I nod and step back, wiping my face. “How far away are we?”
“One hour with the weather conditions.”
“Okay, I can do this. Do we have any other news?”
“Quinn has all the information.”
He puts his arm around me to shield me from the snow and walks us back to the truck. I climb in and sit back between the girls.
Morgan is back on the interstate before I take a deep breath to clear my head. “Tell me what you know.”
“First off, Bryce’s parents and your parents are on a flight to Norfolk. According to the story your mom was told, last night around midnight, there was a small explosion in an engine room. Bryce was alone and the only one injured,” Quinn fills me in.
“Why did they think it was Nate?”
“Maybe Nate was on shift? Without actually seeing who was in the room, they assumed it was him. It was reported to the ship doctors that Nate Harris was involved in an accident and sustained significant and possibly critical injuries.”
“They didn’t fucking confirm?” I yell.
“This is a colossal mistake. Someone is in major trouble. They knew the identity mistake pretty quickly, but lines of communication were jumbled.”
“Jumbled? Did they use the term jumbled? A fucking Naval Officer is involved in an accident, and they screw up who it is? And they have the audacity to inform the wrong family? How is that even possible?”
“Devon.” She turns me to her and grips my chin. “Don’t lose focus. We’ll get the details soon. Right now, we need to talk about Bryce. Nate will fill us in soon.”
“Okay.”
“The ship was already heading back to base. They stabilized Bryce, and a Naval helicopter crew was going to transport him to the Naval Medical Center.”
“Our parents?”
“The Navy has a transport getting them to the hospital as soon as they land. We’ll probably beat them there. But Nate is with Bryce.”
“Thank God he has someone with him. Poor Nate.” I fall back on the seat and rub my eyes, thinking about how worried my brother must be. “Nate will take care of him.”
The two girls exchange a look, and my head starts to pound. I don’t ask any more questions because their silence says it all. I need to prepare for the worst.
Chapter 32
We find Nate sitting alone in a waiting room when we arrive. He looks up at me, and my already aching heart breaks a little more. He’s in misery. His eyes are dry but rimmed red, and his face is totally pale. When he sees me, he gets up and opens his arms. I rush into him and hug him as tightly as possible. We stay quiet as Quinn joins in, wrapping her arms around us both.
Another set of arms circle my waist, and I recognize the smell of Jamie’s perfume. She nudges her head onto Nate’s shoulder, and I swallow hard to hold back my tears.
We break apart, Jamie supporting Nate and Quinn taking me.
“How is he?”
“Stable for now. He scared the shit out of me on the helicopter, but they pulled him through. The second we landed, they took him back, and no word since.”
“What do you mean, pulled him through?” I start to panic.
“Dev, he’s unconscious and hasn’t woken up since the explosion. We know for sure he has a broken clavicle and deep lacerations on his body. There are some burns and possible internal injuries. What the doctors seem worried about is the blow to his neck and head. His lack of consciousness may mean a brain injury.”
“Oh, God.” My knees buckle, and Morgan immediately catches me, placing me in a chair.
“Tell me what happened.”
“Can we wait for Dave and Sheila and Mom and Dad? I prefer not to repeat the story more than I have to.”