The acrid scent of gasoline filled my nostrils, and I realized I needed to get away. I tried to call for help, but a salty wetness had filled my nose and mouth, and I couldn’t swallow it away. I tugged at my restraints, tears stinging my eyes. Fear had gripped me, wrapping itself around my throat and choking off my air supply.
This is it, I thought. I am going to die.
I heard another echoing voice—close… familiar. Was that my name he was calling? I opened my mouth to answer, but my voice was entirely choked off.
A jolt of pain shot through me, and I felt myself moving. My throat was so full of something that I couldn’t even scream. I tried again to suck in a breath, but I was unsuccessful. I began to feel cold, and my teeth started to chatter.
I’m dying. I’ll never see Mom again. What about Finn, my cat? She’ll never remember to feed him.
My mind was a semi-delirious stream of thought, racing from subject to subject. I guess it was something like one’s life flashing before one’s eyes at the time of death.
Mom called me Kitty Kat. Daddy used to call me that, especially when he had a surprise for me. I miss Daddy. I wonder if I’ll see him in Heaven. Oh! Maybe he’s with Grandma!
“Kat?” Mom’s voice called out.
I tried to turn toward the sound of her voice, but a searing pain surged through my neck. I tried to cry out, but I still couldn’t breathe.
“Hold on, Baby! They’re coming!” Mom shouted.
“The car’s going to blow!” an unfamiliar voice screamed.
What? Blow?
“I’ll get her!” called that familiar voice again. Who was that?
I felt movement underneath my arms, and pain surged through me so intensely it nearly pulled me into the black. I felt myself being dragged, and the flesh along the back of my thighs felt like it was being torn from my skin. I could hear the tinkling sound of glass as I moved.
Sirens wailed in the distance, growing ever louder until they nearly drowned out every other sound. The only sound I could hear was a cacophony of voices shouting, “Move! Move! Move!”
A thunderous roar rattled me to my core, and I felt a massive whoosh of air blast in my direction. Heat. Unbearable heat. Pain finally pulled me under.
Chapter Six
Luke
I stood there watching paramedics work on her, helpless to make a difference. She looked so small and fragile. She’d lost so much blood. So. Much. Blood.
“Get back!” one of the medics shouted, waving his hand.
I stumbled backward, unable to peel my eyes away from her. A medic was suctioning her airway while another pumped her chest. One. Two. Three. Four. He kept a rapid pace.
Her mother was sobbing onto my father’s shoulder. She looked every bit as helpless as her daughter.
They put a collar around her neck and rolled her onto a backboard. They strapped her on and loaded her onto a stretcher as CPR continued. They pushed the stretcher into the back of an ambulance, and I tried to step in with her.
“Luke!” I heard my father shout sharply.
I turned around to see him helping Katherine’s mother into the ambulance with her. Of course it should be her mother riding with her. What was I thinking? I hopped to the side to allow her mother to step up beside her, and the medics slammed the doors and drove away.
I watched the ambulance spin up lights and sirens, and I couldn’t look away until it disappeared in the distance.
“Sir, I need to take a look at you,” I heard someone say.
One of the medics was checking me over, but I shrugged him off.
“I’m fine,” I muttered.
“Luke, let them check you out,” Dad said as another medic sat him down to look him over.
I sighed and allowed the medic to do his thing. He poked and prodded, checked the dilation of my pupils, and asked me questions. I watched the firefighters dousing the blazing vehicle, muttering an answer when prompted. Finally, the medic agreed that I was fine. My father and I both declined transport, each signed a paper, and watched the medics head back to their ambulance.
Dad and I were forced to stay at the scene while the police asked us an endless stream of questions. Each of us had already told the story a dozen times, and still they kept asking their incessant questions.
“Excuse me, but are we just about done, now?” I finally snapped. “We need to get to the hospital!”
The officer, who was easily twice my size, silenced himself and shot me a glare that spoke volumes.
“We’ll be done when we are done,” the officer said firmly. “I can’t just rush an accident investigation.”
“Look, we’ve already told you everything we remember about the accident,” I argued. “What more could you possibly need us for?”
“Look, you little punk…” the officer poked his finger toward me.
“Barnes!” a voice shouted, and the officer lowered his hand and looked in that direction. A woman almost as muscular as me approached him and added, “Back off! Now!” Barnes reluctantly backed away, and the woman managed a weak smile, saying, “Sorry about him. He’s new. We have everything we need for now, and we’ll be in touch if we need anything else. You’re free to go.”
“Thank you, officer,” I told her gratefully.
Dad had already called one of the drivers from his company to pick us up. I was never more grateful to be wealthy than I was when our private driver pulled up to the curb to pick us up and take us to the hospital.
One we arrived at the hospital, my father demanded that we see Katherine. They attempted to stop us because, since he and Katherine’s mother weren’t married yet, we weren’t immediate family. But Katherine’s mother burst through the doors throwing a hissy fit and the nurses decided not to mess with her. I had to admit, I was pretty impressed with her tenacity.
We followed her through a wide corridor to the emergency room where Katherine was lying unconscious on a gurney with a tube down her throat and stitches in several places.
“Is she going to… be alright?” I asked.
“They said they are cautiously optimistic, whatever that means,” her mother answered. I noticed her eyes were bloodshot and rimmed with red. She’d been crying very recently. Her lashes were still damp and clumped together. “What does that even mean?”
“I think it means they don’t know, so they tell you what they think you want to hear,” I told her honestly.
She nodded sadly and patted Katherine’s ankle, which was the nearest part of her she could reach.
Dad put his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. She closed her eyes and leaned against him, nuzzling him with her head like a cat. I was beginning to support their relationship more than ever. They really seemed to be happy.
I turned back to Katherine and watched her, hoping to see some movement—a flutter of lashes, a twitch of lips.
“Surgeon is ready, Ma’am.”
Katherine’s mother popped to her feet and picked up a small hand, pressing it to her lips. A tear dripped onto Katherine’s hand and rolled off onto the sheet. My father had to pry Katherine’s hand from her mother’s grip so they could take her into surgery.
The moment the doors closed behind Katherine’s stretcher, her mother broke down. She collapsed onto the floor, sobbing loudly, with my dad dropping to his knees to cradle her in his arms.
I flopped into a nearby chair in stunned silence. In the span of a couple of hours, I’d met Katherine and her mother, nearly punched a maître d, pissed off Katherine, went on a wild goose chase to find her, gave her flowers, walked her on the beach, pulled her from the wreckage of a car just before it exploded, watched paramedics frantically trying to revive her, and watched nurses wheeling her into surgery. I’d had enough excitement for one day. Fuck that. I’d had enough excitement for one lifetime.
Dad finally managed to coax Katherine’s mother off the floor, and we followed a nurse into a private waiting area outside the surgical unit where we could sit and wait for her.
All we could do was wait. And I’ve never been a patient person.
It was only moments before I started pacing the floor, and fifteen minutes in I was raking my fingers through my hair and fighting the urge to punch something.
“Where are they?” I complained loudly. “It’s been hours!”
“It’s been fifteen minutes, Luke,” Dad said calmly. “Just sit down. You’re making Lucy nervous.”
“No he’s not,” Katherine’s mother argued.
“Okay, you’re making me nervous,” Dad corrected himself, nodding toward a chair.
I grumbled audibly and slammed myself heavily into the chair, crossing my arms in a huff. Those doctors better fix her, or I swear to God…
I suddenly realized the depth of what I was feeling. I’d only just met this girl, but I was feeling a fierce protectiveness that I’d never felt for anyone—even my own mother. Not that it was too hard to understand that given the distance she always kept from me, but I never realized I could feel so much for one single human being.
It’s just because she’s about to be my sister, I told myself. Of course I’d be protective of her. It made sense. And it made me feel better.
I’d never had a sibling before. When I was a kid, I’d wanted a sibling so badly, because I craved affection and attention. I thought a sibling would have been some company in an otherwise incredibly lonely house. But I’d never had that, and it just made sense that I’d be so passionate about protecting it now that it was just within my grasp.
The hours ticked by, and every time I heard the slightest noise in the corridor I’d jump to my feet and rush the door. It was maddening.
Finally, miraculously, the door opened. My heart thudded, and we all sprang to our feet. Katherine’s mother clutched at my father.
“I’m afraid it’s not good,” the doctor said, his face somber.
A lump swelled in my throat, and I sank back into my chair, gripping the arms. I felt like I’d been punched in the gut and had the wind knocked out of me.
“What’s going on?” her mother demanded. “How is she?”
“She made it through surgery, but she has very little brain activity,” the doctor said. “She’s in a coma, and I’m afraid… I’m afraid she may never wake up. But for the moment, I’ll suggest a wait and see approach.”
“Wait and see? What does that mean?” her mother asked.
“How can I put this?” the doctor asked himself. “Hmm. Okay... I’ve seen patients in better condition than her not make it. But at the same time, I’ve seen patients in worse condition pull out of something like this with no lasting effects. Honestly, it’s all up to her, now.”
“How long should we wait?” asked her mother.
“That will be up to you,” he said softly. “And how long the insurance company will continue paying for her care.”
“Don’t worry, Lucy,” my dad said quickly. “We’ll pick up the bill after the insurance company drops it, however long is necessary.”
Lucy nodded, accepting a tissue the doctor had handed her. She blew her nose and continued sobbing against Dad’s shoulder.
“Doctor, give it to me straight,” Lucy said. “No bullshit. In your personal opinion, will she make it, and if so, how long will it be before we know something?”
“Ma’am, I understand you’re looking for answers, but I just don’t happen to have them,” he apologized. “Believe me, I wish I did. But it probably just depends on how much of a fighter she is.”
“Oh, she’s never been much of a fighter,” her mother wailed, bursting into another round of sobs.
After what I witnessed that day, I wasn’t so sure about that. Katherine seemed like a fiery little fighter to me, and that fact gave me hope.
Chapter Seven
Katherine
A throbbing headache. It was the only thing I could sense, and it was all I could think about. It started as a dull, pulsing ache, and swelled until it felt as though my head could no longer contain it. I tried to scream, but my throat was closed up. Suddenly I was trapped in a car, blood in my throat, glass in my eyes, struggling to move.
I heard voices all around me, and felt hands restraining me.
“Get Lucy!” a voice shouted.
I grasped something in front of me and began to jerk at it. I gagged, and something slid out of my throat, I threw it aside.
“Nurse!” the voice shouted. “Help!”
Feet scuffled, and alarms shrieked everywhere. I was nearly oblivious to the panic in the air, my splitting head taking far too much of my attention.
“Here, give her this,” a woman’s voice said.
“What’s that?” asked the voice from earlier. “What are you giving her?”
“Just a sedative,” said the woman.
Moments later, my headache began to wane slightly. Soothing warmth spread over my body, and I began to relax. Darkness.
* * *
“Kat, can you hear me?” my mother’s voice asked.
“Huh?” I muttered.
“Kat!” Mom gasped. “She heard me! I knew I saw her eyelids move!”
I felt a hand take mine on each side and wondered who might be there with my mother. I tried to force my eyes open, but brightness made them ache and I quickly squinted them shut again.
“Mom?” I called to her.
“Yes, Baby, I’m here,” Mom said, squeezing my left hand. “I’m right here, Kitty Kat, and so are Steve and Luke.”
“Who?” I asked.
“Steve, honey,” she said, her voice strained with sudden concern. “And his son, Luke.”
Someone squeezed my right hand. Confused, I pulled it away and pressed it tightly against my torso.
“Who?” I repeated. “I don’t know who you’re talking about.”
“Oh, no,” Mom said softly. “Katherine… Steve is about to be my husband. Luke is his son. You met them before the accident?”
“Accident?” My mind was cloudy, as if shrouded in a thick haze that blocked conscious thought. I directed all my concentration toward trying to remember. Suddenly I gasped, “The accident!”
It all flooded back, and my eyes began to sting. I could smell gasoline, and I could hear the voices around me. I started to wave my hands and sit up, but hands gently pushed me back down.
“Kat! You’re okay!” Mom shouted. “You’re in the hospital! You’re okay!”
After a few moments, my heart rate began to slow down, and I relaxed back onto the bed. I’d finally managed to open my eyes.
A man stood behind my mother with his hands on her shoulders. He looked concerned, and I thought I vaguely recognized him, but couldn’t quite place the face. Then I looked to the other side of the bed. A pair of pale eyes met mine, and I recognized him. Sort of.
“Luke?”
His face brightened, and he leaned forward and took my hand.
“I’m here,” he said.
This was… he was my…
“You’re my boyfriend, right?” I asked him.
His mouth fell open, and his brows knitted. He looked at my mother, and then back at me. An awkward silence fell over the room, and he dropped my hand.
“What?” I asked, looking to my mother for answers.
“Katherine, do you have any idea how long you’ve been in a coma?” Mom asked delicately.
“A coma? Me?”
What the hell?
“Do you remember the car accident?” she asked. I nodded, and she continued, “You got hurt pretty badly. You’ve been in a coma for quite a while.”
“Quite a while,” I parroted her. “How long is that?” Mom said nothing, so I said, “Mom? How long?”
“Almost eight months,” she finally said.
“Eight months?” I shrieked. “What about Berkeley?”
“Berkeley can wait,” Mom said. “You’re lucky to be alive!”
The weight of that sinking in nearly dragged me back under. If I had been standing, I would have soon been lying unconscious on the floor.
“I almost died? Like… for real?”
Mom nodded, her face ashen.
“And… this is… my…”
I nodded at the pale-eyed guy.
“Stepbrother, Kat,” Mom said softly. “Luke is soon to be your stepbrother.”
Ka-Thump.
That was the sound of me hitting the floor in my brain. Stepbrother. My heart had skipped at beat at the sight of him. So much so that I was certain he was my boyfriend even after hearing my mother tell me he was Steve’s son. My brain just couldn’t process it at the time. Hearing that he was about to be my stepbrother was a sudden rush of confusion that my brain just couldn’t deal with.
Crash: A Bad Boy Stepbrother Romance Page 4