The Unforgettable Guinevere St. Clair by Amy Makechnie

Author:Amy Makechnie [Makechnie, Amy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Childrens, Contemporary
ISBN: 9781534414488
Goodreads: 37877677
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Published: 2018-06-12T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 18

MICAH AND JIMMY WERE GROUNDED for a few days after the gym incident, which wasn’t fair to Micah, but Gaysie said since they did everything else together, they could share the punishment. It proved serendipitous. I’d been so preoccupied with my case that I hadn’t been paying enough attention to my other eavesdropping.

Bitty and I were attempting to put together a puzzle with Vienna, while my father spoke to Annabelle.

“Don’t be discouraged,” Annabelle was saying. “It’s only been a few months. Surely you didn’t think she would suddenly remember everything again?” Her voice was gentle, but admonishing. I stole a glance at my father, who looked a bit beat up after a long day looking at teeth and then attempting to teach Vienna how to meditate. Meditation supposedly helped boost neural pathways, but Vienna wasn’t exactly taking to quiet and focused breath. Instead, she continually burst out into uncontrollable laughter.

“Jed,” Vienna said. I turned to see her putting the last piece of my father’s face together. Nana had ordered the puzzle from a photo company that made puzzles out of family pictures—it was my father’s latest experiment on memory.

This puzzle was made from a picture taken right after Bitty was born. I watched Vienna’s eyes closely. She was curious about her and Jed, but her eyes did not register recognition of the baby Bitty or little Gwyn.

I noted that Vienna had put almost everyone together but me; I was the most incomplete.

“Cute,” she said, pointing to the baby.

“That’s me,” Bitty said, pleased and smiling as she helped Vienna find Jed’s shoulders.

“No, silly! That’s a baby.”

“And who’s that?” Bitty asked, pointing to me as a child.

Vienna avoided the question by flicking a puzzle piece off the table, just to be obnoxious. I refused to pick it up. I ignored her, making my eyes glaze over as I focused on the adult conversation.

“Anatomically, there’s nothing wrong with Vienna’s heart,” my father said. “It’s a rhythm disorder. You’d think that would be trickier, but it was the damage to her brain . . . We’re doing the memory exercises, the video simulations, getting her more exercise, learning new things. We moved all the way here, I’ve introduced her to so many old friends, taken her to familiar landmarks, and still . . . I can’t help her. I can’t seem to . . .” He cleared his throat and began packing up to go home. “There’s been progress, of course. One must have perspective.”

Yes, I thought grudgingly, watching Vienna. Was she putting puzzles together faster? Was she holding the pieces a little less awkwardly? Were new neural pathways being made? My father thought so, but I wondered if he was only seeing what he wanted to.

Annabelle had moved closer, tossing her long black hair down her back.

“I’m always here for your family, if you ever want to talk.” She touched my father’s arm and smiled up at him under her dark black lashes. I watched my father’s face soften as he studied the pictures on Vienna’s windowsill.

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