“Can you tell me what’s going on?” I ask.
Cooper steps to me. “Before we do, Flynn, can I ask your relationship to Baylor and Avery Evans?”
“Avery here is my girlfriend.”
Ave nods in agreement and he explains what happened. “It seems that Baylor was attacked at the apartment she shares with Avery, earlier this evening, by two unknown assailants. Avery here, interrupted them and probably saved her sister from getting kidnapped or worse.”
“I was so scared, baby. I’m glad to be in your arms now,” she says, as she tightens her arms around me, her body tight with tension.
“Avery was giving us all she can remember but she’s in shock at the moment so her memories are vague.”
“Ave lass, I’m so glad you weren’t home when it happened.” Placing a kiss on her head, I pull her back to look at me. “Do you know who they were?”
She shakes her head. “No, I don’t think I’ve ever seen them before.”
“Are they the guys from the other day?” She looks at me confused. “You mentioned two guys the other night?
“I…I don’t know. Everything’s all so fuzzy.” She sits down and rests her elbows on her knees and sighs.
Shaking my head, I run my fingers through my hair and I sit down next to her and rub her back. “What shit has your sister gotten into?”
Her head snaps toward me and the look she’s currently giving me could turn me to stone. There’s such vehemence in her gaze right now. “Who says it's her fault?” she snaps.
“I didn’t say that, I—” Before I can defend myself, Clay enters the ER and walks toward us.
Standing up, I step away from Avery and over to Clay. “Clay, dude, how’s Baylor?” I stretch out my hand to him.
“Flynn,” he says, slapping me on the back with one hand and shaking the other in that manly one-hand shake/hug. “You know I can’t discuss this with you, you’re not technically family.”
I nod my head in understanding but Avery says, “It’s fine.” As she slides her arm around my waist, snuggling into my side. I breath her in but she doesn’t smell as florally as she usually does.
“Avery, it seems that Baylor was shocked with a Taser. There’s two red barb welts on the side of her abdomen. She has a concussion. A small cut to her left cheek that needed five stitches, but luckily no broken facial bones. She has three cracked ribs and a nasty bump on the back of her head. Her face and ribs are bruised, likely from being kicked. All things considered, she’s in okay shape.”
“Jesus Christ,” I mutter, rubbing my forehead.
Clay adds, “She’s still unconscious and we will continue to monitor her until she wakes up.”
Avery is frozen beside me. Rapidly blinking as she process his words. “Will…will she be okay?” she stammers.
“Until she regains consciousness, we won’t know about her mental state but physically, yes, she will recover from these injures.”
Avery nods her head and then falls into a chair. Looking up to Clay she asks, “Can I see her?”
Clay nods his head. “Of course. Come with me. Flynn, technically, you cannot see her.”
Nodding my head, I say, “No, I understand.” I turn to Avery. “You go see your sister, and I’ll see about getting her transferred to a room upstairs.”
She stands up, wraps her arms around me, and kisses me. There’s something different about the kiss. There’s no feeling or emotion that there normally is when we kiss. I put it down the to stress of what’s happened with her sister. I watch as she follows Clay but something is niggling at me. Turning to Cooper and Devon, I fill them in on the recent issues with Baylor.
Wrapping up with the officers, I head back into the ER and stop at the nurses’ station and arrange a room for Baylor. Five minutes later, they tell me there’s a bed on four for Baylor and she’ll be moved up in a few moments. Offering to tell Avery, I make my way to the cubicle Baylor is currently in.
Stopping outside I hear her say. “Please wake up. I’m so sorry, twinsie. Please wake up for me.”
Hearing her words, I smile when I realize that even though they are going through a rough patch right now, she still cares for her sister and that only makes me love her more.
31
Avery
My body hurts.
My head aches.
Everything is fuzzy.
My eyes are heavy. I’m trying to open them but they refuse to move.
My body feels light, like I’m floating.
There’s an incessant beeping that’s grating through my brain. Make it stop.
Then I hear it, I hear him, Flynn, he’s here but what he says confuses me.
“Ave lass, she’ll be fine.”
I’m not fine, I yell in my head.
Flynn, please help me. I plead, but he can’t hear me. No one can hear me.
It's just me and my thoughts.
The beeping becomes louder and erratic.
There’s a commotion around me, I can feel it happening but my eyes won’t open for me to see. A warmth spreads over my body and I drift off into the blackness again.
I’m awake, again, and like before, everything is fuzzy.
My eyes still won’t open.
My head now has a dull ache.
My body still hurts but not as much as before.
My throat is as dry as the Sahara and I need to pee really badly, then I realize I have a catheter in and reluctantly, I empty my bladder. Eeeeew, I think to myself as the ‘Ahhhhhhhh’ feeling of when you are peeing washes over me.
Laughing within my head, I try and open my eyes but like last time, my lids are heavy and weighted down. With all my might, I concentrate and my eyes flicker open. Blinking a few times, the room comes into focus. I’m in a hospital bed, huh? Confusion wraps around me.
“Avie,” Bay says, leaning her head down, she grips my hand in hers and squeezes tightly. “I’m sorry you got caught up in this.” I’m confused as to what she’s saying. She grips my hand tighter but my lids start to droop. My body feels heavy, I can’t keep them open. No, Avery, stay awake, I plead with myself, but the darkness wins and I doze off back into the black abyss.
I’m awake and just like the previous times, I will my eyes to open but they refuse to budge. Someone is holding my hand tightly, their grip is strong and comforting. There’s a sound, I think it's a door opening. The grip on my hand disappears and I hear footsteps.
“Flynn, baby, what are you doing back here?”
What the hell?
“Just checking on my girl.”
Flynn, I shout in my head. That’s not me. Bay’s doing it again. Flynn, I shout in my head over and over, my voice hoarse from screaming at him.
My eyes flit open and it looks like my sister and boyfriend just kissed. My heart rate spikes. My heart is rapidly beating within my chest, it hurts seeing my sister kiss him. It's beating faster and faster. The beeping is getting louder and louder. Panic is building within me.
I try to speak but I can’t. My voice won’t work, I’m willing myself to speak but my body and mouth don’t want to cooperate.