Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 72990 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72990 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
We’re not just brothers. He’s a part of me and I’m a part of him and if anything happened to him…took him away…a part of me would be taken too.
His eyelids flicker again, this time revealing a hint of white and the crystal blue that I’ve missed so much. As if his eyelids weigh two-hundred pounds, he can’t seem to lift them.
“Kain,” Dad pleads again. “Come back to me, son. Open your eyes.”
And as if all he needs to hear is the reassurance of our father, Kain’s eyes finally open.
I crowd in closer with Dad. “We’re here, Kain,” I say as he blinks, gaze drifting, expression impossible to read. “We’re here. You’re okay. You’re in the hospital. There was an accident, but you’re okay now. You’re okay.”
Kain blinks again, confusion lowering his brows, his tongue pushing between his dry lips to wet them.
Dad turns to look at me again, uncertainty clouding, worry twisting, desperation clawing in his eyes.
My heart feels like a drop of water falling into an echoing cave and I can’t breathe.
Will he be okay?
Please be okay.
“Dad,” Kain whispers. “Dad.” And Dad crumbles, face falling into Kain’s open palm, kissing my brother’s hand over and over until I have to walk away and brace myself on the window ledge before I crumble too.
He’s awake, I message to everyone who loves him. He’s awake.
Now all we have to do is wait to see what damage has been done.
27
KAIN
“Kain, it’s time to take your meds.” A hand rests on my shoulder, squeezing slightly, and I rouse from sleep, feeling groggy and delirious. I have no idea what day it is or what time. It’s been that way since they slowly brought me out of the induced coma and removed the ventilator. At least, that’s what they told me they did. My mind can’t seem to grasp onto what is reality and what are dreams from the period of unconsciousness. Everything is weirdly surreal.
I clear my throat, wincing at the soreness there. The doctor told me it will take a while to heal. It’s what happens when a person is intubated quickly. “Water,” I rasp and the nurse presses on the button on my bed to raise my head. She’s ready with a small potful of tablets and a glass of cool water. Just the thought of having to swallow those small, white chalky blocks makes me shudder. My whole body feels sore.
“What time is it?” I croak, taking the water. “It’s midnight, sweetie,” she says. “You’ve slept so much today.”
“I feel like I got hit by a train.”
“You might as well have,” she laughs. “That bruise on your chest is all colors of the rainbow.”
I’m wearing a scratchy hospital gown that’s fastened at the back, but I try to open the neck to look down at my body. Even in the darkness under the gown, what she’s talking about is evident.
“Where is everybody?” I ask. The last time I was awake, Dad and Dalton were here. They told me that Gabriella and Blake had been taking shifts, and that my whole team was camping out outside the hospital. Travis is here, too. Back from Germany.
“I sent someone out while I did my checks, but he’ll be back.”
She makes notes while I work through the tablets, gnawing on her lips as she focuses. She must be in her mid-fifties. It’s reassuring to be in the care of someone who seems so experienced.
I flex my feet, relieved that they can move. Even though the doctors have confirmed that everything seems okay, I’m still not one-hundred-percent certain. My body doesn’t feel my own, and my mind is a tangle of confusion.
“Well done,” the nurse says, taking the now empty tablet pot.
“I didn’t do much,” I croak.
“You did what you needed to do. Do you want to lie back down?”
I shake my head. “I’ve slept enough.”
She takes the control pad that works the bed and rests it next to my hand. “If you change your mind.”
“Thanks.”
She nods and leaves, bustling away to deal with another poor soul trapped in this place. I’m grateful for the care but I want to get out of the hospital as soon as I can. Getting well in a place surrounded by sickness takes a whole ton of mental strength. The machines around me are reminders of what I could potentially slip back into.
Travis appears a couple of minutes later, probably given the all-clear by the nurse.
“You’re awake,” he says, grinning and making his way around to my bedside.
“And you’re back from Germany.” I’m sure we’ve already had this conversation, but I can’t remember.
“I came as soon as I heard about your amateur dramatics.”
“Funny,” I choke, laughing. “This shit doesn’t feel amateur.” I let my hand hover over my bruise and Travis winces on my behalf.
“You gave us all a fucking scare, man. I…” He pauses, swallowing thickly. “I couldn’t believe it when Dalton called me. I thought he was joking. I actually laughed.”