The Fugitive Grandma

Chapter 63 - Waking Up from a Coma

Most of his life, Frank feared that people never really change. He could never shake off the worry that he himself was trapped in a fate that fit his definition of a loser.

Regaining consciousness in his hospital bed after the fall, Frank could finally set this worry aside. He had full confidence in his conviction that people could change; that they could be born anew and make themselves into something better. With the affirmation of this belief, it suddenly was easy for Frank to look back with amusement on the goals of achievement and wealth that he’d chased his whole life, realizing how unimportant these things were to him now.

Frank drifted in and out of sleep. As the hours passed, he could feel himself recovering to the point where he was vexed by his relative weakness, anxious to muster the energy to go out and search for his mother and son once again.

He had no way to measure the time that elapsed before a beautiful woman appeared in his room. In the soft glow of the fluorescent lighting, she was like an angel greeting him at the gates of the next world. He recognized her—Rebecca Little, the detective who would have died if he hadn’t pushed Lowry off the balcony. Since he met Rebecca, it seemed that they were always switching roles as protector and protected. Once again, he found himself vulnerable as she stood at his bedside, strong, caring, and wise.

“You were in a coma.” She smiled slightly. “But I knew that you’d come through.”

“Mom and Johnny. Where are they? Are they safe?”

“They are unharmed.”

“They’re in jail now, aren’t they?”

“They are not.”

“They got away? You didn’t arrest them?” His voice trailed off as he tried to figure out what that meant. “You must be in a lot of trouble.”

“I resigned from the police department.”

“You resigned? But that was your whole life, Detective. And now you’ve lost everything.”

“Not everything. Besides, if I was worried about losing everything I never would have chosen this path. Don’t worry about me, Frank. You need to think about your mother and son now. If it ends here, then maybe there’s a chance to put all this behind us. Maybe everyone from Great American, the police force, and the City of Santa Ramona want to forget this like a bad dream. Maybe they’ll want to turn away from this like a problem that just disappears and leaves everyone free to think about something else.”

“My family has been nothing but trouble for you.” Frank’s eyes were teary with gratitude.

“That’s not true, Frank. I owe you and your family something. I realized that you were right, that I was in the wrong chase.”

She kissed Frank twice, first on the forehead and then on the lips, delicately, yet with a force that seemed like it could be passion but also might merely be a deep empathy.

Before Frank understood what was happening, she turned and left the room. He never saw her again. Frank sank again into a deep sleep, full of visions and inspiration for how he could find his family. When he woke up, he was ready to check out of the hospital. He knew what he needed to do.