"I was watching the news upstairs with Lizzy, and they are saying they still don't know the cause. A lot of speculation, but nothing solid yet. It destroyed several businesses in the area and damaged even more. The arial views of the area are heartbreaking. It's going to change the look of that area. They haven't released many of the names of the dead, but they did say that one of the owners of Desorio's was killed. He was the chef there and was near the heart of the blast." Martin sighed. "Such a horrible thing to happen."
Lance agreed. He hadn't even thought about turning on the news. He wasn't sure he wanted to see it all and relive everything so soon. In time, he'd have to face it, but right now, he had tofocus on Angus. He was the only thing that mattered. A noise at the door had Lance turning to look, and he stood as he saw Lizzy in a wheelchair. He quickly went to her. "Lizzy, how are you?"
"Better now that I'm here." She nodded her thanks to the nurse who'd brought her down. "Lance, take this stuff and wheel me in to see my son." Lizzy handed him a bag that probably held her torn clothes and discharge information.
He set the bag aside, then moved things out of the way so he could move Lizzy to the other side of the bed. His heart broke for her. He understood her worry and her pain. "Just don't jar his body. They need to keep him still."
"They said he's in a coma?" Lizzy asked.
"Doctors put him in one to let him heal before he wakes up and starts moving around. It'll probably only be for a few days." Lance stepped back, giving her time to adjust to seeing Angus so still and pale.
"You're going to stay with him, right?" Lizzy asked.
"I won't leave until he does," Lance promised.
"Good, because as badly as I want to stay, Martin and I are both injured and need to heal. We'll come in every day as long as we can get someone to drive us. I'm on crutches starting tomorrow, but I can't drive."
"I'm sure Jackson or Megan will get you here. If they can't, I'm sure a number of officers at the station would step in to help." He wanted to offer, but picking them up would mean leaving Angus, and he wasn't going to do that. "Franks will want to check in every day as well. He can get you back and forth."
"I can't believe this happened." Lizzy glanced at Lance. "Do you think he's in there?"
Lance knew what she meant. "I have to believe it. Ray said he'd never seen a physical body alive without a spirit inside, so that tells me he's in there. I just don't know how it happened. We both saw him."
She nodded. "I can't stop thinking about it."
"Me neither." Lance sat down in the chair. "Did you two eat?"
Martin nodded. "They brought us both breakfast this morning. We ate before we came down. I just need to find someone to get us home later today."
"Jackson is coming back around lunch. He can take you home. He'll have Angus's car." Lance wasn't sure how to go about getting his car out of the lot or even if there was a car left to get. Had it been damaged in the explosion too? So much to deal with, but it could all wait. "I'm sure between Megan and him, they can get you to and from the hospital for a while. Don't even worry about that. How bad is your leg, Lizzy?"
"Oh, not really that bad. It was just deep. They wanted to get in there and make sure there wasn't too much damage. I hurt worse now than I did when it happened. I feel like I'm sitting on a pin cushion with all the cuts on my ass and legs." Lizzy spoke but never stopped watching Angus. "I need to get us new cell phones. My purse is still somewhere in that mess at what's left of the restaurant."
"Mine is as well. We all need new phones. We'll get with Jackson and see about doing that. I don't want you two at home alone without a way to call for help if you need it." He tried to think about anything else important they might have lost in the explosion. "What about prescriptions and things like that?"
"We're good on those. Didn't have them in my purse. I'll need a new I.D., but that can wait until I'm able to move around better. There's nothing pressing other than getting to and from the hospital. As long as I can do that, the rest can wait," Lizzy told them as she rested her head on the bed.
Lance let the room fall silent as they all stared at an unmoving Angus. He needed to get used to the sight of the man he loved being so still, but right now, it was all he could do notto rush over and try to wake him up. He needed to see Angus staring back at him. Hear him whisper his name. Needed to know he was in there. Until then, he wouldn't be able to relax.
CHAPTER NINE
Franks walked into work Saturday morning tired as he'd ever been. He was getting too old for all-nighters. Especially ones spent worrying that his best friend was going to die. The night at the hospital had been one of the hardest nights he'd ever had. His worry hadn't eased. The surgeon had made it clear that she couldn't make any promises about Angus's recovery.
They went to work each day knowing they might be putting their lives on the line, but this was different. Angus had been sitting down to a nice dinner when he was nearly killed. It wasn't some asshole with a gun or some criminal refusing to go back to jail. This had been an explosion that had caught everyone by surprise.
When he'd gotten the call that Angus had been injured, he'd about lost it. The drive to the hospital was a blur and he hardly remembered the conversations in the waiting room as he prayed to God that Angus would pull through.
"Morning. Tell me what we've got." Franks walked into the office, ready to get to work.
Detective Amy Burns glanced up, looking as tired as he felt. "How's Angus?"
"Still in critical condition, but he's stable for now. They've induced a coma for a while to keep him from moving. They want to give his neck time to heal." Franks went to the coffee pot and poured himself a cup.
"Thank God. I wasn't sure he'd live when I saw him last night." Amy seemed to sag in relief.
"You saw him?" Franks asked.
"Yeah, got there while they were still trying to figure out how to transport him. Huge chunk of glass protruding out of his neck and all. It was horrible. I thought for sure when they finally didmanage to move him that the glass would shift and finish him off. I've never seen anything like it. When I got word he'd made it to surgery, I was in shock. You were with him all night?" Amy asked.
