Page 90 of Not You Again
“No.” I begin tugging on my mic cord, unwinding it from my blouse. “I have to go.”
Cassidy rushes over and grabs my hands in hers. “Andie, this is our last chance to film before we hit the mandatory separation period.”
I sniff and shift on my feet. “That’s nice, but I don’t care.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Kit needs me right now.” My voice rises an octave. “I can’t be here when he needs me.”
She frowns.
Dash steps closer with a hum. “Now let’s all just take a deep breath.”
I glare at him. “A deep breath won’t change the fact that Kit’s mom is in the hospital and she’s already sick and … I need to go.”
Steve turns off the camera and rests a hand on Cassidy’s shoulder. “It’s an emergency. Jeremy will have to deal.”
I give her a pleading look. She sighs and helps me undo the mic. As I walk out the door, she yells after me, “Let us know how everyone’s doing, okay?”
I give her a thumbs-up and run to my car.
The hospital is a fluorescent-lit maze, and my tunnel vision looking for Kit isn’t helping me find Maureen any faster. I take a deep breath and pause in the hallway. I squint at the signs on the wall telling me which unit is which way, and they all feel indecipherable—a jumble of letters and numbers that mean nothing to me.
“Can I help you?” A nurse carrying her dinner from the cafeteria stops when she sees me struggling.
I press a hand to my forehead. “I’m looking for Maureen Watson.”
“Do you know which unit she’s in?”
“I’m not sure.” My shoulders slump.
“How do you know Ms. Watson?”
I swallow. “I’m her … daughter-in-law. My husband called me to tell me she was here after she broke her hip and—”
The nurse pulls out her phone and begins texting.
“I’m sorry,” I say, my voice breaking. “I’m not normally like this. I’ll just … figure it out.”
The nurse shakes her head. “Nuh-uh. Follow me.”
I can’t keep up with her brisk pace as she winds around the hallways to a set of double doors. She uses her badge to open them and walks me to the unit desk. “I found Mrs. Watson’s daughter-in-law in the hallway. I’m sure she’d feel a lot better if she could be with her for a bit.”
The young man smiles gently at me. “Of course. She just ordered her dinner, and I’m sure she’d love some company. I have some sandwiches and sodas in the fridge if you’d like to eat too?”
I nod, tears welling hot in my eyes. “That would be perfect, thank you.”
The man walks me down the hallway and knocks on the doorframe to a patient room. “Mrs. Watson? I have someone here who would like to see you.”
She looks at me and her face breaks into a smile. “Andie. I’m so glad you came.”
I timidly walk into the room, looking in the corners for Kit.
“He’s not here.” Maureen shifts up to sitting in her bed with a wince. “He went to grab some things from home.”
“Oh.” I force a smile. He did say he was going to spend the night. “Good, I guess.”
“Take a seat and tell me what you’ve been up to.”