Emily nodded. Olivia was right. For whatever reason, she was overreacting. She knew Gavin would be smart enough to not drive like an animal, however, something was off, and she couldn’t put her finger on it. Not quite a pull in her gut telling her something was wrong, but more of an emptiness slowly sneaking into her bones. As she tried to talk herself down from the cliff her mind was dangling over, the doorbell chimed through the air. Emily rushed to the bedroom window, and her heart stopped mid-beat as her eyes landed on a white and blue East Hampton patrol car. She flew past Olivia as she belted down the stairs. She came to a stop on the landing and brought her hand to her stomach as it cramped. Pain shot, ricocheting through her midsection. She curled her fingers around the railing and tried to slow her breathing, tried to slow her racing thoughts. Gavin was probably picked up for speeding. At least that’s what Emily attempted to convince herself of as she watched Chad open the door. Gavin’s full name…then the words. Although faint, they hit Emily’s ears loudly, knocking her off balance.

Lost control…

Grave…

Air lifted…

Critical condition….

Emily tried to breathe as her body instinctively sank onto the steps, her hand gripping the cold metal baluster. A flurry of chaos ensued around her, but she didn’t notice. She couldn’t. She couldn’t think or feel. Her mind slipped into a state of numbness, her ears blanking out Lillian’s crying screams. She barely registered Trevor gently lifting her from the stairs and helping her out into the warm, humid air. A heavy raindrop hit her scalp. Another, her cheek. Before she knew it, she was soaked and seated in Trevor’s car.

Green eyes staring blankly at the road flying past her, Emily’s muscles froze with fear. Rain rioted the roof as her galloping heart shook her whole body. While her mind dragged through thorny yet beautiful memories of the last few months, the cold realization sank Emily deeper into her seat. Gavin was critically wounded. What the officer said rushed through floodgates, dowsing Emily with grief. A torrent of tears spilled as a brutal headache made a permanent nest in the darkest eaves of her skull.

By the time they pulled up to the hospital, the rain had grown louder, its rhythm as steady as an applause at a rock concert. Emily threw open her door and climbed out. Mind a scattered mess, she prayed as she made her way into the emergency room. Still unable to speak, Emily listened to Trevor and Fallon ask where Gavin was. After taking some information, the nurse behind the desk pointed toward the end of a hall. Eyes glistening with tears, Emily held onto Trevor’s arm for balance as they stepped into an elevator.

“Emily, listen to me,” Trevor whispered, his voice cracking. “He’s going to be okay.”

Fallon stroked Emily’s rain-drenched hair. “He is, Em. You can’t give up hope.”

Lost control…

Grave…

Air lifted…

Critical condition….

Emily shook her head, her words stuttered. “You hea…heard what the off… officer said.”

Fallon pulled her into her arms, holding her tight. When the elevator opened onto the ICU, Emily’s blurry vision zeroed in on Gavin’s parents, Colton, Olivia, and Jude talking with a doctor. Emily wanted to run to them to find out what was going on, but her body was frozen. Her feet wouldn’t move. Her arms hung to her sides as cold as icicles hanging from gutters. With Trevor’s aid, Emily stepped from the elevator. A deep sense of nothingness slithered through her chest as she slowly started for the group. The crisp, hospital air was loosely laced with the smells of ammonia and sickness. A chill shot down Emily’s spine as her gaze drifted into several patients’ rooms. Lying motionless with blankets drawn up to their necks, most were unconscious. As she approached the group, Emily could see the fear in Chad’s eyes and it made her tremble. Her heart smashed, vibrating her body.

Lillian swept Emily into her arms, her tears soaking through Emily’s top. “Oh, God. My baby. My baby boy. They’re not sure if he’s going to make it.” Lillian’s crying hammered though Emily’s head, and her despair sliced right through Emily’s heart.

“What happened?” Emily asked, barely getting the words out. With tears streaming down her face, she turned to the full-faced doctor. “There has to be something you can do. He’s going to”—Emily choked back a sob—”he’s going to be a father.”

The doctor released a soft sigh, shoving his large hands into his pockets. “The motorcycle came out from beneath him in front of the Mill House Inn on Montauk Highway. He was thrown against on oncoming vehicle.” He shook his head, his voice bleak. “We just finished up doing a CT scan on him. Though he was wearing a helmet, he’s sustained severe injury to his brain, and he’s non-responsive right now. We’re trying to control the swelling, and we’re going to do everything we can for him, but it doesn’t look good. He has a punctured lung, three broken ribs, a broken femur, and internal bleeding in the abdomen. The surgeon will give you an update after he’s out of surgery.”

Emily felt her body go limp, felt her heart rip away from her chest. Sobbing uncontrollably, her legs slack beneath her, she leaned into the embrace of Trevor who was trying to hold her upright. However, his arms felt weak as he too struggled to keep himself together. Shaking, Emily made her way into a small waiting room. She sank into a chair, cradling her face as she rocked back and forth.

This couldn’t be happening. It wasn’t real. She refused to believe just hours before, her and Gavin’s lives were complete, and now she could lose him. Their son could lose him. The thought of Noah never knowing the wonderful man his father was shook Emily’s faith in all she’d ever believed in. With tear-soaked eyes, she slowly lifted her head and looked around the room. Faces pale with fear, not a single person in Gavin’s life held a glimmer of hope in their expressions. Emily watched Chad hold Lillian, his grief burning a hole in Emily’s mind. Seated next to a small coffee machine, Olivia rested her head against Jude’s shoulder, her tears falling in streams down her cheeks. Emily swallowed as she dragged her gaze to Colton. Standing alone in the corner, arms crossed, he stared at the floor, crying silently.

Emily broke out into a cold sweat as images of what she and Gavin were supposed to be, the life they’d spoken about, slowly melted away. The clock on the wall ticked, its second hand sinister and ugly with each stroke of movement. Over the next few hours, everyone waited to hear a word. Light was fading from the damp sky by the time the surgeon entered the waiting room. Everyone jumped to their feet.

With eyes as empty as a dusty glass found forgotten on a windowsill, he began to speak. “We were able to stop the bleeding in his abdomen for now, and we’ll keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn’t start again.” The surgeon paused, drawing in a slow, deep breath. “We had to perform an emergency craniotomy to relieve the pressure off the brain. The next forty-eight hours are critical. In the meantime”—he looked at each of them—”I feel its best you spend as much time with him as you can right now.”

There was a moment of silence long enough for Emily to feel the quiet undertone of despair coating the room. But it broke as Lillian fell into Chad’s arms, her cries screeching from her throat in puffed out heavy breaths. Emily’s heart started throbbing in her chest so hard her fingers shook. As she watched the surgeon walk out, fog trapped Emily’s mind. She sank into her chair, covering her face. She knew she couldn’t see Gavin yet. She couldn’t. The truth was, fear gutted her. It surrounded her, anchoring her frozen. She felt a gentle hand on her shoulder and looked up into Gavin’s father’s eyes. Dark shadows of grief painted his face.