Thoughts swirl inside my head like crazy. “Will she remember it?” I whisper while inside I beg, plead, and pray, if there is any mercy in this world, that she won’t have any recollection whatsoever of the nightmare she has endured.
“Whether she does or doesn’t remember, there are some great support groups and counseling available to her.”
Counseling. We could all use some of that.
“Madyson, I’m so sorry. I’m here for you. I’m not going anywhere,” I say softly to my sister as I lie down next to her while the doctor packs up.
Now, more than ever, I am determined to be the support system she needs. There is no way I will fail her as I have done in the past. She has become everything to me, and I will do whatever it takes to show her she does not have to walk the path ahead of her alone.
I hear the doctor leave the room, shutting the door behind her; however, I don’t take my eyes off the battered and broken girl in front of me.
Seeing her like this, after days of worrying where she was and what was happening to her, is a dream come true turned into a nightmare. I would give anything, including my own life, to spare my sister what she has endured.
Now I am going to dedicate my life to being whatever it is she needs.
Ice
Getting to the hospital doesn’t come fast enough as we had lose ends to tie up from this whole ordeal.
Coal has tucked away Sandoval and two of his associates we extracted alive at a secure location in three of the very same cages they had held their captives in. We will interrogate them later. For now, though, they are off the streets. Priority one is to follow up on Hammer’s condition.
After his distress call, we phoned nine-one-one which brought in all the shields to swarm the area. Coal and Skid took off with Sandoval so we could keep our cover that he wasn’t there.
Hammer was airlifted to a trauma hospital on the other side of the city. Knowing the driver is a low ranking man, we kept him contained for the cops. Even on Sandoval’s payroll, he won’t get off. Our connections run deeper than his boss’s pockets. In prison, he will get shanked after he spends a few months suffering for his crimes.
With the dead bodies littering the building, of course the police had a few questions. Did we have the necessary permits to carry concealed weapons? Myself and each of my men there all showed them our permits as an answer. Why were we on private property? As they eyed us warily, hands on their holstered guns, ready to pull them on us if need be, I made one quick phone call to our man up top to explain our situation.
Less than five minutes after I hung up, the lead officer’s radio squawked, informing him he needed to call his on duty Watch Commander. I watched as the man, looking confused, stepped away from us and dialed his phone. He spoke into it, listened, and then said something else back, looking very frustrated. Then all of the color drained from his face.
Hanging up the phone, he ordered the other officers to leave us alone and to start processing the crime scene. He then informed us we were free to leave.
While we were dealing with the boys in blue, I had Coal distribute the girls to Crissy’s safe house then take Madyson to his own home. We are unsure of the extent of what she has endured; however, I want Morgan to feel comfortable as she helps Madyson heal.
Now, I am sitting with my brothers in the waiting room of the hospital, standing by for an update on Hammer. Pacing back and forth isn’t expediting the process any, but I can’t be still. Evan, Hammer’s brother, came as soon as we called and actually arrived before we did.
The first time the nurse comes out, about an hour and a half after we arrived, it is to ask if there is family here for Ethan McCoy. Once Evan tells them he is Ethan’s brother, she updates him with Hammer’s prognosis. He is covered in superficial lacerations and bruises. From the x-rays they took, it appears as though Hammer has an intertrochanteric fracture. She goes on to explain that the fracture is between the neck of the femur and a lower bony prominence called the lesser trochanter. When the nurse sees our confused faces, she quickly adds that this means they need to take Hammer into surgery.
Time seems to stall, an endless monotony of waiting. We are all on edge, and the clock and silence seem to mock us. Six hours go by before a different nurse finally comes out.
“Family of Ethan McCoy?”