Chapter 8
Ashley and I have just left the lodge to go back to our cabin after dinner when a storm of activity from resort staff catches our attention.
We step aside to avoid being bowled over by the medical team pushing a stretcher.
Ashley walks over to a nearby employee who’s watching things unfold and asks, “Excuse me, what’s going on? ”
The lady turns to her and says, “There was a landslide. Someone missed the trail signs and fell into the ravine when the cliffside gave way under their feet.”
Ashley gasps. “That’s awful. Is the person alright?”
“We don’t know for sure. They’re alive is all we know. One of our staff saw it happen from a distance while checking the stability of the zip lines before we open back up for zip-lining in a few days, so we were able to get them out of the river quickly.”
A sick sense of dread coils in my gut. I can’t explain why, but I all of a sudden feel like something is horribly wrong.
As Ashley asks, “Do you know who it was that fell?” a black pickup truck comes speeding up to the front of the lodge, screeching to a halt in front of the waiting medical staff.
The driver jumps out and runs to the back of the truck, opening the tailgate.
With the help of the medical staff, they move a man onto a stretcher.
A man I’d know anywhere. Oh gods, it was Rex!
When the medical team rushes by with him, I don’t hesitate to follow.
One of the employees tries to stop me from going into the medical bay they’ve taken him to, saying, “Sir, you can’t be here, we need to assess his condition so we can call in an airlift to get him to the closest hospital if he needs it. ”
“He’s my best friend. I have to be here. We have a doctor here as our wedding guest. I’ll call him to come help assess how he’s doing.”
Without waiting for a response, I pull out my phone to call Doc. I make sure I’m staying out of the staff’s way while keeping an eye on Rex as I wait for him to answer.
“Doc here.”
“Doc, it’s Jareth. I need you to come down to the medical bay of the main lodge. Drexel was caught in a landslide and fell into the ravine. They just brought him in. They’re talking about possibly airlifting him out to a hospital.”
Doc curses. “Shit, we can’t let him go to just any hospital. If his injuries are that bad, he could shift to try and heal instinctually, and that’ll be a disaster. Don’t let them leave with him. I’ll be right down.”
There’s a beeping in my ear signaling the end of the call, and I sag against the wall with relief. Doc will take care of everything. Please be okay, Rex. A hand on my shoulder startles me, and I turn to find Ashley there. “Any word from them on his condition?”
I shake my head. “Other than saying they were assessing him, they haven’t said anything else.
Doc is on his way down to see if he can help.
” I almost said to take over, but with Ashley not being in the know about the paranormal world, it would’ve seemed odd to her.
As soon as Doc arrives, he immediately starts barking orders.
The staff are shocked at first but quickly get with the program, seeming relieved to have someone take charge.
Ashley takes my hand and leads me toward a seating area. She pushes me onto a bench seat and plops down next to me, wrapping me in a tight hug. “You’re shaking like a leaf, Jary-berry.”
Turning, I bury my face in her neck as tears start to fall from my eyes. “I’m terrified I’m going to lose him, Ash.”
She strokes my head and rocks me back and forth. “I know, sweetie, but you have to keep it together. For him. He needs us to be strong right now. We can’t fall apart while he’s fighting for his life.”
Nodding, I continue to let her hold me, taking comfort in her familiar strawberry-scented perfume. I don’t know how long we stay like that, but a throat clearing has us breaking apart. Doc is standing in front of us.
“Drexel is stable. Other than a gash on his head that we stitched up, there were no other signs of serious injury, but the staff here also doesn’t have the equipment to check for breaks.
It took some convincing, but they’re letting me move him back to his cabin.
He hasn’t woken up at all, which concerns me, especially since it’s obvious he’s malnourished. ”
Shock doesn’t begin to cover what I’m feeling right now. “Malnourished? I knew something was wrong with him! He kept saying he was fine, but I could tell he’s lost weight. What’s the plan now?”
“Now we get him back to his cabin and wait for him to wake up. Once he can tell me if anything doesn’t feel right, we can take him to my clinic for testing and go from there.”
Nodding, I say, “Alright. Sounds good.”
I don’t think any of us realized just how long it would take Rex to wake up.
Three Days Later…
For the past few days, I haven’t left Rex’s bedside.
I couldn’t. I’m sure it raised some questions with my parents, but no one has come by to call me on it.
I think they’re all distracted by what happened with Ashley.
Two days ago, on what would’ve been our wedding day, Ashley came to me in Rex’s cabin.
Thinking back on it, I still can’t believe what happened.
The door to Drexel’s cabin opens, and I turn to see Ashley striding over to me like a woman on a mission. There’s a determination in her expression when she pulls up a chair to sit beside me and takes the hand not entwined with Drexel’s.
After a moment’s pause, she says, “I think we should call off the wedding.”
“What do you mean?”
She smiles sadly. “I mean what I said. We should call off the wedding.”
“Why?”
“Because neither of us would be truly happy if we got married. After what happened to Rex and seeing the way you feel about him written all over you from the moment you saw him get wheeled past us on that stretcher, I knew.”
Curious, I ask, “Knew what?”
“That life’s too short not to take risks out of fear. If neither of us are honest about our feelings to the people we love, we’ll regret it forever.”
Closing my eyes, I let myself accept the truth I’ve been trying to ignore since the beginning, when we decided to marry.
She’s right. We’ll regret not saying anything forever.
Those what-ifs will always be present in our minds, and eventually it’ll affect our marriage.
We might’ve had the best of intentions when we started this, but we went about it all wrong.
Turning to her, I ask, “So, what’s your plan now?”
“Now? I’m going to burn my whole world down.”
My mouth drops open in shock. “You’re going to what?”
She laughs loudly. “Don’t worry. I don’t mean literally. I’m just going to Maxwell’s room to profess my undying love. I’ll probably get rejected, but at least I can say I tried.”
Patting her hand, I kiss her cheek and say, “Good luck.”
She goes to take off the engagement ring I gave her, but I stop her. “Keep it. I don’t need it. You can even sell it if you want to.”
“Thanks, Jary-berry. You’re the best almost-husband a girl could ask for.”
Laughing out loud, I tell her, “Go get him, tiger.”
She makes a claw motion at me and says, “Rawr” as she heads for the door.
“Hey, Jary-berry?”
“Yeah?”
“When he wakes up, make sure you tell him how you feel.”
Nodding, I say with a smile, “I will. Even if he doesn’t feel the same, I need him to know. This whole situation was a wake-up call.”
She nods. “I know. I hope it all works out.”
“Me too, Ash. Me too.”
Things worked out well for her. I just hope they work out well for me. The sound of Drexel groaning draws my attention, and I see his eyes fluttering. Finally, he’s waking up.
Seeing those sapphire-blue eyes I love so much brings a smile to my face. “Hey, sleeping beauty, it’s about time you woke up.”