Page 7 of Zane

“It seemed like he’s in pretty bad shape,” Lee said. “He had to be extracted from his car with the jaws of life.”

“No…” The word came out on a sob. “No…”

“Listen, you need to get to the hospital. Can you do that?”

“Yes. Of course.” Anxiety was threatening to overtake her again, but now she had something to focus on. She had a purpose. She had to get to Zane.

“We’re going to be there as soon as possible,” Lee said. “Hudson’s been in New York, and he’s heading back here as soon as he can with his dad’s private jet, and then we’ll be on it to fly to Tampa.”

“Okay.” Though she knew they didn’t think much of her, Kelsey was grateful that she wouldn’t have to deal with everything on her own. She just hoped they’d let her have some say in any decisions that might have to be made. Especially since she might not be listed as his next of kin on anything. Just another one of those things they hadn’t gotten around to changing yet.

“We’ll be praying for you both,” Lee said after he gave her the name of the hospital. “Please let me know as soon as you get any information. I won’t be going to sleep.”

After promising she would, Kelsey said goodbye and stood for a moment, gathering her thoughts. Then she was on the move, going back into the apartment. She closed and locked the balcony door before heading to their bedroom.

It felt like she was moving on autopilot. But now that she had a direction in which to proceed, her anxiety had moved to the back of her mind. The news that Zane had been in an accident wasn’t good, but at least he was alive, and she knew where he was.

Though she wasn’t sure about calling for a rideshare, she also wasn’t sure about driving in a still-unfamiliar city. In the end, she decided on the rideshare. While she waited for the car to arrive, she changed into a pair of jeans and a shirt, since the clothes she’d been wearing were only for around home.

Her thoughts were a jumbled mess, but she had the presence of mind to grab their wedding certificate, just in case theyquestioned her about being his wife. Given she wasn’t listed as his next of kin, it was a possibility.

The driver ended up being an older man, with a kind face and sympathetic words when he learned where she was going and why.

“I’ll get you there as quickly as possible,” he assured her as they pulled away from the curb in front of the building. Kelsey had a feeling that no matter how quickly they arrived, the trip would still feel like forever.

Indeed, by the time the driver came to a stop at the entrance to the ER, it felt like hours had passed.

“Thank you,” she said as she opened the door.

“I’ll be praying for you and your husband,” he told her as she climbed out.

Pausing, she leaned back inside the car and said, “We appreciate that.”

After closing the door, Kelsey hurried through the doors and looked around for someone to help her. Approaching a woman seated behind a desk, Kelsey gave her name as well as Zane’s, along with the details Lee had given her.

“Please have a seat,” the woman said. “I’ll have someone come and get you.”

“Is he okay?” Kelsey couldn’t help but ask, even though she knew it wasn’t likely that she’d give her any information.

“I’m sorry. You’ll have to wait to speak to the doctor.”

Kelsey nodded, then went to sit down in a chair not far from the desk. She couldn’t relax as she waited for someone to come and tell her what was going on. There were plenty of people inthe waiting room, but she tuned all their noise out, not wanting to interact with anyone there.

Finally, she opened her phone and sent Lee a message. Even though she had no news yet, she had to do something. She needed to keep a connection with someone.

Arrived at the hospital a couple of minutes ago. Waiting for someone to tell me what’s going on.

Lee’s reply came right away.

Lee:Hope they don’t make you wait too long. Praying it’s good news.

Kelsey hoped it was too, but she was preparing herself for the worst. Her anxiety was rising again, and she began to count her breaths right away, before it got too out of hand.

“Mrs. Halverson?”

It took Kelsey a moment to register the woman was talking to her. Looking up, she got to her feet.

“I’m Kelsey Halverson,” she said as she approached her.

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