Woven Wishes (Whispered Wishes Book 4) (12 page)

“Holly!” Ava shrieked as she ran down the hallway toward her with Max on her heels. “Are you okay? What happened? Where’s Ben?”

Holly was grateful for her younger sister, who put her hand up to stop their oldest sister in her tracks. “She’s fine,” Tessa answered. “Just a bit shaken up. I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you more on the telephone when I called you. I didn’t know myself. The nurse wouldn’t give me any details. All I knew was that they were in a nasty accident with a tractor-trailer.”

“Oh honey,” Ava said, giving Holly a hug. “I’m so relieved you’re okay. I was so worried.” Looking around, Ava asked the question Holly knew was coming, yet dreaded answering. “What about Ben? Is he all right?”

Her entire body tensed as she tried to think of the words to use.
He’s okay, Hol. He’s going to be just fine.
As long as she believed it, it would be true. As long as she said the words out loud, it
had to be
true. “He’ll be okay, also,” she said, looking at Tessa for reassurance. Taking a deep breath, she added, “He just got out of surgery. He was in bad shape, broken bones and internal bleeding. He’s in recovery now in the ICU and still unconscious. But he’s going to be okay.” She nodded with confidence as she said each word in the last part of her statement slowly and with purpose.

“Oh thank God,” Ava replied, hugging her sister close. “We were so worried.”

“We’re just on our way to find some coffee,” Tessa explained. “Holly, you could probably use some food, too. When was the last time you ate something?”

“I don’t know,” she answered. “This morning maybe? I’m not hungry. My stomach’s a mess. I really just want to sit here and wait for Ben to wake up. And what if the doctor needs to talk to me?”

“Okay,” Tessa murmured and patted her arm. “You stay, and I’ll bring some food back for you. You have to keep your strength up, and you also should let the doctor look at you. At the very least, have them check out the cut on your forehead.”

Lifting her hand up, Holly felt the dampness through the bandage the EMS workers had put on her at the site. Blood, no doubt, was starting to seep through. “I’m fine, honest. It’s just a scrape. It doesn’t even hurt.” That part was true—she didn’t feel a thing since her entire body was numb after what she’d just been through.

Chapter 25 - Tessa

Sophie sat at the kitchen table. She appeared to be deep in thought as she wrote, erased, and wrote some more. From the couch in the living room, Tessa watched her daughter as she tried to re-group for their meeting with Scott. The last several hours had been an emotional roller coaster for Tessa and her family. She hoped Holly was finally getting some much-needed sleep. Truth be told, she could use a good eight hours herself. At this point, she’d even take three or four.

Shortly after Ava came to the hospital, a parade of people streamed in. Nicholas arrived first. He wasn’t going to, but had felt hopeless waiting at home, so he knocked on their neighbor’s door in a panic. She was a sweet older woman who was quite fond of Sophie. She agreed to look after her so he could join his wife at the hospital. After that, parents arrived, starting with a very frantic Mr. and Mrs. Oakes, followed quickly by her own parents … both just an hour’s drive away. She knew it would be too much on Holly to have to retell the story several times over, so Tessa took care of that job, while Ava and Nicholas tried to keep Holly distracted. After a couple of hours with no news, Nicholas returned home to Sophie, giving strict instructions to call if Ben’s condition changed, while Tessa’s parents drove Max home so he could relieve Jenna of babysitting duty. Her parents then went back to Holly’s house where they would stay the night with Ben’s parents, who first stayed at the hospital another few hours … waiting.

Somewhere around midnight Ben finally opened his eyes. His only words were, “Holly.” His eyes fluttered back closed the moment her name escaped his lips. At three a.m. he opened his eyes once more, this time appearing to be slightly more alert. At eight a.m. Ben’s doctor convinced Holly he was stable enough for her to go home to get some sleep. Ava took her back to her house, seeing as though her & Ben’s home was occupied with her parents and in-laws. Tessa left with them to return home to Nicholas and Sophie.

“I just got off the phone with William— Dr. Golden,” Nicholas said, taking a seat next to Tessa on the couch.

“Is that the specialist you know?” she asked.

“Yes,” Nicholas replied. “He arrived at the hospital this morning and has already spoken with Ben’s doctor about taking over his treatment going forward. He’s top in the country for spinal injuries, and his partner, an orthopedist with an impeccable reputation, is flying in later this afternoon.

“Spinal injury?” Tessa asked. “I thought he broke his leg and had internal bleeding.”

“He had severe swelling in his spinal cord as well,” Nicholas said. “Holly told me last night when I offered to help. I think she was so overwhelmed with everything, she just couldn’t emotionally deal with it all.”

“Thank you for doing this for her … for all of us.”

“We’re family. That’s what we do,” he said, taking her in his arms. “And Ben is more than a brother-in-law to me, you know. He’s the one who got us back together when I thought I’d lost you. Holly, too, of course, but mostly Ben. He loves you so much, Tess.”

“I know,” she responded, wiping her husband’s tears. “I feel the same way. It’s like you said. He’s more than a brother-in-law. He’s really one in a million. If he doesn’t make it, I’ll kill him,” she snickered and reached for a tissue to wipe her own tears and sighed. “I’m trying so hard to stay strong for Holly, but I’m really scared, Nicholas.”

“I know, so am I,” he said, letting out his own sigh. “For the moment, though, everything is calm. At least at the hospital.” He motioned to the kitchen, where Sophie still seemed to be struggling with getting words onto her paper.

“Soph?” Tessa asked. “Is everything okay, sweetie? We have to leave soon.” She walked over to where her daughter sat. “What are you working on?”

“I’m trying to come up with a list of questions and things I want to ask Scott. Last time, I was so nervous, he did most of the talking, so I never really got a chance to ask him anything. I’m afraid if I don’t write it down, I’m going to get nervous again and forget everything.”

“That’s a good idea,” Tessa said, looking over to the paper. There were some basic questions like if he had any pets, what he liked to watch on television, and his favorite color … the usual stuff a seven year would old ask. After that, the paper was filled with grey smudges from questions written and erased. Clearly her daughter was struggling. It wasn’t hard for Tessa to figure out why. “Can I help you?”

Sophie looked up at her mother with sad eyes and nodded.

“Well, whenever you used to ask me about Scott, you always wanted to know why he wasn’t around like all of the others dads were.”

“You told me it was because he lived so far away,” her daughter replied.

“I did,” Tessa said, chewing her bottom lip. Perhaps now was a good time to be a little more direct with her daughter. “But he didn’t always,” she continued. “He used to live right here in Forest Hills. He left town while I was still pregnant with you.”

“Why?” Sophie asked.

“That’s an excellent question, and one that perhaps you should add to your list.” She pointed to the paper and watched as her daughter wrote, “W
hy did you leave when Mommy was pregnant with me?”

There were other questions Sophie should ask as well, like why he stayed away so long, and why he chose now to come back, but for the time being, that single question should be sufficient to get the conversation started.

“We should get going,” Nicholas said, putting his hand on Tessa’s shoulder.

~~~

Once at the diner, the three looked around. They were a few minutes early and didn’t see Scott yet, so they asked the hostess for two tables next to each other. This time, Tessa wanted to be able to watch Sophie. She especially wanted to see Scott’s face when her daughter asked her tough question. It was about time he gave his daughter an explanation for his cowardly disappearing act all those years ago. Twenty minutes later with no sign of Scott, Tessa checked the bus schedule. She supposed it was possible he missed the bus he said he’d be on. The next one was only an hour later. She ordered Sophie a milkshake and tried Scott’s number. It went straight to voicemail.

 One hour, several more phone and text attempts, and a cheeseburger for each of them later, Tessa, Nicholas, and a very disappointed Sophie left the diner. Tessa took her daughter home, while Nicholas headed to the hospital to check on Ben.

Chapter 26 – Holly

Holly sat in the waiting room, hunched over with her head in her hands. Ava, sitting next to her, gently rubbed her back. Ben’s father paced the floor, while his mother nervously sat with Holly’s own mother, holding her hand in an attempt to comfort her. Holly’s father, not one to often show emotion, sat staring straight ahead, a deep sadness in his eyes.

 “Holly?” Nicholas asked with a hint of caution, as he approached his sister-in-law.

 “Dr. Golden is in with Ben right now,” she said, looking up. Red swollen rims framed her glazed over eyes. While she appreciated Ava and Max’s hospitality, she did not sleep for even a second. Shutting her eyes only brought her back to the accident. Like an unending loop, the sounds and sights of crushing metal, shattered glass, and excruciating screams played in her mind, torturing her psyche with guilt. She should have waited until they arrived at the cabin to tell Ben such unexpected news. Of course, he’d be distracted. Forcing her eyes to stay open, she felt even worse for leaving her husband’s side. What if she missed her final moments with him? Eventually, she got up and paced in her room, haunted by every passing minute. After three torturous hours, she knocked on Ava’s door and insisted she drive her back to the hospital. Max stayed back at the house to take care of the kids.

She looked at her brother-in-law. As soon as he heard about Ben’s prognosis, he told her about the doctor he knew in the Mid-West. Nicholas had already been so generous with his offer to help pay for the IVF, and now he was offering to help arrange for a top doctor to take over her husband’s care. She was overwhelmed with gratitude. “Thank you for bringing him here, Nicholas. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.”

“Of course, Hol. Anything you need … anything at all. We’re here for you.”

She nodded with a smile that quickly faded at the sight of Ben’s door opening. They all stood as the doctor walked out of the room.

“Nicholas,” Dr. Golden said, extending his arm for a handshake. “So nice to see you again.”

“It’s a pleasure, William, and thank you so much for coming out here on short notice. I hope it wasn’t too much of an inconvenience.”

“Not at all. My associates are more than capable of handling things at my practice, and I’m way overdue for a visit, although I do wish it were under better circumstances. I must say, however, your brother-in-law has quite the personality.”

“So Ben is doing well then?” he asked.

Dr. Golden smiled and looked at Holly. “Is it okay to discuss your husband’s condition with your extended family?”

Nodding, Holly took Ava and Nicholas’ hands. “Yes, of course, please continue.”

He smiled at her and began speaking. “You and your husband were very lucky. In fact, it’s remarkable to me you are standing here with only that scratch on your head. The nurse told me you refused treatment, but I imagine you’re quite sore today, am I right?”

Holly nodded. After they’d gotten back to Ava’s this morning, she let her sister remove the bandage on her forehead and clean up her cut. The bleeding had stopped, and the cut proved to be just a scrape, but a nasty bump along with a bruise appeared. With all of her attention focused on Ben, she hadn’t had time to think about herself. Now that the adrenaline was starting to wear off, she had to admit … her entire body ached.

“I can prescribe you something to take the edge off, but promise me if you have any headaches, trouble with your eyes, or sharp pains, you will let me examine you immediately.”

“Okay, thank you,” she said, relieved he wasn’t also going to pressure her for an exam. She was fine. Well, better than Ben at least. The point was, she needed every possible resource at that hospital to be focused on her husband right now. “So about Ben?” she asked, trying to get the doctor back on track.

“Yes,” he said, “as I was saying, he was very lucky. Despite getting banged up the way he did, his brain function seems to be completely normal. I suspect he only has a slight concussion. In fact, he was talking up a storm just now, joking and laughing about how awful your hockey team is doing this year.”

“That sounds like Ben,” Nicholas said, rolling his eyes, “although really, it’s no joking matter.”

“But,” Holly said, anxious to get past the small talk. It was obvious there was more to this. Nicholas wouldn’t have had one of the country’s top doctors flown in on a moment’s notice just to sit around and shoot the breeze about some crappy hockey team.

“But,” Dr. Golden continued, “Ben does have some substantial injuries that will be challenging to treat. We’ll keep him in the ICU for now for observation, and then he’ll be moved into a private room upstairs. The good news is he appears to be stable. He’s really doing great.”

“Oh thank goodness,” Ava said. “Isn’t that wonderful, Holly?”

“And what’s the bad news?” she asked, trying to stay focused. Yes, it was wonderful her husband was getting better, but the doctor started out by saying
the good news is …
nobody said that unless bad news followed.

“Well, as you know, he had some serious injuries. His right leg shattered and his back took quite a blow, as did his internal organs. None of his vertebrae are broken, however, there is substantial swelling around his spinal cord. As a result, his lower motor functions are impaired.”