Powerful (The Driven World) - Kathleen Kelly Page 0,71
his eyebrows go up. “You’ve just woken. I’m not sure if medically, we can even move you. You’ve been in a coma for ten weeks, Kris. I heard the doc say you’re probably going to have to learn how to do everything again.”
“I don’t care.”
Clive smiles. “Let me get a nurse.”
“Clive—”
“Yeah, yeah, roll with me here.”
Clive leaves, and I let my head fall back, raising my arm. It shakes, and the once-easy movement exerts far too much energy. With a groan, I let it fall back. Clive walks back in with the nurse from the other day.
“Hello, Kris, Clive tells me you want to leave?” I nod. “Kris, your body is still recovering.”
“I’ll pay someone to look after me.”
“I understand you want to see your loved ones, but your dad will be here tomorrow night. He normally stays for the weekend.”
I shake my head. “Athena.”
She looks at Clive. “We can’t stop you from leaving, but for your own health, you should stay. You have a catheter.”
In a raspy voice, I say, “I’ll pay you to come with me, you and Clive.”
She smiles at me like she’s humoring a small child. “Let me get the doctor.”
I shake my head. “Does anyone know I’m awake?”
“No, but—”
I hold up a hand, and she falls silent. “Athena.”
“We could call her and get her to come here?”
Again, I shake my head. “I’ll pay you a year’s wages if you travel with me. I made her a promise. Please.”
Clive moves closer and looks at the nurse. “Sue, is there any kind of life-threatening reason he can’t go?”
“You mean apart from the fact he only just woke up from a coma?”
Clive winks at me. “A year’s wages, Sue. Does that go for me as well?”
“Anything to get me to Athena.”
“I say, let’s do it. If something goes wrong, we’ll check him into a hospital.”
“I don’t know…” Sue chews on her bottom lip.
“Your kid has been wanting to do that school trip. You’d have enough money to pay for it,” replies Clive charmingly.
“I’ll pay for that, too.”
Both look at me.
“Let me get the doctor first, and we’ll go from there.”
***
After much arguing, they let me sign myself out. Clive, on my behalf, hires a private plane to transport us to Boothbay Harbor. I sleep most of the way there. It’s the early hours of Friday morning when we arrive at Wiscasset Airport. Clive carries me from the plane to a waiting car even though I’ve regained some use of my legs. Nurse Sue has taken good care of me the whole trip and is fussing over me. Turns out she’s a single mom, and her parents are looking after her son while she escorts me.
I’m tired, sore, and my body won’t do what I want it to do, but I have to see Athena. When we arrive in Boothbay Harbor, it’s only five o’clock in the morning.
“Clive, small detour. My father’s house is just up here. He’ll be awake, he always is this time of day.”
“Anything you want, Kris.”
My father’s home is on the waterfront, and we have to drive past Athena’s to get to it. I look up at her house on the bluff, but it’s obscured by trees and lack of light.
The big black SUV parks out the front of my father’s house, and I see the light on inside. “Go knock on his door.”
Clive nods, puts the car in park, goes through the rickety gate, and knocks loudly on the door. After a moment, my dad opens it. I watch as his head snaps back at the sheer size of Clive, then recognition for the man alights his face. I can’t hear what they are saying, but Clive points to the SUV, and I hit the button to roll the window down.
Dad’s eyes connect with mine. One hand goes to his chest and the other goes to his mouth, then he’s pushing Clive out of the way and running to the car.
“Kris!” His arms come through the open window, and he’s trying to hug me through it. “You’re awake.”
Clive gets between Dad and the door. “Mr. Livingston, if you’ll just move back?” asks Clive as he opens the door to the SUV.
The minute the door is open, Dad is there, pulling me into him.
“Mr. Livingston?” asks Sue. “Could you just move back a bit?”
Dad looks at Sue, then his penetrating gaze lands on me. “Should you be out of the hospital?”
“I’m okay, Dad. I needed to get to Athena.”
“She hasn’t been to see you.” Dad