Chapter 51
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
Athena
I sprint through the hospital with Sebastian Wolf on my heel.
Once we pulled into a parking spot he told me where we were headed.
I was out of the car before he had his seat belt unbuckled. He called after me to get to the sixth floor.
There was a small crowd gathered at the bank of elevators in the lobby, so I took the stairs.
I’m racing forward without any clear direction.
All I know is that I need to get to the cardiac intensive care unit.
“Next right!” Sebastian yells from behind me. “Then the next left after that.”
I nod my head even though I have no idea if he’s noticing.
“Right,” he calls out as I head toward a dead end.
My boot slips on the tile floor as I turn sharply to the right.
I stop when I notice a group of people standing in what looks like a waiting area.
I recognize every face from the picture hung on Liam’s wall.
“I found her,” Sebastian calls from behind me. “That’s her.”
All eyes in the waiting room lock on me. I stare at them, willing someone to tell me where Liam is.
A short woman with brown curls approaches me with open arms. “Athena?”
I run to her because I need the comfort. I need the reassurance that the man I love will leave this hospital holding my hand.
“I’m Athena,” I whisper to her.
“I’m so happy you’re here,” she says in a gentle voice. “I’m Wolf’s mom.”
A tear falls down my cheek. “You’re his mom.”
She steps back. Her hands tremble as she cradles my cheeks. “We’ve been looking for you for days.”
Days.
How long has he been here? Why is he here?
The only thing Sebastian told me when we pulled into the parking lot was that his brother was brought in by ambulance a few days ago.
I search the faces behind her. “I want to see him.”
A woman who can’t be much older than me, approaches. “I’m Tilly Wolf.”
Tilly.
We’ve met. I swear that I’ve met her but her name was…
Tilly Baker.
“My friend, Kate, owns the bridal shop next door to your store.” She sighs. “She’s the one who realized we’ve been looking for you. All we had to go on was the name Athena.”
I step around Liam’s mom to stand in front of Tilly. “Please tell me what’s happening. Is he alright?”
Her hands find mine. She gives them both a squeeze. “He had surgery, Athena. Open heart surgery yesterday.”
My chest feels like it’s collapsing from the inside out. I struggle to find my next breath.
“Sit.” She tugs on my hands. “Sit.”
I lower myself into a chair. “Surgery? I don’t understand.”
“He went into cardiac arrest on the sidewalk a block from his apartment a few days ago.” Tilly looks to Sebastian before she turns her attention back to me. “Luckily, a doctor was one of the first people on scene. He performed CPR until the EMTs arrived.”
My hand jumps to my mouth as I let out a sob.
“Liam has a heart condition. It’s called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy,” Tilly goes on. “Part of his heart had become thickened.”
“None of us knew.” Sebastian crouches in front of me. “He found out a couple of years ago and kept it to himself.”
“I was having coffee with him a few weeks ago when he felt faint.” Tilly shakes her head.
“I insisted he come in to be checked out. I left him here alone in the ER because I was feeling so nauseous. I had just found out I was pregnant the day before and the morning sickness was beating me up. I wish I had stayed. Maybe he would have confided in me.”
Sebastian reaches for Tilly’s hand. “You brought him in. You did your part.”
Tilly nods. “When I checked in with him that night he said it was nothing. I didn’t push. He’s been dealing with this all alone for so long.”
Tears fall down my cheeks.
“They had to stabilize him before they could perform the surgery.” Sebastian smiles. “He’s going to need some time to recover, but he’ll get through this.”
Relief pulls me forward on the chair. “Does he want to see me?”
A chorus of laughter echoes off the walls.
“Does he ever.” Another man with black hair steps forward. “I’m Nick. Wolf’s other brother.”
“We figure he was out for a run the morning it happened.” Sebastian sighs.
“He didn’t have his phone or ID on him. His wallet was in his apartment but the phone is gone.
It looks like someone grabbed it when he collapsed.
It took some time for us to connect with the doctors here. He came in as a John Doe.”
I bury my face in my hands.
All those voicemails I left and the text messages.
None of those were reaching Liam.
“He’s sleeping.” Nick moves to stand next to me. “He’d like if it you were there when he wakes up.”
“I’d like that too.” I push to stand.
“We’ll get you a gown and a mask.” Sebastian motions to a woman wearing green scrubs. “He may look a little different than the last time you saw him, Athena.”
I run a finger down the front of my sweater. “Is the scar from the surgery large?”
He nods. “It is, but that’s not what I’m talking about.”
I look around the room at the people listening to our conversation. “What are you talking about?”
“I’ll let you see for yourself.”