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She tried to look at the machine, but couldn’t turn her head with the collar on. “What’s wrong with me anyway?”
“I’ll get the nurse,” he said. “I didn’t see your scan results.”
It was a lie, he knew she had a bad concussion, but she might not take it seriously enough from him. She nodded, releasing him, and he went out to the nurses’ desk.
“I was just going to come in to see if it’s time for some pain meds,” the nurse said.
“She asked me about home, and her heart rate went up. I told her to chill or you’d kick me out.”
“Nah, I wouldn’t do that. What can I do for her?”
“She wants to know what’s wrong with her, and I thought it would be better coming right from the chart.”
“Okay, but you’re a vet. You can talk medical to her.” She picked up Maggie’s chart from a stack of charts she was trying to take orders from.
“Ah, I know my place, ma’am.”
He followed her back into the room.
“You’re awake! You look much better,” the nurse said.
“Do I?”
“You do. Do you remember anything about your accident?”
Maggie paused for a moment. “I remember being in cold water and it hurting my ears, and then a young man held my head out of the water and was crying and apologizing. I guess he hit my boat. It was foggy. I tried to stay as close to the shore as I could, but he didn’t see me.”
“Okay, well, this is what I have from the Coast Guard. The fisherman who hit you didn’t know it until parts of your awning flew up on his deck. You were in the water, wrapped in the awning. You don’t have any cuts, just bruises and a broken nose and a bad head injury, like a football player might get. But regardless, you were bashed up, and I’m thinking by tomorrow you’re going to feel like you were hit by a boat.”
“I’m starting to smart now,” Maggie said. “Now my back hurts worse than my head.”
“Show me where.”
The nurse examined Maggie, writing down where the pain was showing up. When she held on to Maggie’s arm, Maggie winced. “Is it this shoulder?”
“Yes, my left is worse than my right. I can’t lift my arm without it hurting.”
“I brought you something for pain,” the nurse said, handing her a pill cup and the glass of water with a straw. “Are you hungry?”
“Not really. Unless you have something really delicious.”
“I brought pie in from Nawlin’s Old Time Café.”
“I’ll take a bite of that. I love pie.”
After the nurse left, Justin pulled his chair over closer to Maggie.
“You already sound better,” he said, threading his arms through the siderails to hold on to her.
“The drugs must be kicking in.”
“Ha! That’s probably it.”
“You don’t have to stay here all night,” Maggie said.
“Yes, I do. Dave took my truck home, so I’m here until someone comes back tomorrow, hopefully with a change of clothes. I’m wearing the same smelly clothes I had on from the preserve.”
“What did you do?”
