Alora woke up in another hospital room. She looked around an saw a heart monitor beside her bed as well as tubes, wires and breathing equipment that have been connected to her body.
'What am I doing here? Is this an ICU facility?' It was virtually impossible for her to think when her head hurt so much.
She turned her head and saw a doctor speaking with Len, Josie, Uncle Ash and Charles. She strained her ears just to listen to their conversation. But no matter how she tried, she couldn't hear anything.
She closed her eyes and drifted back to sleep.
"How is she doing, Doc?" Charles asked.
"Well, she has temporarily lost her voice and hearing. She is a lot weaker and her mental strain is not any better." The doctor pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose.
"However, she complains of hearing voices. She isn't mentally insane but she might have auditory hallucinations, coupled with traumatic brain injury."
"So, what have you deduced from this?" Josie asked.
"She has traumatic brain injury, auditory hallucinations and is in a persistent vegetative state of coma." The doctor walked over to check her heart monitor.
"She's alive and will be alright. But, she is in a state where an individual with severe brain damage appears to be awake but shows no evidence of awareness of their surroundings."
The doctor strode out of the room, leaving the four dumbfounded. Josie rushed to Alora's side and held her hand.
"You will get through this, Lora. I know you can do it." But she had no expression and just layed there"I think she needs some space." Charles took his sister and father out of the room.
"If you need me, I'll be there." Len quietly left the room and closed the door behind him.
Alora had been in a coma for a month, showing no signs of waking up. Her parents had flown over to visit her and left the kids in the care of Leslie.
Sean's funeral had been quickly planned and executed by his parents, although, it was a shame that Alora wasn't there. During that month, Austin would sneak into the hospital at night to see her.
But, he was becoming too busy and hired someone to pose as a nurse and watch her.
'If this continues, she'll die.'