| Chapter 14 Tara took a long time in the shower. She let the water flow over her and wash away some of her fear and worry for Brian. She finally turned the water off and got out. She was drying off when a knock came at the door. Tara wrapped the towel around her, "Come in." The nurse walked in with a tray of food, "I thought you might be hungry," she said. As she set the tray on the table she noticed the cuts on Tara's chest. "Oh hun, what happened to you?" she asked. Tara looked down, "Oh, that's where the harness dug into me, it's OK." The nurse walked over and took a closer look, "Let me go get something to put on that," she said as she turned to leave. "You really don't have to," Tara said, not wanting her to go to any trouble. "You just sit tight, and I'll be back in a minute," the nurse said as she walked out the door. Tara sat down at the table and looked at the tray the nurse brought in. She really didn't want anything to eat, but she hadn't really eaten anything since she found Brian. There was a hamburger and fries, and some fruit on the tray. Tara ate the fruit and was picking at the fries when the nurse came back in. "OK, let's see what we can do here," she said as she sat down next to Tara and opened the medical kit she brought with her. The nurse started cleaning the cuts with an antibiotic ointment that stung immensely. Tara bit her lip to keep from letting out a whimper. "I know this stings, I'm almost done," the nurse said as she finished up. "That should keep it from getting infected," she said. Tara got up to put her clothes on, "Any word on Brian yet?" she asked. "No hun, he's still in surgery, I'll come get you as soon as I hear something," the nurse answered on her way out the door. "Thanks," Tara said as she put her shirt on. Tara finished getting dressed, and went to the mirror to fix her hair. She looked at herself for a moment. Her eyes were tired looking, and she had lost some weight. She could see the top of the cuts above her shirt, Those are gonna leave a scar, she thought. She began to brush her hair, and decided to braid it. She fixed it in a loose braid that fell to one side. When she had finished, she turned back toward the food. She really wasn't a fan of hamburgers, or meat of any kind for that matter. But after eating the fruit she was starting get her appetite back, so she finished what was on the tray. Tara was getting sleepy, so she walked over to the cot that was in the room and laid down. I'll just take a short nap, she thought. She closed her eyes and immediately fell asleep. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Leighanne had been in her room for several hours now. She couldn't help but feel a since of hopelessness. Every possible scenario had entered her mind as to what had become of Brian. She tried not to entertain the thoughts, but they were relentless. She had cried until there were no tears left, she was exhausted and afraid. Leighanne was lying on her bed, trying to push the thoughts from her head, when a knock came at the door. "Come in," Leighanne said. Nick opened the door and walked in. "Lee, can I talk to you?" he asked. Leighanne could tell that Nick was really hurting, "Sure Nicky, what about?" she asked. Nick sat down on the side of the bed and took a deep breath, "Lee, I'm really worried," he said. Leighanne sat up and faced Nick, "I think we all are Nick," she said as a tear rolled down her cheek. Nick's eyes threatened to release his own flood of tears, "Lee, not just about Bri." he said. Leighanne looked at him questionly, "About Kevin?" she asked. "Yeah, there is something really wrong there," Nick said, "I know he's making light of it, but I think it's really serious." Leighanne thought for a moment, "Nick, Kevin is the kind of person that takes his health very seriously. If something is truly wrong, I'm sure he will see that he gets the treatment he needs." "I know that Lee, but I have this awful feeling that something bad is gonna happen before he gets it," Nick said with worry in his eyes. Leighanne grabbed Nick's hand and held it, "Then the only thing we can do is watch him, and pray for him," she said. Nick looked at Leighanne with apprehension, "Lee, you know I'm not really big into the religious stuff." "Nick, praying is not religious stuff," Leighanne said, "It's talking to God, just like your talking to me. Tell him your worries and fears, ask him to help. It defiantly can't hurt anything." Nick could see that Leighanne really believed what she was saying. He got up to leave, "I'll think about it," he said. "Nick, don't think, do." Leighanne called after him. Nick gave Leighanne a smile and walked out of the room. Leighanne laid back down and took her own advice and began to pray. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tara was back in the wheat field. She looked around for the familiar site of Brian, he was nowhere to be seen. "Brian!" she yelled. There was no answer. In the distance she could see two men, they looked like they were arguing. Tara made her way closer. As she approached she could see one of the men was Brian. There was fear in his eyes, and he was pleading with the other man. Tara couldn't make out the other person's face, it was a blur, but she could feel the evil around him. A chill went down her spine. As she drew closer the other man pulled out a gun and aimed it at Brian. "Brian, run!" she yelled. Brian just stood there, still pleading with the man. "Brian! Run!" Tara screamed. Then the man fired. Brian fell back and disappeared. "NO!" Tara sat straight up in the bed. She was covered in sweat and trying to catch her breath. She looked around and remembered where she was at. She swung her feet around and stood up, just as the nurse came through the door. "Hon, are you all right? We could hear you down the hall!" she said. Tara looked at her with confusion, she had not realized that she had actually been screaming. "I'm sorry," she said, "I just had a horrible dream, that's all." "It must've been," the nurse said. Tara gave her a weak smile, "Any news on Brian?" she asked. "Actually, I was on my way to get you, he's out of surgery and in recovery right now. We'll be moving him to his room soon. Come on and I'll show you where it is." the nurse said. Tara felt a surge of relief come over her. She picked up her bag and followed the nurse down the hall. Thank you God! Chapter 15 |