The Dark Ice Chronicles - The Magi

Chapter 7 - Can You Show Me Where It Hurts?

I drop my phone as soon as I hear what Evan has to say. As soon as I pick it up again, I simply tell her I’ll be there right away before hanging up.

Dad takes me to the hospital, no questions asked - although I do take the time to explain the situation to him. At least, as much of it as I know.

Ten minutes after Evan’s call, I’m in the emergency room, asking for her. The receptionist points deeper into the building, and after walking a few feet I see Evan, Adele, and Rachel sitting in a row, all looking scared and anxious. The three girls look up and see me, then subject me to a group hug.

“Hey, girls,” I say, making sure to return the hug to all three of them. “So what happened? You said it was-”

“Our parents,” Evan says. “They got into a car crash on 880 coming back from the holiday dinner. You might’ve heard about it - it was on the news this morning.”

“Three-car pile-up,” Adele says. “The people in the other two cars died, but Mom and Dad are still in surgery.”

Rachel sits back on her chair, rocking slowly back and forth.

“Oh my God,” I say. “Is there any chance they’ll live?”

“I hope so,” Evan says. “Oh God, I hope so.”

Harris walks around the corner at this point, carrying an armful of sweets. “Oh, hey, Jason,” he says. “Didn’t know you were here yet. If you want a snack, the vending machine’s that way. I got some change if you’d like it.”

“Um...okay. Thanks.” I take the two quarters Harris holds out and go to the vending machine, choosing to buy a Snickers. When I come back, the conversation resumes. “Are you all right, Evan?”

“I guess,” Evan says with a sigh. “Rachel’s pretty shaken up, though.”

I look at her and see her still rocking. “Why?”

Evan wrings her hands before answering. “Rachel...um...lost her parents this way. They died in a car accident a few years ago. She was really little - around four, I think. Mom and Dad tried to adopt her, but she ended up with some older single woman down in South Spellman instead.”

“And she sucks,” Rachel says. “That’s why I spend as much time with Adele and Evan as I can. And Uncle Aidan and Auntie Irene. Oh God…” Rachel’s voice trails off, and she looks down, clearly trying not to cry.

“It’s okay,” Adele says, hugging her cousin tightly.

“I really don’t want them to die,” Rachel says. “I don’t know what I’d do if we were separated.”

“They wouldn’t separate us,” Adele says. “Don’t worry.”

I turn to Evan. “They don’t really think your parents are gonna die, do they?”

“Who knows?” Evan sighs. “They haven’t said anything since they went in for surgery, and that was hours ago.”

She slumps in her seat, burying her face in her hands. I hesitate for only a moment before taking her hand in both of mine. On Evan’s other side, Harris does the same thing, but one-handed.

“Thanks, guys,” Evan says. “I needed that.”

“Evan Michaelsen?” A male nurse calls her name, and she disentangles herself from me and Harris to stand up and speak to him.

“What’s goin’ on?” Evan asks. “Are my parents all right?”

The nurse takes a breath. “Um...your dad’s out of surgery, and he’s askin’ for you. As for your mom, they’re still workin’ on her. It’ll be another two hours at least.”