Alternate Ending-3

"You probably realize that you missed your Q and A with Keegan, right? Well, when you didn't show, Keegan got suspicious. You're one of those people that tries to be on time. So when about forty five minutes passed and still no Gabby, he decided to head to your house. He called Shane, asking if he had seen you around town. He didn't, of course. So he called Evan, me and by the time he stood outside your door, Keegan was having a full on freak-out," she recalled, her face reflecting the feelings she spoke of in her story. "It was crazy, really. Everyone showed up at your house at the same time. Evan and I pulled up just as Shane started knocking on the door with Keegan by his side. We called the police and told them you were missing as soon as we told your parents something was wrong." Out of nowhere, she punched me in the arm, making me let out a yelp. "What was that for?" I demanded. Glaring at me, Shelby replied, "That was for not telling anyone about those notes, Gabrielle. When we found those, we started to completely lose it. We showed them to the police and that's when they started taking the case seriously. Then ... then we had to wait. Two days of silence and nerves. It was awful," she whispered, leaning her head on my shoulder. I gulped, feeling sick to my stomach. I should have told them about the notes. I knew it, but actually getting the words out was harder than you would think. I thought that the entire mess would just blow over at the time. "What then?" "Well, then we got a call from the station. Adam received an email with your picture attached and suddenly, the entire station was in a frenzy. They immediately knew who had you and Adam promised that he would return you safe and sound." She smiled and looked at me again, pausing the story for a moment. "I like Adam. He's like a replica of you." Shaking her head, she jumped back on the track she had been on previously. "I guess after that we just waited for the phone call telling us you were alive and safe. It felt like an eternity," she confessed, hugging me once again. "So, when we finally got the call and found out you were in the hospital, we all freaked. Everyone pretty much bombarded the hospital," she slightly chuckled at the memory surely surfacing in her mind. "I'm so sorry for all of this," I whispered, shaking my head. Closing my eyes, I said, "I should have just said something. Anything. I'm so stupid." Shelby shrugged, as if to say 'yep' and honestly, I couldn't even blame her. Shelby and I laid there for a little while longer, watching whatever show currently played on the TV screen, talking about what happened and sometimes just talking about nothing at all. "Knock, knock." Shelby and I looked up to find my parents standing in the door. I smiled, though I felt exhausted. My room was full of people today. Shelby patted my knee and said, "That is my cue to take a hike. I'll see you later, Honeybee." With a smile, she hopped up and hugged my family before waving at me and then leaving the room. My parents entered farther, coming on both sides of my bed and pulling me into a double-sided embrace. "Oh, honey! We were worried sick!" Mom grabbed me, her arms wrapped gently around my frame. Giving me a quick squeeze, she pulled away, looking me over real quick. "I tried to be the doctor assigned to take care of you, but the hospital felt it was too personal of a case for me to take," she huffed, looking annoyed as the nurse checked a few vitals and scribbled things down on the clipboard. She didn't even look in my direction. What an awful nurse. Psh. Judging from the glare on my mother's face, she reflected the sentiment. "So what's my damage, anyways?" I asked, glancing between my parents. "I feel like I've been hit by a freight train." "Well, when you fell, you hit your head pretty hard on the fireplace," my dad started, rubbing a hand over his face and putting the other on his waist. "The back of your skull received a minor fracture. When the authorities found you, you had already lost quite a bit of blood and they were afraid you died." Mom's lower lip trembled as she nodded in agreement. "The crack to your skull sent a shock wave through the rest of your body and you managed to bruise your lower back. Your body will be sore for a while, sweetheart," he finished, looking me in the eyes. I swallowed the knot that formed in my throat and nodded, knowing that if I spoke, I would just want to punch someone in the face. Namely Mr. Landon. My eyes lit up. Landon! Grabbing my parents hand for their attention, I asked, "What about Landon? Did he get away?" Smiling, my mom shook her head. "Nope. They caught him. Look, there's something you don't know about your father, Adam," she said. A knock from the door told us another visitor had made their way to my room and we all looked in that direction. Speak of the devil and he shall appear. There stood Adam in the doorway. "Well, I think someone else can answer those questions a little better than we can. He wants to mend bridges, sweetie. Let him try?" Mom said and smiled once again before kissing my forehead and standing up. My adoptive parents left the room, stopping to shake Adam's hand on the way out.