Page 53 of Lodged

She releases a breath and motions for me to follow her. Even though I don’t know her, the fact that she’s willing to talk with me makes hope bloom in my chest.

We walk to the back of the store and into her office. A small desk, a chair, and file cabinets bursting with receipts and all sorts of papers fill the cramped space.

“I don’t know what your intentions are, coming and asking for her, but for some reason, I feel like you don’t want to harm her. If you wait here, I can find someone who can give you answers,” she tells me as she stands with her arms crossed over her chest.

My eyes immediately fill with unshed tears. Fuck. I’m finally getting closer to knowing what happened to Ruin. “Yes, I can assure you I have the best intentions for her.”

She nods as she motions for me to sit down. “Wait here. I won’t take long.” She closes the door, and I hear it lock.

Oh shit, why did she lock me in? I decide to text Penny and let her know where I am and what’s going on, in case she has to send the police to find me. After the most excruciating and slow ten minutes of my life, the door unlocks and in comes the woman who I spoke with. Behind her is a tall man, his hair is not as red as Ruin’s, but I can definitely see a resemblance. This must be River or Miles.

“Miss Dorothy says you’re looking for my sister,” the man says, not even introducing himself.

“Yes, I’m Gio Bianchi. Ruin’s boyfriend.” He stiffens at my words and turns to face the lady who’s looking at us with rapt attention.

“Miss Dorothy, I beg you please don’t say anything you heard to anyone. As you can imagine, we’re trying to protect Ruin as much as possible.” She simply nods at his request with a smile, and then he turns to look at me. “Please, follow me. There’s stuff to talk about.”

I nod at him, and follow him out of the store. The sun has completely set, and the chilly air hits my face.

“Do you need a lift?” he asks, and I shake my head. I can’t seem to form words at the moment. “Follow me, there’s a diner a couple of blocks away.” I nod and head to my car. I remember Ruin mentioning her family also had a diner.Why didn’t I go there to begin with?

Ugh, this brain fog has to go.

Once I park, I go inside the diner. The man turns the sign to “Closed” and locks the door. A woman, who can only be Ruin's sister, Rain, comes out of the kitchen and looks at me, stunned.

“Hi, I’m Rain,” she says as she extends her hand for me to shake, and I happily take it.

“Fuck, I’m sorry. I’m River, Ruin’s oldest brother.” He extends his hand to me, and I shake it as well.

“Do you want anything to eat or drink?” Rain asks, and I shake my head but give her a grateful smile.

“Let’s take a seat then,” River says, and we all go to the nearest table. River and Rain sit across from me, and I look at them expectantly.

“I’m going to get to the point,” River says and then clears his throat. “Ruin had a car accident.”

All the blood drains from my face as a shiver runs through my body.

“Is she…is she dead?” I say quietly, almost afraid hear the answer.

“No, oh God, no,” Rain rushes to assure me, and I release a deep breath.

“She’s currently in a coma. According to the authorities, it’s a miracle they were able to rescue her.” I clench my jaw at River’s words. Ididalmost lose her.

“Where is she? Can I see her?” I ask, needing to see her with my own eyes.

“That’s the issue and the reason we haven’t contacted you, Gio,” River starts to talk, and I already don’t like where this is going.

“We don’t know how long it will take for her to wake up from the coma, and once she’s awake, we don’t know what state she will be in. She sustained multiple fractures and a concussion.” I close my eyes as my left foot starts shaking uncontrollably. Not even in my wildest dreams did I think my Ruin would have gone through something like this.

“But I need to see her. I love her.” I open my eyes in time to see River closing his and Rain’s starting to fill with unshed tears.

“She loves you, too, Gio. All she did during break was to talk about you and how much she missed you. But right now, it isn’t wise to disturb her. We need her to heal,” Rain says in a calm tone. Deep inside me, I know that’s the best thing to do, but I’ll die without her. It’s that simple.

“But if she’s in a coma, how would I disturb her? I understand you are her family, but she’s my everything. Is she getting the best possible treatment? Or do we need to transfer her to Chapel Hill or Durham?” I say, feeling like I’m coming back from the fog and taking the reins of the situation.

“She has a good medical team here; they all graduated from Chapel Hill,” River says, and I nod.

“Does her insurance cover everything she needs?” River doesn’t say a word, but Rain shakes her head.

---