He thought about the depth of devotion the Winter family felt for one another, and thought he understood. Being an only child of a single parent, his dad was his world.
Michelle, his stepmother, was cold and distant. She never even tried to be Cole’s friend. Sometimes Cole felt even further from his dad when she was around.
But yeah, if his dad was taken like the kids’ mom was taken; Cole thought he would do whatever it took to get him back, too.
“What are they going to do if their mom dies? Where will they go? Who will take care of them? What if that bad guy, Dr. Williams, keeps trying to hunt them? How are they ever going to feel safe?” Cole’s mind was spinning with questions.
“I don’t know, Cole. But I do know our friends need us now, so we’re going to help them. We’ll figure the rest out one problem at a time.” Dr. Andrews found himself speeding up a little. He was just as anxious as his son to get to the hospital.
“Let me call Greg Burns. He’d want to know what happened to the kids, too. He felt awful that he said what he did back at the restaurant in front of the kids. He’s been blaming himself for their disappearance ever since. And I wonder if he can get us any information besides what the news is telling the public.” With that, Dr. Andrews picked up his cell phone and made his call.
Chapter 61 Identification
Evan’s blood donation for his sister went fine. They were administering the transfusion now. He sat quietly in a chair beside her and watched. Just as he was starting to worry again about his mom and Alik, Betty the nurse, knocked lightly on the hospital room door and peeked in.
“Evan, there were three unidentified people brought in for treatment from The Institute. Would you like to go see if any of them are your family?” The nurse asked gently.
After swallowing his fear back hard, he responded, “Yes, I would.”
“I’ll go get a wheelchair and be right back,” she saw Evan’s questioning expression and responded with a shrug, “It’s hospital policy.”
She returned moments later with a wheelchair. Evan eyed it suspiciously, but obliged. He was worried about what he may find when he went to view the patients. He took one last quick glance at his sister lying still in her bed drawing strength just knowing she was still alive.
“Ready, Evan?” The nurse asked gently.
“Yes, I’m ready.” Evan responded and felt her push the chair forward. It was only a quick ride down the elevator and they were back in the emergency room area.
Evan was in a fog of fear when he heard Betty, his nurse ask someone if the John and Jane Does were still in the area. He was wheeled forward to a curtain that was drawn around a bed. It was obvious there was a person lying in the bed; he could hear all the machines that were connected to him beeping and humming.
“Okay, Evan,” the nurse said in a prepare-yourself voice. “This is the younger male. He suffered a lot of lacerations to the head and neck.”
When Evan heard that, he knew this wasn’t Alik. This was the guy who had hurt his sister and got mauled by Maze. A quick glance confirmed his suspicions.
“This isn’t my brother. I don’t know this guy’s name.” Evan said honestly. He was already craning his head around looking for the two other persons he was to be shown.
“Okay, let’s go find the Jane Doe. She’s across the hall.” The nurse continued pushing the wheelchair, but not fast enough for Evan’s liking. He jumped from the chair, rushed into the room and stopped dead in his tracks.
There was a body under all those tubes but he couldn’t tell whether it was female or male. He stepped closer to try to see the face and immediately regretted what he saw.
This poor person had been badly beaten. Badly. He looked for any indications that this could be his mother, but everywhere he looked was covered in gauze, tubes or swollen bruises. He couldn’t tell if this was his mother.
Evan stood over the mangled patient and began to sob. His tears weren’t gentle or quiet. He didn’t know if he should wish this to be his mother. His heart was breaking and there was no amount of logic or intellect that could rescue him from being human.
“Please sit down, Evan.” The nurse helped him back into the wheelchair. His sobs were so full of pain, the veteran nurse felt awful for this poor lost little boy. “Oh, sweetie,” she cooed wheeling him out of the room. “I was going to warn you how badly injured this patient was, but … well. Could you tell if she is your mother?” The nurse was passing tissues to the child now waiting for a response to her question.
Evan simply shook his head, no.
“Do you think you’d like to see the last John Doe, or do you need a break?” she asked thoughtfully.
Evan stuttered through his tears, “N-n-o br-reak. Let me see h-him.”