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He nodded slowly, easing himself upright in such small movements that I expected him to topple backward at any moment. Once he was sitting, I tugged at his arm, getting him onto his feet. He stood, swaying until I drew his arm over my shoulder and led him outside. The rain was cold, drawing a surprised gasp from me, and a pained groan from him. We were only a few feet away from the car when he lost consciousness again, and I felt the full force of his whole weight.
Widening my stance and bracing my feet, I took the extra weight, then reached out for the handle on the rear door. As soon as I got it open wide enough, I dragged Orin inside. Getting him settled in the car took precious minutes away and left me soaked to the bone and shivering. Running around the hood, I got inside and started the engine.
The old man at the corner store had said the hospital was only eight miles away. That should only take me around fifteen minutes—maybe twenty on account of the weather. My gaze flickered to the back seat where I saw Orin was still slumped, his usually harsh face slack. A shiver wracked his body, his eyelids fluttering but not opening.
I should’ve taken him to the hospital as soon as he refused to take the antibiotics orally. I should’ve pushed him. I had no idea how far the infection had progressed or whether his chances of recovery were good. All I knew was I’d failed in my first task as a nurse. I’d failed to put my patient’s well-being above all else.
The road was slippery, but I drove as fast as I dared down the N-road toward Carrick-on-Shannon. The wipers whipped back and forth across the glass, clearing the rain briefly before my vision became blurry once more.
When I finally saw the signs for St. Patrick’s Community Hospital, I yanked on the wheel and drove straight to the emergency bay.
“Hey! You can’t park here,” someone was telling me as I rounded the car to open the rear door.
I pointed at Orin, who was seizing once more. “I need help.Please.”
The guy took one look at Orin and then started yelling. More people rushed from the emergency room doors, and I stepped back, wrapping my arms around my torso and holding on tight. I watched everything like I wasn’t a part of it. Someone had pulled a gurney alongside the car. Someone else had opened the other rear door and was inside with Orin.
Then—somehow—they were lifting him out and laying him onto the gurney. He looked terrible, and my guilt tightened its grip.
“…name? Miss?”
I blinked, the nurse in front of me coming into sharp focus. We were standing out of the rain now, but I didn’t remember moving to cover. “What?”
“I asked what his name was? The man you brought?”
Something told me that I had to be careful with what I said. Wiping the water from my eyes, I said, “I don’t know. I’m staying at a B&B a few miles away, and he’s the other guest. I found him unconscious in the kitchen.”
She looked a little frustrated by my story but pressed on. “You don’t know anything about him?”
“I think he said his name was Jim?”
The nurse scribbled that down. “You did a good thing bringing him.” She eyed my soaked clothes. “Come inside. I have a pair of scrubs you can change into while you wait.”
“Thank you. I should move my car, though.”
Her shrewd brown eyes gravitated toward the car and then back to me. “One of the orderlies can do it. I’m worried you’re going into shock.”
I nodded. “Okay.”
She started ahead of me, and I was about to follow when the back of my neck prickled with awareness. I turned my head to find a black SUV … wait, it was a blackRover, parked to the side. I frowned, wondering what the chances were of seeing that kind of car around here.
“Are you coming?” the nurse called, drawing my attention.
After one final look at the car, I followed her inside, where she led me to a waiting room near the general admissions area.
She gave me a long look. “I’ll be back in a minute.”
Settling into a seat, I squeezed my hands between my knees and let my shoulders roll forward. Orin had better pull through this. If he didn’t, I would have to tell Finnan what had happened, and I had no desire to be on the receiving end of his ire. I heaved out a sigh and shut my eyes, suddenly exhausted.
* * *
I woketo someone shaking my shoulder. My eyes were slow to open, but when they did, I saw the same nurse as before. In her hands, she carried a bundle of pink fabric.
“What’s your name?” she asked.
“Fallon.”
“Fallon, I’m Marcy.” She offered me what she was holding, then pointed over my shoulder. “There’s a restroom over there. Why don’t you get out of your wet clothes? It’ll make you feel better.”
