Harvest Moon (Brook Haven Romance Book 1) (11 page)

 
Drake and Sophie went straight to the ER when
they arrived at the hospital. The nurse was kind, and she told Drake she’d find
out where Mac was and if he could see him before taking them in to see Brenda,
who was in a cubicle in the ER behind a sliding curtain. She was surrounded by
gurneys on either side in front and behind. Brenda looked pale, and she had a
few cuts and scratches on her face. The rest of her was covered, but there were
lines and tubes running here and there underneath the sheet.

“Mom?” Sophie’s face
was as pale as her mother’s. Drake suddenly felt bad for the breakdown he had had.
He should have been there for her. She was as worried as he was, and he was
wasting time making it about him and how he felt. “Mom, can you hear me?”
Sophie slid her hand under the sheet and grasped her mother’s. Brenda’s eyes
fluttered open and then closed again. The nurse said she was on pain medication,
so she was probably having trouble waking up.

“Sophie?” Brenda said
groggily.

“Yeah, Mom. I’m here. Are
you okay?”

“Mac?”

Sophie looked up at
Drake. He suddenly felt like he couldn’t breathe. “We haven’t seen him yet.
Drake’s here too. As soon as we see him, we’ll let you know how he is, okay?”

“I’m sorry,” she said,
turning her head slowly and pulling her eyes open as if they had weights on
them. Drake realized that she was apologizing to him. He felt another lump
welling up in his throat. He stepped closer to the bed and took her hand.

“I’m sorry that you had
to go through this,” he said. He bent down and brushed his lips across her
cheek. “Everything’s going to be okay. You don’t have anything to apologize
for, all right?”

A stray tear rolled
down her cheek, and Sophie wiped it away. “Don’t cry, Mom. Everything’s going
to be okay. Are you in pain?”

“No,” Brenda’s voice
was raspy and hoarse.

“Do you want some
water?”

“They won’t let me have
any,” she said, having to force each word as if her chest hurt when she spoke.

Sophie suddenly looked
annoyed. To no one in particular, she said, “Where is that doctor? The nurse
said he’d be right in.”

“I’ll go check,” Drake
said. He left the women alone and stepped out from behind the curtain. He felt
like he could breathe a little easier out here. He found the nurse that had
helped them and asked about Brenda’s doctor. She assured him that he’d be in as
soon as he could. Then, he asked about Mac again.

“He’s still in surgery.
I let the staff up there know that you’re here. They’ll call when he’s out and
I’ll take you there, okay?”

He nodded, feeling like
he was suddenly caught in a bad dream. The day had gone from a beautiful kind
of surreal to a nightmare. “Mr. Tanner?” He turned at the sound of the voice.
He was facing a middle-aged man with a long face in a green uniform with gold
piping holding a green trooper hat.

“Yes, Drake Tanner.”

“I’m Officer Williams.”
Drake shook his hand. The officer said, “Have you gotten any word on your
uncle?”

“No sir, not yet.”

“I just wanted to give
you my card and ask if you could keep me updated.”

“Sure. Thanks for
helping them.”

“It’s nothing.
Unfortunately, there wasn’t much I could do until the fire department got
there. I hope your uncle comes through this okay.”

“Thanks, me too.”

Drake put the card in
his pocket and headed back to where Brenda was. The doctor was walking in just
as he was. It was a female doctor with the posture of a soldier. She smiled at
him, but it was the smile of a professional. There was nothing overly warm
about it. She had her hair pulled back into a severe bun and a pair of reading
glasses perched on the end of her nose. She pushed them up as she perused the file
in her hand. Sophie looked up as they walked in and said, “Are you Dr.
Garrison?”

“Yes,” the woman said,
holding her hand out almost robotically. Sophie stood up and shook it, then
introduced herself and Drake. He watched poor Brenda trying to keep her eyes
open, but they kept drifting back shut. “So Mrs. Michelson was the driver in a
multiple-injury accident. The car she was driving was pushed into the guardrail,
and she and her passenger were trapped inside. She sustained some crushing
injuries to her ribs as well as a punctured lung. It looks like she already had
a break to her left ankle that was cast, so that isn’t new.

“So far we haven’t
detected any other injuries or internal bleeding. She has a chest tube in place
now to keep the fluids from building up in that lung as it heals, and the
oxygen is to help her get enough air exchange while it’s healing. She’s
scheduled for one more CT scan of her abdomen this afternoon. She had a lot of
bruising and swelling when she came in, so it was hard to read. We didn’t see
anything worrisome, but we’ll want to check it again just to be sure.” She
looked from Sophie to Drake and said, “Do either of you have any questions?”

“Her broken ribs … they’ll
heal on their own?” Sophie asked.

“Yes, that’s what we
hope for. She’s wearing an abdominal brace now so that when she breathes,
coughs, or moves, she won’t experience so much pain. She’ll likely have to wear
that until they’re healed.”

“How long will she need
to stay here?”

The doctor shrugged.
“At this point, we’re still at the stage of finding out what her injuries are.
Hopefully we’ve already identified them all, but we’d like her to stay under
observation for the first twenty-four hours. She’ll be transferred to a room as
soon as one is available.”

Sophie nodded. She
looked relieved, and Drake was relieved for her and Brenda both. Now if they’d
just tell him something about Mac. The doctor answered a few more questions for
Sophie before leaving. Sophie looked up at Drake and asked, “Have they told you
anything else about Mac?”

“No. He’s still in
surgery.” Drake sat down in the chair on his side of the bed. “They said
they’ll call me when he’s out.”

They both sat there and
watched Brenda sleep. It was about an hour later when the nurse stuck her head
in and said, “Mr. Tanner, he’s out of surgery.”

Drake got up and looked
at Sophie. “I’ll let you know as soon as I talk to someone,” he said.

She smiled gently at
him and nodded. “I have my phone. Call me if you need anything, okay?”

“Yeah, I will.” He
kissed Brenda’s cheek again and then Sophie’s before following the nurse out of
the room. Drake looked around as the nurse led him to the surgical waiting
room. The hallway was as untouched with personality as the rest of the
hospital. The floor beneath his feet was white and slate gray tiles, and the
light overhead was way too bright. It reminded him of one on television when
the police were interrogating a suspect. As he walked on, wondering how far
away the ICU was, he noticed how everything was clean and spotless and tinged
with bleach.

The nurse, who’d told
him her name was Marla, pushed a button on the wall at the end of the hall, and
a set of double doors swung inward. In between that set and another, there was
a black phone on the wall. She picked it up and dialed 1 before speaking. “Hi
Katie. I have Mr. Tanner here to see his uncle.”

Marla listened, then
hung up and put some sort of code into the keypad. The next set of doors
opened. Drake felt a rush of cold air and was once again overwhelmed by the
strong scent of ammonia.

“This is where I leave
you, Mr. Tanner. Good luck. I wish your uncle a speedy recovery.”

“Thank you for your
help.” She nodded and smiled and then left as the other nurse came toward him.

“Hi, Mr. Tanner. I’m Katie.”

“Hi … where is my
uncle?”

“They’re bringing him
up right now.”

“Can you tell me what’s
wrong with him? What did they operate on him for?”

“I’m going to let Dr.
Gill tell you all of that. Here he is now.”

Dr. Gill was a tall,
broad, Eastern Indian man. He shook Drake’s hand and proceeded to give him the
rundown on Mac’s injuries. “Your uncle is paraplegic, correct?”

“Yes.”

“How long?”

“Um … I guess about
thirty years.”

“Otherwise healthy?”

“As far as I know.”

“Good. He was trapped
in the vehicle and suffered some major internal injuries. We transfused him
with two units of blood before the surgery and I just ordered another unit now.
We took out his spleen because it sustained some major damage. He has some
severe bruising to his abdominal area, and his legs are quite cut up from the
crushing metal. His right arm is broken in two places, and I’m afraid that he
has a closed head injury as well. He’s not breathing on his own right now.”

“So in English?” Drake
said.

“The injury we’re
worried about and watching is the closed head. We don’t know why he hasn’t
woken up yet or why he’s not breathing on his own. He has a lot of swelling
around his brain and if that doesn’t go down with medication over the next
twenty-four hours, he may need surgery to relieve that as well. I ordered an
MRI of his head to be done first thing in the morning and when that comes back,
I can let you know more.”

That all sounded
really, really bad. Drake felt sick to his stomach. “Is there still a possibility
that he’ll wake up on his own?”

“Yes. He does have
brain activity, so for now, it’s wait and see.”

That wasn’t the best
news, but at least it gave him hope. “Okay. Thank you. Can I see him?”

“Yes, absolutely. He’s
there in room four. I don’t know if anyone else is here with you, but only one
visitor at a time.”

“Okay, thank you.” After
the doctor left, Drake stood near the nursing station and texted Sophie what
he’d learned. She texted back right away.

Give him a kiss for us. Mom is feeling
so bad.

Please tell her to stop that and
concentrate on getting better. I’ll text you after I see Mac for a bit.

He stuck the phone in
his pocket and took a deep breath before heading over to the big glass room.

Three days later, on
Tuesday, Mac was still in the same condition. They’d done surgery on his head
to remove the pressure on Sunday, but he still hadn’t woken up and was still
not breathing on his own. Brenda, on the other hand, was doing great … physically.
Although the police officer had said more than once, and even put in his report,
that the slick road was what caused the accident and she was in no way at fault,
she was still blaming herself.

Sophie texted Drake
early in the day to let him know the doctor was discharging Brenda. He let the
nurses know he would be downstairs for a while, and he went to the second floor
to Brenda’s room to see them. As soon as he walked in, Sophie got up and hugged
him. He held on to her tightly for a long time, and his eyes met Brenda’s blue
ones over Sophie’s head. He kissed Sophie on the side of the face and stepped
over to her mother. Smiling at her, he leaned down and kissed her cheek. “I’m
so glad they’re letting you bust out of here.”

“Me too,” she said, her
eyes filling with tears. “How’s Mac?”

“He’s the same … still
fighting.”

“Do you think they’ll
let me see him before I go home?”

“I think we can arrange
that,” Drake told her.

She clutched his arm
and said, “Drake, I’m so very sorry.”

He rested his weary
forehead into hers. Sophie had gotten a motel room in town, but he wouldn’t
leave Mac. He slept off and on in the recliner in the room, but not much.
“Brenda, please, please, please stop blaming yourself for this. The state trooper
said you did absolutely nothing wrong. It was a horrible freak accident, and I
am so glad that you’re okay. Mac is a tough old guy, and I believe in my heart
that he’s going to come back to us … and when he does, he’s going to be just as
happy that you’re okay, too.”

“I just feel so
helpless,” she said. Drake hugged her.

“Me too,” he said. They
sat like that for a long time while Sophie loaded all of the flowers and cards
she’d gotten into the car she’d rented to take them home. She was touched by
the outpouring of support from the people of Brook Haven, who had only so
recently met Brenda. It was another reminder of what a nice place she’d chosen
for them to call home.

On Monday, Brooke had
come by to see Drake, and Sophie realized as she watched them together that any
jealousy she’d felt was just her own silliness. It was easy to see that their
love for each other was a pure kind of love like that shared between siblings. Mrs.
Larson sent some apples and a quart of lemonade with her and a note for Sophie
that made her tear up.

Remember when I told you that I thought
that Tanner boy was in love with the doctor? Well, I just wanted to tell you
that I was wrong. That day you and he came by to pick apples, I saw such a
strong love in his eyes when he looked at you … it was the way my husband used
to look at me. Hold on to that dear, and it will get you through anything.
Trust me, I know. Kiss your mama for me and tell her when she’s feeling up to
it to drink the magic lemonade … it will do wonders for her soul.

Sophie kept the note in
her pocket and over the next couple of days when she was feeling down, she
would take it out and read it again.

Eventually the nurse
came in with Brenda’s discharge paperwork and instructions. She was to be on strict
bed rest until her ribs healed. Her ankle was still healing as well. She was
exchanging oxygen on her own just fine, so they weren’t worried about her lung.
The cuts on her face had begun to heal and she had a black eye, but all in all she
was lucky, and the proof of how lucky was upstairs in the ICU. She thanked the
nurses, and the three of them got onto the elevator. Drake pushed the button
for the tenth floor and once they were at the ICU, he asked the nurse to let
Brenda visit as long as she wanted to. While she went in to see Mac, Sophie and
Drake sat together in the waiting room.

“So … Friday is the big
day,” he said.

“What?”

“Your grand opening,”
he said. He was trying to brighten her mood. Hers seemed almost as down as
Brenda’s.

“Are you coming home?”

The smile fell away and
he said, “I can’t. I hope you know how badly I want to be there with you, but
it’s over an hour’s drive and if anything happened to him while I was gone …”

She nodded. “I know. I’m
just worried about you. You’re not eating or sleeping—”

“I’m fine.” He slipped
his arm around her and held her close while they waited. Neither of them said
anything after that until it was time to say goodbye. He kissed and hugged
Brenda one more time before helping her into the car. Then he took Sophie in
his arms and said, “I promise I’ll eat and sleep and if the opportunity
presents itself, I’ll shower.” She smiled and wrinkled her nose. He laughed and
kissed her forehead. “I need you to promise me something.”

“What’s that?”

“You don’t stress too
much this week. My friend Sam, who is a veterinarian and not a carpenter by the
way, is going to come and help you finish up at the inn.”

“What? No. Drake, you
shouldn’t be worrying about any of that right now.”

“I’m not. Sam’s not as
good as I am, of course.” He grinned. “But he’s pretty handy.”

“Drake—”

“Shh. Don’t argue with
me. You worked too hard for this, and there is no way that it’s not going to
happen.”

“I just wanted you to
be there so badly.”

“I know … I’m sorry.”

As soon as he said he
was sorry, she felt guilty again. He shouldn’t be sorry about staying with his
uncle. Sometimes Sophie wondered if she’d become way too self-absorbed. It was
her turn to say, “Shh. Please don’t apologize to me. You have such a good heart.
You always do the right thing. I can learn so much from you.”

He pulled her back into
his side and with that cute grin of his, he said, “Just you wait … I have a
list of things to teach you.”

She laughed. “That’s
not what I meant.”

“I know, baby,” he
whispered. “I love you.”

****

Brooke showed back up
on Thursday morning. Drake met her out in the waiting room and as soon as she
saw him, she said, “Whew! I made it just in time. Here …” She handed him a
shopping bag. He raised an eyebrow and she said, “Just look inside.” He did,
and what he saw was a new pair of jeans, t-shirts, shorts, and socks as well as
a razor and shaving cream, toothbrush, and toothpaste. He smiled.

“Are you trying to say
I stink?”

“I would never … Sophie
asked me to bring them.”

“Is she doing okay?”
They’d talked on the phone several times since she took Brenda home. He could
tell that she was trying to put on a happy face, but she didn’t sound truly
happy.

“I don’t really know
her that well. She seems a little stressed, but that’s to be expected. She
misses you, that much I can see on her face.”

“How are things going
for the opening tomorrow?”

“I went inside today
when I stopped by to pick these things up because I wanted to check out
Brenda’s ankle. The place looks beautiful. I think it’s going to be a big hit
with the tourists.”

“Good. She’s worked so
hard. She deserves good things.”

Brooke put her hand on
his face and said, “So do you.”

“They’re coming,” he
said. “Soon.”

Brooke smiled and asked
him, “How did you become so disgustingly positive?”

He laughed. “I just
pretend like I am to annoy you,” he said.

Drake talked one of the
nurses into letting him use the shower in one of the empty rooms while Brooke
visited Mac. When he was showered and shaved and dressed in clean clothes, he
felt slightly more human. He called Sophie before he went back to the ICU.

“Hey! How are you?” she
answered. “How’s Mac?”

“He’s the same, and I’m
great now. Thank you for the clothes and things. You didn’t have to do that.”

“I really did. The
nurses called and said you stink.”

He laughed. “Not
anymore. How are things going there?”

“Good. Everything is
ready, I think. Sam has been a big help and Mrs. Larson has been over with her
helpful tips. The only thing missing is you.”

“I’m sor—”

“Don’t say it! You have
nothing to be sorry for. I just miss you. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“Monday.”

“No,” she pouted.
“Monday is too far away.”

“Get through your
opening weekend and the Harvest Festival, and I’ll see you on Monday.”

“I will see you soon,”
she said.

“I love you, Sophie.”

She still didn’t say it
back, but he was okay with it. He could see it when she looked at him and he could
hear it in her voice. Words didn’t mean a thing. Anyone could say the words. He
looked down at his new clean clothes and thought,
It’s the little things that matter.