A Day in a Life

Chapter Thirty-Four

Sydni

I HEAR MOVEMENT around me, along with some type of awful beeping that’s echoing off the walls of my brain.

“Make it stop,” I say. My head is throbbing with a sharp, constant pain.

“Sydni? Are you awake? Say something else, baby. Anything.”

“Elijah? Is that you?”

“Yes, it’s me. I’m right here at your side. Everything’s going to be fine.”

I feel my hand inside of his. I feel his lips kissing each one of my fingers. I want to open my eyes, to see his handsome face. The excruciating pain in my head stops me from doing anything besides drifting back into blessed darkness.

The next time I come to my senses, it’s Elijah’s voice that brings me out of the dark place I’m living in.

“Sydni, it’s time to wake up now. C’mon, Syd. You can do it.”

The effort to open my eyes feels monumental. I feel my eyebrows lift in an effort to get my eyelids to follow. It doesn’t work.

I hear a female voice say, “Is she awake?”

“Yes, and she’s speaking.” That’s Elijah.

“That’s excellent news. I’ll let the doctor know.”

Doctor? Where am I? What’s wrong with me? An adrenaline rush helps my eyes pop open. My view is blurry at first, then Elijah comes into focus. He’s looking at me with a concerned expression.

“Hey,” he says with a warm smile.

“Hey,” I mimic. “What happened to me?”

“What’s the last thing you remember?” Elijah kisses my forehead. I remember that I love his forehead kisses. That’s progress.

The pounding in my head interferes with my memories. I have to think hard to recall what I was last doing. My thoughts are a jumbled mess.

Then it hits me.

Cole.

I went to Cole’s house.

“Cole?”

“Yes. Good job, sweetheart. You’re remembering things. That’s a good sign.”

“A good sign of what?” What’s so amazing about remembering where I was last?

“That you’re going to be okay.” Elijah caresses my arm in a comforting motion.

His touch brings me to another level of consciousness. “Why does my head hurt like crazy?”

“You suffered a pretty hard blow to the head.”

“How?” I don’t remember hurting my head.

“You were speaking with Cole,” Elijah prompts.

Small flashes of memory wander through my bruised brain. I was talking with Cole, trying to pretend I wasn’t scared. I was trying to get him to say something. So many memories rush into my head at once, it hurts. Like someone just opened up my skull to pour ice water inside.

“Did you get Cole on tape? He admitted he told my family I was fine. It’s proof I called him. We got him, right?”

“Yes, we got him.” Elijah doesn’t say anything more.

“Is he in jail?” I want to know what happened.

“What else do you remember?”

I feel like my entire face squishes together while I think especially hard to get my brain to function. “Wait. Cole said something strange. He said, ‘Do it. Hard. As hard as you can.’ Then I remember feeling intense pain before I blacked out and…hold up. Was Cole telling someone to hit me? Who else was in the room? I didn’t see anyone else.”

“It was his girlfriend. She hit you on the head.” Elijah’s so solemn, so serious. It’s not his usual self.

“So Cole really did want me dead? I don’t understand. How could he do that to me? I thought there was no way he’d ever hurt me. I was so wrong.”

Elijah squeezes my hand. “He was your husband, the man who was supposed to love you. Of course you didn’t think he’d hurt you.”

“You knew. You knew, and you tried to warn me. I’m sorry I didn’t listen.”

“It’s over. Don’t worry about it now. Just concentrate on getting better.” His eyes are only for me.

I nod, making the room spin. “As long as Cole’s in jail.”

Elijah’s expression is odd. I can’t read him.

“Cole is in jail, right?” I ask. “He told his girlfriend to hurt me.”

“Let’s worry about Cole later.”

“No, I want to talk about Cole now. Where is he? What’s wrong? Did he run away? Is he on the loose?” Is he after me?

“No.” Elijah’s face is a mask of stone.

“What’s wrong? I can tell just by looking at you that something’s wrong. What are you not telling me?”

“I promise to tell you everything when you’re better. Right now, just concentrate on you.”

“I won’t be able to rest until you tell me everything.” Now that I’m awake, I have to know what happened.

“Syd, it will upset you. Not a little bit. A lot. Now isn’t the time. Your health is most important.”

“A lot? It will upset me a lot? Why?” Dread washes through my veins.

“While you were unconscious, the world went a little crazy. We’ll talk about it later.” He puts me off again.

“No. I want to know everything right now. What happened?”

Elijah leans over me, his hand caressing my cheek. “It was an accident, Sydni. Ry and I broke a window to get into the house. We knew something had happened to you and that there was a third person in the room. We rushed in with our guns pointed at them. I thought they’d killed you. They were discussing what they should do with your body. We surprised Cole. I mean he was in total shock. He took a few steps backward, tripped, and fell. He hit his head on the corner of the marble coffee table on the way down.” Elijah pauses. “He didn’t make it, Syd.”

“Didn’t make it? What do you mean?” My breath starts coming in waves, as though breathing is taking over my body, and it’s the only thing I know how to do.

“Take a deep breath, now hold it, then let it out.” Elijah has me do this several times. “Feeling calmer?”

“Yes. C-Cole?”

“He was pronounced dead on the scene. He broke his neck, died on impact.”

“Wait. He’s dead?” I ask, confused, as though I don’t know what the word dead means.

“Yes. He’ll never hurt you again. You’re safe now.”

“I’m safe now,” I repeat, feeling numb.

Cole and his girlfriend tried to kill me. Why should I feel sorry for him? I felt nothing for him when I saw him for the first time in seven years. Why am I upset?

“I didn’t mean for that to happen. That wasn’t my intention at all.” I hated him, but I didn’t want him to lose his life. In spite of everything, a few tears slip down my cheeks. “I wasn’t trying to hurt him, I swear.”

“I know. Everyone knows it was a freak accident.”

“Everyone? Even my family?” I ask.

“Yes, your family has been informed. Now that you’re awake, I’m sure they’ll be here soon. Your father had to rush home from a business trip, and your mother has taken the news rather hard. It might take her a little time before she feels well enough to come here. She’s taken to her bed.”

“Taken to her bed?”

“She thought you were dead all this time,” Elijah reminds me.

I barely nod, knowing it’ll hurt. “I guess it is quite the shock. What about Hannah? My sister. Has she been here?”

“No, she hasn’t. This has all been a surprise to her too.”

“So no one’s been here to see me?” I don’t understand. I’ve literally come back from the dead and my family’s not here?

“I’ve been here the whole time. I haven’t left your side.”

My thoughts turn to Elijah, the intense way he’s looking at me, the way he’s stroking my cheek. He loves me. I know he does.

“Thank you. I love having you at my side.”

He kisses my forehead again, lingering the way he always does.

“Is this how you protect my best friend?”

We both look toward the door of my room to find Penny standing there with her hands on her hips.

We don’t have a chance to say anything before she rushes to my bedside, hugging me so tightly it hurts. The next thing I know, she’s sobbing. “Sydni, I’m so happy you’re alive. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you. It’ll never happen again. I’m going to be there for you so much, you’re going to be sick of me. I love you, girl.”

“Love you too, Penny.”

“Why didn’t you call me? I would’ve been there for you in a heartbeat,” Penny says through her tears.

“I know. I always knew I could call you. I wanted to, I really did. But I had to start over. I had to leave my old life behind. It was the only way I could survive. I’m sorry.”

“No apologies. You did what you had to do. It was the right thing for you at the time. I’m super proud of you for putting yourself first. Hannah could hardly handle all the attention you got. It was a beautiful thing.”

I want to laugh, to delight in Hannah’s jealousy for a change. But the emotion isn’t there. All I ever wanted was her love.

“I can’t believe Cole did this to you. If he wasn’t already dead, I’d go take care of him myself. What a jerk. And Hannah? Unbelievable. How could she do that to you?” Penny splutters.

I notice Elijah shaking his head toward Penny. “Hannah?” I question. “What did Hannah do?”

‘Oh, uh, let’s not worry about Hannah,” Penny says, as though she’s scrambling to change the subject. “Let’s worry about you. How are you feeling? You look pale, but otherwise you’re looking good. That bandage around your head is especially stylish. I’m so glad you’re okay. This guy right here,” Penny nods toward Elijah, “He’s your hero. He’s kept you safe. He’s pretty cute too. Lucky girl.”

My eyes wander from Penny to Elijah. I repeat, “What did Hannah do? Please don’t avoid the question.” Elijah won’t meet my eyes. “Hey, no more secrets, remember?” I say.

“I’ll tell you every single detail after you walk out of this hospital, good as new. That’s a promise.” He finally looks me in the eyes.

“I’d like to know now, please,” I insist. “My head hurts, but I’m going to be okay, right?”

“Right,” Elijah repeats.

“Then tell me everything now. Leave nothing out. Just give it to me straight.” I don’t want to be treated like I’m fragile. Even though I know my emotions are like a fancy vase teetering on the edge of a counter.

“Okay, I admit it,” Penny blurts. “I followed Elijah to Key West. I spied on the two of you. I couldn’t believe you were alive. Elijah made me go home. He said I was putting your life in danger. But you looked so happy with Elijah. I knew you were going to be okay.”

My eyes ping-pong between the two of them, making me dizzy again.

“Is that true?” I ask Elijah.

“Yes,” he says, his tone subdued.

Okay. He was protecting me. I can handle that. “What else do I not know? Please tell me. I’d rather hear it all right here, right now. Piecemeal is going to kill me.” Secretly, I’m wondering how bad this is going to get.

“Syd…” Elijah begins.

I know he’s going to present some type of argument in an attempt to change my mind. “Please. After everything I’ve been through, I can handle it.”

“Not this, sweetie,” Penny says, patting my shoulder. “Not this.”

Elijah lets out his breath and closes his eyes. “All right. I’ll tell you everything. Just be prepared to hear some hard things.”

Hard things? I’ve been through hard things. “Go on.”

“Do you remember Cole’s girlfriend? The one you met when you arrived home from the hospital?”

“The one in my bed? Yes.” It’s imprinted on my mind forever.

“She was a smoke screen,” Elijah states flatly. “She’s been taken into custody for questioning.”

Penny continues to pat my shoulder while I hear her crying softly. I love my sweet, emotional friend.

“A smoke screen for what?” I ask.

“His real fiancée.”

“That sounds like something Cole would do. What? Was she already married?”

“Yes. They kept their relationship a secret for many years.”

Something inside of me stops. I don’t know what, but something stops working. “How many years?”

“The whole time you were married until Cole lost his life.”

Wait. “The whole time? The entire time?” What am I saying? They both mean the same thing.

“Yes, the entire time, if not before as well. She had his baby.”

My body is shutting down. I feel it happen, one thing after another, as though someone is switching off light switches inside of me. “He wanted the baby?”

“He did.”

“Oh.” He didn’t want our baby. Not at all.

“Sydni, the baby is Lily.”

When will I learn to listen to Elijah? To trust him? He was right. I can’t handle this right now. “You mean…Cole and Hannah?”

“Yes.”

I feel Penny rubbing my shoulder. I feel Elijah holding my hand, caressing me with his thumb. These are my people. I’m not alone anymore. I wish it could bring me comfort.

“Are you saying it was Hannah who…”

“Hit you? Yes, it was Hannah.”

I remain eerily calm. “And they were discussing what to do with my body?”

“Yes.”

“So Hannah’s in jail and Cole is dead.” It’s a statement, not a question.

“Yes.” Elijah is keeping to the facts, not sugarcoating a single thing.

“And Liam has the children?” I ask.

“Yes. He’s with his parents back East. He doesn’t plan to return to California.”

“And my mother is grieving for Hannah? And the children? That’s why she’s taken to her bed?”

“Yes.”

“But she knows I’m alive?” I think this question is the hardest one yet.

“Yes.”

“I see.” I don’t cry. I roll over onto my side and stare at the wall. Elijah still holds my hand. Penny is rubbing my back.

I feel nothing.