by A. L Long
“Carter, please put down the gun. Killing my father isn’t going to solve anything. I told you we would work this out so that you can build a new life for yourself and Hanna. I don’t care about the farm. Your sister means everything to me, and to you too, if I’m not mistaken,” Aiden said.
“You think I’m stupid. I know exactly what you are trying to do. You’re worse than your father. There is only one way I’m ever going to please my sister and that is to get you out of her life once and for all.”
I couldn’t believe what I heard. I needed to do something. Opening the door, I heard a gun go off, and everything that Aiden and I shared together flashed in front of my eyes. My brother was going to kill him. I heard the shot, but at that moment everything moved in slow motion as I heard Aiden’s voice, “No, Hanna, God, no.”
Looking down at my body, I couldn’t feel a thing. The white of my blouse slowly turned a bright red. Carter had missed. Looking at him, I watched the gun fall from his hand, and as though my life was on rewind, I went back to when we were kids. He was the best brother a sister could ever ask for.
Chapter Twenty-One
AIDEN
“Help, someone. Please, help me.” My focus was only on Hanna. Why didn’t she listen to me? With her limp body in my arms, all I wanted was for someone to help me. Doctors and nurses were running around like crazy. It was as though I was invisible. Something must have happened that brought all these people to the emergency room. Just like Hanna, they were covered in blood. Why wasn’t anyone listening to me?
“Mr. Drake, Ms. Marsh is in recovery,” I heard a voice say.
Opening my eyes, a nurse wearing surgical scrubs stood before me. Adjusting my position, my body was stiff. Rubbing the back of my neck trying to get the kinks out, I looked up at her and asked, “How is she?”
“Ms. Marsh is stable, but in critical condition. The doctor will be here shortly to fill you in on her condition. Do you know if Ms. Marsh has any family?”
Thinking back to the events of the night, I realized the only family she had left was gone. Why the hell did Carter have to lift his gun? Things could have turned out differently. “No, she doesn’t have anyone.”
“I will make sure she gets on the list then.” I had no idea what she was talking about.
Standing to my feet, I asked, “List?”
“The doctor will be here momentarily to discuss Ms. Marsh’s condition.”
“Wait. Can I see her?” I asked as the nurse began walking away.
“Yes. As soon as she has been moved to ICU.”
Taking my seat, every possible thought imaginable had entered my mind. The only list I had ever heard of was a donor’s list. If that was the case, it could be months before Hanna would get what she needed. There wasn’t anything I could do but wait to talk to the doctor. It was evident that the nurse wasn’t going to give me any information.
Looking at my watch, the minutes continued to tick away. It had been twelve hours since I brought Hanna in and I still had no word on how she was doing. I was going crazy with worry. Raking my hands through my hair, I did the one thing I hadn’t done in a long time. I prayed. I prayed that God would forgive me for every bad choice I had ever made in my life. I promised that I would be a better person if he would just let Hanna be okay. I pleaded for his forgiveness for causing a man to take his own life.
Tipping my head back against the wall, I looked to the ceiling, hoping that he heard my plea. Hearing the doors swing open for the umpteenth time, finally a doctor dressed in the same colored scrubs as the nurse came through and looked around before heading my way. Standing to my feet, I tried to gauge his expression to decide whether or not the news he was about to share with me was going to be good or bad.
“Mr. Drake, I’m Dr. Donaldson. I performed surgery on Ms. Marsh,” he stated, holding out his hand in what was an awkward introduction.
“How is she?” I asked hesitantly.
“She has a long road ahead of her. There was extensive damage to her kidneys from the bullet. We were able to stop the bleeding that the bullet caused, but there was no way to save her kidneys. One of them we had to remove and the other is barely working. We have her on a dialysis machine to help filter the impurities. She is going to need a transplant. We have her on the list as the highest priority since there aren’t any living donors. I’m sorry, Mr. Drake. The only thing we can do now is wait and hope that a kidney comes available soon.”
This was by far the worst day of my life. There had to be something that I could do. Before the doctor got too far away, I asked, “What about me?”
Turning to face me, he replied, “Excuse me?”
Walking closer to him, I asked again. “Can I be the donor?”
Scratching his head, he replied. “If you are a match. First, we will need to run a blood test. Then there is the process of cross-matching to see how Hanna will react to your kidney. Once it has been established that you are a match, there are a series of other tests that will need to be done prior to the transplant. Are you sure you are ready to do this?”
There was no doubt in my mind. My life without Hanna would mean nothing. “I couldn’t be surer about anything in my life.”
“Well, Ms. Marsh is very lucky to have you. I will get the paperwork started.”
~*~*~*~
When the nurse finally came back to let me know that I could see Hanna, I wasn’t sure if I was ready to face her. Eventually she would need to know the truth about her brother. When the time was right and she was strong enough to hear what he had done, I would tell her. For now, she was my only concern and saving her would be my only focus.
Entering her room, I remembered the doctor had warned me that she was heavily sedated due to the extent of her injuries. Other than the equipment that was hooked up to her, she looked like she was just resting. Pulling a chair next to the bed, I took hold of her hand. Her skin was warm, just as it had been yesterday.
Sitting in silence, with only the monitors beeping, Hanna was the only one I heard. I had to be a match. I had to be the one to save her. I had taken so much from her. I needed this. Even though I hadn’t officially said it, I loved her more than life itself. Lowering my head, I kissed the back of her hand. As I lifted my head, I realized that I had left a single tear on it. Wiping it away with my thumb, I knew then that love had indeed entered my heart.
Hearing a tap on the glass door, I turned to find Dr. Donaldson standing at the entrance. Rising to my feet, I released Hanna’s hand and followed him out of the room. Stopping just outside the door, he looked up at me and said, “The blood test came back good.”
“What’s next?” Relief had washed over me and I knew that Hanna would be okay.
“We need to see if her body will accept the kidney when it comes time to transplant. We are going to use your blood sample and cross match it with Hanna’s. If there is no reaction, then you are a perfect match.”
“And if there is?” I questioned.
“Then, we won’t be able to use your kidney. Her body will reject it.”
Heading back into the room. I stared down at Hanna. My blood had to be compatible with hers. It just had to. Resuming my place beside her, a nurse entered her room to gather a blood sample. Watching her prepare Hanna’s arm, just the sight of her blood filling the tube took me back to last night. The sight of blood never got to me before, but for some reason it did just then.
Standing up, I needed to get some fresh air. I had been in this hospital for nearly sixteen hours. Maybe a change in scenery would do me good. I had been so focused on Hanna, I didn’t even think about how my father was doing. Knowing that it would be some time before the test results were back, I decided to pay him a visit and let him know in person what was happening with Hanna and what I planned on doing.
~*~*~*~
After calling my father and letting him know that I needed to see him, I was surprised to find that he was at the Drake building. I wasn’t sure why he would be there, especially considering what had
taken place.
Parking my car in my designated spot, I cut the engine and headed to the elevators. I had been in this building a million times, but for some reason this time was different. The best thing to do was put what happened behind me. Carter was gone and there was nothing that would bring him back.
Stepping on the elevator, I waited for it to arrive at the top floor. When the doors opened, my father was waiting on the other side. It was a good twenty-minute drive and it made me wonder how long he had been waiting by the elevator for me. When our eyes met, I could tell there was something different about him. There were no words between us as we headed to his office.
The minute I stepped inside, flashes of what happened came back. My chest began to tighten and I found it very hard to breathe. Stepping backwards toward the door, I managed to make it to the men’s room before spilling my guts. Flushing the remnants of my flashback down the toilet, I tried once again to enter my father’s office. Thankfully, I didn’t have to since he was seated at my desk, just waiting for my arrival.
Closing the door, I took a seat in front of the desk and waited for him to say something, anything. Staring at each other was becoming very uncomfortable. Leaning forward with my elbows on my knees, I continued to stare at my dad. “How are you doing?”
“How the hell do you think I’m doing?” he began. “Do you mind telling me what happened last night?”
Scratching my head, I knew he had a right to know. “Hanna’s brother, Carter, was crazy. He blamed me for taking all his money and losing the farm they owned together in Danbury. It was his choice to make the investment. Sure, I knew it was shady. He was a cocky son-of-a-bitch and needed to learn the rules of the game.”
“So, you jeopardized Elite Exchange and my life for your own personal gain?” my father cursed.
“Of course not. I have no idea why he came after you. Like I said, he was crazy.”
I couldn’t tell my father the real truth behind the shady investment I got Carter to invest in. I would be cut out of his life and never see another penny from him. Had I known that things would turn out the way they did, I would have never taken his money. Then again, I would have never met Hanna.
Pushing from my chair, I walked over to the window and admired the skyline of Houston. I needed to tell my father the real reason I was here. “Hanna’s dying, and if I don’t help her, she will die for sure.”
Turning in his seat, he asked, “How could you possibly help her?”
Chapter Twenty-Two
HANNA
There wasn’t much that I remembered about the night at the Drake building, but when Aiden told me that Carter shot me, I just couldn’t believe it. I had cried for days knowing that I would never see him again. It had been two weeks since the shooting and every day I was getting stronger. I was looking forward to the day when Dr. Donaldson allowed me to go home. When I found out what Aiden did, I knew we would be bound together for life. Giving up a kidney wasn’t something you did every day. Were we a perfect match according to the doctor?
Sitting up in the hospital bed, I was tired of looking at home improvement magazines that the nurse had brought in. Aiden would soon return with my ice cream that I had been craving all morning. Placing the magazine on the bed, I let out a large sigh and said, “I want to get out of here.”
I hadn’t realized that Aiden had returned until he commented, “Tomorrow, Hanna.”
Holding my ice cream in his hand, he approached me with a gorgeous smile and said, “Here you go, baby.”
Taking a big bite, my mouth was very happy. The taste was out of this world. Of everything in this hospital, I was going to miss this the most. “God, this is heaven.”
Letting out a laugh, Aiden dipped his finger in the cup and said, “Mmm, I would have to disagree. The only heaven I see is you.”
Even though he was discharged from the hospital a few days after the procedure, Aiden never left my side except to get us something to eat or go home to shower. I never once got tired of him being here. He always managed to put a smile on my face. Saving the last bit for him, I placed my spoon in the cup and handed it to him. “Here you go, handsome.”
It didn’t take him long to grab the cup and wolf the remaining ice cream down. I never understood why he didn’t just get one for himself.
While we were talking about nothing except what we were going to do when I got out of here, a knock came at the door. We looked toward the door to find that the doctor had entered the room. Pushing my body further up the bed, I hoped that his visit was to let me know that I was being discharged today instead of tomorrow.
“Ms. Marsh, how are you feeling today?” he asked as he looked over the information on my chart.
“I feel wonderful,” I answered confidently.
“That is good to hear. I would like to do another blood test before you are discharged tomorrow, just as a precaution. I will send a nurse to get a sample. In the meantime, take this time to relax. God knows you deserve it.”
When the doctor left and the nurse came in, I wasn’t looking forward to getting stuck again, but I knew it was only a precaution. If it meant that I could go home, I was all for it.
~*~*~*~
“Pregnant. Are you sure?” I huffed.
“Ms. Marsh, blood tests don’t lie. You are definitely pregnant,” the nurse confirmed.
I didn’t know what to believe. After everything that had happened to me, how could I be pregnant? Wondering what I was going to do, I was thankful that Aiden wasn’t in the room when the news of my pregnancy came out. I wasn’t sure how I was going to tell him or how he would even feel about it.
Sitting alone in the room with only my thoughts, I began to wonder what it would be like to be a mother. Would I be a good one? Would Aiden be a good father? Would we be able to raise a child together without being married? Placing my hand over my stomach, I imagined holding my little girl and what it would feel like. Smiling to myself, I said softly, “I’m going to take really good care of you.”
“Take good care of who?” Aiden questioned, making his presence known.
Thinking hard, I said, “Me, silly.”
“Why don’t you let me do that?” he replied.
“Well, you can too.”
I needed to be more careful when I said something. I had no idea I wasn’t alone. Watching him approach me with our dinner, I pulled the bedside table over, moving my water to the side. As he began removing the items from the bag, my mouth began to salivate. Even though I just ate, I was starving. I knew it wasn’t because of the baby. Technically there wasn’t one yet. It had to be all in my head, knowing that pregnant women always ate.
As we sat and ate, there was still one thing I didn’t understand about what happened that night. Aiden told me that Carter ended up taking his own life after trying to shoot him and hitting me instead. Carter was very unstable and I had seen it when he came to my house, trying even then to take his own life. As much as it saddened me that he was gone, I still couldn’t understand why he was at Elite Exchange in the first place.
“Aiden, can I ask you something?” I began.
“Sure. You can ask me anything.”
“Why was Carter there?” I asked.
Aiden finished the bite he had taken before responding, “I’m really not sure. My father said that he blamed him for losing money on the investment he made. My father urged him not to do it, but he didn’t listen.”
“Do you know what he invested the money in?” I inquired.
“I don’t believe it was one single investment. All bad, I presume, based on the money he lost. Let’s not talk about this, Hanna. Let’s talk about what you would like to do first when you get out of here.”
Aiden seemed to be a little short. I wasn’t sure if it was because he really didn’t know or if he didn’t want to tell me. I guess it really didn’t matter. Carter always had a tendency to make wrong choices.
~*~*~*~
I had never been so happy in my life when Aid
en’s house appeared. When Aiden asked me what I wanted to do when I got out of the hospital, the only thing I could think about was relaxing with him holding me in his arms. My wish was granted when he lifted me off the floor and carried me into the living room. Getting as comfortable as I could, I waited for Aiden to prepare some popcorn since it was another craving that I had.
Turning on the television, he positioned himself behind me so that I could snuggle up against his warm body. There was no other place that I wanted to be. I couldn’t have asked for anything else. The comfort of being so close to him must have consumed me. My eyes became heavy and soon I was sound asleep.
I wasn’t sure how long I had been asleep, but when I woke up, Aiden was no longer on the couch. It was strange, but I missed his touch. He was like a security blanket and I didn’t want to be without him. Pulling the throw blanket off, I moved off the couch to find out where he might have gone. Checking the study first, since it seemed like the most logical place he would be, I was sadly disappointed to find he wasn’t there.
