gave all the symptoms of dementia,” he said in a low voice.
“ But I don’t know anyone in our family who has dementia. At least the side of the family I know about,” she said.
“ Well, it is a possibility that the side of the family you don’t know about may have a history of dementia. But don’t worry. I’ll make sure she gets all the tests needed to confirm everything before we make any conclusions,” Dave said with a smile.
“ Yeah, Dave’s a doctor. I’m sure by now you have realized,” Mitchell said with a smile.
“ Yeah, we noticed,” Desiree said smiling.
“ Oh my God, Mama,” Rita said in a whisper as a medic holding Lydia’s arm walked towards them . “You’re okay,” she said as she hugged a confused Lydia.
“ Rita, who is this woman? What is going on?” Lydia asked, looking at Desiree. Rita pulled away and looked at her.
“ Mama, it’s me. It’s Rita,” she said, looking at Lydia.
“ Rita?” Lydia asked again, still looking at Desiree.
“ It’s okay,” Desiree said, walking towards Lydia. “See this lady, her name is Rita too, and you are her mother,” she said with a smile.
“ I had twins and named them the same?” Lydia asked, looking confused.
“ No, it’s...Ericson, help me,” Desiree said. Taylor took a step forward and then took Lydia’s hand in his.
“ Come on, Lydia. Why don’t we go down to the vending machine and see if they have those chips you like,” he said as the two of them walked off. Desiree looked at Rita, who was now fighting the tears that were threatening to roll down her cheeks.
“ I’m so sorry,” she said looking at Rita.
“ It’s fine. You were there for her when I wasn’t,” Rita said, smiling sadly. “Do you know what she was doing there? How she got there?” she asked. Desiree nodded.
“ Well, her memory comes back in flashes. She said something about meeting Zack. Does that mean anything to you?” she asked. Rita nodded as a tear rolled down her cheek.
“ The name on my birth certificate, my father’s name is Zachary Albert. Maybe they reconnected. Maybe she was going to see him or something,” she said as she brushed off a tear.
“ I’ll make a call to the hospital to get everything set up,” Dave said as he walked away. Rita walked to a nearby couch and sat down, and Natasha followed.
“ I never had a mom. I grew up in foster care and seeing someone’s mother like this...it’s hard,” Desiree said as she and Mitchell looked at Natasha, who was now holding a sobbing Rita in her arms.
“ I know. I can’t imagine this being easy on anyone,” Mitchell said.
“ But for us, the glass is half full. I mean, when she was not almost burning down the house, Lydia was quite a delight. Only we called her Meg. We had no idea what her name was or even the first letter of her name,” Desiree said. Mitchell laughed.
“ You guys are just the best,” he said as Dave walked up to them
“ I have an MMSE test scheduled for her beginning tomorrow. She has to be admitted today, though,” Dave said. Mitchell looked at him and shook his head.
“ MMSE?” he asked.
“ Sorry. Sometimes I forget I am not at the hospital all the time. MMSE is a mini mental state exam. The test will determine her concentration span, short and long term memory and ability to understand instructions. It’s pretty standard,” he explained. “After that, then we’ll have the CT and MRI and see how it goes,” he added. Mitchell nodded.
“ I’m just glad she is back. Rita can breathe again...but she is going to need all the help she can get,” Mitchell said.
“ Well, she is not alone. She has me and you guys,” Dave said. “And a new family,” he added as he looked at Desiree.
“ So, it’s official. You guys are back together?” Mitchell asked. Dave smiled and nodded.
“ What? You had let that gorgeous woman go?” Desiree asked.
“ It was just a misunderstanding,” Dave said quickly. Desiree laughed. “I would