Fractured Minds (Rebels of Sandland 3)

Forever.

After hours standing around waiting for news and watching the emergency services clear the site, we decided to head for the hospital. Nobody could confirm whether Zak or Kian had been brought out, but there’d been a few ambulances leaving the site, and we prayed they were in one of them and not still trapped in the debris of the now-smouldering wreckage.

We abandoned our cars wherever we could and raced towards the hospital entrance. But when we asked at the desk for news on Zak and Kian, we were told we’d have to wait and were directed to the visitors’ waiting room. We felt powerless and desperate for news.

I sat on the plastic chairs, holding Effy for support. Ryan paced up and down as Emily tried to offer up words of encouragement.

“They’ll be okay. They have to be. We have to stay positive.” She nodded, agreeing with her own statements.

Liv stayed quiet, but I could tell what she was thinking. She was a realist and she was bracing herself for the worst.

When we heard, “What the fuck are you all doing here?” we turned to find Brandon stood at the exit of the hospital shop that was adjacent to the waiting room, holding chocolate, crisps, bottles of water and a whole load of other snacks.

“Is Harper okay?” Liv asked, buying us some time before we had to tell him about what’d happened once he’d left.

“She’s in pain and every word that comes out of my mouth seems to make it worse. But apart from that, we’re all good.” He looked knackered and motioned to the haul he had in his hands. “Midwife said it’s gonna be a long night, so I figured I’d get some provisions.”

“Give her our love, won’t you? Tell her to push for us.” Liv gave a false chuckle and Brandon frowned.

“Yeah, whatever. Why are you here though? The babies won’t be born for hours.”

I glanced over at Ryan, not entirely sure whether we should tell him. This was the happiest and scariest day of his life. He was going to be a dad. Did we really want to piss all over that and let him know two of his closest friends might be lying dead in the same hospital?

“You’re right,” Ryan answered for us all. “We couldn’t stop thinking about you both and wanted to come and see how it was all going. But we’ll head home and wait for you to call.” He walked over to Brandon and patted him on the back. “Make sure you ring us as soon as it’s all over, yeah? Oh, and keep your mouth shut. Stick to hand-holding and agreeing to anything.”

Brandon laughed, but he was so dazed and confused he didn’t give us a witty or sarcastic response, just nodded and said his goodbyes. We watched him leave, but we had no intention of going anywhere yet. Not until we had some answers. And then maybe tomorrow, or the day after, we’d let Brandon know what’d happened. Whatever that actually was.

We stayed in the waiting room for hours, alternating which one of us badgered the receptionists for news. After our thirteenth God-awful cup of cheap coffee, I saw Ryan bolt up from his chair and we all shot up too and followed him. Kian was walking down the corridor, clutching a bag from the pharmacy, and when he saw us, his shoulders dropped.

“Kian, mate. Are you okay?” Ryan hugged him, and when he pulled away the rest of us grabbed him into a gentle hug too.

“They’re letting me go,” Kian said in a raspy voice. “Shortage of beds and all that. My throat and chest are sore from the smoke, but they don’t think there’s any lasting damage. I was lucky. I managed to crawl over to one of the fire exits and get out.”

“And Zak?” Emily asked quietly.

“I don’t know. We got separated when the roof collapsed. He didn’t follow me. He couldn’t. I’m so sorry.” Kian hung his head, and I could tell he’d started to cry, so we led him to the waiting area to give him more privacy.

“Is someone coming to pick you up?” Effy asked.

“I was gonna catch a cab outside. I didn’t want to bother anyone,” Kian replied.

“You should’ve called us. You know we’d come to you.” Ryan said, putting his hand on Kian’s knee and giving him a reassuring squeeze. Ryan stood up and went to grab his keys, but Effy picked hers from her bag and passed them to Liv.

“Liv, would you take my car and drive Kian home? I would take him myself but…” She looked back at me, but she didn’t need to finish her sentence.

“Of course I’ll take him.” Liv took the keys and stood up. “Ring me if you hear anything, okay? I’ll come straight back once I’ve dropped Kian off.”

Just as Liv and Kian walked out of the doors, a doctor came in and called us over to join him in a quieter room attached to the side of the main waiting area. We knew then that this wasn’t going to be good news.

“You’re here for Zakary Benjamin Atwood, yes?” The doctor took a seat and looked each one of us in the eye.

We sat down with him, and Ryan spoke for us.

“We are. Is he here? Is he going to be okay?”

The doctor took a deep breath, resting his hands in his lap.

“He is here. He was brought in a few hours ago by our paramedics. His parents have been contacted and they’re on their way, but they gave permission for us to speak to you about his condition.”