Page 95 of Beautiful Deceit
The room itself is much larger than the last one she was in. We've been put on the third floor, the birthing unit.
When I question this reasoning, the hospital head, Rebecca Wright, replies, “These are the largest rooms in the hospital. We're on the opposite end of any occupied rooms.” She leaves Brian and I shortly after we settle in. Occasionally, through the door, I can hear the wail of an infant. We sit quietly, until I hear a woman scream so loudly, I shiver at the pain she must be in.
“Well, ain’t this pleasant,” Brian mumbles, folding a new parent information pamphlet in his hands, “Sure you don’t want to go back to the waiting room?”
We are both sit on a long built-in couch that doubles as a bed, where I'll be sleeping. After that we take turns walking around the halls, as we wait for Sam.
I walk every time it’s my turn to the nurse’s station, to ask about Sam’s condition. I’m pretty sure they’re tired of me asking the same questions.
On my most recent visit, one assures me that the surgery was done, everything went well, but that she needed to stay in recovery for a while.
Samantha returns to her new room a little after six o'clock. She still hasn't fully opened her eyes, but they were able to get her to respond verbally.
When all the nurses leave, I let my head fall into my folded arms that rest on a small dinette table.
Brian drops his hand on my back and says, “I got an update on her stepdad a few hours ago.” When I raise my head sharply, he explains, “I was waiting for her to get back.”
I look up and over to a sleeping Samantha.
The chair makes a noise as I push back to stand.
“Let’s talk out in the hall,” I whisper. If she wakes up, I don’t want her hearing anything he might have to say.
We walk down the hall to a family gathering room. I head straight to the coffee machine. I turn on the single cup coffee brewer and place a thick insulated disposable cup under the spout.
Brian leans his back against the wall, letting his arms hang down at his sides.
“So?” I push the topic, when he doesn’t speak up right away. I need to get back in case she wakes up.
“So,” he sighs. “They searched the house, the one he was keeping her in. They found a camera in the room where he kept her.” As the heavy statement falls, the blue light on the coffee maker blinks steady. I press it.
“Did they find any tapes?” my voice is hoarse, almost unrecognizable.
“There was a DVR system. They haven’t reviewed everything yet, but I just wanted you to know. I don’t want you blindsided later on.” He sighs, “They may come to interview her once she’s in stable condition and, ya know, conscious.”
My palms meet the counter, my head hangs down between my shoulder blades. God only knows what’s on those tapes.
“I can’t imagine what she’s been through. How can I help her through this? All I keep thinking isI wish she would wake up.” I lift my head and pull the coffee out from under the spout and offer it to Brian. He shakes his head, rejecting it. I take a sip, “Physically she’s mending, but on the inside, how can I ever erase that?”
“You can’t,” his words are spoken softly.
I start,I’m dozing off in a gliding chair next to Sammy’s bed. I'm not sure what woke me. I look over and see her trying to stretch her body. The groan in pain she makes has me springing from the chair and to her side.
"Sammy, try not to move too much, you'll be sore," but sore does not come close to describing her injuries.
Her eyes try to lift, the right is still swollen, but she manages to open in a slit.
"Beau?" my name is barely audible, but it still makes my smile huge and my eyes glassy.
"Yeah, baby. Do you need a drink?" I grab the cup of mostly ice chips that the nurses kept replenishing, expecting her to wake any minute. They let me know that she can have a little ice and water when she wakes.
She nods. I bring the plastic spoon to her dry lips. She winces as she wraps her mouth around it.
Her head drops backas she collects some ice in her mouth and sucks lightly on it. She is exhausted from holding it forward for a mere second. It speaks to how much she has been through.
I hit the call button. It takes a minute before I get a response.
"Yes?"
