Chapter 11
ALICIA
My heart froze when I saw Hector collapse to the ground. For a second, my body felt like a statue. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t react. All I could do was stare in horror at the pool of blood already forming underneath his body.
Caroline screamed, breaking me out of my trance.
I dropped to my knees, pressing my hand against his chest, doing everything in my power to stop him from bleeding out.
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Raul get up. His gun had run out of bullets so he tossed it to the side. Without looking back, he disappeared through the metal door.
A part of me wanted to go after him, but I just couldn’t leave Hector’s side. “Come on… stay with me…” I whispered, trying to prop his head up. His eyes rolled in their sockets. Already, his skin was extremely pale. If he didn’t get help soon, he wasn’t going to make it.
“Is he going to be okay? Is he going to be okay?” Caroline kept chanting, expecting me to provide her with an answer.
But, I didn’t know.
My heart felt heavy. My tongue felt swollen. I had never felt such sorrow.
“Hector! You have to stay awake, you hear me?” I pleaded with him, tears flowing down my cheeks. “I can’t lose you…” I whispered. “I love you…”
His eyes closed. His body turned to dead weight in my arms.
Had I lost him?
Just then, my squad burst through the door. I saw my commander. “We need a BUS!” I screamed. “Now! He’s been shot.”
The paramedics arrived a moment later, getting him on a stretcher.
“Where are they taking him?” Caroline asked frantically, tugging on my shirt. “Is he going to be okay?”
“I… I don’t know sweetie,” I told her honestly before I picked her up, following Hector out of the room.
They loaded him into the ambulance. “Do you want to ride with him?” one of them asked.
I nodded, getting in and crouching down on the little bench. Usually, I hated riding in ambulances. It always made me sick and claustrophobic, but right now, the last thing I wanted to do was leave Hector’s side.
The paramedics ripped off his shirt, filling his wound with gauze. There was so much blood…
Caroline watched her brother. I was about to cover her eyes and turn her head. No child should witness such trauma. But, before I could do so, she leaned forward, placing her stuffed lion beside his head. The plush looked like it had been through a lot and probably meant the world to the little girl. For her to give it up, she must really love her brother.
I took her into my arms, letting her cry into my shoulder. “Everything’s going to be okay…” I whispered, running my fingers through her hair. “He’s going to be okay.” I started to rock her gently, praying for a miracle, but judging by the grim look on the face of the paramedics, I wasn’t so sure Hector would make it out of this.
***
In the hospital, I paced around the waiting room. Caroline had been taken back up to her room and given a child-friendly version of valium, along with all her other medications. Hopefully, she would be able to forget all about this horrible experience in the future, but I had the sinking feeling that she would have to live with the memory for the rest of her life.
“Do you want any coffee?” Bill asked. He had offered to keep me company while I waited for Hector to come out of the operating room.
“No.”
“Well, at least come sit down before we have to replace the carpet.”
I glared at my former partner. “I’m not in the mood for your jokes.”
He pressed his lips together before letting out a sigh. “You must really like that guy if you’re this tense. I don’t think I’ve seen you this upset since –”
I cut him off. “Don’t!”
“Okay, okay. Sorry. But, seriously, sit down. Pacing around and worrying yourself sick isn’t going to help the situation.”
“And what would sitting down do?”
“Just tell me what happened.”
I shook my head. I couldn’t relive it. Not this soon. Not yet.
So I ignored him and continued stomping around the waiting room. How long had he been under the scalpel? Two hours? Three? What was taking so long?
Then, just when I thought I was going to lose my mind, the doctor came through the door, holding a clipboard in her hands.
I rushed up to her, expecting answers, my heart in my chest.
“Is he okay?”
Slowly, she wet her lips. “He has just come out of surgery. We managed to extract the bullet, but it has ruptured a major artery. It’s a miracle that he’s still alive. It’ll be touch-and-go for the next twenty-four hours,” she said with a heavy tone in her voice.
“So… he could still…”
“We’ll do everything in our power to make sure that doesn’t happen, but you may want to contact his next of kin.”
“He doesn’t have any family… just his baby sister…” I whispered. If her brother died, would I have the heart to tell Caroline? What would happen to her?
All these questions swarmed my mind, making my head spin.
My knees felt like they would give out at any moment, forcing me to sit down in a nearby chair. This couldn’t be happening. This had to be some sort of a nightmare. Just when I had accepted my feelings for Hector, he had to be ripped away from me. Why was life so cruel?
“When can I see him?”
“You’re free to do so, but I don’t expect him to wake up for a while.”
I could tell she was trying to be optimistic, but her demeanor hinted that Hector might never wake up.
The mere thought of it made my heart ache.
No. He had to make it. He just had to.
With a nod of my head, I followed the doctor down a long, white hallway. We passed a few other doctors dressed in blue scrubs. All of them had this grim expression like they were all delivering bad news.
No. I couldn’t think like that. Hector was going to survive.
We stepped into room 303. There were a few beds, all of them occupied. Large machines took up most of the space along the wall, occasionally beeping and dinging in a cacophony of sound.
I frantically looked around for Hector, finally spotting him in the very last bed, right next to the window. The curtains were drawn, muting the sound of rain pelting against the pane. Even Mother Nature seemed to be mourning him.
My fingers shook by my side as I approached him. My heart crept up my throat, making it hard for me to breathe.
“If you need anything, don’t hesitate to press his nurse call button. Someone will be with you right away.” With these words, the doctor gently patted me on the hand, offering a consolatory smile which, however, felt forced. She obviously didn’t have high expectations for him.
But, I wasn’t about to lose hope.
I just had to believe he would pull through, despite the odds.
“Hector…” I whispered his name, hoping that he could somehow hear me. I had read stories about certain coma patients being able to hear conversations. “If you can hear me, I want you to know that Caroline is okay. We got her back to her room and she’s being taken care of…” My voice sounded hollow as I spoke, “She left you her lion. It’s right here, beside you. I hope you weren’t the one to sew on this button because you did a terrible job of it!” I tried to joke around, hoping to ease the tension I felt, but it just wasn’t the same without Hector’s laughter ringing in my ears.
Tears welled up in my eyes. I took his hand in mine, lacing our fingers together. I squeeze tight, praying for a miracle.
“I...” I wet my lips, trying to form the words, but I no longer felt capable of speaking. All these emotions had bubbled up inside of me, choking me up. “I…” Trying again proved no better.
With no other option, I laid my head on his arm, careful not to disturb the array of needles poking into his flesh.
I ran my fingertips along his chest, lightly tracing where I thought his heart was. A deep warmth radiated from his body, almost like he was burning up, but when I pressed the back of my hand to his forehead, he felt fine, at least temperature-wise.
My fingers returned to his chest, lingering there, feeling the slight pulse of his steady heartbeat.
“You’re going to be okay…” I whispered softly. “I know you will.”
***
I must have fallen asleep because when I came to, there was a horrible kink in my neck. I sat up straight, my back cracking with my every movement. Blinking, I tried to orient myself, still caught up in a sleep-induced haze.
“Morning, sleepyhead,” a husky voice broke through the fog.
Instantly, my head whipped in its direction. To my utter shock, Hector was laying there, a smug look on his face, like he hadn’t just been shot.
“H-Hector?” I stuttered in disbelief, thinking I was still caught up in a dream.
He was about to lift his arm when he flinched, his whole face contorted with agony.
“Hector!” My eyes widened, my hands hovering over his body, trying to find a way to help without hurting him. I caught sight of the nurse’s button and I was just about to press it when he grabbed me by the arm and shook his head, his face still painted with pain.
“Don’t,” he whispered, his voice hoarse. “Let me spend a little bit of time with you before I’m assaulted by a horde of nurses. And not the hot, slutty kind either.”
I couldn’t stop myself from hitting him in the arm.
“Ow!”
“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!”
He chuckled, flashing a wild grin. “Gotcha. It didn’t hurt… well, at least not that much. You hit like a girl,” he teased.
“I am a girl.”
“That you are. That you are.” He looked me over, his eyes taking in every inch of me. “Might be an angel too, who knows? You think Heaven would have beds that are so uncomfortable? Seriously, how is anyone supposed to stay in a coma around here if the springs are constantly digging into your back?”
I chuckled, thankful that Hector was awake and making jokes again.
He wasn’t going anywhere.
Relieved, I squeezed his hand, suppressing the urge to jump into the bed and hug him. “I’m so glad you’re okay…” My eyes started to burn with tears.
“Oh, don’t tell me you’re going to cry. Do you want me to start crying too?” he said in a high-pitched voice like he was addressing his sister.
But, I just couldn’t help myself. The tears came streaming down my face.
Hector cupped my cheek, tilting my head in his direction. “Alicia…” Saying my name, he pulled me closer until our mouths collided together.
His lips were as sweet as honey against mine. I savored the taste, cherishing every moment with this man.
Because you never know when it might be your last.