Outside the door, he paused and turned me to face him. Holding me steady. “This is going to be a shock, Amy. There are a lot of machines and tubes and things, and that can be scary, but everything in this room is working hard to keep your sister alive.”
“I’m ready. I’ll be OK.”
He swung open the door to the room that seemed to be bathed in dull, blue light. The beep and whirl of machines filled my ears, and in the center of all of that, her body and face almost unrecognizable, was my sister.
Suddenly, I wasn’t ready or OK at all.
She looked so tiny and so broken. My legs buckled, and I slid to the floor as I stared at the still, almost lifeless body of my sister. The machines keeping her alive continued to beep and whizz. And I knew that I would never be OK ever again.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Alex
Dawn had tinged the cloudy sky with streaks of pink and orange, which were quickly being overtaken by even more rain clouds, when I skidded into the waiting room, half expecting to see her. Instead, I was greeted with the sight of Micah sitting there, eating a stale-looking sandwich. There was a pile of food in the chair next to him.
Jesus, had it really been that long? I knew I was running late, but I had come as quickly as I could. Panting heavily, I looked around the small, comfortable room, and the first thing I noticed was that it wasn’t comfortable at all.
“Where is she?”
Slowly, he lifted his head and met my eyebrows. “She said I should eat this,” he said quickly, not answering my question, like I would care that he was eating. “Before it went to waste. Most of it went to the nursing staff, but she knew I would be hungry, and I knew,” his eyes met mine, and it might have been my imagination, but it looked like he was angry, “that you wouldn’t want me to leave her alone for even a few minutes.”
I nodded. “You were right, but I am here now, Micah. You can head home.”
Lips pursed, he looked away so quickly that it was impossible not to get the impression he wasn’t just angry at me, he was livid.
“Where is Amy?” I asked again. If he was here, then she hadn’t gone home. Without meaning to, I glanced at the clock and the world tilted on its axis. That couldn’t be right. The time must be wrong because if it was right, it had been twenty hours since she had called me, and I had promised her that I would be there.
Had she sat in this room alone for twenty hours? Had she wondered where I was?
“She’s not here, she is—” He shook his head and fell silent.
My stomach flip-flopped. “Did something happen?” I could barely get the word out of my mouth. “Did Alessia?”
“No, Mr. Petrovov.” Gathering up the supplies in his arms, he headed in my direction. “Alessia made it out of surgery several hours ago.”
I let out a sigh of relief. “Thank God for that.” Reaching up, I pinched the bridge of my nose.
“But—” Micah sighed, “There were some complications. Alessia died on the table several times, and they had to place her in a coma.”
His words rushed through my head, but I didn’t really compute them. “Where is my wife?”
Nothing else mattered but getting to her. She would need me more than ever now.
“ICU on the second floor, but sir,” he paused. “It’s family only.”
At the door, I paused. “I am family.” Rushing from the room, I took the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator. My footsteps only slowed when I reached that wing. Each door along the corridor was shut, the little windows dark, but I found the right room quickly and pushed my way inside.
The room seemed to be more than three-quarters full of machines, the bed in the middle looked like an island, and next to it, looking tiny was Amy. She had pulled her chair up as close to the bed as she could get. Her head was pressed to the edge of it, and she was clinging to her sister’s hand like she would force her to stay alive.
“Amy?” My voice was a whisper. She looked like she was asleep, and I didn’t want to wake her up if she was.
Her head snapped up and around, and she glared at me with eyes that were almost swollen shut from crying. I had never in my life seen someone I cared about look like that. Almost like their whole world had been snatched away from them.
“What are you doing here?” There was no sign of sleepiness in her voice. It was full of anger instead.
“I told you I was going to come to be with you, Amy, and I keep my word.” Even if I am a little late, I added silently.
“That was—” She shook herself with a sigh. Standing up, she lifted her sister’s hand to her lips and kissed it. “I’ll be right back, Alessia. Don’t you dare go anywhere.”
