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Nothing from Daniel or Portia.
Ian kept his hand on my back as the doctor led the way down the hall.
“We’re going to keep Mrs. Fernsby-Ryan with us tonight. We’re not equipped for some things in a hospital this size, but we can keep an eye on her and transport her to a bigger facility far faster if need be.”
This did not do anything to alleviate my dread.
He stopped at a door. “In here.”
I rushed by him.
It was a private room. Lou lay on the bed with oxygen tubes in her nose but that was it. No IV in her arm. No beeping machines. Though, she had one of those things clipped to the tip of one of her fingers.
And her color was good, her affect alert, though understandably she was still a bit wan. She had her robe on still, but now she had a hospital gown on under it. The covers were tucked precisely around her waist.
I stopped at the side of the bed and took her hand. “Hey.”
“Heya,” she replied, giving me a small, weird smile. She transferred it to Ian. “Hi.”
“Hello, love,” his silken voice rumbled as he came to stand at her bed opposite me. “You look better.”
She lifted one shoulder and dipped her ear to it, but that was all.
I heard the door whoosh shut behind me, looked that way, and saw the doctor had left us alone with Lou.
I turned back to her. “They’re going to keep you here tonight. Did they run any tests?”
“They didn’t need to.”
What?
“Babe, you had a seizure.”
“I also have a brain tumor.”
My head swam, and it felt like the floor buckled and the only thing that kept me standing was Lou’s strong grip on my hand.
“It’s benign, and not large,” she continued hurriedly. “My migraines were coming more often. I went to get checked. They found it about two weeks ago. I’m scheduled for surgery next month to have it out.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked, making grave effort to keep my voice measured.
“Well, I told my mum, dad and brother, and they lost it, so I wasn’t all fired up to do that again.”
“Oh, Lou,” I whispered.
“They told me the headaches would probably keep coming, and in extreme cases, something like what happened today would happen. I’m supposed to not stress about anything. Stress can cause flare ups and flare ups could mean anything from losing feeling in my limbs to passing out to seizures.”
Fucking Portia.
“Has any of that happened, outside of what happened this afternoon?” I queried.
“Some tingles. A lot of exhaustion. It’s why I decided to leave Duncroft. I thought I could hack it, but with Portia being Portia and the frequency of the headaches, I knew I had to throw in the towel.”
“Well, once we get you out of here tomorrow, I’ll get you home,” I decided.
“I’ve called Mum and Dad to come get me,” she said and turned to Ian. “And I’m trusting you to look after her.”
Before Ian could reply, I spoke.
