Page 5 of Mind Pucked

It’s driving me crazy not knowing what’s going on with Lyla. I haven’t seen hide nor hair of a doctor or a police officer. What the hell was the point of me even being here?

Then, a man in a white coat walks in. He has dark hair, and a crooked nose like it’s been broken too many times.

I stand up and walk toward him. “How’s Lyla?” I ask. He looks startled, having to look up a significant amount to reach myface. If I had a dollar for every time I intimidated a professional because of how built I am, I’d be so much richer than I already am.

“Lyla is your wife?”

I sigh and nod, sick of the question.

“Your wife…”No.I don’t like the pause. What does that mean? “Your wife had many injuries. Several burns and contusions to her chest. And the force of impact caused injuries to the back of her head. Between the blunt force trauma and the severity of the burns, there was nothing we could do. She didn’t make it. I’m so sorry.”

My world begins to spin around me like I’m caught in a tornado. Every moment I’ve ever had with Lyla. Every game. The birth of our daughter. And then it all collapses into a big pile of rubble.

“But the officer told me…she was alive at the scene…”

The doctor places his hand on my arm, daring to bridge that gap even in the state I’m in. I have to give him some respect for that. “I’m so sorry. I know there’s a police officer waiting for you out in the lobby as well. He just finished getting my statement.”

“She’s gone?”

He nods. “Yes, sir. You’re welcome to come say goodbye if you like.”

Until water starts dripping into my mouth, I don’t realize I’m already crying. I nod and follow the doctor past curtains with people behind them. People who are still getting treatment for whatever emergency. People who get to live. People who are not my wife.

Then, he brings me behind the curtain where she’s lying on the bed. She could be sleeping if it wasn’t for all the bruises and burns on her. I can even tell just from her neck and her face how much trauma she’s been through.

“I’ll give you a moment.” The doctor shuts the curtain on us and leaves us alone.

I approach the bed, almost afraid to touch her. She looks so fragile and in pain I’m afraid I’ll hurt her, the fact that she’s gone and can’t feel anything not really sinking in yet.

Then, I start bawling like a baby. I grab her hand under the sheet, and I run my other hand through her beautiful hair. “How the hell am I supposed to explain this to Hayden? You were supposed to be there to see her grow up. To see her get married. How can you leave us alone like this?”

But of course, I get no answer. She’s nearly cold, and her spirit’s not here anymore.

I hope she gets to be at peace. I hope I can find a way to move on and make Hayden’s life a good one, even without her mom. I hope we make her proud.

I give her one last kiss on the forehead and walk out, looking for the officer who’s going to give me answers about how the hell this happened.

I head out into the lobby and instantly spot him. “So, what caused the accident? What do we know?”

“You’re Jackson, I take it?” he asks in a monotonous tone.

“Obviously.”

“Your wife was found alive at the scene. The passenger door was hanging open, but the passenger was never found. Though, there was blood on the dash. Whoever it is, they can’t have made it too far. We’re checking other hospitals and getting a search out there. We’re hoping the passenger knows more about what happened, but the car seemed to have some kind of brake malfunction. And then it was engulfed in flames. We’re still investigating.”

There was another person in the car. Someone who left Lyla alone to suffer while they ran off. Who the hell was it, and what the hell is wrong with them?

“If you give me your number, we can let you know as soon as we know more,” he says.

I nod, trying to keep it together, knowing that I’m going to have to go tell Hayden that her mom is never coming home. And I’m going to have to sleep alone tonight.

1

AMELIA

It’s been two years since my brother’s death. Or at least what we assume was his death. And I still feel horrible about it.

I know there’s no way I could’ve predicte d what was going to happen to him—a terrible car accident that didn’t make much sense.

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