Chapter 27
Sly
My wet clothes clung to me in the worst way, and the blood on my hands bothered me most because it was Sumner’s.
When we arrived at the hospital, they took her from my arms before I could even get a word out. I followed until they stopped me at the door of the emergency room.
“You’ll have to wait outside, sir,” a nurse told me, giving me a tight smile.
I nodded, even though everything in me wanted to shove through and stay with her. I stood there for a while, trying to catch a glimpse through the small window, but it was just white walls and the shadows of people moving fast around her bed.
I went into the waiting room but didn’t sit down. I couldn’t stay still. Not until I knew she was okay. I paced the room, ignoring the elderly woman getting annoyed at my restlessness.
When she cleared her throat a little too loudly, I turned to her with a heavy sigh.
“Listen, lady, I’m sorry if me pacing is making you nervous, but I can’t sit still right now.
My girl is in there, and the last time I had her in my arms, she wasn’t doing well.
So, I’d appreciate it if you’d let me pace in peace. ”
She stared up at me with narrowed eyes, but she didn’t dare to say a word.
“Thank you,” I breathed before running my hands through my hair and starting to pace again.
After what felt like hours, a doctor came out. Her scrubs were stained and she looked tired from probably being on her feet all day, but when she spoke to me, her tone was calm.
“You’re Ms. Ellis’ partner?” she asked, pushing her hands into her scrub’s pockets.
“Yeah, I am. How’s she doing?”
“She’s stable,” she replied. “She has a mild concussion, a broken nose, and a few bruises. Nothing that won’t heal, but it might take time. Especially…the mental part.”
I nodded because I knew that would take a while, but I would be there to help her through it. “Can I see her?”
She nodded. “She’s drowsy but conscious. Try not to keep her awake too long.”
“Okay.” I was ready to leave, but she stopped me by stepping in front of me. “I want to inform you that we have called the police. She was able to tell us in pieces what happened.”
I tensed but nodded. “Are they coming right now?”
“Yes, they’re already on the way. If you could, we ask you to talk to them. Ms. Ellis won’t have the strength to listen and answer all the questions they’ll have.”
“I’ll talk to them,” I assured her with a nod. “Thank you, doctor.”
She gave me a soft smile, then motioned for me to enter the room Sumner was in.
When I stepped in, my heart clenched at the sight of her. She had her eyes open, wide and alert as they met mine. There was a white bandage wrapped around her nose and two dark bruises on her cheekbones. There was another wound on her jaw, and her bottom lip was swollen.
I’m going to kill that motherfucker.
I tried to stay strong for her because she didn’t need anything else to worry about. She was in pain and deeply hurt. I needed to be strong for her.
“Hey,” I said quietly as I moved closer to the bed. My hands were shaking, so I pressed them against my jeans until they stilled. “I’m so goddamn sorry—”
“Stop,” she croaked out, her voice broken and small.
I didn’t take another step forward. She looked scared, which I understood completely after what happened out on the road, but what made my heart ache was the way she was looking at me. She was scared of me.
Her bottom lip started to quiver, and she shifted on the bed to get as much distance between us as she possibly could. “Get away from me,” she whispered, tugging the blanket covering her legs higher.
“Sumner, it’s me…”
“Go away!” Her voice was louder now, and her eyes full of terror.
Fuck…
“Okay, okay.” I lifted my hands in defense and took a couple of steps back to give her space. “It’s just me.”
“No! You’re the monster!”
Every word stabbed me right in the chest, and that expression of hers only added to the pain.
“Sumner,” I whispered, desperate to go and hold her, and tell her that everything would get better soon. “It’s Sly. Don’t you remember me?”
Maybe that concussion of hers had led to temporary memory loss, or she was mentally so unstable, that she truly didn’t recognize me. Either way, I needed to give her space and be patient.
She’d come back to me. She had to.
“Sumner,” I tried again, but she started screaming, and her screams were loud enough to get nurses to come running.
“What is going on in here?” one of them said, immediately walking over to Sumner to calm her down.
“Sir, please step out of the room,” the other said, staring me down but keeping her voice steady. “Sir, now, please.”
“But I’m not—”
“She’s suffered a bad head injury. Getting all worked up doesn’t do her any good. She needs to rest. Please leave the room.”
I kept my eyes on Sumner and watched as tears rolled down her cheeks, with that horrified look still on her face. She wasn’t looking at me. She thought I did this to her. She thought I was Joey.
“Sir,” the nurse said again, holding out her hand toward the door.
“Yeah.” I ran a hand through my hair and kept my voice low. “I’m not going anywhere, Sumner. I’ll be right outside.” The words were a promise I meant to keep.
As soon as I stepped into the hallway two police officers were waiting. One took a step forward and asked, “Are you Mr. Webb?”
I nodded. “That’s me.”
The officer on the right glanced me up and down while the other got a clipboard ready.
“We need to file an official report for the accident, and for the assault on Ms. Ellis. Please provide your driver’s license and vehicle registration.”
I unzipped my jacket, pulled out both items, and handed them across without hesitation. The officer standing nearest the room cleared her throat and nodded toward the door. “What was all that screaming about in there just now?” she asked.
“My girlfriend’s in there,” I said. “She was assaulted by her ex-boyfriend.” Saying it out loud forced the memory back into focus, and it hurt. I could still see what had happened, and the image wouldn’t leave me. I couldn’t do anything. Couldn’t help her. All I could do was lay there and watch.
She looked down at my hands, then back at me, and I saw the judgement in her stare. The dried blood on my skin made it seem like it was me who hurt her, but I didn’t have time to argue.
“Why would she scream ‘you’re the monster’ then?” she asked, blunt and straightforward.
My body tightened. I didn’t explain how I’d held her face in my hands on the ride to the hospital, how I’d tried to keep her conscious. The woman had already made the jump from question to accusation in her head, and I didn’t see any reason to force her to backtrack. So I stayed quiet.
“We already had the bike moved off the road,” the other officer said. “It’s not in good shape.”
“I don’t give a rat’s ass about the bike,” I muttered.
Sorry, April.
The officer sighed and set his pen down as if he was bored at the job he chose to do. “We’ll take care of vehicle stuff later. Can you tell us exactly what happened tonight?”
I told them every single moment. From the drive out, the camping, the rain starting on the way back, Joey’s car passing us too close, my careful driving while he started to harass us, and then the impact that sent us skidding off the road.
I described how I was unable to move, and then how he got out and attacked Sumner. I left out nothing.
They asked follow-ups. Times, locations, which direction we were headed, if I knew that Joey was on that same road at the same time, whether we’d had contact with him before.
“And you said you couldn’t move,” the woman said, her eyes squinting in an almost challenging way. “You seem pretty fine to me, standing here on both feet.”
I was getting angry but I kept calm. I had to, otherwise that officer would only make it harder for me. She wanted to turn me into the villain, but I wouldn’t let her.
“We’ve actually done a checkup on him.” A nurse appeared next to me.
I had noticed her listening in on our conversation, and I could see the annoyance in her eyes every time that female officer spoke to me like I was the bad guy.
“He was temporarily paralyzed from the impact. Luckily, he hasn’t suffered from any permanent damage. ”
Both officers nodded, although the suspicious one still wasn’t convinced.
“I’ve noted everything. We’d like to speak to Ms. Ellis now,” the officer said to the nurse.
“Can that wait? Ms. Ellis is still very drowsy and weak. It might be better if you come by in the morning.”
“Of course.” The officers didn’t put up a fight, and they left without giving me another reason to hate cops more than I already did.
I let out a heavy breath when they were out of sight and turned toward the nurse. “Thank you. I was about to riot.”
She nodded and gave me a tight smile. “I’d still like for you to get that checkup. Just to make sure your body didn’t suffer any damage.”
I felt fine, but I knew it was for the better. “Okay, sure.”
“And, don’t worry,” she said, her smile softer now. “She’ll get better. She’s very strong.”
“Yeah, she is.” I looked toward the door and tried to peek through the window, but I couldn’t see her. “She’s my Supergirl.”