A Torey Hope Novel Series: The Complete 4-Book Box Set

by A. D. Ellis

  “Alright, man, that’s enough; Josie needs you. The ambulance is here.” Nate pulled me away from Wayne’s once again still form.

  Rushing to Josie, I held her hand and listened in horror as Jeremiah told the paramedics what Wayne was doing when they busted open the door. I had never felt so close to killing someone as I did when I listened to Jeremiah describe how Wayne had kicked her repeatedly. No wonder she was doubled over in pain, he had battered her entire midsection and chest multiple times. The paramedic explained that her difficulty breathing was most likely due to one or more broken ribs. They immediately put oxygen on her to help with her breathing. My sweet girl moaned in pain and continued trying to ball herself up to lessen the pain. “Give her something for the pain, damn it!”

  “We can give her a low dose to take the edge off; they will be better able to assess and treat once we’re to the hospital. Sir, do you know if she’s allergic to any medicines?” The paramedic worked efficiently to assess Josie’s injuries and began preparing the pain medication.

  “She’s never mentioned being allergic to anything.” What if she was allergic and I just didn’t know it? She would have mentioned it in all of our talks, right?

  “Could she be pregnant? Does she have any previous injuries, illnesses, or conditions?” The man was quick, professional, and very calming in his proficient manner.

  “No, she can’t have children. I don’t know about previous injuries. She’s been sick to her stomach and really tired for over a week. She has no conditions that I’m aware of.” I rattled off the answers to his questions as I held her hand and prayed for her to be okay.

  “Okay, we’re going to get some low-dose morphine into her to help with the pain. Then we’ll get her loaded up. You’re welcome to ride with her or meet us at the emergency room.” As he injected the pain medication, Josie stirred; moaning and grabbing at her belly, she whispered, “Baby…,” before succumbing to the pain and head injury again.

  “It’s okay, Jo, I’m right here.” I hated that she was scared, in pain, and calling for me. Could she not tell that I was there with her?

  “Alright, let’s get her loaded.” She was on a stretcher and loaded into the ambulance quickly. I trusted that Nate and Jeremiah could handle Wayne until the police took over; they were pulling up as we drove away.

  Josie’s vitals were taken and recorded on the way to the hospital. She struggled to breathe and was in obvious pain. As a breath caught in her throat, she began coughing and the moans of pain that escaped from her were more than I could handle. “Fuck! Help her, give her something!” Leaning down, I whispered in her ear, “It’s okay, Jo, I’m here. We’re almost to the hospital; we’ll get you all taken care of. Just rest, baby. I love you, I’m here, I’m not leaving.”

  I had called Captain Decker so that he could grab her insurance information and meet us at the emergency room. Leaving him to deal with the details of checking her in, I followed the stretcher as far as they would let me go.

  “Sir, I’ll have to ask you to wait here. Once the doctor assesses the patient, we’ll be able to give you more information. I’ll grab you a chair; there’s coffee down the hall. Someone will be out to give you information as quickly as possible.” While I knew the nurse was just doing her job, I felt angry and helpless as I stood there watching my light, my hope, my future be wheeled away from me.

  Dropping into the chair, I fisted my hands in my hair and tried to fight off the tears that threatened. Feeling hands on my shoulders, I looked up to find Nate and Jeremiah. Nicky and Captain Decker stood to the side. I stood, needing to do something other than just sit there. I started to speak to the men, but my voice broke and all I could do was hug first one then the other. “Thank you…,” was all I got out before my body began to tremble and I had to sit back down as the sobs shook me to the core.

  “Man, I’m so sorry we didn’t get there sooner. I’m sorry we didn’t stop him in time.” Jeremiah ran a hand down his face.

  “Mr. Martin?” I found myself speaking to a police officer when the only thing I wanted was to hold Josie in my arms and hear that she was going to be okay. “I’m very sorry for what you’re going through, but we needed to touch base with you about the situation involving Ms. Decker. First, it appears from witnesses that the offender physically assaulted Ms. Decker but, from evidence at the scene and what these men saw, there was no sexual assault. The hospital will be able to verify that for us.” I breathed a sigh of relief; Josie was hurt and away from me, but at least she hadn’t been hurt worse.

  “Mr. Erickson is under arrest and is being booked right now. Because of his previous violation of a protective order and the fact that he physically assaulted Ms. Decker today, he’s being held without bond for now. Some other evidence has come to our attention which will likely keep him held longer. When Ms. Decker is able, we need to get a statement from her.” The officers shook my hand and gave me a card before walking away. Part of me vaguely wondered what other evidence had come to light, but my main concern at that moment was Josie.

  “Son, all of the family is here. I’m going to go out and update them the best I can. Once you see her and she’s settled in, please come let us know how she is.” I accepted the hug that Captain Decker gave me and watched in numbness as all of the men, except my best friend, walked away.

  “J, thanks man. You saved her from something much worse.” I believed it with everything I had that the two men had stopped Wayne from raping her.

  “No thanks needed; I just wish we could have stopped him from kicking her. I wanted to kill the fucker, he just kicked her over and over, even after she had stopped moving. It probably only took us 30 seconds to bust the door open and reach her, but it played out in slow motion and all I can see is his foot connecting with her again and again. Damn it! Man, I’m so sorry. Do you need anything?” Jeremiah looked at me expectantly.

  “No, I just need to hear that she’s going to be okay. J, I don’t know that I’d survive losing her too.” I broke down again and gave into the tears as Jeremiah wrapped an arm around my shoulders.

  “You’re not going to lose her, Kyle. Izzy worked too hard to get the two of you together, she’s not going to let Josie leave you yet.” We chuckled, knowing that Izzy would be pissed if all of her work was for naught.

  “Mr. Martin? We’ve got Ms. Decker stabilized and settled into a room; you can come with me to see her.” As I walked with the nurse down the hall, I steeled myself for what I was going to see. “Now, Mr. Martin, I need to warn you, Ms. Decker is in and out of consciousness due to the head injury; this is something we are monitoring closely. Her face is swollen from the blows she took, she has an IV so that we could get some fluids into her since she was slightly dehydrated, we’ve given her some more pain medication so even when she comes to for a bit she’s very groggy. I’ll give you a moment with her and then have the doctor come speak to you.” The nurse was very professional and I appreciated the information she had given me.

  I stood outside the door, frozen in fear; the last time I walked into a hospital room I found the love of my life cold and still; the sheer horror I faced in entering that room was enough to bring me to my knees. Kyle, go to her. She needs you. You two aren’t over, not by a long shot. Get in there and hold her. She’s scared.

  Izzy’s words came to me, from far away, but they penetrated the terrified state I was in and I walked into the room.

  My heart stopped to see my Josie lying there. The left side of her face was black and blue; even with the oxygen on she struggled to breathe; she was pale and lifeless, just lying there.

  Gathering courage I didn’t know I had, I took a deep breath and pulled a chair over. I fought away the memories of sitting exactly like this as I watched Izzy fade away from me. Grasping her hand, I spoke, “Josie, baby, I’m here. Can you hear me, Jo? Wake up for a bit and talk to me or just squeeze my hand so I know you can hear me.” I was desperate for any type of communication from her; my heart warmed with slight rel
ief when she gently squeezed my hand. It wasn’t much, but for now I’d take it.

  Sitting silently, I battled the demons in my head telling me that I was losing her the same way I lost Izzy. I forced myself to acknowledge that Josie had squeezed my hand. She was breathing on her own, although it was labored. And her skin was warm, she was injured but she was still with me.

  “Mr. Martin, I’m Doctor Ramirez. We’ve run some tests on Ms. Decker and it appears that she has a concussion which we will monitor. The pain she’s experiencing is from two broken ribs; she lucked out that neither of those broken ribs punctured a lung. She’s struggling to breathe a bit because of the pain from the broken ribs. Our plan is to keep her comfortable and monitor her to be sure nothing else pops up.” I listened to the doctor speak. With each word, my body relaxed a bit more. Unlike with Izzy, the doctor was indicating that Josie was going to be okay.

  “Sir, I’ve checked in with her next-of-kin and they’ve all indicated that you are to be the one with Ms. Decker and receiving any information about her. I need to ask, are you aware that Ms. Decker is pregnant?” The doctor’s words floated around in the air, my brain attempting to make sense of them as it warred with memories of the past when another doctor spoke those words to me.

  “Josie can’t have children, she can’t be pregnant.” I shook my head as I delivered that information.

  With a slight chuckle, Dr. Ramirez spoke again, “Son, we’ve run enough tests on her blood to determine with 100% accuracy that she is most definitely pregnant. Now, whether this is good news or unwanted news, I need you to be very aware that her injuries are very serious in regards to the health of the fetus. It appears her attacker was inebriated enough that more of his kicks landed on her chest than her lower abdomen; this is good for the protection of the baby. I’ve had OB in to do an ultrasound to confirm a heartbeat and rule out any bleeds in the uterus. At this point in time the baby’s heartbeat is strong and there are no concerning issues regarding the pregnancy; the fetus is measuring approximately two months along. However, the health of the fetus could change at any moment. So, in all honesty, Josie’s prognosis looks fairly good; the baby’s prognosis is a little more hit and miss, all of it will be contingent upon the mother’s health.” Dr. Ramirez shook my hand and left me staring, dumbstruck, as he walked out the door.

  Josie is pregnant. Two months pregnant. For now. My baby’s heart is beating inside of Josie. My head began to spin and the emotions of the day overtook me. I sunk back down into the chair.

  Taking her hand in mine, I whispered as if speaking aloud would make it not true. “We’re having a baby, Jo-Jo. A baby, Jo!” I drew her hand to my lips and placed a kiss against her soft skin. Her other arm, fighting to lift through tubing and wires, slowly moved to her stomach and protectively settled there.

  “Knock, knock….hey there. I’m here to check on you both and return to the clan with a report. How is she? How are you?” I looked blankly at Carly as she spoke from the doorway. “Kyle? What’s wrong?” She entered the room slowly and came to face me.

  Shaking my head to clear the emotional drainage and shock, I gathered myself and relayed information in regards to Josie’s injuries so Carly could share with the family. Laying a hand on my shoulder, Carly spoke hesitantly, “Is there any other information you’d like me to share?”

  “She’s pregnant, Carly. I don’t know how and I don’t know when, but the tests they ran prove that she’s definitely pregnant. At this point the baby is strong and doing well.” When Carly didn’t gasp or even look the least bit surprised, I realized she already knew. “You knew? So Josie knows too? Why didn’t she tell me?” My heart sank at the thought of her knowing this and not sharing it with me.

  “I can’t speak directly for her, but I can speak based on my experience if you’d like.” Carly’s offer was soft, and I knew she’d battled infertility in the past. I nodded my head indicating I wanted her to continue. As I held Josie’s hand, I listened to Carly’s words and tried to make sense of them.

  “All of the women in the family started suspecting Josie was pregnant when her ‘bug’ didn’t go away and it was mainly affecting her in the morning and evenings. We didn’t want to press the issue without knowing for sure out of fear we’d hurt her feelings if we were wrong. But today, Audrey insisted on buying some pregnancy tests. Josie was a crying mess when we got to the house, so we went ahead and spelled out what we thought she was experiencing. Long story short, she took the test and it was immediately positive. I understood her reserved attitude about the results. I knew, in her heart, she was rejoicing and wanted to shout to the world; in her head, she was doubting and cynical and terrified that it wouldn’t last, that it was just a fluke.” Carly’s eyes widened, and she stopped speaking; my gaze followed hers and saw that Josie’s eyes were open. Without a word, Carly stood and kissed Josie’s cheek and then patted me on the back. “I’ll go let people know what’s going on.”

  “Kyle, the baby? Did they tell you there was a baby? Did I lose the baby?” She spoke in a breathless whisper, struggling to breathe even with the oxygen on her face. Tears welled in her eyes as she anticipated my answer.

  “The baby is safe. They checked the heartbeat, and it’s strong. They want to monitor you both for a while just to be sure. Josie, why didn’t you call me as soon as you found out you were pregnant?” I understood what Carly had explained, but I was hurt that Josie didn’t let me know about the baby right away.

  “I’m sorry, Kyle. Oh, God, it hurts so bad to breathe; my chest hurts, it’s like it’s being squeezed in a vice.” She stopped speaking to take some shallow breaths.

  “Jo, you’ve got broken ribs; he kicked you in the stomach but mostly in the chest. I’ll get the nurse, but they said your whole chest and midsection will be terribly painful for a while.” I rubbed her hand as I pushed the call button and waited for her to go on.

  “I wanted to call you, but it seemed so unreal; I didn’t want to get your hopes up for something I was sure was a mistake or would end before it even got started. And I was sort of worried you’d think I’d lied to you or was trying to replace Addyson Rose.” Josie’s eyes implored mine for assurance.

  Our ICU nurse arrived. Assuring Josie that the pain medication wouldn’t harm the baby and reiterating what I told her about the pain in her chest being normal, the nurse took a moment to record some vitals and left us alone again.

  “Josie, baby, I would have never thought you lied to me. If I had to guess, I’d assume it was that douchebag Wayne who lied.” When Josie’s eyes closed at the sound of his name, I knew I’d hit the jackpot on my guess.

  “He blackmailed the doctor into writing the letter. I guess Wayne was sterile but didn’t want that information getting out to his adoring public, so he let me believe it was a problem with me. Somehow he knew I was pregnant, that’s why he kicked my stomach. I’m sorry, Kyle, I should have insisted on protection with you; I just never thought it was an issue. I didn’t mean to trap you with a baby.” Tears fell from her eyes, and I stood to wipe them gently from her cheeks.

  “Josie, stop. You didn’t trap me. I’m not mad or upset, baby. I’m thrilled. I have always wanted kids and having a baby with you is a miracle, a dream-come-true.” I kissed her mouth carefully and whispered against her lips, “We’re having a baby, Jo!” Her tearful giggle made my heart stop. Resting my forehead against hers, I breathed deeply and let myself relax enough to believe things were going to be okay.

  “Kyle, my chest hurts so badly. I can’t get a full breath. Kyle?” I watched as Josie began to restlessly move her position in bed then the pain medication took over, and she fell into a groggy sleep.

  “Just rest, Jo. I’m right here.” I leaned in to kiss her cheek and noticed she was clammy and her skin had lost about four shades of color. As I ran my hand across her forehead to wipe away perspiration, I heard the monitors begin to make an intrusive noise in the room. “Jo? Josie? Can you wake up, baby?” I pushed the call button right
as a nurse appeared at the doorway and bustled into the room. “She was complaining of her chest hurting and not being able to breathe. Then she got all sweaty and clammy and fell asleep right as the monitors started chiming.”

  The nurse checked a few things on the chart, took her blood pressure, listened to her heartbeat. Another nurse came into the room, and they spoke while they assessed. “Chest pain, high heart rate, low blood pressure, sweaty and pale, muffled heart tones. Call the rapid response team.” As one nurse made the call, the other ushered me out the door.

  I heard her words, “Sir, we’ll come for you in the waiting room as soon as we’ve got some answers” just as the announcement “Rapid Response Team to ICU 214” boomed across the hospital’s speaker system. I rounded the corner to the waiting room, heart shattering, fear coursing through my veins, as members of the rapid response team flew by. I was met with wide eyes and concern when I walked into the waiting room.

  Collapsing into a chair, I sobbed, no longer able to hold it in. “It’s Josie, she was talking and then her alarms were ringing and she fell asleep or passed out, she couldn’t breathe, they made me leave so the rapid response team could figure out what’s wrong. God, please don’t take her from me, don’t take our baby from us.” I sobbed into my hands, but gratefully stood into the arms waiting to engulf me.

  Many tears, tense minutes, and prayers later, a doctor came to find me. “I’m Dr. Roberts, I’m with the rapid response team. It appears after initial assessment that Ms. Decker had a pericardial effusion which led to a cardiac tamponade.” At the clueless looks he was receiving he went on, “What that means is that the blows she took to her chest caused a slow bleed around her heart. It’s been slowly filling with blood and now it’s gotten so full that it’s putting pressure on her heart which is what’s causing her chest pain and the high heart rate and low blood pressure.”

  Without waiting for him to continue, I gruffly spoke, “How do you fix it? Is it going to hurt the baby?”