Inferno Part 2

~61~ Coma

Taylor's POV

It's been two weeks. Ellie has been in a coma for two weeks. The doctor told me a few hours ago that they expected the swelling to be gone by now. They're concerned that it's not. They have been monitoring her for brain damage, but the longer the swelling in her brain remains, the greater the chance. The swelling has gone down some in the last few days, and they want to test her brain activity. They have ordered a test, I don't know the medical term for it, but basically it's going to tell us if she's brain damaged or not.

The entire crew wanted to be here when they test her. I didn't want the kids here, but they insisted. Nora and Lilah stayed behind with Josie, Dylan, Colton, Savannah, Izzy, and the babies. Everybody else is in the room right now.

The doctor is getting the test set up, hooking things up to her skull. We're all completely silent. This moment might change the rest of our lives...forever.

Finally I can't stand it anymore, and I just ask.

"If there's no brain activity, what happens?"

The doctor looks at me hard for a moment before answering. "Let's just see what the test reveals first." She says softly.

"Answer my question." I snap.

She nods and sighs. "Our greatest concern is that the reaction she had to the tranquilizer has been slowly killing her brain stem."

"Dumb it down" I say, raising my voice.

She nods. "It's possible that she's in a vegetative state. If that's the case, she won't get better. You would then have to make a decision."

"As in, whether or not to kill my wife?" I choke.

She gives me a sympathetic look, and Wes squeezes my shoulder gently.

"We do have some hope, considering the swelling has gone down some since yesterday."

"So as soon as you turn the machine on, it's going to tell us?"

She nods. "If there are no wavy lines, then there is no brain activity. We want wavy lines."

I put my head down and try not to throw up. This is too much.

I hear a sob. I don't know who it's from. It sounds like Sasha, but I don't care enough to look.

"Let me know when you're ready" she says softly.

I look at her hard, and then I look around. Everyone is stone faced. Alex has his arms around Liam and Emma. Mason is holding Sasha. Jake is in the corner, trying not to lose it. Trace has his arms around Luke, and Wes has his arms around Megan. Everyone I love is here, well, almost everyone, and I've never felt so alone in my life. This is all on me.
All of the decisions will fall on me. I'm not ready for this.

I just nod. I can't even find my voice.

She adjusts one of the wires on Ellie's temple and then turns on the machine. We all just stare at the screen, willing the line to move. It isn't moving.

I'm starting to panic. Our life together is flashing before my eyes. I'm remembering our life, sick at the thought that she isn't sharing the memories with me anymore. It's just me. I'm the only one that knows how deep our love was. My girl isn't here anymore. This is more than I can handle.

Suddenly I hear a gasp. It's Megan. I had looked at the floor, I couldn't handle looking at the still line anymore.

I look at Megan, and she's staring at the screen, hysterically crying. Then I look at Wes, and he's crying too.

I force myself to look. When I do, that beautiful line is dancing around the screen. It's telling me she's still in there. She's still in there. I'm not alone.