Chapter 53 #2
“Why not?” Noah questions, looking past me to Mr. Morgan, who’s now hugging his wife. “Why can’t I see her?” His lip wobbles. “I don’t understand, Atlas.”
Pulling him into my arms, I hug him tightly. He needs it as much as I do. “Cora just needs some sleep right now. The doctor said she will be asleep for a while so she can feel better. Okay?” I loosen my hold and look him in the eye. “We can see her soon. I promise.”
When he nods in agreement, I pull him in for another hug. “She’ll be fine, Noah. Don’t worry,” I assure him, hoping I’m not making a liar of myself.
The idea that Cora might not wake up guts me.
I can’t imagine what she went through when she was down in that basement.
That woman shot her; Aidan broke her finger and her head…
God, I can’t even think of how badly she was beaten for that to happen.
She’s strong as hell, getting through all of that and coming back to us.
Cora is going to be fine; she has to be.
When a nurse comes out a little later and tells us we can go back, two at a time, I stand and grab Noah’s hand. Sending Mara a look, I walk straight past them and follow the nurse. There’s no way anyone else is seeing her first but us. Our whole world is lying unconscious in a bed back there.
Following the nurse a few hallways back, she leads us to her door, stopping to grab my arm. Looking at where she’s touching me, I shrug out of her grip.
“I need to warn you,” she whispers softly, avoiding Noah’s gaze. “It looks bad, but we’re all pulling for her.”
The nurse pushes the door open and steps to the side, giving Noah and me space to go through. When my eyes land on Cora lying in bed with a bandage around her head and cords sticking everywhere, I almost fall to my knees. My Firefly. What did they do to you?
Noah stops walking and peers up at me. Even though I want to bring Aidan and Bea both back from the dead so I can kill them all over again, I can’t. Where they’re at, they’re going to suffer. Her body looks so small in the bed, and there’s gauze or some type of dressing wrapped around her head.
Squeezing Noah’s hand reassuringly, I lead him toward her and pull a chair closer.
I slide to the edge of it, so he can sit with me, and I reach for her hand.
It’s cool to the touch. The beeping of the machine reminds me that her heart is still beating, and it quiets the monster inside of me for now.
“Cora. Wake up,” he whispers.
“She needs sleep, buddy, remember?” I remind him softly.
“I know, but when I’m tired or sick, Cora still checks on me.”
“Good point. Why don’t you talk to her a bit? I’m sure she’ll still hear you even in her sleep. You’re the most important person to her, Noah. To both of us.”
I sit back as Noah talks about all the things he did with the Morgans and Seth.
He pulls up his shirtsleeve and shows off yet another stencil tattoo Kash did for him.
This time it’s a giant spider. “I wanted a green one, but Kash said it would look better like this.” He shrugs, then turns to me.
“Do you think I can get a real tattoo, Atlas?”
Offering him a small smile, I look from Cora to him. “Maybe one day, when you’re older, you can talk to her about it.”
“Fine.” He rolls his eyes and sits quietly for a minute. I can’t take my eyes off her. I cup my hand over her uninjured one, careful not to hit the IV attached to the side. The need to touch any part of her is crushing. She’ll be fine, I remind myself.
“I’m hungry, Atlas,” Noah blurts out, making me laugh a bit. Of course he is. Looking at the clock on the wall, I see it’s close to eight-thirty in the evening.
“Alright, bud.” I nod, nudging his side a bit. “Do you mind if I stay with Cora and one of the guys goes with you?”
He doesn’t answer at first, so I add, “I just don’t want her to be alone.”
Nodding, he agrees as long as I text Kash.
My brother appears in the doorway with Mr. Morgan a few minutes later, and Kash waves to me as he walks out with Noah.
Mr. Morgan looks like he’s aged ten years since we’ve been here, and honestly, I’m a bit scared to be here with him now.
I don’t know how much he knows, but I’m not going anywhere.
I stand from my chair and gesture for him to sit, but he waves me off. Sitting back down, I glance at him next to Cora’s bed, watching me. “You don’t have to be here, you know. We can take care of her.”
“With all due respect, sir, that will not happen.” I rub circles on Cora’s hand and squeeze it slightly. I need her to know I’m here.
“No? Haven’t seen you around much; figured you two weren’t an item.” He gives me a pointed look. I think he knows more than he lets on, but it doesn’t matter.
“We had a disagreement, but that’s it. Nothing more.” I don’t take my eyes off her as I answer.
“Is that so?”
“It is. Her and Noah are mine.” My eyes shift to meet his.
Crossing his arms over his chest, he shakes his head. “You have no idea what she’s been through, all she’s given—”
“I know exactly what she’s given, and what she’s been through,” I interrupt him as I run my finger down the scar on her arm. I have plans to cover it with another tattoo, but it’ll have to wait. “I know more than you think.”
“I know all about you, Atlas.”
“You don’t know shit.”
“I know you’ve had a rough life.”
“Who hasn’t?” I scoff.
“That’s fair, but it’s not just her. It’s Noah, too. You’re young.”
Shaking my head, I almost laugh. “You don’t get it, do you?”
“Get what?” he asks me, arching his brow.
“Cora was meant to be mine. She’s the light to my dark, the other half of my soul.
She is the first thought I have when I wake up, the last thought of my day, and every other moment in between.
I’ve never been worthy of her, but I’m damn sure not going to stop trying to be the man she thinks I am.
I disappointed her once, and I’ll never do it again.
Cora isn’t just the answer to my prayers; she’s the answer to everything. ”
“That’s a lovely sentiment, but what about Noah?”
“What about Noah?”
“How does he fit into this life you’re building?”
“He’s an extension of her. They’re a package deal, and I won’t take one without the other. Me, him, and Cora work perfectly together. There isn’t a scenario where it’s not the three of us. Well, for now, but I want to enjoy what we have first.”
I take satisfaction in the way Mr. Morgan’s eyes pop a bit after my last statement, but I won’t take it back. He needs to know I’m not going anywhere and understand that I’m dead serious about her.
“But you’re both so young,” he starts again.
“Age is a number. I was eight when my parents abandoned me and left me to foster care, where I was bounced around to shit you wouldn’t believe.
” Glancing down at Cora, I sigh and continue, “I was twelve when I was beaten so badly by my foster parent that I ended up in the hospital for a week. Broken ribs, arm, etc. A really good time.” I ignore the gasp I hear, and finish, “Then as an angry sixteen-year-old, I stole a car from the world’s second most amazing person, and instead of turning her back on me and letting me rot, she showed me more love than I ever thought I deserved, until Cora.
Age doesn’t give you life experience; it means nothing.
I have lived countless different lifetimes before I met her, but the only one that matters is the one I get to spend with her.
So, while you think I’m too young, know that I disagree with you.
If anything, I’ve waited my whole life for someone like her, so I’m not going anywhere. I won’t give her up.”
Waiting for some type of angry retort, I’m surprised when he comes around to the side of the bed I’m sitting at, and drags another chair over, sitting in it. Nodding his head, he looks over at me. “Quite the speech.”
Shrugging my shoulders, I don’t answer. I just stare at my Firefly. Please, baby, come back to me, I plead silently. I’ll beg if I have to, just don’t slip away.
“What about the money?” he asks, casting a look my way. “I know you found out from her uncle. I honestly thought the guy was dead.”
“It’s Cora’s.” I shrug. “So the money doesn’t matter.”
“I’ve known Cora since she was young, and she’s always been stubborn and independent. When she comes out of this, and she will, she won’t make it easy on you.”
“I hope she doesn’t,” I answer, meaning every word. I’m a man of action, and I will prove to her that I’m not going anywhere. My future is right in front of me, and I’m not letting anything take it away.