A Shot in the Dark (Dark #1) Read online

  The team continued to work on Larry with no avail, thumping on his chest and hearing ribs crack and break under the compressions.

  Finally, Dr. Milken looked around the room. “Team, I think it’s time to let him go. Is everyone okay with that?”

  Laney surveyed everyone’s faces. Everyone was in agreement.

  “Time of death, fifteen sixteen. Thank you, everyone, for your efforts.” Dr. Milken turned and left the room.

  Poor guy, thought Laney.

  The team began disconnecting their equipment. “Chances are he’s going to be a coroner’s case. So don’t take out any of his tubes. They’ll want to see all of that in place. Let’s get a bag and get him wrapped up and ready for the coroner.” Laney took one last look at the patient before she headed out to complete the paperwork.

  Once Larry was taken down to the morgue, Laney started the tedious task of cleaning up the trauma room. As she was throwing away the used supplies, the phone rang.

  “Trauma, this is Laney.”

  It was Dinah. “Laney, there’s a patient requesting you to be his nurse in bed four. Do you have time to care for him?”

  Laney glanced at her watch, knowing she had to get the trauma room in order before the next patient.

  “Sure. Just give me a few minutes and I’ll go over there.” Laney hung up and attempted to get back to work. Almost immediately, the phone rang again.

  Somewhat annoyed, she snapped into the phone. “Dinah, I just need to finish straightening up the trauma room.”

  “Laney? It’s Josh Stone. Did I catch you at a bad time?”

  “Uh, no. I was just cleaning up. What do you need?”

  “I just wanted to call and see how you were feeling today and make sure you had breakfast.”

  For the first time in hours, she smiled and felt her cheeks warm. “Yes, I did, thank you. How did you know where I lived?”

  “You had too much to drink in a very short period of time last night. There was no way I was going to let you just take off. So I followed you home to make sure you got there safely.”

  “I have to say that’s really nice…in a creepy sort of way.”

  “You’re welcome. Now please don’t let that happen again.”

  “Aye, aye, Captain.”

  “Very funny. Now, I’d like to take you on a date where I’m the driver, and I can assure that you get home safely.”

  “Umm…” She was totally caught off guard.

  “Do you have something stuck in your throat? Do I need to call a doctor to check your airway?”

  “Um, no. I mean, yes. I mean, no.”

  Dr. Stone laughed. “What’s wrong with you?”

  “No, there’s nothing stuck in my airway. Yes, I’ll go on a date with you, and no, you don’t need to call a doctor.”

  “Great, I’ll pick you up at your place at eight a.m. And you won’t be getting home until late. So don’t plan for anything tomorrow night.”

  “That’s some heck of a long first date. What if I decide I don’t like you?”

  “Then I’ll bring you back early. But I don’t foresee that happening. I’m pretty awesome.”

  At that moment, Dr. Stone confirmed her perception of him—an arrogant bastard. She began wondering if she should reconsider. “Can I ask what we’re doing?”

  “You can ask, but I’m not going to tell you. Bring some warm clothes and some cool clothes. Oh, and a bathing suit. You never know where we’ll end up.”

  “So you want me to pack a suitcase. I’ll have you know, I’m not sleeping with you.” She reflected on the rumor mill that circulated through the hospital in which a nurse had gone out with a doctor in hopes of finding a decent boyfriend, only to find out all the guy wanted was a quickie. There was no way she was going to be that girl.

  “I don’t recall asking you to pack sexy lingerie. So get your head out of the gutter.”

  She smiled. “I’ll be ready at eight. Anything else?”

  “Yes. If you call me Dr. Stone at any point tomorrow, you’ll have hell to pay. Is that understood?”

  “Aye, aye. I’ll see you tomorrow, Josh.” She hung up. She couldn’t wait to get off work. She had forgotten, at least for the moment, that she had thought Dr. Stone was a jerk.

  When the trauma room was finally stocked and ready to go, Laney headed to the patient requesting her assistance. She pulled back the curtain. The smile she’d been wearing all but disappeared.

  She observed the disheveled man before her with disgust. “What are you doing here?”

  “Come on, Laney. That’s no way to talk to your boyfriend.”

  “You’re not my boyfriend. We haven’t dated since high school and I thought I made it clear then that I wanted nothing to do with you.”

  Laney took a deep breath in an effort to calm herself. She was met with the strong scent of alcohol. “Have you been drinking? Is that why you’re here?”

  “I miss you. I just needed to see you. You’re all I think about.”

  “You’re drunk. I’ve told you time and again you need to get sober. You’re just wasting your life away. Please don’t come here looking for me again. I can’t help you.”

  Laney closed the curtain and walked out of the room before Scott could say anything else.

  At one time, she really did love him. They had been high school sweethearts. But his bad temper combined with alcohol and drugs had made for an abusive relationship. It took many bruises and a strength she didn’t know she had to walk away from him. There was no way she was ever going back.

  Laney took a deep breath and smoothed the wrinkles out of her top before moving swiftly to find Dinah and inform her that she would be unable to take care of Scott. She didn’t give Dinah an explanation. Instead, she headed to the lounge for her break to try and forget about Scott and focus on her date with Josh the following day.

  Chapter 10

  Rebecca

  It had been another brutal day for Rebecca, sitting by Skyler’s side. She watched the clock and stared while the minutes ticked along second by second, waiting for that twenty-four hour mark to be up.

  As a child, Skyler had always been adventurous, with a creative imagination and a passion for life. Telling him he could not do something only made him want to do it more and he worked harder to be successful at it. He was a unique individual who could conquer anything he put his mind to.

  Tears began flowing again. She had cried so much lately, she didn’t know how she could possibly have any tears left. She closed her eyes. Only one hour left before the twenty-four-hour period is up. He’s had a pretty good day. We can do this, Skyler. We can do this.

  She opened her eyes when there was a knock on Skyler’s door. Peyton entered the room.

  “Sorry, there are some friends here to see Skyler. Do you want them to come in?”

  “Do you know who they are?”

  Peyton shook her head. “They said they were with him during the race. I think one said his name was Danny.”

  “Sure, they can come in.”

  “Okay, but they need to be quiet. They can whisper to him and hold his hand but they definitely need to keep it down. Typically, we only let two visitors in at a time, but I’ll make an exception this time.”

  “I’ll make sure they keep it down.”

  “Okay then, I’ll go get them and bring them in.”

  Rebecca was glad Skyler’s racing buddies were coming to visit him. She wanted to ask them a few questions about what they thought had happened to her son’s bike. She needed some answers.

  She looked up to find Danny, Tyler, and Ryan in the doorway. They all looked as though they were going to faint. Rebecca stood up.

  “Hi boys, how are you doing?” None of them answered. They just kept staring at Skyler. “Boys, look at me. He’s okay. He’s not dead.” Saying the word dead kind of made the whole situation surreal. She put her hand on her chest and took a deep breath. It must have hit them too because they went wide-eyed. “Skyler is really sick, b
ut he’s doing okay right now.”

  Ryan was the first to break his attention away from Skyler. “Is he gonna be okay?”

  “I hope so, but it’s too soon to tell. They’re going to keep him in what they call a medically induced coma for the next couple of days and then try to wake him up.” She realized now was not the time to ask them about the accident. Since they were all visibly upset, having them explain what they had seen might make the situation worse.

  Danny had difficulty speaking. “Can he hear us?”

  “I don’t know, but I think he can. He seems to respond when I sing to him. If you want, you can go up and talk to him. Just try not to over stimulate him.”

  At first, she didn’t know whether they had heard her. Danny was frozen in place. Tyler actually made the first move and walked to Skyler’s bedside. Instead of touching him, he looked up and down over Skyler’s body.

  “Jesus, man. What the hell did you do to yourself? You banged yourself up good this time.” Tyler shook his head.

  “What the hell? You don’t know that it was his fault. This could’ve been just a freak accident.” Danny had come to his senses, rushing over to Skyler and Tyler.

  “You know as well as I do how crazy Skyler is about checking his bike. He couldn’t have checked it well this time, or the tire would’ve never flown off.”

  “Now, guys…” Rebecca began.

  Skyler’s monitor suddenly began beeping and Peyton ran into the room. “What’s going on?”

  “The boys were getting a little heated talking about the accident.”

  “Skyler’s heart rate just jumped about thirty beats with you guys talking. I don’t know what you guys were talking about, but you need to stop now. In fact, it’s probably better that you leave.”

  Tyler and Danny looked at each other and then at Rebecca. “We’re so sorry,” Danny said. “We didn’t mean to upset him.”

  “I know. You love him like a brother.” Rebecca turned to Tyler. “It’s all right to be mad. If I weren’t so concerned with him making it to tomorrow, I’d be mad too. Just save your anger for when he wakes up.”

  “Okay. Will you let us know when we can come back and see him?” Tyler asked.

  “Sure. It’s probably not a good idea for the next couple of days, though. We’re going day-by-day right now.”

  Peyton adjusted Skyler’s monitor and IV drip. “Okay, I’ve given him some extra sedation. He should begin to calm down shortly. However, it’s important that he stays calm and not stimulated.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Danny replied.

  Danny and Tyler headed back over to Ryan.

  “Are you okay?” Rebecca rubbed Ryan on the back. He hadn’t moved since walking through the door.

  Ryan nodded. He didn’t seem to be responding well to seeing Skyler in the hospital bed, so Rebecca slipped an arm around his shoulder.

  “He’s okay right now.”

  Ryan swallowed hard. “Is he gonna make it?”

  “I don’t know.” She took one of Ryan’s hands into her own. “It’s too early to tell. All we can do is pray. Skyler knows that you guys are here for him. Hopefully, that’ll give him what he needs to fight.”

  Ryan nodded again, and Danny threw his arm around him.

  “Let’s get out of here. We need to let him rest.” The boys hugged Rebecca before leaving. They were like her own children, so it was nice to get the love from them.

  Once they left, Rebecca directed her attention to Peyton.

  “How’s he really doing?”

  “He’s actually doing okay. His heart rate went back to normal quickly. That’s a good sign. It’s just important we keep the stimulation to a minimum. If he has more visitors, I’d suggest they come in one at a time. Also, try to limit it to family.”

  Rebecca watched the rise and fall of Skyler’s chest. “That sounds good. Thank you for handling things. I don’t think I could have kicked the boys out. They’re all so close. I’m actually very concerned about one of them. He wouldn’t even get close to Skyler.”

  “Everyone handles these things in different ways. Sometimes people really surprise you with the reactions they have to a loved one being sick like this. I’ve seen loved ones who won’t visit at all, some who yell at the person, and some who just blame the hospital staff for everything. The emotions you feel when you have a loved one in here can be overwhelming. He’ll get through it. He just has to process what’s going on.”

  Rebecca smiled. “Thank you for taking care of my boy.”

  Peyton rubbed her arm. “You’re welcome. And hey, his twenty-four hours are up and he’s looking good. Why don’t you give herself a break and go home for a while? He’ll be here when you get back.”

  “Do you think I should go? Do you really think Skyler will be okay?”

  “I can’t predict the future, but I can tell you that over the last several hours, all of his vital signs have been stable. I told you how his heart rate returned to normal quickly after the incident with his friends. He is trending in the right direction. That’s the only reassurance I can offer. But I do know you need to take care of yourself or you’re going to be no good for Skyler. I have a hunch that he would tell you to go home too.”

  Rebecca laughed. “Yeah, he probably would. He’s always the independent guy trying to take care of his mom.” She paused. “If you really think that it’s okay for me to go…”

  “Absolutely. I’ll call you if anything changes.”

  “Okay.” She grabbed her purse. Then she gave Skyler a kiss on the forehead.

  “Son, I’m leaving for a little bit to go home and shower,” she whispered. “No funny business while I’m gone. I’ll be back soon and I expect you to be here. Is that understood?” She didn’t wait for an answer but kissed Skyler again and brushed his hair back from his face.

  “I love you so much. Please be here when I get back.” She straightened and headed for the doorway. She turned and took one last look at Skyler.

  “Take care of my baby. I won’t be long, and please call me if anything changes.”

  Peyton smiled. “No problem. Go take care of yourself.”

  ***

  Rebecca

  Rebecca woke up to Peyton walking into the room. She looked at the clock to see that it was 7:02 in the morning. She had returned to Skyler’s room a little after eight the previous night. When she got there, Peyton had already left for the day.

  “Good morning,” Rebecca said, blinking. “How was your night off?”

  “It was good. I took my dog on a walk. He goes a little stir crazy when I work a few days in a row. I love that it doesn’t get dark until later during the summer because I can take him out after work.”

  Rebecca found it made her feel better to talk about something other than Skyler—even something as mundane as walking a dog. “What kind is he?”

  “He’s a big German shepherd. Although he thinks he’s the size of a Chihuahua.”

  Rebecca couldn’t help but laugh.

  “I hear that Skyler had a great night last night,” Peyton said. “His vital signs have all been stable, no new issues. And how about you?”

  “I think that I actually slept well last night. The shower did me some good.” Rebecca rolled her neck to work out some of the kinks from sleeping in a chair.

  “Good. You needed to give yourself some TLC. And that reminds me. While you were gone last night, a gentleman came by wanting to visit Skyler. I think his name was Dillon something. He said that he was Skyler’s sponsor but I didn’t let him in because you weren’t here, and we agreed not to let anyone but family in, especially when other family is not present.”

  “Thank you. I don’t really know who he is. I found a card in Skyler’s bag that was from a sponsor that I gave to Officer Miller, so it might have been him. I’d prefer no one like that comes in right now. That’s the last thing that Skyler needs.”

  “I couldn’t agree with you more.”

  “Am I interrupting?”

&n
bsp; Dr. Stone had entered the room. “Good morning. How’s my favorite patient?”

  “He’s been doing really well. If you look over his vitals, you’ll see he has been stable. We had one episode yesterday where he had some friends here and his heart rate went up. But I gave him a little extra sedation and he went back to normal very quickly,” Peyton updated.

  “That’s all very good news. How’s Mom doing?” Dr. Stone turned and eyed Rebecca.

  “I’m doing well. It helps to hear that my boy is stable and there haven’t been any significant changes.”

  “I think I’m still going to keep him sedated another day, just to let him rest. He’s been through an ordeal and lost a tremendous amount of blood. He needs this time.” Dr. Stone walked over to Skyler and listened to his lungs, heart, and stomach. He studied the IV drips and went to the ventilator.

  “We need to start him on tube feedings today. His stomach needs to start moving and working. Studies show the sooner nutrition is started, the better outcome. See that tube in his nose?”

  Rebecca nodded. “Yes.”

  “Up to this point we’ve been using it to empty his stomach of gas and gastric contents. Now we’re going to use that tube to feed him. We’re going to start slowly to make sure he can tolerate it and then put more in so he gets enough protein and nutrition to heal.”

  “This is a good thing, right?” Rebecca was hopeful.

  “Yes. It’s a normal step in the process and with any luck, he’ll tolerate it without any problems. I’ll be back tomorrow and we’ll see about waking him up. Okay?”

  “Fine, but I thought you were on vacation?”

  “I’m just taking a few days off, but first I wanted to find out how Skyler was doing. My partners will continue to be there for whatever he needs while I’m gone.”

  “Do you have anything special planned?”

  “I have an adventure planned for today. In fact, I have to get going so I’m not late.”

  “Thank you again for taking such good care of Skyler.”

  “Please make sure you’re taking good care of yourself as well. Skyler is going to need you strong and fit when he gets out of here. There’s a lot of recovery ahead.” Dr. Stone turned his attention to Peyton. “I’ll put some orders for that tube feeding. Have a nice day, ladies.” Dr. Stone left as quickly as he had come in.