Chapter 27
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
LUKE
“ Y ou need to get the fuck outta here,” I yell at Liza when I see her and Koben sitting in the waiting room.
“Luke, no one's telling me anything. Please, I need to know if she’s okay.”
“You fuckin’ caused this.” I point my finger at her, and when Koben leaps to her defense, I slam him into the vending machine and wrap my hands around his throat.
“I don’t know what the fuck you two have going on, but you need to get the fuck away from my girl.”
“She ain’t gonna leave till she knows her friend’s okay,” he tells me, and when I follow his eyes across to Liza, I see how broken she is. Slowlyreleasing him from my grip, I take pity on her and tell her what I know.
“She’s got some swelling on her brain. The docs are keeping her out of it until the swellin’ goes down.” I clench my back teeth as I explain.
“And the baby?” she asks, closing her eyes as if the question terrifies her.
“The baby’s fine,” I tell her, watching her shoulders sag with relief. “Luke, I swear what happened was an accident. I would never hurt her,” she assures me.
“Go home, Liza.” I move past her to get to the bathroom, hoping she’ll listen because I’m not safe to be around right now.
“Luke, you need to go home and get some rest,” the nurse tells me when she comes to check in.
“Why isn’t she awake yet?” I ask her, keeping hold of Erin’s hand, waiting to feel a flinch of her finger or a squeeze of her hand.
“The medication takes time to wear off. She’ll be back with us when she’s ready. You know, her best friend is still out in the hall; she’s been here every day since Erin was admitted. Go get yourself cleaned up; let her sit with her a while,” she suggests.
“I can’t.” I shake my head, not wanting to take my eyes off Erin’s face.
“The police took everyone's statement. What happened was an accident. That poor girl is beating herself up enough.” I look through the glass window of the door and see Liza sitting in her usual spot. I haven’t asked what happened to her, or what her deal was with Koben.
It doesn’t concern me. All I can focus on is what I’m going to say to Erin when she wakes up.
I can blame Liza as much as I want, but in reality, this is my fault.
I should have been there. I should have known she wouldn't stay in the damn truck.
“Let me put it to you bluntly. Do you want to be stinking like a rotten corpse when your girl wakes up?” The nurse tells me straight, and I take the pad that's next to the bed and write down my number.
“I’ll be back in an hour. You call me if there's any change.” I rip the paper from the pad and hand it to her.
“We have your number on her file,” she assures me.
“Now you got it in your pocket, too,” I remind her, kissing Erin gently on the forehead and promising I’ll be back. Liza shifts nervously in her seat when she sees me heading toward her.
“Watch her,” I tell her, standing motionless when she gets up and throws her arms around my neck, and as she races down the hall to get to her friend, I head back to the house to get a shower.