Chad had argued with the doctors countless times already, insisting they weren’t doing all they could for her. She should’ve woken by now. How could her body be working, yet her mind refuse to allow her to wake? He couldn’t understand it.
Bree’s family was at the hospital as much as Chad. Her brothers took every opportunity to shoot him dirty looks – though they knew he’d done his best to save her. They, like him, needed someone to blame – so he was the easiest target.
“Mr. Anderson, we have some test results we need to speak about,” the doctor said as he walked in the room.
“Go ahead,” George replied. He looked like hell, with dark circles taking permanent residence under his eyes, and the loss of about twenty pounds. He was making himself sick with worry. It was hard on him being back in the hospital again. It reopened the wounds of grief over the loss of his wife, and caused a whole new mourning period for him and the rest of the family. Even his voice sounded almost dead – defeated, something Chad had never expected from the powerful man he’d come to know.
“We should speak in private,” the doctor said.
“Anything you have to say about my daughter, anyone in this room can hear,” George replied wearily. The doctor nodded his head before he gave them the shock of their lives.
“Bree is two months pregnant.”
The room went utterly silent as all the men slowly turned their gazes from the doctor to Chad’s stunned face. It was obvious those weren’t the words they were expecting to hear.
“You’re sure?” George finally gasped. The doctor nodded.
Suddenly George’s face broke out in a small grin, the first one he’d given since Bree had been abducted and then shot. Everyone was taken by surprise at his reaction.
“Well, I’ll be…” he trailed off. He took Bree’s hand in his own and looked at his daughter fondly. “I know you can hear us, Bree. You’re going to be a momma, so you need to fight real hard and wake up,” he whispered in a tear choked voice.
Chad realized he wasn’t breathing and took in a huge gasp of air. He was going to be a father. Words failed to describe the extreme myriad of feelings coursing through him.
Fear.
Excitement.
Love.
Each emotion had an equal hold on his teetering emotions. He was going to be a dad. He looked at Bree’s still flat stomach and had to fight the itch in his throat.
“Outside, Redington,” Trenton snapped.
Chad stood instantly. He could use a good fight. It looked like it was show time. He followed Trenton into the hall, and the rest of the room cleared out behind them. No one wanted to miss the showdown.
Chad smirked at Trenton, trying to push his buttons. He needed to hit someone, but he wasn’t going to throw the first punch and have Bree all over him when she woke up – and she would wake.
Trenton took a menacing step forward and Chad felt his adrenaline kick in. It had been a while, but he’d been on many combat missions, and fighting was second nature to him.
“I don’t think so, boys,” Jennifer called out as she stepped between the two men. “Last time I checked, you were both adults,” she snapped.
“This piece of crap violated my sister,” Trenton snapped. His wife glared his way and he instantly backed down. It almost made Chad smile.
“Your sister isn’t a child, Trenton and this isn’t the eighteenth century. If they made love, it was a mutual decision, plus none of your business,” Jennifer continued.
“But…” Trenton tried to speak, but Jennifer interrupted again.
“There is no, but. They have to work this out on their own, and like it or not, it looks like your sister made her choice and this is the father of your niece or nephew. Do you really want to start a relationship with a fistfight?”
It looked to everyone like that’s exactly what Trenton wanted to do.
“As much as I’d like to deck you right now, Redington, my wife has a point. What the hell happened? You were supposed to be guarding her, not seducing her.”
“That’s none of your business,” Chad snapped, frustrated that he wasn’t going to get the fight he so desperately wanted. Trenton growled something, then started pacing the halls.
“I need air,” he snapped, heading for the doors.
“I’m not thrilled about this but Jennifer’s right. Bree is a big girl and can make her own decisions. I’m warning you, though, if you leave my sister high and dry, there won’t be a woman around to protect you,” Austin said.
“I’d let you kick my ass if I did that to her,” Chad said, meaning it. He was ready to take her to the courthouse right then. She carried his child; he would take care of her.
The men stared at each other for several moments and Austin must have seemed happy with what he saw because he surprised everyone when he clapped Chad on the back as he walked by. It seemed he had at least one of the brother’s approval.
It didn’t take long for the news to spread through the family. After the shock wore off, everyone went into planning mode. Hopefully she woke up soon because they now had two irreplaceable people lying helpless in the bed.
***
Bree cracked her eyes open and felt instant terror. She was choking. She couldn’t breathe, and her head was pounding. Where was she? Why were wires tugging on her arms? She forced her eyelids further open and glanced around the small room that had a beeping monitor next to her head.
Her heart accelerated and the machine started making a high pitched sound. Her only thought was that she was in danger and had to get away. She didn’t know how she’d gotten into the room.
“It’s okay, Ms. Anderson. You’re okay,” a woman said as she stepped up next to her. Who was Ms. Anderson? Was that her? She didn’t know who she was. Panic flared even more as she started thrashing around in the bed, the wires connected to her felt like chains.
“You have to calm down. We’re going to give you something to help. We aren’t trying to hurt you,” the woman spoke in a calm manner. Bree didn’t believe her. Danger! There was danger. She didn’t know why or how, she only knew she was unsafe.
“Call the doctor now, and notify her family,” the same woman said to someone else, and the person quickly left the room.
The woman poked a needle into one of the wires hanging from her arm, while a man held her hands down so she couldn’t unplug herself. She felt an instant calmness wash over her. She was still fearful, but the panic was ebbing.
“Where am I? Who are you?” she croaked, the words hurting her throat. She winced. The door opened again and a man walked in. He quickly glanced her way and their eyes locked together. She felt like she should know him, but she didn’t.
“Bree?” he asked questioningly, like he didn’t know if it was her. She looked at him blankly. Was he talking to her?
“Bree, you’re awake,” he practically shouted as he stepped forward. She flinched when he reached down and brushed the hair from her face.
“It looks like she may have amnesia. We’ve called for the doctor,” the woman said when Chad looked at her.
“Hi Bree, I’m Dr. Bailey. I know you’re a little scared right now, but I’m going to see if I can help you, okay?” the man said. Bree nodded her head, reassured by the tone of his voice. He slowly approached the bed and started checking her vitals while continuing to ask her questions.
After about twenty minutes, the door opened again and more strangers stepped inside. Bree turned toward the doctor, not knowing what she should do or say. The room was too crowded – too many strangers.
“Everything will be okay, Bree. This is your family. I’m going to step outside and speak to them for a few minutes, okay?” The doctor said. Bree had no choice but to nod. She watched as they all left the room. The same woman, who’d originally come in, stayed with her, reassuring her. She didn’t want to be alone.
***
“It looks like your daughter is suffering from amnesia, which isn’t unusual in a coma patient. I’m going to run more tests, but the good news is she’s awake,” Dr. Bailey said once they were in the hallway.
George and Chad were both speechless for a few moments. The doctor let them have some time to work through their thoughts.
“How long?” Chad finally asked. It seemed the only words he could get past his throat.
“There’s no way to know for sure. She could regain her memory at any time, or it could take months. She may even lose some memory all together. There was no permanent damage to the brain from the bullet wound, but I’m unable to give any definitive answers,” Dr. Bailey said apologetically.
“Can we take her home?” George asked.
“I need to run more tests. What you need to remember is that you can’t force her memory to return. She needs to come to it on her own. If you push too much on her at once, it can make her retreat further. I know you’ve had a trying time over the last couple months, but she needs to heal. I’ll have more answers for you once I’ve run those tests,” he said before turning and walking away.
“What do we do?” Chad asked, feeling helpless.
“As much as I don’t like it, we wait,” George answered. Neither man was the type to wait for anything, or anyone, so they both took a few moments to compose themselves before walking back into her room.
Upon their return, Bree’s eyes were shut and Chad felt like he was going to throw up. He shouldn’t have been gone so long.
“It’s okay, she’s only sleeping. I know it seems like that’s all she’s been doing, but this is different. She will wake up again, but she’s only going to be awake for short periods,” the nurse reassured them.
George sat by her side for a while before leaving to make phone calls. Chad refused to leave. He wanted to be there when she woke again. The doctor came in a few hours later, but didn’t have positive news. There wasn’t a physical reason for the amnesia, and all they could do was wait it out and pray she regained her memory.
Chad fell asleep with his head resting on her bed and her hand held securely in his.
***
Bree woke again in the dimly lit room but she didn’t feel as panicked as the first time. She looked down and noticed the same man who’d walked in earlier, was sleeping close to her, with her hand gripped in his.
She took a few moments to study his face, which seemed softer in sleep. He had short hair and was built like a tank, but for some reason he didn’t scare her. She felt safe with him, which confused her, considering she didn’t know who he was. He had to be a good guy, though, if the hospital allowed him in her room.
She lifted her free hand and brushed her fingers against his cheek, which had a few days growth of hair on it. The movement must have startled him because his eyes shot open, fully alert, and they were caught, staring into each other’s eyes, both of them holding their breaths.
“How are you feeling?”
“I don’t know,” she answered. Her head wasn’t hurting so much, but she was confused, disoriented and scared.