Outside the room, Jake was talking to the doctors that attended to Charlie. After a brief discussion, he shook their hands and walked back to the room and opened the door.
He first saw Lucian standing in front of Charlie's bed, leaning back against the wall with his arms crossed on his chest as he watched Violette by the bedside tightly holding onto Charlie's hand. She kept her eyes fixed on his happy, smiling face as if she wanted to etch every detail of that moment into her mind.
Jake let out a tired sigh before he walked inside and spoke to the couple. "I've talked to doctors, and I'll take care of all the formalities here. You guys should go back and get some rest." He turned to the girl by the bedside and tapped her shoulder. "Especially you Violette, you've been here since the morning."
He then turned to Lucian and spoke again. "I will contact the memorial services and arrange everything but I have to inform a few of his close associates first, so the funeral will be held after two days. I'll contact you again at that time."
Lucian gave him a nod and stood straight as Jake once again turned to Violette. "Violette, do you hear me? Go get some rest and let me handle things here."
Violette bobbed her head in agreement and reluctantly let go of Charlie's hand. She then picked up her handbag and coat from the ground as she stood up.
She slung the bag across her shoulder and laid the coat on her arm before she reached out and grabbed a black elbow crutch placed at the side of the bed. She passed her arm through the arm cuff at the top and gripped the handle as she stepped away and walked towards the door without a backward glance.
Lucian gave a gentle pat on Jake's shoulder as he walked past and grabbed his jacket before he turned around. "Call me if there is anything I can do."
"Sure, now go." Jake smiled and shooed him away.
Lucian walked out of the door and fell in step beside his wife as they quietly made their way out of the hospital. As they reached the entrance, Lucian took two quick steps forward and turned to her.
"Could you wait here? I'll bring the car around. I'll be just a minute." Lucian said as he walked towards the parking lot without waiting for Violette's answer.
And true to his word, in under a minute a silver SUV rolled to a stop in front of Violette. Lucian leaned over and opened the passenger side door as he watched her with anticipation.
Violette stood there in contemplation as she bit her lower lip and hesitated for a while. She then took a deep breath and folded her crutch into a convenient size before she stuffed it into her bag and hopped into the car.
Lucian waited until she was comfortable in her seat before he put the car into motion. The nighttime traffic was relatively less so their journey was smooth and the atmosphere inside the car was similarly quiet as both of them stayed silent.
After ten minutes into the ride, Lucian stopped the car at a red light and finally decided to break the silence.
"So, where-" He turned to Violette and began to speak but held himself when he saw Violette leaning her head onto the window glass, asleep, with her hair still hiding a better part of her face.
He watched her quietly for a while and unconsciously raised his hand as he reached out to push her hair aside. But then he noticed the vehicles on the either side move past them and came to himself. He quickly withdrew his hand, shifted the gear and accelerated the SUV as he drove them away.
- -
After another 30 minutes of smooth drive, Lucian slowed down as he pulled his SUV into a parking lot and stopped in one of the empty spots. He turned off the engine and looked at his passenger who was still peacefully asleep.
He once again slipped into a daze as he quietly watched his wife doze off and he himself got lost in the moment.
In the silent atmosphere, he could faintly hear her snores and the soft sound of her breath made him feel as if a feather was tickling his heart. A small smile formed on his face as he shook his head and removed the keys from the ignition. He then quietly opened the door, got out and made his way to the other side of the car.
He slowly opened the door but before he could realize, Violette who was asleep leaning onto the door fell out sideways because of the lack of support. However, Lucian moved quickly and caught her in time in a smooth manner without waking her.
He let out a breath of relief and gently scooped her into his arms, with her coat and bag still in her lap. He pushed the door close with his leg and locked the car as he carried Violette and walked towards the RV parked across.
He stopped by its door and shuffled the keys in his hand before he pushed it into the keyhole and unlocked it. He opened the door, climbed inside the RV and made his way to the back.
Inside the dark interior, Lucian gently placed Violette down on the bed and tried to put her coat and bag away when Violette furrowed her brows and started to struggle.
"No… No, stop..." She cried in a half asleep state and began to push Lucian away. "No, don't-"
Lucian immediately stepped away to turn on the lights and then sat by her side as he tried to calm her down.
"Violette… Violette…" he called out to her as sat her up straight and shook her shoulders in an attempt to wake her. "Wake up, Violette! Wake up!"
"No… Get away from me-" Violette continued to move about in her sleep and strongly shoved at Lucian before she jolted awake with a gasp.