Safe Harbour

There was an endless pause. Andrea had wanted to call her for months, but she didn't dare. And she had to know. “I have cancer,” she said quietly. “They discovered it two months ago. They think I've had it for a long time. I had stomach pains for about a year, and I thought it was just nerves. It started as ovarian, supposedly, but it's in my lungs, and now my bones. It's moving pretty fast.” She sounded almost resigned, but sad. And Ophélie was shocked. No matter how angry she was at her, she didn't want this for her, and it brought tears to her eyes.

“Have you had chemo?”

“Yes, I'm still doing it now. I've had two surgeries, and they'll do radiation after the chemo, but I don't think…I don't think I'll make it that far,” she said honestly. “It looks pretty bad…I know you probably don't want to see me, but I need to know something… will you take Willie for me?” They were both crying by the time she asked.

“Now?” Ophélie sounded stunned.

“No,” she said sadly, “when I die. I don't think it's going to be too long. Maybe a few months.” Ophélie was sobbing by then. Life was so unpredictable, so unfair, so wrong. How did this happen to people? To Ted, to Chad… and now to her. Thinking about it made her all the more grateful for Matt. But she was still shaken by all that she had just heard. No matter what Andrea had done to her, she didn't deserve this, but apparently she didn't agree. “Maybe this is God's punishment for what I did to you, Ophélie. I know ‘sorry’ doesn't begin to cover it, but I am. I've had a lot of time to think about it… I'm so sorry… will you take Willie?” she asked again, and Ophélie just cried. It was all so cruel.

“Yes, I will,” she said through her tears. All she could think of was what Matt had done for her with Pip, and she had only known him for eight months, nearly nine. She knew that Andrea had no one else, and no other choice. She was his godmother, it was right, even if he was Ted's child. It wasn't the baby's fault. “Where is he now? Has someone been helping you take care of him?”

“I hired an au pair,” Andrea said, sounding tired again. “I want him here with me, till the end.” She spoke of it as a sure thing. It was terrible. So unbelievable. She was forty-five years old, and her son would never know either of his parents.

Matt walked in while Ophélie was still talking to her, and he looked puzzled. He could see that Ophélie had been crying, and he walked out of the room again. He didn't want to intrude. He assumed she would tell him about it later.

“Is there anything I can do for you now?” Ophélie asked sadly. She didn't want to leave any bad blood between them, especially now, although she knew that it would have been hard to bridge the chasm that had formed between them.

“I'd like to see you again,” Andrea said, sounding weak. “But I feel sick most of the time. The chemo is pretty awful.”

“And I can't go out yet. As soon as I can, I'll come over.”

“I'm going to have a new will drawn up, if it's okay with you, leaving Willie to you. Are you sure you can handle it, and you won't hate him for what I did?”

“I don't hate you,” she said calmly, “I'm just sad. I was hurt.” But just listening to her, she knew she had forgiven her. And she hadn't done it alone. Ted had been part of it too. That had been the hardest part of it for her. But so much had happened since.

“I'll stay in touch and let you know how I'm doing,” Andrea said practically. “I'll put your number on my emergency forms.” It had been there before, but after what had happened between them, she had taken it off. “And I'll give it to the au pair, in case something happens and I don't get a chance to call.”

“You have to hold on, Andrea. You can't give up.” She was feeling deeply affected by all she'd heard and the way Andrea sounded, and she was sorry that she couldn't get out yet. She knew that seeing Andrea again would be stressful for her. It was still too soon after all she'd been through herself. “I'll call you. Let me know how you are.”

“I will,” she said, crying openly. “Thank you. I know you'll take good care of him.”

“I promise you I will,” and then she decided to tell her about Matt. She had a right to know now. “I'm getting married in June. To Matt.”

There was a long silence, and a slow sigh. As though she felt absolved somehow, and she hadn't totally destroyed Ophélie's life, which she hadn't. “I'm so glad. He's a nice guy. I hope you'll both be happy,” she said peacefully.

“Me too. I'll call you soon. Take care, Andrea.”

“I love you… and I'm sorry,” she said in a whisper, and hung up. Ophélie set the phone down gently, as Matt came back into the room.

“What was that about?” he asked, looking concerned. Ophélie was obviously upset.

“Andrea,” she said, looking straight at him.

“Is this the first time you heard from her?” She nodded.