Kiss by Ted Dekker Read Free Book Online Page A

and formal: “Shauna, this is Pam Riley, Rudy’s live-in nurse. Pam, my husband’s daughter and her boy-friend, Wayne. We weren’t expecting her tonight, as she is under house arrest at the hospital.”
    Pam’s bright cheeks turned brighter, and Shauna pretended not to hear. Wayne rested his hand on her shoulder.
    “So, minimally conscious is good?” Shauna asked Pam. “I mean, there’s hope?”
    “Hope is a fairy tale for the guilty,” Landon said, then threw back the last of his coffee. “So you can get any inspirational sap out of your head right now.”
    His words stabbed her. She moved her chair closer to Rudy and turned her back toward the table.
    “All brain injuries are really uncharted territories,” Pam said. “We don’t like to make predictions or promises. But we are hardly resigned to Rudy’s present condition. There’s plenty to do.”
    Landon rose from the table with his empty plate as if he’d heard this speech a thousand times. His long stride carried him into the kitchen.
    “The senator has taken every possible measure to increase the chances of Rudy’s recovery. Maybe later I can show you the—”
    “Shauna has an appointment with local authorities,” Patrice said. “I’m afraid it will have to wait.”
    Shauna clenched her teeth to prevent herself from snapping back. Not here. Not now.
    Pam adjusted. “To answer your question, Shauna, yes, there are documented cases of minimally conscious patients regaining their functions—”
    “After more than twenty years,” Landon said, returning. “And they call that a miracle. Sure there’s hope. I just won’t live to see it.”
    “Rudy’s case leaves a lot of possibilities open,” Pam continued, unfazed. “His injury was caused by trauma rather than by hypoxia—”
    “Which is?”
    “Lack of oxygen.”
    “He didn’t drown, then?”
    “No. He just got really banged up. Thrown from the car before it hit the water. But he was breathing on his own the whole time.”
    Rudy had not stopped looking at her. She shivered. “And why is that better than drowning?”
    “Hypoxia shuts down the entire brain,” Pam said. “Remember Terry Schaivo? That’s what happened to her. For Rudy, though, the damage was partial. Devastating, but partial. Some parts of his brain are still functioning fine. It’s possible, in time, that these areas will be able to rebuild his lost connections.”
    Landon moved to stand behind Rudy and placed a gentle hand on his son’s head. Rudy kept his eyes on Shauna. Those eyes might have been conveying recognition or fascination. Mercy or accusation. They might have been requesting a key to unlock their prison, or screaming at her to leave. They might be seeing nothing at all.
    “In time, Rudy might be able to compensate for his other losses,” Pam said.
    “There is no compensation for this,” her father said.
    Paired with her father’s words, Shauna believed Rudy’s eyes turned hostile. They burned through her, judging her forgetfulness.
    “Dad, I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry, Rudy. Please forgive me.”
    She released the chair, crossed to Rudy, and eased herself into a seat close to him. Leaned forward and touched his hand. If she could make all this right she would do it without a second thought. She would sit in that chair and lock her-self up in that broken mind so Rudy could come back and be the calm force in the center of this stormy family. What would it take? She would do anything.
    “Please. I’m so sorry.” His skin felt rubbery and unnatural to her. He did not respond. She squeezed his fingers.
    “Stop it, Shauna,” Landon said, sending the command like a kick to her heart. She let go of Rudy’s hand, a defensive move. Stop what? Touching him? She looked at her father and instantly recognized his anger, which was so familiar to her: taut forehead, flat lips.
    Why couldn’t she be as familiar with his affection? Just a minute of the hours of love he had poured into Rudy. She