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“Hi Keith, I’m Penny. I found out some information on Miss Thompson. She is still in surgery, but it seems it won’t be much longer. They needed to get her in there because her hand had been badly broken and they needed to possibly set some pins in it. As far as any head trauma, last I heard, she didn’t have any. She has bad lacerations, swelling and bruising on her face, and possibly a few broken ribs, but nothing life threatening.” The second she says nothing life threatening, it is like my heart starts to beat again. I stick out my hand to shake hers.
“Thank you so much. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you finding that all out for me.” She shakes my hand and stands.
“Glad I could help. I also told the surgeon to come talk to you when he is done.” She leaves, and I look up at my mom standing there with a small smile on her face.
“Thank you, Mom.” She hugs me and whispers in my ear.
“It’s my turn to take care of you.” She kisses my cheek and stands up. “I need some coffee. Anyone else?” I can’t stomach anything right now. Even though the nurse said it isn’t life threatening, I can’t get the images out of my head. Connie and Karen both say they would like some, so Karen goes off with my mom.
After about a half hour of sitting in silence, I look over at Connie. “Did you call Mel’s parents?” She nods her head.
“They said they would be on the first flight out.” Fucking ironic. Campbell met John the same way. I sure as hell hope her parents are as cool as John. “Don’t worry, they asked what happened, and I told them you saved her.” I lean over and kiss her cheek, silently thanking her for being there for me.
“Keith Dickson?” I jump up and rush over to the doctor.
“I’m Keith. How is she?” He smiles at me, which I take as a good sign.
“The surgery went extremely well. I was able to repair all the damage done to her hand. She has a cast on, but she should have a complete recovery.” It’s a bit of a relief, but not completely.
“She’s an artist. Will she be able to draw still?” He reaches o
ver and rests his hand on my shoulder.
“Yes, she will definitely be able to draw. It may take some physical therapy because she’ll be in the cast for a few weeks, but I have no doubt. She also has a few broken ribs, which we taped. Luckily, the injuries aren’t as bad as she looks. She has a lot of swelling and bruising, but nothing else is broken or damaged. She was lucky that you got there when you did.”
“When can I see her?” He looks at his watch before looking back at me. I’ll come get you in about a half hour. She is still heavily sedated and in recovery.” I nod.
“Thank you, Doctor?” He chuckles.
“I’m sorry, Dr. Baker.”
“Thank you, Dr. Baker.” He leaves, and the four of us sit back down.
“Keith, you couldn’t ask for better news. She’s going to be fine.” I still can’t force myself to smile, so I just look at my mom.
“I know. I just need to see her now. I need to know for myself she is alright.” The next half hour is the longest of my life. My mom forced me to sip some coffee, and the girls are trying to talk about everything and anything to occupy my mind, but I just keep looking at the clock. I’ve watched that second hand tick by so slowly, minute after minute.
“Keith?” I practically knock my chair over rushing to the nurse.
“I’m Keith. Can I see her now?”
“Yes, you can. Please follow me.” I turn to look at my family, my mom nods her head in understanding, and I quickly follow after the nurse. On the walk to her room, I can’t stop thinking about Campbell. He went through the same thing. Never in a million years when Kenz was attacked did I think I would be walking in his shoes one day. I need to call him tonight. He’ll be the only one to understand exactly how I’m feeling. After taking the elevator and making our way down a few hallways, she stops outside a door. “Here she is.”
“Is she awake?” She smiles at me.
“She is. She was actually asking for you.” My heart starts to slam in my chest. I try to keep my emotions under control. The last thing she needs to see is me crying.
“Thank you.” I walk into the room and see her delicate body lying in the hospital bed. There is only one small light on above her bed, so it’s hard to make out her injuries from this far. She has an IV in her arm, and I can see her hand in the cast. I slowly make my way to her, but she must sense me because she carefully turns her head. As soon as our eyes meet, we both start to cry. I rush over to her and ever so gently put my arms around her. Neither of us says anything for the longest time. We just cry out all of our fears. After what seems like hours, I pull back and carefully wipe her tears away. “How are you feeling?” I can’t keep from touching her to make sure she really is here. I keep rubbing her arms and stroking her hair, trying to avoid causing her any pain.
“Honestly, I’m in a lot of pain, but nothing compared to how it was during . . .” She breaks down and starts to sob.
“We don’t need to talk about that right now, sweetheart. All that matters is you are going to be fine.” She nods her head and looks up at me with the saddest green eyes I’ve ever seen.
“You saved me.” I tilt my head and give her a half-smile. “It was you, wasn’t it? The voice that pulled him off me.” A tear escapes my eye as I nod my head. “Thank you.”
“Please don’t. I should have been there to protect you. I’m so sorry.” We both have tears rolling down our faces, but we talk right through it.
“Keith, you couldn’t have known. It was because of my sketches, that’s why he attacked me.” I gently kiss her lips.
