Chapter 13
The hallway got quiet in a different way.
Before, it had been that locked-down quiet where nobody walked past my door and the light in the hall stayed buzzing and empty. I could hear the air machine by my bed and Marcus breathing. He was still kneeling by the rail where he'd been all night. His hand was still near mine but not holding on too tight. My rabbit was against my chest and my fingers hurt from holding it.
Then at 5:50 the speaker over the hall made a soft chime and a woman's voice said the secure status was cleared. I didn't know what that meant until the door to my room eased open and shoes started moving out there again. A cart rolled by. Someone laughed low and then stopped themselves.
Marcus didn't move at first. He looked at the door, then at me.
"That was lockdown lifting," he said quietly.
I gripped my rabbit tighter. The pink on its nose was worn down where I'd rubbed it.
Andrea came back in with Nurse Patel. I remembered Nurse Patel from before, with her dark hair pulled back and the badge clipped to her light blue scrubs. She had my chart in her hands. Andrea still had her dark blue shirt on and her gold necklace. Her eyes were tired but she was trying to smile for me.
"Mornin', sweet pea," Nurse Patel said. Her voice was soft. "You did good overnight."
Andrea touched the end of my bed rail and looked at Nurse Patel.
"We have a confirmed detain on the adult male and mom is secured and en route by ambulance to this facility," Andrea said, quiet and fast, like she was giving a report. "We need to hold reunification protocol until medical clears her. No direct contact until the ER attending signs off. Can we keep Lily in this room, limited traffic, one approved bedside adult? And we need to chart that the rabbit and envelope chain stays with the sheriff."
Nurse Patel nodded and wrote something.
"Approved bedside stays as is," she said. "ER will call up when she's stable for assessment. Until then, we keep the door closed but not locked. I'll tell the charge nurse no visitors without your badge."
I watched their mouths move and tried to understand. Detain. Secured. En route. I didn't know all those words but I knew Mommy was in an ambulance.
Marcus was looking down at the chrome rail. His scarred knuckles were white around it. He breathed in and out slow.
"Andrea," he said, not loud. "You need to tell me straight. What happens when Sarah gets here?"
Andrea glanced at me, then back at him. She crouched a little so she was closer to his height while he was kneeling.
"You stayed all night and you kept Lily safe. That matters," she said. "But legally, until Sarah is medically cleared and I document that she's safe to parent, Lily stays under hospital and county protection. That means I'm the caseworker of record. You're the approved support person Lily asked for. Not family, not placement. You can't sign anything and you can't take her out of this room."
Marcus's jaw tightened. I saw it move under his beard.
"I told her mom I'd watch her," he said. His voice was rougher now. "I told Lily I wasn't going anywhere."
"I know," Andrea said. "And you're not going anywhere. You're right here. Staying bedside is exactly what she needs. The promise you made and the legal reality have to sit together for a few hours. Let medical do their job first. Then we do the rest properly so nobody can question it later."
He nodded once, but his eyes stayed on me. I could tell he was mad but not at me or Andrea. His hand finally loosened on the rail and he flexed his fingers.
Nurse Patel checked my monitor and the IV pole. The cool fluorescent light felt less harsh now because gray-blue light was starting to come through the window behind her. Dawn.
Andrea stepped to the side of my bed and knelt a little too, so her face was level with mine. She didn't touch my rabbit. She knew not to.
"Lily," she said gently. "Do you feel how the hospital feels different right now?"
I nodded. My throat was dry. I swallowed.
"Is the bad man gone?" I asked. My voice was small and it cracked. I squeezed my rabbit with both hands and my eyes stung.
Andrea didn't lie. She kept her eyes on mine.
"The police have him," she said. "He's not coming here and he's not going to your home. The sheriff stopped him before sunrise."
I breathed out and my shoulders shook a little. I looked at Marcus to see if it was true. He nodded.
"He's in custody, Lily-girl," Marcus said. "He can't get to you."
I held my rabbit closer and looked toward the window, then back at the door.
"Where's my mommy?" I whispered.
Andrea put her hand lightly on the blanket, near my foot, not on me.
"Your mommy is safe," she said. "She's in an ambulance coming to this same hospital. The doctors need to check her first, make sure she's okay. That's why we have to wait a little before you see her. It's to keep both of you safe. Do you understand that part?"
I nodded, but tears came anyway. They slid down hot and I didn't wipe them.
"Is she hurt?" I asked.
"She's being taken care of," Andrea said. Her voice stayed steady. "And as soon as the doctor says it's okay, she will come right to this room. I will be here for that. Marcus will be here."
I looked at Marcus. He was still kneeling. He didn't get up.
"You gonna stay?" I asked him.
He reached out and very carefully touched the edge of my rabbit's ear with one fingertip, like he was asking permission from the rabbit too.
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"I'm not moving from this spot," he said. "Not until your mom walks through that door and you say it's okay."
Nurse Patel dimmed the overhead light a little so the dawn light showed more. Andrea stood and checked her phone, and the hall outside stayed calm and busy. I kept holding my rabbit and watching the door, waiting for it to open, knowing I had to wait a little longer.
