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Bringing his hand up to rub his eyes, he realized there was an IV in his arm.
“Good to see you finally wake up, Sturgess,” a serious female voice said as a figure dressed in blue scrubs moved beside him.
Nurse. Hospital.
“Do you know what day of the week it is?” she asked.
“Zeke,” he said through a frog in his throat. He coughed to ease some of the dryness as he forced his eyes open and made a second attempt to sit up before being guided back down with hands on his shoulders.
“Be still for me, okay?” the nurse said.
He gave a reluctant nod.
“Do you know where you are?” she asked, checking his vitals.
“Hospital,” he said, figuring he better play along if he wanted information.
The female came into focus. He judged her to be in her late twenties. Her hair was in a loose bun piled on top of her head, and she wore wrinkled scrubs. Her nametag readSharon. Could he beg her to give information about Zeke?
“I need to know about my friend,” he said.
“Sorry,” Sharon said. “It’s against the rules to give information about another patient without consent.”
Could he sweet-talk her into making an exception?
“Hi, Sharon,” he said with a pleading look, pouring on all the Kade charm he could muster despite the fact any movement made him wince and his head felt like it was about to explode.
“Hi, back,” she said, still focused on the machine next to his bed.
“I need to check on my friend,” he said. “But I’m going to need some help from you.”
“Oh, really?”
Was he making progress? “That’s right.”
“How can I help you?” she asked, stopping long enough to put a hand on her hip. She’d likely heard and seen it all based on her semi-amused expression.
“Like I already said, I was brought in with a buddy.” Once again, he flashed his 100-watt smile. “And I need you to do some detective work.”
“Is that all?” Sharon thumped his IV drip.
“His name is Zeke. He was shot.” Kade didn’t mention how many times or the fact Zeke’s gaze had fixed. Modern medicine worked miracles. And despite recent differences, Kade couldn’t imagine going through life without his best bud or accept the fact a child would lose its father before taking its first breath.
“Come at me one more time with the name.”
“Zeke Akehurst.”
Sharon’s features softened. “Okay. I’ll see what I can find out.”
Sunlight cascaded in from a window next to his bed. Usually, he’d be a fan, but his head hurt, and the brightness only made an ache form behind his eyes. Kade exhaled a slow breath, praying like hell she didn’t return with a chaplain. “Thank you.”
“I haven’t done anything yet.”
“You will.”
Sharon’s sympathetic gaze lingered a few seconds longer than Kade found comfortable. He fought the urge to read too much into it.
The nurse seemed to catch herself. She gave a small headshake and then said she’d be back as soon as she had news. With that, she turned and exited the small, curtained room.
