Page 86 of The Quiet After The Fall

I stare at the phone in Sawyer’s hand long after Helen’s voice cuts out, my mother’s name ringing in my ears.

Every instinct I have is screaming at me to grab my keys and drive, consequences be damned. That’s the pattern I’ve lived by for years. Victoria in trouble, Knox drops everything, Knox fixes it, Knox pays for it later in ways nobody ever sees. I’ve spent my whole life being the emergency contact, the fixer, for a family that never once returned the favor.

“Knox?” Sawyer’s watching me, phone still in her hand. “Talk to me. What do you want to do?”

I hear her, but she sounds distant.

Something happened. That could mean so many different things. I close my eyes and see the pills scattered on the floor. See her dark eyes rolling back in her head.

Sawyer’s touch pulls me back. “I’m calling the hospital.”

I nod, unable to form actual words that make any sense.

Sawyer taps away on her phone, hits the speaker button, and holds it between us. I get up and pace the length of the bed, so fucking grateful that she’s here right now to help. She must be asking the same questions. Is this even real? Is it my father’s way of roping me back in? Moretti setting a trap? They know I’ll do anything for my mother.

Fucking hell.

It rings a few times before a cheerful sounding woman answers. “Ashford Community, emergency room.”

“Hi, I’m calling to check on a patient. Victoria Aldrich. I’m calling on behalf of her son, Knox.”

Keys click on the other end. “Are you family?”

Sawyer glances at me, and I finally find my voice. “Son. That’s me.”

“I can confirm she was brought in tonight and is currently listed in stable condition. I’m sorry, I can’t release more than that over the phone without you being here in person.”

She’s stable. I finally breathe.

“That’s all we need. Thank you.” Sawyer ends the call and sets the phone down, watching me carefully. “She’s okay, Knox. Stable. Whatever happened, she’ll be okay.”

“She’s okay,” I repeat, trying to get the word to sink in. “Stable.”

Sawyer moves closer, slowly like she’s approaching a wounded animal. I pull her in, my pulse calming even more. She rubs my back while I resist the instinct to get up and rush over there. To be the person I’ve always been, the one who handles whatever mess my family lands in.

“You should sit with this for a beat,” she says finally. “Before you decide anything.”

“I already know what I want to do.” As I speak, each word solidifies my answer. “I’m not going.”

Her brows lift. “You’re sure?”

“I know how it’ll go. She’s stable. If I go running over there right now, my father will meet me in that hallway, play the concerned husband in front of the nurses, and somehow by morning, I’ll be back under this thumb and agreeing to something I swore I wouldn’t agree to anymore. That’s how it's gone every single time before.”

“I understand,” she says. “I know how hard this must be.”

“It kills me.” I close my eyes for a moment, picturing my mother in a hospital bed, and feel nauseated. Sawyer takes my hand and squeezes, bringing me back. “The not knowing is the worst. But Sawyer, we need to stay the course. Every time something happens to her, I drop everything and fix it, and nothing actually gets better. She’s still abusing meds. He’s still drinking too much and controlling every part of both our lives. If I keep putting out fires instead of finding out who’s setting them, none of this ever ends.”

“You really think Otisville matters more than being there for her? I don’t want you to regret it.”

“I think it’s the only thing that actually changes anything for her long-term. If David knows what I think he knows, we end this. All of it. My father, Moretti, the wedding, the lies. That protects her more than me sitting in a hospital chair while my father tries to rope me into more of his games.”

“Okay.”

I send off a text to my mother, hoping that she’ll see it at some point, even if it’s after she’s released. She’ll know I’m thinking of her, that I’m aware. I’m sure she’ll be upset with me, but that’s a risk I’m willing to take.

While Sawyer finishes getting ready, I check the parking lot and grounds around her apartment. Some asshole could jump me again, but somehow I think they’re being more conservative with Sawyer around. It’s when I’m alone that I’m in the most danger.

Biting back the pain, I grab her bags, as much as she tries to fight me on it, and walk her to the Jeep. She smirks when she sees her handiwork. “Haven’t gotten around to fixing the dents.”