I propped the door open to find Mr. and Mrs. O’Reilly. She was sitting on the bed, holding Scarlett’s hand—very obviously trying not to cry—while he paced the far wall with the window.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I can come back later.”
“No, Violet, please come in.” Her mother waved me over. “We’re just going to step outside for a second. We’ll be right back.”
I nodded. She stood, ushering her husband out of the room. The door closed as I sat down next to Scarlett. She looked so small, so weak. Her face had lost all its colouring, a tube stuck in her nose, but her smile wasn’t any less bright.
“Miss Violet, thank you so much for coming.”
“Of course, kiddo. You know I’m always here for you.” Damn it, my stupid voice cracked. I was ten seconds away from bursting into tears but I couldn’t, not yet. I never let myself break in front of the kids.
“Can I ask you for something?”
“Anything.”
“I know I already had my wish, but would you try to get Avalanche to visit again?”
Anything but that.
“I’ll get him here.”
“Selfish asshole!”I screamed into my phone as I got his voicemail for the fifth time. I was pacing a hole through my office floor like it was my job and hung up aggressively before I nearly chucked my phone out the window.
He lied. He said if I needed him he’d be there and now he was nowhere to be found. It had been four days since he saved me from that creep and it had been radio silence since. That was fine, he made a choice.
But this? This was not fucking fine.
Did he really think I’d call five times because I wanted to talk to him? I could take a fucking hint, unlike him. This time I called Eva’s number. Maybe she could talk some sense into him.
“Hey!” She chirped, picking up on the first ring.
“Are you with him?”
“Um…”
“Eva, please.” My voice cracked. “It’s Scarlett, she’s—” I broke off in a sob. It all hit me like a freight train and I couldn’t stop.
I’d lost two dozen kids since I started working here six years ago. I was twenty, walking into the hospital like I could save the world all by myself. But I couldn’t. The first loss took me out for a week. Amber—being the seasoned doctor in training—sat me down and told me I needed to compartmentalize or I was going to ruin my mental health.
That didn’t work for me. Most of the kids I worked with were told they were going to die the moment they walked through those doors. I needed to smile and laugh and treat them like normal kids. I needed to give them hope. So, every loss hurt, but this one—Scarlett—would hit me just like the first.
She was the happiest, brightest, most beautiful soul. She didn’t deserve this. Even now she was sitting in her room, talking to her parents with the biggest smile, trying to make them feel better when she was the one that was dying.
Her last wish was a visit from Avalanche and I would make that happen even if I had to drag him here by his hair.
“I’ll get him there. I promise,” Eva said softly.
“Thank you.”
I hung up and let myself cry for a few more minutes.
Twenty minutes later,I had collected myself and was standing outside Scarlett’s room. Someone had spotted Avalanche on the roof a minute ago. I was waiting for him to do my whole speech. I knew he didn’t need to hear it but everyone in the hospital had seen me give it a half dozen times, it would be suspicious if I didn’t.
Ten seconds later he was strolling into the ward. Every eye followed his costumed frame. He looked calm, cool, and collected—anyone who didn’t know him might believe he was. As he got closer, I could see he was a bit dishevelled. Hair messier than usual—and blond, if I was in a better mood I might have teased him about it—eyes bloodshot, a little more purpose in his step.
“Good morning,” I started off before he could pass me to head into the room. “I apologize for the short notice but thank you for coming. As you’ve probably heard, we’re all about making sure the kids are safe. We’ve been put on lockdown so the only place to enter is through the emergency room—for your safety and ours. I’ll be down there for the majority of your visit in case the police make an appearance. As long as no one is harmed, I will keep any attempted raids from happening. Do you understand and agree to our terms?”
“I do.”
