by Harlow Layne
“Hey, honey,” a soft voice said from the other side of the room. “You’re finally awake.”
Finally? How long had I been out?
“You’ve been here for…” she looked down at her watch. “A little over an hour, give or take. I’m glad to see you’re awake. I’ll get the doctor in here to talk to you and we’ll get you some pain meds. You’ve got to be hurting.”
I tried to nod, but it hurt too much. I would very much like something to take away the pain. “That would be wonderful.”
“I’ll be back in a few minutes, honey. Don’t worry. You’ll be feeling right as rain soon enough.”
I wasn’t so sure about that.
After about ten minutes, a man in his late fifties walked in with a kind smile on his face. His hair was completely gray, but he was good-looking for his age.
“Can you tell me your name?”
“Pria Wang.” That was easy.
He asked a series of questions that I answered. “Can you tell me what happened to you tonight?”
Not so easy. “I was mugged, and I fought back. He…” I gulped at what he’d tried to do. I hoped he wasn’t successful. “I think he wanted to rape me. I blacked out when he had me pinned to the ground. Did he…”
“We’ll have to do a rape kit to be one hundred percent sure since you were unconscious. We’re waiting for CT to open up and we’ll get you scanned before we put a cast on your arm. Besides a broken arm, you have multiple contusions to your face and some bruised ribs. It may not seem like it but you’re very lucky.”
Lucky. It sure didn’t feel like it.
“It will probably be another twenty to thirty minutes before someone will come in to take you down. I’ll have the nurse bring you some pain meds before you’re moved. Is there anyone that you’d like us to call for you?” He wrote something in his chart while he continued to smile kindly at me.
“Is my sweatshirt here? I had my phone in it.”
The nurse who I hadn’t noticed was still in the room went over to a bag that sat in the corner of the room and fished out my sweatshirt. I closed my eyes praying my phone was still inside my zip up pocket. She patted around and then smiled when she hit something. “Looks like you were lucky. He didn’t steal your phone.”
I couldn’t imagine all the people who came through their doors after being mugged and even worse. Even though I didn’t think I was lucky, they did, and I’d take their word on it.
She brought my phone to me and patted my hand. “If you need anything all you have to do is hit the red button. I’ll be back in a few minutes with some medicine that will make you feel better.”
“Thanks,” I responded looking down at my phone. Not one missed call or text. I didn’t want to call and have to deal with my dad, but I knew I needed to somehow get in contact with King.
Not knowing when I’d be able to leave, I sent an email to King’s secretary letting her know that he needed to find someone else to take the dogs out in the morning and probably for the rest of the day since I was in the hospital. I hoped I’d be released sometime tomorrow. I hated hospitals. I’d spent too much time in one when my mom had cancer. The only thing I knew as I waited for my CT was that everything hurt, and my arm was broken. Even if I got out the next day there would be no way I could walk the dogs unless it was one at a time and probably not even then.
Fuck my life.
20
Kingston
Tapping the toe of my leather shoe, I waited in the VIP lounge for my flight to be called. When I headed for the airport, I had no idea how long I would have to wait. Now I was regretting not waiting until the next day. I’d blocked Pria’s phone calls after the fifth time she called, and to get my mind off her, I decided to start answering emails. I’d been so distracted throughout the day, I’d barely gotten any work done.
My phone pinged with another email. It was a never-ending cycle of emails that came in day and night. If my secretary was even remotely competent, I would have had her answering some of them, but I didn’t trust her, so I had to answer all of them. Some days it felt like all I did was answer email after email. After this week, I needed to find a new secretary. If I wasn’t pissed at Pria, I would have asked her to find me the perfect secretary. I finished responding to Whitmore, letting him know I would be meeting someone at Sun Heights tomorrow and hit send. Looking at my emails I saw the latest one that had come in was flagged by my secretary. I knew it was important if she flagged it since she’d yet to do so.
She’d forwarded me an email from Pria stating I needed to find someone else to take care of the dogs tonight and tomorrow. What the fuck! I thought I could trust her to stay with them and they’d be safe. I continued reading only to drop my phone when it said she was in the hospital. What had happened?
I emailed Cindy or Sandy or whatever her name was and had her email Pria back to ask what hospital she was at and to text me the name of the hospital as soon as she found out. Her time was short at the company. While she had flagged the email, it would have been prudent for her to call me to make sure I knew about Pria and the dogs. I could have been in California by the time I saw the email and too far away to be of any help. Once I hit send, I popped up from my seat and made my way out front to where the taxis waited. I only hoped there was one available. I didn’t want to have to wait for an Uber. Luck wasn’t on my side. I wasn’t sure how there were no taxis out front at JFK, but it was like God was pissed at me for leaving without talking to Pria.
My phone beeped with a text from Sandy letting me know Pria was at Mount Sinai. For a moment I felt bad that I’d never learned her name and thought I should learn it, but did I really need to if I was going to replace her as soon as I possibly could?
I ordered an Uber and hated that it would take me almost an hour to get to Pria. Had Sarah pulled her down again? The email hadn’t mentioned anything being wrong with any of the dogs. I called the front desk at my building and asked for someone to check on the dogs and to make sure they were okay. I could hear the confusion in George’s tone, but he assured me they’d be checked on.
No matter how hard I tried to work as my driver and I made our way from the airport to the hospital, I couldn’t stop thinking about Pria. Maybe she twisted her ankle while out on a walk. It couldn’t be serious. It didn’t matter how mad I was at Pria for lying to me, I wanted to check on her to make sure she was okay. I ended up staring out at the city as we made our way to the hospital.
Once the hospital came into view, I had my briefcase in hand and was ready to jump out of the car. Luckily, I hadn’t checked my suitcase, otherwise, it would be on its way to California right now instead of sitting beside me.
The moment the car stopped, I was out of the car and on a mission to find Pria. Luckily, I found someone who could help me. She was scowling at her computer screen when I approached.
“Excuse me could you tell me where I can find Pria Wang? I was informed she checked in earlier tonight.”
Her dark eyes flicked up to me and then back down to her screen as she typed furiously. “She’s still in the emergency room.”
“Can you tell me which room?” Hearing she was in the ER worried me, but where else would she be?
“It says only family is allowed back. Are you her—”
“I’m her fiancé.” The words came out before I could stop them, but it didn’t matter. I’d make up any lie for a chance to see her.
“She’s in twelve-C.”
I scanned the area for a sign to point me in the right direction. Hospitals weren’t new to me, but I didn’t know my way around this one. The only thing I knew was that the emergency room was on the first floor. I didn’t have to find the right elevator to make my way upstairs.
Turning left and right, and then right and left, I finally saw the entrance to the emergency room and breathed a sigh of relief. I trained my eyes on the room numbers. With each moan and cry from the rooms I passed, my mind got away from me. It didn’t matter that I was mad at Pria.
I only wanted her to be okay. There were so many people in the ER and the smell of urine, vomit, and antiseptic brought back unwanted memories of Murphy.
Finally, after seemingly circling the entire emergency room twice, I found 12-C. The door was closed and now that I was there, I was unsure of what to do. I had been a total dick earlier when I left leaving Pria confused and probably not wanting anything to do with me ever again. I decided not to knock. I didn’t want her to know it was me and turn me away. Instead, I quietly slipped inside. I was happy to see she was in a room and not one of the beds with only a curtain around it.
Pria lay on the bed staring up at the ceiling and even from the doorway I could see the tears slipping down her bruised and battered cheek. Her entire face was swollen with cuts and bruises marring its usual perfection. There was no way the dogs did this unless they dragged her out in front of a car. One black casted arm rested on her stomach as the other brushed away her tears.
“Pria,” I gasped, rushing toward her. “Oh my God, what happened?” I didn’t wait for her to answer. As delicately as I could, I pulled her into my arms and buried my face in her hair. Her good arm wrapped around me as she buried her face in my chest and started to sob. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered repeatedly into the top of her head. If I’d stayed and talked to her none of this would have happened. The guilt almost brought me to my knees.
When her sobs calmed, I pulled back to look at her. One eye was swollen shut, and the other was red and puffy from crying with a gash above her eyebrow. My fingers itched to wipe away her tears only I was too afraid I’d hurt her. “What happened?”
She sucked in a hitched breath. Her eyes welled again with tears that were about to spill over with only a blink of the eye. “I… I was so mad at you that I did-didn’t want to be in your space. Your sm-smell was everywhere.” She hiccupped and then grimaced. Her casted arm held her ribs.
“I can’t express to you how sorry I am. I’ll do anything for you to forgive me.” I kissed her forehead and stroked her hair back from her face.
“You didn’t do this to me. I was mugged and…”
There was more? Had she been…
“Were you raped?” I choked out. I would never be able to live with myself if she was.
“I don’t know. He tried, but I fought back and that’s when he started hitting me. I woke up here, so I don’t know what happened after I was unconscious.”
No, not my little Pria. She didn’t deserve this.
“Someone is supposed to come and do a rape kit, but I don’t know when.” She rested the side of her face against my shoulder. “I’m still waiting to hear about my CT scan.”
“Fucking hell, Pria. I’m so sorry. From now on you use my driver. He’ll be at your beck and call.”
Separating from me, she looked up at me as her eyes searched for something. “How are you even here? Your secretary said you were out of town for the rest of the week. When I emailed her to find someone to watch the dogs, I didn’t expect you to show up here. I only wanted someone to take care of Jimmy, Orvy, and Sarah.”
“I was still at the airport when I got the email and once I found out you were in the hospital, I had to make sure you were okay. I know I was pissed earlier, but—”
“Ms. Wang,” a voice interrupted. Turning to the door, a sweet older looking nurse stood inside the door. “I’m here to do your rape kit. I was told you’re unsure if you were raped or not.
I looked down at Pria with what could only be horror in my eyes. It was possible someone had violated her because I was an asshole.
Pria bit down on her split lip and winced. “I don’t think he did, but I can’t be sure. I’m sore everywhere and…”
“That’s all right. Say no more. I’ll explain to you what will be done, and you can decide if you want to continue. It’s your right to have one just as it’s your right to deny it. If your…”
“Fiancé,” I added. Pria’s gaze shifted to mine. It looked as if she was about to deny my claim, so I whispered to her, “I’ll explain later.”
“If he can sit in the waiting room, I’ll have someone come get him when we’re done.” She smiled kindly.
“I can’t stay?” I clasped Pria’s hand in mine. “Do you want me here?”
“Sir, I think it would be best if you weren’t in the room. It can be invasive, and many women find having their significant other in the room more difficult. We don’t want that, do we?”
Of course, I didn’t want to make it worse for Pria. I only wished none of this had happened. “Will she be released afterward?”
The nurse flipped open the chart in her hand and scanned through the information. “That will depend on what the CT scan shows and what the doctor on call determines.”
Leaning down, I pressed a light kiss to the top of Pria’s head. It was hard to find a place that didn’t look like my touch would cause her pain. “I’ll be waiting for you in the waiting room.”
“You don’t need to do that, King.”
“I do so don’t argue with me.” I gave her hand a final squeeze before I set out to find the waiting room. It wasn’t hard, but it wasn’t where I wanted to be. No one had directed me to any other waiting room, so I was stuck out with everyone who was waiting their turn to be seen.
Trying to block out the people around me and the memories of the many times Murphy had been rushed to the emergency room, I sent off an email to my secretary letting her know to cancel my hotel reservations, flights, and meetings for the week. The email took me no time at all and before I knew it my mind had slipped into the past.
My once beautiful sister was failing. She was a sliver of her past self. Her lungs were giving out and I couldn’t remember the last time she ate solid food. I held her hand as I sat by the side of her bed with my head resting next to her arm. She’d been admitted thirty-six hours ago, and had been in and out of sleep unlike me, who couldn’t sleep no matter how hard I tried. And I wanted to sleep. I wanted to wake up from this nightmare and have my healthy sister back because I knew… I knew this was the end. No matter what medicines she was given or experimental treatments, nothing worked, and we had to watch her waste away into the fragile girl who lay before me.
A light squeeze to my hand had me looking up to see Murphy’s eyes open and alert. “Hey, your majesty. What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at work or on a date?”
Murphy thought it was funny my friends in grade school started to call me King. In turn, she liked to pretend I was some royal asshole. I was an asshole, but never to her. Not one day in all of her existence had I ever said or done anything that wasn’t loving. She didn’t deserve to be sick and I hated her disease for slowly taking her away from me.
“By your side is the only place I ever want to be, Murph.” I felt tears sting the backs of my eyes, but I fought them back. I didn’t want to upset her. I didn’t want her to lose hope.
A shaky smile spread across her face. “You’re going to have to take care of my dogs.” I groaned playfully. “I know they can be a handful, but I love them.”
I knew she did. Murphy spoiled those dogs worse than any grandparent spoiled their grandkid.
“I’m sorry, Kingston.” It was so quiet I almost missed it. I was shocked to find tears brimming in her eyes when I looked up.
“You have nothing to be sorry for. You’re the best sister anyone could ask for.” I choked out each word since they wanted to come out as a sob, but I swore to myself I would be strong for her. She’d been so strong all her life. Even then as she wasted away in a hospital bed.
“I’ll love you forever and ever, big brother.” Her smile turned watery. Simultaneously, a tear slipped down both our cheeks.
“As I’ll love you forever and ever for all eternity.”
After that Murphy insisted that I go and check on her dogs. She didn’t want them to be alone since she hadn’t been able to spend much time with them lately. On my way back to the hospital, my mother called me in hysterics, and I knew wit
hout her saying a word my sister was gone.
“Mr. Avery.” The nurse from earlier stood before me with the same kind smile on her face. “I’m finished with Ms. Wang. She’d like you to join her again. If you’ll follow me, I’ll escort you back to her room.”
I stood quickly. Murphy was still on my mind and I didn’t want to be there. The memory of the last time I’d been in a hospital was still fresh, and it made me think of all the things that could have happened to Pria. Of how much worse it could have been. I followed behind the nurse as she expertly made her way back to Pria’s room. She patted me on the arm once we got there.
“Hang in there, young man.”
I thought it was strange for her to be telling me that, but I didn’t care. It was unusual to have all these feelings bubbling around. It was as if a well of emotions had erupted inside of me when I read Pria was in the hospital. My heart stopped and then started beating double time when I realized how important she was to me.
When I walked in, Pria’s closed eyes fluttered open when she heard me. I made my way over to the bed and clasped her hand in mine. She looked so tiny in her hospital bed. All I wanted to do was get her out of there and take her home.
“Hey, are you okay?” Pria asked softly.
“Shouldn’t I be asking you that question?” I smiled thinly down at her.
Her tiny hand brushed against my cheek and her finger came away with moisture. I hadn’t realized that a tear had escaped until then.
“What’s going on with you today? I’ve got to say you’re giving me whiplash and that’s not good in my condition.”
She probably thought I was a basket case with the way I’d acted. First, wanting to spend my lunch between her legs to raging at her when she got home only now for me to be crying.
