TWENTY-FIVE
GWYNETH
During the entire ride to the hospital, I kept telling myself I was having a horrible nightmare. Any minute, I would wake, and my father would be there calling me his tsvetok and telling me everything would be okay.
Any second, I would wake.
But as the driver pulled up to the hospital, I knew despite this being the worst nightmare imaginable, I wasn’t going to be waking up from it anytime soon.
The emergency room sign buzzed above me as the doors parted, and I rushed through them, stopping at the front desk to talk to the nurse there.
“Can I help you?” she asked.
“My father was brought in. He was in a car accident.” My hands tapped the front desk as I spoke. I couldn’t stop myself from shaking.
“What’s his name, dear?”
“Avel Petrova.”
Her fingernails clicked on the keyboard as she typed in his name, which was not fast enough for me, and waited for his information to come up.
Her expression turned sad, and I sucked in a deep breath, knowing things were about to get a whole lot worse.
“It looks like he’s in the ICU.”
“How do I get there?”
I wasn’t sure why I asked—I knew the hospital like the back of my hand—but my brain was misfiring, and nothing was making sense.
“You head down that way.” She pointed to her left as she gave the directions. “Get on the elevators at the end of the hall and you want the fourth floor.”
“Thank you.” I pushed away from the desk and started down the hallway on shaking legs.
It didn’t take me long to get to the fourth floor, and I was met with a nurses’ station as I stepped off the elevator. I went to the closest nurse, and she took one look at me and knew exactly who I was. I wondered briefly if she had been the one to call me.
“Ms. Petrova?” she asked, and her voice was familiar, so I knew she had been the one to call and deliver the bad news.
I nodded, feeling as though I was no longer a part of myself.
“Yes, that’s me.” I’d said something almost similar to her earlier.
I’m sorry, Ms. Petrova, but your father has been in an accident.
Ms. Petrova? Did you hear me?
We need you to come down to Savannah Hope right away. Do you understand?
Her words from the phone call rang throughout my mind.
“I’ll take you to him.” She spoke, bringing me back. She moved around the desk. “Right this way.”
As I followed her to the room my father was in, my heart was exploding out of my chest. I’d never been so terrified in my life. I didn’t know if I would survive seeing my father hooked up to machines. They’d told me he’d been in an accident, but I had no idea what to expect.
She stopped outside a room and pulled the sliding glass door open. I followed her into the room, and as soon as my eyes landed on my father, a sob caught in my throat.
“Daddy,” I whispered, my hand pressing against my throat.
His face was bruised and swollen, and there was a tube coming out of his nose. Machines were on either side of him, and the green neon from their screens lit up the darkness in his room. I focused on the beeping noise that monitored his heartbeat. That sound was the only thing that kept me from crumbling.
“He’s breathing on his own for now, but his lung did collapse. If it happens again, we’ll have to intubate. His wrist is broken along with two ribs on his right side. His ankle is fractured, and he needed stitches for a cut on his head. We did a CT scan to rule out a concussion.”
“Has he been lucid at all since they brought him in?” I asked, needing to know if he was awake after the crash.
“He was when they initially brought him in. He … was asking for you.” I nodded, my heart swelling with her words. “Talk to him. Let him hear your voice. The doctor will be in to go over everything else with you soon.”
When she left, I moved to the side of my father’s bed and softly held his hands in mine.
“I’m here now, Daddy. It’s me, your flower.” I wanted so badly to beg him to open his eyes, but I knew he needed to rest. It was selfish of me to want him to wake up, but I was scared there might be a chance he would never wake up again.
For the next hour, I sat by my father’s side, listening to his shallow breaths and watching the monitors like a hawk to make sure the numbers stayed exactly where the nurse said they should be. I’d panic when they dropped but then sigh in relief when they evened back out.
When the doctor finally came in, his news was not what I wanted to hear. I tried to keep from breaking down in tears when he said my father’s condition wasn’t what they hoped, and all we could do was wait and see. Then he left me with his parting words.
“You’ll need to prepare yourself, Ms. Petrova. It’s touch and go, but I’m afraid your father might not make it through the night. I’m very sorry.”
I felt like someone was playing a practical joke on me.
How was I going to survive without my father?
He was all I had left, and I couldn’t imagine the rest of my life without him.
I stayed by his bedside. My fatigue threatened to pull me under, but I was afraid if I closed my eyes, I would miss the minute he woke up. If he woke up.
Just as I was about to give in and let my eyes close, his voice shocked me.
“Gwyn?” His voice was a broken whisper.
A gasp erupted from my lips. “Daddy?” I held his hand tightly between mine, leaning over his bed. “Oh my God, you’re awake. Are you in pain? I’m going to get your nurse.”
“I’m fine, Gwyn. Just a little sore.”
I hugged him, careful not to hurt him or touch any of the wires surrounding him.
“I was so afraid you were …” I didn’t say the words. He was awake now, and that was all that mattered.
“You know I’d never leave without saying goodbye to moy tsvetok.”
“Shhhh, you’re awake now. That’s all that matters. I’m going to get your nurse now, okay?”
He squeezed my hand, and it was the best feeling in the world. Hearing his voice, hearing him say my name, it was a flood of relief that nearly made me feel sick to my stomach.
During the next hour, his nurse and doctor were there, taking vitals and asking questions, and everything seemed to be going better than they had expected just hours ago. When his doctor asked to speak with me outside, I was sure he would tell me we could go home by the end of the week.
“He looks great,” I said, watching my father through the glass door of his room while he flirted with the nurse. A smile lifted my lips, but when I looked back at the doctor, it slipped slightly. “He looks great, right?”
He took a deep breath, and my heart sank. “Ms. Petrova, there’s a term we use during situations like this. We call it the surge. Patients sometimes go through this right before …” I knew what he wasn’t saying. “It’s a surge of energy. Patients often experience epiphanies, wanting to see loved ones, expressing regret. I’m hoping for the best in your father’s case, but I just want you to be aware.”
I nodded.
I heard what he was saying, but he was wrong. He had to be wrong. Looking at my father again, he was still flirting away. He was being his normal self. The doctor was wrong; Avel Petrova would be fine.
“Thank you, Doctor.” But you’re wrong, I added silently.
After the nurses left, we spent the next hour talking about anything and everything. I held his hand and cried while he explained how the delivery truck ran the red light and T-boned the side of the car he was riding in.
“How’s Terri, Gwyn? Have you heard anything?” he asked about his driver.
“He’s fine. I talked to his wife. They’re letting him go tonight.”
He grinned the best he could with his swollen face.
“I want to see him. Can you ask him to drop by before he leaves?”
I swallowed hard but nodded. “Of course. I’ll tell him right now.”
Besides a few scratches and bruises, his driver, Terri, had been completely fine. They discharged after a few hours, and after coming to check on my father, he went home with his wife.
I watched as Martha, Terri’s wife, clung to his hand for dear life as she stared at my father in his hospital bed. I knew what she was thinking; my father could have been her husband. I was thankful that Terri was okay.
“Are you tired?” I asked when were alone again. “I can turn down the lights. You should rest. Hopefully, you’ll be able to go home soon.” I moved to the side of his bed, fixing his blanket as I went.
The doctor was wrong.
I kept repeating that to myself over and over again.
He was fine.
Talking.
Looking at me.
Sure, he was a little bruised, but he would be just fine.
“Gwyn,” he said softly, catching my hand. “I want to talk to you about something.”
“Okay, let’s talk.” I smiled down at him.
“I’m just sorry I’m not going to be there to walk you down the aisle.” His hand was cold as he rested it against my cheek, and a few tears slipped out before I could stop them. He managed to swipe them away with his thumb.
“Oh, stop it. You’re going to be just fine,” I said, patting his hand. “Plus, I’m not going to marry Mitchell, Daddy. I’m so sorry, but I’m not in love him.”
He smiled, and a small series of coughs slipped past his lips. “I’m glad to hear that.”
My eyes widened. “You’re not angry or disappointed? I thought you loved Mitchell.”
“I love you, Gwyn. Your happiness is all that matters to me. I could see you didn’t love Mitchell, and I had faith that you would figure it out before it was too late.”
“You had more faith in me than I did.”
“You’re a smart and amazing woman, Gwyn. Never doubt yourself. Please, promise me that.”
“Daddy, please. I can’t talk like this. I don’t want to think that…” My voice hitched as I held back tears. I didn’t want him to see me cry anymore. I needed him to believe he would be okay. “You’re going to be fine. We’re going home tomorrow.” I tried to convince him and myself.
“It’s all going to be okay. I know he’s going to take care of you and look after you for me.”
My head shot up, and my brows pulled together. “What? Who? Daddy, I just said I’m not marrying Mitchell.”
“Not Mitchell.” He coughed, and I cupped his cheek in my hand until he was able to speak again. “Dylan,” he whispered; the name coming from his mouth shocking me completely. “He loves you very much, and he promised me he’d take care of you.”
“Daddy, what are you talking about? When did you talk to Dylan?”
“He came to see me after the merger party. He told me Mitchell wasn’t the right man for you, and when you figured it out, he would be there. Do you love him, Gwyn?”
“Dylan? I don’t know. I haven’t let myself think about it because I was engaged. I’m so sorry, Daddy. I never meant to act like her.” I dropped my head in shame.
“Your mother?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“Oh, Gwyneth, you could never be like your mother. Your heart is too pure. You are like me. You love with everything you are.”
I lifted his hand to my lips. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
“Promise me, you’ll give him a chance.”
“Daddy, I don’t think I can be with anyone right now, even Dylan. He did something … something I’m not sure I can forgive.”
“Let him redeem himself. If he’s the right one, you’ll know it in your heart, and no matter what he’s done, you’ll be able to forgive him. It takes a lot of courage to come to a man like me and confess his love for my daughter and another man’s woman.”
“Okay. I’ll do it.”
He patted my hand and closed his eyes. “I’m just going to rest a bit. I love you, moy tsvetok. You and your sister are my light.”
Kissing him on his cheek, I pulled back and said, “I love you, too. Now rest and hopefully we’ll be out of here soon.”
My father never left Savannah Hope Hospital, and my life was never going to be the same.