Endless Chain by Emilie Richards Read Free Book Online Page B

Tessa before she slid to the ground.
    Between them they managed to get her to the steps leading up to the office. She was semiconscious, although Elisa thought she had passed out completely for at least a few seconds.
    Gently she nudged Tessa’s head toward her knees. “Take a deep breath,” she said. “It will pass quickly. Just stay there until you feel better.”
    Tessa made a noise one degree from a moan. Helen was wide-eyed with alarm. “She’s as healthy as a horse. Eats right, does everything right. I don’t know what could be wrong with her.”
    “Has she been having fainting spells?”
    “I don’t know. She hasn’t said a thing to me, and if she’d told her mother, I’d have heard about it, believe me.”
    “I’m…fine.” Tessa lifted her head, then rested it on her hands.
    Elisa sat beside her and rubbed her back. “Has this happened before?”
    “No.” Tessa took a deep breath, but she still sounded frightened. “Something is obviously wrong.”
    Elisa weighed silence against her own comfort, but she had little choice. “I wouldn’t worry too much, not unless a doctor tells you to. It could be several things, all minor.”
    Tessa looked up. “How do you know?”
    “I—I have a sister who had the same thing happen to her.” Elisa smiled her reassurance. “She told me exactly what her doctor said. Iron deficiencies or infections of the inner ear may cause fainting in pregnancy, but most likely the baby is just pressing against a nerve or a blood vessel. None of those things are serious. There’s no danger to you or the baby, but of course you must go in to be checked as soon as possible.”
    Tessa looked somewhat relieved. “I thought…”
    “She thought she was going into labor and losing the baby,” Helen said bluntly. “And so did I.”
    Elisa squeezed Tessa’s hand. “Most likely your doctor will tell you to be sure you change positions often when you’re sitting. Perhaps he’ll point out that since you’ve had this episode, you shouldn’t drive or sit in a car more than necessary.”
    “It was a long drive from Fairfax, and I came right over to get Gram.”
    “And you weren’t out of the car for more than five minutes when you got to the church,” Helen said. “That’s probably it.”
    “See?” Elisa stood. In the moment it had taken her to reach Tessa’s side, she had gotten soaked. Her shirt clung to her chest. “How do you feel now?”
    “Fine. I think.”
    “Forget the groceries. We’ll go straight home, and I’ll drive,” Helen said. “I still have my license.”
    “No, I’m fine now. I’ll be fine,” Tessa said. She stood, as if testing her words. “But I will check with my doctor. Right away.”
    Elisa nodded. “Stretch and move around a little before you get back in the car. If you feel even the slightest bit dizzy afterward, let your grandmother drive you home.”
    Tessa turned to her. “You’ve been very kind.”
    Elisa considered Tessa’s words and the real truth, that this had been more than kindness. She touched Tessa’s arm. “I’m glad I could help. At least a little.”

C HAPTER Four
    T he rain stopped by three, and the fund-raiser committee went to work mowing the wet grass in front of La Casa Amarilla and raking it into steaming clumps. A crew came to string colorful plastic lanterns from the aging oaks and maples, none of which had ever seen this kind of festivity in their century or more of life in Virginia. Another crew set up tables and covered them with red-and-blue plastic. Yet another set up a temporary platform for a mariachi band they had hired at a discount.
    There was little call for mariachi bands in Shenandoah County.
    Christine had promised to find her way to the church about dinnertime, when the fiesta would just be getting into swing. At four Sam rolled up his sleeves, and by six he stepped back and took a long look at what they had accomplished. He loved being outdoors, having open space around him, the fresh