Falling Together (All That Remains #2) (16 page)

“Will
he be okay?” I ask fearfully.

“It’s
going to be touch and go for the next few hours. We have to give the drugs time
to work. He’s very weak.” I nod while Abby sinks onto the love seat. Julie
leaves us to watch over Airen while she goes to examine Eric. I sit beside Abby
and take her hand.

“He
came back to die,” she whispers.

“No,
baby, don’t say that.” Her arms wrap around me tightly. “He’s strong and as
stubborn as you. He’ll fight this.”

“Oh
god, Joseph, he was alive all this time,” she groans, overcome with guilt.

“I
know, baby, I know.” I can’t think about it now. I just want him to live. “You’re
soaking wet, Abby. Put some dry clothes on before you get sick too.” She nods
and dresses quickly. We settle on either side of the bed, holding Airen’s hands
while he fights to survive.

A
few hours later there’s a soft knock at the door and Eric and Troy step inside.

“How
is he?” Eric asks.

“His
fever is down, but he’s still unconscious,” Abby replies, stroking Airen’s
forehead.

“I’m
so sorry, Abby. We tried to get back. There was a massive ice storm and then
weeks of heavy snow. The Ohio River was flooded and the bridge washed out. I
didn’t realize how sick he was.” He gazes at Abby apologetically and gasps in
surprise when she embraces him.

“Thank
you for bringing him home to me,” she sobs. He holds her tentatively at first before
enveloping her in a warm hug.

“I’m
sorry it took so long,” he murmurs. “Airen was so worried about you.”

“You
got him home alive. Julie said another day and he wouldn’t have made it. Thank
you, Eric.”

“You’re
welcome.”

“Is
there anything I can do?” Troy asks.

“Please
just take care of Walker. I want to stay until he wakes up,” I reply, averting
my eyes.

“Angel,”
he whispers. His hand is smooth when it cups the back of my neck. Soft, brown
eyes stare into mine with such sympathy before I fall into his arms, a sobbing
mess. “He’s going to make it. Didn’t I tell you not to give up?” He strokes the
back of my head and whispers comforting words until I calm down. “Stay with
Abby. Don’t worry about Walker, I’ll take him home. Call me if you need me.” I
nod and wipe my eyes.

“Eric,
did you find your father?” Abby asks.

“He’s
dead. We didn’t find anyone else. We never should have gone. We were fools.”

“I’m
so sorry. At least you know.” He nods and closes the door behind him. Airen’s
temperature returns to normal, and we change his bedding, dressing him in dry
clothes. When evening comes and he remains unconscious, Julie chases us from
the room.

“You
need a break. Get something to eat,” she insists. “I’ll stay with him.”

Abby
sits on the living room couch, staring blankly into the fire.

“Are
you okay?” I ask, sitting beside her. Her eyes never leave the flames. “You
heard Julie, the meds are working. He’s going to make it.” She nods
mechanically.

“Everything’s
going to be okay.” I run my hand down her back. Her body stiffens and she
buries her face in her hands. She’s pulling away, throwing up those walls to
shut out the world. “Abby.” I pull her hands from her face. “Talk to me.”

A
deep shuddering breath rattles her chest. “All I wanted was for Airen to be
alive, to come back to me. And I’m so relieved and happy to see him, but what
am I supposed to do now? I have to make a choice between two people I love,”
she whispers. The tormented look on her face tears me apart.

“Abby,
no. I love you, my precious girl, but I love Airen too. He’s your husband, you
have a baby together, and he loves you with all of his heart. I’d never break
that up and neither would you. You aren’t choosing. It’s Airen. It’s always
been Airen.”

She
hugs me hard enough to crack a rib, her voice filled with shame as she replies,
“I can’t be sorry, Joseph. I love you. You were there when I needed you. You
always have been.”

“We
were there when we needed each other.” She nuzzles my hand when I brush her
hair off of her flushed damp cheek. “That’ll never change.”

“I
feel like a terrible person. I don’t deserve either of you.”

“No,
love. Airen will understand. What if it had been six months? A year? When is it
okay to move on? He wouldn’t have wanted you to be alone.”

“Are
we going to tell him?”

“Do
you think we could hide something like this? Could you?” I ask softly, well
aware of the answer even before she shakes her head.

“Joseph,
I’m so sorry. I know I’m hurting you, and it breaks my heart.”

“Shh,
Abby. Airen’s alive. He’s come back to us, and that’s what matters right now.
I’ll be fine.”

“Troy
doesn’t know. You don’t have to tell him. Don’t let me ruin everything.”

“Stop.
I don’t know what I’ll tell Troy, but I can’t be with him anymore and that has
nothing to do with you.”

“I
used to think women who claimed to be in love with two men were just slutty,”
she chokes.

“You
aren’t the only one in love with two people.”

Red
rimmed eyes meet mine. “But not Troy,” she says softly.

“I
tried to be.”

“It
doesn’t work that way.”

“Don’t
I know it.” I hug her again. “You belong with Airen, Abby. Love him enough for
the both of us.”

* * * *

“Stop!
Airen, it’s me! Stop fighting, you’ll hurt yourself,” Abby cries, pulling me
from a dead sleep. It takes me a moment to grasp what’s happening. Airen has
awakened in a panic. I place my hands on his shoulders, pinning him to the bed.
After a few seconds his eyes clear and he blinks frantically as he focuses on
us.

“Joseph?
Abby?” he croaks.

“It’s
us, buddy.”

“You’re
okay, sweetheart,” Abby croons.

“You’re
sick. Eric brought you home.”

“Get
off me. Hurts to breathe,” he pants.

Abby’s
face is pinched with worry. “I’ll get Julie,” she declares, and rushes from the
room.

“You
have pneumonia.” I pile up his pillows to prop him up. “Try to relax and catch
your breath.” He grasps at the oxygen mask when I place it over his face. God,
his lips are nearly blue. “Better?”

“A
little,” he whispers. Exhaustion shows in his misty eyes when they meet mine. “Take
care of them, Joseph.”
Oh Airen, please don’t. You have no idea what I’ve done.

I
moved too fast, assumed he was gone and claimed Abby as if he never mattered. “Shh,
save your breath. You’re going to be fine.”

Abby
returns with Julie who quickly takes control, listening to his lungs with a
subtle frown on her face. Clipping the oxygen monitor to his finger, she
notices the IV line which is currently leaking onto the floor. “You pulled your
drip out,” she observes.

“No
needles,” he insists, and Julie gives him an exasperated glance before she
continues.

“You
have pneumonia in both lungs. You’re severely underweight and dehydrated.
You’re lucky Eric got you home when he did.” Her no nonsense voice softens.
“You’re going to be okay,” she reassures him, squeezing his hand.

“Hurts,”
he mumbles, his palm pressed against his chest. “My head too.” Abby’s resolve
crumbles in the face of his pain, and tears pour silently down her cheeks.

“I’m
afraid it’s going to get worse before it gets better,” Julie warns. “Your fever
is down, and that’s a good sign. The antibiotics are working, but we need to
get your lungs cleared up. I’m giving you an expectorant, and you’ll get
breathing treatments every six hours to help break it up and open your airway.
After I reinsert your IV, and you complete your first breathing treatment, I’ll
give you something for the pain.

“No
IV, no needles,” he repeats, but Julie ignores him and prepares his treatments.

Doing
her best to keep her composure, Abby takes his hand. “You have to do what Julie
tells you, Air. I thought you were dead, and I can’t lose you twice.”

Airen’s
hand reaches to gently stroke her cheek. “I’m so sorry, darlin’.” The look on
Abby’s wet face is devastating. Despair wrapped in guilt, and cloaked by anger.

“Don’t
be sorry. Just do what you have to do to get well.”

Julie
takes his arm, but as soon as he sees the needle, he jerks, and snatches it
back. His eyes are wide and frightened. “No!” he barks, coughing and wincing at
the pain that shoots through his chest.

Abby’s
hand smoothes the hair from his forehead. “Air, I know you have a fear of needles,
but you have to. You’ll die.”

“No…can’t.”
He coughs, fighting for air while he struggles to sit up. Julie nods at me, her
silent message clear in her expression. This has to be done before he gets
himself too worked up and passes out from a lack of oxygen. Julie holds his
wrist against the bed, his arm outstretched, while Abby lies on his shoulder,
effectively blocking his view and immobilizing his arm.

I
grasp his other hand and throw my leg across both of his, pinning them under
the blanket. On a good day, there’s no way I could hold him, but he’s so thin
and weak. He can’t move. He and Abby are face to face as she tries to calm him.
He’s hysterical. His eyes dart back and forth, pupils dilated with fear, like a
terrified animal caught in a trap.

“Stop!
Stop! Please!” He panics.

“Shh,
it’ll be over in a second and you’ll be fine. I promise,” Abby croons. She
strokes his hair and runs her fingers down his stubbly cheek.

“Joseph!”
He turns toward me with a look so desperate it sends a bolt of pain through my
chest. “Goddamn it! Don’t let her,” he begs. I’m horrified at the intensity of
his phobia. I had no idea.

“We’re
right here with you, honey. You’re almost done.” His grip on my hand tightens
and his head whips back to Abby.

“Please,
Abby,” he moans. “Please don’t do this to me.” His face is drenched with sweat
and tears. I’m awed at her ability to hold her composure and stick to her guns
in the face of his pleas. She’s so strong, and Airen needs her strength right
now. His terror and panic are like a demon possessing his body, forcing him to
show us a side of himself we’ve never seen. Begging and crying, shaking and
pleading, his hurt and vulnerability wounds me to my core. Abby continues to
talk soothingly, telling him about Lane’s first tooth, trying to distract him.
The prick of the needle has him crushing my hand like a vise.

“You’re
okay. Just breathe, buddy,” I tell him, as his whole body clenches.

“I’m
finished, Airen,” Julie says kindly. “I’m going to wrap your arm so you can’t
see the tube. It’s just a bandage
. Leave it alone
. If you pull it out,
you’ll end up tied to this bed until you’re better.”

“We’re
going to let you go, Air. Please don’t pull it out and make us do this again,”
Abby says. Overwrought and embarrassed, he buries his face in her neck. This is
Airen, the man who does his damndest to hide his feelings, to show only that
cocky confident façade he uses to protect himself. After all we have been
through, I’ve never even seen him cry until today. Breaking down in front of us
like this has to be one of his worst fears, and my heart breaks for him.

“Sorry…I’m
sorry.” He shudders, holding tight to his wife.

“Shh,
baby, it’s okay.” She holds him and they look so broken, her drawn face
contorted with unfathomable emotion, his raw with pain and shame. I’d do anything…give
anything at this moment to stop their suffering.

I
shift to free his legs and sit beside him, wrapping my arms around them both.
Abby caresses my back while Airen finds my hand again and squeezes gently, his head
resting on Abby’s shoulder. Julie looks on with tears in her eyes while we
cling to each other like survivors of some horrific tragedy.

“I’ll
be back in a few minutes to administer a breathing treatment,” she states
gruffly, before leaving us alone. Abby straightens his pillows and he settles
back into bed.

“I
freaked out.” Airen sniffs, avoiding our eyes.

“You’ve
been through hell, Airen. You’re allowed to lose it,” I reply. “Besides, I’m no
fan of needles myself.” I don’t actually mind needles, but I’ll say anything at
this point to take that look from his face. He scoffs, staring at the cloth
wrapped around his arm. “Don’t look at it,” I advise.

“I
know it’s stupid. I can’t explain it,” he mumbles.

“It’s
a phobia, Airen. It defies explanation. It’s out of your control.”

Abby
pulls the blanket over his chest. “We all have something that terrifies us. How
many times have I had you come and kill a tiny spider for me? If someone held
me down and put a spider on my arm, the thing I fear most in the world, I’d
react the same way,” she declares, glancing at me pointedly.

“I
don’t like birds,” I admit reluctantly. “Just the thought of one close to me,
flapping in my face…brugh.” I shudder, and a small grin finally appears on his
face.