Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 94716 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 474(@200wpm)___ 379(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94716 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 474(@200wpm)___ 379(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
The older woman wearing bright green scrubs looked up at us as she heard our approach. “Can I help you?”
“Tai. Taima Stoker.” Jack said.
She smiled, and then got up from her chair, rounded the station, and then called over her shoulder at us “Taima is in room 1642. I don’t want you to get alarmed at all the bandages and machines. He’s doing remarkably well. The burns on his ankles and wrists are third degree, but the others are all first and second degree. He’s going to be under sedation for another twelve hours until we can be sure he’s able to breathe on his own. The smoke inhalation was not as extensive as we first thought, but we’re trying to be on the safe side before we take him off the vent.”
She led us down the hallway to the very last room. The entire front wall was glass, so we could see Tai lying in bed easily. The blanket was pulled up to just below his chest. His arms were down by his sides; each hand had bandages wrapped around his wrists. His neck and chin were burned as well, but those only resembled sunburns.
His black hair was in disarray all over his pillow. It was definitely much longer than Jack’s was but it still had the silky fine texture. My heart froze in my chest as I made note of his features. He looked so much like Jack that it restricted my heart for an instant before it started pounding double time.
Pushing back the disturbing thoughts of Jack lying helpless and burned in the bed, I made my way to the chair at Tai’s bedside and sat. Jack went to the other side and stared down at his brother for a very long time.
“Goddamn you both. I left you here so you could look out for each other,” He said gruffly. “If you die, I’m gonna take that precious car of yours and rip it to fucking pieces with a fire ax. There’ll be nothing you can do about it.”
“When I got out of the army, I made them promise me that they’d watch out for each other. They promised me. They fucking promised.” Jack said as he hung his head.
Since I wasn’t sure if that comment was directed at me or just said to get it off his chest, I stayed silent.
It was disconcerting to see a man of Jack’s caliber brought so low. Normally, when you saw a man like him, you would never associate him with any type of weakness. However, he was as human as they come and right now, he was hurting very badly. There was nothing I could do; nothing I could say to make this any better.
Only time would dull these wounds. He would always have that part of him missing. Adam’s vivaciousness would forever be ingrained in him. I hoped that Tai made it through this okay because I didn’t think Jack would be able to handle it if he didn’t.
***
It was two days later that Tai finally woke from his coma.
He was a big ‘ol shithead, too. Growling and snapping at everyone. I’d gone out to the coke machine to buy a drink when I heard him yelling. Jack was at the fire department planning the funeral with Adam’s parents. It was decided that they would wait until Tai was able to attend and everyone had high hopes that he’d wake up within the next day.
Well, here he was, awake and pissy. Just like any man, but he had more right to be pissy than most. Those burns he had would pain him for a long time to come. The third degree ones might even need grafts if any type of infection set in.
Dropping the extra change into my pocket, I ran to Tai’s door with my coke in one hand and my phone in the other. I texted Jack to tell him Tai was awake before pushing in through Tai’s hospital door.
I got there just in time to see him throw his water pitcher at the closest nurse.
“Taima! What the fuck is wrong with you?” I half screamed at him.
He froze.
Oh, so slowly he turned his head away from the nurse and locked his eyes on me. Then they widened in surprised shock.
Jack had called Tai and Adam the very day I’d shown up. He’d told them all that he’d learned about my disappearance, and tasked them with digging as much information out of it that they could.
However, knowing that I was alive and actually being able to clearly see that I was alive was a total different ballgame.
“Holy sh-crap.” He rasped.
His eyes were wide with shock; he even blinked a few times, almost like he was seeing if I’d disappear if he closed his eyes. His voice was incredibly scratchy sounding; I went to him and twisted the top off the coke, put the straw in it from his discarded drink, and held it up against his lips.
“He can’t have that!” The nurse screeched.
“Sure he can. You want it, don’t you Tai?” I smiled at him playfully.
“Absolutely.” He grunted and then took a big swig.
Commotion in the hallway made everyone in the room look towards the door in utter awe. One woman was yelling and screaming so loud that you could literally hear it from the other side of the ward.
“My husband is in here and I want to see him!” The woman screeched.
I looked away from the door when I heard Tai moan. My head whipped around, absolutely terrified that he was in pain, but he looked disgusted instead. It wasn’t until I heard the commotion come closer and the woman screech Tai’s name that I knew he was disgusted with whoever was outside the door.
“Annie,” He said looking tired. “Get rid of her, please.”
Flashes of him calling me that years and years ago went through my brain, and I beamed at him. Recovering lost memories was like winning the jackpot. I didn’t know just how empty I felt until they were recovered, and took their rightful place in my mind.