A Few Days Later – Devin’s Cay Hospital
If modern day miracles still happened, they were happening in Devin’s Cay. No one could have imagined that just days ago, after being shot pointblank in the face that Levi would still be fighting to stay alive. And even though he’d been in a comatose state for most of his stay in the hospital, it was a relief to know that there was much hope that he could make a full recovery, especially when the doctors decided to take him off the breathing machine.
Being that the weapon of choice was just a .22 pistol as opposed to a .44 Magnum was a blessing in disguise. The bullet hadn’t exploded on impact, but simply made a narrow passage through tissue without causing major secondary damage. Friends and family of Levi were in good spirits, particularly Drake and Sasha, who’d showed up every day at the hospital to pray and to wait for updates on Levi’s prognosis. However, there were still some concerns to be discussed by the resident neurologist.
Strange enough, this incident had brought Drake and Sasha closer than they’d ever been in their marriage. For one, they’d had a chance to talk about her reaction the night Levi was shot. Granted Drake was pierced to his soul about what was being revealed, but he listened with an understanding heart. At the present, they were holding hands in the waiting room, keeping Levi’s condition before the Lord in prayer. They’d done this for the entire time Levi had been in the hospital and whether they sensed it or not, their prayers had a healing effect on the emotional wounds between them.
The conclusion of the whole matter was that they both loved Levi and they both wanted him to live. After a few minutes of sitting in silence, Drake pulled out his cell phone and located the emails he’d received from someone by the name of Anonymous_Eyes. Up to this point, he still hadn’t said anything to Sasha about them, but he was in a much better place.
He touched her hand in a supportive manner and said. “I want to show you something.”
Sasha leaned into her husband as he pointed to an email address on his phone.
“Who is Anonymous_Eyes?”
Sasha’s heart dropped to her feet. “Honey…I’ve been trying to explain this to you…”
“Don’t be alarmed,” Drake assured her. “I just need to know who this person is continuing to mess with you and our marriage.”
The resurgence of guilt caused Sasha to drop her gaze toward her lap. “How long have you known?”
“Does it really matter? But if you must know, I received the emails the night of Kevin and Hunter’s engagement party.”
“Have you read them?”
Drake shook his head. “I wanted to, but I didn’t. I interpreted it as another ploy from the devil and maybe a final test to ascertain the genuineness of my heart.” He lifted Sasha’s face so that her gaze was level with his. “When I said I forgave you; I meant that with every fiber in my body. And I chose to accept that whatever happened between you and Levi is in the past. I don’t care to be reminded of it. By you, or by anyone else.
“Now, did it hurt seeing you express such deep emotions for Levi when we both thought he’d been killed? Yes and we’ve talked about that. But did that lessen my love and my devotion to you? It didn’t in the least. In fact, I love you even more and I plan to be more committed to this marriage than ever before. But what stood out to me the most during this entire ordeal, is your devotion to me.”
Sasha was confused and it showed up in her tone. “I don’t understand.”
Drake looked at her warmly. “What’s to understand? You chose me over Levi, even though you had multiple opportunities to change the course of your future with another man. I am encouraged by that, knowing our marriage has withstood one of the greatest tests of any marriage. But I sense in my heart of hearts that we will be together for a very long time.”
Sasha’s eyes moistened. She just could not get over the amazing traits of this man. “You have no idea how much I want that,” she said. “And I want you to know that I do love you, more than you could ever know, or more than I can ever express.”
“But I do know…”
“And that I will never do anything to intentionally hurt you. But I must tell you that Levi and I never crossed the line – if you can discern what I’m saying. Rest assured that this baby is yours – ours that we’ve made together in love.”
Drake smiled, giving Sasha’s hand a gentle squeeze. “I’ve never once questioned the paternity of my child, even after I received those emails. One of my main concerns right now is putting a stop to the person who is continuing to send these inappropriate messages. But we will deal with it as soon as Levi gets out of the hospital.”
As if on cue, the neurologist walked into the waiting room area and cleared his throat. Both Drake and Sasha stood to their feet to give ear to what he was about to say.
“I have some good news and not so good news,” he said. “Which do you want first?”
Sasha and Drake both agreed to hear the good news first.
“Well,” the neurologist said, “Mr. Johnson has completely shaken out of his coma. Though he is a little woozy; nonetheless, he’s awake and can communicate coherently.”
“May we go in to see him?” Drake asked.
“You can, but the other part of the news is that Mr. Johnson has lost a significant part of his episodic memory; that’s the part of the brain having to do with the loss of personal information and events of one’s life.”
“Are you saying he won’t remember us?” Sasha inquired.
“I’m not saying he won’t remember the faces of people,” the neurologist clarified. “He just won’t remember certain events, as in dating certain people, or getting married…things of that nature. Mr. Johnson’s tests revealed that once the swelling of his brain subsides, it is possible for him to retrieve some, if not all of these memories. However, it could be anywhere from six months to six years or more. I can take you to see him, but be advised that you must end your visit after five minutes. He must get his rest.”
“We understand,” Drake said. “Please take us to see him.”
Sasha was the first to enter Levi’s hospital room, followed by her husband. The sight of Levi looking so vulnerable and helpless in that bed threw Sasha for a loop. But holding Drake’s hand helped stabilize her emotions. Levi moved his gaze slowly toward them and for a moment he seemed confused. But soon he broke out into a smile.
“Hey, buddy,” Drake hailed. “We’ve come to see how you’re doing?”
Levi looked back and forth between Drake and Sasha. He then stared at the wedding ring on Sasha’s finger. “Man,” he dragged. “It seems as if you’re doing better than me.”
“Why’d you say that?”
“Because you and Sasha didn’t invite me to the wedding. In fact, I’m upset that you didn’t ask me to be your best man.”
Thankfully, Sasha’s gasp was internal or else it would have revealed how stunned she was that Levi had indeed lost part of his memory. There was no farce in his expression that could be detected, which meant that if Levi didn’t recall attending her and Drake’s wedding and in fact, was one of Drake’s best men, then it was possible he didn’t remember any other event after that. Including the yearlong heated exchanges they’d had between him, Drake and her. Could it really be so? Sasha stared at Drake and it seemed as if he was asking the same questions with his eyes.
“What is the last thing you remember me talking to you about regarding the wedding?” Drake asked his friend. “The doctor explained that you’ve lost some of your memory due to your head injury.”
“By that, you mean that I was shot.” Levi closed his eyes, as if trying to locate certain images in his mind. Finding none, he opened his eyes again. “Do either of you know why I was shot?”
It appeared as if Drake was going to respond to Levi’s question, but Sasha stopped him. “Remember what the neurologist said…we should let Levi get his rest.” She turned her concerned gaze to Levi. “Don’t worry about finding out about too much too soon. You’ve been through a serious trauma, which almost took your life. But if you don’t mind, Drake and I would like to say a short prayer with you.”
Levi closed his eyes without protest. He was too weak to offer any sarcastic remark anyway. Drake wondered if Levi even remembered that he’d given his life to the Lord two Sundays ago. Once the prayer concluded, he and Sasha walked out of Levi’s room in absorbed silence. Where would they all go from there?
Drake pulled Sasha into a warm embrace and pressed his lips against her forehead. “The Lord knows exactly what He is doing,” he said. “Let us be thankful that Levi is alive. Maybe if he didn’t do what he did at that party, we would have been planning for Kevin and Hunter’s funerals rather than their wedding.”
Sasha shrugged in Drake’s arm. “I just want him to be happy, just as we have found happiness with each other.”
From a distance, Drake noticed Yasmine slipping through the door of Levi’s room. And by what he could tell from Yasmine’s worried disposition, she wasn’t about to leave Levi’s side anytime soon. The shootout at Suanne’s home had been all over the news and Drake assumed it was how Yasmine found out that Levi was in the hospital.
There was something magnetic and unexplainable about real love and that even the temporary loss of memory didn’t have enough power to keep two people apart that were meant to be together. Drake just knew that Levi and Yasmine would somehow be reunited and be blessed with a more potent connection.
“Take my word for it, babe,” he said with a stronger conviction. “Levi will be just fine. The sovereignty of God will safeguard the fulfillment of our assigned purposes.”