us as if it’s some sort of movie. “My money is on the Prez.”
“I’m sorry, but there isn’t an update just yet. If you two could please not start any drama. This is where people might be receiving some of the worst news of their lives. If you boys can’t keep your differences at bay, I’ll have to ask you to leave. Am I understood?” the feisty nurse intervenes, shaking a finger at each man. She’s an old woman who must be pushing seventy. I love her.
They each look away like scolded children. “Yes ma’am,” they say at the same time.
Just as they turn to sit down, a doctor pushes through the silver double doors and shouts, “Nathan Kennedy’s family.”
Everyone stands, bikers and firefighters alike, and for some reason I find myself getting to my feet. I barely know the man. This is silly. I sit back down, but someone grabs the back of my uniform and hauls me to my feet.
It’s a tight grip, too. The kind that tells me I’m about to get dragged to my death. Greer, Rainbow’s brother, steps in front of me, and I gulp. “Hi,” I squeak, giving a pathetic attempt at a wave as he drags me by his side.
Literally drags me.
My feet are hardly touching the floor.
We stop in front of the doctor and Greer grunts, patting his chest and mouths, “Brother.” He doesn’t actually speak.
I wonder if that means he can’t.
“And who is this? I can only allow family back right now,” the doctor huffs in annoyance.
Greer points to the doors, then to my ring finger.
“Partner? This is Mr. Kennedy’s husband?” the doctor questions, sounding just as confused as I’m sure I look.
I was never good at acting or going with the flow. I wear my emotions on my face. It’s how I got a C in drama class in high school, and that was just the teacher being nice cause she liked me. So here I am, needing to lie, so I just nod a little too enthusiastically. I’m not dumb enough to question a biker, and it seems everyone around us is dumbfounded, too, because they know their little Rainbow is straight.
“Right, okay. Mr. Kennedy is fine. He’s on oxygen for smoke inhalation. His helmet got cracked in the fire, which caused him to inhale soot. He’s awake and asking for his brother.”
Greer visibly relaxes, and the sudden change has me reaching up and patting him on the shoulder while he still has a good grip on the back of my collar.
“Saint? Taylor? I know you can give me their updates. I’m their healthcare proxy,” Captain takes a step forward. “And can you release my medic? You’re scaring the piss out of him.”
I blow a raspberry and wave away his concern. “I’m fine. I’m just hanging out.”
Greer snarls at Captain Warwick.
“I want to watch Saint for a few days. He has a hairline fracture in his leg and is also on oxygen, and Taylor—” The doctor grimaces. I’ve seen that face before. He’s about to drop some bad news. “Taylor is on a ventilator. His lungs, hell, his entire body is too weak and sustained too many injuries during the fall.”
“When will he get off the tube? He’ll be okay, won’t he?” Lock, I think his name is, asks. He has soot clinging to his face and hands, except his wrinkle lines are clean since they’ve been pinched with fear.
“I don’t know. I’m sorry. Right now, he can’t breathe on his own. It can go either way. It wouldn’t be bad if you prepared yourself for the worst.”
“Fuck. Fuck!” Baldwin, the only firefighter besides Taylor to come up and introduce himself to me, runs out of the hospital and into the rain. Everyone on the radio heard him tell Rainbow they should leave Saint and Taylor behind, so I’m sure he’s feeling a lot of guilt.
“I can take two people back.”
Greer shoves by the doctor with me still barely touching the floor. “You know, you can let me go. I’ll walk next to you. You’re stretching my shirt, and the collar will be too big.” I try to reason with the man, but he stomps forward like a giant looking for its beanstalk. “You don’t even know what room he’s in,” I point out.
Greer smirks.
And that’s when I hear the raucous shouts of a deranged patient. “I said I’m fine. I can leave. I have an entire shift to finish!”
“Sir, we can’t allow you—”
“—Oh, what, like you’re going to