Another silence, longer this time. “Why are you asking?” Sarah’s voice was cautious now.
“Just answer me, please. Are you in pain?”
Rachel heard a muffled sound on the other end. It took her a moment to realize that Sarah was crying.
“How did you know?” Sarah finally managed to say. “I didn’t tell anyone.”
Rachel felt tears burning in her own eyes. “What’s going on?”
“I’ve been having terrible abdominal pain for almost a week, but I thought it was just something I ate, or cramps, or I don’t know. I was afraid to go to the doctor and find out it was something serious.”
“Sarah, you need to go to the hospital. Now.”
“Rachel, I…”
“Now, Sarah. Please. Trust me.”
Something in Rachel’s voice—urgency, fear, love—made Sarah agree. Rachel and Michael took Ethan and drove to Boulder. In the next few hours, while they waited at the hospital, Rachel held Michael’s hand so tightly that she left marks.
Finally, a doctor came out. “Are you family of Sarah Thompson?”
“I’m her sister.” Rachel stood up quickly.
“Your sister had acute appendicitis. It was about to rupture. We managed to operate in time, but it was very close. A few more hours…” The doctor shook his head. “She was very lucky to have come in.”
Rachel almost collapsed. Michael held her as she cried. When they were finally allowed to see Sarah, she was pale but awake.
“How did you know, Rachel?” were her first words.
Rachel looked at Ethan, who stood quietly beside Michael. “It’s a long story,” she finally said.
But in that moment, something changed between the sisters. The walls they had built over the years began to crumble. Sarah took Rachel’s hand.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “You saved my life.”
July arrived. Sarah recovered and started visiting Denver regularly. She and Rachel talked almost every day now, making up for the lost years. But Rachel and Michael knew something greater was happening.
And then came the fifth. It was the second week of July. The weather forecast had warned about strong storms for the weekend. That wasn’t unusual; summer in Colorado often brought sudden, intense storms. It was Thursday afternoon. Ethan was in the garden talking as he always did. But this time, when he finished, he ran into the house. Not just quickly—he was crying…
