Chapter 13 Part 13
Asher
“If the interview lasted that long, it’s usually good news,” Thomas said.
“I don’t know, Pops, she didn’t sound like herself,” Asher said.
They were sitting in the living room with Melody playing on the floor, with a bunch of clothespins. She’d had lunch, and Asher checked his watch again. She’d need a nap soon. He’d returned to the house an hour ago to find Melody on Thomas’ hip, yelling at the stall boys to pitch the hay faster.
Half an hour later, Asher jumped to his feet, and grabbed his keys from the hook near the front door. “Do you know where she had the interview?”
“She didn’t say, son,” Thomas replied, looking worriedly at Asher.
“I’m going to go look for her. Something’s wrong; I can feel it.”
“Don’t you worry, boy, I got Melody. You go find Maggie,” Thomas said.
Asher rushed out of the house and into his truck. He sped away from the house, leaving a trail of dust in his wake. He tapped the steering wheel with the fingers of one hand as he scanned the road ahead of him. She should’ve been at the ranch by now. He was getting worried, not only because her voice hadn’t sounded quite right over the phone, but now she was late, as well.
Asher saw the skidmarks on the dirt road ahead of him. He slowed the truck to a crawl, catching sight of the upended car in the ditch. It was Maggie’s car. He ran into the ditch, not caring that his truck was still idling, and looked into the open window. Maggie’s eyes were closed. He pressed two fingers against her neck.
He wrapped one arm around her back and cut the safety belt with his hunting knife. After her body fell against him, he maneuvered her out of the window of the car. It was a blessing that she was so small. He sat back on the ground with her in his arms. “Maggie? Maggie?”
Blood was smeared across her face, so he stood up again and ran to his truck with her. He placed her on the backseat and sped away from the accident scene. With one eye on the road, he dialed Finn’s number.
“Hey, big brother,” Finn said, cheerily.
“Finn, Maggie rolled her car about two miles from the ranch. I’m taking her to the hospital; she still has a pulse, but I don’t know how hurt she is,” Asher said.
“Damn, Asher, I’m on it. Let me—”
Asher disconnected the call and sped up more once he was on the main road. Six minutes later, he stopped at the emergency doors of the hospital and pressed his horn a few times. He knew that would get their attention.
He could hear voices in the distance as he carried Maggie around his truck, and then there was a gurney and people instructing him to put her down. “Help her, please, just help her!”
Asher was taken to the waiting room by a nurse as they disappeared into a trauma bay with Maggie. A nurse appeared in front of him. “Asher, are you hurt?”
“No, it’s not my blood,” he said, not registering who the nurse was.
“Can you fill this out? We’ll need as much information about your friend as possible,” she said.
Asher’s eyes focused on her. “Yeah, sure, Lindy.”
Asher sat down, and looked at the form on the clipboard. He knew her name, surname, address, and telephone number. He didn’t know anything else about her. He listed himself as next of kin, and filled his details in at the billing section, as well. He already knew she wouldn’t have insurance.
It felt like time stood still, and then Finn was there with Maggie’s handbag. Asher shook his head when his father, the rest of his brothers, and Eden, also arrived. Melody was now in Eden’s arms, where she babbled and stuck her arms out to Asher.
“You’ll get blood on her,” Eden said, and Asher looked down, having forgotten that Maggie’s blood had stained his shirt.
“Have you heard anything yet?” Thomas asked him.
“No, nothing yet.”
“I’m really sorry, Asher. She’ll be okay,” Blair said.
“I should’ve left earlier, right after she called. I knew something wasn’t right,” Asher said.
“It could have been a deer; you don’t know, Asher,” Colt said.
He shook his head, and stood up when a doctor walked into the waiting room. “Lindy said you were here for Maggie.”
“Is she alright?” Asher asked him.
“Are you family or just the guy that happened upon the accident, Asher?”
“We’re her family,” Thomas said.
“We’re engaged; she has no other family here,” Asher said.
“Well, alright then. She suffered a concussion, four cracked ribs, and she broke her right ankle,” he said.
“Okay, I take it she’ll stay overnight for observation and be discharged tomorrow?”
“She doesn’t need surgery; the ankle was a clean break. She can be discharged in an hour. If she suffers any blackouts, nausea, or vomiting, or if she has trouble breathing, she needs to come back immediately,” he said.
“Thank you, Dr. Carmichael,” Thomas said.
“Does she live alone? She’ll need help getting around, and someone to watch over her,” Dr. Carmichael said.
“She’s staying with me,” Asher said, as everyone else nodded.
“I’ll get the paperwork started; she’ll be in a lot of pain with her ribs, and the cast will need to stay on for at least six weeks,” he said.
The rest of his family left to go back to the ranch, while Asher waited. An hour later, he was ushered into a room in the ED, where Maggie was. She had a nasty bruise on the side of her head, and he could see a stitch in her hairline. Her leg was in a short cast, and she was very pale.
The nurse smiled emphatically. “Miss Conroy, your fiancé is here.”
“Hey,” Asher said, softly, and her eyes opened. When tears welled up in her eyes, he shifted onto the bed, and pulled her closer to him. “It’s okay. You’re going to be fine.”
She shook her head as more tears spilled down her cheeks. “Everything’s a mess.”
“It’s not. Everything will be fine. I’m going to take you home, and we’ll have you back on your feet in no time,” Asher said.