Page 17 of Amazing Grace
Sheriff Maverick.
“Stay still and stay calm. Everything will be okay,” Maverick said. “Do you have any idea who hit you?”
Grace blinked “Huh? Aren’t they here?”
“No. It was a hit-and-run. I’ve got my deputies talking to people, seeing if there are any witnesses.”
“I never even saw them coming. I have no idea what hit us.” Grace closed her eyes for a second, then they popped open again. “Sheriff, what about Molly? Is she okay?”
“They’re getting her out now. She looks pretty banged up, but I think she’s okay. Look, you need to go. We’ll talk more later.”
“Thanks, Sheriff,” Grace said. Then she closed her eyes again and kept them closed this time.
The ride to the hospital was uncomfortable and interminable; the beeping machines and, although it sounded further away, the siren wailing, and EMTs poking and prodding her, and they never seemed to arrive at the emergency bay.
The EMTs kept waking her up, too, which was completely irritating because all she wanted to do was sleep. She was inpain, she was exhausted, she had a splitting headache, and she wanted a nap. Damn it.
Finally, the ambulance came to a stop and the rear doors opened. She was lifted to the ground and wheeled inside the hospital Emergency Room.
A nurse was waiting. “The doctor wants some x-rays taken, Ms. Conroy. That’s correct, isn’t it? Grace Conroy?”
“Yeah, that’s me. I’ve got a really bad headache. Any chance of getting some meds?” Grace wanted the pain to go away. Then they could do whatever they wanted to her.
“As soon as the doctor sees the x-rays, he’ll be in to talk to you. In the meantime, I’ll ask if there’s something we can give you for the pain.” The nurse drew the curtain closed around Grace’s cubicle and turned the lights down. Then she walked off, her shoes squeaking on the tile.
“Wait! Where’s Molly? What happened to Molly?”
No one answered her this time. Instead, a technician rolled in a portable x-ray machine.
“Do you know what happened to Molly?” Grace asked. The technician looked blurry to her, and she could only manage a whisper. Must be the headache, she thought.
“I’m sorry. I’m just here to take the x-ray.” He smiled at her and positioned the X-ray over her neck. He stepped out of the cubicle, pressed a button, and returned. After a few more views, he took his machine and left.
Grace lay there dozing, until the nurse came back in. “We can give you some Tylenol for the pain, and you’re getting fluids through your IV.”
Grace hadn’t even noticed that they’d put in a line.I really must be out of it, she thought. “Do you know what happened to Molly?”
“Is that the woman who was in the car with you?” the nurse asked.
“Yes, that’s her.”
“Are you a relative?”
“Huh? No, we’re friends.”
The nurse sighed. “Then I can’t share any information with you. I’m sorry.”
Grace tried to shake her head, but it was still immobilized. “You have to. Is she okay? Just tell me that much.”
She kept silent, exchanged the empty IV bag for a full one, and left, ignoring Grace’s pleas to tell her about Molly.
Grace looked at her IV and noticed it was attached to one of those poles on wheels. She threw back the sheet covering her, sat up, and waited for the wave of dizziness and nausea to pass. There were rails up on the sides of her bed, probably to keep her from falling out because she’d banged her head. They were not going to stop her from finding Molly, though. With the utmost care, and not just a little bit of difficulty, she climbed over them, easing herself to the other side. Once she got her footing, she grabbed the IV pole and left her cubicle. An alarm sounded, but she ignored it.
“Molly? Molly?” She tried to call out, but all that she managed was a hoarse whisper.Damn, the lights are bright out here. They hurt.She squinted, looking in each cubicle. There was an old lady, shriveled and buried under several blankets in one, and a younger man with a bandaged arm in another.
“Hey! What are you doing?” The nurse who had treated Grace caught up to her.
“I’m looking for my friend. You won’t tell me if she’s okay, so I’m going to see for myself.”