“MOMMA!” NOAH RACED DOWN the tiled hallway of the hospital and jumped into her arms.
Lane couldn’t stop the flow of tears. Happy tears of relief. She kissed Noah’s neck and his ears and his cheeks until he squealed. She breathed him in.
“Momma, what happened?” Noah’s eyes turned serious. “You got hurt?”
“Your mommy is a hero.” Charlie ran his hand down the small of her back, sending a charge of anticipation through her chest. “She helped us catch two bad guys.”
“A hero like my daddy?”
“Yep, just like your daddy.” Charlie leaned in. “I hope you don’t mind me having your sister bring him here. I missed him.”
Lane squeezed Charlie’s hand, unable to voice the love growing for him.
“Lane!” Meagan’s voice echoed down the hall. Her eyes grew round. “Oh my goodness, are you alright?”
“Do I look like a mess?” She touched the bandage on her head. There was a tender spot on her cheek where Annika had hit her with the gun and her lip was swollen. The paramedics said nothing was broken, but there’d be bruising for a couple of weeks.
“You look beautiful.” Charlie winked at her.
“You do,” Meagan agreed.
“You’re both terrible liars.” She smiled. “But I don’t mind.”
“Can I . . . can I hug you?”
“Yes.” She’d barely put Noah down when Meagan grabbed her into a tight hug. Her ribs cried out, but she ignored it and embraced her sister . . . who was sobbing. “Meagan, what’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry.” Meagan released her before pulling a tissue from her purse and wiping her eyes. “I’ve never been so scared in my life.”
Lane bit her lip. “I’m sorry—”
“No, I’m sorry, Lane. I should’ve been there for you . . . when we were younger. Now. I was just caught up . . . in my own life. I was selfish.”
Charlie walked Noah to the nurse’s station to give them privacy.
“You weren’t selfish. You were a teenager. How could you know?”
“No. I knew. I mean . . . not when we were little, but a few years ago. After I had Paige.” Meagan sniffled and looked down at the wadded piece of tissue in her hand. “I struggled. She was my first baby and I was supposed to be excited, but I wasn’t. I was angry. And sad. I thought I had done something wrong. Ate the wrong things. Didn’t exercise.”
Lane lowered her gaze to the white tiled floor. If she had spoken up about her own depression, maybe Meagan wouldn’t have suffered alone. Like Miguel. How many others kept their illness quiet out of fear or embarrassment?
“When I became pregnant with Owen, I tried to do things differently, but when he was born the same things happened. I shut down. Didn’t want to leave the house. I hid in my bedroom. That’s when Ian hired the nanny. He made me go to the doctor. They said I had postpartum depression. I never told anyone. Made Ian promise not to tell. I was ashamed.” A tear slipped down Meagan’s cheek. “I’m sorry, Lane.”
“It’s okay.” Lane hugged Meagan. “I’m okay.”
A female nurse passed them, pushing a patient in a wheelchair. She gave Lane a small nod. After a few more seconds, Lane disentangled herself from Meagan’s grip.
“I feel like people are staring at me.”
“People are talking about you.” Meagan dabbed at her eyes and waved her hand. “About Mathias. Your suicide attempt.”
Lane cringed. The reporter. She was worried people were staring at her because of her injuries, but maybe it was because of what they knew about her. About how Mathias died. At that moment, Lane’s mother and father rounded the corner into the hall. They paused at the nurse’s station when they saw Charlie and Noah.
“I’m sorry.” Lane swallowed. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you or the family.”
“Lane, you’re not embarrassing me.” Meagan took hold of her shoulders. “Honey, I’m proud of you. You were brave enough to speak out about your condition. Do you know what you’ve done? You’ve forced people to have a conversation.”
“I don’t understand.” She squished her eyebrows together. “Who’s having a conversation?”
“Everyone. Ms. Byrdie invited that reporter from the courthouse over and talked with her. Told her she suffered from depression after she and the sheriff found out they couldn’t have kids.”
“She did?”
“Ms. Byrdie said the biggest regret she had was not being brave”—Meagan squeezed her shoulders—“like you.”
“I wasn’t trying to be brave. I was trying to help Miguel.”
“It sounds like you did. And that’s not all. Daddy called that reporter and threatened to sue her and the paper she works for if they reported any false information regarding your medical history or Mathias’s accident. He told her if she wanted a story, it should be on the stigma society has placed on those with behavioral and mental health issues. That, as a country, we should be ashamed that so many people are forced to suffer in silence because they are afraid of being ostracized if they ask for help.”
Movement at the nurse’s station caught Lane’s attention. Her gaze found her father’s. Even from a distance, Lane could see the emotion warring over his features. “He did that?”
Meagan nodded.
It took Lane several heartbeats before she could meet her father’s eyes again. Her mother looped her arm through his and they stood back as though waiting for permission to approach her. Lane’s lips trembled into a small smile. At this her parents charged forward and embraced her in a hug that seemed to say everything all at once.
Charlie returned with Noah holding a rubber glove blown up to look like a turkey. “Visiting hours will be over soon. If you want to see Miguel, we should go now.”
Lane hugged her parents one more time before they left. Tears had ruined her mother’s makeup and her father tried for nonchalance as he wiped a hand to his cheek. They had a lot of healing to do, but this was a start—an emotional one that needed to happen.
Meagan wiped the remnants of her tears from her face. “You’re sure you’re okay?”
“I promise I look worse than I feel.”
Meagan looked up at Charlie like she was trying to confirm Lane’s answer.
He tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear before running the back of his knuckles over her cheek. His eyes trailed to her lips. “She’s been checked out.”
Lane’s heart soared within her chest. Would she ever get used to his touch or the way a simple look could melt her insides into mush? She hoped not.
“Okay. Please tell Miguel thank you. Your newest nephew or niece needs their auntie.”
“What?” Lane’s attention was pulled back to her sister. She saw a twinkle in Meagan’s eyes. “Are you? You’re pregnant?”
“Mm-hmm.” Meagan placed a hand on her belly. “I don’t need a special diet or extra exercise. I need you, sis. To help me through it.”
Lane hugged her sister as tears stung her eyes. “I promise I’ll be here for you. Whatever you need. Even if it’s locking ourselves in a room full of chocolate.”
“Sounds perfect.” Meagan giggled. She kissed Lane’s cheek. “Now, go see your friend.”
Meagan walked down the hall and stepped into the hospital elevator, taking Noah with her. They waved as the doors closed.
“I’m going to be an auntie again.” She smiled up at Charlie.
“Congratulations.”
“Thank you for coming here with me.” She slipped her hand into his. “And in case I didn’t tell you before. Thank you for saving my life.”
Charlie lifted her hand to his lips. He kissed each finger until his lips rested on the gold wedding band Mathias had given her.
“You’re a woman worth saving, Lane Kent.”