I felt my nostrils burning as I stared at him and I knew I was going to cry. I turned into him, pressed my forehead against his shoulder, breathing deep to control the tears and his arms went around me.
We stayed that way for a long time and I managed to hold back the tears. He let me go and I took his hand.
We stood together, Vance looking out the window, me standing beside him. Daisy arrived with Marcus; Shirleen arrived with Darius; Ally arrived with Carl; Tex arrived with Nancy; Duke arrived with Dolores; Heavy and Zip came separately. May charged in like a madwoman, tears streaming down her face. Finally Tod and Stevie walked in carrying enough donuts from some all night Winchell’s to feed an army.
Coffees were bought. Eddie or Hank, badges on display on their belts, walked to the nurse’s station and asked (okay, more like demanded) updates even though there were none to be had.
Then the kids started coming. First Clarice, Daisy’s friend came in alone and sat down next to Daisy. Daisy put her head on Clarice’s shoulder and I didn’t know that it was a small miracle that Clarice didn’t move away.
Then another couple kids came in, two young boys who took a look around, their eyes hit Sniff then Vance then they walked to a wall, slouched against it and stayed silent.
Then another kid came in then a couple more then a gaggle of girls, a posse of boys, after awhile the room was filled with the Rock Chick Tribe and Jules’s kids.
All of us silent or talking quietly, sipping coffee and eating donuts.
All of us waiting.
All the while Vance looked out the window while I held his hand.
* * * * *
Indy
Dawn was breaking when the doctor walked in wearing clean scrubs and Crocs. He looked around the room, filled to capacity with people and Nick stood. I stood with him.
“Juliet Lawler?” the doctor asked the room at large.
Lee came up beside me but I moved close to Nick.
“Me. Here. Me, I’m her uncle,” Nick said and he hadn’t spoken since we arrived so his voice was hoarse, croaky. He cleared his throat and I got closer.
The doctor walked to Nick. I saw a movement behind him as Vance materialized and stood at his side. Roxie was not far away, Hank at her back. Eddie and Jet moved in beside Lee.
The doctor stopped at Nick, his eyes scanning the crowd again, they settled on Nick and he said, “She’s pulled through. Your niece is a fighter. She’s in ICU, critical. We’ll watch her, but it looks good.”
I took Nick’s hand as his shoulders drooped and I squeezed. He squeezed back.
My eyes moved to Vance as Nick asked, “Can I see her?”
Vance’s body was tense but I was relieved to see his eyes were alert. They were alive. He was back from whatever hideous place he’d been for the last several hours. I wanted to smile, hell, I wanted to scream but I kept my mouth shut.
“A quick visit,” the doctor told Nick and started to move away.
“Roam!” We heard shouted and everyone’s eyes swung to Sniff.
The doctor turned back. “I’m sorry?” he said to Sniff.
“My friend, Roam. The black kid. He was shot too. Is he okay too?”
Everyone’s gaze swung to look at the doctor.
“Does he have family here?” the doctor asked.
Everyone looked at each other.
“Information can’t be released to anyone but family,” the doctor said.
Eddie and Hank both moved forward, information could be released to cops.
“Sho ‘nuff, he has family. I’m his grandma,” Shirleen lied through her teeth and bustled up to the doctor, “tell me, how’s my baby?”
The doctor stared at her a second then said, “I’ll find out.”
“You do that doctor,” Shirleen said and the doctor turned to Nick as Shirleen’s eyes slid to Sniff then she winked.
Nick let go of my hand and followed the doctor but stopped, looked at the floor behind him as if expecting to see something there then he lifted his eyes.
“Vance?” he called.
Everyone’s eyes swung to Vance but he was already moving towards the Nick.
Then they were out the door.
* * * * *
Jules
I opened my eyes and it seemed like I was lying in a bed but I felt absolutely nothing, like I had no body. I figured, since a little while ago I’d been in pretty significant pain and bleeding a lot and now I felt nothing, that I was dead and I decided kind of woozily that I was obviously an angel.
I saw movement so I looked sideways and there was Vance staring down at me.
His handsome face was tight, worried and maybe a little pissed off looking and my angel-self smiled at him because clearly I’d been given the chance to have a chat with Vance before I flew on my fancy, new, fluffy-white angel wings to heaven.
“Hey,” I said and my voice sounded really weak, raspy and quiet rather than sounding super sweet and melodic like an angel’s.
“Hey,” he replied.
“Do you see my angel wings?” I asked, my voice still sounding raspy. “Are they pretty?”
He stared at me a second then I was pretty certain his lips twitched.
“Yeah, Princess. They’re gorgeous.”
“Yay,” I whispered.
“You’re gonna be okay,” he told me.
“I know. I don’t feel my body.” I didn’t realize I wasn’t making any sense and wouldn’t have cared anyway. Angels probably didn’t have to make sense. They could fly around for eternity talking nonsense, who was to care?
I was thinking about my angel outfit, wondering what angels wore and tried to look down at myself but I found I didn’t have a lot of energy so I stopped trying and my eyes slid sideways to look back at Vance.
“This angel stuff is exhausting,” I informed him.
“I bet.” His lips weren’t twitching anymore. He was grinning flat out.
I really loved his grin.
That’s when I remembered.
“Did you get it?” I asked, realizing suddenly that I needed to take an angel nap and soon.
“Get what?”
“Home,” I said.
“Sorry, Princess, I can’t hear…”
My eyes closed and I didn’t have the energy to open them so I didn’t bother. I figured angels could fly blind. They had to have angel-like sonar or something like that. Anyway I would only bump into clouds even if I couldn’t fly blind and I didn’t figure clouds would hurt.
But before I took off to heaven, I had to know or more importantly, Vance had to know, so I said to Vance, my eyes still closed, “I said earlier ‘home’, did you get it?”