Chapter Twenty
Holden
A peck on my shoulder had me lifting my head from where I studied the floor tiles in the surgical waiting room. A woman stood to my left with an arched eyebrow as she glared at me. “Who are you? Do you know how my son is?”
“Still in surgery, I’m afraid. You must be Avery’s mother.” I stood and extended my hand. “I’m Holden Rose.” She didn’t shake it, so I shoved it into the pocket of my jeans.
“Yes, I’m Betsy Langhorn. Do you know what happened to Avery” She seemed a bit standoffish, but maybe it was my shitty attitude because I knew she drove Avery insane. He’d mentioned after his accident that his parents were overprotective, especially his mother.
“I wasn’t told what was happening because I’m not a member of his family. I lied and said I was his roommate and it would take a while for his parents to arrive, so they let me stay so he wouldn’t be alone. You have an amazing son, Mrs. Langhorn.”
She seemed to ignore my comment. “His cardiologist called us. Where are Brooke and Kyle?”
“Betsy, don’t be like that.” I turned to see a man who looked a lot like Avery approaching us.
He stepped closer and extended his hand. “I’m Leon, Avery’s dad. You’re Avery’s boyfriend, right?”
My face flushed. “Did he tell you about me?”
“No. I just had a feeling that any man who would sit in an ugly waiting room for hours when the doctors told him nothing had to believe my son was very important.”
“He is an amazing man, just as you said. Please, Mr. Rose, take a seat. Someone should be out here to talk to you and Mrs. Rose in a minute.”
I reached into my coat pocket on the chair next to me to retrieve Avery’s wallet and phone, handing them to his father.
“The paramedic said there was a special circumstance and that’s why they brought him here.
The police officer who responded to the 9-1-1 call gave me his wallet, and I grabbed his phone from the counter of my kitchen before I left to come here. ”
Leon opened the wallet and looked at Avery’s license before pulling out another card. “Thank god he had this with him. He refuses to wear the medic alert bracelet or necklace. Says he doesn’t want people feeling sorry for him.”
Leon shoved the card back into the wallet and handed Avery’s things to his mother. She opened it and unzipped a little pouch on the inside, dumping a little plastic bag into her palm.
“At least he has these with him. Does he have his medicine at your house, or does he not spend the night? He’s told us nothing about you.”
What the hell kind of meds did Avery require? I mean, we’d only hung out a few times and had only just had sex for the first time earlier that day. Somewhere along the way I fell in love with the guy, but so far Avery hadn’t said a word to me about any health issues.
“I’m sorry. Is there something about Avery that requires him to take certain meds? You see, we’ve only been on a few dates. Did he tell you he was in an accident after Christmas?” Now nothing made sense.
“An accident? Where?” Leon asked. Betsy stared at me as though I’d just pissed in her cereal.
“That’s when I met Avery. He borrowed his roommate’s car to go to Virginia to spend Christmas with you. It started snowing the day after the holiday, when he was on his way to Baltimore. A semi jackknifed on the icy highway, swatting Avery’s—or Brooke’s—car off the road.
“I was on my way home and saw the tracks the car made when it went off the road. I found him down at the bottom of the incline and I was able to get him out of the car. He refused medical treatment on the scene because he said he was fine. I took him to his apartment and then drove him back to the scene a few days later so he could arrange for Brooke’s car to be towed. ”
Betsy wept while Leon paced. Something occurred to me that I hadn’t thought about. Maybe whatever was wrong with Avery was the reason why he kept saying he could talk to my dead sister? Maybe it was a delusion due to a medical condition? Was there something I’d missed?
“God, that’s so like Avery. He wants to prove to everyone that he doesn’t need any help.
He’s always been stubborn since he was a little boy.
He told me he nearly got run over by a damn firetruck before Christmas because he crossed outside the crosswalk without looking both ways.
He even laughed about it.” Leon shoved his hands into the pockets of his khaki pants and shook his head.
I remembered being at lunch with Steve one day and seeing a guy nearly run down by a fire truck. Had that been Avery?
Cardiologist... Why did that word keep circling my mind? Did Avery have a heart issue?
“You said his cardiologist called you. Why does Avery have a cardiologist?”
Betsy’s angry glare sent chills down my spine. “You don’t know? Avery didn’t... Do you even know my son at all?”
“Betsy, this is a hospital. Keep your voice down,” Leon snarled.
“I know him, and I love him.” My temper reared its ugly head, which wasn’t going to get me anywhere.
Just then, the door opened and a doctor came into the lounge. “Betsy and Leon, I’m sorry we’re meeting this way again.”
Betsy held up her hand. “Can we go to a quiet room. I’d rather not have my son’s personal information shared with a total stranger.” Her cold glare sent a shiver down my spine.
The doctor glanced at me. “I was told he came in with Avery.”
“He’s just a one-night stand. Let’s go,” Betsy insisted.
Before I could open my mouth to refute her claim, she was out the door. The doctor turned to Leon. “Do I need to get security?” He didn’t add “to bodily remove this man.”
I grabbed my coat. “No need. I’m going.”
I reached into the pocket of my coat and handed Leon a business card. “Will you call and let me know how the surgery went? I don’t know if you believe me or not, but I love your son.”
Leon nodded. “I’ll let you know.”
With that, he and the doctor left the waiting room. I stormed out of the hospital and got in my truck, beating my fists on the steering wheel in frustration.
I had no idea why his mother had behaved so coldly toward me. I didn’t know her and she didn’t know me. I damn sure wouldn’t let her scare me away. Something about Avery Langhorn wouldn’t let me accept that he was out of my life for good.
I waited in the shadows for someone to open the lobby door to let me inside the apartment building on President Street.
There was no one at the security desk, and Avery’s keys were still at my house because I forgot to pick them up when I grabbed his phone.
I’d tried the buzzer, but there was no answer at his apartment.
If Avery’s roommates didn’t come home within an hour, I’d go home, find his cell, and call them.
It was cold as fuck down by the harbor. I’d forgotten my gloves because I’d left in such a rush. I wished I hadn’t handed over Avery’s wallet to his father. I should have looked inside, though snooping wasn’t like me. Desperation brought out a lovely shade of stupidity in me.
After waiting another hour, I was simply too cold to stay any longer. As I was about to walk away, a young couple got out of a rideshare, both laughing loudly as they headed up the steps to the front door of the building.
The young man retrieved a key card and, as he slid it into the slot, I figured it was now or never. “Brooke! Kyle!” I stepped out of the shadows to see them both turn around.
“Do we know you?” the guy asked. I assumed, since they turned around, they were Avery’s roommates.
The guy pushed the young woman behind him, appearing as if he wanted to beat my ass, so I quickly spoke up.
“I’m Holden Rose. I’m dating Avery Langhorn. Can I talk to the two of you?” I walked up the steps to see they were both very attractive people.
“Is Avery okay?” the young woman, Brooke, asked.
“Could we go inside? I’m freezing my nu—my fingers off. I’ll explain things to you.”
Kyle opened the door and the three of us went into the building. We took the elevator to the fifteenth floor. Once inside the apartment, Brooke led the us through the living and dining room, past two bedrooms and a bathroom to the kitchen.
They hung their coats but I kept mine. I wasn’t staying long. I wanted to get back to the hospital to see if there were any changes because I wasn’t sure if Leon Langhorn would do as I’d asked—call me with an update. I didn’t know the man, and no way would I depend on Betsy to convey the news.
When they both returned to the kitchen, Brooke opened the fridge and pulled out three bottles of water before they sat down, Kyle motioning for me to join them. “What’s going on with Avery?”
“He’s in the hospital. I found him unconscious in my kitchen and called 9-1-1. He was breathing, thankfully, and they took him to Johns Hopkins instead of Baltimore General because of special circumstances, though I don’t know what they are.
“His parents showed up after Avery’s cardiologist called them.
Why does Avery have a cardiologist and a little bag of pills in his wallet that his mother seemed very happy he was carrying?
What’s going on with him? Does he have a bad heart?
He told me nothing about it, nor did he mention the card in his wallet behind his driver’s license. ”
Brooke glanced at Kyle, who placed his water bottle on the table. “It’s not our place,” Kyle said, his gaze steady on her.
“Kyle—”
“Brooke, baby, it is Avery’s place to tell who he wants, what he wants, and when he wants. He is our best friend, and we will not betray his trust.” Kyle reached over to touch her hand, before he reached up and swiped a tear from her cheek with his thumb.
Kyle’s attention turned back to me. “What’s wrong with him?”
“I don’t know. I’m not family, so I wasn’t given any information other than he was in surgery. He had a bloody nose when they took him away in the ambulance. I asked his father to call me with an update, but I don’t think he will.” Hell, I was sure of it.
Brooke stood from the table and walked over to a kitchen cabinet, opening it and pulling down a small plastic bottle with a white lid. She turned around and stared at me. “Do you know how to Google something?”
“Brooke, don’t do it.” Kyle shoved back from the table and flipped his chair.
She glared at Kyle for a moment before she handed the brown medicine bottle to me. Prograf. I saw it had Avery’s name on the label above the dosage instructions which stated the medication was to be taken twice a day.
“Look it up, Holden. I’ll call Betsy to see if I can find out anything more about his condition.” She stood from the table and walked away as Kyle righted his chair.
He stared at me for a moment. “Do you care about him? He’s had some pretty shitty boyfriends before, and I don’t like seeing my best friend get hurt again.”
“I love him. I want a relationship with him for as long as he’ll have me.”
Kyle picked up both bottles of water and started to leave the room before he stopped, turning around to stare at me. “Are you gay or bi?”
“Very gay.”
Kyle chuckled. “Sorry to be rude enough to ask. Google it and leave a business—do you have a business card?”
“I have my own company, so the answer is yes, I have a business card.” I pulled my wallet out and retrieved one, leaving it on the table. “
“I’ll call you about Avery. Nice to meet you, Holden. Don’t hurt my friend.”
I snapped a quick photo of the pill bottle and stood from the table.
As I walked down the hallway, Brooke stuck her head out with her cell phone against her chest. “He’s out of surgery and stable.
He had a subacute subdural hematoma but they were able to deal with it.
They’re going to keep him in a coma for a few days to give his brain time to heal. Google the pills.”
She closed the bedroom door.
I let myself out, locking their apartment door before heading down the hall to the elevator. When I got inside the car, I had no service, but as soon as I got out of the damn thing, I was Googling my fucking heart out.