Chapter Four. #2
“Willow, we’ve got a kid in the ward with no family. Got anything?”
Willow sighed. “Declan’s parents were on board. But we think his grandparents, uncle, and two aunts were too. This may have orphaned Declan. I’ve someone trying to track down any living relatives.”
“Aw, shit, Willow. The kid’s alone here,” I replied.
“Vortex, we’re doing our best. We’ve found family members for every other survivor, bar him. Declan’s our priority.”
“Can you keep me updated and get permission for Nanci and Daisy-Duke to visit? The kid needs somebody to sit with him.”
“Sure. Anyone else?”
“For now, just them. I’ll let you know if there’s more.”
“Stay safe, Vortex,” Willow said and cut the call.
Duke and Phil peered at me.
“Well?” Duke demanded.
“Feds think Declan’s entire family was on the Titanic of the Skies,” I replied softly.
“You’re fuckin’ kidding?” Phil hissed.
“Nope. The Feds are trying to track someone down but are having no luck.”
“He’ll end up in a care home,” Duke spat, and Phil looked at him.
“You and I are cleared for foster placement,” Phil said.
“Yup. No social worker has been assigned yet, either. We can get ahead of this,” Duke agreed.
“Wait a minute,” I interrupted, “are you thinking of fostering him?”
“Do you want to see that boy shoved into a care home and forgotten?” Phil demanded.
“Fuck no!”
“Then yeah, we’ll foster him if family can’t be found,” Duke replied.
I snorted. These two men made it that simple. No discussion, no nothing, just the kid needed a home, and that was final. If only everything were that easy.
“We’ve got food coming for the relatives. I bet you’re all sick of hospital crap by now. The canteen here is awful,” I said.
“You’ve no idea.” Phil pulled a face.
“The prospects should be here soon. They’re also bringing coffee.”
“Oh, thank heavens,” Duke exclaimed and placed his hands together as a prayer. “The coffee is swill in this place.”
“Yeah, I’ve experienced it before. Can I speak to Amy?”
“Sure, go ahead. Just be aware, we’ve told her about Natasha. Please pass on our thanks to your friends who kept searching until they found her,” Phil whispered. There was a knock, and the ward doors opened, and the prospects entered. Family members looked up as they walked in, laden down.
“We’ve brought some food,” Joe announced, blushing faintly. He glanced around and placed the platters on an empty bed.
“We’ll be back, we’ve got more in the SUV,” Rory added, and they disappeared.
“Go speak to our girl, we’ll organise this,” Phil murmured, heading towards a table. “Grab that end, Duke.”
I walked over to Amy, who smiled sadly. Without a word, I sat, and she slipped her fingers into mine. Amy clung to me as if I were her lifeline.
Amy
“They found Tash,” I murmured, and tears welled in my eyes again.
“Aw, honey, I heard. I’m sorry for your loss,” Vortex said and squeezed my hand.
“She didn’t deserve to die that way. None of them did. Do they know what happened yet?”
Vortex looked uncomfortable and bit his bottom lip. Immediately, I got the sense that he was hiding something from me.
“Don’t lie,” I ordered, and he smirked.
“Nobody knows much. There’s talk of explosions, but no one knows what caused them. There’s a lot of speculation, but nothing has been confirmed. The names of the identified dead are just beginning to be released.
“I don’t want to be in the news,” I hissed with distaste.
“And so far, your name isn’t. Actually, about three of you remain a mystery as far as the media’s concerned. The other five’s family have given interviews.”
“More fool them. Who wants to be famous for this?” I said and stared around me. I wanted to go home, either to my dad’s or my crappy little apartment. My entire life felt disassociated, and it wasn’t right. I needed to be myself again, even though I realised the accident had changed me irrevocably.
Right now, I couldn’t comprehend life without my bestie at my side. How the hell did I walk away unharmed, but Natasha, who’d been sitting at the same table, died? How the fuck did anyone make sense of that? We weren’t in different areas. We were in the same space. Yet I lived, and Natasha didn’t.
Vortex just sat there, letting me process my thoughts. He didn’t say a word, and his presence was strangely comforting. We didn’t know each other, were total strangers, and yet he soothed me as no one else could right now.
Was it that thing where you latched onto someone? What was it called? It wasn’t hero worship, but… I ground my teeth in frustration. It was on the tip of my tongue. Trauma bonding! That was it. Was this a case of trauma bonding? Who the hell knew, but I needed Vortex to keep the demons at bay.
A plate was put in front of me, and made me jump. “Eat, munchkin,” Dad ordered. I stared, noting how delicious the food looked compared to the limp sandwiches we’d been offered earlier.
“The old ladies will be insulted if you don’t eat,” Vortex commented in a light tone.
I picked up a ham salad sandwich and bit into it. My mouth watered at the flavours. Shit, it was good. I’d not eaten since the early hours of the morning in the restaurant, and I was suddenly starving. I devoured the sandwich in front of me and started in on the bagel.
“This is amazing,” I muttered around a mouthful.
Vortex smiled while my Papa looked slightly bemused.
“Amy, I’ll get you more,” Papa said, and I nodded. Dad was sitting between my bed and Declan’s with his own plate and making sure Declan ate something light.
Declan had regressed into himself. He was refusing to speak to anyone, and it was obvious he was scared and confused.
Dad kept chatting away, even though Declan didn’t respond.
At least the boy knew someone cared, even if it was a stranger.
Declan was just one of the tragedies that had happened last night.
Figures had been confirmed: two hundred fifty passengers and fifty staff. Of those, only eight had survived.
How I was one of those lucky few, I didn’t know, but I was deeply grateful to be alive, even though guilt swamped me.
As I ate, some men entered and showed the doctors their badges. The doctors examined them and nodded. They exchanged words, then two headed over.
“Feds,” Vortex murmured.
“Miss Wright, Amy Wright?”
“Yes,” I replied and subconsciously leaned into Vortex.
“Special Agent Monroe, and this is SA Sully. We want to talk to you about the incident that happened in the early hours of this morning,” the agent called Monroe said.
“Okay.” I wasn’t sure what they wanted to know. I hadn’t seen much.
“Can you confirm your name, date of birth, address, and contact number?” Sully asked.
I gave my details, and Vortex’s hand clenched on mine. “Hey, I didn’t realise you were only half an hour away in Black Hawk.”
“Yes. I’m local.” As I spoke, Monroe sent Vortex a dark stare.
“Do you mind? This is an interview,” he demanded.
“Get off your high horse right now; you didn’t state this was a formal inquiry. You said talk,” Papa interrupted. He was scowling already.
“And you are?” Monroe asked, aiming attitude at Papa.
“USA Colonel Philip Wright. Now, if you want to speak to my daughter, show respect for her and those around her,” Phil snapped.
Sully and Monroe exchanged glances and then nodded.
“Sorry, but we have to discuss what happened, what you remember. I understand this will be upsetting, but we need to hear from you,” Sully said as he grabbed a chair.
“Tash and I were having a late meal. Two in the morning seems stupid, but everything seemed delayed there. You woke up late and stayed up late. That was the lifestyle. Natasha and I were in the seafood restaurant…” my voice faded away as tears welled up.
“Do you need to do this now?” Vortex asked, annoyed.
“Yes, while Amy’s memories are fresh,” Sully replied, sounding apologetic.
I swallowed hard and gripped Vortex’s hand.
He squeezed mine back in reply. Eyes fixed on a hole in the opposite wall, I began describing what had happened and what I remembered.
The Feds questioned me about things like sound and smell.
I answered them as best I could, and two hours later, they said goodbye.
I closed my eyes and leaned back. All I wanted was to go home.
When I asked, the Feds stated everyone needed to stay here, so we were all in the same place.
Tomorrow, they promised we could leave. That was something, I guess.
Home wouldn’t bring Natasha back, but it would let me grieve in private. And I really needed that.