to blame and there was poor Simon Magus and his wish to be a more effective healer, and of course his pals the Gnostics.”
“You sure you can handle all this glass?” Jack asked again, as he backed away. He was eager to get home to see if he could clear the deck for the evening event, hoping just maybe to convince Laurie to take some time to get out of the house. He knew it was a long shot, but he was going to try just the same.
“Sana and I will handle it fine,” Shawn said with a wave. “See you tonight.”
“I hope,” Jack said, giving a thumbs-up sign. Feeling progressively nervous and rather guilty since it was now a little after noon, Jack jogged back to the main OCME building at 30th Street and First Avenue. Resisting heading up to his office, he merely grabbed his Trek, waved to security, and headed uptown.
Once on his bike, he felt better knowing he’d be home in thirty minutes, where there would at least be a slight chance to assuage at bit of his guilt, provided he could get Laurie out of the house. Of course, if JJ was having a bad day, that probably wouldn’t happen, as Laurie would be reluctant to leave the poor child in Jack’s relatively incapable hands. Above and beyond the personal emotional issues, Jack admitted he was not a natural with sick children, as his rotation in pediatrics in third-year medical school had amply displayed.
Jack’s mental state progressively improved as the weather was near perfect with a crystal-clear sapphirine sky and a temperature that had risen to be mild for New York in December. There was also a festive feeling in the air, as the city was alive with early Christmas shoppers hoping to beat the crowds.
Jack’s route home took him past the Central Park Zoo, which was clogged with children and parents. Jack felt a sudden catch in his throat as he wondered if there would be a chance for him to enjoy such an outing with JJ. A little farther on, and coming abreast of a beautiful playground with a slide built of polished granite, Jack stopped for a minute to watch the children squealing, shrieking, and laughing. Their glee was infectious, and it almost brought a smile to Jack’s face, remembering his own exuberant childhood. But a moment later his thoughts were dominated by JJ’s neuroblastoma and the heavy question of which was going to triumph, the mystical power of JJ’s body to heal itself with the help of modern medicine if and when the medicine could be restarted, or the equally mysterious power of the DNA-driven neuroblastoma cells: a classic collision of right and wrong.
Experiencing another, more powerful catch in his throat, Jack jumped back on his bike and pedaled furiously to clear his mind. Luckily, because of the springlike weather, he quickly found himself enveloped in a mob of other bikers, runners, in-line skaters, roller skaters, and mere walkers such that thinking was difficult to avoid running into someone.
Jack exited the park at 106th Street. As he pedaled he could clearly see his house, which stood out sharply as the only one on the block that had been totally renovated. Then he caught a glimpse of something he wished he hadn’t: the sight of his neighbors warming up on the outdoor playground’s basketball court. Unable to resist, Jack jumped the curb and glided to a stop at the chain-link fence.
As soon as Jack had come to a halt, one of the players sauntered over to him. His name was Warren Wilson, and he was by far the best player. Over the course of Jack’s years in the city living in the neighborhood, he and Jack had become the best of friends.
“Hey, man, you coming out? I still got room for one.”
“I’d love to,” Jack said, “but Laurie’s been cooped up in the house with JJ, and I’ve got to go and relieve her. You know what I’m saying?”
“Yeah, I know. Catch you later, then.”
Struggling with his conscience, Jack watched Warren rejoin the group. Reluctantly, he turned his bike and headed across the street, hoisting it onto his shoulder to carry it up the front stone steps.
After unlocking the door, Jack poked his head in and listened. No crying. Carrying the bike inside, he placed it in its designated closet and started up the stairs.
As Jack climbed the stairs he began to hear some telltale sounds from the kitchen. By the time he arrived there he assumed he would find the baby in the playpen and Laurie at the sink, as he had the previous evening. “Hello, dearest!” he called out, seeing Laurie out of the corner of his eye as he stepped over to take a peek at JJ in the playpen. At that point he did a double take, because JJ was nowhere to be seen.
“Where’s the boy?” Jack questioned with mild concern, since the situation was so unique.
“The little guy is sleeping,” Laurie announced with pleasure. “And since I had a reasonable night’s sleep last night, I thought I’d get a jump on dinner. It’s quite a luxury.”
“I need to talk,” Jack said in an authoritarian voice.
“Okay,” Laurie said, looking at Jack askance. The situation seemed mildly out of character, and she didn’t know whether or not to be concerned. She couldn’t read Jack’s emotions, although she could sense he was not entirely himself. “Is everything all right at the office?”
Jack hesitated a moment, not knowing where to start. He hadn’t given any thought to what he specifically wanted to say. Unfortunately for Laurie, every minute of silence on Jack’s part fanned her concerns about what he was struggling to bring up.
“I need to ask you something,” Jack said. “Something that makes me feel quite guilty.” Laurie took in a sudden breath and felt her extremities go cold. “Wait!” she said with a touch of desperation, her mind reflexively drudging up the curious cell-phone-in-the-bathroom episode the night before. “If you are about to tell me you are having an affair, I don’t want to hear it. That’s something I cannot deal with! I’ve got about as much on my plate right now as I can handle, and sometimes I’m not even sure I’ve got what it takes to handle this much.” The words tumbled out in a rush of emotion as Laurie fought to avoid tears. Quickly, Jack leaped up to sit next to her. He put his arm around her shoulder.
“I am absolutely not having an affair,” Jack said, shocked at the suggestion. “What I wanted to ask you is whether you would mind if I went out to dinner tonight with two college friends. One you’ve met, Shawn Daughtry.”
“The archaeologist?” Laurie questioned with relief, as tears brimmed in her eyes. “The archaeologist with the fawning wife.”
“Exactly,” Jack said. Stunned by Laurie’s idea that he might be having an affair, his mind went to his promise to James. He’d sworn not to mention the possibility of finding the bones of the Virgin Mary, not about the existence of the ossuary itself. There’d been no concern about letting Alex Jaszek in on the existence of the relic. Jack wanted something significant to share with Laurie to totally eliminate her concern about his having an affair.
“Last night I told you that I was giving up on my crusade about alternative medicine, even though I’m in sorry need of a diversion. Well, as luck would have it, a diversion has literally dropped into my lap.”
“Wonderful,” Laurie said, still struggling to recover her composure. “I’m glad to hear it.
What is it?”
Jack told the story about the ossuary from the beginning, and as he knew it would, it totally captivated and fascinated Laurie, even without the possible association with the Virgin Mary.
“I had no idea you even knew the archbishop of New York,” Laurie said, truly shocked.
“It was part of my old life which I’ve tried to forget,” Jack explained. “Actually I was surprised Shawn didn’t mention it when we had dinner with him and his wife.”
“I wonder,” Laurie said. “But no matter. I just find it astonishing, as is the whole story of the ossuary and the scrolls. I can’t wait to hear more.”
“I feel the same. As a diversion, I couldn’t have asked for anything more engaging. If I believed in a merciful God, I’d think it heaven-sent.” Jack smiled inwardly, realizing how true this really was.
“I apologize for even thinking about you having an affair,” Laurie murmured. “I’m not myself these days.”
“No need to apologize,” Jack said. “Neither of us are ourselves, me in particular.”
“Of course you can go to dinner tonight,” Laurie said, “with my blessing.”
“Thank you,” Jack said. “But it makes me feel more guilty than I already feel. Can you understand that?”
“I do.”
“And can you understand that I would prefer you were coming along,” Jack said, while suppressing the thought about wishing they’d not had the child, especially since it had required in vitro fertilization assistance.
