The Future of Our Past (The Remembrance Trilogy) (44 page)

We sat there for what seemed like an eternity. Aaron left a couple of times to get coffee, but I didn’t move, praying that she would be okay and reliving so many of the wonderful times we’d shared. The day we met, the first time I kissed her or when we made love, when I put the engagement ring on her finger, the many Sunday coffee dates we were forced to spend apart, the move to New York. In all of my memories she was beautiful and smiling…whole. Not broken and bleeding. “Oh, my God,” I ground out brokenly. “No,
please
.”

I ran my hand through my hair and stood up to answer my phone. It was Julia’s dad.

“Hello, Paul.”

“Oh, thank God. Ryan, what do you know?” His voice was panicked, the catch in his voice giving away the level of his emotion.

“Not a lot right now. They took her to radiology for some scans. She probably has a skull fracture, but we won’t know the extent until after these films. She has a pneumothorax and a dislocated shoulder, contusions on her head, face and torso and probably some broken ribs.” My voice had taken on a clinical tone, on autopilot, as I rattled off the list.

“You sound like a doctor, Ryan. What is a pmeumothorax?”

“Oh, sorry. Um, a collapsed lung.” He gasped on the other end of the phone and my strong facade fell by the wayside when my voice thickened. I put my hand over my eyes and took a deep breath. “Paul, I’m really scared. All I want to do is get in there and help take care of her, but they won’t let me. They…won’t let me. I feel…so incredibly helpless.”

“Jesus.” Paul sighed. “Ryan, I’m sure you’re doing all you can. I’m glad you’re with her. I’ll get there as soon as I can. I’ve changed planes in Chicago and I’m already onboard. Ellie called and said she was going to meet me at the hospital and Marin is on her way, too.”

He was trying to comfort me when his baby girl was fighting for her life. I wished I could be that strong, but then, I’d seen her. I’d seen the blood and the machines and despite the fact I was around it all the time; but because it was Julia, it wrecked me.

“Yeah. My parents are on their way as well. If her head injury is serious, I want my father here to consult or…God forbid, operate, if it’s necessary.”

“I hope it’s not that serious, but I’m thankful that Gabriel is coming. I’ve made my bargains with God already. I’ll see you in a couple of hours. My little girl is lucky to have you, Ryan.”

It’s that serious.
I closed my eyes in silent prayer.

“I’m the lucky one. She means everything to me, Paul.” I could feel my chest constrict again as I hung up the phone.

“Ryan?”

I turned to a shaken Jenna re-entering the room. “They’ve taken her to ICU. She has a fracture to the left side of her skull. We were able to re-inflate the lung, tape up her ribs and pop her shoulder back in. There is some slight swelling to her brain but radiology didn’t see any bleeding on the CT scan.”

“Is she breathing on her own?” I asked, fearing the answer with everything I had. “Did you need a chest tube or did the lung re-inflate on its own?”

Jen came forward and hugged me. “We were able to suck the air out with a big syringe so we didn’t need to tube her. She’s on a vent and hasn’t regained consciousness,” she said quietly.

I hugged her back. “No doubt due to the edema. All we can do is watch her now and make sure we catch any bleeds or fluids. We’re not out of the woods until she wakes up. Have they got her on blood thinners? Is the coma induced or not?” I asked wearily. I was exhausted and started rubbing the back of my neck. The next three or four days would tell the story. If she didn’t wake up before that, then chances were she never would.

“Ryan, stop trying to be a doctor. You’ve got enough to deal with,” Aaron began, but his words upset me. My jaw tightened and I bit back the words I wanted to retort.

“I want to know what is happening,” I said instead.

“She’s on several meds. She didn’t wake up on her own, but Dr. Brighton did order barbiturates to keep her asleep so her brain can heal and to help reduce the swelling. I don’t need to tell you the particulars,” Jenna said. She looked as exhausted as I felt and her eyes were red and swollen.

She moved back from the embrace and took my hands. “Thank you, Jen. I appreciate all you’ve done. Can I see her now? Is Dr. Brighton still with her?” The array of questions fell from my lips like rain.

“I’m sure they’re watching for hemorrhage. It’s common with traumatic brain injury,” Aaron interjected quietly and more contrite than before.

“I know that!” I shook my head and started walking out of the room, my intention to go straight up to ICU, but Jenna put a hand on my arm to stop me.

Her voice shook and she cupped my face with her palm. “Ryan,” she said hesitantly, her blue eyes full of sadness. “Julia had some vaginal bleeding and it was quite excessive.”

“She had internal bleeding?” I asked in panic. My heart started racing again but Jenna shook her head.

“Ryan, um…” She raised her tear-filled eyes to mine and brushed my hair back from my face.

“Jen, what is it?” I asked shortly. “What is it that you’re not saying?” Fear, even more prevalent than before, engulfed me.

“Did you know that Julia was pregnant?”

Until that very moment, I thought it couldn’t get any worse. I was wrong.