“I think so too,” she beamed, “she understands a lot more than you think. She just doesn't know how to say it anymore. But I can see it in her face, and she tries so hard. Yesterday, I held her teddy bear out to her, and she called it 'Sandwich.' His name is Sam. But that was close. And then she laughed, and scared herself and burst into tears over it. It's kind of a roller coaster ride, but it's terrific.”

“What does Hammerman think?”

“It's kind of early, but he says that from the tests now, and what he's seeing of her progress, he thinks ninety-five percent recovery is realistic.” It sounded incredible to him. A month before they were resigning themselves to her never coming out of the coma.

“It means she'll never balance her checkbook perfectly, her reflexes may not be fast enough to drive a car, or they may, she may not be the greatest dancer in the world, and simultaneous translation may be beyond her. But she can have a normal life, go to college, hold a job, have a family, laugh at jokes, enjoy a good book, tell a story. She'll be like the rest of the world, and like herself, just maybe a hair off what she might have been if all this hadn't happened.” It was a lot to be grateful for considering the fact that she had almost died and spent four months in a coma.

“Sounds terrific to me.” It was not unlike Chloe. Her dreams of being a ballerina had gone down the tubes, but she could walk, dance, move, live. She had lost something, but not everything. Not like Phillip, or the other people Laura Hutchinson had killed in La Jolla.

Page explained to Allyson about going to Lake Tahoe the next day. She cried when her mother said she was leaving her, but then she smiled again when she explained that it was only for two days. Page hated to leave her, but she would drive down every two or three days to see her. It was a grueling schedule, but Page wanted to do it, and Trygve understood that. She wanted to spend what little time she could with Andy, Trygve, and his family, but not abandon Allie completely.

Page felt like a new person as they drove through the mountains. She felt freer than she had in years, stronger and more alive. She turned to look at Trygve, and she felt like her heart was about to fly out of her chest, she was so happy.

“What are you grinning about? You look like the cat that swallowed the canary.” It made him feel good just to see her. He had missed her during the past two weeks, and he hoped the day would come soon when they could be together.

“I'm just happy,” she said, smiling.

“I can't imagine why,” he teased.

“I can. I've got everything in the world to be thankful for. Two miracle children …and a miracle man …and three more children I'm crazy about.”

“Sounds good to me. There's still room for more though.”

“Maybe we shouldn't push our luck. Maybe five great kids is more than anyone deserves.”

“Baloney.” He was determined to have more children, but after all they'd been through she didn't dare ask for anything more in their lives. Allie's recovery was more miracle than she had ever hoped for.

The time in Tahoe was just what she needed. They finally slept in the same bedroom this time, and in spite of Bjorn and Andy's giggles the first night, everyone seemed to survive it.

It was a peaceful, relaxing time. They rode and fished and went hiking together. They talked about a lot of things, and got to know each other even better than they had. They had campfires and barbecues, and one night they all slept out under the stars. It was the perfect vacation. And Page's trips back to Ross every few days were grueling but worth it. And Allie's progress was amazing.

By the end of the second week, she could stand up and take a few steps with a little assistance. And when Page walked in, she grinned at her on cue and said, “Hi Mom, how are you?” She remembered Trygve's name, and she never forgot to ask for Chloe. She said she wanted to see Andy again too. Page had brought him to visit her before he left for Tahoe. She told her that he was at Lake Tahoe going fishing.

“Fish …gooey …yuk!” she said, making a horrible face, and they all laughed at her.

“Yeah, pretty bad,” Trygve confessed, as excited about her progress as Page was. “They smell bad too.”

“Garbage.” Allie was struggling for words, and they laughed at her.

“I wouldn't go that far. Next time you'll have to come with us, and you can come fishing for garbage too.” Allie laughed at his joke, and he hugged her. She was still beautiful, it was amazing how little visible damage there was from the accident. For her, all the real damage had been inside.

Trygve and Page went back to spend Labor Day weekend at the lake. The air had cooled a little bit, and you could already feel the end of summer. They were sad to see it end, but even as chopped up as the time had been, it had restored them. They all had a lot to do when they went home, especially Page, who had her murals and her art program to work on, and a lot of hard work to do with Allie.

And it sobered them again when they picked up a newspaper and saw that Laura Hutchinson was going on trial Tuesday in La Jolla.

“I hope they put her away for a hundred years,” Chloe said vehemently, more for Allie than herself. And of course for Phillip. She had been only too happy to let Phillip take the blame and imply that it had been his fault. For the rest of time, he would have borne the blame of the accident, when she had been the one. Someone had come forward recently and said that they thought she'd had a lot to drink when she left the party. Why hadn't the police noticed that? Why hadn't they done anything about it? It was too late now. But at least, this time, she was going to have to pay for what she'd done in La Jolla.

“It's amazing how life changes, isn't it?” Page said wistfully as they sat at the edge of the lake at sunset. They were going home the next day, and the kids were all up at the house getting ready for dinner. They were going out that night, to a new restaurant in Truckee. “Five months ago my life was in a whole different place …and now look what we've been through, where we've gone. You never know in life what's going to happen.” They were richer for it in the end, but at what price. They had paid dearly for everything that had happened.

“I never want to relive that day,” Trygve said thoughtfully. “I still remember when they called me …and then I saw you at the hospital …I thought they were with you.”

“And I thought you'd been killed when they said the driver had been killed on the bridge …God, what an awful moment.” She looked up at him with wide eyes, filled with respect for the power of destiny, its cruelty and its kindness. “I guess we've been pretty lucky.” She smiled at him, and took his hand in her own.

“You've been so good to me these past months.”

“You deserve even better. Just give it time.” She laughed then, as though he'd said something funny, and he had, but he didn't know it. “Have you been doing any thinking about our plans?” He didn't want to push her, but he brought it up from time to time, just to remind her. He still wanted her to marry him when her divorce became final at Christmas.

“Yes, I have.” She said it quietly, looking out across the lake as he watched her, and then she turned to him with an odd expression. “Are you really sure that's what you want, Trygve? It's a lot to take on. I've got two kids …and Allie's recovery won't be easy.”

“Neither will Chloe's. And Bjorn will always be who he is. What about you? For all my pushing, how do you feel about my burdens?”

“I happen to love them very much. I never knew I could love someone else's kids as much.”She had even grown fond of Nick in the short time she had come to know him better over the summer.

“I'd say it's a fair match.” He smiled, and she nodded, and then he looked serious again. “I used to feel that I really shouldn't get married again because of Bjorn, that it wasn't fair to him. I couldn't imagine anyone loving him as much as I did, and I didn't want anyone to hurt him. And then you came along,” his eyes grew damp as he pulled her closer to him, “and you were so wonderful to him … he really deserves to be around people who love him. He's such a good little soul, in spite of his limitations.”

“So are you,” she said, nestling close to him, and she hadn't found his limitations yet.

“How does Christmas sound to you?” He smiled, looking mischievous, and this time she laughed.

“Actually, I was going to discuss that with you,” she said, and then lay on their towel and looked up at him.

“Are you serious?” He looked thrilled. She had been reluctant to move too soon before, but now everything looked different since Allie had come out of her coma.

“Maybe. I have to discuss something with you first though.” Her face grew serious and he lay down on his side next to her and waited. “There's something I think I should tell you.” Something about Allyson perhaps … or Brad …maybe she was going to tell him that she still loved him and thought he should know that. He had considered that himself, but she seemed to have adjusted remarkably well, better than he had after Dana. “Remember what you said about wanting to have a baby right away?”

She looked worried and he laughed. He knew she was reluctant about that. She said she wanted more, but she was afraid she was too old, and didn't want to be distracted from helping Allie.

“I can wait on that if I have to. I just thought it would be nice. But if you need time …we're young enough to wait a while.” And if she decided she couldn't handle more, he was willing to accept that, but she was frowning at him now. She was looking worried. “It's not a deal breaker, Page.”

“Let me put it to you this way,” she said, propping herself up on one elbow. “How would you feel about getting married at Christmas,” his heart soared and he laughed out loud, he was ecstatic, but she wasn't finished, “if I was nearly six months pregnant?”

“What?” He sat up and looked down at her, and she grinned at him sheepishly and rolled over on her back and chuckled.

“I don't know how the hell it happened. I think you overworked my birth control or something, about six weeks ago. I thought I was imagining it at first, but I wasn't. I wasn't sure how you'd feel about this, with the kids and all …it's kind of a shock for everyone, and it makes for kind of an interesting wedding.” She looked like an embarrassed kid as she explained it to him. She felt foolish, but pleased. She always wanted another baby. And they had certainly started this relationship with a bang in every way. It was like being shot out of a cannon …and landing in a field of flowers.

“You know, you amaze me.” He lay next to her and held her close to him. “I can't believe it.” And then suddenly he laughed again. He was thrilled. This was exactly what he had wanted, even faster than he'd wanted it, which was fine with him. “I guess this'll be yet another miracle baby for us.” He laughed openly as he teased her.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, there's Bjorn, who's pretty special in his own way. And Chloe is pretty miraculous now too …and Andy who was so premature and is fine now …and Allie's miraculous recovery …and let's see, if we get married in December, and you have the baby in what …three and a half, four months after that …think of what a miracle that will be! A three-month baby!” He was laughing and she looked sheepish.

“You're awful. Think how embarrassed our poor children will be.”

“Then we won't let them. If they can't understand how lucky we all are, and how blessed, and that grown-ups can make a mistake occasionally too, then to hell with them. I'm certainly not going to question a gift like this, or God forbid turn it away when it's been offered to us …I'm going to hold it as close to me as I can, and you along with it, and whisper my thanks every night before I go to sleep … as miracles go, I'd say we've cornered the market,” he said proudly, and without saying another word, he reached down and kissed her, and she held him close to her, thinking how far they had come, how far they had traveled on dangerous shores, and how lucky they were to have each other.

a cognizant original v5 release october 23 2010


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Copyright © 1994 by Danielle Steel