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“Does Ceecee know?” I asked, my voice tight with relief and anxiety.
“Yeah, I got a hold of her after I talked to you. She might be heading up here.”
Half of me was relieved and the other half concerned that my sister might be coming home for a visit for the first time in so many years, but I brushed those thoughts away as my brother led me down the corridor toward my dad’s room.
I tried to brace myself as he pushed open the door, but the sight of my dad laying there with tubes and IVs everywhere made me lightheaded. He was unconscious, and monitors were beeping and whooshing like some sort of weird symphony.
“You’re here,” my mom said in relief, giving me a small smile as she got out of her chair. “Wasn’t sure if we could pull you away from all that higher learning.”
“I was getting bored anyway,” I shot back, wrapping my arms around her waist and pulling her fully against me. “It’s hard being smarter than everyone.”
“Of course it is,” she replied, giving me a squeeze. Then her voice changed, and the exhaustion leaked through. “I’m glad you’re here, baby.”
“Me, too.”
She pulled away and gave my brother’s bicep a squeeze before walking back to her place beside my dad.
“How’s he doin’?” Cam asked.
“They said everything went well,” Mom answered, laying her hand gently on my dad’s thigh. “They set his arm while they were in there, but I don’t think they can really do anything for the rest.”
“Probably just dope him up,” Cam said, agreeing.
“Wish they’d dope me up again,” Mom mumbled dryly.
“Wait, what?” I asked, making my way slowly to my dad’s side.
His arm was casted and his skin was paler than I’d ever seen it, but if I ignored all the tubes and wires, he almost looked normal. He didn’t have a single scratch or bruise from the neck up.
“They gave me something to calm me down when I got here last night,” Mom said, dropping her head back against the chair.
“Causing a ruckus, were you?”
“That bitch of a nurse at the front desk wouldn’t tell me a goddamn thing and wouldn’t fucking let me see him,” she replied. “I may have gotten a little belligerent.”
“You’re lucky they didn’t call security.”
“Molly showed up while we were arguing and took care of it,” Mom said. “Everyone loves her here.”
“Everyone loves her, period.”
“You need anything, Ma?” Cam asked, still standing uncomfortably by the door. “I was gonna run home and shower.”
“I’m good, son,” mom replied gently, her eyes soft on his face. “And Dad’s just going to sleep it off for a couple more hours. Go home, give the boys and Charlie some kisses for me.”
Cam nodded. “She’s gonna want to come up here.”
“Tell her she can come up tomorrow,” Mom said tiredly and gestured toward my dad’s bed. “Hopefully, some of this shit will be gone by then.”
“Will do.”
He left without giving either of us a hug, anxious to leave the room.
“Your brother might be built like a bull, but he’s got the heart of a lamb,” my mom joked as I ran a finger softly over my dad’s hand. It was the only place that felt safe to touch him and let him know I was there. “I think seeing your dad laid up shook him more than he’d like to admit.”
“He’s always been good with this stuff,” I replied.
“Yeah, but it was never your dad,” she pointed out. “He’s been pretty lucky. The last time your dad was hurt, we didn’t have any of you kids yet. I guess it was his turn.”
“That’s a morbid way to look at it,” I argued, meeting her eyes.
“Gotta find some reason for this shit,” she said softly. “Otherwise, you’ll go crazy.”
“You look exhausted—”
“Hey!”
“Still beautiful,” I corrected. “But tired.”
“I am, kid.” She nodded. “He was awake, you know, when they put him in the ambulance.”
“Really?” I looked him over and couldn’t imagine how he’d stayed conscious.
“Yeah.” She sighed. “He called me on his way here. He knew before the paramedics showed up that Ashley was gone and he wanted to make sure I knew it wasn’t him.”
“Jesus,” I breathed.
“The guy hit her side.” My mom shook her head and squeezed her eyes tightly shut. “She didn’t have a fucking chance.”
“But he’s going to blame himself,” I replied quietly.
“Yes.”
“What happened to the guy?”
“They think he was dead before he even hit them.”
“What a fucking nightmare,” I mumbled, scrubbing my hands over my face.
It felt like an eternity since my alarm had woken me for class. I didn’t even remember most of the day, but it felt like it had dragged on forever.
“You should go home and get some rest,” Mom said, eyeing me.
“You should go home and get some rest. Were you up all night?”
“Yeah. I passed out for a couple hours once we knew he was going to be okay, though. Whatever they gave me made sure of that.”
