Undisputed (23 page)

As they load him onto the stretcher, I hastily throw some clothes on and grab my phone off the nightstand. Then I follow them out to the ambulance.

Climbing in behind them, I shout at Breccan over my shoulder. “We’re going to St. Mary’s. I’ll call you and keep you updated.”

The doors close, and I focus my attention back to Connor.

After what feels like an eternity, we pull into the bays of the emergency room. They unload Connor before rushing him to a triage room. A nurse ushers me into a waiting room, and I stop short when I see Breccan pacing back and forth.

He turns when he hears the door shut and rushes to me. “Is he okay? What’s going on? These fucking nurses won’t tell me anything.” He grabs my hand in his, and his palms are sweaty.

I’m shocked that he’s here. “I thought you were going home?”

Confusion replaces the worry on his face. “Why the hell would I go home? Connor collapsed! I’m not leaving you. Where the fuck is Abby?”

The mention of Abby’s name reminds me that I haven’t even called her. “Fuck. Abby. I’ve gotta call her.” Pulling my phone out, I try to remember where she said she was going, but my mind draws a blank.

The phone rings and rings before I get her voicemail. After clearing my throat, I try to steady my voice and tell her to call back as soon as possible.

When I’m done, Breccan is still waiting for an answer.

“She’s on assignment. I can’t remember where though.” I pull the calendar up on my phone and see that she’s in California. Doing the math in my head, I realize that it’s probably only a little after midnight there, so I try calling her again. When the voicemail comes on, I hang up without leaving a message.

Breccan’s resumes his pacing, which is making me more nervous than I already am. I grab his arm and drag him over to a chair.

“Breccan, sit,” I command before settling into one of the hard, plastic chairs.

He hesitates for a second and then drops in the seat beside me. Turning his head in my direction, he asks, “How are you so fucking calm right now?”

I’m wondering the same thing, but I give him the only answer I can come up with. “You’re freaking out. Someone has to stay calm.”

The nurse calls out for family members, and I jump to my feet. She waves me over, and I take two steps before I realize Breccan hasn’t moved.

Looking back, I ask, “Are you coming?”

His head snaps back, but he scrambles to his feet to follow me, and when he catches up, he places a comforting arm around my shoulders. I take a deep breath in before walking into the room, where they have Connor hooked up to machines monitoring his vital signs.

He looks so small in the bed, and he’s almost the same shade of white as the sheets. Panic squeezes my heart, and for the first time since he pounded on my door, I let the tears fall.

T
here is nothing in this world that I’m afraid of. I’ve faced some of the toughest men on the planet in the cage without so much as blinking an eye. After a car accident that should have claimed my life, I walked out of the hospital completely unfazed.

But when Connor collapsed into Sidney’s arms? My heart stopped. Watching them both hit the floor evoked a terror I don’t ever want to experience again.

I’m still in awe over how calm Sidney was throughout the entire event. Despite the fact that her nephew was unconscious in her arms, she was able to talk me through the 911 call.

Even seeing Connor hooked up to wires and monitors, she still only shed a few tears before pulling herself together again. When the doctor came into the room to update us on his condition, she had the forethought to go over Connor’s list of medications.

We don’t know much other than that Connor is running a fever of one hundred four degrees and seems to be fighting some sort of infection. He still hasn’t regained consciousness, but the doctors assured us that it’s normal and probably his body’s way of conserving much-needed energy.

After we’ve sat by his bedside for a while, the nurses inform us that it is time for shift change and we would need to wait in the lobby while the nurses complete their rounds. I refuse at first, but Sidney convinces me to leave so the staff can do their jobs.

Sidney attempts to call Abby several more times without luck. Three hours later, Abby finally answers her phone. She’s managed to pull a few strings and book a direct flight.

Other than chewing on her fingernails while she told Abby what was going on, Sid hadn’t seemed to be too upset that it took multiple phone calls to both Abby and her cameraman before she was able to get in touch.

I, on the other hand, am fucking livid. Sidney is more than capable of caring for Connor, but Abby is still his mother. She should have been here in the first place.

My fists clenched, I continue to wear a path in the carpet of the waiting room. I check the clock and see that Abby should be here any moment. Getting angry all over again, I growl. “She shouldn’t be this hard to get in touch with!”

Nodding in agreement, Sidney responds, “You’re right. You are absolutely right. But maybe she was out on assignment?” Her defense only makes me angrier.

“How can you defend her? I don’t understand your relationship with her at all! You’ve told me how frustrated you are with her constantly being gone. And then Connor almost fucking dies and she’s nowhere to be found and you’re okay with it?”

I’ve tried not to pry when it comes to Abby, but Sidney herself has confided that, at times, she’s resentful of Abby’s jet-setting lifestyle. It doesn’t make sense to me because she’s tough as nails when it comes to everyone except her sister. It’s like she automatically loses her spine with anything having to do with Abby.

Her voice is calm when she replies, “First of all, Connor didn’t almost die. And, secondly, of course I’m not all right with not being able to reach Abby. But what am I going to do about it?”

I snap my head in her direction and exclaim, “Say something to her! Stand up to her. Tell her that it’s bullshit that she’s constantly leaving you here to take care of her kid! If you won’t, I will!”

Her eyes wide, she shakes her head at me. “Don’t you dare!”

I nod back at her. “Yes, I dare. This is bullshit, Sidney. Connor is
her
son, and she can’t be reached for hours.”

Sidney puts her finger to her mouth to shush me. The waiting room is empty though.

Throwing my arms out to my sides, I ask loudly “Why the hell should I be quiet? There’s no one else in here!”

A moment later, a nurse appears, “Is everything okay in here?” she asks curtly.

“We’re fine!” I bark at her.

Looking to Sidney, she purses her lips. Once Sidney reassures her that everything is okay, she asks us to keep it down before turning on her heel and leaving us alone.

I need a minute to cool off. So I stalk toward the exit.

“Breccan, where are you going?” Sidney asks behind me.

There’s a note of fear in her voice, and I immediately regret my outburst.

Gruffly, I tell her, “I’ll be right back,” before continuing outside.

I take a deep breath through my nose, the cold air helps clear my head.

I pace back and forth in front of the hospital, causing the automatic doors to continuously open and shut. Every time they open, I catch a whiff of the astringent hospital smell. My stomach turns at the memory of what led us here. I’m replaying the scene in my head, trying to think of what I could have done differently, when I hear my name being shouted across the parking lot. Turning in the direction it came from, I see Abby running toward me in heels.

Her clothes are wrinkled, her hair’s disheveled, and her face is free of any makeup. There are dark circles under her puffy eyes, and she looks worse than I’ve ever seen her.

She slams in to me, wrapping her arms around my waist before sticking her face in my chest and sobbing. I don’t return her embrace, refusing to give her the sympathy she’s looking for. While I know she loves her son, I’m unable to forgive the fact that she’s practically abandoned him.

Still sniffling, she looks up at me and says, “Thank God you were there, Breccan. What would Sidney have done without you?”

Untangling myself from her grasp, I tell her, “Sidney did everything. Like she always does. Where were
you,
Abby?”

Wringing her hands together, she blinks at me several times. “I was on assignment. I—”

I cut her off, no longer wanting to hear her explanation. “Never mind. Sidney’s inside waiting for you.” I point towards the door before turning away.

After a beat, I hear her heels clicking on the sidewalk.

I probably shouldn’t have been such a jerk, but she doesn’t get to rush in with tears in her eyes and all is forgiven. I resume my pacing, and after a few more minutes, I decide I’m calm enough to be around people again. After walking back into the lobby, I peek around the corner, into the waiting room. Abby is seated next to Sidney, her arms wrapped around her shoulders, while Sid stares at the wall, unblinking. I walk down the hall in search of a drink to give them a few minutes.

I’m almost back to the waiting room with three cups of terrible coffee when I hear shouting.

“I said I’m sorry. What else do you want from me?” Abby’s voice is shrill.

“I want an explanation!” Sidney’s tone matches Abby’s.

I consider intervening, but I let it play out. I have no idea who started the conversation, but I’m proud of Sidney for finally speaking up.

Abby’s exasperated when she responds, “I’ve already told you that I’d been on assignment all day and was exhausted. I never heard my phone ringing!”

“No, that’s not what I mean,” Sidney hisses at her. “I want to know why you are constantly leaving Connor. Ever since his diagnosis, your unplanned assignments have doubled. You’re always gone. Why?”

I peek through the doorway. Abby jumps to her feet. Her eyes are wide as she shoves a hand through her hair.

Turning towards Sidney, she says, “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Sidney. I’ve
always
had to travel. That’s the whole reason you moved in in the first place.”

Sidney rises and squares her shoulders. She narrows her eyes, “Bullshit. You’ve never been gone this much before.”

It’s silent for a full minute. Abby turns toward the door, and her eyes are brimming with tears. Finally, she stammers, “I…I can’t handle it, Sidney. I can’t watch him get sicker and sicker. I can’t sit around…watching him die.”

Sidney wraps her arms around her. “Jesus, Abby. Why didn’t you say something?”

A strangled laugh erupts. “Say what? ‘Hey, sis. I can’t take care of my own kid, so sorry, but tag, you’re it’?”

Sidney leans back and looks her sister in the eye. “God, no. But, all this time, I’ve been so fucking mad at you. I just thought you cared more about your career.”

Sighing, Abby averts her eyes. “I knew you were mad, but I couldn’t tell you. Hell, I couldn’t admit it to myself. What kind of mother am I? My kid’s in the hospital and I’m across the country, sound asleep.”

Sidney rubs her back and murmurs, “Don’t beat yourself up over it. You’re here now. Yeah, I was pissed that I couldn’t reach you, but I knew you were probably exhausted.” She kisses the side of Abby’s head.

I’m not sure I would have let Abby off the hook as easily as Sidney, but I’m at least relieved they’ve come to some kind of conclusion. I was all for them talking this out—but I didn’t necessarily mean tonight.

As they both fall silent, I round the corner and hold out the now-cold coffee to them. Smiling at me, Abby takes a cup. She gives me a nod, letting me know that all is forgiven between us. Wiping the moisture from her face, she clears her throat.

“I’m going to go see if I can talk to a doctor. I’ll be back soon.” She squeezes my forearm before turning back and smiling at Sidney. “I love you so much, sis.”

As she walks away, I settle into her empty chair and put an arm around Sidney’s shoulders. “I’m sorry.”

She looks up at me. “For what?”

“For being so hard on her earlier. I owe her an apology. And
you
.” I shrug one shoulder. “I don’t have siblings, so I don’t know how those relationships work, either. I should’ve known that you’d have your reasons for never saying anything to her.”