Second Chance, Book 03

Jeanette had been holding her breath and looked like she was about to burst. The look of intense fear had remained and Brent quickly turned to her again, holding her as she gaped at the doctor in disbelief. Finally, she managed a few words.

"Am I going to die?" she asked in a faint voice.

"Mrs. Gordon, you must let the specialists help you get better. They are the experts, not I. These types of tumors are not often fatal and treatment is getting more sophisticated and effective every day. We have one of the finest hospitals in the land to deal with your condition, and you can count on getting the very best of treatment."

Jeanette was clearly unable to speak as she absorbed the magnitude of the diagnosis. The tangible grip of fear in her body was like a vise, squeezing her innards. As she attempted to rise, she felt faint and then slumped back in her chair, unconscious.

Brent held her as she began to regain consciousness. Dr. Meldrum had quickly brought a cold, damp washcloth from her powder room in the office and she responded to it rapidly.

"This is a big shock for both of you, Mr. Gordon. Are you alright?" she asked.

"I'm not sure. It's an enormous shock. I guess we never thought this could happen. What do we do next?" he asked, bewildered.

"I'm going to refer you to Dr. Danny Chen. He's a top neurosurgeon and he will conduct some more tests to determine just what the M.R.I. saw. You're going to have to be optimistic, Mr. Gordon. Your wife will need your support. It's understandable she is frightened, as I'm sure you are as well. All you can do is put your trust in Dr. Chen, and I'm confident that everything will work out."

Brent looked at her, wondering just how confident she truly was with that statement. He had his doubts. After Jeanette had recovered, he helped her out of the office and into the elevator down to the parking garage. They were silent, but he held her close, knowing she needed all the reassurance he could provide at this moment.

Telling the children was delayed for a day while Jeanette gathered herself. She had insisted that she would be the one to explain to Andrea and Scott what was happening and what it would mean. Brent was proud of the courage that his wife demonstrated, particularly when he knew just how devastating the news had been to her. He hoped he would have the necessary courage himself in the coming weeks as they learned her fate together.

Brent phoned Lloyd and Henry to tell them of the results and what was to come. He said he would phone Charlie and explain that for the time being, he wouldn't be able to accept the job offer, at least not until Jeanette's medical condition was clarified. As he hung up the phone, Lloyd slumped back in his chair and covered his face with his giant hands. Henry sat facing him on the other side of the desk, staring off into space. After a while, the older man rose, walked back to his office, closed the door behind him and called Charlie Verano.

"I can't believe how god-awful this had all turned out, Charlie. This shit shouldn't happen to good people," he moaned.

"I know what you mean. It's just not fair," he agreed. "Henry ... I'm not going to do anything about that job anyway. I was looking only half-heartedly when Brent's name came up. I can wait and see how this all comes out. We've got time," he volunteered.

"Thanks, Charlie. I don't think he needs any more disappointment right now. I know he was truly enthusiastic about your offer. He told both Lloyd and me how impressed he was and how much he liked your people and your product. You have your guy, if this all works itself out."

"I'll keep my fingers crossed, Henry, both for Jeanette and for his family. My needs come third right now."

"Yah ... that's what I'm thinking too. I don't know what I'd do if it happened to Marge."

"Take care, Henry. Keep me informed. I'll call Brent and let him know I know what's going on. I'm sure he's got a lot on his mind right now."

Brent was sitting on the back porch, nursing a beer when Jeanette came out to join him.

"Do you want to barbeque tonight?" she asked.

"Sure. What do you have. Some chicken breasts?"

"Yup ... boneless too. Just like me right now," she grinned.

"I don't think so, babe. You've got lots of spine, and that's bone, you know." he offered in admiration. Jeanette had adopted a new persona since she had learned of her condition. Brent had marveled how she had recovered from the terrified state of Friday afternoon and had faced her uncertain future. She was showing strength he did not know she possessed.

From that strength, their children found the courage to live with the unknown future of their mother. Scott had suddenly become very protective of his mother and had taken to doing work around the house that she would normally do, not the least of which was maintaining an unusually tidy bedroom. He dried the dishes and put clothes away in their drawers and generally tried to help his mother in any way he could. He must have been feeling the pain and fear, Brent thought, but he was finding ways to cope.

Andrea too, found more to do that would help her mother. She assumed some of the cooking duties, even though Jeanette would have preferred to look after it herself. To Andrea, it was a statement to her mother that they loved her and they were going to do everything possible to help her. What they could not know was Jeanette's belief that they were preparing for her absence, either temporarily or permanently.

Their meeting with Dr. Chen had been brief and to the point. Jeanette would be scheduled for a biopsy to determine the nature of the growth and then a decision would be made on what action should be taken. The biopsy was put on the urgent list and performed only ten days after the initial diagnosis had been made. They were summoned to Dr. Chen's office on Monday afternoon to discuss the results.

"I have the results of the biopsy, Mrs. Gordon. I'm afraid the news is not good. You have a Mid to High Grade Astrocytoma and it is malignant. We can operate to remove most of it and then follow up with radiation therapy and even chemotherapy. I won't sugar-coat it though. This is an invasive operation on a tumor that has a tendency to spread rather rapidly into surrounding tissue," he said solemnly.

Brent felt Jeanette stiffen, but she remained stoic and unflinching as the doctor continued his comments. Brent felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. His wife was in dire jeopardy, and he didn't have any idea what he could do to help her beside comfort her. The doctor had continued talking, but Brent hadn't absorbed what he was saying. It was Jeanette that asked the question.

"When will you operate?"

"As soon as I can get you scheduled into neurosurgery. We consider this the highest priority, so it could be within a couple of days. My office will call you as soon as we have an opening. We'll let you know what you need and how to prepare," he concluded.

"What are my chances?" she asked in a clear voice.

"I can't answer that, Mrs. Gordon. I won't know until we operate and we begin the secondary treatment. I don't want to give you false hope, but we will do everything in our power to bring you out of this with a good result."

"Thank you, Dr. Chen," she said quietly, turning to Brent. "Let's go home, darling. We have some planning to do."

Brent sat stunned and immobile in the chair. The prognosis and the calm conversation between this doctor and his wife had been almost surrealistic. It was if he was watching it from afar. He felt no connection to it. This couldn't be happening to them. It couldn't!

Chapter 17:

In the days that followed, Brent felt he was in a trance. His beloved Jeanette had been scheduled for brain surgery a mere four days from their meeting with Dr. Chen and as he sat by her side in the hospital, he struggled to grasp the meaning of what had happened to their family in the past month. The incident at the Wagon Wheel was almost forgotten now with the knowledge of Jeanette's affliction. He was frightened, he admitted to himself, and he couldn't conceive of a life without her. They had tried to talk about the "what ifs" after their meeting with the neurosurgeon, but only Jeanette seemed to be able to handle the concept.

Henry had reinstated Brent to full active status and had assigned him a product development role for the paper group. He would operate mostly from home, but there were enough legitimate projects for him to work on that he could convince himself that it was a valid job. He was reporting directly to Henry, but he would make sure that Lloyd knew what he was doing, if for no other reason than courtesy.

At first Brent was doubtful that he would be able to concentrate on this new job, but he found instead that it was the escape he needed from the reality of his and Jeanette's uncertain future. If he did nothing, he would dwell on her problems and fret over the unknown for himself and their children. He began to think of himself as selfish, thinking more of the effect that his wife's disease had on him than on her. He wasn't very happy with himself, but he refused to surrender to hopelessness. Andrea and Scott needed him to be strong, and strong he would be.

As he watched the unconscious form of Jeanette lying next to him, her head swathed in bandages, he wondered how he had ever managed to capture a woman so beautiful. The first time he met her, at a University mixer, he immediately categorized her as out of his class. She was not just pretty, she was gorgeous. Her clothes suited her posture and her demeanor. She smiled and laughed easily. Her auburn hair fell just below her ears and looked like she never had to care for it. Her lovely blue eyes and bright smile were everywhere he looked that night. She had a tendency to hide her teeth, either with her hand or upper lip and discovered that she was trying to mask their slightly imperfect alignment. "A-hah!" he thought. "Perhaps she isn't perfect after all."

He had been leaning against the wall, listening to a conversation between two seniors about their future in the business world when he felt a presence beside him. He turned, and there she was, looking up at him with that smile.

"Hi," was about the only thing that came to mind quickly.

"Hi, I'm Jeanette O'Leary," she said brightly, holding out her hand.

Brent took it gingerly and replied, "I'm Brent Gordon. Nice to meet you Jeanette."

"Are you a senior, Brent?"

"No, I'm in third year Business Admin."

"I'm in second year Arts," she said, still with that smile and unwavering eye contact.

They talked for some time before realizing it was late and time to move on. Brent awkwardly asked for her phone number and was given the number of her dorm payphone with the assurance that someone would let her know he had called. He gave her his apartment phone number, telling her that he shared it with two other students, so just leave a number or a message. Somehow, he'd get it.

Brent phoned her the next day and Jeanette agreed to a date that coming Saturday night and thus began their courtship. By the end of the semester, Brent was smitten and had pretty much made up his mind that this was the woman he would marry and with whom he would spend his life. Jeanette was a bit more cautious, and although they had become intimate, she wanted to be certain of her feelings before making such an important commitment.

By the following year, Jeanette was confident of Brent, and when he asked her to marry him after she had graduated, she happily said yes. It would be a two year engagement, but they were sure of each other and the only remaining step was for Brent to ask permission of her parents and then inform his. It was an old-fashioned principle that Brent knew of, but wondered if anyone actually subscribed to. He had met Mr. and Mrs. O'Leary on several occasions and they seemed to be quite pleasant and accepting.

He had purchased a ring with some money his Grandmother had given him when he told her of his plans. She was delighted as she had met and immediately embraced Jeanette. She thought it was a perfect match for her grandson and the money was a pre-wedding gift so that the expenses wouldn't cripple Brent's limited finances. There was still a year of University to complete.

Brent was visibly nervous as he sat in the living room of the O'Leary home. He hemmed and hawed and generally beat around the bush before coming out with it.

"Mr. and Mrs. O'Leary, I'm ... uh ... here to ask for your permission to marry your daughter," he finally managed.

"Which one?" Kevin O'Leary asked with a sly grin.

Brent was caught completely off-guard. It wasn't the response he was expecting.

"Why, Jeanette, of course," he stumbled.

"What took you so long?" her father quickly returned, still with the funny smile.

"Uh ... well ... we wanted to wait until ... uh ... she was finished university," he answered nervously.

"Brent Gordon. This has to be the worst kept secret in town." Kelly O'Leary laughed.

Kevin stood and walked over to Brent with his hand extended. "Welcome to the family, Brent. I'm afraid we're Irish stock, so you'll have to bear with that too," he said with a genuine smile.

Jeanette's mother rose and moved to her daughter, embracing her and then to Brent. "I'm very happy for both of you. I think Jeanette's a very lucky girl."

"Thanks, I ... it's a big relief to know you feel that way," he admitted.

After graduation, Brent had established himself with a large building supply wholesale company that had branches coast-to-coast. He had risen from the customer service ranks within months and had been rewarded with a junior sales territory.

As Jeanette finished her final year, they planned their wedding for June and a brief honeymoon on Vancouver Island. Brent had already surprised Jeanette with the news that he had been offered a full territory, but it was in Nova Scotia, four thousand miles from home. Jeanette had been shocked at the idea of moving so far away from their families, but in the end, she wanted to be with her new husband and more than anything, she wanted him to be happy. By the end of the year, they had moved to Dartmouth.

Andrea was born a year after they had arrived in the east. She was named after Jeanette's grandmother, Andreatta, and she was as cared for and loved by them as much as any child could possibly be. Scott came along two and a half years later, and he too was a gift to the young parents. Both healthy, happy and handsome, Brent had fond memories of their time on the Atlantic coast.

He had risen to senior sales representative within the company and they had saved enough to buy a three bedroom bungalow in the suburbs. It seemed they had a perfect life in every respect except for the distance between their home and their families.

Nine years after arriving in Dartmouth, the Gordons received a nasty shock. The job that Brent had worked so diligently to develop was in jeopardy. The company had been sold to a British concern, and they had different ideas about how it should be run and who should run it. Brent was at first surprised and then, demoralized. All his efforts were forgotten or unrecognized. He was just another faceless employee in a sea of others. It called for a re-think of their future.

It didn't take them long to decide. Within a month, they had put their house up for sale and began the laborious process of packing and preparing for a move. They had decided to return to the west coast. If they had to move, they might as well go where they really wanted to be. He told no one at work, except for his best friend, Alex Graham.

Less than three months later, the house had been sold, the movers called in and finally, he handed in his resignation. His boss, Louis Dufresne, understood perfectly. He was an ex-patriot Edmontonian and would likely return there himself in the near future.

They landed back in Vancouver in the early summer. They were staying at the O'Leary home until they could find a place to live for themselves. They had used the equity from their Dartmouth home to pay for the move and with what was remaining, he would be able to survive for several months while he looked for a job. As it turned out, it wasn't necessary. His father-in-law's golf partner was one of Mountain Pine's big customers and with a word in Henry Cullen's ear, Brent was quickly granted an interview.

It often happens that it's better to be lucky than good. In this case, a long-time sales representative had died suddenly of a heart attack and Mountain Pine was in the middle of interviewing candidates for his job. With the unspoken endorsement of their customer, Brent's résumé went to the top of the pile and within ten days, was hired as their newest sales representative.

Within six months, both Lloyd and Henry were patting themselves on the back for being so perceptive as to hire Brent Gordon. He was very good at his job and liked working at Mountain Pine.

What was left of the equity could now be used to purchase a house, but with the huge disparity between the east and west coast housing costs, there wasn't enough for anything other than a modest townhouse in Langley. It didn't matter. They were thrilled to be back on the west coast and near their parents again, and better than that, Brent had a job he liked with a company he truly enjoyed and respected. Their life was definitely back on track. Two years later, they purchased a split level home not far from the townhouse and settled in to their perfect lives.

As he sat by Jeanette's side and listened to the machines that monitored her existence, those memories were floating through his mind in a random pattern. She hadn't awoken yet from the induced coma that had been part of the precautionary post-operative procedure. He knew she wouldn't awaken that evening and she was probably unaware of his presence, but he held her almost lifeless hand in his and inwardly prayed for her recovery. He wanted his wife, his companion, his lover, the mother of their children, to return to him. Was that too much to ask?