Chapter 71 Scarlett
Scarlett
Scarlett opened her eyes and looked around the room. She wondered where everyone had gone. She turned toward the window and noticed it was beginning to get dark. She was about to call for a nurse when her father and Olivia walked in. Holding a teddy bear, Olivia ran over to Scarlett.
“You’re awake!” She reached out to hug her sister, but their dad’s voice stopped her.
“Easy, honey. Your sister’s still hooked up to an IV.”
“A what?” Olivia asked.
Her dad walked over and pointed to the tube coming out of her arm. He looked at Scarlett tenderly. “You had us really worried, kiddo. How are you feeling?”
“Okay, I think. Still pretty tired, but I’m glad I can talk. I could hear you guys, but I couldn’t move. It was really scary.”
He took her hand in his. “I’m so sorry. Do you feel up to talking now? Do you know how you ended up in the hospital?”
She shook her head.
James sat down in the chair next to the bed and patted the one next to him for Olivia. “Someone hit you while you were on your bike. What were you doing downtown? Do you remember?”
She did, but she was afraid he would get mad if she told him. But she needed to warn her mother about the man. Her father must have sensed her hesitation.
“Honey, you’re not in trouble. We already know you were texting someone. We just want to find out what happened. Please.”
Tears came to Scarlett’s eyes as she recalled her humiliation at finding out that all this time, she’d been texting someone only pretending to be Ben. She couldn’t tell her dad everything yet, though. She needed to talk to her mom first. “Ben was supposed to meet me, but a man came instead.”
“What man? Had you ever seen him before?”
“I don’t know. Where’s Mom?”
He gave her a strange look. “Isn’t she here? I figured she went to get a coffee or something.”
“I woke up, and she was gone.”
“I’m sure she’ll be right back. She hasn’t left your side since you’ve been here. You don’t know who the man was?”
She swallowed. “I think he knows Mom.”
“What do you mean?”
“I heard his voice here talking to Mom. I don’t know why he was here, but it was him.”
“That seems impossible. Are you sure?”
Scarlett nodded. “I can’t remember his name, but I recognized his voice. It was definitely him.”
Her eyes started to close and her body felt heavy again. “Tired.”
“Okay, sweetheart. You rest. Olivia and I are going to go up to the cafeteria to see if your mom is there.”