Chapter 36
Bruce was shocked. "Are you sure?" he asked nervously.
"Of course I'm sure! It wasn't him!" Abby said gleefully.
She felt like doing a dance. She had no reason to believe that this meant Carter was actually alive, but at least this gave her some hope.
Bruce was panicking. This was a lawsuit just waiting to happen. How had he managed to confuse the two John Carters that had been on the plane?
"So what is his full name?" Bruce asked, opening his computer.
"John Truman Carter III," Abby said. She never thought she would say the name again and feel anything but sadness. But now, she felt a different, strange emotion; she felt hope.
Bruce tapped quickly on his computer. "There's no record of him being on the plane," he said despairingly. He always kept such neat records; how had this happened? "Mrs. Carter, I can't tell you how sorry I am about all this-"
"So where is he?" Abby asked, abruptly cutting him off. She didn't have time for his apologies; she had to find Carter!
"I...I don't know," Bruce finally had to admit. "We took all the survivors to Johnson Hospital, but there's no record of him being there."
"All the survivors?" Abby asked quickly.
Bruce nodded, then realized she couldn't see his head moving over the phone. "Yes. All the survivors. Well, expect for the three that weren't injured."
Abby thought for a moment. Was it possible that Carter hadn't been injured at all? But if so, wouldn't he have called her and told her he was okay? Abby realized that she needed to go to the hospital for herself and see if he was there.
"Thank you, Mr. Bruce. I'm going to the hospital." Abby hung up the phone.
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The lie flowed so easily off her tongue now. "I'm looking for my husband, John Carter. He was in the plane crash. I can't find him." She knew they might not release information to her if they knew she wasn't actually related to Carter.
The nurse gave a sympathetic nod, then scanned the list of survivors. "I'm sorry hon, I can't find him. Have you talked to Mr. Bruce?"
Abby nodded her head. "He sent me here," She said. "Do you mind if I see the list?"
The nurse handed it to her. "Just put it back on the counter when you're done," she said.
Abby's eyes immediately flew to the C's section. She quickly scanned. Cannon, Douglas. Carson, Marion. Carver, Tiffany. She didn't have to read it twice. He wasn't there.
What should she do now? He wasn't at the morgue, he wasn't in the hospital. He was on that plane, Abby knew that for sure, but what had happened to him after he got off it?
Her eyes roamed the rest of the list. Maybe, somehow, they had put him out of order. She knew it was unlikely, but it was the only chance she had.
Trane, Brian. Trane, Elizabeth. Truman, John.
Abby's heart skipped a beat when she read that name. She read it again, just to make sure her eyes weren't deceiving her. Truman, John. John Truman? Was it possible that somehow, is some strange way, the hospital had messed up his name?
Well, there was only one way to find out. She looked at the note next to the name. Room 321. Dropping the chart on the counter, Abby raced for the stairs.
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Abby was on a mission. The elevator was way too slow for her. As she bounded up the stairs three at a time, she asked herself, what would she do if Carter's wasn't in that room? Where would she go from there?
Well, she could deal with that when she got to it. Pushing that thought aside, Abby stepped onto the third floor.
Room 301.
She raced down the hall, past nurses, people in wheelchairs, visitors. She didn't care about the strange looks they were giving her; she didn't care about the fact that she looked like an escaped psych patient. All she cared about was finding out if Carter was in that room.
Room 311.
If he was, what would she do? What would she say? How would she react? Well, she was about to find out.
Room 321.
Abby took a deep breath, then burst into the room. She saw two men lying on two beds. One was hooked up to a ventilator.
She walked over to the first man, pushed the vent aside. At wasn't him. Taking a deep breath, she moved on. One down, one to go.
She walked over to the second bed, to the man who appeared to be sleeping. He had the covers pulled over his head, just like Carter liked to. Abby felt an apprehensive smile coming to her face. What if? What if? What if? The questions kept pounding in her head.
Well, she was about to answer them all. Steeling herself for whatever she mind find, she pulled down the sheet.