Saving Grapes - Madeline Kirby Page 0,51
with the light was talking to him.
“Can you hear me?”
“Y… yes.” Thom managed to get out through a mouth that felt like it was stuffed with cotton. A straw appeared in front of his mouth and he took a sip of water.
“I’m Dr. Sterling, can you tell me your name?”
“Thom. Thomas Caldwell. What happened? Where am I?”
“You’re at Cable’s Bend Hospital. Do you remember anything about why you’re here?”
Thom closed his eyes and leaned back on the pillow. “It was raining, and I went outside. I was heading for the shed. The next thing I remember there was a flash of light.” Thom paused, thinking, but after that it was all a blank. “That’s all I can remember.”
He opened his eyes to see the doctor making notes and nodding. “Perfectly normal,” he said. “The light you saw was a lightning strike. You’re very lucky you weren’t more seriously injured. As it is, you have a fractured clavicle, and your right femur was fractured just below the hip joint. It was a clean break, and we were able to stabilize it without doing a full hip replacement. I’m not going to overload you with information right now. Just try not to move around. If you’re in pain, let someone know. You’ve got a lot of family here who’ve been worried about you. You and I will talk again when you’re more awake.”
Then Ben’s face appeared above him again. He looked exhausted. He hadn’t shaved, and his brown eyes were bright with unshed tears. “Oh, God, Thom. I was so worried.”
“Ben,” Thom managed to breathe, and then choked until the straw was back – Ben was holding a cup of water for him. He took a sip, and for a moment Thom thought Ben might kiss him, and wondered why he didn’t. Then he heard an unmistakable voice and knew why Ben was holding back.
“Move aside, now, whippersnapper. No hogging the patient! Let an old man get a turn.”
“Granddad.” Thom was glad to hear his voice was sounding more normal. “How did…? What are you doing here?”
Ben moved aside and Thom’s grandfather stepped up to the side of the bed – on Thom’s uninjured left side – and took Thom’s hand with his own twisted one.
“Chuck called and told me what happened. Gave me a right fright. Of course I came. Wanted to get a look at this young man of yours, too.”
Thom could feel his face flushing, “He’s not my young man, Granddad.”
“Yes he is,” his grandfather said.
“Yes I am,” he heard Ben gripe from somewhere behind the old man.
Thom was too tired to argue. He felt like he’d been hit by a truck. “How long have I been here?” he asked instead.
“Almost two days,” Ben told him, coming up on his other side.
“What’s going on at home?” Thom just wanted to go back to sleep – he suspected that whatever the nurse had put in his IV was making him groggy – but he needed to know.
Ben answered, “It’s been too wet for Ross and his crew to work. Mindy and my dad have been holding down the fort at the house, getting it ready for you to come home.”
“What about…” Thom paused to yawn. “What about the lightning?”
He saw Ben’s mouth twist. He knew that look – there was something Ben wasn’t telling him, but it didn’t matter because at that point he closed his eyes and let himself draft back to sleep.
Ben really did not want to have to tell Thom about the vineyard.
“Is it bad that I’m glad he fell asleep before I had to tell him?”
“No,” Steve said. “No sense upsetting him when he needs to be resting.”
“Uncle Chuck says the fire marshal and the insurance adjustor are going to be inspecting the damage tomorrow morning. One of us should be there. Do you want to do it? Since you’re family and all?”
“No. It’s all Thom’s now, and you’re his partner. You should do it.”
Ben shook his head. “I’m not, really. Chuck told the hospital that so they’d let me see him and get information, but Thom and I haven’t had that conversation. I don’t think he’s there yet. Or rather, he thinks I’m not there yet.”
“But you are, aren’t you? There? I can see it, and I just met you.”
“Yeah. And I’ll meet with the insurance guy. Thom and I have discussed the vineyard and the plans back and forth for months. I know where all the records are. I can answer their