49. The News
From her bed at Georgetown Hospital, Claudia watched Dan testify and cursed the television set. At one point she yelled so loudly a nurse came in and asked if she was okay.
Outraged by Blake’s accusation that Dan had gotten her pregnant and then abandoned her, she wanted to insist that Weymouth call her again as a witness so that she could tell the truth: That if it hadn’t been for Dan and Rita Jane, she would have had an abortion. Feeling guilty, she put her hands on her belly and apologized to “The Child” reassuring him/her that she was glad that she hadn’t made that decision.
Claudia turned off the television in disgust. She had promised Rita Jane that she would practice some form of meditation or deep relaxation every day. Rita Jane had bought her a tape of Swami Satchidananda leading a guided meditation. Claudia had never meditated regularly, but Rita Jane had read an article about the benefits of mediation for expectant mothers and had wheedled her until she agreed to give it a try. Claudia doubted whether it would help her, but figured it wouldn’t hurt her.
The soothing voice of the Swami was interrupted by the phone ringing. She decided to ignore it. “Now imagine that you are in a beautiful place,” the voice was saying when a nurse scurried into her room, “You have an urgent phone call,” she said. “We’re transferring it now.”
Annoyed at being interrupted, she said haughtily, “I’m meditating.”
“I think you should take this call,” she said quietly.
Fear pushed through Claudia’s foggy brain. Something had happened to Rita Jane. She was relieved to hear Rita Jane’s voice, but she couldn’t understand anything she was saying. “Are you okay?” she asked her.
Rita Jane was sobbing hysterically. After a minute, Paul came on the phone and said simply, “Dan’s been shot.”
“What, when?” she screamed in disbelief. “Is he alright?”
“No, but at least he’s still alive. He’s been taken to Georgetown. See what you can find out about his condition. We’re on our way now.”
* * *
When Rita Jane arrived, she ran to Claudia and squeezed her so hard it hurt. Her streaked makeup made her eyes look like a raccoon’s and her curly hair sprung wildly in all directions. She looked a bit mad, Claudia thought.
“He can’t die. He just can’t. Oh God, he can’t die,” she collapsed on Claudia’s bed sobbing hysterically. “I don’t know what I’ll do if he dies. He’s my best friend.”
Claudia said nothing, but stroked her hair, quietly, like her mother had done to calm her when she was a little girl. “He’s not going to die,” Claudia said firmly, realizing she couldn’t face that possibility either.
“I’ve been such a jerk,” Rita Jane confessed. “I’m so sorry.”
“What are you talking about?” Claudia said.
“I’ve been so jealous of you. I wanted so much to be pregnant and it has been so hard listening to your complaints, and taking care of you when you were sick, because I wanted to be pregnant, and you didn’t. I thought it wasn’t fair. I’ve been so selfish.” Her chest heaved as she struggled to breathe. Claudia feared she was hyperventilating.
“It’s okay.” Claudia stroked Rita Jane’s hair. “You haven’t been selfish. You’ve been great. I couldn’t have gotten though this without you.”
Rita Jane continued sobbing. Claudia kept stroking her hair. “It doesn’t matter now. Everything is going to be okay.”
How odd life is, Claudia thought. The last thing she had wanted was to be pregnant. She had disliked being pregnant so much that it never occurred to her that Rita Jane would be jealous of her. But now that she had confessed to it, the idea made perfect sense. How could I have been so blind? Claudia wondered.
Rita Jane cried until she fell asleep. Claudia reached into the pocket of Rita Jane’s jean jacket and pulled out her cellphone. She scrolled down to the entry for the Spencers and dialed the number. Claudia relaxed when she heard Leigh, preferring to deal with her rather than the doctor.
“Can you come to GW Hospital? Your daughter needs you.”
“Is she okay,” Leigh asked.
“She just needs her mom, that’s all.”