His Fresh Start ✔ (Book Three)

Chapter 28

Since we burst into the ER, Lou hadn’t stopped sobbing, saying that what happened to Ellie was her fault.

They told us to wait for the doctor. I tried to remember if Alan was on call but then realized his daughter was returning from Paris today. I was about to ask a nurse about him when Jim and Aiden entered the waiting area.

Lou stiffened in my hug. "Aiden?"

"Hello, Louise,” Aiden said.

She opened her mouth to say something else, but the double doors swung open, and Alan stepped into the room with another doctor I’d never met.

"Family of Ellie Donovan?" he asked. 

Louise took a step toward him. “I’m her mother.”

Jim stayed behind, but Aiden walked up to us. Alan’s eyes paused on me for a second, but he said nothing and motioned for us to follow him. We trailed behind the two doctors as they led the way through the brightly lit hospital hallways. Alan unlocked one of the doors and let us in.

"Alan, how bad is it?" I asked as soon as we were in the privacy of his office.

Aiden sent me a confused look. Although Alan treated him, Aiden didn’t know he was my close friend.

Alan sighed. "Ellie was likely a victim of assault. We have already notified the police. Luckily, the knife missed her vital organs. The blood loss wasn't severe, either."

"But?" Aiden asked, his voice trembling.

"The real problem is the head trauma. We did a CT, and there's swelling in one part of the brain due to the impact of the fall. Doctor Sawyer is a neurologist. After discussing the situation, we think that the best solution is to induce a coma."

Another sob tore from Lou’s chest. I looked at the two doctors. "Are you sure it's necessary?"

Alan’s colleague nodded. "It will minimize the risks of any negative consequences of the trauma. We will monitor the injury and run CT scans daily to see if the swelling reduces. In the best of cases, the recovery would take some days."

Aiden spoke again. "And in the worst?"

"Let's take things one day at a time, Aiden, shall we?" Alan said, his tone reassuring. "Your fiancée is young. Let's hope everything goes according to plan."

A stiff frown forged across Lou’s face. "Fiancée? But you and Ellie weren't even together." 

My heartbeat sped up. I wiped my clammy hands on the fabric of my pants and draped an arm across Louise's shoulders. "Let's talk about everything later."

“You need to sign some forms,” Alan said to Louise.

She freed herself from my hug and approached the desk. Dr. Sawyer grabbed a pen and went on to explain the nature of the paperwork to Lou, while Aiden and I exchanged worried glances.

As soon as we left Alan’s office and returned to the waiting room, Louise crossed her arms. "Now, can someone please explain what I missed?" 

"Ellie and I are together. We've been living together in Paris since September, and we got engaged in October. We aren't getting married yet, but we will when Ellie is ready," Aiden blurted out.

He wasn’t a coward, unlike me. His voice didn’t waver, and he didn’t break eye contact with Lou.

"Why didn't she tell me?” Louise asked. “Why do I know nothing about it?"

I shifted my weight from one foot to the other, and she spun around to face me. "Wait a minute. You knew, didn't you?"

My heart plummeted to the pit of my stomach. "I did."