What Now

37| Aftermath

I continued to pace a whole in the floor of Maria's hospital room. After Sean and I came here with the ambulance, they did a thorough workup on Maria. She had a small head wound from when Jonathon pushed her into the wall. They did a CT scan, along with an MRI, just to be safe.

They said she had a mild concussion and wanted to keep her overnight just for observation. According to the doctors, she should have woken up already. Now, I was getting more anxious by the second.

Michael, Sean, and Caffrey were in the waiting room. When we first got here, I was forced to wait with the others. Michael originally stayed behind to find out if our father was alive or dead after I shot him. I remembered the event clearly. I had aimed for his shoulder, hoping to injure rather than kill. Once he was on the ground, I grabbed Maria and struggled to get her out of that hotel.

We almost made it to the entrance when I heard Jonathon's booming voice behind me. Most of the hotel had been evacuated, so it was only us in the lobby. That's when I saw the police officer approaching from the back. He ordered Jonathon to freeze and drop his weapon. When my father turned on the officer and pointed his gun at him, the officer had no choice but to shoot. The bullet hit Jonathon in the chest and he had collapsed onto the floor.

The police officer escorted me to the entrance where Caffrey was waiting. I had never been more happy to see him in my life. The EMTs came rushing in and started checking Maria while Caffrey took me to Sean. Then the rest was history. I checked in with Ellie and her boyfriend to make sure they were okay. She assured me she was fine and was at Sean's apartment with Anne. Sean explained to me that the bomb squad was able to find the explosive that Jonathon had planted and it was disarmed. No one was hurt.

It still disturbed me that Jonathon was in the hospital somewhere. With his illness, the gunshots were too much for him and he was in a coma. His prognosis wasn't good, and I honestly didn't care. He didn't deserve my forgiveness or to get better. He got what he deserved. Poor Ryan Sweeny was still in the ICU with no clear signs of regaining consciousness. He may have deserved punishment for drugging Ellie's drink and harassing me, but he didn't deserve what my father did to him. That was the work of a violent, murderous, psychopath. No, my father didn't deserve anything that would give him the opportunity to hurt another person.

"Lydia?"

I stopped my pacing and turned to my mom's hospital bed. "You're awake? Oh my, God!" I raced to the bed and embraced her.

She winced, but returned my hug. "Gently, I'm a little sore and my head feels like I got hit by a train."

I pulled away and my emotions got the best of me. Tears came pouring from my eyes and I could barely get a word out. "I'm sorry, Mom. I'm so sorry!"

She frowned and covered my hand with her. "Lydia, stop that. Nothing is your fault. Is he-- Where is he? Are you alright?" She looked around the hospital room and her frown turned into panic. "I'm in a hospital. Am I alright?"

I explained everything to her. What happened in the hotel room when I shot him, the police shooting him in the lobby, his current health status. It was a lot for her to take. Her eyes went to the machines that she was hooked up to.

"Well, my vitals and everything look okay. I'll need to look at my chart and talk to the doctor when they come in." She struggled to sit up in the bed and I assisted her. "Thank you." She looked to me and I could see the concern she was feeling. "I would ask how you are, but I think I know the answer."

I glanced down and fidgeted with her blanked. "I'm okay. I mean-- I'm not okay, but I'm alive and unharmed. I was more worried about you and the others."