Shatter Me (14 page)

             
“Da…” My throat still hurts but at least there isn’t the feel of glass this time.
“Da-Daddy?”

             
All three heads turn at the sound of my voice. They are frowning down at me as if they can’t really believe that I have spoken. “Da-da-daddy?” I whisper, scared as they continue to frown.

             
Baxter Brandon moves toward me, relief on his face. He is pale and there are new lines on his face…And his hair is longer than I remember. That confuses me but I can’t really focus on it. He carefully grasps my hand and bends to give me the lightest kiss on my forehead.

             
“Kari.” This close I can see his eyes are glazed with tears and I can’t understand why. “How do you feel, sweetheart?”

             
“I hurt.” I whisper. “What…What happened?
What…” I swallow and take a second to catch my breath. I feel as if I can’t really get enough oxygen. “What…What’s wrong…with me?”

             
With a slightly trembling hand my father fixes something on my face and oxygen fills my nose and I can breathe once more. “There was an accident, honey. A drunk driver hit…He hit you from behind and you were tossed out of the car…You…” He clenches his jaw. “You weren’t wearing a seatbelt.”

             
I grimace, knowing that if I hadn’t been
laying
there in a hospital bed hurting I would be in big trouble. “That explains why I feel as if I was run over.” I try to joke
b
ut he doesn’t smile. And that scares me even more.
“Daddy?”

             
“Oh, God Kari.”
A tear slips out of his right eye and I watch, horrified as
he
begins to cry.

             
“Da…Daddy?” I try to reach for him but find that it hurt too much to move.

             
The doctor in the dark scrubs and coat appears on the other side of my bed. “Hello, Carry.”

             
“That isn’t my name.” I whisper. Even in so much pain the wrong pronunciation of my name annoys me. “My name is Kari.”

             
A smile curves the man’s lips making him look years younger and really quite handsome. “
Kari. I am Dr. Shelton. How are you feeling?”

             
“Horrible.” I whisper.

             
He nods. “Okay, I will get you some pain meds in just a little bit. But first I would like to examine you. Is that alright with you?”
             

             
“I guess.”

             
Dr. Shelton smiles.
“Where do you hurt the most and I will focus there first.”

             
That is a hard question. Everything hurt. But there was a real contest on which would take first place.
My head or my chest.
I tell him that and he shines a light into my eyes. Pain stabs though my head, but the urge to vomit isn’t there. The doctor brushes his fingers across my head and I realize for the first time that
part
my head is practically bald.

             
I can’t help my cry of distress when I discover this. The doctor immediately stops what he is doing, concerned.  “Does that hurt?”

             
“No-o-o.”
I whisper brokenly.

             
“Then what’s wrong?” He asks confused.

             
“My hair.
It’s gone.”

             
There is a small, husky chuckle from the man standing at the foot of my bed, watching me. But he scares me and I ignore him. Why does he scare me so much? Why does my chest ache when I look at him?

             
Dr. Shelton grins. “Sweetheart hair grows back. But I had to shave your head so that I could relieve pressure from your brain.” He slides his fingers across the bald patch again and it hurts just a little this time.
“The head ache is normal. It will last a while.”

             
He pulls his stethoscope from around his neck and carefully presses it to my chest. He closes his eyes while he listens before moving it and listening again. When he opens his eyes again he gives me a smile.
“Sounding good.
You broke several ribs and one punctured your left lung. That is why it is hard to breathe without the oxygen right now. But now that you are awake it won’t be long before we can get it as good as new again.”

             
He turns to my father. “Mr. Brandon, if you and Mr. Winthrop could give us a few minutes. I need to check the incisions o
n
Kari’s chest.”

             
My father nods his head and gives me a reassuring smile. “Keith and I will be right outside, sweetheart.” He slaps the other man on the back as they leave the room. “Let’s go son.”

             
When the door is closed behind them the doctor pulls down the sheet and I find that my chest has a big bandage wrapped around it. There is a long cut down the center of my chest.
“Oh, God!”
I whisper.

             
Dr. Shelton feels around it, checking for swelling or signs of infection. “We had to open you up, Kari.” He tells me once he is satisfied with his exam of the area. “There were a few shards of broken rib to close to your heart…”
He re-wraps my bandages and tucks the sheets around me once more.

             
“Doctor…” There is one thing that keeps bothering me. And I am scared because I fear there is something wrong with me. But this man is a doctor. He could tell me if there was or not.

             
“What is it Kari?”

             
“I…” I bite the inside of my jaw. “Who was that man?”

             
He frowns. “What man?”

             
I
suck
in a deep breath
for courage
.
“The man with my father.”
I raise scared eyes to meet his which I discover are a warm chocolate.
“The big man who was here when I woke up the first time.”

             
He stares down at me for the longest time. W
hen he speaks again it is with a neutral tone
. “You don’t know him?”

             
“No.”

             
“Okay.” He gives me a tense, but reassuring smile. “Tell me what you do remember. Do you remember the accident?”

             
I frown. There is the sound of siren
s
across my mind followed by flashing lights as I stare up at a snow filled sky. “No.” I answer. “All I remember is being cold.”

             
“That is a start.” He straightens. “What is the last thing you remember?”

             
“My mother and I shopping.”
For some reason that makes me feel sad.
“I couldn’t find the right present for my father at the antique books store
…Where is my mother?” Was she in the waiting room worrying about me? Suddenly I wanted to see her with such a devastating desperation my heart ached. “Can you get her for me? I want to see her.”

             
“Kari…” He shakes his head. “Kari…How old
are
you?”

             
“Seventeen
.”
I frown, thinking about it.
The look on Dr. Shelton’s face frightens me.
“Doctor?”

             
He reaches for my hand and gives it a small squeeze but for some reason I don’t feel relieved. “I’m going to go get your nurse, Kari. She will give you something for the pain. I want you to rest, okay?”
             

             
“I…Okay.”

             
With a last concerned look over his shoulder he leaves the room. And it is only as I lay there alone that I wonder if someone else had been in the accident with me. Had anyone else gotten hurt?

             
I lay there for what feels like several minutes before the door opens and an older woman in baby blue scrubs comes in. During the brief time the door is open I see the doctor standing there with my father and the stranger. I hear an emotional voice demanding answers. “What do you mean she doesn’t know who I am?” But then
the
door closes once more and the nurse moves closer to my bed.

             
She has two syringes full of something clear and she
clean
s the IV line before placing one of the syringes into it. “This is just to flush the site.” She explains with a kind smile. “And this…” She holds up the other syringe with a wink. “This is the good stuff.”

             
“Thank you.” I whisper.

             
“It will only take a minute before it starts working.” She informs me. “Is there anything you need, Miss Brandon?”

             
“I…” I am already starting to fill the effects of the meds, but I need to know something before I can relax. “Was there anyone else hurt?”

             
She frowns for a moment then seems to understand what I am asking. “All I know is the other driver had a broken nose…And Mr. Marshall had a concussion. The only reason you got the rough end of the deal was because you weren’t wearing a seatbelt.”

             
I breathe a sigh of relief. Thankful that nothing too terrible had happened…Wait…
“
Mr. Marshall? Christian?” My head is suddenly throbbing as I think about him. I have a blinding pain behind my eyes despite the meds and I have to fight the sudden urge to vomit.
“Christian?!?”
I don’t know if I whisper or shout his name, but suddenly the door to my room bursts open and the doctor and the stranger are standing there.

             
“Miss Brandon, please. Are you alright?”
The nurse is trying to calm me, but I shake my head, fighting to remember something important.

             
“Kari…”
This from the stranger standing in the doorway.
There is a dark, concerned look on his face and my heart starts pounding. There is a memory, just on the edge of my mind…But I can’t reach for it!

             
The small room suddenly feels even smaller and I gasp, trying to breathe. “Christian…” I whisper his name. “Bee..!” Why haven’t I remembered Bianca until now? “Where’s Bee?” I demand. Has something happened to my bestie?

             
“Kari!” My father is beside of me. “Kari what’s wrong?” He demands.

             
Tears fill my eyes. “Where is she?” I sob. “Where is Bee?” And why does my chest ache remembering her?

             
Baxter blows out a shaky breath. “Bianca? You want to see her?” He glances over his shoulder and through my medicated haze I see something lethal pass across the stranger’s face. But he doesn’t say anything.
Just clenches his jaw and stands there looking scary.

             
“No…” I don’t understand it, but the thought of seeing her scares me just as much as the stranger. “I…I just want to know…Is she okay?”

             
“
Sweetheart, Bianca is fine.” There is something dark in my father’s eyes. “She wasn’t with you. It was just you and Chris.”

             
My heart clenches again. “Christian.” I whisper his name again. “I want to see him.”

             
The stranger says something under his breath and storms out of the room. My father ignores him and drops a kiss on my forehead. “Not tonight. Rest now, sweetheart.”

             
“No…” I shake my head, but I am finding it harder to fight the pain meds. “I have to know…”

             
“What Kari?” Baxter asks
,
frowning. “What do you need to know?”

             
“I can’t remember…” And I can no longer fight the medication as I s
lip into a deep, nightmare filled sleep.

             
There is a new doctor with Dr. Shelton when he checks in on me the next morning. I frown up at the men as they enter my room.
Dr. Shelton with a small smile in greeting and the other doctor, older by at least fifteen years with graying hair,
and
a neutral expression on his stern face.

             
“Good morning, Kari.” Dr. Shelton murmurs as he stops beside of my bed. “How are you feeling this morning?”

             
“I hurt.”
Both physically and emotionally.
But why I hurt emotionally I have no clue. All I know is that the emotional pain hurts more than the physical. Tears clog my throat and make it sound husky and I have to blink rapidly to keep them in check.