasn't an option at the moment, and Bruno quickly blurted out, "Mirabel's in Radiology. Her breathing was - "
Not wasting a single moment, Julieta slammed the button to open the elevator doors again and she flew down the hall with Bruno right behind her.
"Julieta, wait!" Kira Liotta stopped her colleague before nodding at the 'Doctors Only' door behind her. "Mirabel threw a pair of blood clots: One in her left lung, the other is in her heart. Dr. Nieva is pulling them out now." Before she could give any more information, an alarm sounded and Kira raced back into the room just as someone swore loudly followed by, "She's coding! Get the defibrillator!"
Julieta's eyes widened as she backed up against the wall, slowly sliding down till she was sitting on the floor.
Bruno darted over to her, looking alarmed as Juli kept muttering something over and over.
"Three strikes... No, no, no, no... Please, not the three strikes rule... Por favor, Dios.."
Bruno couldn't remember ever seeing his sister so distraught and as he tried to talk to her, he couldn't help but wonder if she was even aware of his presence. "Julieta!" He shouted at last, causing Juli to turn to him, tears streaming down her devastated face. "Juli..." he said in a calmer tone. "What is the 'three strikes' rule?"
Julieta swallowed hard as she heard the second 'Charging' call from beyond the doors. Nodding in that direction, she murmured numbly, "Three shocks after a third cardiac arrest..." When the third call came, she latched onto Bruno, wailing in anguish as she hugged her brother.
'Three strikes... and you're out...' Bruno realized, his heart sinking as he embraced Julieta.
Lost in their grief, the Madrigal siblings weren't aware of Kira coming back out until she'd knelt down next to them. "Juli... She's back."
"What?" Julieta breathed, not sure if she believed what she was hearing. "Mira's... Sh-She's not...?"
"Dr. Nieva wanted to give up after the third shock," Kira admitted. "But I told him to try again. We brought her back. Your little girl is one Hell of a fighter."
Leaning against Bruno as a fresh wave of relieved tears streamed down her face, Julieta could only thank God as she stood up, grateful that her daughter was still holding on.
Gasping loudly as something was pulled from her throat, Mirabel coughed hard, her chest, head, and legs giving angry throbs of pain as she gasped for breath. "Abuelo...?" she wheezed, looking around, squinting at the blurry hospital room.
"Gracias a Dios," Julieta breathed, her whole body slumping as Amita Ruiz set the intubation tube aside before checking Mirabel's eyes for their reaction to light and movement. "Mira, we thought you were... W-We thought you weren't going to..."
"You've been in a coma for three weeks," Dr. Ruiz explained, a relieved look on her face as she lowered the blankets covering Mirabel and raised her hospital gown to inspect the healing surgical scars on her chest and abdomen. "And you gave us a few very close calls."
After her mother gave her her glasses , Mirabel looked around and her gaze was drawn to the end of the bed. Dr. Ruiz raised the incline of Mira's bed, pulling back the blankets to let the teenager see the scarred stumps.
Reaching out and touching what remained of her legs, Mirabel felt her stomach and heart clench.
Her legs hadn't been perfect, but they'd been a part of her her entire life. They'd caused her endless pain and there had been days she hadn't been able to walk... but still...
Why was she suddenly missing pieces of herself that had caused such misery at times?
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Julieta tried to sound positive as she said, "In a couple days, we'll start getting you fitted for prosthetics. And hopefully this time next year, you'll be able to walk without the crutches."
"Juli, I'm going to check on Isabela and let her know Mira's awake," Amita stated, heading out of the room.
Covering herself up so she couldn't see the scarred remains of her legs, Mira focused on her mother as she asked about her sister. "Isa's in the hospital, too?"
"She has a spinal fracture that's left her paralyzed from the waist down" Julieta replied, simply. "And before you jump to the conclusion that this is your responsibility," she continued, noticing the panicked and devastated expression on her daughter's face. "Isa got hurt because debris from the house fell on her. It was not because she crawled towards you to shield you."
But the idea of graceful, athletic, strong Isabela confined to a wheelchair made Mirabel feel like she was going to throw up. Isa had to hate her for what had happened. And eventually being able to walk again when her sister never would didn't seem fair.
A cellphone buzzing on the table nearby distracted both Madrigals and as Julieta read the display, she smiled before turning on the video call and handing the phone to Mirabel.
Holding the phone, Mira felt tears in her eyes as she saw Isabela in her own hospital room, her upper body and neck immobilized by a metal and plastic brace. "Isa, I am so, so sorry. I wish I'd never - "
"I'm just so relieved that you're awake!" Isabela cut in, quickly. "Especially after you almost died during surgery!"
"I... what?" Mira breathed, stunned by the news.
"Well, you almost died three times, actually," Isa clarified. "With the swelling in your brain during the first surgery, they thought you were going to have a stroke! Then they were taking you to recovery when you started bleeding in the sac around your heart! And then the blood clots - "
But as Isa carried on, talking about how the family had been helping the town with rebuilding the Madrigal home, Mirabel couldn't believe that she'd been so close to death. Even though Abuelo Pedro had told her that it wasn't her time, she could have joined him anyway.
Realizing that her sister was still talking about the new renovations and construction, Mira cut in, saying, "I-I'm sorry, Isa... I think I'm still a bit out of it. What did you say?"
Slowing down, Isabela repeated, "I said that Tio Bruno told me that there'll be a workout room so that you and I can do our physical therapy together when we finally get to go home. Personally, I'm waiting until we can do wheelchair races, even though I know you're going to leave me in the dust."
"I just can't stand the thought of you never being able to walk again," Mirabel said with a slight sniffle. "Plus, you'll have to quit your landscaping job since you won't be able to work - "
Isa frowned as she stubbornly cut her sister off. "Who says I'm going to quit my job? Mira, just because my legs don't work anymore doesn't mean I have to let go of what I'm passionate about. You showed me that a long time ago."
"Really? Me?" Mirabel murmured, finding it difficult to believe that she had been a source of inspiration for anyone.
Raising the incline of her bed a bit more, Isabela gave her little sister a reassuring smile as she went on. "You never let your legs keep you from doing the things you love, or from helping others. The night of Antonio's Gift Ceremony? Watching you escort Tonito up the stairs even when you were tired and in pain... Mirabel, I never felt more proud of you. You've always been so brave and strong. I hope I can be just like you."
Unable to stop herself from crying, Mirabel nodded as she replied, "I hope I can be as tough and stubborn as you, Isa. And, uh... I can't wait to be able to outrun you when I start using the prosthetics."
There was a mischievous twinkle in Isabela's eyes as she quickly agreed. "Oh, you're on, Mira."
Ending the call and setting the phone aside, Mirabel wiped her eyes before looking at her mother and gesturing to what was left of her legs. "So... What now?"
"Well, you'll have molds taken of the residual limbs," Julieta replied. "And there will be a fair amount of adjustment to the length of you new legs. But we took measurements after your amputation surgery, so that'll help." Frowning slightly, she went on. "The first hurdle will be figuring out what kinds of prosthetics will be best for you."
Mirabel sat up, groaning in pain as her legs shifted. She tried to wave away her mother's help, but stopped when she noticed Juli adjusting her IV dosage.
"Don't get too comfortable," Julieta cautioned, though she had a smile on her face. "You won't be on strong painkillers for much longer. Make the most of them while you still can."
"Right..." Mirabel sighed. After the pain started to recede, she brought her mother's attention back to the subject of prosthetics. "What did you mean when you said we needed to talk about what kinds of prosthetics would be best?"
Getting up and walking towards the table in the corner of the room, Julieta returned with a brochure that detailed the process of above-knee amputation and the different kinds of prosthetic legs that were available. "Certain legs are specifically made for everyday walking and light running," she clarified, as she sat back down on the bed. "However, there are others that are designed for more strenuous activities... If it were Isabela, I would suggest opting for a prosthetic leg that allows for greater flexibility in the knees and ankles. For Luisa, on the other hand, she would require a high-impact option."
"But this would basically be my first time with legs that worked," Mirabel concluded, studying the designs. "I don't know..."
Taking Mira's hand, Julieta waited until her daughter looked up at her before asking, "If you had completely normal legs... what would you want to do? Just... the first thing that pops into your mind."
Dozens of scenarios flashed through Mirabel's mind as she pondered the query, but the one that kept coming up was the memory of her hobbling up the stairs with Antonio as she walked him up to his door. "I want to be able to walk up and down stairs," she replied, at last. "I-I know it probably sounds strange to you, Mama, but it... Being able to walk on stairs without any kind of help would be... It would be an incredible experience."
"I think that that sounds like a great place to start," Julieta agreed, standing up. "Oh, and something else..." When Mirabel gave her a curious look, she asked, "Did you want to see your abuela? I just ask because it sounded like you asked for her after we pulled the intubation tube out."
The idea of confronting Abuela was intimidating, but remembering the visions she'd had in the coma, Mirabel nodded. "I do need to see her. There was something that I saw when I was in the coma, and... and it's something that she needs to hear about."
x
Alma took a seat on the edge of her granddaughter's hospital bed, doing her best not to stare at the scars from Mirabel's brain surgery. She gave her granddaughter a loving smile as she said, "I am so relieved that you are back with us, corazon. I was so frightened that we were going to lose you."
After a moment or two, Mirabel took a deep breath and said, "Abuela... When I was in the coma, I saw Abuelo Pedro."
Straightening up, her eyes wide in wonder, Alma reached for Mira's hand, pleading, "Tell me everything, mi vida."
Relating the entire experience took a while and Mirabel had to take breaks from time to time, either due to becoming emotional or simply because she was weary. But as she concluded the tale, she said, "Abuelo Pedro told me that I was the new miracle. I don't know what he meant by that, but..."
Shaking her head as Mirabel's breathing and heartrate began to fluctuate, Alma stroked her nieta's cheek, soothing, "We can figure all that out later. You need to rest, Mirabel. There will be time to talk about this when you're feeling better." Catching sight of Antonio peeking into Mira's room, Alma beckoned the boy over, standing up as she did so. "Don't visit too long, now, Tonito. Mirabel needs her rest."
Antonio nodded as he watched his abuela leave the room, and he turned his attention back to Mirabel who yawned before closing her eyes for a moment. "Mira? You're going to be okay now, right?"
"I'm just a little tired," Mira assured him as she tried to hide how exhausted she felt. Holding out her hand, she waited until Antonio took it, practically launching himself at her as he hugged her. Wincing slightly, she hugged him back as she heard her primo start crying.
"I thought you were going to die!" Antonio sobbed as he climbed up onto the bed. "Tia Juli said they had to cut open your skull because your brain was going to blow up like a balloon! Then she said your heart was bleeding and then you had something stuck in your lung!"
"Okay, just slow down, Tonito," Mirabel urged, leaning forward and taking Antonio's hand. "Deep breath, okay? I'm sure Mama tried to explain things as best she could, but I know that you probably heard some really scary stuff about all the operations they did on me."
Wiping his nose on his sleeve, Antonio nodded as he added, "The doctors said that you might never wake up. I was reading to you... but you never heard me, did you?"
"You read to me from Tio Felix and Tio Bruno's books," Mirabel replied, smiling. "I think we're on the... second book? Jorge and Hernando were dealing with a flood and they were trying to save the animals from the veterinary hospital."
Hugging Mirabel once again and beaming with relief, Antonio laughed as he said, "You did hear me reading to you!"
'Actually, I memorized every part of the books when I read them to you,' Mirabel thought to herself, hugging Antonio back. 'But you don't need to know that right now.' Feeling her energy start to diminish, she took a sip of water from the cup on the table next to her and picked up the book sitting there, handing it to Antonio. "Would you mind doing me a favor?"
"Anything!" Antonio exclaimed, gleefully.
"Would you mind reading to me till I fall asleep?" Mira asked, grinning wearily as she watched her primo grab the book from her and settle at the foot of the bed, finding where he'd left off.