“Yes, she is.”
Crazy Bitch wasn’t jealous at Calder’s compliment.
The pain emanating from the other side of the glass door was tangible. She wanted to look away, but she was spellbound, like waiting for a car wreck to happen and helpless to do anything about it, other than watch it before her eyes.
“What do you think she’s saying?” Calder asked.
“I think she’s telling him that she doesn’t love him anymore, that she loves her husband.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because she’s twisting her wedding ring and crying.”
“Damn.”
“Yeah, it sucks getting your heart broken, but it beats her giving him hope.” Crazy Bitch turned her eyes away, unable to watch any more. “You want to know what’s really sad? I think she’s still in love with him. She keeps looking away from his eyes.”
“Why would she lie about something like that?”
“She’s married.” Crazy Bitch shrugged. “Some women take that shit seriously, especially when they’re knocked up.”
“She’s leaving.”
Crazy Bitch didn’t turn back to watch, finding it too painful. You could put a Band-Aid on someone who was cut, but there was no way to help someone who was having their heart ripped out.
When she heard Gavin calling Taylor’s name, she still kept herself turned away, giving him privacy. Her hands clenched into fists at the ragged plea for her to come back and not to leave him. A tear slipped down her cheek at the guttural moan that next came from Gavin’s room.
She heard Calder take off when the sound of glass exploding came from inside.
Standing, she saw Calder trying to hold Gavin back.
“Taylor, come back! Let me go, Calder. I don’t want to hurt you, but I will if you don’t. Taylor! God… Please don’t leave me.”
“Gavin, she’s gone. Don’t make it harder for her.”
“Hard for her? What about for me? She’s the only reason I’m alive.”
Crazy Bitch hesitantly walked into the room as Calder tried to keep Gavin from following the woman who had left with a heartbroken sob. She had thought Gavin would keep fighting Calder; instead, he stopped struggling to sit down on his bed, staring at the wall as if they weren’t there.
Calder looked questioningly toward her, neither of them knowing what to do next. Gavin might still have been in his room, but he was no longer with them.
A look crossed his face that had her stepping toward Calder in fear. Gavin’s appearance masked the desperation she knew he was feeling at truly losing the woman he loved.
Pushed beyond what his still fragile mind could handle, he didn’t move when Peyton came into the room, casting him a worried glance.
“Gavin?”
His eyes didn’t flicker as Peyton and Calder moved closer.
“Gavin, are you okay? Can I get you something?” When Peyton laid a hand on his arm, he didn’t respond, just continued to stare blankly at the wall. The lights were on in Gavin’s mind, but he was no longer there.
Peyton and Calder both tried to say something that could draw him out of his stupor. Then Peyton began crying when the nurse came rushing inside.
“I’ll stay with Gavin. You and Peyton go get something to eat,” Calder told her.
Crazy Bitch took Peyton’s arm, leading her from the room. “Where do you want to go get something to eat?”
“I can’t eat.”
“Let’s go to the waiting room, and I’ll get us each a cup of coffee.”
Peyton sniffed back her tears, nodding as she looked back at Gavin’s door. “I should call Viper. He’s waiting for my call at the hotel next door.”
“You go ahead while I get the coffee.”
She had just handed Peyton her coffee and took a chair next to her when she saw Viper and Ton striding down the hall, going into Gavin’s room.
“I tried to tell him to wait before seeing her. He’s tried so hard to get off the drugs and put some weight on. I think he really believed she would leave her husband and stay with him.” Peyton looked down at her coffee cup, not drinking it.
“When you’re lost, you want the one you love to make you feel better. He wanted Taylor to make him feel better, and he crashed when she didn’t. He’s going to have to regroup and find another reason to keep living.”
“What if he doesn’t?” Peyton’s shaky hand nearly spilled her coffee. Crazy Bitch took it away, setting it down on the small table next to her.
“He will. If he has an ounce of Viper’s blood inside him, he will.”
They sat for several minutes before Crazy Bitch stood, wanting to stretch her legs.
“I haven’t eaten since last night. Calder was in too much of a rush to get here this morning to eat. I’m going to get me and Calder something. You want anything?”
“No thanks. I’ll tell Calder where you are if he comes out.”
Crazy Bitch went out through the sliding door.