CHAPTER ONE
St. Louis City Hospital, 1979

She used to be beautiful. The lady’s voice lilted soft and sweet. “Are you sure?” she said. Her slender body stiffened. She struggled to sit upright, balanced on the edge of a wooden chair.

Dr. Skelton stared at the thick sheaf of papers. He nodded. “Hmm-mmm, I’d say absolutely so, Mrs. Raines. There’s no doubt about it. If I could change these findings, well, you know I would. But, I’d say, just looking at these scans, well, you’ve got about six months, give or take, you know. I won’t lie to you. You’re a very sick woman.”

“But, this just can’t be…” A tiny tear trickled from the corner of one round brown eye. Mrs. Raines splashed it from her face with the back of her hand. “This can’t be happening, Doctor. I don’t feel sick.”

“Well then, Mrs. Raines, why are we here, hmmm? You must not be feeling fine, or you would be oh, say, shopping or getting your nails done, am I right, Mrs. Raines?”

“I’m only asking doctor. Are you positive?”

“The tests don’t lie, Mrs. Raines. Neither do I. Now, six months isn’t a lot of time. You need to get your affairs in order, and I…”

“Six months?” The slender woman shifted her body. She stared at the doctor’s stoic face. Outside, a scarlet cardinal perched on the crackled windowsill. The creaky chair whined. “Did you say six months?” Her voice squeaked with fresh tears.

Dr. Skelton slid the file across the desk. “Give or take, give or take. Now, you must fight to remain calm, Mrs. Raines. You must use your time wisely. Don’t you see that?” The morning sun sifted through the dusty blinds. He turned to close them. “Blasted things. Now, I’ve got a new medical student waiting to see me. My receptionist will help you with your paperwork. Oh, and let me know how you’re coming along, will you? Mrs. Raines? Mrs. Raines?” Dr. Skelton gawked at the empty chair. Puzzled, he rose to shut the open door. Apparently, Mrs. Raines didn’t have any more questions for him. Well, he supposed he had answered the important ones.

Well, he’d never been good at the bad news thing. No matter how long he spent doing this kind of work, bad news never got any easier to deliver, and he never got any better at doing it. It was that simple. Well, he could live with that. He supposed he would, well, do just that.

He flipped out the light and lit a cigarette. At times like this, he wondered if medicine was a cruel scheme, a game of bait and switch. There was no cure for a brain tumor; his news for Mrs. Raines was not good. Was medicine both an art and science; or, a wicked game of smoke and mirrors? Angel or devil, sinner or saint, one truth remained. Six months wasn’t a lot of time, especially if Mrs. Raines wanted to take a trip somewhere or do something she’d never done before now. Perhaps, he thought, she should do both. A faint knock on the door interrupted his thoughts.

“Come in,” he said. The doctor stared at the young man before him, clad in a starched white coat, the one with such a bright smile, such eager eyes. What should he say to him? His gaze fell on the chart before him, the one that belonged to Mrs. Raines. “Sit down,” he said.

The chart could speak for itself.