Blinking, Robin looked around and saw a blond man standing near an ambulance, wrapped in another emergency blanket. He didn’t look wet. He wasn’t the man who’d rescued them.
“No,” she said. “There was someone else. Is he all right?”
“Just keep calm.” Jackie pulled the blanket around Robin more tightly and unfolded a thicker woolen blanket beside her. “Here. Roll over on this if you want. Good thinking taking your clothes off for swimming, but we gotta get you warm.”
Robin rolled onto the woolen blanket and felt the immediate relief of her skin against something soft instead of the cutting stones on the shore. “No, there was a man with us. He got the window open.”
“He was in the car with you?”
“No, he was swimming…” Robin blinked. Had she imagined it? Would anyone have been able to swim down that far? She couldn’t have imagined it. He’d broken the window. He’d rescued them. Without that man, they’d all be dead.
“It’s a flat-out miracle you’re all alive, I’ll tell you that much.” Jackie helped Robin sit up. “I’m gonna get you another blanket, okay?”
Robin spotted Val, who was up and walking around. She was trying to get rid of the young EMT trailing her with an oxygen bottle.
“Will someone please call my mother?” Val said. “Just shut up about me and call my mom so I can talk to my kids. And don’t touch me!”
Monica wasn’t talking, but Robin could see her. She was pale and her eyes were staring into the distance. She was nodding and shaking her head as they asked questions, but she held an oxygen mask to her face like it was a security blanket.
And Robin… felt fine. Her chest hurt, but other than that, she felt fine. Her knee wasn’t even hurting.
Nothing about this made sense. They were near the lake, and Robin’s car was underwater. They’d managed to swim to shore—
No, they hadn’t managed. She hadn’t been able to get the door open. There had been someone there. A man had broken the car window with a rock and pulled her out. She’d pulled Val. Val must have pulled Monica.
But she was looking around, and their rescuer was nowhere to be found. Had a Good Samaritan actually swam down to her car, rescued all three of them, and then disappeared?
There were too many lights and sirens and people. She couldn’t think straight.
“Robin?”
Was that Mark?
“Robin!”
A pair of arms gripped her and held her close.
That felt odd. And nice.
“I thought I’d lost you.” His voice was shaky. “They called and said your car went in the lake.” He pressed his cheek to the top of her head. “I thought I lost you. Oh my God, I thought I’d lost you.”
She patted his arm. “I’m here.” Over Mark’s shoulder, Robin’s eyes were drawn to the edge of the forest. There was a flicker of movement. Was it an animal?
“There was a white deer,” she said. “I’ve never seen one of those before. I can’t believe I swerved. That was so stupid.”
“Shhhh.” Mark kissed the top of her head. “You’re safe. You’re safe.”
He was rocking her back and forth. Robin couldn’t take her eyes off the trees. There was something there. Something important. She was halfway expecting the stranger with the dark hair to walk out of the woods, but he was nowhere. No one even mentioned the man who’d rescued them.
“You need more blankets,” Mark said, rubbing her arms up and down. He pulled off his flannel and wrapped it around her. “You’ve got to be freezing. They need to take you to the hospital. They’re taking you to the hospital, right?”
“I feel fine.” Robin lay with her head on Mark’s shoulder, watching in silence as a young girl—maybe twelve or thirteen—stepped out from the edge of the trees. No one seemed to notice her but Robin.
“Honey, you nearly drowned. The police said they had to do CPR. You need to go to the hospital.”
That sounded absolutely horrible. “I just want to go home.”
The girl was wearing an old-fashioned white nightgown. She stepped forward, her eyes locked on Robin; then she stopped and looked around. Her head tilted to the side as if she’d heard something in the distance. She looked back at Robin, put a finger to her lips in a “hush” gesture, then disappeared into the trees.
Huh.
Of all the weird things that’d happened, that might have been the weirdest.
Chapter 3
Emma’s face was as white as the sheets covering the hospital bed. “Mom, I am so sorry.”
Robin had to talk around the oxygen mask covering her face. She was too exhausted to be angry. “Baby, you had no idea my car was going to go in the lake. It’s not your fault.”
Her daughter sniffed. “It’s been months and I completely forgot I loaned that scraper to Lauren. It was when we had that sleepover last winter and there was snow on her windshield and we were late for school and I grabbed it out of your car and—”
“Emma.” She gripped her daughter’s hand. “Not your fault. And I’m fine. Val and Monica are fine. We survived and we’re going to be okay.”
The tears didn’t stop, but Robin’s words seemed to set Emma at ease. She nodded and laid her head on Robin’s hospital bed. “Where’s Dad?”
“I’m not sure.” She was exhausted, and all she wanted to do was sleep, but she didn’t want to leave Emma alone. Mark had picked Emma up and driven her into Bridger City where Robin, Monica, and Val were being held overnight for observation. Her parents were on the way. At Robin’s request, no one had told Grandma Helen.
She’d been battered by tests and all sorts of medical terms she couldn’t keep straight.
Blood oxygen levels.
Anoxia.
Hypothermia.
Brain hypoxia.
Post-traumatic stress syndrome.
She knew what the last one meant, but she was having problems keeping everything straight in her mind.
Someone had saved them.
No, there was no one there.
There was a girl at the lakeside.
The EMTs never saw her.
Someone was in the water with them.
No, it was just them and the blond tourist when emergency vehicles arrived. The car was under fifty feet of water. They had escaped from the car and floated to the surface. Val and Robin had already been breathing when they were found. Monica had to be resuscitated, but she was talking and that was good.
But someone had saved them. Robin knew she hadn’t imagined it. There was a man. He had dark hair and a square jaw. He looked vaguely familiar, like maybe he was a weekender who came up to the lake fairly often. Not a local, but someone familiar.
Someone tapped on the door. It was a nurse.
“How you feeling?”
Robin blinked. “Tired.”
“You should sleep.” The nurse looked pointedly at Emma. “Is your dad around, honey?”
“I think he said he was talking to someone about insurance or something. I’m not sure.”
Robin was never more grateful for Mark’s insurance. His company had great coverage, which they’d found out when Austin had nearly taken out his knee playing football.
“Austin.” Robin looked at Emma. “Did Dad call Austin?”
Emma nodded. “Dad told him to stay put for now. He told him not to miss class. Austin is really upset; he’s been texting me.”
“I should call him. Do you know where my phone is?” Robin never went anywhere without her phone.
Emma frowned. “It’s in the lake, Mom.”
“Oh. Right.” Shit. She hated getting new phones.
“Did you back up to the cloud? You know Dad is always reminding us—”
“Yes, I’m backed up. I’ll be fine.”
She had insurance on the phone. And the car. And great health insurance. At least she didn’t have to worry about going bankrupt on top of almost drowning.
Thinking about the accident brought back a rush of memories. Val,
Monica, and she had been in the car. Robin had thought they were going to die. They’d all thought they were going to die.
I wanted to kill myself. I thought about the future and there was just… nothing.
Don’t tell my kids, but I think I love you two more than anyone.
I don’t think anyone would even notice if I died.
The punch of memories made her close her eyes in shame. What had she been thinking? How could she have said that to Monica and Val? Her life was so much easier compared to both of them. She wasn’t a single parent. She wasn’t a widow.
She had good insurance and a steady business and a faithful husband and kids who were mostly fine. Did it matter if she felt invisible sometimes? Did it matter that Mark had lost interest in her?
Her husband pushed the door open, and Robin saw the lines marking his forehead. He scanned the room and his eyes immediately went to Emma.
“Emma, you’re not still crying about the scraper.” He looked as exhausted as Robin felt.
Emma burst into tears again and Mark turned to Robin.
Seriously? his eyes said.
She rolled her own. I know.
Mark walked over, brushed Robin’s hair back from her forehead, and kissed it. “I don’t want to leave you alone.”
“No.” Robin pulled the mask away from her face. “It’s fine. Take her home. Mom and Dad are going to be here pretty soon. I think I’ll be able to go home in the morning, and all I want to do is sleep.”
“I called Austin and filled him in—”
“Emma told me.”
“But I told him to stay put. He’ll probably call in the morning.”
“I’m surprised he didn’t immediately start driving home. Having your mom in the hospital has got to be an excused absence, even in college.” No one laughed at her feeble attempt at a joke.
Mark sighed. “You know, he’s getting better. He’s taking this year a lot more seriously than last. Can you cut him some slack?”
“I was just…” She shook her head. “Can we fight about this when I’m not so tired?”
“Fine.” He stepped away. “Let’s not fight about it at all, okay? I’m tired of fighting about it.”
Emma had stopped crying and was slumped in her chair, tuning out her parents like she always did when the subject of her big brother came up.
Focus, Robin.
She rearranged her pillows. “Can you guys check on Val and Monica before you leave? I can’t get anyone to tell me anything.”
“Sure. I’ll see if anyone is in the waiting room. Maybe harass them a little.” Mark swallowed hard. “I wish Gil were here.”
She nodded. “Yeah. Me too.”
“Do you want your mom to drive you back once you’re discharged?”
“Please don’t do that to me.”
“I’ll see you in the morning then.” Mark kissed her forehead again, letting his lips linger on her forehead. “Are you sure you’re okay with me leaving?”
“I promise I am.”
“Okay.”
Emma gave her an awkward side hug, but it was difficult when Robin was hooked up to monitors and IVs. She felt completely fine except that she couldn’t remember everything that happened, things were all a little muddled, and she was exhausted.
Come to think of it, that could describe most days in her life lately, so maybe she should just go home.
Mark and Emma left the room with the television tuned to HGTV at low volume, but Robin felt like she’d only closed her eyes for a minute before she opened them. Someone else was in the room. A nurse stood at the foot of her bed, perusing her chart with pursed lips.
“Hey.” Robin blinked her eyes, but she couldn’t seem to clear the sleep from them. Everything was kind of hazy and half the lights were shut off. “Did they put something in my IV to help me sleep?”
The nurse looked up. “I don’t think so. You’re a lucky lady, that’s for sure.”
Robin smiled. The older woman was wearing the exact same uniform Robin remembered from when she’d been a child getting her tonsils out. A smart white cap perched on her head, and her crisp collar was neat at her throat. Her uniform read D. Hawkins.
“I didn’t know nurses even wore those anymore.” The older woman had probably worn the same uniform since she’d been a student nurse. Funny that they let her keep the hat. Robin was used to seeing nurses in scrubs.
“Wear what, honey?” The nurse kept looking through her chart. “Looks like they’re keeping you off the big painkillers for the moment. You having any headache? Body aches?”
“Body aches. Some headache, but just like I get when I’m really tired.” She touched her face. “Is my face bruised? I hit the airbag in the car pretty hard.”
“The what?” The nurse frowned. “You’re scheduled for a few more tests, but I want to check on these. I think Dr. McMurty might have written something down wrong.” She smiled. “That man. His handwriting is just awful.”
Robin frowned. “Doctor who? I think my doctor is named Patel.”
“Patel?” The nurse’s eyes went wide. “Never heard that one before.”
“Really?” Patel was a pretty common last name.
She patted Robin’s foot. “There’re so many doctors in and out of this hospital, I can hardly keep track. He must be new.”
“It’s a she.” Robin was confused. How did the nurse not remember the nice young doctor who looked like she’d barely graduated from high school? Maybe this nurse was one of those rotating nurses who filled in sometimes. That might explain the uniform.
She came closer to check her IV. Maybe Robin had hit her head harder than she realized. The nurse’s hands felt ice-cold. Then again, the air-conditioning in the hospital was ridiculous.
“Can I get another blanket?” Robin shivered.
“Sure thing.”
Robin felt slightly queasy. “I’m feeling a little nauseated.”
“When was the last time you ate?”
“I don’t remember.”
“Let me get you some juice, but I’ll let Doc McMurty know about that too.” She rearranged the pillows behind Robin but didn’t adjust the bed. “Maybe get you some pudding. Might be good for your tummy.”
Robin barely registered the words the nurse was saying. Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Her eyes were fixed on a spot of red that had appeared on Nurse Hawkins’s crisp blue uniform. It was right below her pointed white collar.
The red grew darker. It spread.
“There’s something…” Robin couldn’t breathe. She felt like she was drowning again. Everything in the room was cold. Her heart was racing.
“What’s that, honey?” The nurse’s voice was muffled, as if Robin was hearing her from underwater.
“Your shirt.” Robin looked up.
All the color had leached from the woman’s face. The single red spot had been joined by another, brighter, scarlet stain.
“I don’t…” Robin’s voice was a whisper. “I don’t feel well.”
Nurse Hawkins frowned and her pale white forehead crinkled in concern. “I can see that. Let me run and get the doctor. I think you may need something for the pain after all.”
She turned to walk to the door, and Robin choked back a scream. On the back of her blue nurse’s uniform were two bloody wounds, one in the shoulder and one in the chest. Gunshots. She’d been shot. The blood was bright red, dripping down the back of her uniform, over the clean white belt, and onto her skirt. She moved toward the door, reached out, and walked straight through it.
Robin tore off the oxygen mask and screamed.
* * *
Dr. Patel was staring down at her, a tiny line marking the space between her perfectly groomed eyebrows. Robin let her gaze follow the doctor’s finger as instructed. She tried not to blink when the light flashed in her eyes.
“Your eyebrows are really great,” Robin muttered. “Do you do them yourself?”
“Oh no,” Dr. Patel said. “I do the thread
ing thing.”
“Really? I tried that once, and it hurt like a mother. I decided to stick with wax.”
Dr. Patel smiled. “I’m used to it.” She shut off the light. “I definitely want to do an MRI. I’m a little worried that the oxygen deprivation was more severe than we originally thought.”
“You think I have brain damage because I saw a nurse walking around with bullet holes in her back?” Nurses had rushed into her room as soon as she’d started screaming, but it had taken hours before anyone listened to her.
Her parents were waiting in the hall while she talked with the doctor. Grace Lewis had finally put her foot down and raised holy hell with the staff until someone came and talked to her daughter about the strange incident.
“I don’t think you have brain damage.” Dr. Patel stepped back. “You suffered a near-drowning incident, and though it was likely a very short time, your brain was deprived of oxygen. It’s very common to have hallucinations after brain hypoxia. Add the trauma to that, and I’d be surprised if you weren’t seeing and hearing strange things.”
“She was here in the room. It was cold, and I had a conversation with her.” Robin shook her head. “It was more than strange.”
“It must have been terribly upsetting, and I wish I could tell you it won’t happen again,” Dr. Patel said. “But it’s very likely that you might have strange dreams. You might see or hear things that aren’t there. You might overreact to things that normally wouldn’t bother you.” She handed Robin a pamphlet that had What Is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder? on the front. “PTSD doesn’t only apply to soldiers coming home from war or survivors of violence. Your body and mind survived something very traumatic last night, and that can jolt brain chemistry in ways we can’t predict. I encourage you to see a psychologist at some point.”
Robin tapped the pamphlet. “Thanks. I’ll… I’ll check it out.”
What she really wanted was to talk to Val and Monica. Mark had texted her mom that things were looking good for both, but she wanted to see them. Wanted to talk to them herself.
Dr. Patel started toward the door. “I want to keep you for a full twenty-four hours and complete those tests. So just sit tight and try to get some rest.”
Suddenly Psychic: Glimmer Lake Book One Page 3
