Consumed

by Julia Crane

  “Yeah. The ambulance left us behind, so they got here pretty quick.”

  She nodded. Her hair wasn’t brushed; her short ginger locks were sticking up as if she’d just rolled from bed. Rourk figured she had—Thaddeus had likely woken her up and told her what was happening. Emerald probably took just long enough to get dressed before she teleported.

  “I won’t be able to get to him,” she murmured, watching as an older couple shuffled by on their way into the building. She turned her bright blue eyes back to Rourk. “I’ll have to find a quiet place. Go. Go in and check on him.”

  Rourk turned and she followed behind. The doors opened, admitting them into the cool interior. The smell of hospitals always bothered him a little. There was just something unnatural about it.

  He stood impatiently in line to ask where they had sent Tommy. He stood rigid as he heard the people in front of them ask ridiculous questions: Where was the bathroom? How much longer do they have to wait? Can they make an appointment to come back later? Rourk tried to calm himself. Finally it was his turn. “My brother was hit by a vehicle and has been admitted. Can you tell me where he is?”

  The woman behind the counter looked tired. Her mousey-brown hair was pulled into a bun that was falling apart, and there was a large coffee stain on her blue scrub shirt. She glanced at Rourk with non-sympathetic eyes. “Last name?”

  “Sanders.”

  She tapped on her keyboard, the computer screen reflecting off her glasses. “He’s in surgery.”

  Rourk’s heart thudded. “Already?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can you tell me what’s wrong with him?”

  She shook her head. “Confidential.”

  Rourk wanted to scream. Instead, he shoved his hand through his hair and took a calming breath. “What floor is he on?”

  “Ninth floor.”

  “Thank you.” Rourk and Emerald headed for the elevator. He wished Keegan was with him. He felt like he was about to unravel. He’d check on Tommy’s status and then give her a call.

  “I’m going to the restroom so I won’t be disturbed. I’ll find you when I’m done.”

  Rourk nodded and walked to the front desk. The nurse behind the counter smiled as he walked up. He leaned on his elbows atop the desk and said, “Can I have an update on my brother? Tommy Sanders?”

  The woman stared at him for a moment. “That’s funny. Your name-tag says Kavanagh.”

  Without missing a beat, Rourk said, “He’s my stepbrother.”

  She nodded and pecked away at the keyboard. “He’ll probably be in surgery a couple of hours. You’re welcome to wait in the waiting area.” She pointed to a small glass room to the left.

  “Thanks. Can you let me know when they bring him out?”

  “Yes, I’ll have the doctor give you an update when they are done. Have you informed your parents?”

  “Not yet. I was hoping to have some news before I freaked them out.”

  “Standard procedure. If he has them in his file, they will be notified.”

  Rourk nodded and moved to the waiting room. It was small and dimly lit. There was an old lady knitting in one corner as she watched the news; a stressed-looking young woman and a baby in another corner; and a middle-aged man who looked in serious need of sleep. Rourk couldn’t help but notice how far they’d each sat away from each other, as if they were worried the other’s bad luck would rub off.

  Rourk slouched in a seat, dropped his head in his hands, and closed his eyes. He visualized Keegan. She was sitting in a classroom, her pen writing furiously on a notebook as she bit her tongue in concentration. He didn’t want to bother her in class—he’d call her when he knew more.

  It was only an hour before his phone buzzed. It was Tommy’s mother. “Have you heard anything?” she asked anxiously.

  “No, ma’am.” Rourk looked around the room. The sun was high in the sky outside the one small window. The baby had finally gone to sleep.

  “We’re on our way. Our flight leaves at noon. Will you call me if you hear anything?” Her voice cracked over the sound of a loudspeaker in the background. They must have already been at the airport.

  “Of course. Safe flight.”

  Two hours and thirteen minutes later, a man in scrubs walked into the room. Everyone stood wide-eyed as he entered. “Sanders?”

  Rourk stood up and walked into the hall with the doctor, his palms clammy.

  “I’m Doctor Wilson,” the man said, offering his hand to Rourk. They shook.

  “Your brother made it through the surgery,” the doctor said. He was a tall man with large hands and creases on his face from the mask that hung around his neck. He rubbed his thumbs on his forehead. “Something odd happened. We went in to stop the internal bleeding, but once we got inside, we couldn’t find anything. It just…vanished.” The doctor shook his head. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

  Rourk thought, That’s because you’ve never seen an elfin healer. “Does that mean Tommy will be ok?”

  “He’s not out of the woods yet. We still have to worry about his brain. There’s swelling. We need to wait and see if the swelling goes down on its own or if we have to make a hole to reduce the pressure.” He paused and gestured for Rourk to have a seat in the uncomfortable metal chair outside the waiting room door. Doctor Wilson sat beside him, placing a hand on Rourk’s arm. “There’s also the matter of him regaining consciousness. In some cases, people never wake from comas.”

  “Thank you for being honest with me. When can I see him?”

  “We’re going to move him to ICU for observation. I’ll have a nurse come get you when he can have visitors. Are his parents on the way?”

  “Yes. They’re coming from across the country, so they will be delayed.”

  The doctor clapped him on the shoulder one last time, and then left.

  Rourk went back to the waiting area. He called Keegan—he needed to hear her voice. He filled her in on what had happened.

  “Do you want me to come?” she asked softly, her voice soothing as it came over the line.

  “No. We’ll wait and see what happens. Your mom is here.”

  “Oh. Good.” She was silent a moment. “I’d really rather come, Rourk.”

  “Stay in school, Keegan. I’ll call you when I know more.”

  They talked for a few more minutes and said their goodbyes. Rourk stared at his phone and realized he felt much more centered after talking to his chosen.

  Emerald breezed through the door into the waiting room and wrapped Rourk in a hug. When she pulled away, she held tightly to his shoulders and asked, “How’s he doing?”

  Rourk gave a half smile. “The doctors are baffled. They went into operate, and the internal bleeding had ceased on its own…”

  “That’s great news!” She stepped closer, looking around the room. She pushed both hands back through her hair, then smoothed it, before she said quietly, “I don’t have as much control when I can’t touch the person.”

  “They’re worried about the brain swelling, and the fact that he hasn’t responded.”

  Emerald sat heavily in a chair, leaning forward with her elbows on her knees. She looked tired. “I need to get in to see him.”

  “He’s in the ICU so only immediate family members are allowed in. I’m still waiting for them to give me the go ahead to see him.”

  Emerald smiled. “Brother?”

  “Yes.”

  “Alright, when they call you back just go along with what I say.”

  They waited and waited, flipping channels idly on the small, staticky television until a nurse finally came in and called Rourk back. Emerald stood up and followed him.

  The nurse held up a hand to Emerald and shook her head. “Family members only.”

  “I’m a reiki master and also Tommy’s godmother. His parents contacted me and wanted me to get in a soon as I could to give him a healing. It will only take 15-30 minutes. I know many hospitals now use reiki before and after surgeries
.” Emerald’s tone was no-nonsense and held just a hint of command. Rourk was impressed.

  The nurse thought about it for a moment. Rourk could almost see the wheels turning: It was still against policy, but her eyes held belief in the new age side of medicine. She shrugged and motioned for them to follow. “This way.”

  She led them to a service elevator at the end of the hallway, and pushed the button to go up. “When we get upstairs, you’ll need to scrub your hands with sanitizer and we’re going to give you face masks. We don’t want anything brought into the room that could harm Tommy.”

  Rourk and Emerald both nodded, and Rourk answered, “Yes, ma’am. Absolutely.”

  The elevator was dimly lit by a single bulb. After the fluorescent lights of the waiting room and hallway, it was a welcome break on Rourk’s eyes. They reached the 11th floor and the elevator dinged open.

  After preparing to enter his room, Rourk and Emerald followed the nurse to an open, sliding-glass door marked by a number 10 and a clipboard with T. Sanders across the top.

  “Twenty minutes,” the nurse said softly.

  “Thank you,” Rourk and Emerald said in unison.

  Tommy looked small and broken in the hospital bed. His body was stretched flat on his back and the bed was slightly raised so his head was higher than the rest. Several beeping machines were attached to him: one monitoring his heart rate which was slow and steady. There was a tube was coming out of his throat, and his eyes were closed.

  Rourk took his hand, a lump in his throat. “You have to pull through Tommy. We’re in this together.”

  Emerald moved to the other side of the bed and closed her eyes as she placed her hands lightly above the white gauze that covered Tommy’s head.

  Rourk watched Emerald curiously. A healer’s magic was an incredible gift; they could heal almost anything, especially someone with the power of his chosen’s mother. He knew if anyone could help Tommy it was her.

  Emerald moved her hands around different areas of Tommy’s head, her eyes closed. Her breathing was steady. She moved her hands down his chest—she would rest her hands in an area for a couple of minutes, then she would move to the next spot and repeat. She went over the rest of his body down to his feet, and then back to his head again.

  The door opened and the nurse came in. “It’s been twenty minutes. You can come back once they transfer him to the seventh floor.”

  Rourk was worried. He’d expected Tommy to wake up and be fine after the healing, but his eyes were still closed. Maybe it was his time.

  As they walked towards the elevator, Emerald pulled Rourk into a half-hug. “I’ve done all I can, Rourk. I believe he will be fine, but we have to wait until he wakes up to be sure.”

  “I know.” Rourk pushed the down button, then turned to face her. “I can’t thank you enough.”

  The sound of the nurse’s voice broke the silence of ICU as she called out the door of Tommy’s room. “He’s awake! Get the doctor.”

  Emerald smiled knowingly and patted Rourk’s arm. “I’m going to head back now. I left Warrick with Thaddeus. You know what a handful that little man is.”

  Rourk smiled. “Thank you, though I feel like that’s not enough.”

  “It’s more than enough. I’m glad I could help. That boy has a clear soul. The earth would be darker without people like him.”

  Rourk watched as Emerald stepped into the elevator. She waved, and the doors closed. Rourk knew she’d be gone before the elevator opened on the next floor. So much power in such a little body.

  He called Keegan and gave her the good news. Rourk didn’t need to hear from the doctors; he knew Tommy would be fine.

  Thankfully, Tommy was fine. A week later, he was released from the hospital with nothing more than a few bumps and bruises, and the OK to return to work. There was no apparent brain damage, and his memories were still intact, as well as has reasoning skills. The doctors were shocked at his quick recovery.

  Tommy kept telling everyone that a redheaded angel had saved him. Of course, the doctors wrote it off as a side-effect of his head injury. Rourk kept the truth to himself.

  Chapter 13

  Keegan’s phone kept buzzing on her night stand.

  She was so tired that she could barely keep her eyes open, but she rolled over and answered. “Hello.”

  “Keegan?”

  She rubbed her eyes and looked at the clock: 3:33 in the morning. “Lauren, what’s wrong?”

  “I’m sorry to call so late. It’s Donald. He’s out of control.”

  Keegan’s heart dropped, and she sat up in bed. Athena rolled over on her back and growled in her sleep. “What do you mean? Is he ok?”

  “Ok, is a relative term. He’s drinking all the time. I think he’s even doing drugs. Plus, he’s sleeping around with every girl he meets. And tonight he shifted into his tiger form on campus.”

  Keegan’s hand flew to her cover her mouth. “Oh my god. Did anyone see him?”

  “A couple of guys said they saw a tiger running around the campus. But everyone blew it off as they were drunk and didn’t believe them. Thankfully, the campus is surrounded by woods so he wasn’t visible for too long. The guys are at their wit’s end with him. They don’t know what to do. Calvron thought maybe if you came to talk to him it would help.”

  “He won’t talk to me. I’ve sent him several texts and tried to call him, but he never responds.”

  “Do you think you could come here and try to talk to him in person? Keegan, this is bad. He can’t be shifting in public.”

  Keegan sighed and rubbed a hand over her eyes. First, Tommy, now Donald… She pulled Athena close. “I don’t know Lauren. I really don’t think it would help, but I guess I can try. Anna was talking about coming to visit you soon. I will talk to her in the morning and find out when we can get a flight out.”

  “Thank you. I’m going to tell Calvron. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

  “K. Bye.” Keegan ended the call and sat back in her bed. She couldn’t believe Donald was losing it like that. It wasn’t like him. She knew he was upset, but she never knew him to lose control. He had always been the one to calm her when she was losing her temper. She really hoped she could do the same for him. But, she seriously doubted there was anything she could do. He couldn’t stand her. She wrapped herself in the blankets and tried to fall back to sleep but spent the next three hours thinking about Donald.

  When she saw it was a decent time, she picked up the phone and called Anna.

  “Hey, do you want to go see Lauren in the next day or so? She called me last night and told me Donald was out of control. He shifted on campus!”

  “Are you serious? Yeah, I wanted to go see her soon anyway. I don’t have classes tomorrow, and I can skip today. Want to see if we can get a flight out today?”

  “Sure, I’ll get online and see if I can get us tickets and call you back. Talk to you in a few minutes.” Keegan ended the call and went straight to her computer. First, she got a flight to Seattle and then purchased tickets for both of them to California. Good thing for her dad’s American Express, she thought wryly.

  Keegan shrugged into a robe, then walked into the kitchen and turned on the coffee pot. She needed to let Rourk know, and she was worried he would be upset. She couldn’t hide things from her chosen. Keegan closed her eyes to check on him. He was sitting in a small room surrounded by guys in uniforms. Goodness, he looks hot in uniform. Keegan grinned to herself. She watched as he looked up and tried to hide the smile forming on his lips. He knew she was thinking of him. She sent him a text that they needed to talk. She watched as he stood up and walked out of the room. A minute later, her phone rang.

  “Rourk I have to tell you something that might not make you happy.” Keegan paused as she sat on the couch and cradled a mug of coffee against her chest. Athena danced about on the rug in front of her, pulling a trail of toilet paper across the floor.

  “You can tell me anything. Nothing will change the way I feel about you.�
�� Rourk tensed he had no idea what she was going to say and wasn’t sure he wanted to hear it.

  “I’m going to California today. Lauren called me and told me that Donald needs help. He has gotten out of control—he even shifted on campus. I’m not sure there is anything I can do to help him, but I need to try. He helped me so many times when I was about to lose my temper.” Keegan paused briefly and hurried on. “You have nothing to worry about. I don’t have feelings for him in that way anymore. I just want to try to help him as a friend. You are the only one for me.”

  She heard Rourk take a deep breath. “I trust you, Keegan. If you feel you need to do this, then I understand.”

  “You do?” She could hear the shock in her own voice.

  “Yes, it’s who you are. Your friends are important to you. I’m not going to say I am thrilled about the idea, but I will not try to stop you. How long do you think you will be there?”

  “I’m not sure. Just a couple of days I think. I will be back before you come to visit. If anything keeps me there longer, you can meet me in California.”

  “Ok, keep me updated. Thank you for letting me know. I love you.”

  “I love you, too. You’re the best! I’ll text you and keep you in the loop. I can’t wait to see you this weekend.” Keegan smiled, hoping he could hear it in her voice.

  “Me either. When are you leaving?”

  “I’m flying out in three hours, and then I’ll get a connecting plane with Anna this evening.”

  “What about Athena?” Rourk asked.

  Keegan glanced down at the ball of white rubbing its back on the fluffy purple rug. The puppy jerked to a stop and panted, her dark eyes staring up at Keegan. “Oh. I don’t know. I guess I could find a pet-sitter.”

  “Check the phone book for kennels. You can put her up for a few days.”

  Keegan nodded to herself. “Great idea.”

  “Ok, I have to get back into work,” Rourk said. “I’ll talk to you soon.”

  “Oh, one last thing.” Keegan lowered her voice. “You are the sexiest man in that room.”

  Rourk laughed loudly. “Bye, Keegan.”