Brack had me call the hospital to check on Mack during our drive back to the apartment. They'd moved him to a private room and his mother answered with her surname.
Guilt over the reason she was at the hospital with her son swamped me. "Uhh, umm, this is Olivia Stradmore, a friend of Brack's. He's, ah, driving and he wanted me to check on Mack."
"Hi, Mom," Brack belted out from the driver's seat.
"Mom?" I mouthed. "I call her mom," he mouthed back.
I could hear the smile in her voice. "Tell Brack my boy's sleeping now but was awake for short intervals several times today. He asked me to wake him when Brack called. He was very insistent about it. He's sedated, though, so I don't think there's a chance of that for a few hours."
"We'll come by tonight," I told her.
"If he wakes again, I'll tell him. Thank you for calling, dear."
She wouldn't say that if she knew her son almost died because of me. I thanked her and ended the call.
