In The Shadows (29 page)

 Chapter Fifty-Six

It was 8:00 a.m. when Tonya was awakened by the ringing of her cell phone. It was Friday, which meant her only class was at noon, and she was nowhere near ready to get up. After the persistent ringing, Tonya’s roommate asked if she was going to answer her phone. Moaning and rolling over with fatigue, Tonya checked her phone and saw another unfamiliar number on her caller ID.

“Hello,” she said groggily with her voice still heavy.

“Hey, Tonya?” a male voice said.

“Yes, who is this?” Tonya asked, then sitting up slowly in the bed as she listened to the familiar voice.

“Tonya, it’s Myron.”

“Myron, what are you doing calling so early in the morning? Where are you?” As soon as Tonya asked the last question, she realized he was in the area because of the local number showing on her caller ID. Then panic rose into her throat as she listened to his weary voice. She knew something was terribly wrong.

“Hey,” he said, sniffling. “Can you come down to the hospital?”

Before he could continue, Tonya jumped out of bed and slipped on her jogging suit. “Myron, what happened?” she asked, allowing her voice to fill the room.

Now sighing loudly, Myron said “Someone tried to hurt Danielle last night.”

“What do you mean hurt Danielle? Danielle’s in the hospital. You’re not making any sense.”

“Yeah, I know. You would think she’d be safe here, but someone was standing over her last night when I showed up for an after-hour visit. I approached him to get him away from Danielle, and that’s the last thing I remember.”

“What? Are you okay? Is Danielle okay?” Tonya said, slipping on her shirt and rushing to the bathroom, putting Myron on speakerphone.

“Danielle’s resting well, and I’ll be okay. I just wanted you to know what was going on.”

“Is her family there yet?”

“I’m not so sure they’ve been told. It was really late when this happened.”

“Okay, stay put, and I’ll be right there? Where are you located?”

“I will. I’m in the bed next to Danielle.”

Tonya flew out the door without thinking to tell Callie what was going on. She raced to her car and dialed Brandon on the way.

“Good morning, baby. You’re up awful early. Is everything okay?” Brandon asked, stopping in the open field.

“Hey, there was an incident at the hospital last night, and I’m on my way there now.”

Brandon stopped in his tracks after hearing the news. “What kind of incident?” he asked, alarmed. After Tonya filled him in on what Myron had told her, he looked at his father and told him that someone had gone after Danielle. His father was stunned and instantly wondered if Katy was okay.

Brandon cursed after he hung up with Tonya. His insides trembled as he thought of the possibilities. Brandon immediately wondered if the killer went after Danielle because her condition was improving. He also wondered if the killer was trying to get rid of the one witness that could identify him.

“Dad, I’ve got to get down to the hospital. Let me know if you find anything. I think our guy is getting ready to make a run for it.”

* * *

Carlos finally felt comfortable enough to be honest about his experiences since Andrea’s disappearance. He had been silent for months for fear he would appear unstable to his friends and family. Carlos himself even felt unstable after some of his experiences, but how could he really express his innermost feelings to people who had no idea he had been involved with Andrea? The secretiveness of their relationship had now become a bigger problem.

He waited for any type of negative reaction from his counselor once he divulged everything to her, but it never happened. She was once again the true professional who left judging people at the door. It was the first time Carlos felt comfortable enough with anyone else to share the disturbing episodes. What Carlos learned that day was that most of the things he experienced were things people normally experienced when they were grieving. As for the incident he was most concerned about, he now decided to face his demons.

Although Andrea’s missing case still remained open, Carlos felt in his heart she was already dead. Leaving the doctor’s office, Carlos knew exactly what he had to do, and that day he would make things right. He turned his music up louder as he changed lanes, heading to Tuscaloosa.

* * *

Natalie and Janelle were quiet as Janelle’s mom drove them to the school. The girls were thankful for the ride. They would’ve been exhausted by the time they walked to school in their heels. Claire was still not ready to face the public. The guilt of Katy being missing was beginning to take a toll on her. Natalie hadn’t brought up last night to Janelle for a reason. She didn’t want Janelle to worry about her, and she was sure that
would happen.

* * *

Sheriff Masterson took a phone call from Selma while on break from the search. He had grown frustrated with the pace of the team in charge of locating Dr. Benson. “Look, guys, it can’t be that hard. This guy did practice medicine in our city at one point. He is a medical doctor, and he does have a license. I tell you what, we’ve wasted enough time with this. It’s time to call in the feds. I want you to call Agent Blake in Birmingham and get him on this. We are running out of time, and I can’t afford to do this another minute!”

Sheriff Masterson was visibly shaken when he hung up. He’d been looking for his daughter an entire week, and it was almost like she’d disappeared from the face of the earth. He refused to believe he’d never see Katy again. Once he stopped to hydrate, he and two other deputies headed in the direction of the cemetery.

* * *

When Tonya arrived at the hospital, she saw Nurse Bridges at the nurses’ station. She rushed over to Tonya as soon as they made eye contact. “Hey, dear, how are you?” she asked, looking at the concern on Tonya’s face.

“I’m okay, just wondering what happened last night. Myron called me this morning and told me everything.”

“I know, he told me last night that he was going to call you. I’m not on duty now but wanted to hang around until someone arrived. The doctor called Danielle’s mom this morning, and she should be here any minute. That young man being here is what saved Danielle from . . .” She hesitated, not sure what to say. “Is what saved Danielle from any harm.” Nurse Bridges was clearly shaken up.

Tonya thanked her and headed straight for her friend’s room. Tonya was startled when she saw a guard posted just outside the door. It was at that moment she realized just how serious the matter was. The guard stopped Tonya and asked for her name before allowing her to proceed into the room.

Once inside, Tonya spoke to Myron but almost ran to Danielle’s bedside. Danielle was resting peacefully, and Tonya seemed to exhale, relieved she found her friend resting comfortably and unharmed. Tonya gently squeezed Danielle’s hand and kissed her forehead. She was pleasantly surprised to see Danielle’s expression change ever so slightly and immediately wondered if it was her imagination. As Tonya stood over her looking on in amazement, Myron appeared on the other side of the bed.

“Did you see that?” Tonya asked, almost startled by Myron’s presence.

“I sure did,” he said, smiling and then kissing Danielle on the cheek. “I’m so thankful you called me when you did. It is clear that she’s getting better. She looks so much better than she did when I last visited.”

Excited with hope, Tonya walked over to Myron to give him a hug. “Thank you so much for coming. Danielle’s condition has improved, and I cannot thank you enough for being here last night. Can you please tell me what happened?”

They turned the television on and took a seat on Myron’s side of the room but left the curtain open. Myron explained how he got an early release and arrived just after 10:00 p.m. Thursday night. After explaining to one of the nurses that he had just arrived from his military installation and needed five minutes with Danielle, she allowed him to visit. Myron couldn’t really explain it, but he had this nagging feeling on his drive over.

Initially Myron was going to wait until the morning, but he at least wanted to try to see Danielle even after normal visiting hours. When he entered the room, someone was standing over Danielle, which concerned Myron because it was after visiting hours, and no one should’ve been on the floor. Myron remembered struggling with the man, but everything happened so fast that he didn’t get a good look at him. The next thing he remembered was waking up in the hospital bed beside Danielle, with a nurse standing over him; it was Nurse Bridges.

Tonya was blown away by the story. “Do you think they wanted to hurt Danielle?” she asked, not wanting to believe it.

“I think that’s exactly what they wanted to do. Why else would they go after me? They don’t know me and clearly had no idea I would be here.”

Both sat quietly as they processed the seriousness of the incident.

“Well, I’m so glad you were here. I was at the search site with Brandon, and I guess I missed your call while I was out.” Tonya now knew the unidentified number on her caller ID came from the hospital.

Coming closer to Tonya, as Myron sat up on the side of his bed, “Tonya, I think I may have wounded him.”

“What?” she asked in surprise but soon focused on Myron’s face. He had his finger up to his lips, wanting her to keep quiet. “What do you mean?” she then whispered.

Not sure who he could trust or who might want to harm Danielle, Myron grabbed the pad of paper beside the bed and scribbled a note to Tonya.

The note read, “I think I may have damaged his foot or leg. I remember stomping and kicking him before I went out, so he may have some damage to his leg.”

Tonya was rocked by surprise. She didn’t have time to process what Myron had written before Brandon’s voice could be heard in the hallway. Tonya stuck the note in her pocket, and Myron relaxed on the pillows. “Thank you,” she whispered to him before standing to meet Brandon.

Before Brandon came in, Tonya got a look at Myron’s boots that were in the bottom of his open closet. “So,” now speaking in her normal voice, trying to focus on Myron, “how long are you going to be in here?” Tonya asked.

He was smiling as he looked over at Danielle. “Well, they’re telling me I have a slight concussion, and they want to observe me for twenty-four hours, which puts me here tonight,” he said, smiling. “So it looks like I have one more night with Danielle. This wasn’t the way I expected to spend my time, but because of everything that’s happened, I think this is the best place for me.”

As if on cue, Brandon walked in and immediately went to hug Tonya. “Hey, baby, thanks for calling me. The guys at the station just got the call from the hospital this morning and should be here to take your statement,” Brandon said to Myron as he shook his hand. Brandon hadn’t been down to see Danielle since that day he sang to her as he made his way over to her bed with Tonya by his side. When Nurse Bridges stopped in to say good-bye, she recognized Brandon immediately from the day he sang to Danielle.

“Oh, so you’re back. Are you going to put on another show for us this time?” Nurse Bridges asked, laughing softly.

Tonya and Myron turned to look at Brandon, not sure what Nurse Bridges was talking about. Now feeling as though he needed to explain, he told them that he sang to Danielle on his last visit. Tonya and Myron were shocked to hear the news and Brandon’s concern for Danielle.

“Wow, that was so sweet, Brandon!” Tonya said as the news brought tears to her eyes. Brandon wasn’t big on showcasing his talents but would never disappoint the audience. Just then, Brandon heard an inspirational song come on BET. He began to hum, and soon he was singing just loud enough for the room to hear him as he sat near Danielle. After Brandon finished, he found himself emotional as he thought of Katy.

He leaned down to kiss Danielle’s hand as he stood to leave. As he was standing at the foot of her bed, Nurse Bridges and Tonya hugged him tightly as the whole room became emotional. Myron stood then and joined the group and gave kudos to Brandon too, but when Myron looked back at Danielle’s face, he was speechless by what he saw.

* * *

Danielle couldn’t remember what happened last night after she heard the mop bucket being pushed down the hallway. She thought she felt someone standing over her but couldn’t seem to get her eyes to open. Smiling with relief inside after hearing Myron explain to Tonya what had taken place, Danielle knew she was surrounded by love as she listened to the different voices in her room, making a fuss over her. She wanted to let them know she was there. She needed them to know she was still fighting to recover.

Danielle struggled to move from her position in the bed. Once she heard Brandon’s angelic voice belting out one of her favorite songs, she knew she had to let them know she’d heard it and appreciated it.

Danielle was thankful each of them were there because it proved they truly cared about her. Danielle became emotional while Brandon sang by her bedside. Danielle felt the light on her face once again and was happy. She knew it was going to be a good day and to have Myron and her friends there by her side moved her beyond words. She felt the tears pour down her cheeks as Brandon finished the song.

“Look at her face!” Myron said alarmed and immediately began speaking to Danielle. “Danielle, baby, are you okay?” he asked, standing by her side with the others looking on. Now joining him, Tonya stood on her other side, moving out of the way just in time for Nurse Bridges to begin her checks.