“Fuck…” I put my hand on my father’s shoulder. “I need to call Eliza.”
“Eliza?” He turned his head towards me.
“I’ll explain later—but shit, I don’t have her number.” I scrolled through my phone. “I’ll be right back.”
My father sat down, and I ran over to the nurse’s station. I was able to get a number for the construction business that Dave’s dad ran, and they were able to get me in touch with Dave. He didn’t want to call Melanie with the news but said he would pick her up and come to the hospital as soon as they got in touch with Eliza. That was all I could do, so I returned to my father’s side. He was visibly distraught, and I felt the sinking reality sweep through me. Hudson was in real danger. There wasn’t enough information to know how bad it truly was, but he told me that the doctor said there was a chance he could die on the operating table. I felt like I was trapped in a nightmare. I had just seen Hudson the day before. He was fine—he was so happy. I was trying to rationalize the impossible, but my mind immediately went to dark place when I started thinking about what Hudson and I were working on when we were together the day before.
“You don’t think Mayor Stevenson could have anything to do with this do you?” I looked over at my father.
“That’s the first thing I thought of as well.” His jaw clenched. “I—I’ve never heard of him hurting anyone before. It’s all threats and intimidation—I don’t want to believe he could resort to something like this.”
“Hudson hasn’t even started campaigning yet. He was supposed to be making rounds today—just talking to people.” I shook my head angrily. “If Mayor Stevenson had anything to do with this…”
“Preston!” I heard Melanie’s voice and turned to see her running into the emergency room.
“Were you able to get in touch with Eliza?” I hopped to my feet.
“No. I’ve called her like five times, but she’s not picking up.” She shook her head back and forth.
“We’re going to drive by her foster family’s house, but we wanted to stop by and see what was going on first.” Dave walked up beside Melanie.
“It’s bad…” My head dropped. “It’s really bad.”
I passed on the limited information I had, and Melanie tried to call Eliza a few more times. My heart felt like it was going to burst through my chest and the adrenaline still hadn’t stopped coursing through my veins. I felt angry, distraught, and wanted to fall down in a heap on the floor. I couldn’t do that though. I needed to be strong for my Dad. He was trembling as it was. I was relieved when his girlfriend, Jenny, walked into the emergency room. She rushed to his side and held his hand as he told her what happened. As soon as he finished, the door opened, and the doctor stepped out. I felt like the oxygen was sucked out of my lungs as soon as I saw the look on his face. He didn’t look like a man who was about to deliver good news—and I wasn’t prepared to hear anything other than a lie if he was going to tell me that my brother didn’t make it. My father stood, and I had to catch his arm before his knees went out from under him. I helped him back into his chair and squeezed his shoulder hard enough to feel my nails digging into his skin as I prayed I wasn’t
about to hear the worst news of my life.
“He had a subdural hematoma. We had to do a craniotomy in order to relieve the pressure.” The doctor lifted his head and pointed at the edge of his hairline. “We’re going to observe him throughout the night and make sure the swelling goes down.”
“Oh my god.” My hand went to my mouth.
“I need to see him.” Dad pushed himself up to a standing position. “Please…”
“It will be a couple of hours before he’s in ICU, but I should be able to let you back there for a few minutes.” The doctor nodded. “He’s not out of danger yet, and we don’t know how bad this will really be.”
“Does he have—brain damage?” Dad swallowed hard.
“It’s hard to say until he wakes up. The best-case scenario is that the last thing he remembers is hitting his head—but you need to be prepared for the possibility of brain damage, memory loss, maybe even amnesia.”
I was stunned when the doctor left. I didn’t even know what to say. Until the doctor walked through the door, I wanted to believe it was just a bad dream. That wasn’t possible anymore. I might never see my brother again—not the one I knew. I understood how dangerous a subdural hematoma was, especially if it caused his brain to swell. Brain damage was a very real possibility. He could forget things he had known his whole life, and possibly have to relearn things everyone else took for granted. There were cases where people woke up and didn’t even know how to speak. I didn’t want to think about the worst case scenarios. Jenny helped my father back to his seat and I sat down beside him. I took his hand and held it as I listened to him pray. It had been a long time since I had heard him pray, but I closed my eyes to join in. A few seconds later, Melanie’s phone started buzzing and she hopped up.
“It’s Eliza.” She stared at her phone for a second.
“Don’t tell her what happened. Just tell her there was an accident and ask her to come to the hospital.” I looked up at Melanie and she nodded.
“I’m going to go make a pot of coffee.” Jenny sighed and stood to her feet. “I think we’re going to be here a long time.”
I’m not going anywhere until Hudson wakes up, that’s for damn sure.
22
Eliza
I stood in stunned silence as Melanie told me what happened, Preston told me what the doctor said, and a cup of coffee was pushed into my hand by a woman that I didn’t recognize. I sat down and held it, trying to process what they said. I had never felt so powerless in my life. The entire situation felt surreal. I had woken up in Hudson’s bed and had coffee with him earlier that day. I never imagined that the next time I saw the man I loved, I would be seeing him in a hospital bed. Time passed, but I was completely numb. The coffee got cold in my hand and eventually someone took it from me. Melanie sat next to me and tried to hold my hand, but while I knew I was completely unresponsive, I couldn’t figure out how to do anything but sit there. I heard Preston telling his father who I was, and why I was so upset, but he didn’t tell the real story—not the one that involved the three of us. I eventually felt the numbness fade and the tears started to flow. I was full-on sobbing when the doctor walked back into the emergency room.
“I can bring you back one at a time.” The doctor’s face was solemn as he spoke. “There have been no improvements yet, so it would be best if your visit is brief.”
“Dad, you go first.” Preston put his hand on his father’s shoulder.