Through the Storm (The Montclair Brothers) (3 page)

Robert walked around front and rang the doorbell. A little light came on in the front room. Finally a middle-aged man answered the door, wearing hideous, blue-striped pajamas.
He matches his house
, thought Robert, as he laughed. He couldn't contain it.

"Can I help you?" said the man with a long thin nose and wire-framed glasses.

"I need to see the doc!" Robert demanded.

"I'm sorry. My office is closed, but the hospital isn't too far." The weird looking man pointed to the left.

Robert smiled and pushed his way inside.

"What are you doing? I said the office is closed!" The man started to whine, which made Robert laugh harder.

"Is anyone else in this house?!" He was more than willing to lay them to rest.

"No," answered the doctor. His face went white.

"Fix my arm!" He showed the moron the protruding bone sticking out of his forearm, and shoved the rifle at him.

"I can't fix that in an office setting. You're going to need surgery!" The doctor rushed to the phone, but was tripped by Robert's dirty, size fifteen, high-tops.

"You are breaking the law!" yelled Dr. Girly Pants, whose name was neatly engraved on a wooden plaque by the receptionist counter.

Like people can't see the big ass sign in the yard.
Robert cracked himself up. "Doctor Loser Boy, you seem to not be aware of the gun that
I'm
pointing at
you
." He reached over and cuffed him on the back of the head. "You're going to Viva. Las. Fix. My. Damn. Arm!" he shouted as he tightly grabbed the doctor's throat and pushed him into an exam room. "Turn the light on! If you do anything stupid, Doctor Asshat, I'll blow your brains out." Robert gave him a genuine smile.

"Okay! Stop pointing the gun at me. I'll work on your arm the best I
can. I'm going to have to inject you with some pain medicine first, though. This is really going to hurt. You won't be able to stand it without passing out." The doctor explained what he had to do.

"Oh I see. You think you're going to drug me up, then call the cops.
Not happening
!! Fix my arm!!"

"Let go of me! I'll just numb the area then, as best as I can. But you're still going to feel a lot of pain. You seem to not understand how serious of an injury you have." Dr. Vegas folded his arms in front of his chest.

"Let's go get the numbing stuff. The first time I feel a little fuzzy in the head, I'm going to put a hole through your face!" Robert shoved the gun into his chest.

The doctor backed up out of the room, and walked slowly to a desk. He pulled out a set of keys from the drawer, and then continued down the hall to another room.

"Turn the light on!" screamed Robert.

Dr. Vegas turned on the light. As soon as the room lit, Robert saw him slinging a metal basin right towards his head. Did the stupid doctor think he was slow? Did the Puny Jackass think he could be stopped by a bowl?
Robert didn't mean for the gun to go off at that second, but it did. He felt good, knowing he'd protected himself. He'd never seen a hole through someone's throat before, but there it was. It seemed to be staring back at him like a third eye.
You don't bring a bowl to a gunfight,
Robert laughed hysterically.

The detectives had asked to speak with Tyler alone, so Vincent insisted on accompanying him to a different conference room as opposed to going to the police station. Emma watched as Delcan and Joy walked down the hall with the two Montclair men. Law enforcement must believe them to some extent, or they'd have all been arrested already. Sean sat beside her, and normally there would be a light conversation between the two, but now, there was nothing to say; all they could do was wait.

"I'm going to go back downstairs and see if there's any news on Jacob. Renee and Brian should be moved into their rooms soon." Sean kept his voice quiet.

Emma quickly reached for his hand. "They said they'd call you about your brother, Sean. I don't think it's a good idea for you to be there by yourself. Wait here with me. Once Renee and Brian are out of the woods, and we know they're okay, I'll go with you to wait for a progress report on Jacob." Truth be told, Emma was the one who didn't want to be by herself.
What if something happened?
What if they weren't okay
?

"I know you're scared,
Em. We all are. When you find out their room numbers, I want you to call me." Without waiting for a reply, Sean walked towards the elevator with his shoulders slumped.

While Emma sat in the lounge, she became aware of other people staring at her. This was a small town after all. Certainly a stranger would be noticed. But it wasn't until she picked up a white sheet of paper listing the visiting hours, that she saw the dried blood on her hands. Emma closed her fists and hid them as best she could. In her mind, it was the only way to be with her friends. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone approach her.

"Are you with Renee Preston and Brian?" asked the nurse.

"Yes. Are they here?" Emma stood up and her mouth went dry.

"They should be arriving within the next thirty to forty-five minutes. I'm June. I'll be Brian's nurse. Did you find out his last name?" She slowly held out a washcloth, towel, and a pair of scrubs. "These should fit. I read the reports, and I'm sorry you guys had to go through such a tragedy tonight. The detective was here and said there'd be police officers stationed outside of the victims' rooms, so you don't have to worry about the shooter returning. I asked Detective Delcan if you could get cleaned up, and he said it was okay. I think it'll make you feel better."

"It won't be a good idea for me to be gone right now. I want to be here when they arrive." Emma didn't take the items the nurse was offering to her.

"What's your name?" June opened up the chart and began writing. "We don't have an emergency contact listed."

"I'm Emma, a close friend to both of them. I won't be leaving the unit. You may also call Tyler, Sean, and Vincent Montclair. They'll be on hand as well." She recited their cellphone numbers as June wrote them down.

"Come with me, Emma, you have plenty of time to take a relaxing shower. Besides, once they arrive on the unit, the staff and I will have a lot of work to do. It'll be a bit before you can visit." She motioned for Emma to follow.

Reluctantly, Emma began walking behind her. She knew the nurse was being kind and understanding, but Emma's anxiety was starting to mount again. All she had left of Renee, Brian, and Jacob, were these red stains, and now someone was trying to convince her to rid herself of that connection. She didn't want to let them go; memories would never be enough. Once they reached the bathroom of an empty room, the nurse opened the door, sat the scrubs, washcloth, and towel on the sink, and then handed her a bag. Emma began to shake.

"You can put your soiled clothing in here," she briefly rubbed Emma's back. "Honey, I know you're frightened, but the staff is really competent in this hospital. I promise to come and get you the second Brian arrives. Push this call light if you need anything."

Emma thanked June, stepped inside the bathroom and closed the door. For the first time since before the fire and shooting, she looked at herself in the mirror over the sink. Her face had white streaks of skin showing, where her tears had washed away some of the blood. Emma quickly turned away. She let her clothes drop to the white tile floor and stared at them. Slowly, she picked them up, determined not to
throw her belongings away until she knew Renee, Brian, and Jacob, were going to be okay. Emma placed her stiff clothing into the bag, and then turned on the shower.

Stepping under the hot stream, Emma looked down and watched as the water turned red. Robert did this. Robert had robbed her of her security, stolen her freedom, taken control of her life, and painted her with her friends' blood. "No…" she cried, and pumped soap onto her washcloth from a large container. At first, Emma moved the wet cloth gently over her face and arms. When she closed her eyes, she saw her friends lying wounded in the driveway. Her eyes flew open, and she began to vigorously scrub her
skin. The black soot and red blood on the white washcloth, made her scrub even harder. Emma had to get the
war
off of her…get the
fire
off of her…get
Robert
off of her.

∞  ∞  ∞  ∞

Renee was brought to the surgical intensive care unit first. The bullet had punctured her right lung and fractured two ribs. She looked around at all the equipment attached to her friend, and she shivered. Emma brought her hand up to her face and covered her mouth, a small gasping sound escaped.

The doctor lifted the bed sheet to check on Renee's dressing and chest tube. He glanced up at the monitors before turning to look at
Emma. "The nurse said you're Emma, Renee's friend. I'm Dr. Ortiz, the surgeon who operated on her. Is her family here?"

"That would be me," Emma whispered, without lifting her eyes from Renee.

"I'll explain a few things so you won't be so anxious. Renee has blood around her lung, and we need to drain it out of there. That's what this tube on the side of her chest is for. We'll keep it in place until x-rays show no excess fluid. I know this is very overwhelming, but please, don't be frightened by everything you see," explained Dr. Ortiz. "She'll be treated to prevent infection and may need more blood transfusions until her count is up. The monitors, which make a lot of noise," he laughed softly, "will help us keep an eye on her heart and oxygen levels. If you have any questions, leave a message with the nurses and I'll get back with you. I think she'll make a full recovery, barring any complications." He shook Emma's hand and continued to hold it while he said goodbye. "I have a couple of more patients to see, so I need to be going, but the staff on this unit will take good care of her, plus there's a police officer right outside the door for her protection." He picked up the chart off the nightstand and left the room.

Renee had no color to her cheeks. She had a small amount of dark red at the corners of her lips,
where blood had sprayed as she'd struggled to breathe. Parts of her dark hair were matted and tinted red.

Emma leaned over and kissed her forehead. "I'm so sorry..."

"She's not feeling any pain," softly replied a nurse, as she walked up behind Emma. She had an IV bag and a syringe full of clear fluid in her hands. "I'm Diana, Renee's nurse. I know she doesn't look very good right now, but she'll start to get stronger in the next day or two."

"Is she in a lot of pain?" Emma closed her eyes and shook her head. She still couldn't get the image of Renee lying in the driveway and gasping for air, out of her mind.

"She's still sedated from the anesthesia, and I'll be giving her pain medications." Diana held out a box of tissues.

"I'm Emma, her friend. When do you think she'll wake up?" She pulled a couple of tissues from the box and dabbed at her eyes. Her skin still felt raw from the shower.

"I really can't say, but when she does, you can say hi to her. We want Renee to rest though. Can I get you something to drink? Have you eaten?" she asked as she hung the new IV bag and pushed medication through a port.

"I'm really not hungry. Thank you for asking." Emma wiped some soot out of the corner of her eyes. They still slightly burned. "I'm going to make a call real quick. I'll be back in just a minute." She walked out of
the room and into the lounge. Just as she was about to call Sean and check on Jacob, June walked up to her.

"Brian is on his way up. Are you sure I can't get you anything?" she asked with a concerned expression.

"I feel a little better since I got cleaned up. Thank you for being so kind. Did they mention whether Brian is awake or not?" Emma hoped she could talk to him. He'd be scared to death in here, if she didn't get the chance to explain what'd happened.

"I won't know until he comes on the unit. I'll find you after we get him settled."

"No, you don't understand. He'll be petrified if he doesn't see someone he knows and trusts. I promise not to get in the way…" Emma was going to be in the room, one way or another. "I need to be with him."

June looked at her with warm eyes. "You can come with me." The nurse turned to head back up the hallway.

Just as they passed the desk, the elevator dinged and Brian was wheeled onto the unit, on a gurney. His body was propped with pillows so he was lying on his right side. He looked pale, like Renee, with some dried blood in his messy blond hair.

Emma watched as June took Brian's chart and got report from the recovery room nurse. She wanted to run to him, but knew the staff had to have space to get Brian into the bed and take care of him. Emma walked
to the doorway and watched the nurse and a tech, place him on the same types of monitors as Renee's.

After they were done, Emma stepped inside the room. "Is he going to be alright?" she quietly asked June.

She looked up from Brian's chart and paused. "Emma, it's really important for us to get information on him. We have no medical background…a list of allergies, his correct age…Some allergic reactions can be lethal. Certainly you can see the importance of us talking with his parents. When he wakes up, I'll have to ask him some questions before he drifts back to sleep."

"Let me talk to Brian first." Emma knew he wouldn't answer any of her questions.

June nodded her head, and then walked towards the door. "I have to get these orders taken care of."

"Wait. Will he be able to walk again?" Emma felt her knees get weak.

"The bullet didn't hit his spine. It went through his body, but struck his left kidney, and then exited out of his abdomen. The doctor will explain more when he comes up. He has a catheter in his bladder, so don't be alarmed by the blood you see in this tube. It's to be expected. I'll be right back, though."

Emma walked over and lifted his hand. He coughed a little and swallowed hard.

"Brian?" she whispered. But he didn't open his eyes. She set his hand back down and walked down the hall to check on Renee. She was still asleep as well. Emma went to the lounge and called Sean. Hopefully he wasn't with the detectives.

"I just wanted to let you know that Brian and Renee are on the unit. They look so horrible, Sean. One minute we were all talking, and the next minute—"

"I know, Em. I wish I could come up there. The doctor came out about five minutes ago and said they were taking Jacob to the recovery room."

"How is he?" She was almost afraid to ask. Out of the three, she knew Jacob had been injured the worst.

"He was shot through his intestines and the bullet hit a large vein. He's still not out of the woods. Jacob inhaled a lot of smoke, lost a tremendous amount of blood, and they're worried about infection."

"Oh God…" Emma felt her heart sink. "Will he pull through?"

"I don't know. I really don't know. I'm waiting for Tyler and Vinnie, so I can update them. The detectives still have them detained." Sean's voice was quivering. "I keep telling myself how strong Jacob is, you know?"

Emma felt so torn. She wished she could be in two places at one time. Suddenly, the peace on the unit was disrupted by the sounds of people arguing. She easily recognized one of the voices.

"What the hell?!" yelled Brian, followed by a few other people asking him to please calm down.

"I'll call you back, Sean!" Emma took off running down the hallway. When she reached Brian's room, there were three staff members trying to keep him in bed. A police officer had stood up from his chair in the hall and was watching the commotion. June came running past her.

Emma was beside herself, especially when she saw the panic in Brian's eyes. They were frightening him. She ran inside of the room and stopped at the foot of his bed.

"Stop it! Everyone needs to step away so I can calm him down some! All you're doing is scaring him!" Emma pointed towards the door. She was grateful that June escorted the staff out to the hallway.

"I'm here, Brian." Emma pulled up a chair beside his bed and sat down. Her heart was beating a hundred miles a minute, but she tried not to show her anxiety.

"Emma? What happened?" Brian cried out in pain.

She reached for his hand. "Do you remember the fire?" She didn't know what all the kid remembered. Hopefully he didn't recall the pain of being shot.

"Yeah, but—
Renee
! Where's, Renee!" Brian tried to get up again.