Cliff's Good Deed

36 - Where is Hannah?

Cliff woke up lying in a bed and feeling disoriented. He blinked sleep from his eyes and looked at the ceiling. "Where am I?"

Someone took his hand. "Hannah, is that you?" When he looked, he saw it was his mother.

"Cliff, you gave us all quite a scare."

His mother spoke to someone else in the room telling them to go get the doctor.

His sister came into view on the other side of the bed. "Cliffy, how do you feel?"

"I feel fine. What was the result of the MRI?"

Cliff's father entered the room, a doctor in his wake. The doctor made his mother move aside and stood over him. He repeated the question Izzy had just asked. "How do you feel?"

"Okay."

The doctor shined a bright light into his eyes. "Both pupils are responsive. That's an encouraging sign." He ran a probe across each of Cliff's fingers and toes asking if he could feel the touch.

"Yeah, I feel everything."

The doctor asked, "What's the last thing you remember?"

Cliff struggled to recall. "The MRI and then being wheeled back here to the room." He looked around. "Where's Hannah?"

Izzy gripped his forearm.

"Where is she?"

The doctor turned to his mother and father. "Your son is recovering well. There's no swelling of the brain, but I want to keep him overnight for observation."

"Whatever you think is best," his mother said.

The doctor left the room.

"Where is Hannah?" Cliff repeated. "Is she safe?" He desperately wanted to see her.

"She's fine. She's well," Izzy assured him.

He trusted his sister's word, but he still wanted to see for himself. "Where is she?"

"Gone," his mother answered. "You should be thinking about yourself instead of her. You need to rest up and get well."

Cliff pushed himself into a sitting position. "What do you mean Hannah is gone?"

His father answered, "Cliff, she went home."

"I sent her away," his mother said in a triumphant tone. "There was no further need for the girl to stay after I arrived."

There had to be more to the story. "What did you say to her, Mother? What did you do?"

Izzy laid a hand on his shoulder. "Cliffy, I don't think you should become agitated."

"She's right," his father said. "We should leave and let him rest."

His mother sighed and seemed to come to a decision. "All right, we'll go, and we'll pick you up tomorrow when you're discharged." She patted his shoulder with her gloved hand and smiled. "You gave us quite a scare."

She left the room.

His father said, "We'll talk later," and left.

He met his sister's gaze. "Izzy, stay."

She nodded to the door. "I came with Dad. He's my ride."

Cliff lowered his voice so only she could hear. "The Corvette must be here someplace. You can drive it home. Please stay. I need some straight answers."

His sister took a breath. She seemed nervous. Cliff wondered why.

She said, "The National Weather Service confirmed an EF1 tornado at the park. It must have touched down really close to you." She wiped away tears. "Cliffy, I don't ever want to think about you leaving me alone in this world with them." She motioned with her head toward the door. "Hannah called to tell me what happened. God, I was so scared."

"What about Hannah?" Cliff asked. He wondered how many times he would have to repeat the question.

"She's fine, not a scratch on her."

"I already know that. She's the one who drove me here. What happened between her and our mother?"

Izzy gripped his hand. "I hate to tell you this, but you need to know. I got here as Hannah was leaving. She was in tears. She told me she really likes you, but given Mom's attitude toward her, she said it wasn't worth it continuing to pursue a relationship. She said she could see how it would end. I tried talking sense to her, but she ignored me and called for an Uber. I'm sorry, Cliffy. I really am."

Cliff went cold inside. "What kind of mother do we have, Izzy? She nearly destroyed you all those years ago. Now she's undermining my happiness."

"I'm sorry," Izzy said again. "Don't give up. Call Hannah tomorrow after she has a chance to think things through. She just needs your reassurance."

Would she listen to him? Twice in one day his mother had driven a wedge. Cliff could understand Hannah's point of view. Who would want to get involved with someone only to suffer at the hands of an abusive in-law. His father had been considerate and approving, but he would ultimately side with his wife. He needed to convince Hannah he would allow nothing to get in the way of his feelings for her. If words wouldn't convince her, then he would have to prove it by showing her.

"Izzy, all that research I asked you to do for me."

"What about it?"

"It's more urgent now than ever. I really need your help."

"Sure, Cliffy, you told me you'd let me in on what you plan to do when the time comes."

"I wanted to protect you. Once I reveal what I have in mind there will be no turning back for you."

She squeezed his hand. "I'll always choose you over them. I love you more than I do them, you know that, right?"

What she said brought a smile to his face. "I love you too. I'll always be here for you. Here's my plan. I'm going to give Mom and Dad a choice. If they don't agree to my terms, I'll use the information you give me to destroy the family business. I'll blow it up along with their financial future."

Cliff just declared war. I wonder what he has in mind?