"Junior, why are we going so fast?" asked Gillian
"That was Jean," said Junior. "Matt's in the hospital in critical condition."
"Oh my god," said Gillian. "But please don't go so fast. Do you want us to be in the hospital with him?"
"We'll be fine," said Junior, not taking his eyes off the wet road. "We're the ones in the porshe, and besides, the rain has stopped."
"Be careful," said Gillian. "Please!"
"You don't understand," said Junior. "I can't let my best friend die without forgiving him."
"You aren't still mad at him for going out with your ex girlfriend?" said Gillian. Then she paused. "Sorry. That was a stupid question to ask at a time like this."
"It's okay," said Junior. "No, I'm not. After all, I did kiss you twice. Are you still mad at him for cheating on you?"
"Not right now," said Gillian. Then she thought about it for a moment. "Actually, no. After all, I did sleep with Cary while we were dating."
Junior nearly choaked. "What?"
"Oh, dammit," said Gillian. "Kris didn't tell anyone?"
"Well, nobody told me!" said Junior. "Was Kris dating Cary at the same time?" Gillian nodded. "So let me get this straight. First he cheated on you with Kris, then he cheated on Kris with you, and then he tried to take the money that Raintree won in the breeders and run away and never come back. WOW."
"Sorry," said Gillian. "I can only imagine what you must think of me now."
"Nah," said Junior. "Anyone can make a mistake once."
Gillian's eyebrows raised. "Have you?"
Junior shrugged. "One time when I was kind of sort of almost dating this girl named Rebecca, I slept with Kris. I thought it would end up being something more, but it turned out to just be a one night thing. But other than that...I guess I've never really had anybody to cheat on to begin with besides Kris."
Suddenly, Gillian felt sorry for him. She squeezed his right arm under his wrist and looked at him. Junior smiled. That's when they saw the sign for the hospital coming up ahead, reminding them both of what was really going on right now.
Inside the hospital, Jean was talking to one of the doctors about Matt's injuries. "He's shattered his right arm and shoulder blade, which will eventually reqiure extensive surgery to fix. He also had a minor injury to his right hip and to his left shoulder blade. And as you can imagine, he's covered in scrapes and cuts from being thrown from the vehicle. But our biggest concern right now is his brain."
Jean's face was white as a sheet when she asked, "What about his brain?"
"I don't know," said the doctor. "All I know is that they're in there working to stop the bleeding."
"So, is Matt going to die or not?" asked Todd, who was trying to look tough but not very good at it.
The doctor shook his head again. "I don't know. We'll do the best we can. One of us will come out and let you know as soon as we've figured out anything." Then he turned around and disappeared back into the operating room where Matt was lying on the table.
Jean nearly laughed. This was impossible. There was no way in the world that this day was happening. Wildfire was still the official runner-up for the Bristol stakes. Kris was at Raintree doing a last minute check on all the horses. And Matt was probably reading in his bunkhouse.
"Where is he?" Jean turned around when she heard Junior and Gillian coming up behind her.
"In the operating room," she said. In the operating room. Yes! Wildfire was at Davis Farms! The other horses has been sold! Kris was GONE! And Matt was in the operating room! What a big joke. She was about to wake up in her bed at Raintree and burst out laughing about this. Any minute now.
"I'm going to stay here until they learn anything," said Jean. "Could you guys give Todd a ride back to Raintree?"
"No way," said Todd. "I'm staying right here with you."
"So are we," said Junior.
"Good," said Jean. "Because I think I'm starting to lose my mind."