Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 68598 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 343(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68598 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 343(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
I was walking toward him, leaving them all behind, the moment that I saw him walk through the doors.
I didn’t know that this was Kobe’s doctor, but I felt it in my gut that it was.
“You’re Folsom?”
I swallowed hard. “Yes.”
He nodded. “Kobe Sano gave me approval to talk to you before we put him out for the rest of surgery.”
I felt my stomach pitch.
“He was awake?” I asked, voice breathy.
“We performed half the surgery with him paralyzed but fully aware of what was going on,” the doctor explained. “He told me about his life and a lot about you. How he plans to…” he hesitated. “Anyway, we were able to get you medical power of attorney on him and any decisions made via a verbal signature. You are fully able to make any and all decisions for him.” He paused. “Though he says you’ve been doing that for years, so he said that shouldn’t be anything new for you.”
I slapped my hands over my face and started to cry and laugh.
I knew that he’d made it through surgery at this point.
The doctor wouldn’t be talking to me about this stuff if he hadn’t.
“Tell me everything,” I ordered then, sobering quickly.
“As you know, when he came in, he had a gunshot wound to his left eye,” he said.
I nodded, feeling that same sickness start to seep back into my soul.
“The good news is, the caliber that was used was a twenty-two.”
I heard the relieved breaths behind me, but that meant nothing to me since I knew nothing about guns.
“Is that good?” I asked, feeling ignorant, which was a new experience for me.
“Yes and no,” he answered. “The twenty-two round is the smallest caliber that is generally used. The bad thing is, once the round went into his eye, it was too small to exit his head, which means that when it entered, it had nowhere to go but sort of bounce around in his brain.”
I felt my stomach start to roll.
His poor brain.
“Somewhat luckily again, when the bullet entered his brain, it only bounced around twice before exiting right back out the same eye.” He winced. “His left eye is completely gone. All that’s left is his eye socket.”
Tears welled.
Never again would I see both of those beautiful eyes stare into my own.
But he had one.
He had fucking one!
“Okay, what else?” I asked.
“We repaired what damage we could. But some of it is going to have to heal from the outside in.” He looked worried for a few seconds. “Some of the areas affected by that round bouncing around in his head were right here,” he pointed to his head, right at the base of his skull. “That’s going to be his vision. Which’ll already be affected as it is with his missing eye,” he continued to point out points on his head. “This one is smell. It’s possible he won’t smell anything or be able to say what it smells like anymore.”
On and on he went.
“But, as of right now, what we’re really concerned with is brain swelling,” he continued as if he hadn’t just given me a whole laundry list of concerns. “The first twenty-four hours are critical right now. If he makes it that far, there’s a higher than likely chance that he’ll make it completely through and recover.”
I closed my eyes as I felt the weight of worry settling onto my shoulders. “Can I see him?”
The doctor frowned at me for a few long moments. “Normally, there are no visitors allowed in the ICU, especially with someone so critical.” He looked at me, and me only. “You are allowed to come in, but I mean this with my whole heart, do not be surprised if things go south. If they do, you are to leave the room immediately. Do I have your agreement?”
I liked this guy and his no-bullshitting attitude.
“Yes,” I promised.
But he wouldn’t need the promise.
I knew in my heart that Kobe would make it through the night.
He’d make it through all of them.
I didn’t know how I knew it—maybe it was Val’s own palm reading to me all those months ago when I first showed up at the circus—but I just knew that this would all work out.
It may not be pretty.
It may not be easy.
But nothing in life ever was, was it?
CHAPTER 21
I don’t age. I just level up.
-Text from Folsom to Kobe
FOLSOM
He not only made it through the night, but the swelling on his brain was absolutely minimal when the doctor rounded on him the next morning.
“I have to say,” he said. “This is slightly a miracle in and of itself. The fact that there’s no swelling at all, and his responses are as good as they are…I’m impressed. I don’t usually say this with so much certainty, but I believe he’s going to make it.”