It had been over a month since her accident, which meant bills were due. On Thursday, I gathered my courage and drove to her house.
As I waited in the car, staring up at her home, I wondered who I could ask to cut her grass. Tyler had emotionally withdrawn. I was pretty sure he hadn’t gone to the hospital in almost a week and I couldn’t push him. It was damn hard seeing her so unchanged. But maybe he could help out in other ways.
Making my way up the path, I lifted the flowerpot and found the hidden key. As expected, mail littered the floor on the other side of the door. I gathered up the numerous envelopes and left them on the hall table with my purse.
The house smelled unlived in, but there were signs of her everywhere. Her shoes sat in the hall where she’d kicked them off after her last run. The afghan was still unfolded on the couch. And her bread on the counter had grown fur.
The trash reeked in the kitchen, so I bagged up what rotten food I could find and tied it off, leaving it by the door to go outside. I gathered the few dishes that had been sitting around and took them to the kitchen.
She was almost out of dish soap. Maybe I should start a list. Turning to find a notepad, I—“Jabberwocky!”
“Calamity. Rayne. I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”
“Jesus Christ, Chris! You scared the shit out of me. What are you doing here?”
He shrugged, drawing my attention to the scars on his arm. Were they tracks? His beard was full and his hair looked dirty, in some sort of dreadlock mess. “I came to check on the house.”
I frowned. Last time he’d checked on it he’d robbed the place. “Have you been to see Elle?”
He leaned against the fridge. “I stopped by. She’s a vegetable.”
My mouth compressed as my eyes narrowed. I fucking hated him. I’d stopped liking him a long time ago for all the stress he’d caused Elle, but over the past few years that dislike corroded into utter loathing.
He was an unredeemable piece of shit and he had no business being in her home. “Are you staying here?”
“It’s my house.”
“It’s your sister’s house.”
He glanced around, exploiting the vacantness. “I don’t see her. And I’m pretty sure she’s not coming back.”
“You don’t know that,” I snapped.
He gave a gruff laugh. “Come on, Calamity. Grow up.”
My anger seethed as my breath labored in and out of my chest. “You can’t afford to stay here. She has bills.”
“Don’t be so dramatic. I could go nine months without paying the mortgage before anyone stepped in.”
I didn’t know if that was true. I’d heard Remington talk about the corruption of banks in this country, something about loans defaulting faster than the economy could handle and some sort of housing bubble. But I didn’t know what that meant. All I knew was Elle had good credit and she’d worked hard to keep her score.
I’d been working under the subconscious assumption that I could ask Hale to help keep her in the black, but … there was no way I could do that with Chris here. So I lied. “We’re renting the house out.”
“Who is?”
“Me and Tyler. It’s what Elle would have wanted.”
“Going to be awfully cramped here, with me, the new tenants, and all my sister’s shit. Unless you meant you were renting the place. You and I could probably figure out a way to share.”
I was going to vomit. “Chris, you can’t stay here. Last time you were here you stole the stove.”
He shrugged again. “It was my stove.”
I wondered if I could call the police. There had to be some sort of squatter’s law he was violating. I went back to my lie because it actually made a little sense.
“We need to rent out the house to pay the hospital.” Or maybe it didn’t make sense. Someone still had to pay the mortgage and that would be the point of the rent. “She needs income right now and this house is more hers than yours.”
“That may be true, but I’m certain it’s more mine than yours, Calamity.”
“She needs money. Her medical bills alone will be—”
“I’m not paying them a penny. Let the guy who hit her take responsibility.”
Like that was going to happen. Irritated, I snapped, “You have to leave. This isn’t your house anymore.”
He laughed and sighed. “She’s gone, Rayne. Don’t you get it? She’s fucking dead. I could walk in and tell them to shut off all the machines and they’d have no choice, because like it or not, I’m her family. You’re nothing. The house is in my name and I’m not leaving. It’s only a matter of time before my fifty percent becomes one hundred.”
She wasn’t on a breathing machine, which showed how out of touch and what an asshole he was. “You stay the fuck away from her!”
Pushing past him, I gathered my purse and the mail on the way out. I shivered with rage as I raced to my car, determined to get to the hospital and tell the doctors never to listen to him. I was so upset I couldn’t catch my breath.
Once I drove to the next street I had to pull over around the corner to calm down. Tears of fear blurred my vision. My hands gripped the wheel as I glared out the window and ground my teeth.
Not knowing what to do, I called Tyler. I could have called Hale, but I knew he’d tell me to go with his plan and move in with him. Right now we needed to focus on getting Chris away from Elle.
“Hello?”
“Ty, it’s me. Chris is at her house.”
“Fuck.” He sighed into the phone. “How long’s he been there?”
“I don’t know, but he’s not leaving.”
“Goddamn it. By the sound of your voice, I’m guessing he’s not clean.”
A derisive laugh barked out of me. “Not at all. His eyes were wrecked and his stink is still in my nose. Who can we call?”
“No one. The house is as much his as it is Elle’s.”
“We have to be able to call someone.” I tilted my phone as my call waiting beeped. Not recognizing the number, I ignored it. “He’s not going to pay the bills and she’ll lose everything.”
Tyler sighed. “With everything else, Ray, she might not be able to afford to keep the house anyway. Hold on. I have a weird number calling me.”
“But—” He put me on hold and I waited. Maybe Hale could make him leave. The line clicked and I jumped right back into the conversation. “We need to talk to someone, Tyler. I might be able to get a lawyer.”
He was quiet.
“Ty?” Maybe he was still on the other line.
“She’s awake.”
My entire body went cold as I tried to fathom his words. “What?”
“That was the hospital. She opened her eyes about ten minutes ago. I’ll meet you there.”
“I’m on my way.”
I drove faster than I’d ever pushed my little car. Thank God for Seri, because I needed my eyes to get through traffic. “Call Hale.”
“There is no hail in the forecast today. Currently, it’s partly cloudy with a high of ninety-one—”
“Seri, shut up! Call Hale.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t have anyone in your contacts under that name,” the robotic voice responded.
“Damn it.” I shook my head. “Seri, call Big Dick Davenport.”
“Calling Big Dick Davenport,” the voice politely replied as the phone began to ring.
“Hey, baby.”
“She’s awake! She opened her eyes a few minutes ago. I’m heading to the hospital now.”
“Drive carefully. You sound like you’re rushing.”
I eyed the speedometer and dropped it back from seventy, to a safe sixty-five.
“I can be there in twenty minutes.”
My heart was beating a mile a minute. “Okay. I’ll see you when you get there. I love you.”
“I love you, too. And Rayne, don’t speed.”
I nodded and ended the call. When I pulled into the hospital parking lot I didn’t bother to read any of th
e signs and took the closest spot to the entrance. I darted through the automatic doors and raced to the elevators, jamming my finger into the button like a woodpecker going at a tree.
As soon as I was inside the lift, I pushed the button for the doors to close. “Come on,” I growled as they slowly came together.
When they opened at Elle’s floor I ran as fast as I could to her room and stumbled through the door, gasping for breath. I looked at my best friend, sitting up as a nurse did something with her IV. And then I burst into tears.
“You’re awake,” I sobbed. “I can’t believe you’re awake.” I rushed to the bed and grabbed her hand, touching her legs and arms as I stared into her wide blue eyes. “I was so scared, Elle. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
Wiping my eyes, I drew in a shaky breath and smiled at her, waiting for her to say something. She frowned and pink stole over the whites of her eyes as she started to tremble.
In a voice so raw and unused, she whispered, “Why are you here?”
I shut my eyes and wept, lowering my head as her words washed over me with such reassurance. I’d been terrified she might die in this room or wake up as someone else.
“Ty?” she whispered and I turned as our friend, wearing a mask of utter shock, staggered to her side. He glanced at me and then gently pulled Elle into a hug.
“You have no idea how happy I am to see you awake,” he rasped. As he eased back, I noted the tracks of tears on his face.
Elle, still frowning, looked over his shoulder. “Hello.”
Relief punched me in the gut as I saw Hale and Barrett standing in the doorway. With trembling fingers, I caught her hand and squeezed. “That’s Hale.”
She continued to stare over Tyler’s shoulder. “The Hot One’s here. Am I high?” she whispered and I laughed.
The moment was interrupted as the doctors came in and we all had to exit in order for them to speak privately to their patient and run some tests.
“We’ll be right out here, Elle. Don’t shut your eyes,” I insisted as Hale pulled me with the others into the hall.
She just woke up and I was already leaving. I wanted to stay, but the hospital staff insisted and Elle, who seemed to choose her words with extra care, didn’t object.
We went to a family waiting room and sat in silence. Hale stoically kept to my side as I continued to weep tears of joy, relief too intense to keep bottled up. I’d never been so happy in all of my life.
There were no words for those long minutes we waited, no accurate description for the uplifting emotions I felt. Tyler was there, equally moved. Together, we stared at the door wiping our eyes.
“Rayne Meyers?”
“That’s me!” I stood and faced the nurse.
“Elle’s asking to see you.”
I nodded and glanced to Tyler, feeling guilty he wasn’t asked. Maybe there was a one person at a time rule. “As soon as I figure out what’s going on I’ll send for you.”
He nodded and I left him in the waiting room with Hale and Barrett. An unexpected fear took hold of me as I approached her room. What did she think of all this? What did she remember about the accident? How would she be different? I gently knocked on the door and stepped inside the hospital room.
She sat in an upright position holding a cup in her hand. Such a simple thing, but so monumental. I went to the chair beside her bed and slowly sat. “I can’t believe you’re awake.”
“I was hit by a drunk driver,” she said, her face telling me she had no recollection of the accident.
“He’s in jail.”
She frowned. “Who was he?”
“A guy named Buck Malhorne. He has a wife and two sons.” I hated that he had a family because it filled me with guilt every time I hoped he’d rot in prison.
Elle slowly nodded, her brow tight. “You’re not in Florida.”
I shook my head. “I came home the minute I heard.”
“Where’s my car?”
It seemed strange that these were her worries, but I guessed there was so much confusion in her head there was no time to prioritize her questions into any sort of order. “It was totaled.”
She tilted her cup to her mouth and ice crunched between her teeth. Her hand brushed over her ear. “My hair…”
“It’ll grow back.”
She continued to frown, two divots forming between her eyebrows. “They showed me a…” The little grooves of confusion deepened. “Thing.”
“Mirror?”
She nodded. Her fingers slowly lifted to her face and traced over her eyebrows where little rogue spikes had grown. She glanced at her nails. “Did you do this?”
I nodded. “Could you hear me talking to you?”
Her head shook slowly. “What color is this?”
I smiled because Elle always appreciated clever makeup names. “Teal the Cows Come Home.”
“No… What … color?”
“It’s blue.”
“Right. Blue.” She wiped her nose and sniffled. “What color?”
My worry doubled. “Blue. Well, bluish green. It’s teal.”
“Blue.” She looked at me and her anxiety became a tangible thing between us. “Blue?”
I nodded. “It’s only been an hour,” I said, assuring both of us that she needed time to adjust. Swallowing, I confessed, “I have so much to tell you.”
“Where’s my mom?”
Oh, my God. My chest tightened.
“Elle, your mom and dad passed away.”
Her gaze skittered to the side of the room as a tear slowly trailed down her cheek. “That’s right. I knew that.”
I hated saying it, but I wanted her to have everything she needed. “Your brother’s at your house.”
She looked at me and I recognized true uncertainty in her eyes. “My brother?”
“Chris.”
Her breathing turned labored and the monitors chirped faster. A nurse came in and checked the machines. “We’re going to need some privacy for a few minutes.”
Elle suddenly resembled a frightened version of her younger self. I took her hand and squeezed. “I’m not going far. Let them help you. I’ll be right down the hall with Tyler.”
She nodded, but nothing would ever erase the memory of that uncertain look in her eyes. That wasn’t the Elle I knew.
We were in the waiting room for almost an hour. I told the others that she was still a little confused. Hale and Barrett, the least attached, assured us that was probably typical in these sorts of situation.
I’d expected a nurse to send for me when they were done, but a doctor showed up. We all stared at him as he explained that Elle requested he speak with us. She was resting, which terrified me. She’d slept for weeks and I worried if she shut her eyes they might never open again.
“We believe Elle is suffering from slight retrograde amnesia. While she’s able to tell us the year and her address, she gets very distressed when asked to recite the alphabet. Over the next few days, we’d like to run some more tests as she acclimates.”
“Will she get those memories back?” Tyler asked.
“This isn’t a loss of memories, per se, but a loss of information. It’s better explained as a disconnect. Think of it as little files she’s temporarily misplaced. Her retention should rebuild over time.”
Was that why she kept asking about colors? “But she remembered us,” I said, trying to recall her exact words when we arrived. “She remembered that I was supposed to be in Florida.”
“Yes. She knows who she is and what her life was like, but her information is scattered at the moment. While she might remember how to make a bag of popcorn, she might struggle with using a microwave. It’s a matter of reacquainting her brain with what it’s misplaced.”
“But she can relearn those things,” Barrett said, surprising me with his attentiveness.
“Absolutely.”
“Will she be able to return to her daily life?” Hale asked and the doctor hesitated.
“In
time. I can’t ethically grant her permission to operate a vehicle at this stage, but as she returns to her life and adapts, her skills will increase.”
Everyone was silent so I finally asked, “Can we see her?”
“I think it’s best she rests for a bit. We’ve removed her catheter and a physical therapist is helping her, but she’s very weak and struggling to move around. She’s disoriented and understandably confused. You’re welcome to stay, but if she’s sleeping I wouldn’t suggest waking her.”
I nodded and once he left I sank into my seat.
“You said she forgot about her parents?” Tyler asked.
“Yeah, but she remembered as soon as I told her.”
“Are her parents gone?” Barrett asked and Tyler and I nodded.
Hale took my hand and squeezed. “We’ll stay.”
I blinked up at him and smiled, relief tunneling through me. “Thank you.”
I called out of work and Tyler did the same. Barrett went on a mission to find food and returned with boxes of local dishes. It seemed the Davenport way to not just survive when visiting a hospital, but also feed the doctors and nurses. It made us very popular among the staff.
Elle woke up a few hours later and Tyler and I went to speak to her. I felt guilty that Barrett and Hale were stuck in the waiting room even when Elle was awake, but they never complained.
I was amazed at how resilient Elle appeared, although obviously still weak. She ate food, albeit with trembling fingers, and drank pop and even made a few jokes, but there were moments in between when I recognized her internal struggle. Sometimes she couldn’t remember basic words, and she’d totally forgotten Tyler was no longer engaged. She knew I’d gone to Florida to work for Remington Davenport, but didn’t recall any of our conversations about Hale.
“But you recognized them,” Tyler said.
“Well, more like I noticed them. And I know who the Davenports are.”
She’d always called Barrett The Hot One and Hale The Other One whenever the Davenports showed up in the tabloids. I no longer agreed with those labels, but that was how she’d referred to them whenever they appeared in the public eye, which was quite often.
Calamity Rayne II: Back Again Page 8