Page 77 of Lilies in Autumn

“Greyson, she’s strong. You need to have hope, pray, and believe that she will pull through this,” my dad whispers into my ear. At six-foot-five, my dad is a behemoth of a man, and somehow, can still make me feel like a young boy. Pulling back, he examines me and takes stock of the blood covering my clothes. “You need to sit down, Greyson. You’re no use to anyone dead on your feet.” He leads me to the seat beside Ava’s father. At our approach, he turns to face us, intent on joining in on our conversation.

Calling Ava’s dad after getting to the hospital was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. At barely five-five, he shouldn’t be an imposing man, but between his stocky build and gruff attitude, he’s like a legal mob boss. Hearing the cry rip from his throat over the harm done to Ava damn near gutted me.

The call to my dad didn’t go much better. Because he was filming his baseball segment, I had to speak to his assistant, Penelope, who quickly got him off the air and on the phone. Breaking a clause in his contract, he left the filming location in Connecticut and drove until he made it to the hospital.

Shortly after Ava’s family, Celeste, Serena, and my friends showed up, the police arrived to take my statement. With the support of Mr. Gregori, I explained the text I received and my race to Felicity’s dorm room. Recounting my call with Ava, my version of her attack, and the scene I ran into at Howard Hall reduced Ava’s mom to body-wracking sobs, while Celeste threatened to raise hell until Dante calmed her down. Though the police are still compiling all the evidence, the detectives assigned to the case let us know that Felicity was being charged with attempted murder and distribution of revenge porn.

I hope she rots in a prison cell for the rest of her life.

“Son, Ava is strong, you need to give her credit,” Mr. Gregori says, placing his hand on my shoulder and leaning in. “You got there in time, Greyson. You gave her a fighting chance. Have faith that my little girl will pull through this,” his voice breaks at the end, betraying his fear.

“Grey—” my dad begins but stops when a surgeon walks into the waiting room, asking for Ava’s family. I stand up, brushing off my dad and Mr. Gregori’s hands.

“We’re here,” I nearly shout across the packed room. Celeste looks up, clutching Dante’s hand while Lincoln sits tight-jawed between Serena and Seraphina.

The doctor nods and makes her way over to us. Holding out a hand to Mr. and Mrs. Gregori, she begins, “I’m Doctor Navarro, the operating trauma surgeon. Ava is out of surgery; we were able to stop the bleeding and repair the damage done to her bladder. She will have a few complications, but this will not affect her quality of life or mobility. We will wait to go through these complications once she wakes up and we’re in the clear. The next forty-eight hours are critical after surgery, and we will keep her in the trauma unit. They’re weening her off the anesthesia now, and she should be coherent in a few hours. Once she’s lucid, we’ll bring you back to see her,” Doctor Navarro informs us. Continuing, she says, “Why don’t you all go grab something to eat, run home, and take a shower? When she wakes up, the last thing she needs to see is blood.” She looks at me pointedly, almost in accusation.

“I’m not fucking leaving.”

“Grey,” my dad admonishes.

I shake my head. “No, I’m not fucking leaving this hospital without Ava.”

She studies me, looking from my blood-spattered jeans to my drenched T-shirt. Whatever she sees on my face must appease her. “Very well,” she replies. “I’ll have one of the nurses bring you out some scrubs and show you into the room where Ms. Gregori will be transferred; there’s a shower in there that you can use for the time being.”

With that, she turns on her heel and walks to the nurses’ station and gestures over her shoulder at me. With a nod of his head, the male nurse she’s speaking with grabs a bundle and approaches our group, handing me the scrubs and instructing me to follow him to Ava’s room.

I walk away from the hopeful tears of our family and go wait for my woman.

Ava

My entire body feels like it’s been doused in gasoline, lit on fire, put out, and then reignited. My head pounds, and it feels like drums are beating around my skull, while my stomach burns with a pain incomparable to anything I’ve ever felt before.

“Mmmph,” I groan, trying to reposition myself to get more comfortable, but it’s no use. My body must be broken.

“Vixen,” Grey’s voice sounds from next to me. I slowly open my eyes, adjusting from the darkness behind my lids to the bright fluorescent lights of the room I’m in—a hospital room, it seems. Grey grabs hold of my hand, clutching it lightly. Turning to him, I wince at the movement and the pain it provokes in my skull and offer him a small smile.

“Hi,” I croak, my voice sounding like a frog. “You came for me.” Felicity’s attack replays in my mind in a bird’s eye view; the last thing I remember is Greyson tackling Felicity and wrenching her off me.

“Baby,” he whispers with a suspiciously thick voice. “I will always come for you. I’m so fucking sorry.” He places a hand on my face and cups my jaw, cradling it with reverence.

There’s a squeal at the door, and I look in time to see my parents, siblings, and mine and Grey’s friends walk in like a welcome back to consciousness committee. My mom runs over to me and drops to the foot of my bed, squeezing my calf in a gentle grip. “Ava, baby, you’re awake,” she says through tears. “How do you feel?”

I take stock of my injuries. “Like I got hit by a bus,” I answer truthfully.

“No, just by a bat and then hacked open by a fucking machete,” Bianca sounds off from behind my mother.

“Bianca,” my mother scolds, but I laugh. The movement quickly dissolves into a grimace as I feel the muscles in my abdomen seize.

“Oh shit,” I mutter, clutching Grey’s forearm to distract myself from the pain.

A throat clears from behind the group congregated by the door. A woman dressed in blue scrubs walks into the room. “Hello, Ms. Gregori, I’m Doctor Navarro, the surgeon that operated on you. How are you feeling?”

“It’s Ava, and not great. But I’m alive, so that’s good,” I respond. Doctor Navarro offers a small smile before looking back at the group.

“I need to discuss the surgery with you, Ava. We may want to clear the room for this.”

I clench my hand around Grey’s arm. “My parents and Greyson can stay.” I offer a sympathetic smile to my siblings and friends, but I don’t want an audience for this. Celeste eyes me with watery green eyes, promising affection she rarely gives, while my sisters simply nod their heads and leave, understanding how I feel at this moment.

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