Fair Chances (Fairshore Series Book 3)

by Christina Butrum

  Zach’s hand on her shoulder startled her. She jumped and looked up at him. He looked as rough as her mother, if not worse. She wondered how he had slept and if he had slept at all.

  “Hey, hon, sorry,” Zach said. He sat down next to her and moved his hand to hers and held onto it. “Are you doing okay?”

  Amelia shrugged her shoulders. She was doing as okay as she could in this kind of situation. “It’s almost like a nightmare.”

  He nodded.

  “Actually, it’s worse than a nightmare,” she stated. “This is my biggest fear.”

  Zach nodded again and wrapped an arm around her. He pulled her close. She snuggled into his chest and rested her head. His heartbeat boomed inside his chest. She wrapped her arm around him and held onto him. She wanted comfort and she had found it through him. Zach allowed her to relax and not worry. The comfort he provided just from his presence had overwhelmed her with peace.

  “They say his chances of recovery are slim,” Amelia explained to Zach. “They want him to rest as much as possible without visitors to see if his body starts the recovery process.”

  Zach nodded. His chin lightly bounced on the top of her head. “It’s what’s best for him. They’re great here. They know what they’re doing. We just need to keep praying.”

  Amelia closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

  The intercom above them in the waiting room announced, “Code Blue, ICU. Code Blue, ICU.”

  She sat straight up. The hair on the back of her neck stood straight up. In a panic, she glanced around the room. Her mother scooted to the edge of her chair. Zach leaned forward in his seat. Panic raced through Amelia’s veins. She was not sure what code blue meant, but she was sure it was not good.

  Before she could ask her mother if it could be her father, her mother had hurried out of the waiting room. Amelia grabbed Zach’s hand and followed her mother. Panic consumed her and attempted to swallow her whole. Dear God, don’t take my dad. I need him. We need him, she silently prayed as she hurried to keep up with her mother.

  Amelia watched her mother approach her father’s room in ICU. Her mother collapsed in front of the door to the room and held her hand to her mouth as she sobbed uncontrollably. A knot formed in Amelia’s stomach and her heart sank. She rushed to her mother’s side. She squatted down to hold onto her mother. She was afraid to look into her father’s room for fear of what she might see. Zach stood in front of them and helped them both to their feet.

  “He’s fine,” Zach stated. “He’s okay.”

  Amelia looked at him with confusion. She wondered how her father could be okay when her mother collapsed as though…

  She looked into the room. There her father was – still hooked up to the machines that beeped. He was fine – as fine as he would be for now.

  She held her arms tightly around her mother. Her mother’s body shook from her uncontrollable sobs.

  “Mom, hey,” she said as she tried to get her mother to focus on her. “Dad’s fine.”

  She hugged her mother tighter. “Dad’s fine. He’s okay.”

  Against her chest, she felt her mother nod her head. Her father was okay. For now, that’s all that mattered – he was still here with them.

  Chapter Eleven

  “You have visitors in the waiting room,” a nurse informed Amelia.

  Amelia nodded and continued toward the waiting room. She wondered if Bailey and Benny had finally arrived. She walked around the corner of the waiting area.

  Bailey stood suddenly and rushed to Amelia. “Amelia, I’m sorry we couldn’t make it last night. We had to wait for the vet to open this morning to drop our dogs off.”

  Amelia walked into Bailey’s arms and let go of every bit of emotion she had held in until now. The fear, the anger, the heartache of seeing her father like this had captured her in its fierce claws and had threatened to devour her. She had held onto her strength to hold it in until now. Her will to stay strong broke and tears poured out as she tried to explain everything to Bailey.

  Bailey shushed her and held her against her chest. She rubbed her hand up and down Amelia’s back as she swayed back and forth. “It’ll be okay,” Bailey assured her.

  “I thought we had lost him,” Amelia explained through the sobs. “They called for a code blue…”

  Amelia melted into Bailey’s arms and lost all control of her tears. There was no way to stop the tears once they fell.

  “We thought,” Amelia tried to explain. “We thought he…”

  “Shh… I know,” Bailey said. “But he wasn’t. He’s fine. He’s okay.”

  Amelia wiped her tears with her sleeve and looked at Bailey. Her lips trembled as she tried to speak. Emotion choked her and she cried more. Bailey walked her to a chair and eased her into it.

  Bailey grabbed Amelia’s hands and squeezed them. There were no words to say at that point. Everything seemed to hit rock bottom for Amelia. She knew she might not have a father tomorrow. She prayed while she dismissed the negative thoughts. She needed to stay positive – if not for herself, for everyone else.

  When Amelia settled down, she explained what had happened to her father.

  “His co-workers told my mom that he was walking into work and the grain elevator exploded. The blast threw him and the whole elevator was engulfed in flames,” Amelia explained. It pained her to think of her father’s reactions to the explosion and the fire. She prayed he had been knocked unconscious by the explosion. She hoped he would not remember any of it. “His co-workers ran in and pulled him from the elevator. They were quick to extinguish the flames that covered him from head to toe.”

  Bailey shook her head. Disbelief crossed her face. “I can’t believe that,” she said. “Was he in there by himself?”

  “I’m pretty sure he was by himself,” Amelia confirmed. “They never said if anyone else was hurt.”

  Bailey grabbed her coffee and took a drink. “That’s pretty damn scary.”

  Amelia nodded. She looked around the waiting area. Zach had taken her mother for a walk to relax her.

  “Have the doctors told you anything?”

  “They said his chances of recovering are slim to none,” Amelia said. Tears stung her eyes. “They’re letting him rest while medicating him to speed the recovery process.”

  Bailey leaned forward and squeezed Amelia’s hand. “We’ll keep praying he makes it through this,” she insisted. “He’s a strong man. I’m sure he’ll be just fine.”

  Amelia wanted to believe her father would make it, but she knew now without a doubt that things could change in an instant.

  Bailey changed the subject to relieve Amelia of her worries. “Let’s take a walk.” Bailey looked at Benny and asked, “You want to walk with us?”

  Benny shook his head and said, “I’m fine, you two go ahead.”

  Amelia followed Bailey’s guidance out of the waiting area. She felt numb to her surroundings. She could not care less what happened as long as her father survived this whole ordeal.

  They walked the hallways of the hospital. Amelia remembered this hospital from her first miscarriage. She had been so scared. No different than she was now. She was scared out of her mind. She feared the worst and expected the best.

  “Where’d you find Zach?” Bailey asked.

  Amelia focused her attention on Bailey’s question and dismissed her thoughts. “He was at the furniture store.”

  “At eight o’clock at night?” Bailey asked.

  Amelia nodded. “He says he had a lot of things on his mind and when I fell asleep on the couch, he went to work.”

  Bailey took a drink of her coffee. “He must be having new daddy jitters.”

  Amelia laughed. The thought of Zach being nervous amused her. She had not thought about him much lately. It seemed selfish of her to think of herself. Zach’s thoughts and feelings had not occurred to her.

  “What’s funny?” Bailey asked.

  Amelia waved a hand in the air. “I haven’t really thought about
how Zach may be feeling about this pregnancy.”

  Bailey raised an eyebrow. From her expression, Amelia realized she sounded as selfish as she had imagined she had been lately.

  “I know, I’m selfish,” Amelia admitted.

  “I wouldn’t say that,” Bailey said. She tilted her head back and forth and said, “But…”

  “I know, I’m a horrible person.”

  Bailey lightly shoved Amelia’s arm. “You’re not a horrible person.”

  Amelia shrugged. “I guess I’m just not used to a man who’s there for me. Who cares for me, you know?”

  Bailey nodded. “I know. You’re preachin’ to the choir, sista.”

  Amelia laughed. “Good, I’m glad someone understands where I’m coming from.”

  Bailey wrapped her free arm around Amelia. “I always have and I always will.”

  * * *

  “How long will he be here?” Amelia’s mother asked the doctor.

  Amelia sat quietly in the chair with Zach beside her. She listened closely as the doctor explained her father’s prognosis to her mother.

  The doctor clasped his hands together and said with the deepest sincerity in his voice, “The chances of him recovering are improving, but he’s not out of the woods yet.”

  Amelia’s heart sank. She had wanted the doctor to say ‘He’s all clear and ready to go home.’ She knew it was a long shot and she had set herself up for failure by wishful thinking, but she needed something to keep her in positive spirits.

  “We’re thinking he might have to be here for another few weeks,” the doctor stated. He held onto her father’s charts. He opened the files and asked her mother a few questions. Amelia had a hard time deciphering what he had asked, but she thought he had said DNR. She had no clue what DNR stood for. Or did he say donor? Either way, why was he saying those things? Didn’t he just tell her mother that her father’s condition was improving?

  Amelia was restless in her chair. She watched intently as her mother conversed with the doctor. The doctor had turned his back toward Amelia. She was unable to understand what they were saying now.

  Frustration filled her. She wanted to know what was going on. She wondered if her mother would tell her – she doubted it.

  Zach rustled in the chair next to her. “Hey, babe,” he said when he opened his eyes. “What’s going on?”

  “The doctor is talking to my mom and turned his back to me so I can’t understand what they’re saying,” Amelia told him. “I think they said something about donor or DNR?”

  Zach sat up and leaned forward. “Probably some basic questions they have to ask everyone. Don’t get too freaked out about it.”

  “Easy for you to say,” Amelia snipped back.

  Zach held his hands in front of him in defense. “Hey, I’m not saying anything bad. I’m just saying,” he responded. “I care too, you know.”

  “Sorry,” Amelia stated. She focused her attention back to her mother’s conversation with the doctor. She wanted to know what they were discussing. She hoped her mother would tell her.

  She wished Bailey was still here. She would be able to decipher the doctor’s lingo. She was smart and she had the benefit of working at a hospital. Amelia was sure Bailey would have heard the lingo around the hospital all the time. But, of course, Bailey had to leave. They had to go home for their dogs. Bailey had told Amelia to call her if she needed someone to talk to or if she needed them to come back. Amelia had joked and told her to keep her phone line clear at all times, because she would need to talk to her constantly.

  Amelia’s mother thanked the doctor and walked into the waiting area. She walked to the chair next to Amelia and sat down. Amelia turned to face her mother. She waited for her mother to explain their conversation. When her mother did not initiate the discussion, Amelia asked, “What’d the doctor say?”

  “He asked some questions about your father is all,” her mother said in an attempt to keep her explanation short.

  Amelia wanted to know more. “What kind of questions?”

  Her mother sighed. “Amelia, just some basic questions they ask everyone, dear.”

  “What does DNR mean?” Amelia asked. She kept her tone light. She knew not to get too upset with her mother.

  Her mother’s eyes widened. Amelia realized she was not supposed to hear that part of their conversation. Amelia shrugged – too late for that. The look on her mother’s face had confirmed her suspicions anyway.

  “He asked if…” her mother hesitated to explain what DNR meant.

  “Mom, you have to tell me, I’m not a kid anymore,” Amelia pleaded. “I’m a grown adult.”

  Her mother nodded. “I know that, Amelia. It’s just difficult.”

  Amelia lost a bit of her patience. She flung her hands up and tossed her head back against the chair. “This whole situation is difficult, Mom.”

  She looked at her mother who had tears in her eyes. She hated to make her mother explain everything, but she wanted to know. She had a right to know what was going to happen with her father.

  “DNR means do not resuscitate.”

  Amelia felt a brick hit her in the face. Confusion clouded her mind. She wondered why the doctor would even ask such a question. The doctor would have to know the answer to that question would be no. He had to have known the patient’s family would want everything done that could possibly be done. She wondered what kind of question that was for a doctor to ask. Isn’t it common sense?

  “Why’d he ask that?” Amelia asked, her tone a bit much toward her mother.

  Her mother raised a finger. “Don’t get snippy with me, please.”

  Amelia sat back into her chair. She counted to ten with a few breaths and asked again, “Why would the doctor ask such a thing?”

  “I’m sure they have to ask everyone, Amelia,” her mother assured her. “It’s something they need to know.”

  Amelia sighed. The thought of the doctors and nurses not resuscitating her father if he were to die petrified her. “Isn’t it their job to resuscitate their patients?”

  Amelia’s mother shrugged one of her shoulders. “I imagine it is, but if the family has a choice, like we do,” her mother explained. “They just ask for the family’s decision. It’s out of respect I suppose.”

  “How’d you answer that question, Mom?” Amelia asked.

  Her mother’s jaw dropped open and the look on her face was as though Amelia had smacked her. “Amelia Jean,” her mother asked, “What kind of question is that? How do you think I answered it?”

  Amelia shrugged. Her frustrations and fears had gotten the best of her. She knew it was wrong for her to interrogate her mother. “I’m sorry, Mom.”

  Zach reached over and grabbed her hand. “Let’s take a walk.”

  She stood and placed her arms around her mother. She kissed the side of her mother’s head. “He’ll make it through this. We’ll all make it through this.”

  For a minute, she found comfort in her own words. She could be weak another time. For now, she needed to be strong for her mother.

  Chapter Twelve

  “We need to talk about some things,” Zach said as they walked through the hospital’s revolving doors.

  Amelia’s stomach knotted. She looked up at him and asked, “Talk about what things?”

  Zach led her to a concrete bench with In Loving Memory of Janice S. engraved in the backrest. Amelia sat where he directed her to and he sat down next to her. He turned his body to face her. He whispered, “Your mother is going to need our help now more than ever.”

  Amelia raised an eyebrow. She was slightly confused where he was going with this. “What do you mean? And why are we whispering?”

  Zach cleared his throat and spoke up, “With your father not being able to work, they’re going to need our help with bills and other things.”

  Amelia nodded. Why had she not figured out this is what he had thought of? “What do you have in mind?”

  “Well, I know we have to take it one
day at a time,” Zach stated. “But when he leaves the hospital, they’re going to need us.”

  Amelia thought about the future her parents had. Their world had crumbled in an instant. With her father being the only one who worked, their money would be scarce to nonexistent during her father’s recovery. Tears filled Amelia’s eyes. She regretted the questions she had asked her mother a few moments ago. Why had she not realized how much her mother had on her plate? Maybe she was selfish. She shook her head. No, there was no maybe, she was selfish.

  “What’s wrong?” Zach asked.

  Amelia shook her head and wiped the tears from her eyes. “Nothing.”

  Zach pulled her close and said, “It isn’t nothing. Tell me, please?”

  Amelia wiped the tears away as they streaked down her cheeks. “I’m always thinking about me. Never about anyone else or what they’re going through.”

  Zach shook his head. “That’s not true.”

  “I had not thought about any of the issues my parents will face,” Amelia said as she dabbed her eyes with her shirt. “I’ve been so focused on how much I want my dad to live.”

  Zach squeezed her closer to him. “There’s nothing wrong with that. You’re taking things one thing at a time.”

  “I should be focusing on the whole picture.”

  “You will in time,” Zach said. “Right now your biggest concern is your father. That’s perfectly normal and okay.”

  Amelia nodded. “You’re right, but I still feel awful for asking my mom how she answered the doctor’s questions.”

  “Hey, it was in the heat of the moment and you were confused and angry,” Zach stated. “It happens. I’m sure your mom understands.”

  “I hope so,” Amelia said.

  “So, as I was saying,” Zach said. “They’re going to need our help.”

  Amelia nodded. “What do you have in mind?”

  “I was thinking about the inheritance check I’ll be getting,” Zach said.