Saving Grapes - Madeline Kirby Page 0,48
observation and had not regained consciousness. He pulled a chair up to the bedside and took Thom’s hand in both of his.
He was sitting there, stroking the back of Thom’s hand, when Chuck arrived.
“How’s he doing?” Chuck asked as he came in and stood on the other side of the bed, looking down at Thom’s bruised face.
“I don’t know. He hasn’t woken up yet. The nurse said the doctor will be by on rounds soon.”
“How are you doing, then?”
“Scared as hell. And how am I going to tell him about the vineyard?”
Ben had gone out to inspect the damage as soon as it was light out. He hadn’t slept well and had finally given up, taking a hot shower and reading about lightning damage online until the sun came up.
A professional would have to come check it out for insurance purposes, but based on his research it looked as if the strike had hit just northwest of the center of the field, and the powerful charge of the lightning had vaporized all the water nearby, turning it to steam. Because it had been raining all week and everything was soaked, the result was that the vines in the immediate vicinity of the strike had basically exploded. Shockwaves had carried the damage out to surrounding plants. The current had traveled along the support wires and jumped, and despite the rain and waterlogged conditions, a fire had started.
The emergency crew had not been able to do anything other than contain the fire – they couldn’t get closer without damaging the untouched vines near the house. The fire had burned itself out fairly quickly, but even so, about two-thirds of the north section was gone.
“I called Steve last night.”
“His grandfather?”
“He managed to get on a flight this morning. I’m off to Portland to pick him up at the airport. We should make it back here before visiting hours are over.”
“Will it be okay if I’m here?” Ben asked, not sure if he should be there when Thom’s elderly grandfather arrived.
“You’d better be. That old man’ll be right pissed off if his boy wakes up all alone.”
Ben nodded and turned all his attention back to Thom as Chuck left the room. He had to step away from the bed for a few minutes when a nurse came to check Thom’s vitals. She smiled at Ben as she left and told him the doctor would be by in just a few minutes.
“Ah, good morning Mr. – uh – Loomis, right?”
“Yes. Good morning, Doctor, um?” Ben stood, keeping hold of Thom’s hand.
“Sterling. Chuck not here this morning?”
“No, sir. He’s gone to the airport to pick up Thom’s grandfather.”
The doctor moved to Thom’s bedside and took a look at the notes the nurse had made in the chart. Ben remained silent while the doctor completed his examination. When Dr. Sterling had finished making his own notes in the chart he turned to leave the room, motioning for Ben to come with him. “Let’s talk out here.”
“How is he, Doctor?” Ben asked as they stepped into the hall.
“Everything appears to be as we would expect. The surgery to repair his hip was straightforward and went smoothly. His collarbone is likely to be the most difficult and painful part of his recovery.”
“Why isn’t he awake yet? Is he… is it a head injury?” Ben forced himself to ask.
“He did hit his head – you can’t see it, but there was a gash on the back of his head requiring four stitches. However, a CT scan showed no signs of intracranial swelling and his pupils react normally to light. Judging by the pattern of his injuries, I would say that his hip and shoulder absorbed most of the impact.”
“So why isn’t he awake yet? Should we be worried?”
“I wouldn’t worry at this point. His body has been through a severe physical trauma, and when he wakes up he’s going to be in a lot of pain. If he isn’t conscious by this time tomorrow, then we’ll take steps, but at this point rest is the best thing for him. I’ll be by again this evening.”
Ben thanked the doctor and turned to go back into Thom’s room. There were a couple of orderlies tending to Thom, so he headed to the cafeteria to get a snack. He thought about calling Uncle Chuck to tell him what the doctor had said, but then remembered that he would be driving, so called the house instead, not sure if anyone would still be there.
“Hello?”