PART 3 – I Had Run Out of Reasons to Wait, and Every Mile Toward Knoxville Made Me More Afraid of What My Family Wasn’t Telling Me

I prepared to leave without making a long list of things to bring.

I packed clothes, my charger, and a few items I thought I might need.

I checked that the house was secure.

Then I stood in the kitchen and looked at Maggie's empty place beside the table.

I wanted to believe she would call before I left.

I waited a few more minutes.

Nothing.

I finally picked up my bag and headed for the door.

The drive gave me too much time to think.

At first, I tried to keep my thoughts practical.

Maybe Maggie's phone had broken.

Maybe our son had needed her help with something that took longer than expected.

Maybe she had been too exhausted to keep up with calls.

Each explanation seemed possible when I considered it by itself.

Together, they began to feel like excuses.

I had spent four days accepting silence because I didn't want to be the kind of husband who demanded constant attention.

But there was a difference between giving someone space and not knowing whether they were safe.

I understood that difference now.

I tried calling Maggie while I was stopped.

The call went unanswered.

I tried our son.

Again, nothing.

I put the phone away and continued driving.

The road signs toward Knoxville appeared one after another.

I had driven that way before, but the familiar route felt different when I wasn't sure what waited at the other end.

I kept thinking about the last time Maggie had spoken to me.

Her voice had been ordinary.

She had sounded like a woman with a busy day ahead of her.

I wished I could remember every word.

Instead, I remembered only the feeling that there was nothing to worry about.

That feeling had become something I no longer trusted.

When I reached Knoxville, I felt a brief sense of relief.

I was closer.

At least I could stop guessing from a distance.

I had no clear answer about what I would do first.

I only knew I needed to locate Maggie and hear from her directly.

I tried our son again.

No answer.

I sat for a moment with the phone in my hand.

I could feel my anger building, but beneath it was something worse.

Fear.

I was afraid that Maggie had needed me and that I had been too slow to understand.

I was afraid that something had happened while I was telling myself to be patient.

And I was afraid that when I finally learned the truth, I would remember every opportunity I had given myself to act sooner.

I took a breath and put the phone down.

There was no point punishing myself with possibilities I couldn't confirm.

I needed facts.

I needed to know where Maggie was.

I needed to know whether she was safe.

I made another attempt to reach our son.

When the call went unanswered, I stopped trying to convince myself that another call would solve everything.

I would have to keep looking until I found someone who could tell me what was happening.

I had come to Knoxville for one reason.

I wasn't leaving without an answer.

Click here to continue reading: PART 4: The Doctor’s Expression Told Me Something Was Wrong Before She Explained the Dangerous Substance Found in My Wife’s Blood