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“Multiple lacerations on his face and neck, but only a few of them required stitches. All in all, he was very lucky.
“Thank God,” Dusty said.
“Do either of you know what happened? How he ended up in that ditch?”
Dusty shook her head. “Sydney found him.”
Sydney tried to speak, but her vocal cords didn’t cooperate. She cleared her throat. “I don’t know. I found him en route to Denver.”
“It’s lucky you were on that road when you were,” the doctor said.
She nodded. She couldn’t speak past the lump in her throat.
“You saved his life.”
“Yes, you did,” Dusty agreed. “Thank you so much.”
Sydney swallowed. She couldn’t accept their thanks, their accolades. Their words hung in the air around her, jeering at her.
For the truth of the matter was, had she told Sam the truth about Duke in the first place, he would not have been on that road to Denver, driving to the airport to find her father.
She had been the catalyst for this whole situation. There was no way around it.
It was all her fault.
* * *
Twenty-four hours later, Sam was moved out of ICU. He was still heavily sedated. After sitting with him for several hours, Sydney realized she had to contact her father and find out what was going on with her mother and with Duke.
Her cell phone had long since died, and she hadn’t been back to her hotel room to charge it. How to get in touch with her father? She could use a hospital phone, of course, but her father’s cell phone number had been disconnected. She tried the hotel.
Yes, Mr. Buchanan was registered, but he was not answering at this time. Sydney was bewildered. After all, her parents had prepaid and hadn’t bothered checking out, so the clerk on duty could have been referring to their previous reservation. Probably not, though, since security had been notified. Sydney vowed to be optimistic. Roy and Duke had returned to the hotel. They were no doubt wondering where she was.
After checking with the reception desk in the waiting area, she found a recharger not in use that fit her phone. Thank goodness. In an hour or so she’d be able to make the calls and find out what was going on.
In the meantime she sat with Sam, holding his hand, hoping her presence soothed him. She couldn’t stay with him long-term, but for now, she needed to be with him. Needed to see him through this horrible situation
she had caused.
When he was okay again, she would leave.
He was still unresponsive when she left to get her cell phone.
Yes! Two calls had come in from her father. After listening to the voicemails, she learned he had returned to the hotel and he and Duke were in a different room. He left a new cell phone number. Quickly she dialed.
“Sydney,” Roy Buchanan said, “where have you been?”
“I’ll get to that,” she said, “but first, I think it’s you who owe me the explanations.”
Her father’s sigh whooshed into her ear. “Yes, I suppose you’re right about that. Where do I start?”
“How about stealing my purse money and taking Duke away?”
“Your purse money? What are you talking about?”
“Did you or did you not steal my twenty grand out of the safe in my room?”
“Sydney, I didn’t. I swear to God.”
