This wasn’t real. None of it. Wake me the fuck up.
Tack silently lowered himself into a linked waiting room chair. Leaning forward with his elbows to his knees, he raked his hair. I squeezed the back of his neck because I had nothing else to give him. Lili was right—he didn’t need what I just witnessed burned in his memory. Our combined tension made the small private waiting room deathly claustrophobic. He needed to hear that she woke up, that his mother was going to be fine. Hell, I needed those words too. I paced. Back and forth. Back and forth.
Lili stood next to Tack and rubbed his back. “Chase has to be with her, he’s got to be,” Lili whispered, comforting him. My frustration built and burst.
“He is,” I hissed. “That’s why he didn’t answer. And since we only got here less than five minutes ago, I have no update. Give them a chance to do their job.”
“Okay.” She bit her lip and wiped under her eyes. “I’m just gonna go outside and make some calls. It’s the last thing you need to worry about and I’m sure you’ll want your family here for support.” She paused at the door and turned back around. “And, um, I really am …” her voice cracked but she fought for control. “… I’m so, so sorry this happened.”
I was a dick for how I snapped. She’s the one who deserved an apology—one I’d owe her later. She had nothing to be sorry for. None of this was her fault. It was Roy Wayne’s fault and his alone. Knowing that didn’t free the weight from my shoulders, though. I should have stopped him.
Tack had yet to utter a word. He was putting up the bravest front. Talia always talked about how much he reminded her of Chase and Kim. Right now he was all Tal. They shared their own coat of armor and his was out and in full force. I could only pray that Tal was back there utilizing hers because I had the sickest feeling she was amidst the fight of her life.
The silence was maddening. We had no answers. Time seemed to have stopped as we waited. I slowed my pace and sat next to him.
“She’s gonna make it,” I said out loud. Maybe to myself, maybe to Tack. Not sure if it made either of us feel better, but we were in this together. We had to be. Considering the possibility of alone was excruciating. God forbid things went wrong today and the unthinkable happened, this kid, Tal’s boy was my family. Is my family.
He didn’t break his stare from the floor tile when he mumbled, “Good to know you added psychic to your credentials.”
He tipped his head and caught my eye. There were enough unspoken words radiating off of him to fill a book. There were so many things we wanted to say, probably starting with why the hell did this happen? If giving me an iota of his humor was his outlet, who was I to judge?
I gave him his reprieve, even if only for a second. “Smartass,” I muttered back.
There was a commotion outside the door, abruptly ending our nearly wordless conversation.
“I get you’re an intern, but let me clarify it for you. When I say now, I mean now. I don’t care what the scheduler told you, she’s in next. Got me? Go make it happen.”
I was up and standing with a thousand less pounds, hearing him bark. Chase stalked in with his typical intensity. And as much as I hated taking the ride to hell and back with him, I learned to read his tone. Arrogant, powerful, superior—yes, but there was no fear in his voice. My woman was still alive.
“Talk to me.” I braced my legs and crossed my arms, prepared to take what he had to give. The small hitch in Chase’s breath was not lost on us as his eyes did a double take when Tack flanked my right.
Without hesitation, Tack extended his right hand. “I’m Tack. How’s my mother?”
“Chase.”
The significance of their first handshake was only as important as the health of the woman who tied them together. Tal was our only focus. I lifted my chin, signaling Chase to start talking. My patience was nonexistent and Chase knew it.
“The bullet penetrated her back and severed a blood vessel causing excessive bleeding. That and the trauma resulted in shock and rendered her unconscious. X-ray shows the bullet lodged lateral to her spine, it needs to come out. Now. I need to repair the damage and stop the bleeding. We’ve transfused her, stabilized her with pressors, and started steroids for the swelling. She should be finishing up in CT shortly. I wanted to make sure there were no surprises before I go in. I don’t expect any.”
Tack exhaled the breath he probably didn’t realize he was holding. I knew I did.
Chase wiped at his face, switching gears from surgeon to pissed off friend. “Man, she got lucky. The way she described it, my guess is the first shot ricocheted off the ceiling and possibly the floor before it struck her. Since the bullet wasn’t through and through it must have lost significant velocity. It could’ve fucking landed anywhere and caused a hell of a lot more damage.”
“Wait, what did you say? Tal told you what happened, she’s awake?”
“Yeah, she’s moving now, alert and oriented.”
“You don’t think you could have started with that tidbit?” Tack must have read my mind.
I could tell Chase wasn’t sure how to handle Tack. The situation was unusual, to say the least, we were all on edge. Chase accepted the dig with a nod then looked me square in the eyes. “You stepped in front of a loaded gun aimed at my wife?” He wasn’t asking, like he wouldn’t have done the same thing.
I clapped Tack’s back and changed the subject. “We want to see her before she goes anywhere.”
“Yeah, of course.”
“So you’re saying she’s going to be all right?” Tack needed reassurance, something more definitive.
“I’m saying I’ve got her.” Curt and to the point, Chase might have been answering Tack, but his eyes were on me and they said it all.
There were no guarantees in life, we’d aced that lesson years ago, but he’d rather take the bullet before he let anything happen to my woman on that table. Because it’s what you did. And that was as much reassurance as we were gonna get.
“Dr. Colton. I came as soon as I was notified.” The hospital Chief of Staff made a fast approach interrupting our conversation, obviously coming from something casual, dressed in jeans and a polo. I wasn’t surprised to see him since Tal was faculty, but I couldn’t help feeling like he had another motive. “Asher?” Obviously, he was surprised to see me. Sitting on the hospital board, Michael Kenny and I were professionally well-acquainted. He was aware of my longstanding friendship with Chase, and I assumed he knew Talia and I were involved, but I was positive he had no clue how intimately overlapped our lives really were. “ER chief gave me an update and I just looked at the CT. Trauma team can handle it if you want.”
Chase’s eyes imperceptibly bulged when he clipped, “I’ve got it.”
“I was just suggesting. I know you and Dr. Pryce are old friends, if you think you’re too close?” Those last two words were not lost on either of us.
“She’s not family, Mike. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a scan to review before my case.” He turned and started to walk away before he looked back over his shoulder. “Give me ten minutes and I’ll take you to her.”
I nodded and Tack said thanks.
“Michael Kenny, medical Chief of Staff. ”
Tack shook his hand and introduced himself as Talia’s son. He was noticeably disappointed by Chase’s cold response, but did his best to cover.
“Your mother’s an asset to this institution, we’re lucky to have her. I’m sorry this unfortunate accident happened, but she’s in excellent hands. The best, actually.”
Tack inhaled sharply. He might have been ignorant to the hidden meaning behind Kenny and Chase’s exchange, but he definitely picked up the Chief’s compliment.