Forlot: True and False - Book Four {Completed}

Chapter Twenty-Seven

We rushed Mr. Hawk and Dr. O'Connor into the hospital. As we passed the parking lot, I saw something from the corner of my eye.

Or should I say, did not see.

Ava's car was not there.
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Ava did not care about finding a parking space or parking in one. She parked by the entrance and hurried out of the car. We dashed out as well and helped Caleb to the hospital.
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We burst in, and Laura demanded for help. Two nurses - they were the same ones who assisted us with Caleb - hurried to us.

"My word!" one of the nurses exclaimed. "What is going on here?"

"We witnessed two men who were shot," Mrs. Sanders said calmly. "Their names are Mitchell and...Henry."

"Goodness gracious!" the other nurse exclaimed in a high-pitched voice.

We handed Mr. Hawk and Dr. O'Connor to them. Like what they did to Caleb, the nurses set them on two hospital beds and rolled them down the hall.
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Three doctors and two nurses hurried to where we were.

"What is going on here?" one of the nurses asked us.

"My friend." Ava motioned to Caleb. "We all found him shot and bleeding on the floor."

"My goodness," the other nurse said.

The two nurses grabbed ahold of Caleb and set him on a hospital bed that was nearby. They wheeled him away.
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"And handcuff Henry, the one who is wearing the glasses, to the bed," Laura warned. "He is a criminal." She spun around to look at us. "You kids can return to the mansion. I will stay here."

"What about the killer?" Scarlett reminded her.

"K-killer?" Maxine stammered.

"I do not think that we have to worry about the killer anymore."

"Why?" I asked. "Was the killer caught?"

"I hope so." She scratched the back of her head. "I believe that Henry O'Connor is the one responsible for attempting to murder Hugo Maxwell...as much as I do not like Hugo."

"How do you know Dr. O'Connor and Dr. Maxwell?" Nigel questioned. "Especially Dr. Maxwell?"

She sighed heavily. "I...will tell you guys later. I am too worried about Mitchell." She went to the waiting room and sat in a chair.

I narrowed my eyebrows as we followed her into the waiting room. Something - or should I say, somebody - was missing.

Ava.
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Stay in the waiting room," one of the doctors ordered. "We will do our best to save him."

Ava nodded. "He was shot between the chest and stomach." Tears formed in her eyes. "Please...he is my closest friend."

The three doctors followed the two nurses, and we stayed in the waiting room.

We were all shaking. Catching our breaths. Trying to calm ourselves down.

Ava wiped her tears off. "This is my fault," she said. "I was outside. Behind my house...doing important things...and this..."
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Ava was not here, and her car was gone.

Where was she?

"We are more than happy to stay with you, Mrs. Sanders," Scarlett insisted. "It is no problem at all."

Mrs. Sanders shook her head. "I will be fine. You kids ought to go back."

"I am staying with you, Mom," Nigel said. "We can talk and catch up on things." I tapped his shoulder, and he looked at me. "What is it?"

"We need to talk," I told him. I motioned to Margie and Gretel, and all three of them followed me out of the room.

Nigel crossed his arms. "What is it that you wanted to talk about?"

I ran a hand through my hair. "I have not seen Ava. Have any of you?"

"Now that you mention it, I did not see her anywhere," Margie stated. Nigel and Gretel did not recall seeing her either.

"Her car was not in the parking lot. Do you think that...she left?"

"Why in the world would she leave?" my twin commented. "She was pretty worried about Caleb."

I shrugged. "Maybe she could not take it."

Margie let out a whoosh of air. "Or...Caleb is..."

We all gasped. We feared for the worst.

Caleb...died.

"We should check," I suggested. "Just for the readers."

We asked a doctor where Caleb Night was. The doctor pointed at a room that was down the hallway and told us that he was in there. We thanked him and went on our way.

The door was already open, so we walked in.

There was Caleb. He was in bed, and his eyes were closed.

I glanced up at the monitor that he was connected to. It was beeping. I let out a sigh of relief.

Caleb was alive...

...but how much longer until he was...dead?

"While we are here, we might as well heal him," Margie suggested.

"We cannot," I said. "Ava took the red and purple stones. Besides..." I reached into the pocket of my shorts and took out the green stone. "...this is a green stone, not the yellow one."

"What?" Gretel said. She examined the stone. "You did not get the yellow stone?"

"How could I when there was no yellow stone?"

"We need to find Ava," Nigel said. "And someone should stay with Caleb and watch him."

"I will stay with him."

We spotted Karla coming into the room. She put her hands on her hips.

"Is this a friend of yours?" she asked.

I slowly nodded. I was hoping that she did not overhear our entire conversation. "Yes. A dear friend of ours."

"I will be happy to stay with him until you all return. Where are you going anyway?"

"An errand," the Monster Protector responded quickly. "And we need to clear our minds. Get some fresh air."

"I understand. See you guys later."

We soon left the hospital and dashed to Ava's house. We arrived about fifteen minutes later and entered. The lights were off.

"Ava?" I called.

"Mmm!"

"Hmm?" What was the muffling?

The lights suddenly flickered on...

...and we saw Sarah tied up and gagged.