Chapter 96

"Don't you wish for a cure?"

"Every day," my wife said, a wistfulness in her voice. Her raven-black hair had some streaks of gray in it and she refused to colour it out. There were some more lines around here eyes, but she was still the most beautiful woman in the world. "But I know that God won't wave His hand and make my diseases go away. He has a plan for me. He has a plan for you. He has a plan for Maureen and everyone else. We just don't know what it is. That is why we have faith. We have to trust in His will and that when it is done, it will be for the best."

She smiled sardonically, "Even if it doesn't seem that way at the time."

I continued to pray, with St. Peregrine now, but the miracle I wanted never appeared. Or did it?

Her cancer was gone. Her annual check-ups all came back clean. There was no sign of the Huntington's Disease.

We celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary and everything seemed to be going our way. Business was booming. Our little start-up company had grown into a successful niche enterprise. We couldn't compete with the larger firms, but that was okay. Our emphasis was on personal service and we excelled. We soon outgrew the small office in the back of the house and set up shop in a new facility right up the road. We hired a staff accountant, a secretary and two associates in addition to McKayla and me.

All the while, our family also blossomed. We traveled a lot and made sure Maureen had every opportunity available to her. For a little girl who could have been spoiled rotten, she was surprisingly grounded. She took nothing for granted, she never acted like she was entitled to anything and somehow found the inner motivation to be better at everything than we expected of her. I'm sure she got that from McKayla.

That night, she went to stay with Nanna and Papaw, leaving my wife and I alone at home. We sat on our favourite spot on the beach. McKayla was behind me on one of the dunes. I leaned back into her arms and we watched the world go by.

"They started," she said softly. "Last week."

I only nodded. Of course I had noticed, but I wanted her to bring it up. Her hands were starting to twitch. Nothing major, and only for short spurts, but the early symptoms of her disease were appearing.

"What are we going to do?" I asked after a long time.

She took a deep breath. "We're going to fight it. Tooth and nail; I'm not going to let this thing beat me."

Turning my head, I kissed her gently. Her voice was defiant, but her tears betrayed the fear she felt.

We went inside and I took her to our bed. We made love all night until we were exhausted. Then we held one another, knowing that now it was just a matter of time.