Zoe was taken away by the police before she could finish her words.
She deliberately made a big racket so that Beryl would hear her from inside her room. With a pair of big, puzzled eyes, Beryl looked at Jacob and said, "I can hear Zoe's voice, what is going on there?"
Jacob remained calm and answered, "Her family is coming over to take her home."
"Then when will she come back?" asked Beryl
"She won't be coming back again," replied Jacob.
"Oh." Beryl yawned and then started to drift in and out of sleep, so she didn't ask any more questions.
"I will be here to hold you so that you can fall asleep." Jacob held little Beryl carefully in his arms as if he were holding the rarest treasure in the world.
"Woo..." Beryl let her head loll from one side to the other, eyes closing one more time as she enjoyed the brief darkness.
The sight of Beryl sleeping like an angel gave Jacob a sense of satisfaction he had never felt before. A warm smile spread across his face, giving him a sense of fulfillment.
After the police left, Jacob slowly carried Beryl to his car and placed her gently in the back seat, before driving her to the hospital.
The moment Emily saw Beryl, she subconsciously reached her arms out to hold her, but Jacob stopped her and insisted, "You'd better get some sleep now."
Beryl was very sensitive to the smell of the disinfectant in the hospital and woke up as soon as she came in. When she saw her mother lying on the hospital bed, she anxiously asked, "What happened to you, mommy? Are you sick?"
Emily gently brushed her hands over her head and explained with ease, "Don't worry, it's just a fever. I will be all right soon."
"Okay, I will behave well so that you will be all right soon." Beryl smiled.
"Yes, thank you, my love. Thank you for caring about me so much." said Emily.
It was almost noon, and they hadn't had lunch yet, so Jacob called someone to bring some food over. Before long, someone delivered the food and set them on the table.
"Thank you." said Emily. It would be unreasonable of her to refuse Jacob's help, and she might as well accept his kindness squarely.
Emily had an infusion tube on her right hand, which made it difficult for her to eat, so Jacob opened the lunchbox and tried to feed her, which seemed like the right thing to do.
However, Emily coughed mildly and said, "Please pass me the spoon. I can eat with my left hand."
Jacob didn't make a fuss. He picked up a spoon from the table and passed it to her. "Be careful. It's hot." He said.
"Take it easy. I am not a kid." Emily blurted, without a conscious thought.
Jacob's lips quirked upwards in a joyous smile, and he thought to himself, 'Emily hasn't changed at all.'
Emily stirred the porridge in the lunchbox and then glanced at Beryl, only to find a pair of grape-like, black eyes rolling around between Jacob and her.
"What are you looking at?" asked Emily.
"Watching the sparks between you and uncle." Beryl answered straight away.
Emily almost choked on the porridge as soon as she registered Beryl's words. "What sparks? You are talking nonsense," said Emily.
Beryl grinned wide, exhibiting all her teeth and said, "I am not talking nonsense. I can see the sparks around you two flying in every direction. I think you guys would make a cute couple."
"Beryl, you should talk less and eat more." Emily grumbled. Emily shook her head in awe. She could never understand what went on in Beryl's mind. "You'll grow taller if you eat your food properly. Did you know that?"
"Oh, really!" Beryl pointed towards the lunch box, and said, "I'd like to have some, please."
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: A Call That Changed Her Entire Life