"My fiancée," Daniel replied. My head jerked up hearing the words. He winked at me. He knew they'd probably never allow me back with him if I was just a friend. Hospitals tended to be strict that way.
She finished up making her notes before gently taking his hand and removing it from the ice. Though she said nothing, I could tell from the expression on her face that it wasn't good.
"Doctor Wyatt will be in here to see you in a few minutes. Go ahead and put your hand back in the ice if it makes it feel better." She turned and walked about, closing the door behind her.
I stood up and walked to Daniel. I kissed him on the forehead, not saying a word. What could I say?
Daniel was definitely getting the star treatment; because before he could say a word, we heard the sound of someone taking the chart out of the door. But, on the other hand, his hand looked really bad; so he might have been bumped up the triage list.
The door opened and a dark headed man in surgical scrubs entered.
"Mr. Kennedy, I am Dr. Wyatt. I understand you're having some issues with your hand?"
"Yes, I am, I'm afraid," Daniel replied gingerly taking the injured extremity from the bag of melting ice.
He grimaced in pain as the doctor took his hand, attempting to flex the fingers with his own, then opening and closing Daniel's hand as he watched.
"I'm going to x-ray your hand first, to see what the damage is, but it is definitely broken, Mr. Kennedy."
"My concert?"
"You won't be performing any time soon." The doctor shook his head. "Not for the next two months, at least. I'll know more once I see the x-rays. In the meantime, I'm going to have one of the nurses bring you something for pain."
"You're sure it's broken?" I asked, knowing the answer wasn't going to be any different from two seconds ago.
"Quite sure. But let's get the x-rays done and see what the damage is."
"Daniel, I'm going to go tell Neil and have him cancel your concert and the remainder of the tour."
"No," he replied. "Let's wait and see what the x-rays say."
"Danny, that is your violin hand. There is no way you can play in this condition. Your hand is broken. You cannot play tonight. You have to think of the future. In two months time, you'll be healed and you can resume your tour."
He nodded. Just then, a nurse entered with an IV set up and a syringe of pain meds. Five minutes later, he felt no pain in his hand or anywhere else for that matter. I quietly left him as he nodded off and went out to update Neil. By this time, half my family was there. Everyone except Amadeus and Peter.
I shook my head in Neil's direction. "They're going to do x-rays to see the damage, but his hand is broken. You need to cancel tonight, Neil."
"I'm on it. It's safe to say I may as well go ahead and get the wheels in motion to cancel the remainder of this leg of the tour, as well"
I nodded my head. "Europe next month, too. The doctor already told him, even without x-rays, it'll be a minimum of two months before he can play."
"Is there anything we can do?" Mother asked.
"No, the last thing I need is help from any of you. I'm going to go sit with Daniel. If you need me for anything, just have one of the nurses come get me."
"Okay," Angus replied. "Let us know as soon as you know something."
I turned and went back to join my “fiancée”. When I walked in, an orderly was helping a very buzzed Daniel into a wheelchair. I was informed I could wait either in the waiting area with the others or in the room.
"No, she's coming with me." Daniel informed the young man.
After what seemed like hours, we were back in the small pale blue room, waiting on the doctor and his diagnosis. Daniel knew. He'd resigned himself to the fact that the situation was out of his control and he was having a very hard time dealing with it.
The doctor returned with the news a short time later, and it wasn't good. Daniel needed surgery on his hand. His prognosis was good, in spite of the two to three months of down-time Daniel would need before he could even think of playing again. He joked that he'd spent more hours of his lifetime practicing than he had sleeping, but now that was about to change.
After the doctor left, I began to help Daniel out of his clothes and into the surgical gown. Placing his clothes into a bag the nurse had provided, I slipped his black jacket over mine, wanting him close to me while I waited. His cell phone was inside one of the pockets. I placed it, along with his wallet, rings and other jewelry, inside my purse.
I bent over and kissed him as they began to wheel him out of the cubicle to surgery. "I love you. I'll see you in a couple of hours."
He mumbled something in a mix of French and English. My French had improved, thanks to the tour and the time I was spending with Daniel. It was good enough to understand most of what he said. He flashed me a drunk smile and waved with his good hand as they wheeled him down the corridor.
I gathered up the bag and my purse and headed back to the waiting room. I shook my head at what I thought Daniel had just said. He loved me. But the part about marriage? Naw, that was the drugs talking! Everyone was still there when I walked in. I gave them a quick update and told them it wasn't necessary for them to wait. No one budged.
"Can I get you a cup of coffee?" Ashleigh asked.
I nodded my head and looked at Neil. "He'll be right as rain in a few months. Knowing Daniel, though, he'll be back at it long before he's given the okay."
"You're right about that. This will be the first vacation he's ever had from his violin."
I panicked, looking around for the case. Daniel had brought it along for his interview, later. He had left it in the car with Neil while we were in Angus' house. Where was it now? I always kept tabs on Daniel's instrument. If he didn't have it, I did.
"Is this what you're looking for?" Neil asked, handing it to me. What was inside that case was worth a small fortune.
"Thank you."
Neil nodded. "Everything's in motion. You just take care of our boy and see that he gets better."
"I will." Ashleigh passed me a cup of steaming Starbucks. Then it dawned on me. Daniel's family. I fumbled in my purse until I found his cell phone. I scrolled down until I found ”Mother and Father”.
"Who are you calling?" Neil inquired.
"Daniel's parents. It'll be late evening there, but I need to call. They don't need to find out about this over the news or from a random phone call. You know how revered Daniel is in France, it'll be all over the media there as soon as they find out."
"You're right. Probably best if the news did come from you."
"Do his parents speak English, Elizabeth? I might be able to help some if they don't." ,my mother offered.
"His mother is American--of course she speaks English." I bit off, regretting my tone as soon as I said it.
I took a deep breath, stood up and walked over to the windows overlooking the parking lot, giving myself some privacy. I'd never spoken to Daniel's parents, let alone met them. It was on our ever growing “to do” list.
I waited for someone to pick up on the other end. Thank goodness, it was his mother who answered.
"Mrs. Archambault?" I asked. Geez, I could see now why Daniel had taken his mother's maiden name for his stage name. No one in this country would ever be able to master it.
"Oui?"
"This is Mary, Daniel's girlfriend?" I hated that term, it was so teenagerish. But I suppose it was better than saying Daniel's lover.
"Yes, yes. Mary! Daniel speaks of you every time he calls. Is Daniel okay?" Her motherly instincts obviously kicked in. Girlfriend you've never met or talked to is calling late at night. Something is not right.
"Daniel broke his hand. He's in surgery right now. I wanted to be the one to tell you before the media got hold of it."
Silence. "Which hand? Is he going to be all right?"
"He will be fine in a few months. Unfortunately, it was his left hand; but the doctor assured him he'd be playing again as soon as it's healed
."
"Oh my." I heard her say, half to herself. "Do we need to come? Where exactly are you?"
"We're in Seattle," I replied. "Why don't you wait on making any plans until Daniel's out of surgery and I've had a chance to speak with the doctor. I imagine we'll have to stay here a couple of days before he can travel."
"You're right, of course. Daniel would think we're all being foolish if we were to hop a plane now and show up at his bedside."
"He’s already insisting it is no big deal."
"So stubborn, that one. You will call me the moment you have spoken to the doctor? I don't care what time it is. Please call us," She begged.
"I will, just as soon as I've had a chance to talk with the surgeon."
"It was good to finally talk with you, Mary, even under these circumstances. We'll be waiting for your call."
"Good night, then. I'll speak with you soon."
I turned to rejoin my family and Neil and wait for Daniel to come through surgery.
A couple of hours later, I was seated next to Daniel's hospital bed. He was awake, but groggy, sleeping in spurts. The damage was bad, but not as horrible as the surgeon first speculated. Daniel would play again, just after a minor two to three month vacation. Secretly, I was looking forward to seeing him relax, as it was a rare occasion when he actually did.
His parents were called and updated. I told his mother I would call the next day or if anything changed. I assured her, again, that her son was going to be fine, but told her to call any time—going so far as to give her my cell number.
Family, including Neil, had been sent home for the night. I was exhausted and planned to spend the night right next to Daniel.
"You sure you don't want to go back to the hotel and sleep?" A very drug-groggy Daniel asked as I made myself comfortable in one of those strange chairs hospitals have that make out into a bed. Sort of. "I wouldn't blame you a bit if you did."
"No, I'm not going anywhere, tonight."
"Did Neil take care of everything?"
"Yes, he did. Got the wheels in motion anyway, for this leg and Europe. I also called your mother and let her know what was going on. I thought it was better than her finding out about it on the news or someone calling her with it. I hope you don't mind."
"Thank you, sweet. You're right; she would be quite upset if she found out through the media. How was she when you told her?"
"Concerned, but she is your mother. I told her I'd update her daily and if she had any questions or anything, to be sure to call. I also gave her my cell number."
"Good. I'll try and talk with her tomorrow, once I'm not so stupid sounding."
I chuckled remembering him just a few hours prior. "Yes, that would be best."
"Why? What did I say?"
"Nothing, nothing important. You were rambling in French and English so it was sort of hard to understand." I snorted, snuggling under the short blanket.
"Mary, what did I say? Obviously it wasn't too garbled from the way you're snorting over there."
"Daniel, it was nothing. You were full of drugs and talking silliness. And I'll have you know, I don't snort!"
"I want to hear, sweet."
"Oh all right. You said you loved me and asked me to marry you. Are you happy now? See I told you, you were out of it from the drugs."
"Well, I do love you; and I have thought about marriage. I never intended the subject to be brought up under the guise of drugs, however."
"There you go. And I know you love me, Daniel. Now try and sleep if you can."
****
After an extra day in the hospital, Daniel was released. Arrangements had been made for us to stay in Seattle for another day before starting the long journey back to London.
Peter offered his private jet for the journey. Plans were made for us to fly to New York and stay over one night before making the last leg over water.
Amadeus had remained silent. Probably a good thing, since I wanted nothing more than to throttle the living daylights out of him. If it hadn't been for his smart mouth, Daniel wouldn't be where he was. So, imagine my shock when I opened the door to our suite, on the night before we were to leave Seattle, to find Amadeus standing there.
"What do you want? Don't you think you've caused enough trouble?" I spat at him.
"I came to apologize to Daniel and you, Elizabeth. Don't make this harder than it already is for me."
"Well, if you're doing this merely to appease Mother, you might as well turn around and go back to where you came from, Amadeus."
He brushed past me and into the suite. I shut the door and followed him. He turned around to look at me. What happened? Where was the one brother who had always been so fiercely protective of his twin sister?
"Look, Elizabeth, I admit it, my remark was uncalled for. I've simply been unable to wrap my head around the fact that all these years of worrying about you, wondering if you were okay, you were alive and well and living in London. Living right under our noses, I might add. What you did was selfish and right now I'm not hopping on the ‘let's welcome Elizabeth back with open arms’ bandwagon." He sat down in one of the chairs, brooding like he always knew how to do so well.
"Fine, I don't want you to. If it hadn't been for that photo, and the fact that someone recognized me, we wouldn't be having this conversation and Daniel's hand wouldn't be broken."
"And Elizabeth Tudor would be off living in her magical little world in London."
"Enough, Amadeus. Right now I don't have time for your pity party. Let me tell you this, though, and listen carefully to what I say. The reason I left was in part due to the fact that none of you thought I'd ever amount to anything. It was all about you boys and how great you were going to be. I was merely to be appeased. I would marry and any thoughts of a career would be a dream. Funny, though, I look at who you married and have to laugh, because Zara's the total opposite. She's a strong woman who has had a successful career. Well, hear me and hear me well, Amadeus fucking Tudor, I am just as good, if not better, at what I do than you. Now I don't want to hear any more on this subject right now."
I turned at the sound of the bedroom door opening and saw Daniel come through—his long hair hanging over his shoulders and his arm in a sling, close to his chest. He was clothed only in gym shorts and a t-shirt he'd insisted I help get over his head, and was barefoot.
"I'm sorry, Daniel, did we wake you?" I asked, throwing a dark glance at Amadeus.
"No, I couldn't lie there anymore." He noticed Amadeus and surprisingly acknowledged him as he joined us. "Amadeus." He nodded his head.
"Here, sit down in this chair and I'll get you something to drink." I walked to the refrigerator at the bar. I found a bottle of tomato juice and poured it into a glass. The room was awfully quiet.
"I won't stay long," Amadeus quietly began. "I didn't want you to leave town without seeing you and apologizing, Daniel. My remark about my sister was uncalled for and I'm sorry. It's obvious you love her very much for you to have taken a swing at me like that."
Daniel said nothing for a second, taking a long swallow of the juice. His eyes darted between Amadeus and me. "Yes, I do love her. More than you can fathom. Apology accepted, Amadeus." Raising the arm held in a sling slightly he added, "Next time, however, I'll make sure you're not standing up against a wall or hard surface."
"Hopefully there won't be a next time," I added. "Next time Amadeus will keep his mouth shut. He and Angus are known for their open mouth, insert foot way of conversing."
I heard a chuckle from my brother. I don't know if he was trying to avoid another bitter confrontation or merely agreeing with me. "She is right, Daniel. Angus and I do get wound up from time to time."
"I can relate. I was always the hot headed one in my family."
"Which I find hard to believe." I added, looking down at Daniel. He had that grin on his face.
Amadeus got up and shook Daniel's good hand. "I'm going to get out of y'all's way. Welcome to our crazy-ass family, Daniel."
"Daniel gingerly stood up under his own steam. "Thanks, Amadeus, and no hard feelings. They tell me I'll be good as new in a month or two."
Amadeus nodded, then came over and hugged me. "Keep in touch, sis. I mean it. Don't make me come hunt you down this time."
"She's not going anywhere unless it's with me," Daniel assured him.
"Okay, enough of the goopy sentiments. Think about what I said, Amadeus. Hopefully we'll all get to meet up under better circumstances, soon."
"We will. You didn't get to meet your namesake, sis, in the midst of all the chaos, or Logan." He winked at me, grinning as though he thought he had the last jab. Elizabeth was a toddler. Hard to imagine my brother running after one so small. Then there was Logan. There had to be an interesting story there. Logan was a love-child of Amadeus’ he supposedly knew nothing about. One who’s mother died and was now permanently part of his and Zara’s life.
"Amadeus," I called after him as he opened the door. He turned to look at me. "You're still an asshole, but I love you, anyway."
Shaking his head, laughing, he closed the door behind him, knowing I'd had the last word.
Daniel stared at the door and then looked at me, beckoning me to sit nearby. "How did he come to be named Amadeus?"
"I suppose it had something to do with the fact that my mother was a concert pianist and Mozart is her favorite composer. I'm not sure."
"Well, it suits him quite well."
"How's that?" I asked, taking the empty glass from his hand.
"He can be charming when he wants, but he has a dark side, like Mozart."
Chapter Nine
We settled into Daniel's place in London for his recuperation, but I quickly wished I'd pushed harder to go to Provence to visit his parents for a couple of weeks. The endless stream of people made me quite irritable.
Neil made it by a couple of times a week, bringing Daniel whatever he thought he needed and keeping him up to date on business. Likewise, John, from his management team, gave regular updates. There were others, too. I hadn't realized just how many different organizations and people it took to manage Daniel's career. Some dealt solely with his classical roots, while John Parker, and his mega management firm, Lunar Management and Media, dealt primarily with his brand, taking on everything from the tours to the advertising and television deals. Daniel, it seemed, was his own corporation.
Encore! (Tudor Saga Book 1) Page 9