35 Perplexing news
Zoey’s whole head is bandaged and her face is purple all over. On her arm is a drip and a thing on one finger attached to a machine that monitors her heartbeat and signals it. The bed is lifted at the feet’s end and under the sheet, it sounds if something is doing something with her leg. Now and then it makes a strange noise.
Surprised Zoey looks up and sees Chloe next to her bed. She lifts her trembling free hand and Chloe takes it quickly into her own hands, bends forward and cautiously lands a light peck on her purple cheek.
Zoey looks into Chloe’s eyes while tears flow freely and with a trembling lower lip speaks very slowly. “Chloe, I can’t remember anything. I only remember I had to take Lyle after lunch to his hostel. The rest is dark, doesn’t matter how hard I try to remember. I feel so damn weak. I struggle even to lift my arms and speaking is difficult. My hip and back hurt continuously and that contraption under the sheet is moving my left leg continually. They must help me with everything. I cannot do anything for myself and it is frustrating!”
Chloe sits down tightly against her bed while she holds her hand. She struggles to hold back her tears. It feels as if it is a dam wall about to collapse inside her. She is a huddle of emotions but the overbearing emotions, thankfulness and happiness, are wrestling within her. Although, deep sorrow and pain grip her heart because her sis must bear so much and this small, fragile figure in front of her strengthens the heartache all the more at this moment.
Chloe gives her hand a light squeeze. “I am now so happy because I worried so much whether you would survive and come back to us, Zoey. We didn’t even know whether all your goodies will function correctly. But they ensured me today that you will recover completely and that is the only thing that matters now!”
Zoey smiles for a split second, but then she frowns. “Chloe, when can I see Lyle and Quinn? I understand Lyle wasn’t injured that badly and he is back at school but why doesn’t anyone find Quinn? Where is my husband? No one can tell me where he is. They only tell me he hadn’t been in the car with us. I drove and in one way or the other, we went over the cliff. What is going on, Chloe?”
Chloe is startled. She must think smartly now because they have decided to withhold all the bad news from her until she is stronger. They don’t want to negatively influence her willpower because it must be the driving force behind her recovery. They must give her the chance to start remembering things by herself and put it together. At this stage, she remembers very little about her and Quinn’s situation. To tell the truth, it seems as if her memories of him are still positive and Chloe wants to keep it like this. She will have to make up all sorts of white lies.
“Quinn had to go and sort out something very important, Zoey, and he then asked whether you could use the Toyota Venture to take Lye to the school in the meantime.”
“What was so urgent and where is he now?”
“It would have taken quite a few weeks for Quinn to sort it out and we arranged that you would move in with me in the meantime. I stay on a smallholding outside town and you would have moved in with me on return from the school. But then the accident happened.”
Zoey frowns and shakes her head slowly. “I wish I can remember! It is so frustrating! Why doesn’t anyone get hold of Quinn? Is he aware of the accident?”
“I think he is on one of those long safaris. You told us that he, from time to time, embark on one of the long 4x4 safaris in the wilderness where there is no phone signal.”
Zoey nods. “Yes, I begin to remember vaguely something about the safaris. You are right. Maybe he had to do a safari hastily. Frequently he got good opportunities and contacts with stinking rich businessmen. He was looking for someone who could lend him some money.”
“I am sure he will, as soon as he returns from the wilderness, find a signal and will rush over here to see you.”
“Chloe, I so badly want to see Lyle, but allow me to become stronger. Look at how my hands are trembling! I don’t want him to see me like this.”
“Let’s see how you feel by the end of the week, Zoey. As soon as you are ready, I shall fetch him for a visit over the weekend. We are not allowed to use smartphones near these machines, or else I would have let you phone him right away. May I phone him tonight in the meantime to tell him you came out of the coma?”
“It is a pity, but yes, phone him, please. What happened that we went over the cliff? Did the brakes fail? I can’t remember anything. Where did we go over and how were we found?”
“Yes, I think the brakes failed and when you didn’t return and I heard nothing from you, I searched for you and found you.”
“Where had we gone over? Surely not at the top! No one would have survived it.”
“At the top. Luckily you landed on trees and hung against the rock face. When I yelled over the abyss the sounds echoed against the cliffs and Lyle yelled back. It is a miracle you survived, Zoey.”
Wide-eyed Zoey remarks: “Oh, my goodness! It must have been an abhorrent experience for my son. Had he been stranded there against the cliff with me unconscious next to him?”
Chloe smiles happily. “Yes, and our little Iron Man looked after you very well and I am sure when he visits you he will have a lot to tell you.”
The tears again flow freely over Zoey’s purple cheeks and Chloe again squeezes her hand gently. “It’s okay. The worst is past and these experiences will only make that we respect and value one another even more, my dear.”
~*~*~
Isaac follows Chloe from the hospital in his BMW. Chloe had already prepared their supper beforehand and only needs to warm it up in the microwave. From now on it will be their routine until, over a few weeks, Zoey will be moved to another hospital where the therapists will strengthen her hips before she could finally be dismissed. Even then she’ll have to go for practice sessions weekly until she can help herself with Chloe’s assistance.
Chloe phoned Lyle and conveyed the good news and had to wait while he yelled like a squealing pig on the other side and maybe danced out of joy before she promised to come and fetch him for a weekend as soon as Zoey is ready.
They are still eating when Chloe’s smartphone rings. It doesn’t show who is calling.
“Good evening. Chloe Eastwood here.”
“Hello Chloe, it is Hunter.”
Chloe immediately puts the phone on the table on loudspeaker. “Hello Hunter, we are at the table again. I’m putting the phone on the table between us and we can talk through the loudspeaker.”
“Hello, Isaac!”
Isaac looks up from where he is sitting still enjoying his meal and he smiles. “Hunter, good to hear from you! Any news for us?”
“I discovered very interesting things, but first tell me how are things over there? How is Zoey?”
Chloe sounds like a small girl that has just picked up a huge bag of sweets. “Zoey is going to recover fully, Hunter. She is speaking normally now. I had to invent quite a few white lies to spare her from the rubbish Quinn had done, etcetera, until she is much stronger.”
“Now, this is fantastic news! I understand she broke her hip, so recovery will take quite a while and will be painful.”
Isaac nods his head conformingly while he answers: “Yes, Hunter, but she is lucky. Chloe is going to help her and sometimes I shall be with them.”
“Wonderful! Listen, on a different note, I must tell you something very important. Don’t send any messages to my phone. We will also not be able to talk privately over my phone. I discovered that I am being spied upon and being eavesdropped. My smartphone and Yvonne’s landline is not safe. That’s why you don’t recognize this number, Chloe. I had to buy a cheap phone via a friend of Yvonne and use her Pay As You Go SIM so that I can call you privately without eavesdropping.”
Chloe’s eyes widen. “Goodness, Hunter, what is going on? Why was it necessary to borrow someone else’s SIM?”
“These people are very advanced and even have contacts within the telecommunication networks and the moment I register a SIM, they will use that SIM to monitor my movements, to eavesdrop and to check my contacts. I left my own SIM in my phone to lead them astray. They think they are following my movements but it really is Yvonne or her friend that moves around with my phone.”
Chloe shakes her head. “Unbelievable! Hunter, take good care of yourself!”
“I have my hands full. There is a spy in the police force who fishes out everything I do and all the time follows me like a tail and I subtly have to shake him off before I can carry on with my sensitive research, but at this stage I am one step ahead and discovered very interesting facts. I am hot on their heels.”
Chloe is now very inquisitive: “On whose tracks are you, Hunter?”
Hunter suddenly sounds very rushed and talks quickly. “Chloe, I have little time. Listen carefully, it definitely wasn’t suicide. Quinn was murdered by the same people who pushed Zoey and Lyle over the cliff. Don’t tell anybody! Keep it between us! The rest must still believe it was suicide, okay? I must even keep this from the police for now. And do you still remember the other secrets: name them for me.”
Chloe obeys. “No one should know about my relationship with Isaac and that I hired you.”
“And very important, Chloe, don’t tell anybody about Zoey’s recovery. For now, keep it a secret.”
“Why, Hunter, what is going on?”
“And then quickly one thing before I go: has anything strange happened at your place, Chloe? Something I am not aware of?”
Chloe frowns. “No, Hunter, not again so far. But what is going on?”
“Sorry I must go now. I shall phone you on my cheap phone, cheers!”
The call has ended and amazed they frown at each other.