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She scurried off, leaving me and Thomas to go in the other direction toward the room that looked like it might become Sadie’s tomb.
“Don’t do anything that will take you away from this family right now, Jasper. They all need you.”
“Goddammit, Thomas, this is my mother.”
“And the woman I’ve loved since before you were born. I know. If I could shake her awake, I would.”
The door opened, and the brown-haired man with a stethoscope around his neck strolled in. “I’m Dr. Purcell and—”
I raised the gun so he didn’t have to look down at it, so he was looking right at me as I made my request. “And you’re the man who’s going to wake my mother up.”
The doctor froze just inside the door, his pleading gaze bouncing between the gun and Thomas. “That’s not a good idea.”
“Do it,” I growled. “You want to pull the plug on my mother, prove to me she’s beyond help.”
Purcell shook his head. “I didn’t say that. I’m just giving your family the options.”
His hands trembled, but incredibly, he turned to me with steel in his eyes. “Sadie needs to wake up on her own. The fact that she hasn’t means she isn’t ready to, for whatever reason. All we can do is monitor her and keep her comfortable, Mr. Ashby.”
“Wake. Her. Up. Now.” I adjusted my grip and took a step forward to press the cold metal against his flesh. “Now, goddammit!”
“Mr. Ashby—”
“Now. You medically induced her, so that means you can wake her up. Do it.” I pressed the gun against his head harder and harder until he tried to crouch away from it.
“I can’t.” Purcell stood tall and smoothed the sides of his white coat. “She hasn’t had any meds for a while now. Ms. Ashby has to wake up on her own. If you’re going to shoot me for that, then shoot me. This is ridiculous.”
“Stop wasting my fucking time, Doc.”
“Stop wasting mine! I’m doing my job,” he growled back. “You have a gun to my head, so I want, need you to manage your expectations.”
“Consider them managed.” My jaw clenched, and I nodded for him to get out. “Get out of here. I’ll do it myself.”
Thomas and I sat for hours. I prayed, begged her, willed her to open her eyes. Hours passed. Then I realized the doctor was right. Sitting here with a gun in my hand wasn’t going to make Sadie wake up. And in a flash of insight, something in me surrendered to that truth. This was Sadie’s fight and I had to wait until she was ready.
But as much as I knew I couldn’t bend Sadie to my will, I also knew I couldn’t leave her alone that day. I had to stay with her and wait for her to let me know she was ready. And I’d wait in that hospital room with her until hell froze over if that was what it took.
It was the longest goddamn wait of my life, but suddenly, hours after I’d stormed into the hospital, gun blazing with Thomas at my side, humbled now by a power I couldn’t control, Sadie’s eyelids began to open. Her fingers twitched. That was the only movement for another few minutes.
“Come on, Ma.” She was so close, I could tell. “Just wake up,” I whispered.
Thomas went to her side, and I stayed where I was, worried she wouldn’t wake up. Worried she wouldn’t be able to speak, or worse, she would have no memories of any of us.
“Come on, babe. Open up those pretty green eyes for me. We’ve all been waiting.”
She blinked, and finally, her eyes were open. Wide open and clear. Recognition dawned at the sight of Thomas, and she smiled. My heart leaped into my throat. Sadie was back. Thomas held her hand to his face and closed his eyes.
“Tommy,” she whispered in a voice haggard from illness and disuse. Cillian says hi.”
He laughed and turned into her hand, kissing her palm. “Glad to see you, babe.”
“Ma.” I got up and took a step forward but stopped abruptly when her gaze landed on me and turned to a scowl.
“Colm. You bastard!” She growled, and her eyes fluttered shut.
“What the fuck just happened?” I grunted and turned on my heels, getting away from the fucking hospital as fast as I could.
Colm. She looked at me and saw that fucking monster? She was delirious.
And I worried she’d never wake up again. Ever.
My phone pinged at an ungodly hour. Of course, it was Thomas. Who else gets up at the crack of dawn?
“What?” I growled, needing to take care of my morning wood.
“Thought you’d like a report on Beck’s raid last night.”
I could tell from the tone in his voice, it was Lucky Lopez 1, Beck 0.
“Tell me,” I said, hunching up against the upholstered headboard of my bed. “But first, did Sadie wake up again after I left the hospital?”
