New to the Family

Family Comes First

 I was sweeping the kitchen when I heard the kitchen door open. Theo walked into the house. He was covering his mouth as he was coughing. His whole body shook with every cough. Splatters of blood were seeping out from his hands. I rested the broom against the counter and ran over to Theo.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Theo shook his head, and coughed again. Lindsay hurried into the kitchen. Her eyes grew wide when she saw her son.

"Are you coughing up blood, Theo?" she asked.

"Not a lot," Theo said.

"Go up to your room and lie down," she said. "I will be there in a few minutes."

Theo started coughing again and headed up the stairs. He was leaning against the banister as he made his way upstairs. I followed behind him. He dragged his feet down the hall to his room. I stood in the doorway as Theo flopped down onto the bed. His body curled into a ball as he continued to cough.

Lindsay pushed past me and hurried over to sit on the edge of the bed. She had a box of tissues in one hand and a cold cloth in the other. She laid the cloth across Theo's forehead. She looked over her shoulder at me.

"Leah, can you get me another pillow?" she asked.

I nodded my head and took a step back. I was not sure where to find another pillow so I went into our room. I grabbed the pillow on my side of the bed and gave it to Lindsay. She lifted Theo's head and placed it on top of his pillow.

"That'll make it easier to breathe," she said.

"Mom, I'm fine," Theo said.

His eyes were closed. His pale skin had a few specks of blood on his chin. Lindsay ran her fingers through his dark hair. His forehead was shining with sweat.

"I'll talk to your father when he comes in and see if he can get you any medicine," she said.

Theo nodded his head. Lindsay leaned forward and pressed her lips against his forehead. She got up off of the bed. She kept her head down until she saw me standing in the doorway. Her eyes were glistening with tears. She took in a sharp breath and squeezed her eyes shut.

"Is he going to be okay?" I asked.

"I hope so," she said. "I was in nursing school when Noah found me. From what I remember, this doesn't look good. I have to talk to Gabe."

She wiped her eyes as she walked back into the hallway. I watched as she made her way to the staircase. I stepped into Theo's room, and he started coughing again. I sat on the edge of his bed. When he felt the mattress dip, he opened his eyes.

"Theo, we need to get out of here," I said. "You need to go to the hospital."

"Leah, we both know that is not going to happen," he said.

"It can happen. Tonight when everyone falls asleep we can leave and get you to a hospital."

"And what am I supposed to say when I get there? They will find out who I am and I will be sent to jail."

"What do you mean?"

Theo shifted his weight on the bed. He let his heavy eyes close for a minute before he opened them again.

"Julie wrote that book about our family," he said. "Everyone is looking for the rest of the family. They want to tear us apart and send us to jail. Haven't you read it?"

"No," I said. "I haven't."

Theo propped himself up on his elbow and reached over to his nightstand. He opened the door and pulled out a book. He handed it to me. It was the book that Juliet Wilcox had written. I remember my friend reading it in high school.