Thank God – they’d saved his leg.
A man in desert utilities was standing over Sebastian. At first I thought he was a doctor, but then I heard what he was saying, the rhythmical cadence of words repeated too many times.
“O Father of mercies and God of all comfort, our only help in time of need…”
I recognized the prayer for the sick.
“We humbly beseech thee to behold, visit and relieve thy sick servant Sebastian Hunter, for whom our prayers are desired. Look upon him with the eyes of thy mercy; comfort him with a sense of thy goodness; preserve him from the temptations of the enemy; and give him patience under his affliction. In thy good time, restore him to health, and enable him to lead the residue of his life in thy fear, and to thy glory; and grant that finally Sebastian may dwell with thee in life everlasting; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”
“Amen,” I echoed, softly.
The man turned around, and I wasn’t surprised to see that he was wearing the white collar of a priest.
I crossed myself.
“Thank you, Padre.”
“Is he a friend of yours?”
I nodded. “He’s my fiancé,” I said, quietly.
I couldn’t see David’s face, but I heard his sudden intake of breath behind me.
The priest patted my arm.
“God hears all prayers, my child. And your young man is very strong.”
He gave me a small smile, nodded at David, and left the room.
“You’re marrying him?” asked David, his voice oddly strained. “You didn’t say that when I saw you before in Kabul. You said you’d only just met again.”
I looked up sharply. “I wasn’t lying, David. This is… very new.”
“I’m sorry…” he began. Then he cleared his throat and started again.
“They’ve managed to save the leg for now, but there’s still some doubt about whether it’s viable. The next few days will be critical. There was dirt in the shrapnel and he’s contracted Acinetobacter baumannii – it’s a common infection out here. We’re treating it with antibiotics but…” he sighed. “And he’s been put into a medically-induced coma: we were worried about brain swelling as he received a shockwave from the bomb… That’s quite typical with these sorts of injuries.”
I nodded, unable to speak.
“I’m sorry, Caroline,” he said again. “Well, if you need anything…”
Hesitantly, David rested his hand on my shoulder, then turned and left me alone with my grief.
I picked up Sebastian’s hand and held it in my own. The fingers felt cold, so I held them to my mouth and blew on them softly, trying to heat them with my breath, just as he had done, only three weeks before in Chamonix.
Dear God: that seemed a lifetime ago. He’d been so alive, so vibrant, so full of hope, and now...
I held his hand to my cheek and closed my eyes.
“Come back to me, Sebastian. Please, tesoro, you have to fight. You’ve always been so strong, don’t give up now; don’t give up on us. I need you. Come back to me. Please, come back to me.”
The ventilator rose and fell, his chest rose and fell, but Sebastian’s eyes remained closed.
I talked to him all day: telling him about the bungalow, and the way the ocean trembled with light in the summer sun, and the way the sky seemed to reach long fingers down to the waves in a storm, spray mingling with rain. I told him about Alice’s kindness and humor; about Jenna’s fieriness; and the way Nicole was always trying to set me up on dates – but that I didn’t need her to do that anymore. And I told him what Ches had said to me on the telephone.