His Every Word (10 page)

“Do you need more water?” she asked, concerned about the feverish look in his eyes, and the color of his skin. His cheeks looked red, but the rest of his face was pale, almost white.

“I’m fine,” Hunter said, his voice gravelly.

“I just think maybe you should calm down,” she protested. “You’re getting flushed.”

Hunter’s eyes burned into hers. “Don’t you want to know what happened next?”

“Yes,” she said. The truth was, she wasn’t sure she wanted to know anything else. Her stomach was churning and she had a horrible sense of doom that was sweeping through her body, like a blackness overtaking her.

Hunter went on. “One day, out of nowhere, Dad couldn’t breathe on his own anymore. We went to the Emergency Room and they discovered that his condition had deteriorated due to undiagnosed pneumonia. That’s when he was put on a ventilator.”

Hunter closed his eyes and struggled to control his voice. “Those were some dark days.

He was in the hospital at first, and then eventually transitioned back home, but he was so weak from his illness that he continued to need assistance with his breathing. He began talking about suicide again. It was worse than it had ever been. He just begged me and begged me to help him die.”

The pain etched into Hunter’s face as he recalled this memory was like nothing she’d ever seen. She wanted to say something, to make it better. But she stayed silent.

“I said no for months,” Hunter went on. “And then one day, he had diarrhea and it was everywhere. I was cleaning him and changing him like an infant. And he started to cry, sobbing like a baby. And all he would say was, “let me die. Please, let me die.”

Over and over again.” Hunter swallowed, his eyes closed, breathing shallowly in his chest.

Kallie watched him sitting there, lost in his own thoughts. “It’s okay, you can tell me,” she said. “I’m here. You can say the rest.”

“So I did it,” Hunter said, and when his eyes opened, he was staring at her, unblinking. “God help me, I did it. That night, before bed, I asked him if he meant what he’d said earlier in the day. I asked my dad if he really wanted to die. He told me that he did. He was totally aware and calm and not all afraid. The anger was completely gone, and it was like I had him back with me again—the way he was before he got paralyzed.

Those last few hours, he was his old self and we talked and laughed. I read him the final pages of my book.” Tears suddenly spilled down Hunter’s cheeks, but he continued speaking, not seeming to notice that he was crying. “Dad told me to bring him his sleeping pills, and so I went and got his medication. And what I did, was I gave him some extra pills and then, when he went to sleep, I turned off his ventilator.”

Kallie was shaken. She didn’t know what to think or feel. She was just sitting there, trying with all her might to hold it together.

For a split second, a thought flashed through her mind—a thought that this was horrible, wrong--he’d taken another life. She felt paralyzed herself, not knowing where to go, unable to get away from the responsibility of what he’d just confessed to her.

And then she looked at him and saw how much pain he’d been carrying all of these years, the enormous burden of guilt that weighed on him every moment of every day. And she realized that she loved him more than ever, and she knew he’d acted as selflessly with his father as he had in protecting her from Terrence.

“You did what you had to do,” she said, finally—not even sure what that meant, but knowing that it sounded right.

“He went peacefully,” Hunter said. “His breaths came fewer and further between, and then there was a very long pause. I thought he had passed. But he took one last breath, and he let it out, a long, mournful sound. And then he was gone.” Hunter’s body began to shake as he cried silently.

“It’s okay,” she soothed him, stroking his hand. “It wasn’t your fault.”

After a few moments, Hunter calmed a bit. He blinked, staring at her. “I killed him,” he said. “I killed him because it got too hard.”

“You did not.”

Hunter’s eyes were flinty and his voice turned into a growl. “And the thing is, after he died, everything got better. I polished off my novel and I found an agent. My book sold at auction for a ton of money. It was as if I’d made a deal with the devil. I sold my soul to get the life I wanted. And what the devil required was a blood sacrifice.”

“That’s not true,” Kallie said.

“How do you know? How do you know I’m not possessed by something evil, something dark?”

“Because I know you. You sacrificed yourself and your own peace of mind to give your father what he needed. You didn’t want to help him die. You did it for him.”

“Everything I’ve gotten is tainted. I’m tainted,” Hunter said. “I’ve got blood on my hands, Kallie.”

She grabbed his hands in her own. “You’ve kept all this bottled inside you for too long. You’re looking at it all wrong, Hunter. You’re looking at it backwards.”

“Backwards?”

“Maybe when you freed your father’s spirit, he joined you and helped you to achieve all of these great things that happened in your life. Maybe in a way, you are possessed. Maybe you’re a little possessed by your father’s spirit. After all, Blue Horizon was the thing he loved so much, and look at how it took off! Look at the joy it brought to so many people, Hunter.”

He stared at her, not saying a word for a long time. He started to speak, and then it was as if the words wouldn’t come. “Is that…do you really think that?” he asked, his voice betraying a sliver of hope.

“I do. I think that it must be true. It’s like the old biblical saying, “you shall know it by its fruits.” If your work was tainted, than everything that came from it would have been just as tainted. But so much good has come from Blue Horizon.”

He continued to stare at her, and his eyes were fixed on hers, like a drowning man begging for someone to throw him a line. “Some good has come from it,” he agreed, his voice gaining strength. “I’ve gotten letters and letters about Blue Horizon—people telling me how they just read it over and over. The letters have never stopped, to this day they’re still pouring in.”

“I know how your novel made
me
feel,” Kallie said. “When I was working that horrible nanny job and your book was the only thing I looked forward to.”

Hunter finally allowed himself a tiny smile. “You really might be an angel,” he said, his voice betraying awe. “I feel so much lighter. I feel like maybe something’s lifted this dark cloud that I’ve been living under for years.”

She caressed his cheek with her hand, and then he pulled her towards him and they kissed. “Careful,” she said. “I don’t want to hurt you, Hunter.”

“I feel indestructible,” he said, and then kissed her again. His lips were burning hot, and she gave into his need.

It was strange, Kallie thought, how passionate a kiss could be, even a kiss in a sick bed.

It was so different than those first kisses they’d shared. In the beginning, it had been pure lust between them. But now, when she felt Hunter’s lips caressing hers, there was such a sense of depth, of feelings that could only be expressed through touch, through silence, through the feel of bodies pressed together.

Hunter had saved her life. And maybe she’d returned the favor a tiny bit today, just through listening to his story.

“I love you,” she said, when they broke apart for a moment.

“You’re the only one I’ve ever told about my father—the real truth about what happened,” Hunter said. “I’ve never trusted anybody enough to say it out loud like that.”

She caressed his face. “You feel warm,” she said.

“I am warm. Warm for you.”

Kallie laughed, but then grew serious. “No, really. You seem warm. I feel like maybe you have a fever, Hunter.”

“I’ve never felt better.”

“Just the same….” She got off the bed. “I want to get a nurse.”

“Okay.” He shrugged and coughed. His forehead was sweaty and she could hear his breathing rattling in his chest.

Kallie went outside, and found Detective Phillips in the hallway, laughing with the officer in the chair next to Hunter’s room. When Phillips saw her expression, he grew serious. “What happened?”

“We need a nurse. I think he’s got a fever.”

The detective immediately sprang into action and went to the nurse’s station.

Kallie watched as he spoke to the older nurse from the other day. She nodded and then quickly scurried over, her large hips swaying as she walked. “Hey there,” she said, smiling at Kallie. “You think he’s got a touch of fever?”

“I think so, yes.”

“Let’s go have a look.” The nurse strode past her into the room.

Kallie followed immediately behind her, feeling butterflies in her stomach at the prospect of something being wrong with Hunter.

“Hi, hon. How are we doing?” the nurse asked.

“Pretty well, all things considered,” Hunter answered.

“Let’s just have a look at your pulse and blood pressure.” The nurse checked his heart monitor, made notes on his chart, ran through his vitals and took his temperature.

She eyed him curiously. “You’re up around one hundred,” she said, “so your lady friend here is correct. You do have a temperature and your pulse is slightly elevated.”

“Is that bad?” Hunter asked.

“Not necessarily. But just the same, I’m going to see if Dr. Forrest is available to come and see you.”

“Thank you so much,” Kallie told her.

“Just doing my job,” the older woman called over her shoulder as she exited.

Kallie went and sat next to the bed and held Hunter’s hand. “How’s your breathing?” she asked him.

He coughed. “Not too bad.”

“It sounds kind of…like there’s a bit of stuff in there.”

He shrugged and coughed again. “I’ve been feeling up and down all day. Maybe I just need some more drugs so I can go to sleep.”

She watched him anxiously.

After about fifteen minutes, the nurse came back with Dr. Forrest in tow. The older man walked into the room slowly, gingerly, and it was obvious his leg was bothering him. “Kallie, good to see you,” he said.

“Hi, Doctor Forrest.”

“I hear that Hunter has a bit of a fever,” he said, approaching Hunter’s bed and starting to examine him, feeling his jawline, looking at his eyes and ears. “Stick out your tongue.” He checked his throat.

Next, he took his stethoscope and asked Hunter to take a series of breaths while he listened to his lungs. After doing that, he assessed Hunter’s dressing over his wound, and seemed to be looking for signs of infection.

When he was finished, Dr. Forrest smiled at Kallie reassuringly. “I think he had a slight fever and it’s breaking now,” he said.

“Are you sure?”

“I think so. His temperature is mild, and the way he’s sweating makes me believe that the fever is actually breaking right now. Do you have any chills, Hunter?”

Hunter shook his head. “No, I’m feeling kind of hot, actually.”

“What about his lungs?” Kallie asked. “His breathing sounds clogged or something.”

“I didn’t hear anything problematic just now,” Dr. Forrest said. “I think more than anything, he needs rest. He appears lucid and very aware of his surroundings. I think he’s continuing to make a strong recovery, and we’ll of course continue to watch him closely.”

Kallie nodded and tried to smile. She wanted to be relieved, and yet something inside her continued to protest.

Maybe I’m just not used to seeing someone recover from such a major injury, she thought. Hunter’s been through hell, and I shouldn’t expect him to look like a golden god just yet.

Dr. Forrest spoke in private to the nurse, and they pushed some more medicine through Hunter’s IV.

After they left, Hunter was calm, his breathing more relaxed, and some of the high color had gone from his cheeks.

“You’ve saved me,” he said to Kallie out of nowhere.

“I think you have it the wrong way around,” she said.

“No,” he shook his head. “You saved me because you showed me what real love is. I’ve never felt anything like it before.” He turned his head to her and smiled. “My beautiful Kallie.”

She felt a wave of strong emotion surge through her. “I just want you to heal,”

she said.

“I’m already doing better. Talking to you today was the best medicine.”

“I hope so.”

“It’s true. I feel like nothing can touch me now.” His eyelids drooped slightly.

“I’m going to sit here with you for awhile,” Kallie said.

“No.” Hunter’s eyes were hardly open, but his voice was firm. “You need to deal with the business now. Check on Bryson and Max Weisman and everything else.”

“The movie can wait until tomorrow, at least. I want to be here with you.”

“Kallie, listen to me. The movie
can’t
wait. We have people who depend on us.

I’m going to sleep now—there’s nothing left for you to do here.”

“I’m worried about you.”

He sighed. His eyes closed. “Nothing to worry about, beautiful. Nothing at all.”

“Hunter, I love you so much.”

He smiled, but his eyes didn’t open. Soon, he was snoring softly.

After some time, Kallie realized that he wasn’t going to wake up anytime soon.

He looked peaceful and some of her concern had dissipated. She got on her cell and called Bryson, just a Hunter had asked her to.

“Kallie?” Bryson’s voice, deep and warm, immediately soothed her frayed nerves.

“I got your voicemail. I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner,” she said.

“You’ve got to be kidding me. You’ve just been through an absolute nightmare.

Are you all right?”

She exhaled shakily, looking at Hunter’s sleeping form. He’d turned his head away from her now, but his chest rose and fell rhythmically.

“I’m okay,” she said. “But just barely.”

“From what I heard and read, that maniac came in just a few minutes after I left the restaurant.”

“You were lucky. It was a few minutes that might have saved your life.”

“I suppose my luck has finally turned around,” Bryson joked. “I just wish it didn’t feel as though it had come at someone else’s expense.”

“You have nothing to feel badly about, Bryson. I’m relieved that you weren’t there for any of it.”