“He’s coming home with me and that’s final.”
“You know he won’t go home with you. But I might be able to convince him to come with me.”
“That’s my baby, Cara.”
“And I’m his sister. He doesn’t need someone wiping his ass. He needs someone who will push him to get better.”
I ripped my bag from my car in the garage and started for the street. I’d need to hail a cab in order to get to the airport. I wasn’t about to try and park my car and navigate all that fucking traffic. I was on a strict schedule to get everything back on track.
I also needed to send an email to H.R. and tell them to open up a project manager position for Alicia.
I pulled out my phone and began walking across the road. My bag was slung over my shoulder and my feet were carrying me as fast as I could. Blood was pumping through my veins and my adrenaline was in overdrive. I missed this part of the business. The part where I swooped in and saved the day. I started out as a project manager at the company, but the position had only been utilized for me to learn. Once my father died and I was promoted to the new CEO and owner of the company, the position closed.
But we were in desperate need of one, and Alicia fit that job perfectly.
My fingers were flying over the keyboard of my phone before I heard the screeching of tires. The screaming of women. I felt the bag at my side pop as my phone flew from my hands. One minute I was looking at my screen and the next I was looking at the sky.
The sidewalk.
The road.
“Sir, are you okay?”
“Oh my God! Someone call 9-1-1!”
“Can you hear me? Can you see what’s around you?”
“Stabilize his head. There we go. On three, turn him over. One, two-”
There were lights. Flashing lights overhead. I couldn’t move my left leg or my left arm and it hurt to breathe. It hurt to swallow. It hurt for my heart to beat. The smell of disinfectant was strong, but the darkness closing in on my vision was stronger than my wake to stay awake.
“Hayden! No!”
My mother’s voice was the last thing I heard before darkness overcame me.
“Mom, we can’t keep arguing like this. He’s going to wake up any minute.”
“Hush, Cara. He’s moving. Hayden. Oh, sweet boy. Momma’s here. Can you hear me? Hayden?”
My left leg was hoisted into the air and my arm was casted and cradled at my side. I couldn’t open my eyes, no matter how much I wanted to. Machines were beeping at a rhythmic pace and footsteps were falling heavily onto the floor.
“I saw him move. I swear it.”
Mom. I kept hearing my mother’s voice.
“I can vouch for that. He twitched his toes and cleared his throat.”
Cara.
Why was Cara in the Caribbean?
I didn’t know where I was, but I needed to get up. I needed to put my clothes on and get to the project site. Alicia was right. The company we had hired subcontracted our work out and was skimming money off the top. Not illegal, but certainly not helping us. I needed to get in there and fix things before this project went completely under.
And possibly the entire fucking family business.
“Mr. Lowell, you need to open your eyes.”
Who the fuck was that?