Life Unexpected (The Urie's Daughter Series Book 4)

Be Alright

Zack
Jasey was asleep when I returned. Jack hugged me tightly. I'd never seen them so somber and I'd known them for forever. I felt so guilty. If only I had offered to go. If only I had went out earlier. Brendon and the rest of Panic walked in. Brendon froze, probably seeing the tear stains on my face or the somber looks on all our faces. "What's wrong? Where's Ryleigh?"he asked. "Brendon, that guy that kidnapped Ryleigh in England. He escaped prison. I found her out by the tour bus when she went to grab Jasey's blanket. He stabbed her. They took her to the hospital 45 minutes ago. I'm so sorry,"I said.

"Is she okay?"he asked, looking at each of us. "I dunno,"I said. We all ran for the bus. We went to the hospital after typing it into our phones. We ran in and were directed to a waiting area upstairs. Our group sat in the chairs. Jasey was napping in my arms. I borrowed Ryleigh's baby b-jorn. I sniffled, trying to fight off tears once more. Jasey couldn't live without Ryleigh. Sarah was on a flight here with Maddie. "No, Brendon,"I heard Nicole say. Suddenly, he was standing in front of me.

"You listen to me loud and fucking clear,"he said, making sure I was paying attention. "You pull a stunt like last time and she doesn't pull through, it's all on you. You have a child now. Just thought you needed the reminder,"he said. Nicole looked at me with sympathy as she and Mike tried to pull him back to the chair he was sitting in. I stood up. "You listen to me! I'm not at fault here. I know damn well that I have a daughter and I'm not going anywhere. I love Ryleigh. This isn't last time,"I said then began to walk away. I needed some air. Alex, Rian, and Jack hurried after me. "Woah, Zack!"Jack yelled out. I turned to face them, my tears spilling again.

They carefully pulled me into a group hug, minding Jasey of course. When I stopped crying, they let go. They turned to walk back to the waiting room while I faced the elevator. "Zack, where are you going?"Rian asked. "Cafeteria,"I replied. They followed me into an elevator. I ran my hand over Jasey's tiny back. I grabbed a bottle of tea and sat by a window for awhile. We haven't had any news other than that she needed an emergency surgery to repair the damage done.

We sat in silence asides from the chatter of the cafeteria around us. A woman walked by with a balloon and teddy bear. They were pink and said congratulations. Someone probably had a baby. My phone started ringing. It was Nicole.

Nicole: "Hey, where are you?"

Zack: "I just need some space. I'm in the cafeteria."

Nicole: "Well she was just brought out of surgery. They'll let us in to see her in a couple hours if you want to come back up. I'm sure he didn't mean it, he's as worried as you are."

I listened to the line go dead as the guys looked at me expectantly. "She's out of surgery,"I said. Alex noticeably let out a breath. "You guys can head upstairs. I'm gonna take a walk. I need some air,"I said. "Zack---"Jack said, putting a hand on my shoulder. I ignored him and walked off, right out the hospital doors with my daughter on my chest. I put her blanket over her to block out the nighttime chill.

I walked a few blocks over to a little park. I sat on one of the benches, watching birds and squirrels move around while children squealed on the playground. Mothers smiled happily under trees, watching their kids. "That's gonna be you someday, Jasey,"I whispered to her. Her big innocent eyes stared up at me. I had to be strong for her, no matter what happens next.

Jasey started smiling up at me and she gave me hope that somehow this had to work out okay. When I saw Ryleigh on the ground, I thought she was dead. Just because she made it through surgery doesn't mean she'll live either. She lost tons of blood. I started singing Jasey Rae to Jasey. It was her name but a song for her and her mother. It made me teary eyed. I ignored the buzzing of my phone. I needed some time. I can't be there with the information so close but not knowing if she lived or died.

I hoped Ryleigh lived. I wanted her to see our daughter grow into the beautiful person she's destined to be. I wanted to be with Ryleigh and be like those mothers watching their children play. At last I stood and started making my way back to the hospital. I took my time going back upstairs. A doctor was approaching our rather large group when I arrived. Nicole took Jasey from me. She and Mike worked on entertaining her while I joined Brendon and, now, Sarah.

Dan was holding Maddie who squirmed and wanted to stand. "Urie?"the doctor asked us as he pulled a surgical cap off his head. Brendon and Sarah grasped hands and nodded lightly. "I'm Ryleigh's surgeon. The stab wound to her stomach was severe. It took us hours to stop the internal bleeding. The knife caused damage to one of the kidneys. Lucky, it left the other in tact and we were able to save it. We aren't quite out of the woods. We transfused seven units of blood and we aren't sure if that was quite enough. She should be waking from the anesthesia in the next hour or so if you want to come on back with me. She'll be groggy,"the doctor said.

Brendon and Sarah nodded. Dan was looking after Maddie, after all. "Just a second,"I said. Alex, Rian, Jack, Nicole, and Mike assured me that they would take care of Jasey. Without another word, I followed Brendon, Sarah, and the doctor down the hall to a secluded recovery ward. Sleeping patients were separated by curtains. Loved ones sat by their side, some were alone. Monitors beeped and machines whirred. They led us to a small, pale girl with several IVs and an oxygen tube in her nose. The heart machine beeped steadily. The only color came from the light blood seeping through the stitches to the bandage to the sheets.