Page 99 of Burn
That is never the thing to say to me when I’m worried, anxious, or upset. I fold my arms but don’t take a chair.
“Max is relatively unscathed,” another doctor, a woman, says. “Hi, I’m Dr. Sharon Cohen.”
“Oh, thank god,” Lucas says, slumping against a wall.
“What does that mean, relatively unscathed?” I can’t help but raise my voice.
“He’s now talking almost normally.”
“Almost?” Now I’m yelling. “What does that mean? Sentences? Words? Grunts? Does he know his name?”
“He broke his shoulder in three places. It’s quite bad, and he’ll need to go into surgery in the next day, but for now we’re stabilizing that part of his body. He doesn’t have any other internal injuries in his torso. But he does have a concussion. We’re still evaluating how bad that is and will need to keep him here for a while. He knows his name but is a little fuzzy on other details.”
The whimper that’s been living in my throat finally escapes, and I sink onto a bench. That’s his bad shoulder.
“You’re Lily Onassis, right?” Dr. Cohen asks.
I nod weakly. It feels like an invisible force has my chest in a vice grip, and I can only breathe using the top third of my lungs.
“He’s been asking for you. I told him he could see you after his brain CT scan.”
Chapter Forty-Three
LILY
Two interminable, excruciating hours later, Dr. Cohen walks me to the room where Max is recovering. His CT scan showed a mild concussion, but as she explains, any time the brain is injured they like to monitor the situation for a few days to make sure brain bleeds don’t erupt.
“It all sounds so scary.” I sniffle.
“I guess this comes with his profession. Max is extremely physically fit, but he’s quite lucky that he wasn’t more severely injured. His neck strength and his safety gear saved his life. But don’t be alarmed, he might have some temporary gaps in his memory. That’s normal.”
We’re at the door to his room now, and I steel myself for what I’m about to see. The doctor turns the knob and allows me to walk in first.
“Hey, beautiful.” Max is sitting up, a huge smile lighting up his face. He’s wearing a mint-green hospital gown and is only hooked to one IV. His right arm is in a sling-like contraption, and there’s a bruise on his forehead.
Other than that, he looks incredible. Handsome. Healthy. Like the man I love.
I rush to him and collapse on his bed, on top of his legs. I’m ugly crying, snorting, and honking everywhere.
“Hey, hey, babe, I’m okay. Now that you’re here, I’m all better.”
He strokes my hair with his good hand, and I look up through tear-stained lashes.
“How do you feel? Are you sure you’re okay? They told me about your shoulder and your concussion.”
He reaches for his shoulder, but I stop him when I see the IV is about to tangle with the blanket. “That’s probably not a good idea.”
“Yeah, the shoulder hurts like hell. Well, not so much anymore because of the painkillers. What did your dad say? I’ll bet he freaked out while watching in the pits.”
“Uh, Max? Papa’s in Miami.” That’s when it hits me that because of his concussion he’s probably forgotten about the heart attack. This is also the third time I’ve been in a hospital this month, and my god, I hope it’s the last. I’m becoming way too familiar with the sights and smells of emergency rooms.
“He is? Oh. Okay. The doctors said I might have some issues because of the concussion. I’m so glad you’re here with me, Lily. So glad. Where’s Lucas?”
“He’s out in the waiting area. Do you want to see him?”
Max nods. “In a minute. I want a little time with you.”
I trace his chin with my thumb. “I was so scared when I saw the video of the crash. I thought I’d lost you.”