Under Wings of Grace (Discontinued)

4 - Everything Has Changed

4 - Everything Has Changed

Robin supplied the prying sergeant with her statement. Afterward, Ms Hartman and Murphy had a chat outside her room while she watched the sun set over the horizon.

Flocks of Canadian geese swooped into view, some trailing behind in the end. Other families of birds soared past them in a frenzy to get into a safe and cozy spot for the night ahead.

Robin envied the flocks of birds. They had a family, she didn't. They wouldn't leave one another or forsake the well-being of one another. Shaking her head, she warned her emotions to stay at bay. No, she wasn't going to let her anger ruin the beauty further. God's creation deserved respect.

The sky blended like a watercolour painting, the painter favouring orange with wisps of baby blue, violet, and cotton candy pink. Robin smiled again, how beautiful.

"Robin?" Ms Hartman peeked into her room.

Robin tore her eyes away from the serene peace outdoors. "Yes, ma'am?"

"You know, you can just call me Ms Hartman," she said gently, a small smile tugged at her lips.

"Oh. Okay." Robin's cheeks reddened as she averted her eyes elsewhere. Just as she was about to return her gaze to the window, Ms Hartman spoke.

"Sergeant Murphy and I were just talking about your parents' case."

She suspected that. Robin nodded though, understanding the direction where the conversation was headed. 'Not now,' She groaned inside. The last thing she wanted to talk about was her parents or the case, or anything relating to either. For goodness sake, she had done nothing but talk about them since the crash! Couldn't they give her a break?

Before the woman could continue, Robin interrupted. "When am I leaving?"

"Excuse me?" Ms Hartman raised her eyebrows.

"I feel fine. When can I leave the hospital?"

Ms Hartman said, "Oh, I guess having an IV needle in your hand is annoying. I'll find your doctor."

The next hour flew by in a blur. Nurses and doctors swarmed in and out of her hospital room rushing like maniacs but walking like snails. People kept asking how she felt, giving her instructions to take it easy on her body, and how to attend to the soreness when it became bothersome. They gave her a week's worth bottle of medicine which Robin decided she wanted after the morphine had worn off. In between each nurse's stop, Robin contemplated the thought of her future. Foster care and then what?

She frowned. Her parents were gone and as far as she knew, they hadn't written a will or left her any sort of money. The more she thought about it, she didn't want their blood money anyway. All she wanted was to figure life out on her own. No rules. No limitations. Freedom. It's all she ever wanted. All she needed was another year to pass and she'd be able to start her own life away from her parents, away from the hole they dug deep into, away from all the bruises and battles with them.

But, foster care ruined her plans. There would be yet another family to deal with. She wasn't interested in investing her time to develop any close ties as she'd be gone in a little less than a year anyway. Maybe she'd have to run away. No one would tell her what to do if she did. And all she'd need to do was lay low and avoid the cops. Her parent's enemies would be off her tail, but if she ran, she could escape it all. Nothing could hold her back if there was no reason to stay.

An invisible smile crossed Robin's lips. She was determined to escape the first chance she got.

Before leaving, the staff gave her a complimentary Cooper Hospital icepack and a little essentials kit including the basic necessities to stay healthy.