A soft hand gently caresses my cheek.
“Grayson?”
“No, sweetheart, it’s me.”
I slowly open my eyes, blinking them a few times to acclimate to the blinding white walls of my hospital room. My throat is dry and scratchy, like sandpaper. I turn my head to the right and my mother’s form comes into view.
“Mom.”
A single tear falls down her face. “Hi, sweetpea. How do you feel?”
“Like I ran into a tree.”
She grimaces in disgust. “Please don’t joke. This isn’t funny. Are you in any pain?”
I try to sit up, but I can’t because every part of my body protests, forcing an “Ow!” out of me. “Get me the Vicodin, Mom. Just leave the bottle by the bed and a full pitcher of water. In fact, give it to me in an IV drip if you can swing it.”
“Enough with the jokes. Here.” She holds a cup under my mouth with a plastic straw sticking out of it. I slowly swallow the liquid, moaning with every sip as the cool liquid travels down my throat. I nod to tell her I’ve had enough. Putting the water aside, she shows me how to press a button on some tube that’s hooked up to me. Two clicks and suddenly I’m floating.
“Morphine,” she offers in explanation.
“Thank God for pharmaceuticals. How bad am I?”
She wipes a stray hair from my forehead. “I raised you right because you put on your seat belt, unlike that shit-for-brains Reed. You’re just banged up a bit. The bruises will show up soon. But no internal injuries, thank God.”
“What happened to Reed?” I ask hesitantly.
She shakes her head. “He’s alive, but only because the airbag saved his ass. He’s got a concussion and a broken arm. But I’m tempted to go over there and do some more damage after what he did to my kid. The police arrested him in his bed, according to my staff. I wish I could’ve seen it.”
I start to shiver all over. I glance at the phone on the nightstand. “Mom, can you dial a number for me?”
“Honey, you need to rest.”
“I need to hear Grayson’s voice. Please.”
She nods in understanding. “Okay. What’s the number?”
I dictate the number for the main house to her, and she hands me the receiver.
One ring…two rings.
Where could he be?
After several more rings I hand the phone back to Mom. I look away, yawning from the medication.
“It’s okay, sweetie. We’ll try later,” she reassures me.
The sound of a ringing cell phone fills the room. She takes the phone from her pocket and checks the screen. “I should take this.”
Mom leans over to kiss my hair, then tucks me in tighter under the scratchy cotton sheet and itchy blanket as I drift off into blissful oblivion.
* * *
Grayson
When Emilia pulls up to the rear entrance of the hospital, I spot a petite woman with slightly graying hair in a nurse’s uniform standing under the awning.
Emilia parks the car, coming over to my side to help me out. I pull the hood snugly around my head.
“Just look straight ahead,” she tells me.
I do as she says, keeping my eyes on the woman.
Once we reach her, she holds out her hand to me, her face warm with no fear in her eyes. “Mr. Shaw, I’m Joan Moore.”
“Hello. I wish we were meeting under better circumstances.” I turn to Emilia. “This is Emilia, my estate manager.”
They exchange greetings, then Mrs. Moore reverts back to me. “Come on. We’ll take the service elevator.”
We enter the hospital, the antiseptic smell assaulting my nose. Leading us down a long hallway, she presses the call button for the service elevator. I hear it clanking its way down to us, metal on metal.
Finally the elevator stops and opens for us, with Mrs. Moore leading the way. At Lily’s floor we take a few turns and finally reach a room with “Moore, Lily” written on the whiteboard outside the door.
Her mother’s hand falls on my forearm. “Don’t worry. She’s by herself. Just be prepared because she’s hooked up to machines. She’s just had a dose of meds, so she’s sleeping now.”
I nod. “I understand. Thank you.”
“We’ll wait here,” Emilia says to me.
I take a deep breath and push the door open
I step closer to the bed where Lily is sleeping. Various machines make beeping sounds and a monitor displays her heart rate and blood pressure.
Finally I take in her face, her angelic face, where ugly bruises are already beginning to form.
I seethe in anger, clenching my fists, wishing I could hurt the man who did this to her, but I exhale, calming myself. This isn’t what she needs now. What I need.
I sit down in the chair next to her bed. I take her small, warm hand into mine.
“Lily?”
She doesn’t respond. I didn’t expect her to, but I would give anything to see her glorious blue eyes right now.
“My beauty, I’m here. It’s Grayson.”
I watch, enraptured, as her chest rises and falls with each breath.
“I’m so sorry I couldn’t help you. And I’m just grateful you’re here. You’re alive.”
Words fall out of my mouth, and I can’t stop them. I don’t want to stop them.
“Maybe it’s easier for me to say all this while you’re sleeping since you can’t talk.” I laugh to myself. “You’ve brought me back to life, Lily. I don’t want to lose you now. I never thought someone as beautiful and perfect as you could ever want to be with me. And if you were awake, you’d argue with me and say you’re not perfect, but to me, you are. I’m going to be the man you deserve. I’m going to make you very happy, I promise.”
I bite my lip to keep myself from breaking down because I’m teetering on the edge and I just have to tell her one more thing, the most important thing of all.
“I love you, Lily Moore.”