Losing My Sweet Amy
1842 Words
Mr. Manuel helped check in mom into the hospital.
I stepped out of the room as soon as I noticed she was relaxed on the bed, her tired eyes found me at the door.
“Don, my baby. We can't afford the hospital. Take me home ” She told me frantically, trying to rise from the bed.
“Mrs. Silver, you have to be still. You are still too frigid to stand” Mister Manuel was telling her while the Doctor stood to his side saying something to the student doctor with him.
He saw me stepping out and came toward me.
He squatted down to speak to me“ Son, where's your father, I need to speak with him urgently ” He asked me. His words caused the tears to spill through me. Tears I've kept abay all these while but it took him asking for my father to have it spilling down my face.
I sobbed uncontrollably as he tried to console me. He looked to the nurse at his side for help.
“I’m sorry, son. Your mother isn't dying. That's not what I meant” He continued even though I struggled to speak through the tears.
How can I tell him I don't have a father, or any family to turn to? We've arrived in Manhattan through Italy. I don't even remember anything. I was five when we left Italy for Manhattan.
“ I don't have a father. Not one I know of” I told him after a while I had calmed enough to talk to him.
“Any family relatives?” He asked again as I shook my head in negative. I don't have any family. Mom and I had always been alone right from the beginning.
“Oh! I'm so sorry” He said after a while looking to the nurse for help.
She also knelt beside me, and said“ What about that man inside there, is he your relative?”
“No, he's a physician. He's the one that been treating mom since”
“I'm sorry son. Your mom has an acute brain tumor. The cells in her brain had weakened. We need to go into surgery immediately ”
I couldn't understand most of the medical jargon he was saying, instead I asked with my lips quivering “ Is my mom dying?”
“Not for now, son. We'll do our best to save her after you deposit the sum into the hospital account.
“How much is it?” I asked, dreading my heart for the money.
I was expecting a bit of a thousand dollars, not the million of dollars he mentioned.
“That much. But I don't have that much” I said, my eyes taking in the envelope Aunt Loretta had given me. I had counted it earlier in the ward. It was only two hundred dollar bills. Not enough to cover for anything.
“I'm sorry we can't carry out an operation on her without an initial deposit” He said before patting me on the shoulder and turning towards his office with the nurse on his heel.
I watched him go, my eyes turning to take in Mr. Manuel who was coming towards me. He closed mom's ward gently and turned to smile sadly at me.
“She's sleeping alright, ” He said.
“I'll have Fiona come watch her in a bit while you come wash up at home” He said, taking in my unkempt clothes.
The new clothes Amy had given me were now dirty and crumbled. It doesn't look anymore like the luxury it once was.
Speaking of Amy, I turned to Mr. Manuel“ Can I come later, I have somewhere to go" I told him, my resolve getting stronger.
“No problem, Son. Take care of yourself ” He said and pat me gently on the shoulder before going to the door.
“I'll get mom's fee from the lion's den” I said and walked out of the door.
***
It was late when I got to the Wayne's mansion. It was quiet, I climbed through the fence and got into the house.
Fiona had told me that the Waynes were not home for the night.
I climbed through the window into Anthony Wayne's office. I had seen him keep some money in the safe the one time he had invited me there.
I was even fortunate to catch his passwords.
I walked toward the safe, weary of the table that divides the room into two.
As soon as I entered the codes, the door clicked open. I squinted in the darkness to see that I wasn't lucky enough. Instead of some cash I was expecting, only a document was in it. I bent to pick it up but froze as soon as I could hear voices out in the passage.
I took it and closed it back before hiding in the table just as the door to the office clicked opened ushering in the men who were whispering to each other. I guess I wasn't the only one who wanted something from Mr. Wayne.
The voices drew closer to me, the darkness shielding me from their presence and my small frame. A time like this I was thankful for poverty for keeping me fit.
But I could make out the person from their voice. It was Lucas, Tony's brother. What is he doing here?”
“ It has to be here somewhere. Find it else I will kill that son of a b***h. How could he give his properties to his daughter? Our father's hard earned company, "he said, urging the other man on.
I knew he wasn't bluffing cause he was bad. More like the black sheep of the family. He was into drugs and other s**t that's why Tony always avoided him.
I think he made the wise decision, a man like him at the helm of the company, it's bound to collapse after a few years.
“I can't find anything sir” The other voice said. I gingerly stepped toward the other side, balancing myself on the wall while my hands found the door.
I pray they don't switch on the light else I would be discovered right now.
“Have you checked the safe? He always keeps his most important document there” He told him as the second man went to the safe. He turned to the man for the passcode.
“Try Amy's birthday, ” He told the man. As I opened the door and stepped out into the passage.
That's why the passcode had stuck in my brain that day. It was my sweet Amy's birthday.
A hand pulled me into the room next door, immediately torch light flooded the passage before a voice scoffed.
“I thought I heard a noise right now”
“Are you dumb?” The second voice questioned in anger. That must be Amy's uncle.
“Though my brother and his family aren't around right now, do you want to alert the housekeeper to my presence?” Which made me know he had taken the same way in as I.
I turned to the hands covering my mouth right now.
I would know her anywhere but what is she doing at home right now? Does she not know the danger she poses?
She made a quiet sound as she went to remove her hands from my mouth.
I squinted my eyes to see that we were in her room. What if he decided to check Amy's room? My heart hammered in my chest as I noticed how easily she could be killed. I turned to her in anger
“What are you doing here alone?” I asked her, looking at her, shocked she was here, helping me
“I begged to be home. I lied, I wasn't feeling too well. I knew you would come” She said with a shrug as she stepped towards her bed and sat on it. Arranging her hair around her shoulder. I noticed she was in her sleepwear of a plain white gown that stopped on her knee.
She sat down and wrapped her legs around her.
I shake my head, to rid myself of those thoughts. Thoughts that even my twelve years couldn't understand.
“Why?” I asked, not really knowing what I was asking. Why was she helping me? Or how did she know I'll be here tonight?
“Later, Don,. You need to leave. Mom and Dad would soon be around” I nodded and turned toward the door.
“Not that way,” She said and instead opened the door that leads to the garden where she usually comes to meet me.
I stepped into the garden while she stopped at the door.
“Here,” She thrust another parcel at me.
I received it gingerly while weighing it in my hand.
“What's this?”I asked her.
“You'll find out later”
I nodded. I fidgeted around, while watching her trying to engraved the memory of her in my heart cause this might be the last time I'll see her.
“I'm traveling to London tomorrow ”
Her words shocked me to silence.
“Really?” I gasped. She's leaving. My sweet Amy is leaving.
My heart contrite in pain. I'll miss her.
“I love you, Don, ” She said, staring into my eyes. She had always been a brave one. Brave like her father and goes after what she wants. Stubborn in a good way. And I was glad she was mine. She belongs to me. She was mine. My Sweet Amy
“I love you too, Amy.” I whisper back. I watched as she took two step towards me and then locked her lips on mine and I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her close unwilling to let her leave me.
“ Take care of yourself and your mother, Don” She said after stepping away from me back into the shadows.
I nodded even as I dipped my hands into my shorts, and pulled out the flowers which I had kept with me even as I changed my dress.
I placed it on her hair, she smile brightly at me as her hands went to feel it on her head
“It’s lovely, Don. I love it” She giggled excitedly, causing my heart to beat faster in my chest. What the hell was she doing to me?
I smiled back and turned to leave but she stopped me.
“Wait” She said as I turned to her. She ran inside and came back later with a vial in her hands. She took my hands and place it on my palm.
I looked at her in confusion,“ For your legs. I'm so sorry” She said and I smiled.
“My sweet Amy” I whisper back. caressing her soft cheeks in my hands before turning back the way I've come.
- Writer
