Chapter 4 - Echoes in the Dark
The signal was faint, fluctuating between one bar and none as they wound through the dark mountain passes. Rachel held the phone to her ear, listening to the agonizingly long rings on the other end.
"St. Luke’s Memorial, West Virginia," a tired night-shift operator finally answered.
"Intensive Care Unit, please," Rachel said quickly. "This is Rachel Mercer. My father is Frank Mercer in room 312."
A brief pause, accompanied by the muffled clicking of a keyboard.
"Connecting you to the nurse's station."
Rachel held her breath, her hand shaking so hard Ethan reached across the console and laid his hand over hers. His palm was warm and solid, grounding her in the dark cabin. She looked at him, surprised by the gesture, but she didn't pull away.
"ICU, this is Nurse Vance," a female voice came through the speaker.
"Nurse Vance, it’s Rachel. Frank’s daughter."
"Oh, Rachel," the nurse’s tone softened with genuine sympathy. "Where are you?"
"I’m on the road. We had to take back roads because of the flooding. How is he? Is he... is he still with us?"
"He’s still holding on, honey," Nurse Vance replied softly. "His blood pressure is dipping, and his breathing is very shallow. Dr. Sterling gave him a small dose of morphine to keep him comfortable. He hasn't regained consciousness since this afternoon, but his vitals are stable for now."
Rachel felt a wave of dizzying relief, tears spilling over her lashes. "Tell him I'm on my way. Please, just lean down and whisper it in his ear. Tell him Rachel is in a car, coming as fast as she can."
"I’ll tell him right now," the nurse promised. "Drive safe, Rachel."
The call disconnected. Rachel leaned her head back against the headrest, letting the silent tears fall freely. "He’s still alive," she whispered to the windshield. "He’s waiting."
Ethan gently withdrew his hand, returning it to the wheel as he pushed the SUV up to seventy miles per hour along the wet, empty highway. "How far is Bluefield from the state line?"
"About forty miles once we cross into West Virginia," she said, wiping her face with the back of her wet sleeve. "Ethan... why did you do this? You don't even know me."
The rain had eased into a steady, gray drizzle. The headlights carved a long tunnel of light through the heavy mountain fog.
Ethan stared out into the grey expanse. "Because eleven years ago, I thought I was invincible."
His voice was flat, carrying a weight that had clearly settled deep into his bones long ago.
"I was building my company," Ethan said softly. "Working eighty hours a week. I measured my worth by quarterly reports, logistics networks, and acquisitions. My mother lived alone in a small house in Savannah. She used to call me every Sunday at eight in the evening. It was our routine."
He paused, his jaw working as he swallowed the bitter memory.
"One Sunday, I was in the middle of closing a forty-million-dollar deal with a syndicate from Chicago. My phone rang. It was her. I looked at the screen, pressed ignore, and sent a automated text saying I was busy."
Rachel watched his profile. She could see the agony in the tight set of his lips.
"She died that night," Ethan continued, his voice dropping into a rough whisper. "A brain aneurysm. Quick, the doctors said. But when they found her, her phone was still in her hand. She had tried to call me one last time while she was falling. And I was standing in a air-conditioned room in Atlanta, drinking expensive scotch and celebrating a contract."
"Ethan..." Rachel began gently.
"I didn't make it to the hospital," he cut her off, his eyes burning with an old, unquenched fire. "I didn't get to say goodbye. I didn't get to tell her I loved her. I didn't get to hold her hand while she took her last breath. I bought her a million-dollar memorial garden. I renamed a medical center after her. And every single night when I close my eyes, I still hear her phone ringing."
He turned his head slightly, meeting Rachel’s gaze for a fleeting second. "So when I heard you standing by that cinderblock wall, begging your dad to wait... I realized I had all the money in the world, and none of it could buy back that Sunday night for me. But maybe... maybe it could buy it for you."
Rachel’s chest tightened with a profound, aching compassion. The wealthy, cold man in the expensive coat was gone. In his place sat a broken son who had been running from a phone call for over a decade.
May you like
"She knew you loved her, Ethan," Rachel said softly. "Parents know. Even when we’re foolish, even when we’re busy... they know."
Ethan didn't reply, but his fingers gripped the leather wheel a little tighter as the SUV rounded a sharp mountain curve, crossing the state line into West Virginia.
