Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 103428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 414(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 517(@200wpm)___ 414(@250wpm)___ 345(@300wpm)
The woman behind the glass frowned. “And who are you to Ms. Evans?”
“I’m her fiancé.”
She nodded. “I was here when she came in. I think they took her upstairs. But let me check.”
She disappeared and came back a few minutes later. “May I see some identification, please?”
I pulled out my wallet and slid my license through the opening at the bottom of the glass. The woman examined it and slid it back. “Thank you. Ms. Evans is upstairs. They’re prepping her for surgery. But the gentleman who came in with her said he was her husband. They both came in via ambulance and went straight to the back, so I didn’t question it or see any ID.”
My brows pulled together. “Amelia doesn’t have a husband.”
The woman offered an apologetic smile. “Sometimes people lie about who they are so we won’t kick them out since they aren’t family. But your name is in our system as Ms. Evans’s next of kin. It’s on file from a prior admission for surgery.”
I nodded. “When her appendix ruptured last year.”
“Anyway.” She pointed to the left. “You can come on through the door. I’ll buzz you back. Then you’re going to walk straight down the hall to the elevator bank and go up to the fifth floor. The nurses at the station on the surgery floor should be able to give you an update on her condition.”
“Thank you.”
I saw a large desk right when I stepped onto the floor, so I walked over and waited for the woman in blue scrubs to get off the phone. When she hung up, I couldn’t even wait for her to acknowledge me. “I’m here for Amelia Evans. The nurse in the ER said she was in surgery. Can someone tell me what’s going on?”
“And you are…”
“Her fiancé, Merrick Crawford.”
The nurse looked over to a waiting area. There was a guy sitting by himself. He had his head in his hand and was tugging at his hair.
“Then who’s that?”
I looked over again. This time, the guy looked up. Our eyes met, and a look of recognition seemed to come across his face. That made him the only one who understood anything around here. I turned back to the nurse. “I have no idea who the hell that is.”
The guy stood and walked over. He looked hesitant. “I’m Amelia’s flight instructor, Aaron.” He turned to the nurse. “This is Amelia’s fiancé.”
The nurse frowned and shook her head. “Can I see some ID from both of you, please?”
I again pulled my license from my pocket, while the guy standing next to me shook his head. “I don’t have anything on me. I leave my wallet and phone in a locker when I do lessons.”
The nurse ignored him. She typed into her computer, and then her eyes moved back and forth from the screen to my ID. “I’m sorry, Mr. Crawford. There seems to have been some confusion.”
“Whatever. I don’t care. Can you just tell me how Amelia is?”
She nodded. “Of course.” She started to speak but then stopped and looked over at Amelia’s instructor. “Can you excuse us, please?”
“Oh… Yeah, of course.”
Aaron walked back to the waiting area. The nurse lowered her voice. “How much do you know so far?”
I shook my head. “Not a damn thing.”
She nodded. “Okay. Well, Ms. Evans was brought in following a small-plane crash. She suffered serious injuries to the head and spine. The head injury she sustained is sometimes called a hinge fracture, but it’s basically a fracture of the skull. We were told by the crew that brought her in that the top of the aircraft collapsed on impact, so that’s possibly what caused the injury.”
I raked a hand through my hair. “Jesus Christ. Is she going to be okay?”
The nurse’s face was solemn. “The impact has caused swelling in her brain, and the doctors are working on relieving some of that. The next few hours are going to be crucial. She also suffered a few broken vertebrae, which the doctors will treat if they’re able to stop the swelling.”
“If…they’re able to stop the swelling? What happens if they can’t?”
The nurse shook her head. “It’s imperative that they do, Mr. Crawford.”
I felt like I was in a dream after that. The nurse kept talking, but her words sort of floated through the air around me, unable to sink in. When she was done, her eyes darted over my face.
“Are you okay?”
I shook my head. “How long will she be in surgery?”
“It’s hard to say. But she has an amazing team of doctors working on her. She only went in about fifteen minutes ago. I’ll go back in a little while and see if they can give me any update, okay?”
I nodded. “Okay. Thanks.”
She motioned to the waiting room. “Why don’t you take a seat? Ms. Evans had some jewelry and personal items on her when she came in. We removed them in case of swelling. I’ll go in the patient safe and get them for you, and you can sign for them. I also have some paperwork you can fill out for her.”