Read Online Panacea by F. Paul Wilson - Free Book Online

Mets—or “Metropolitans” as she insisted on calling them. And oddly enough, they began winning once she became a fan. She knew the stats of every player and had very definite opinions on who should be played and who should be benched for every game. Laura didn’t understand a word of it. All she knew was that baseball players seemed to spend most of their time spitting. She found it disgusting—the dugouts had to be ankle deep in saliva—but it didn’t seem to bother Marissa in the least.
    â€œNobody’s forgetting about you. And anyway, Daddy’s coming tonight.”
    A sudden smile. “That’s right! I forgot.”
    Daddy could always trigger Marissa’s smile, damn him.
    â€œRight. You wouldn’t want to leave him high and dry, would you?”
    â€œNo way!”
    Right. No way.
    Most children of divorce played musical houses between the parents. After the stem-cell transplant, Laura and Steven decided that Marissa should stay in her safe, hygienically structured home environment while they did the shuttling. Steven would arrive Friday for his weekend with Marissa and stay in the guest bedroom while Laura migrated to Steven’s Manhattan apartment. Silver-tongued Steven, as he was known, was a big shot in a public relations firm, with a good salary and better bonuses. A lot of fathers would have objected to the arrangement, but Marissa had never been a pawn in the divorce. Steven Gaines—she was Laura Fanning on her medical degree and had kept her name—was sane enough to put his love and concern for his daughter’s well-being above his ego. And really, with Laura out of the house, he had his daughter all to himself in an environment that protected her. He’d said he couldn’t see the downside.
    A sweet loving man. The loving part had turned out to be the problem. Too loving. His roving eye and silver tongue had shattered their marriage. Laura hadn’t forgiven him for what eventually came to light as not an isolated affair, but a string of them. But she’d put that behind her.
    While he was probably still bedding a string of women, Laura had yet to cross paths with any man she found even remotely interesting. She wasn’t looking for a relationship anyway. Her daughter and her job filled her life right now.
    She and Steven had already gone their separate ways when Marissa fell ill. The leukemia had necessitated more contact with her ex than Laura had wanted, but proved best for Marissa. Laura’s hurt and animosity at being betrayed abated, but nothing could bring them back together. The past was past and they’d buried the proverbial hatchet …
    But Laura knew exactly where.
    Her ME salary had been extra money before the divorce and the leukemia. Now, even with generous child support, the regular paychecks and benefit package proved critical for Marissa’s extraordinary expenses.
    Laura still managed to treat herself now and again. Like the ticket for a new Broadway play Saturday night. She didn’t remember the name now—some Irish drama. She didn’t care. She loved the theater and didn’t mind going alone. She’d seen pretty much everything on and off-Broadway. The ticket was in her shoulder bag.
    This was her life now. She’d been in a bridge club, had a circle of women friends who played round-robin tennis. All that stopped when Marissa fell ill. She missed them, but only a little. Marissa was what mattered. Life would be back to normal—whatever that was—before long. Until then, her life was focused on the little girl huddled next to her.
    â€œAnd doesn’t the Subway Series start tonight?”
    Laura thought “Subway Spitfest” a better title but kept that to herself. Marissa lived for the Yankees-Mets games. She hated the Yankees almost as much as she loved the Mets.
    â€œMom,” she said with her I-can’t-believe-I-have-to-tell-you-this look,