Chapter 13

Danielle

The light was blinding. I tried to lift my hand to block it out, but it was as if my arm was disconnected. I heard the scream of pain burning through my body just before it ripped out of my mouth. I tried to sit up, but someone pushed me down. I cried out again, but it came out muffled; something was over my mouth.

"Mrs. McCord. Mrs. McCord! Please relax."

Were they kidding? The pain was so intense, sweat seeped out of every pore. Or was it sweat? It was warm and oozing....

People seemed to be in a panic. They were screaming out numbers and strange words in Latin.

"Where am I?"

No one was listening to me. I could see now. People crowded around me, a bunch of people; in a strange, ecliptical way, the light came from around them, but their faces were a dark blur. Machines were beeping. Someone was doing something to my wrist. Something was attached to my arm.

"Mrs. McCord." The voice was the first thing to make sense in the crazy world I woke up in. "We need to take you into surgery. The baby is in trouble and—"

I didn't hear the rest. The baby? My baby? They started rolling me away. "No. Wait! Tucker." I had to have Tucker here. Panic gripped my heart.

"That's the husband," somebody else said.

"We haven't contacted your husband yet, but we will."

Tears squeezed out of my eyes and burned down into my hair. Why did they burn so much? I can't do this without Tucker. What if something happened to our baby? I couldn't stand that; it would break me. Finally, my hand responded to my command and grabbed a nurse's wrist as they wheeled me into an elevator. The nurse smiled at me kindly and removed an oxygen mask from over my mouth.

I didn't recognize my voice as I rasped out, "Please... I need my husband." Now that I had someone's attention, my mind was slow to work. All I could manage were the simple thoughts, the core thoughts running through my head. "I love him. I need him here."

"I know you do, honey." The nurse patted my hand soothingly. "But I'm afraid we don't have time to wait. You're bleeding internally, and your baby is in distress. We'll lose you both if we don't act immediately."

Even as my brain screamed out Tucker's name, I heard my whispered answer, "Okay..." then, "okay," again, as I gave in and released my tenuous hold on consciousness.

* * *

Tucker

The back door opened.

"Zoe?"

She kept her head down and made a beeline for the backstairs. "Goodnight, Dad."

I frowned. Couldn't even come in and say hi? Tell me about her date? That was my sweet teenager for you.

At least two of my three girls were in for the night. Scott was up reading Tabby a bedtime story, and I was pacing the living room. Dani had been gone far too long, and she wasn't answering her phone. I pulled the curtain back and looked out over the street for the zillionth time. That Thomas James was making me a nervous wreck. There was probably a perfectly good reason why Dani wasn't back yet.

And didn't call.

Maybe she stopped for an ice cream cone and left her cell in the car. Or maybe her cell was dead and she was... what? What could she be doing? She left over two hours ago to "run an errand."

The phone rang, and I jumped to answer it, fully expecting Dani's voice to be on the other side.

"Hey, Tucker. Sorry. I know it's late, but I didn't get a chance to tell Dani something before her phone broke."

"Her phone is broken?"

"Well, I assumed so. We were in the middle of a conversation when BAM, this loud noise, then nothing."

"I don't know what's going on. She left to run an errand hours ago and hasn't called me, so...."

"Hmm... that is weird. Well, tell you what, can you have her call me when she gets home, so I know she's in?"

"Sure. I'd be happy to." More than happy to.

After we hung up, I was really worried. Had she dropped and broken her phone and the car wouldn't start? I'd search for her, but I didn't even know where she went in the first place, and I didn't want to miss her if she came home.

Fifteen minutes later, the phone rang again. I turned to stare at it as if it came alive. It rang three times before I could move. I rushed over to answer it and picked the receiver up gingerly, slowly bringing it to my ear.

"Tucker McCord?"

"Yes."

"Mr. McCord, this is Susan Humphries. I'm a nurse at Bryan Medical Center West. I'm afraid we're calling to tell you your wife's been in a serious accident."

Everything slowed down. My heart beat strong, loud, and low, but at the rhythm of a dirge. My chest was tight and the air seemed depleted of oxygen.

"Mr. McCord?"

I lowered myself to the couch and forced my mouth to speak, although my voice sounded thick. "Yes. I'm here."

"Did you hear me, sir?"

"Umm..." my mouth was sweating. "Umm, yes. My wife's been in an accident. What kind of accident?"

"She was hit by a car."

I closed my eyes.

"She's at Bryan Medical Center. Do you have someone to drive you?"

Dani was in a car accident.

"Sir?"

"What?"

I need to go to her.

"Do you have somebody—"

"To drive me. Yes. I'll be right there."

"Do you know where we're—"

I hung up the phone. Dani was in a car accident. And she's in the hospital. That's why she's not home.

I rose from the couch.

"I have to—"

I have to do something.

"I have to go." I snagged my keys from the front hall table and grabbed the doorknob, but stopped. I couldn't leave and not tell Zoe.

I bolted up the stairs and knocked on Zoe's door. Receiving no answer, I opened it, but the room was dark. Water was running in the tub in the hall bathroom.

I rapped on the door, putting my ear against it and fighting back tears. "Zoe?"

The water stopped.

"Yeah, Dad?"

"I have to go. Can you watch Scooter and Tabby?"

Sloshing noises snuck under the door. "Wait, Dad."

I didn't want to see her.

Seconds later, she opened the door, wrapped in a towel. "What's wrong?"

I couldn't say her name. I just shook my head.

Zoe put her hand on my arm. "Daddy, what's wrong?"

She sounded so scared. I needed to get a grip.

"Is it Dani? The baby?"

I nodded. I forgot about the baby. How could I forget about the baby?

Zoe squeezed my arm, and laughed. "Everything will be okay, Dad." Her gaze roamed over my face. "Won't it?" Something was wrong with the way she looked. What was it? She shook me. "Dad. Everything will be fine, won't it?"

I took a deep breath. The first one I'd taken since the phone rang, I think. "Yes. Everything will be fine. But I need you to watch your brother and sister. And lock the doors."

She exhaled. "Okay, then. I can do that."

She had scrapes on her chest. Had she climbed that damn tree again?

"You go and bring me home that new baby brother."

"Okay," I choked out, and I turned away before she could see. I was halfway down the hall when she called after me.

"Dad. You're okay to drive, aren't you?" Her feet padded out into the hall. "'Cause I can call Mrs. Issaacs and she can come over."

I waved my hand at her and jogged down the stairs. If I said another word, she'd know I wasn't telling her the whole truth.

Her voice carried to me. "O-o-okay then."

I made it out to the porch but had to grab the railing to steady myself. How would my life change when I got to that hospital?

* * *

Zoe

I needed some time.

I needed some time to calm down, decompress, or whatever the hell the label would be. Ben was going to... take, what wasn't offered to him. And he didn't care. He didn't care I didn't want him to. He didn't care he was hurting me. And if I hadn't gotten away....

I needed some time to sort through things. And I needed more time to think about whether to tell my dad about it.

Then he'd been there. Knocking at the bathroom door, and Dani was having the baby. I couldn't tell him then. But Dad was counting on me, so I found a shirt that covered most of the scratches so I wouldn't scare the shit out of Scott and Tabby. When they went to bed, I took my ripped sweater and the other clothes I was wearing out to the trash can. I didn't ever want to see them again.

Now, the house was so quiet it made me nervous. What was with Dad acting so weird and being so insistent I lock the doors? Was he like that when we were born? What a doofus. I checked the doors again to make sure they were locked, and that's when I noticed him. His car was parked across the street from our house. Did Ben know Dad wasn't home?

I ran over to the couch and jumped on it, drawing my legs up and wrapping my arms around them, making myself into an egg. What if he tried to break in? I didn't feel as if I was crying, but tears ran down my face, and I couldn't make them stop. I grabbed my cell and dialed my dad.

"Daddy. Daddy. Come on. Pick up." It rang and rang and went to voicemail. I hung up. He was with his wife bringing a new life into this world. I had to pull it together.

I tried to focus on the baby. A new little person for us to love. I could teach him things, like I did Scott. And Dad and Dani were such great parents... even if I didn't usually give them credit for that. I sniffed. The tears stopped.

Maybe I would make it past this.

But was Ben still out there? I was too afraid to look.

* * *

Tucker

I drove fairly sanely on my way to the hospital, until the last couple of blocks. My SUV flew around corners, hit curbs, and screamed into the lot. I threw it into park in what may or may not have been a legal parking area, under the bright lights reading EMERGENCY ROOM. I jogged up, almost bumping into the glass when the doors didn't open fast enough. Everyone turned to look at me when I entered. I was out of breath when I reached the huge round desk in the middle of the room.

"I'm Tucker McCord. My wife was in a car accident." I panted.

A lady behind the nurse I was talking to turned around.

"Mr. McCord. I'll take you to her."

I followed her, wringing my hands as we moved at a sharp clip through the endless, forever-turning hallways. How did anyone find their way around a place like this?

"As I think I told you, your wife is in critical condition. Your son has been upgraded to stable."

"My son?" Wasn't Scott at home?

"Your baby. You are Tucker C. McCord, aren't you?"

"Oh, yes. I'm sorry. I... I'm not thinking clearly right now."

"I understand. It's a lot to take in. Your wife is still in surgery, but I can take you to your son."

"No," I said a little too loudly. "I don't want to see him for the first time without Dani by my side."

"Well, I can show you where you can wait for your wife, then."

"What's wrong with her?" The nurse looked at me again as if I'd lost it. "Her injuries. What are her specific injuries?"

We entered a smaller waiting room marked for surgical patient's families. "I'll have the doctors come out and talk to you afterward."

"Can't you tell me anything?"

She shook her head. "I'm sorry, Mr. McCord. I just call people. I can get someone who knows more...."

"I'd appreciate that." She turned to leave. "Do you know what caused her car accident?"

"Oh. She wasn't in a car." She closed her mouth abruptly.

"Tell me what happened."

The nurse came back toward me. Brenda, it said on her nametag. "I only know what I overheard." She looked around, but only three other people were in the room and they were talking quietly to themselves. "She was struck by a hit and run driver who jumped a curb and ran into her and a building. The cops are out looking for the driver."

She probably didn't even see it coming. For some reason, this hurt more. "Do they think the driver was drunk?"

She glanced around again, and lowered her voice even further. "Uhh... not from what I understand. They said he came right at her. But I only caught a small bit of the conversation."

"Thank you."

* * *

Hours later, I was alone in a room with my wife. Her machines beeped her a lullaby as she slept, as she had done ever since they wheeled her in. I sat in a chair a few feet from the bed, my elbows on my thighs, face in my hands, trying to wrap my mind around the fact that, six hours ago we were sitting down to dinner in a different reality. I took a deep breath, wiped the tears from my face, and left my hands covering my mouth as I watched Dani.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I dragged it out and glanced at the display. It was Zoe, for the fourth time. I stuck it back in my pocket, stood, and stretched my back. I gripped the bed rails. It was well after midnight.

Zoe deserved an explanation. But I didn't know if I was capable of giving her one. I'd never felt so alone in all my life. I dialed. She picked up immediately.

"Dad! It's about time. Is he here yet? How's Dani doing?"

My eyes filled with tears. I hung my head. "Zo. I didn't tell you everything." I didn't know how to say this. "Dani was hit by a car. It jumped the curb and rammed into her as she was heading down the sidewalk."

Dead silence.

"She's out of surgery, but hasn't woken up."

No response.

"Zoe?"

"Oh, my God," she whimpered. "I knew something was wrong. I knew it. But... not this. I never thought this... oh, my God." She sobbed.

I closed my eyes. The stab of guilt, the helplessness to comfort my little girl was overwhelming. "I'm sorry, honey. I'm sorry I had to leave you alone."

"No," she cried. "No, Daddy, I understand. You had to be with her." More silence.

I was handling this all wrong. Maybe I should have called somebody to come over to the house... I couldn't think straight. She'd been quiet too long. "Are you okay?"

"I want to come down there."

"No. Please, Zoe. I need you to watch over your brother and sister. Can you do that for me, honey? Take care of everybody at home?"

She hesitated. "Yes, Daddy."

I let out a deep breath. "Okay. Thanks." I walked over to the bed, bending to touch Dani's arm. Her dark hair fanned out around her, standing in stark contrast to the sheets and the deathly white pallor of her skin. "Scooter and Tabby okay?"

She sniffed. "Yes. Yes, they're asleep."

"Good."

After a few seconds she asked, "What happened, Dad? How did she...?" She was choked up. "Is the baby...?"

"He's fine. But I haven't been able to meet him yet."

She exhaled. "Well, that's good at least."

I nodded, though she couldn't see me. Dani would have been devastated had we lost the baby. The thought brought new tears. "Yeah. Yeah. That's good."

"What do the doctors say about Dani?"

I rubbed my eyes. "I didn't get much of a chance to talk to them yet."

"Are you okay, Daddy?"

I sighed. "I don't know," I said truthfully. I raised my eyes to look at Dani. She was my world. I needed her to wake up. "You locked the doors, right?"

"Why do you keep asking me that?"

My jaw tightened. "You just need to do what I say." It came out sharper than I intended. I turned my back to the bed, putting my hand on my forehead. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped. My nerves are frazzled."

Her voice was quiet. "No. It's okay. I understand."

I turned at the sound of the door opening. A group of white coats shuffled in. "I've gotta go, Zo. The doctors are here. I'll call you back. I promise."

"Okay. I love you. Give Dani a hug from me when she wakes up."

Man, would I love to.

"I will, hon. I love you, too. Thanks."

I hung up, and faced the tribunal.