ribs are broken. Here, help me up," he added, raising one arm to hook around my neck. I rose carefully, using my arm to support his back as he got unsteadily to his feet.
"How do you feel?" I asked.
"Like hell. This should not have happened."
"What did happen? Austen said you ran after the guy."
"I was getting coffee and when I returned, I heard the commotion in Sophie's room just as this guy ran out and shoved me out of his way. He surprised me so I didn’t react as fast as I normally would. Austen yelled out that he hurt Sophie so I took off after him. I was gaining on him when he turned around, grabbed the banister and swung himself around on it, knocking me down. He jumped up and down on my chest. I could hear my ribs breaking," wheezed Manny as he clutched his chest.
I couldn't disguise the horrified look that crossed my face.
"If I weren't going so fast, he couldn't have managed to get me to the ground."
"Did you see who it was?"
"I can't be sure but..."
"But?"
"He looked like Zach. Something about the way he moved, although I never saw his face."
"Which way did he go?"
"Through that door. I don't know which way after that. It's been a few minutes. He's gone. Damn it!" Then he let out a string of Spanish words that I vaguely recognized as common curses. "I can't believe I let him get away!"
"He broke your ribs. You're not Superman," I told him. "We need to get you into the ER."
"I have to report back to Austen first."
"You can't climb those stairs. I'll tell him," I said, reaching into my pocket for his wallet. "You dropped this."
"Thanks," he said, taking it with a sharp intake of breath as he slipped it awkwardly into his jacket pocket. Pain swept his face and he stumbled. It took all my strength and concentration to keep him upright. "Is Austen okay? And Sophie...?" he asked before his voice trailed off and he looked away, like he couldn't bear to hear the news.
"They're both fine. The doctors are checking on Sophie’s vitals, and Austen seems okay except he might complain of a killer headache later."
"If it really was Zach... why would he do such a terrible thing to his own sister?" asked Manny.
I tugged the door open and we stepped into the corridor. "That's what I'm trying to find out," I said. "Let's get you some help first and then I can try to figure it out."
After taking few steps into the corridor, I called for help. Two nurses rushed towards us, fussing over Manny and ordering him a wheelchair. As I followed them to the ER, I shot a text to Austen, telling him I found Manny and he was okay. I figured Austen needed one less thing to worry about. As soon as Manny was lying down on an ER bed, he waved me away, insisting I was of no further use to anyone by staying with him.
Reluctantly, I left and headed back to the ICU. Alice waited outside Sophie's room and I could see the back of Austen's head inside as he nodded at something the doctor said. "What's happening?" I asked my sister-in-law.
"They've been in there for a few minutes. I think everything's okay but I'm not really sure." She glanced at the police officers. "They called in a detective. I hope it's one of our guys," she added.
"I hope so to. This could be attempted murder."
"Where's Mr. Ortega?"
"I found him at the bottom of the stairwell. He thinks some of his ribs are broken but he didn't get a good look at the guy who was fleeing. He thinks it might have been Zach but he couldn't be sure," I explained.
"Hospital security will pick him up on one of the cameras, I bet," said Alice, glancing around as if Zach would pop out at any moment. "I just don't understand. If it were Zach... well, he was always so concerned about Sophie. Why would he do that to his sister?"
"I think I might know," I said with a sigh.
"You discovered something?"
"Several things. Not quite enough to complete the puzzle but enough to know that Austen's suspicions weren't unfounded."
"That poor man! He's been through hell this week. How could it get any worse?"
"I think I'm about to make it worse." I dropped into a chair and rested the back of my head against the wall as I looked up at the plain