Free Running Blind by Shirlee McCoy

hurt.”
    â€œShe’s already been hurt many times. You can’t keep it from happening again.”
    â€œNo, but I can warn you that I’d take a dim view of anyone toying with my sister’s affections.”
    â€œThat’s an old-fashioned thing to say, Dougherty.”
    â€œI’m an old-fashioned guy.”
    He was also a brother with a younger sister he worried about. That, at least, was something Nikolai could identify with. “I have no intention of toying with anything.”
    â€œI’m glad to hear that. Come on. It looks like radiology is this way.” They turned down a long corridor, walked through double doors and nearly bumped into Jenna’s parents.
    â€œKane. Nikolai. Glad we ran into you. Jenna is on the way back up to her room.” Jenna’s father looked worn, his eyes shadowed.
    â€œHow is she?” Kane asked the question Nikolai wanted to and frowned as Richard shook his head.
    â€œWe won’t know until the doctor finishes reviewing the CAT scan results.”
    â€œHow long will that be?”
    â€œAn hour or so.”
    â€œThat’s an hour too long.”
    â€œI’m sure your sister feels the same way. We promised her a hamburger and a milk shake while she waits. How about we all go to the cafeteria and see if they have anything resembling that?”
    â€œOne of us should be up there with her.” Kane spoke up, and Nikolai knew that any of the Doughertys would be happy to sit by Jenna’s side. Whether or not she wanted them there was another story. The last thing Nikolai had wanted when he’d been confined to a hospital bed was sympathetic family sitting beside him watching with sad-eyed concern.
    â€œWhy don’t I go up?” he asked, and all three family members turned their attention his way.
    â€œI think Jenna would be more comfortable with one of us there.” Kane responded before his parents could.
    â€œActually,” his mother broke in, “Jenna insisted that we all get something to eat before we joined her. She’s got a splitting headache, and she wants some time for the pain medicine to kick in.”
    â€œI’ll wait outside the room, then, until she’s feeling better.” Because there was no way Nikolai was going to let her lie alone in a room waiting for whoever had shot at her to find her there.
    â€œThat’s a wonderful idea, Nikolai. Would you like us to bring you something to eat or drink?” Once again, Mrs. Dougherty spoke up, offering a smile that reminded Nikolai of her daughter.
    â€œNo. Thanks.”
    â€œAll right, then. Jenna is in room 306. We won’t be long. Ready?” She took her husband’s hand, hooked an arm around Kane’s and steered them both down the hall.
    Nikolai didn’t waste time watching them walk away. The more he thought about Jenna alone in a hospital room, the less he liked the idea. Sure, there were people milling around the hospital, but that didn’t mean Jenna was safe.
    He hurried up to the third floor, bypassing a nurses’ station, and stopped in front of Jenna’s room. The door was closed, so he knocked, waited until he heard a muffled response and then walked in.
    Jenna stood a few feet away, an IV dripping fluids into her arm as she buttoned a short-sleeved black shirt. She paused as he entered the room, her eyes wide with surprise. “I thought you were the nurse.”
    â€œI’m afraid not. I can find a nurse for you, though, if you need one.”
    â€œThat’s okay. I was just trying to figure out what happened to my socks.”
    â€œSocks?”
    â€œMy feet are freezing.” She was still wearing the black slacks she’d worn to the funeral, and her bare toes peeked out from beneath the hem.
    â€œIf you were in bed, they wouldn’t be.”
    â€œIf I were in bed, I’d be thinking about…” Her voice trailed off, and she turned away, tugging the IV