“Venus?”Fred calls, but I don’t stop.
I don’t breathe again until I make it to the Jeep.
CHAPTER46
Henry
The X-ray takes forever.Once the doctor confirms a fracture, we accompany Olly back to the ER to be fitted for a cast.His pain meds kick in, making him tired and grumpy.I amuse him with funny animal videos as he’s being treated.Carly gets called back to work.I text Venus to meet us in the ER, but she doesn’t respond.
Mom and Fred rush in as the nurse dictates our instructions—rest, hydration, and keeping the head wound clean as we watch for any further signs of distress like headaches and nausea.The next twenty-four hours might as well be a waiting game to get to the finish line of “he’s fine.”But I feel confident that he’s okay.The nurse leaves with a promise to return with the final paperwork.
Fred dumps snacks on the bed and pops the top on a soda.Olly gulps the rare treat and rips open the gummy bears.
“Where’s Venus?”I ask.
Mom forces an awkward smile for Olly’s sake, but her brow pinches.“She left.”
“Left?”I repeat dully.
“You know how she is.”She tilts her head, transmitting weak sympathy through her stare.“She handed over the snacks and said she had to go.”
Olly decapitates a gummy bear.“What?Why?”
Mom wedges herself on the bed’s edge with a shrug.“It’s a mystery.”
Fred scratches his messy hair.“She seemed upset.”
A sinking, desperate feeling rises in my gut as I duck out of the curtained room.“I’ll be back.”
The double doors slide open as I rush toward them.I step into the bright sun and scan the parking lot for the Jeep.When I don’t see it, I call her.
No answer.
I call again.
No answer.
After a string of pleading texts, she doesn’t reply, and I’m still texting when Fred, Mom, and Olly appear through the doors.
“We’re all done,” Fred announces genially.“Everything okay, Henry?”
“No, she’s not answering.”My head spins with disbelief and confusion.Did she really leave us here?After everything?I replay our last conversation—she seemed alright, though perhaps a little unsettled by everything that happened.Who wouldn’t be?
“Good thing we’re here, since you need a ride home,” Mom says snidely.
Her cold remark irks me.“Did something happen?Did you say something, Mom?”
Her hands raise in defense.“She was upsetbeforewe got there.”
“That’s true, and she couldn’t tell us why.”Fred’s hand lands on my back.“Don’t worry about it, Henry.She’s got your Jeep.She won’t get far.”
“Let’s go back to our house for ice cream, huh?”Mom says, expertly changing the subject.“Ice cream always helps me feel better.”
“Yeah,” Olly answers weakly.His green cast makes his arm look twice the size.Judging by the gray bands under his eyes, he’s exhausted.I need to get him home, so we can begin his recovery where we’re most comfortable.
But I need to see Venus.
“Can I have Rocky Road?”Olly asks.
