Life - Message From The Past

15-Come on, Charlie!

Read My Lips

Madeline looked at Jeremy. "I can't read it!"

"Come on, whatever it says, I can take it, Maddie!"

"Listen to me!" She pointed to her mouth "Read. My. Lips! I don't understand what it says!" Madeline rolled her eyes. "It's not written in Spanish!"

"Huh?" Jeremy looked at Madeline and then at the paper. "What the hell is it?"

"I don't know!"

"You think Google translator will have this language?" Jeremy's look suggested it may not.

"Well ~ maybe." Madeline raised an eyebrow. "It's important to you. I will try, okay?"

"You're the best, Maddie!"

"A compliment? From Jeremy Fartham? I don't believe it!" Madeline chortled at his last statement. "Maybe there is hope for you after all."

"Hahaha." Jeremy Googled, Oaxaca then showed Madeline.

"Why that place? Planning a vacation?" Madeline frowned.

"My grandparents Alejandra and Salvatore were born in the Oaxacan valley before coming north." Jeremy nodded as he described what he remembered of the couple. "I believe my grandparents were descendants of the Mixtec. Both were artists and musicians. They loved life!"

"What happened to them?"

Jeremy shook his head. "Late one night my parents got a call about the fire claiming both of them."

"Oh my God, Jeremy! I am so sorry." Madeline gently touched his shoulder.

"I was four but I will never forget my mother carrying the charred bible into the house." Jeremy pressed his lips together.

"It was important to your mom." Madeline reminded Jeremy.

"Yeah. Now I have to find an answer to..."

"An answer? You believe this will save you and Gwen?" Madeline's fire burned now. "Jeremy, there is no secret cure that will help you! Modern medicine is your best shot. If it wasn't, I wouldn't do what I do!"

"Miguel thinks this has the answers." He pointed to the paper. "You will not change my mind, Maddie."

"You stubborn ass!" Madeline screamed at Jeremy. "I will not help you throw the last few months of your life away!"

"So you don't believe in someone's personal choice?" Jeremy felt just as passionately as the doctor. "Just humor me tonight."

"I will give you tonight only." Madeline glanced at Jeremy. "I guess we had a deal."

Mixtec Survivors

"Hey, hey, I found something!" Madeline pulled on Jeremy's shirt getting his attention. "I have a match! It is a dialect not very common but I think we can decipher the note."

Jeremy turned the laptop to him. "Mixtec? I never knew they had their own language. I thought it had to be Mayan or Aztec."

Madeline turned the laptop back. "Let's get to work. Grab some paper we need to figure this out."

Jeremy had a better idea. "I'll be right back."

"Jeremy?" Madeline shook her head. "I need coffee!"

Jeremy returned with his whiteboard. "I used it to track my contracts and well..." He scoffed," "whatever...that life is gone!" He grabbed a cloth and wiped all the jobs away. "Hand me the paper."

"What are you up to?" Madeline had an idea but needed to hear it from Jeremy.

"I am going to write the message out on the board and when we figure something out..."