Brooke wasn’t concerned about the media. Yes, they knew someone had been attacked on campus again, but they didn’t have her name. She could be anyone leaving the hospital, but Doug was being cautious and she appreciated it.
She didn’t have the strength or brain power to deal with anything more than getting from the hospital to her dorm room, where she could crawl into her bed and try not to think about anything anymore.
Mindy Sue stuffed the paper bag of meds and clean bandages the nurse had left for Brooke into the duffel Mindy Sue had packed and brought from their dorm room this morning. Her clothes had been cut off her body in the emergency room the night of the attack, so Mindy Sue had brought her some spare clothes and toiletries.
“Thank you for bringing my clothes and stuff.”
“Of course.” Mindy Sue hooked the bag strap over her shoulder and grabbed the bag of personal effects the emergency room staff had taken off Brooke the night she arrived here.
How long had she been here?
She wasn’t quite sure. The last couple days bled into each other.
The heavy-duty pain meds didn’t help her keep things straight either.
The nurse backed into the room with the wheelchair.
Mindy Sue steadied Brooke as she moved to the wheelchair on rubbery legs. The brace on her sprained ankle kept her off-balance. She settled in the seat and held up her feet as the nurse adjusted the footrests.
Doug and Mindy Sue stepped out of the room ahead of her. The nurse pushed her toward the elevator, where Doug punched the button.
She had a sinking feeling that it didn’t matter if she left this place where her trauma and injuries and loss had been tendedand mended in some ways that she’d never escape. The cuts would scar. Her heart would forever be missing a broken piece. Her mind would never forget Adam, the attack, the death of more than her sweet little girl, but the loss of a life never lived and memories never made.
Would she spend forever wondering what might have been, daydreaming about what could have been?
What was better? These moments of sad realities or the fog that encased her in shell where she thought about and felt nothing?
Somehow, she found herself in the sunlight, blinding her. She winced and shied away from the brightness and heat that reminded her how cold she felt inside and out.
She didn’t remember the elevator ride or getting into Doug’s car as they pulled up in front of the dorms. She barely registered walking into her dorm room and lying on her bed, Doug and Mindy Sue whispering.
But she welcomed the shadows when Mindy Sue closed the blinds, the brush of her lips on Brooke’s forehead before she went to her own bed and lay down. And then she let the fatigue take her down deep, where nothing mattered except the feel of the silver box resting on her chest over her aching heart. Maybe in her dreams she’d see her baby girl and tell her she loved her and missed her and was so sorry she hadn’t been strong enough, fast enough, to save her.
Maybe then she wouldn’t blame herself for letting a monster so close he could take the one thing she loved above everything else.
I’m sorry.
And how was she supposed to tell Cody he’d lost another child? Not because nature had deemed it unviable but because of the violence unleashed by a man’s obsession.
Cody would hate her for not telling him, for not allowing him to be a part of the pregnancy and sharing their little girl with him.
He’d hate Brooke for not protecting her.
She truly had lost everything.
Chapter Five
"Thank you for joining KNTB News. Tonight’s top story…"
A picture of the UT San Antonio school logo popped up on the screen next to the news anchor’s face.
“As we’ve been reporting, the University of Texas at San Antonio campus attacker assaulted another woman. His fifth victim was found near the campus library and taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries five days ago. We are happy to report that after two surgeries, the victim was released this afternoon from the hospital. The woman’s name and details about her condition have not been released to the public. Police still do not know the identity of her attacker, who fled the scene prior to police arriving to help the victim, though they have released some details. He is believed to be approximately five-foot-nine, with a slim build, wearing all black, including the ski mask he wears to conceal his identity.Campus police and San Antonio PD are asking all female students on campus to remain vigilant and stay in groups.”
The camera panned over to the female news anchor.
“We also have an update on Governor Harris’s son, Adam, who was found in his apartment several nights ago after he tried to take his own life. He remains at a private hospital receiving treatment for his injuries and mental health. Today, Governor Harris spoke to reporters outside his office.”
Cody leaned forward on the couch as the TV screen switched to video of Governor Harris’s comments.“My son, like so many other Texans, is suffering from depression. He’s struggled with his mental health for a long time. We are so grateful to the doctors and nurses taking such good care of him right now. He’s receiving the best treatment available, something not everyone has access to but deserves, just like my son. That’s why I’m working with our public health department to come up with funding and a new initiative to help those in need. I hope to have something in place very soon because people struggling with mental health issues need help now. Thank you.”
