Page 75 of Good Girl

“Excuse me,” I tried again, struggling to keep my voice level. “Please.”

The woman spun to face me, pushing her squint glasses up her button nose.Sarahwas on her name tag, and she flashed me a tight smile.

“I’m sorry, how can I help you? Are you in need of medical care?” She glanced between the two of us as I shook my head.

“No, not us. I, uh, an hour or so ago, we got a call about a friend, Matt Brooks? He’s been in some sort of accident?” My voice quavered, and I pressed my tongue to the roof of my mouth, fighting to keep the unruly emotions inside to a simmer. Samuel’s hand landed warm on my lower back, an attempt to comfort himself as much as me.

“Matt Brooks...” Sarah repeated his name over and over as she typed into her computer. Each second I had to watch her click about on her machine felt like a lifetime. Her blonde brows dipped and she bit her lower lip, then nodded slowly.

“Is he okay?” Samuel asked tightly.

“I’m afraid I can’t give you all the information unless you are a blood relative, but it does look like he’s out of surgery.”

“Surgery?” Tension bled across my chest, snaking its smothering tendrils around my lungs when I tried to breathe. “Can we see him?”

“He’s in room 618. If he’s awake, you should be able to.” Sarah smiled. “You can take the elevator to the sixth floor and follow the numbers. If you get lost, the nurse’s desk should be able to help you.”

The moment she stopped speaking, Samuel and I darted in the direction she pointed and headed for the elevator. My mind swarmed with what little information we knew. Matt was in an accident, one bad enough that he had to have surgery. He was one of the safest drivers I knew, even on that motorcycle of his, because that bike was more precious to him than anything else in this world.

I couldn’t fathom a scenario where he crashed.

Samuel remained silent next to me as we rode the elevator up. His teeth worried at his thumb as he rocked back and forth, while I stood poker straight, not trusting myself to do anything but. Being unable to control what was happening in my life was painful, and much like those long, anxiety-filled nights when I was under investigation thanks to Paul’s lies, darkness was calling me.

“Derek...”

I glanced at Samuel, who fixed me with a worried stare. No matter how I felt about Matt, Samuel had known him longer.

“He’ll be okay.” It was a promise I couldn’t make and yet, I did it anyway. As soon as the doors opened, we bolted into the hallway and darted past rows of doors, reading each number at a glance. By the time we reached 618, I couldn’t breathe, and we both burst into the room with little care for anyone around us.

“Matt?”

“Derek! Sammy!” Matt was propped up against several plush white pillows. His bruised and stitched face broke into a wide smile the moment he saw us, and relief wove through the tension sitting heavily in my chest. Until I registered his right leg wrapped up in a thick cast propped up on a support.

“Matt!” Samuel threw himself forward, drawing Matt into a hug. Matt chuckled and then groaned painfully as he accepted the hug.

“I’m okay,” he said hoarsely. “I’m okay.”

“What the fuck happened?” I approached slower, taking in all the wires that ran from Matt to the various machines beside his bed. His collarbone was bruised a deep purple, and his arms, covered in various stitches, had him looking like a patchwork doll.

“I crashed.” Matt winced. “Or rather, some asshole ran me off the road.”

“Tell me everything.” I sat on one side of Matt while Samuel took the other.

“Well, not long after I left the inn, I was taking the back road. Quicker, you know? About twenty minutes from the city, some ratty car was right up my wheel. I kept thinking the bastard wanted to pass, but each time I gave him room, he’d pull back,” Matt explained. “The next thing I know, the car’s on me, trying to run into me. I sped up, trying to put distance between me and this freak, but he clips me. Sent me right off the road, and my brakes, they didn’t work.”

“What?” Samuel’s lips parted in shock. “What do you mean?”

“Exactly that, the brakes were fucked. Last thing I remember is that fucker’s horn and a bunch of trees. I came to in the ambulance, and they told me I’d crashed down into the ditch. No sign of the car.” Matt reached out and patted Samuel’s arm. “I’m okay, though. Cracked ribs and a broken leg won’t stop me.”

“Fuck,” Samuel groaned. “They wouldn’t tell me anything on the phone. I was so fucking worried.”

“Me too. I’m glad you’re okay, Matt. Fuck. What a fucking day.” I slumped back in the chair, processing Matt’s story in my head. Some fucker trying to run him off the road is scary enough, but his brakes? A fault... or something more sinister?

“How did it go?” Matt asked, glancing between the two of us. “With Charlotte and her mother? I’m sorry I had to go.”

“You had a good excuse,” Samuel assured him, then he glanced at me with a wince. “It was...”

“Awful,” I interjected. “How such a sweet woman came from a mother like that, I have no fucking clue. She called Charlotte every name under the sun, basically disowned her, and threw us out. I couldn’t... I couldn’t do anything. I tried to persuade her that Charlotte was important, that welovedher, but...”

---