You’re a salesman, Dalton, not an accountant. Why not hire someone so you can get a life? Once on the road, he loosened his tie, popped in a favorite CD, rolled down his window, and inhaled the cool night air. Cruising along County Road l23, he felt the tension leave him.
Every night for the past six years, he had driven the forty-five minutes from work to the driveway of his log cabin home outside Evergreen. He valued this private time. It allowed him to reflect on the day’s events and run through the plan for the next day.
He knew the ins and outs of this dark, deserted, unpaved road; every twist, turn, bump, pothole, the exact spots where it narrowed or widened, and where the driveways of the dozen or so country homes butted the road. Yet, because of the late hour and how tired he’d be on these late nights, he regarded each trip as a first. Always drove with a watchful eye for the unexpected, in particular, deer. He couldn’t recollect ever seeing anything more than the glowing eyes of small critters in the bushes when his headlights caught them off guard. Other drivers, at this time of night, were non-existent. So when he spotted the lights of an oncoming vehicle off in the distance, his first reaction was to proceed with caution.
“Slow down, buddy. This road can be hard to maneuver if you’re not familiar with it.”
The headlights grew brighter and brighter in a short expanse of road. Nick automatically kicked into an alert mode, ready to act. “Slow down, bud. Slow down.”
The oncoming vehicle sped closer and closer. Nick’s sixth sense kicked in. He eased off the gas pedal, pulled as far to the right as safety allowed, and slowed to a stop. He flashed his lights to signal the other driver to turn off the high beams just before the Twilight-Zone moment hit.
Thud! Crash! Crunch!
The sound of shattering glass and crumbling metal echoed across the country fields. The vehicle’s airbags deployed as his truck propelled sideways off the shoulder, plunged down a seven-foot embankment, and rolled. Even with the seatbelt on, Nick’s six-foot, one-hundred-ninety pounds of pure muscle wrenched forward and backward, side to side, and twisted in unnatural movements before the truck landed.
“Ugh!” he moaned. “I’m going to be one hurting unit.”
Rattled and distressed, he remained still. He caught his breath and made a quick physical assessment of his body parts. He moved his arms and legs then rotated his neck. No broken bones. “Ah, I’m alive!”
He unlatched the seat belt, searched about until he’d found his cell phone, then stretched to open the glove compartment for a flashlight. He pushed against the bashed-in doors to get out. Both were jammed shut, so he decided to exit through the opened window on the driver’s door. Once outside his truck, he discovered a dead deer. Where had that come from?
I know I didn’t hit anything. It hit me. The other car must have— The other car! What happened to that other car?
He scrambled up the hill. He searched both directions for headlights, taillights, anything—nothing but darkness. Instinct told him to check the other side of the road. There, off in the ravine, he viewed what was left of a car and a lone person slumped over the steering wheel.
Damn. Look at the shape of this, just like a crumbled piece of tin foil. I bet this car hit that deer, sent it flying into me. The impact must have been severe enough to cause the driver to lose control and careen down the other embankment crashing into that tree.
He dialed 9-1-1.
“County Road 123. Car accident.” Short pause. “Yes, I’m all right. Other driver needs medical help.” He made his way down to the car and flashed the light inside the other vehicle. “There’s blood all over.” He wiped his brow and took several deep breaths. “Female driver. Hurt real bad.” He paused, listened to the operator. “Breathing? I don’t know.” He pounded on the driver’s window. “Miss! Miss!” he cried out. “Are you all right? Can you hear me?”
Damn.
Instinctively, he struggled to open the car door. It didn’t budge. After a closer inspection of the vehicle, he concluded it was twisted shut because of the damage caused by the collision.
“I can’t get to her. She’s not responding to my calls. Hurry!”
After a while, he realized the hopelessness of the situation. He could do nothing but wait and pray help would come quickly. He sat down alongside the car, not wanting to leave the victim alone in case she called out for help.
Time seemed to drag on forever before he heard the faint sound of sirens in the distance.
He pounded on the window.
“I can hear them, they’re close,” he shouted to the accident victim. “You’re going to be okay.”
Nick wasn’t sure if she were conscious or not, but he wanted her to know she wasn’t alone. “Hang on,” he yelled. “Help is here!”
Louder and louder, the sirens screamed into the night, announcing the arrival of the ambulance. He could see the flashing lights.
“Thank you, God. This person is going to need all you got to give.”
Rushing back up the hill and onto the road, he desperately waved his flashlight to signal their location. He reached the centerline about the same time as the ambulance. The fire trucks and police cars arrived on the scene, people flooded the road, a few hurried toward him. Without any warning, his legs buckled, and he collapsed.
Chapter Twelve
Several hours later, Nick opened his eyes and found himself staring at two familiar faces: his sister, Monica and her husband, Jeff. “Where am I?”
“Crestview Hospital,” she answered.
“Okay. And why am I here? I remember the crash, but I didn’t get hurt.”
“The EMTs found you passed out in the middle of the road. The doctors said you went into shock, a normal reaction to the accident. They’re going to keep you here for observation, to make sure you’re okay.” Monica brushed her hand along the side of his face. “You’re lucky coming out with only a few cuts and bruises. No major injuries. Guess airbags and seatbelts really do work.”
“Are we talking days or hours for this observation stuff?”
“Probably for a good part of today,” Jeff said. “General consensus is for you to play it safe and take advantage of the hospital’s hospitality. When discharged, the doctor will prescribe some pain medication and a muscle relaxant. He also suggested you take it slow and not try to get back into your routine right away.”
“Sounds like a reasonable request to me.”
The crisp white sheets on the hospital bed suddenly seemed too restrictive. Nick wriggled to get comfortable. He cringed with pain. “Tell the doc he won’t get any argument from me.”
Monica smiled at him. “The medication they gave you should kick in anytime now. You’ll be in la-la-land for hours, until we come for you later this afternoon.”
He nodded then reached out for Monica’s hand. “What about the other driver?”
“A seventeen-year-old girl. Police think she hit the deer, sent it flying with such force, it pushed your truck sideways off the edge.”
“It looked real bad. I called out to her repeatedly. I tried to help. I think she was unconscious. Any word on how’s she doing?”
His sister shrugged. “We overheard the nurses say she wasn’t wearing a seat belt. Hit the steering wheel hard. They mentioned things like severe head, chest and neck injuries and were afraid of internal damage.”
Nick’s shoulders slumped. He exhaled hard and shook his head. “I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be good from the moment I spotted her vehicle speeding along that dark, curvy road.” He sighed. “It all happened so fast.”
“I imagine the police will investigate. They’ll probably be here to talk to you later this morning. From what we can tell, everyone’s very concerned about her pulling through.” Monica smoothed the soft white blanket and adjusted Nick’s pillow.
“Is there anything I can do for her?”
Jeff cleared his throat. “Pray.”
Nick nodded and promised he’d do that. His eyes felt heavy. His speech
slowed.
“By the way, what time is it?”
“About six forty-five a.m. Why? Have a hot date?” Monica asked.
He raised an eyebrow. “That would be funny, Monica, if you didn’t know the real status of my love life. As much as I wish that were true, it’s not. I’m worried about business. My staff has to be contacted before noon. There are certain things that must be done before the day’s end. Will you call them?”
“No problem. Where can I find your employee directory?”
“Office. Middle drawer of desk. Can’t miss it.”
Monica smiled. “Consider it done, brother.”
Nick gave her a quick nod and half a smile then held up his index finger. “One more favor.”
She shook her head.” Looks like a sister’s job is never done.”
Flashing a silly grin, he teased, “Of course not. However, I do promise it’s the last request.” He crossed his heart. “It’s Maxine. She’s home waiting for me.”
“Already took care of her.” Jeff told him a neighbor had taken his niece, Lori, to get Maxine and bring her to their house.
Before Nick could respond to Jeff, the door to his room opened. All eyes focused on the young woman making her way into the room.
“It’s an angel,” he declared, mesmerized by her green eyes. “I must be in Heaven.”
He sat up to capture the moment.
“Oh, excuse me,” she said. “Looks like I’m in the wrong room.”
With an amused grin, he didn’t hesitate to answer. “No, you’re not, you’re exactly where you belong.” Then with an exaggerated sigh, he shouted, “Wait a minute! I know you. You’re the coffee-spilling girl from the bank.”
The young woman blushed. Obviously overcome with embarrassment, she blurted out, “You’ll never know how sorry I am that happened.”
“Not to worry, Bank Girl.” Nick grinned with delight. “Looks like we were destined to meet again.”
The deep pink blush on her cheeks intensified her green eyes.
“I’m looking for my grandfather. They moved him from ICU into Room 444.” She twisted her head to check the room number on the door. “Oops.” She pointed to the number. “440. Once again, sorry.”
She turned to leave.
Nick’s hormones kicked in, and he checked her out from head to toe. Her well-fitting black jeans, green sweater and black leather boots all had little trouble meeting his approval.
“Feel free to stay,” he blurted out. “Maybe there is something to this destiny thing. Maybe our fate is sealed. Maybe we’re doomed to be together.”
Monica playfully pushed him back onto his pillow and poked at his arm. “Nick!”
“What? I may be a patient, but I am human, you know.” He scowled at his sister. This beautiful creature had walked into his life for a reason, and here he was, about to drift off because of some medication. Totally captivated, he watched her with delight. “Don’t leave, and don’t be sorry,” he drawled through his school-boy-grin. “Stay and tell me who….”
He didn’t get to finish his sentence—he fell into that expected drug-induced sleep.
“You’ll have to excuse my brother,” Monica said. “He’s heavily sedated.”
“I only hope I didn’t disrupt anything.”
Jeff added his two cents. “I can assure you that my brother-in-law didn’t mind your presence. In fact, I think he’ll be having some sweet dreams now that the meds have kicked in.”
Monica frowned and elbowed him. “You’ll have to excuse my husband, too. I think he’s the one who needs to be sedated.”
Amanda blushed again. “Well, I hope your brother gets well soon.”
She turned and disappeared into the hall.
Chapter Thirteen
On the walk down the hallway to her grandfather’s room, Amanda noticed a sudden amount of “hospital” activity. All the lights flashed on, hospital staff scurried about. She assumed the night shift must be going off duty, and the new day welcomed a different set of doctors and nurses. She hesitated before she opened the door of Poppy’s room. She felt relieved that he had been moved from ICU, but she still didn’t know what to expect. She took a deep breath and slowly eased the door open and stepped over the threshold.
The dimness of the room didn’t prevent her from getting a clear look at her grandfather. She gasped at his stillness, the lack of color in his face, and the sight of the tubes and wires still hooked up to his body. Once at his side, she gently stroked his cheek and kissed his forehead, careful not to disturb him.
She retreated to the nurse’s station for an update on his condition. “How is he doing?”
“He’s going to be fine,” the nurse assured her. “We’re about to take his vitals, undo his hook-ups, do a blood draw, and wheel him down for another CAT scan.”
Tears of relief flowed down her cheeks, but somehow, she couldn’t let go of the fear of losing him.
The nurse continued, “It’s going to take a while. If you retire to the waiting room, we’ll come and get you as soon as we’re done.”
Not having gotten much sleep, she said, “Instead of waiting while that’s happening, I’m going to get a cup of coffee and something to eat in the hospital’s cafeteria. Please let him know I’m here, explain about the tests, and assure him I’ll be with him as soon as he’s made comfortable.”
* * *
Nick woke to the bustling of people in and out of his room. A nurse took his vitals, the doctor checked him out then gave the order for his discharge. He called his sister. She wasn’t home. He glanced at his watch on the nightstand—eleven o’clock—and figured she and Jeff must be on their way to his shop to take care of the few things he had asked her to do.
Knowing he’d have to wait, he decided to shower. While in the shower, he remembered he had forgotten to tell Monica to bring him a change of clothes. Then, as if someone were in the room with him, he said aloud, “But knowing her, she’ll be smart enough to think of that.”
A strange restlessness overcame him. He sat on the edge of the bed, moved to the chair, then walked to the window to see if he could spot their car pulling up into the hospital parking lot. No luck. As he paced the room, his thoughts raced from one thing to another. Where is my family? How lucky am I to be leaving the hospital in one piece? What happened to the other driver? Where is the beautiful woman who strayed into my room last night? Had he dreamt her up, or was she real?
To soothe his edginess, he decided to stroll down the hallway to look for Bank Girl or find her grandfather. He tucked his wallet into the top pocket of the blue pajamas the hospital had furnished him and set out on his mission.
Once he’d reached Room 444, he paused, listening for her voice. The only thing he heard was a nurse puttering around, talking to someone named Peter. He peered around the door and peeked in. The morning nurse on duty placed her index finger to her lips to stop any communications and then held it up to indicate that she’d be with him in one minute. He couldn’t get a clear look at the elderly man lying in the bed.
When she’d finished tending to her patient, she met him in the hallway. “Can I help you? Are you lost? Looking for someone?”
“No. I’m from down the hall, waiting to be released.”
In her best nurse’s voice, she emphatically told him, “Then maybe you should go back to your room and wait. You shouldn’t be wandering the halls.”
“Contrary to what it seems like, I’m not lost or aimlessly wandering about. I’m on a mission, looking for the young girl who mistakenly came into my room last night looking for her grandfather.” He smiled and glanced around. “By any chance, do you know who I mean and if she might be here?”
The nurse’s gaze and business tone soften. “Come on, young man. I’ll walk you back to your room while you tell me what this all about.”
Nick’s raised eyebrows and impish grin gave him away. “She wandered into my room yesterday just as my sedative kicked in. We didn’t get a chance to talk much. But
I did like what I saw.”
“All I can tell you is that she came earlier this morning. We had hospital business to take care of so she went to the cafeteria.” Then looking at her watch, she added, “Should probably be here any time now. If you stand by your door, you’re bound to meet up with her.”
He shook his head. “I’ve been discharged, and I’m waiting for my family to come to take me home. I don’t know how long I’ll be around.” He shrugged. “But I will check again before I leave.”
He thanked the nurse for the information, then watched her hasten back down the hall and re-enter Peter’s room.
Once inside Room 440, his thoughts focused on the other victim of the car accident. He wondered what had happened to her and how she was coming along. He closed the door to his room, stretched out on the unmade bed, and shut his eyes to reflect upon yesterday’s events. Before long, he had drifted into a pleasant sleep.
A loud knock on the door woke him. Two uniformed police officers entered. Their presence brought him to his feet.
“Nick Dalton?”
“Yes, that’s me,” he answered.
The young officer extended his hand.
“I’m Jack Tyler.” He pointed to the other officer. “This is my partner, Gary Morrow. We caught the call last night, arrived at the scene of the accident along with the ambulance that brought you in.”
Nick pulled himself together and accepted the handshake. “How’s the girl?”
Both officers shook their heads. “Afraid she didn’t make it,” one answered.
He eased himself into a chair by the window. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“We’re here to investigate the circumstances of the accident. Need to ask a few official questions. Can you tell us what you remember?” Officer Tyler asked.
“Sure. I was driving home from work when the lights from an oncoming vehicle took me by surprise. You see, there’s never anyone on the road at that hour.”
Matters of the Heart Page 6