As we drive past the scene, the
vehicle slows. The remnants of the accident are left behind. Lucas is still
talking to police. Again, images of Morgan fill my mind.
“Agent Cross?”
“Please, call me Phillip.”
“I don’t know where you’re taking
me, but before we leave, can you get me an update on Morgan?”
“I’m in touch with someone at the
hospital. I’m hoping to hear from them before we take off.”
We arrive at a small airstrip and
board a jet. Phillip talks on the phone for a while before getting on board. I
look at my watch and realize it’s close to 4:30 in the morning. Phillip joins
us on the aircraft. I don’t know him very well, but the look on his face is
awful. It reminds me of the same look Jonathan had on his face right before he
told me Zach died.
“He’s still in surgery. They’re
doing everything they can, but he lost a lot of blood.”
“Is he going to be okay?”
“I hope so.”
“What condition is he in?”
Phillip hesitates, and I sense that
there’s more he’s not telling me. “Was his spinal cord damaged?”
“No, but the bullet damaged some
vessels, and there is swelling on his brain. He lost so much blood.”
“They don’t think they can save
him, do they?”
Phillip can’t look
me in the eye. He looks down to
the floor.
“They’re doing everything they
can,” he says.
“I’m sorry. I can’t do this,” I
say, releasing my seatbelt. “I can’t be thinking of saving myself right now at
a time when he needs me, and I should be there to support him. I don’t want to
do this anymore. You have to take me to him.”
“Miss Jenkins, if you choose to do
this, we can’t guarantee your safety.”
“I don’t care. Please. I need to
see him.”
“You could be killed.”
“I don’t care. Don’t you get it? He’s
all I have left, and if I lose him, I have nothing. I may as well be dead. I’m
not discussing this anymore. Please, take me to him. Now.”
Phillip looks down, shaking his
head, but I pick up my bag and step off the aircraft.
We’re on our
way to the hospital. As I think about
the events of tonight and how I ended here, I’d be a liar if I said this didn’t
scare me.
I’m not sure how much time passes,
but it feels like hours. Through my tears, somewhere in the back of my mind,
Air Base Parkway registers. The vehicle slows, and I notice a large runway.
Soon after, I hear agents Cross and Peters in an exchange with a pair of armed
guards at the gate. When I get inside the hospital, Jada and Jonathan pace the
waiting room floors. The vibe is different from a normal hospital. A few people
in military garb walk around.
“What are you doing here?” Jonathan
asks when he sees me.
“I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t leave
him. I had to be here,” I whisper as he and Jada embrace me. “Have you heard
from the doctors? Does Barney know?”
“No and no,” Jonathan replies.
“Because of the sensitivity of this
case, we want to be very deliberate in how we move forward,” Agent Cross
interjects.
Hours have gone by. By my
calculations, Morgan has been in surgery for four to five hours. I have no idea
how long this should take, but the length of time worries me.
I think about my parents and Zach,
and now I’m worried that I’ll lose Morgan just like I lost them.
Seconds feel like minutes, minutes
feel like hours, hours feel like days. And we wait. I continually glance at the
clock on the wall.
Jonathan and the FBI agents seem to
be in an intense discussion in the corner. Any other time, I might have wanted
to know what they’re talking about, but right now the only thing that matters
in my mind is Morgan. Everything else seems miniscule.
Sometime later, a surgeon walks
into the room.
“Are you his family?” he asks.
“We’re his friends,” Jonathan
replies.
“And I’m Agent Phillip Cross from
the FBI. What’s the status of the patient?”
“You realize that I can only give
details about the patient’s health to his next of kin. Is Robin Fuente here?”
“No, she’s not,” I reply. “She’s
his sister, and right now they’re not on speaking terms.” Morgan and I had
agreed to keep our marriage quiet then share it with everyone at a ceremony
here. Now, I’m not so sure I’ll be able to wait if this doctor won’t give me an
update on his condition.
“All I’m able to tell you is that
the surgery was successful, and we managed to stop the bleeding. There is still
some swelling on his brain. Right now, we’re keeping an eye out for infections.
Unfortunately, however, he’s in a coma.”
“Is he going to pull through?” I
ask. “How long will he be in a coma?”
“I’m hoping so, but it’s still a
bit too early to tell. He lost a lot of blood. For now, we have to monitor him
and hope no complications arise. Beyond that, someone can be in a coma for
hours, days, weeks, sometimes even years.”
“Can I please see him?” I ask.
“No, I’m sorry. Family members only
at this time.”
“He’s my husband.”
Everyone stares at me in silence.
“I’m sorry, guys. It was never our
intention for you to find out like this. We wanted to share it with you and his
family together, but this happened. We were married three days ago in Canada.”
“Can you prove this?” the doctor
asks.
“He was wearing a ring when he was
brought in. It’s engraved on the inside with
I will always love you
and
the date, December 29.” As the memories of the last few days and hours replay
in my head, I’m overwhelmed. “Nicholas was a witness and…” I dig through my bag
and pull out the wedding picture I took with me. “That’s our wedding picture
from three days ago. We were married at a place called Emerald Lake.” I raise
my hand and show them the cocktail ring on my finger. “Morgan bought me this
ring, and he’s wearing an emerald ring from me, too. I just want to be with
him. Jada, I’m sorry. It wasn’t our intention to hurt any of you. We wanted to
tell you all in our own way.”
“You two did what was right for
you, sweetie,” Jada says, hugging me. “Don’t be sorry. This is between you and
Morgan. Screw everyone else.”
“I suppose I can let you see him,”
the doctor says, “but only for a short period. Agent Cross, we retrieved two
bullets from the patient. We have them to turn over to you.”
“Go ahead, sweetie,” Jada says. “We’ll
be right here when you get back.”
“Come with me,” the doctor says.
We walk into Morgan’s cold, sterile
room. The
beep, beep, beep
is a chilling reminder that machines keep him
alive. He lays motionless in bed. A tube is taped to his face and runs into his
mouth and down his throat to help him breathe. I can’t miss the line of stitches
to the side of his neck all the way to the lower backside of his head.
I’ve never seen him this lifeless,
not even when I would gaze at him during sleep. I wonder where his mind is
right now. I wonder if he’s thinking of the happy times we had or the happy
future we could have together.
“I’ll leave you alone for a
moment.” The doctor leaves the room.
I pull up a chair next to Morgan’s
bed and sandwich his hand between mine. Right now, this is as close as it gets
to his touch.
The last thing he ever said to me
was I love you, and as I watch him lying motionless, I wish I could hear him
say those words again. I want him to know I’m here. I want him to feel my
support, so I put up a brave front…
“Hey, babe. I know you aren’t
feeling too great, but be strong, it will get better.
I’m going to try really hard to see
if they’ll let me stay with you. If they do, I can read you that Tom Clancy
novel that you said you wanted to read but hadn’t gotten around to yet.
Jada and Jonathan are here. Two
guys from the FBI are here with me, too, so you don’t need to worry. One of
them, Agent Cross, is Jonathan’s friend.
Don’t be mad at me, but I had to
tell them we got married. It was either that or they wouldn’t let me see you,
and you know I would never let that happen.
Maybe we’ll get your dad to come
see you later. I’m not sure yet. Things are still a little crazy around here.
The doctor told me I couldn’t stay
long, but I’m hoping he gets distracted and forgets that I’m here. If they come
get me, I’m just outside. You know how you doctors are with that
you can’t
stay too long nonsense
. When you get out of this, you should really rethink
that.
Hurry up and get well. I’m not used
to these one sided conversations. I miss you so much. It feels like you’ve been
gone for—”
“Ms. Jenkins, it’s time…” Dr.
Davidson says, poking his head through the door.
“I’ll be out in a sec. Thank you.”
Once he leaves, I look at Morgan.
“I’m sorry, but I have to go. I’m
not leaving this hospital without you, so hurry and wake up. I love you so
much. I’ll be back as soon as they allow me.” I kiss him gently on his hand and
forehead then I leave, stopping to take a second and a third look, hoping he
will open his eyes.
As I step out of the room, I can’t
hold back further. I weep.
Jada sits beside me. Jonathan is
talking with the doctor and the FBI agents nearby. I’m not sure what happens
next.
Walking over, I ask, “What’s going
on?”
Jonathan pulls me aside. “I’m
sorry, Zoë. I think you should be aware of the law. You might be able to see
Morgan, but if there are any decisions that have to be made about his life,
health decisions, Robin has Durable Power Of Attorney. She will have the final
say in whatever decision needs to be made.”
I lower myself into a nearby chair.
“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. Morgan will be fine.” I say the words, but
I’m not even sure I believe them.
Jada walks up to me and holds my
hand. “Here, I got you a smoothie. Drink this. Johnny and I have to go home to
check on Jordan and Megan in a while. Let us drop you home.”
“The only way I’m leaving this
hospital is if Morgan’s with me.”
“When was the last time you slept?”
Jonathan asks.
“I’m not leaving and that’s final,”
I say, walking away.
After much discussion with the FBI,
Jada, Jonathan and Dr. Davidson, they realize than I’m serious when I say I won’t
leave. Morgan remains in ICU, but he is moved to a private room. I still have
my bags from when I was supposed to be leaving with the FBI, so I’ll be fine.
There’s a recliner in his room.
Until Morgan leaves this hospital, that will be my new bed.
Agent Peters stays with me and the
rest leave together.
In the room, I look on sadly as my
husband lies in bed, listless. I’m suddenly exhausted. I slip into a pair of
yoga pants and his sweater and pull the recliner as close as I can get it to
the bed.
“Hey babe, I told you I’d be back.
You’re in a private room now, so I’m going to stay with you until you’re well
enough to get out of here. If you need anything at all, I’m right here. I love
you, Morgan Drake.”
I wish he would answer… but he
doesn’t.
The next few
days of our stay, I get the nurses to
teach me how to care for my bedridden husband. Everything from giving him a
bath to brushing his teeth, and they show me how to reposition his body to
prevent pressure sores. If I’m going to be here, I want to help take care of
him.
Three agents keep watch and rotate
their times with me in shifts. I’ve consumed myself with Morgan’s health to
this point. I’d like to call Barney to let him know what’s happened, but
Phillip constantly reminds me what the repercussions of that might be. For now,
I wait.
It’s been rough, not hearing Morgan’s
response or his voice, not seeing his beautiful hazel eyes. With every day that
goes by, with every word the doctors speak, I’m still scared that something will
happen and I’ll lose my husband, the man to whom I’ve been married for five
days.
The doctors don’t seem hopeful. One
even went as far as saying he thought there should be more progress by now. I’m
not ready to give up on Morgan. I will never give up on him.
I try to keep a positive façade in
front of Morgan, but today it’s hard. I miss him. I wonder if he hears me when
I talk to him. I wonder if he feels my fingers laced through his. I wonder if
he thinks about me as much as I do, wherever he is.
He’s always been the one to console
me and tell me everything will be okay. Right now, I question if what I’m
saying is enough. Am I doing enough to help him make it through this difficult
period in his life?
By the end of day seven, tears are
elusive. An aura of darkness pervades my body. I want someone to pay for what
they did to him.
Jonathan, Jada and Agent Cross
visit later that day.
Pacing the floors with my arms
folded tightly in front of me, I ask, “Did they find out what was in those
files?”
Jonathan responds, “I didn’t want
to overwhelm you with this, but they found out twenty percent of the people in
the file are dead. One hundred percent of them have one thing in common.”
“What’s that?” I ask.
“Tracheotomies,” Phillip responds.
“Tracheotomies?”
“Yes,” Phillip continues. “It’s a
procedure used on patients who have stopped breathing. It’s done by making an
incision through the neck—”
“I know what it is, but how does it
come into play?”
Phillip continues, “It’s not
confirmed yet, but it looks like these patients were poisoned by using hydrofluoric
acid. A common symptom of the chemical is that it causes swelling when coming
into contact with the skin, inhibiting the patient’s ability to breathe. Then
the tracheotomies were performed on them to collect money from Medicare and
insurance companies. Apparently, tracheotomies are big business.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“We’re not,” Phillip and Jonathan,
answer together.
“How many patients did this happen
to?”
“Everyone in that folder you had,
about sixty patients over the course of a year. Of the sixty, eighteen patients
died.”
As I listen the their words,
violent tremors infiltrate me. I can barely keep my hands still. “So they used
my brother and all these other patients as a way to increase their profits, to
perform surgeries on them they would not have needed had they not induced their
condition in the first place? They poisoned my brother?”
“It looks so.”
“How is it possible that after only
two months at the hospital, Morgan was the only one who suspected anything?”
“We wondered the same thing,”
Phillip responds. “Just between us, they’re making preparations to shut the
place down.”
“And what was Robin’s role in
this?”
“That’s still to be determined,”
Phillip replies.
“I think I should confront her. My
brother died and my husband is in there fighting for his life. It’s highly
possible that after she hears what happened to Morgan, she might be motivated
to give the missing pieces to this puzzle.”
“That might be an option. Would you
consider wearing a wire?”