“That’s me.”
“Great.” She extended her hand. “I’m Hannah.”
I shook her hand and smiled. “It’s so nice to meet you.”
“It’s great to meet you, too. Conor has told me so much about you.” I’d only heard the guys call Lynch by his road name, so the name Conor threw me for a second but thankfully, I’d figured it out by the time Hannah motioned me to the front door. “Come on in, and I’ll introduce you to Reece and Matt.”
I nodded, then grabbed my things and followed her up to the house. When we walked inside, the farmhouse theme of her décor made the interior of her home just as picturesque as the exterior. I was still looking around, admiring the beauty of her home, when a young boy came dashing into the living room. “Mom! Mom! Mom!”
“What, Matt?”
“Reece broke my controller!”
“What controller?”
“My PlayStation controller.” Matt had shaggy, brown hair that hung below his brow, and his freckled nose was crinkled with despair as he looked down at his game controller and shook it. “I was playing, and Reece made me drop it. Now, it’s busted.”
The words had barely left his mouth when I heard the sounds of a walker and shuffled footsteps coming around the corner. Moments later, Reece appeared. There were braces on both her legs, and while she trembled slightly, she was able to keep herself balanced with the help of her little red walker. She had long, dark hair and dark eyes, just like her mother. Worried about upsetting her brother, she looked up to her mother, and with slightly slurred words, she mumbled, “I’m really swor-ry, Momma.”
“It’s fine, sweetie. We will get Mathew another one.”
“But I don’t want another one!” Matt fussed. “I like this one.”
“I’m sure you do, but things happen.” Hannah brushed her son’s hair out of his eyes as she promised, “I’ll call your dad and tell him to pick up another one on his way home from work.”
“Okay.”
Looking utterly defeated, he dropped his head and started back to his room. He hadn’t gotten far when Reece muttered, “I’m swor-ry, Maddie.”
“Whatever.”
“Matt!” Hannah fussed. “There’s no reason to be ugly. It was an accident.”
“It’s always just an accident.”
He continued out of the room, and moments later, a door slammed. Hannah immediately turned her attention to me. “I’m so sorry about that.”
“It’s fine. No need to apologize.”
“It seems like there is always something happening around here.” Hannah stepped over to Reece and knelt down in front of her. “You okay, sweetheart?”
“Mm-hmm.” Her bottom lip quivered as she told her mother, “I... I didn’t mean ...”
“It’s fine.” Hannah gave her a wink. “I’m sure he can survive a few hours without it.”
“M-mad.”
“Yes, but he’ll get over it.” Hannah stood, then looked over to me. “This is Kiersten. She’s one of Uncle Conor’s friends.”
“Hi, I’m Reece.”
“It’s really nice to meet you, Reece. Your uncle has told me so much about you.”
“Pret-ty.”
“Thank you, Reece. You’re pretty, too.”
“Hey, sweetie.” Hannah placed her hand on Reece’s shoulder and said, “Kiersten and I are going to talk for a bit. Let’s get you back to your room, and I’ll put on one of your shows.”
“O-kay.”
Hannah looked over to me as she said, “I’ll be right back.”
“Take your time.”
I watched as she helped guide Reece down the hall and back into her bedroom. A few minutes later, she returned to the living room, feigning a smile. “Come have a seat.”
“Sure.” I followed her over to the sofa, and as soon as we were seated, I said, “Your children are adorable.”
“Thank you. They are quite a handful.” She let out a deep breath. “Reece wants so much to be like any other kid and tries her best not to let her disabilities slow her down, but there are days like today when they simply get the best of her.”
“I’m sure it’s difficult for all of you.”
“It is, but we’ve been really blessed that Reece is still able to get around with her walker, and her speech is still holding. So many kids with CP aren’t so lucky, but at the same time, the bad days when Reece is in so much pain are unbearable for us all.”
“I can only imagine how hard that must be.”
“It’s overwhelming, and I feel so helpless.” Hannah clutched her hands in her lap, twisting them nervously as she spoke, “Conor told me all about you and what you’ve done to help others who suffer like Reece. Do you think you can help her the way you’ve helped them?”
“I hope so.” I reached into my bag and pulled out all the research I’d brought her. “I looked over the medical records you’d sent, and I spent some time this afternoon going over the pros and cons of marijuana use in regard to children with CP. I’m not a doctor. I can’t tell you for certain whether it will help Reece or not.”