“Wow.” Cole shakes his head and smiles.
“What?” I ask.
“That was brilliant. And it explains the broken chair outside the entrance.”
“I wouldn’t say that.” I look down at Alyssa, not wanting to meet his eyes.
“No, seriously, it was,” Alyssa says. “I never would’ve known to do that.”
The rest of the night was uneventful. Sutton fixed the morphine bag and then examined my injuries, which consist of a lot of deep bruises. Cole didn’t leave the room, not even for a second, and Alyssa slept. When my adrenaline wore off, I was spent. I lay down and pulled the blanket over my head.
“Sweet dreams,” Cole says.
“Let’s hope. Good night.” I snuggle into the cot as much as possible.
Darkness. My bed is large, fluffy, and envelops me in its warmth. Fear courses through my being. Fingernails dig into my palms, and eyes are alert as he raises my blanket.
“Lexi,” he whispers as he crawls in. He wraps his arms around me and sighs, but I’m frigid. “You looked especially beautiful today. Tomorrow I want you to wear the new, turquoise gown I bought to match your eyes.” I don’t answer. I know I can’t refuse. His hands trace from my elbows to my fingers. “Relax. I just want to be close to you.” His lips whisper in my ear and his body curls against mine.
“Okay,” I reply, but terror surges through me.
“Call me Daddy. I’ve been here for you when your father hasn’t.” The S in his words hiss like a snake.
“Okay—Daddy.” I gulp for air. I’m suffocating. The siren blares in the background.
“Are you awake?” My eyes open to Cole’s face peering over me. His full lips inches from mine.
“Well, I am now.” I push upward and he steps back. He wears the stiff black uniform of the guards on patrol and has his guns strapped on.
“Are you leaving?” I ask.
“After you fell asleep, I received orders for a special op. I don’t have a choice on this one.” His voice hardens as he steps away. “I’m not sure when I’ll be back. Maybe later today or tomorrow evening.”
“What about Zeus?”
“Sorry, he has to come with me.”
“I thought you—”
“Try not to worry. I’ve got it all worked out. Sutton’s going to stay with you tonight and you should be safe during the day with all these people around. No matter what try to stay here with Alyssa. If you need something, have another nurse or aid get it for you. If for any reason Sutton has to leave the floor, he’s going to take you with him. Do you understand?”
“Yes. I’ll do whatever you tell me.” I stand up and face him with my hair undone and clothes all rumpled. I can see the struggle he’s having reflected on his face for a brief moment before he clenches his jaw.
“Take care of her,” he says as he waves toward Alyssa and turns on his heels to go.
“Be careful,” I blurt.
He doesn’t turn around, just leashes Zeus. “I always am.” His boots echo in the hallway on the way out.
Everything within me desires to run and hug him good-bye, but my head spins like a turnstile. I worry for him. I worry for Alyssa. She worsened overnight. All of her energy was sapped from her body after the incident with the drug addict. So much to think about.
She moves under the sheets, so I step closer. Her eyes are glassy and sunken in, her mouth so dry she can’t speak. I pour some water in her cup, since I don’t have any ice chips and reposition the straw so her mouth can reach it. I lift the straw to her lips, but she clamps her mouth refusing to drink. Her lips are dry and cracking, so I put some Vaseline on my finger and gently rub it on and around her mouth.
Sutton joins me at her bedside. His eyes scan over her before checking her vitals. His mouth seals into a grim line and he gently pats Alyssa’s head.
“It’s going to be soon. She’s starting to mottle.” He lifts the sheet off her feet.
“You have to get her socks. Her feet are purple.”
“It’s called mottling. It’s when the blood vessels start to shut off at the extremities to try to keep the blood circulating to the heart and lungs. It’s a normal process. We were made to fight till the end.”
I try to swallow the lump in my throat, but I’m unable to push it down. It comes out as a hiccup before the tears reach my eyes.
Sutton puts his hand on my back and rubs in circles. “She’s comfortable though. I can assure you of that.” He sits next to me. I rest my head on his shoulder and he takes my hand. We hold hands, and celebrate the life of a girl so special that she changed our lives.
“Alyssa is very dear to my heart and I will miss her.” Sutton’s voice cracks a little. “I wish I could save her, and, Alyssa, if you can hear me, I am so sorry I failed you.” I sniffle as he says those last words. “I remember one time I fell asleep in her chair and she threw a cup of water on me to wake me up.” Sutton and I laugh, but then he grows serious again. “The virus beat her down and she withdrew for a while… until she met you. Lexi, she lights up when you’re around her. I never saw her so happy. Honestly. Thank you.”
I wipe the salty tear gliding over my lip and hiccup again. He laughs. “The truth is she helps me more than I help her. I truly love that girl.” I have to stop to keep from blubbering more. He gives me another squeeze, wipes his eyes, and stands.
“We have to go down to the main supply closet on the first floor to grab a few things,” he says.
“But—”
“It’ll be quick. Come on let’s go.”
I whisper in Alyssa’s ear that we’ll be right back and then accompany Sutton to the supplies. He fills my arms with gauze, a Foley catheter kit, staple removal kit, and some other items I’ve never heard of.
“All right, that should do it.” His pager starts to beep. He puts his things down, reaches for his pager, and holds it closer to his eyes. His face turns white.
“No!” I drop the items to the floor, turn, and sprint down the hall.
“Wait for me,” Sutton calls out to me.
I keep running, feeling frantic. I swing open the door to the stairs and take two or three steps at a time. I push through a slow crowd, and ignore their indignant expressions. “Get out of my way!” I slip through them and around them like liquid in rocks. Two men block my way. “You have to move. I need to get to her!”
“Maybe you should learn some manners,” a man with white hair says to me.
I have no idea what his problem is, but it causes me to erupt. “I’m tired of being polite. Now get out of my way!”
“Nope.”
“Let her through!” Sutton yells from a few flights down.
He doesn’t budge.
“Screw it.” I throw a punch directly into his groin. He topples over groaning and I leap past him. My lungs burn and my legs feel gummy. When I reach the eighth floor, I have to take a second to catch my breath because I’m light-headed.
When I look down, I see Bertha standing outside of her door crying. No, please no! Like lightning, I run. I turn to go in her room when Bertha grabs my arm.
“What are you doing? Let go of me.”
“She’s still with us,” Bertha says.
“Oh, thank you, God.”
Sutton joins us. “What’s wrong?” He huffs the words out.
“She’s talking to her mother. She wants to go with her mother.”
“Her mother’s here? Now, after all this time she decides to show up and see her daughter? No way she’s leaving. I won’t let her—”
“Her mother’s dead,” Sutton says.
Then I remember, the book said sometimes when the end is near, they can see people who’ve died before, and it’s possible they might talk to them. You’re not supposed to tell them they’re wrong because it only makes the patient more anxious.