Somewhere in my mind I heard Brett's voice. I heard wood cracking and shattering as Brett's shoulder crashed through the bedroom door and then I heard yelling. First Brett told the woman to get the fuck out and then he laid into Christian. "What in the actual fuck is wrong with you?" he roared. Christian just blinked rapidly at him as if he was trying to come out of some fog and piece together what his brother was saying. "Where is she, Christian? Where's Chelsea?" he shouted.
Christian ran his fingers through his hair and furrowed his brow trying to think when he'd last seen his wife. His eyes widened. "Oh what the fuck?" he whispered. Frantically grabbing for his pants and jerking them on, he and Brett ran down the stairs calling out for Chelsea; they couldn't find her. Brett walked past the kitchen and noticed the patio door was open and what he saw horrified him. "Christian! Call 911!" he yelled at his brother.
Christian ran to where his brother's voice had come from and curses fell from his lips as he called 911. "911, what's your emergency?" the operator asked. "I need an ambulance right now to 11329 Appalachian Way! Hurry! It's my wife!" Christian's frantic voice rang out. He finally hung up with the operator and he could hear sirens in the distance as he ran and got towels. Brett had managed to pick up Chelsea and get her inside. Her breathing was harsh and she was wheezing, her skin was ice cold and her lips were blue. Both men were brought back to reality when they heard a knock at the door.
"Can anyone tell me what happened?" the lead paramedic asked of the brothers. Brett spoke up. "I received a phone call from her. She was hysterical and wasn't making any sense so I raced over here and we found her outside in the elements and then we called 911."
Christian just stared at his brother as his brother just glared at him. "We have to get her to the hospital right away. She's been exposed to this weather and her breathing is very erratic. She's not out of the woods yet" he finished. Brett ran his fingers through wet hair as Christian spoke up "I'm riding with her and I'm not taking no for an answer!" The paramedic looked him up and down before finally answering that it was okay. "I will follow in my car" Brett said. They had started an IV in Chelsea's arm, got her wrapped in a blanket and got her to the ambulance; Christian climbed in and then they sped off to the hospital with Brett following.
It didn't take long to get to the ER and then both men were instructed to wait until a doctor could come and talk to them about Chelsea's condition. Finally after what seemed like hours of waiting a doctor finally came out to speak with them. "I'm Dr. Chan" he said holding his hand out for Christian. The men shook hands and Christian asked "How's my wife?"
The doctor motioned for them to sit down and then explained. "I don't know how long she was exposed to the rain and cold but my guess is about 20 to 30 minutes. We had to pump warm fluid in through an IV, to slowly bring her body back up to an acceptable temperature. Her heart rate was dangerously slow and we dealt with that as well. She has fluid building up in her lungs making it difficult for her to breathe so we have her on a ventilator and we will keep her there at least 24 hours. She has been placed in a medically induced coma just for that period. We don't need her moving about, she needs to rest and her body needs to heal and repair itself. We will hope for the best that the pneumonia doesn't scar her lungs and that her heart fully heals. Time will tell on those two issues. You may come back and see her. We will be keeping her in ICU at least until she comes off the ventilator. Any questions from either of you?" the doctor asked. The men shook there heads and the doctor handed them off to a nurse who led them to Chelsea's room.
You could hear the beeping of the monitors and the sound of the ventilator breathing for Chelsea. Christian looked pale and Brett swallowed hard seeing his sister-in-law laying there like that. He'd always felt more for her than he'd led on. Maybe if he'd told her before she married his brother she wouldn't be laying here like this fighting for her life. He tried to shake those thoughts from his troubled mind as they neared her bed.
Christian reached out and moved some of her hair that had fallen into her face, behind her ear. He started to sob as he cried "Oh Chelsea! What have I done? I'm so sorry baby! I didn't mean to hurt you!" He sounded so pathetic but Brett just rolled his eyes. He knew his brother only meant it right now because he was scared. When his wife gets better it will be back to the same old thing, treating her like shit.
"Christian I want to know what the hell happened? What were you thinking bringing another woman into your house, into your marriage bed, with your wife in the house? What is wrong with you?" Brett hissed at the broken man.
Christian shook his head and said "I remember coming home and going to my study. Chelsea came to tell me dinner was ready and I remember I wasn't very nice to her. I came out and we ate; she asked if I wanted dessert. I said yes and she brought it to me with some coffee. She went and did dishes. I told her thank you for supper, kissed her and went back to my study. I remember leaving about 9:30 and the rest is kind of a blur until you came busting through the door."
Brett stood in front of his brother, glaring daggers at him. "Let me fill in the blanks then. You pulled your wife from your bed while that slut stood there watching you do it. You slammed the door in Chelsea's face and she heard you fuck that hoe in your bed, in her bed. Now I'm just guessing on the rest. She walked outside, in shock, called me and I couldn't get much from the conversation except you, another woman, in your bed and then she dropped the phone and I rushed over there. You're an asshole Christian! A complete and utter douchebag! You don't deserve Chelsea! She's too good for you! I hope she leaves your ass!" Brett yelled as he walked out.
Christian remained silent the whole time his brother laid into him. Brett left one important element out: he'd been doing cocaine in his office that entire evening and had been so fucked up he left the house and picked up that girl at the club. He knew he was fucked up and he knew he couldn't fix this. He also knew he would never change. He sighed and sat down beside his wife's bed. This situation would be dealt with as soon as his wife came home. He'd make sure of it.