At a light touch on his shoulder, Zach opened his eyes from the slumber he had entered sometime during the night. Kendall's continued unconsciousness meant that the room was very quiet except for the machines, and those sounds had eventually lulled him into sleep despite his best intentions of remaining awake. He quickly regained his bearings, smiling at the nurse when she noted that he had never relinquished his hold on Kendall's right hand.
"Good morning, Mr. Slater. I'm Shannon and I'll be taking care of your wife today," she said in a quiet but comforting voice.
"Today?" Zach said with surprise. The artificial light of the ICU did not offer much indication of the time of day and he had stopped watching the clock once he learned that Kendall had survived her surgery. "Is it morning already?"
Shannon nodded before replying, "Mm-hmm… shift change. You'll get used to the schedule soon enough. If you'll excuse me for a few minutes, I'd like to bathe Mrs. Slater and change the bed linens."
Zach stood up and stretched, feeling some stiffness in his back from being seated in hospital chairs for so many hours. Before leaving the room to take care of his own needs he paused and commented, "Please call her Kendall… I think she'll respond better if you use her given name."
"Very good, Mr. Slater, that's what I'll do," she answered in the same calming tone as she efficiently went about her duties.
Zach left the room and greeted the day shift at the nurses' station, noting the efficient buzz of activity and feeling reassured that life was moving forward in an orderly fashion despite the current turmoil in his own life. He made his way to the waiting room to pour himself a cup of coffee and found Erica and Jack dozing against each other although the other family and friends seemed to have left for the night. He gently tapped Jackson on the shoulder and waited patiently for the older man to awaken.
Zach said softly, "There's been no change. The day shift nurse is with her now. Perhaps Erica would like to spend some time with Kendall when she lets us back in?"
"I know she'd like that very much," Jackson answered with surprise. After the way they had ganged up on Zach he was expecting some type of retaliation, but would accept whatever good news he could get at that moment. He'd worry about Zach's ulterior motives later.
Zach paced the room as he drank the over-brewed coffee, feeling much too restless to be seated once again. He would need to make several calls and arrange for the casinos and other businesses to operate without him for as long as Kendall was in the hospital – and possibly even longer. Until they had some type of prognosis for her recovery he couldn't make any plans beyond the brief respites he might receive when Erica or later Bianca would sit with Kendall. It was still too early to reach Livia but not too early to call Edie, his second in command at the casino. As soon as the nurse returned to escort Erica to see Kendall, Zach excused himself and left the floor for the hospital entrance.
The bright sun shining through the lobby doors was a surprise to Zach who was somehow expecting the weather to mirror the sorrow and concern he was feeling about his wife. The rainy weather of the previous day suited his mood much better than the cheeriness of a warm and sunny day. Nevertheless, he walked outside of the hospital and pulled out the cell phone that the police had returned to him while Kendall was still in surgery and made his first call to the office.
Once Edie had answered the phone, Zach apprised her of the situation with Kendall and asked her to take care of canceling his trip to Atlantic City as well as instituting the standard operating procedures for when he was unavailable for lengthy periods. It had only happened once before, when he had been falsely accused of murder and spent a few weeks in the Pine Valley jail, but the system had worked very well and he felt confident that Slater-Hart Gaming would survive the current situation with just as much grace as his own businesses had before.
After completing his conversation with Kendall, Zach dialed his attorney's office and was gratified when she answered her own telephone, "Livia Frye speaking."
"Livia!" Zach exclaimed. "I didn't expect to reach you in person; however, I'm very glad that you've decided to put in an early day."
"What can I do for you, Zach? Don't tell me that you've already had second thoughts about the papers you signed yesterday," Livia said with a small laugh.
"Actually… I have. Is there any way that you can hold those divorce papers and not file them?" Zach responded quietly in case anyone who might be interested should arrive at the hospital during his conversation.
"No… they were filed yesterday afternoon… just as you and Kendall asked me to do," Livia answered cautiously. "What's happened to change your minds? Don't tell me that you realized over lunch that you're madly in love with each other!"
"No, Livia, that's not it at all. You'll probably read it in the morning papers – Kendall was struck by a car yesterday. She's in ICU at the Pine Valley Hospital after having surgery," Zach replied tersely.
He heard Livia's gasp and waited for her to comment. After a moment she answered, "I'm so sorry, Zach. How bad is it?"
"We don't know her prognosis yet, but the doctors are hopeful," Zach answered. "I'll feel much better when she regains consciousness, though."
"I see…" Livia said thoughtfully. "So… Zach… why do you want to pull the divorce papers? Did you and Kendall have a change of heart before the accident?"
"No… we fully intended to go through with the divorce… but now all that has changed," he answered.
"Okay… spell it out for me, Zach. What's changed? Why do you need to pull the divorce? Right now she's still your wife – as I explained yesterday, that can't be changed for ninety days," Livia replied in confusion.
"Livia – Erica, Jackson and the rest of the family are looking for any excuse to have me barred from Kendall and I cannot allow that to happen. As her husband, I have the legal right to be with her – but if they find out about those papers it is going to get ugly," Zach answered in the same quiet tone. "I do not wish to keep her family away from her – but I do intend to protect my rights to be with my wife while she recovers from her injuries."
"Zach… I agree that you have the legal right to remain with her… but there are ethical rights as well. Do you really believe that Kendall would wish the man that she's divorcing to direct her care? Would she prefer that your wishes take precedence over the wishes of her mother and other family members?" Livia asked.
"I do not believe that Kendall would want me banned from her side… and that's exactly what will happen if Erica and Jackson have their way. You have my word that I will not make any decision about her care without consulting them," Zach answered.
"I have to tell you, Zach… Jackson Montgomery is one of my oldest and dearest friends. I don't like the position that you've put me in," Livia replied sharply.
"If you don't believe that you can represent me without it being a conflict of interest I understand," Zach said with a sigh. "I was really hoping to avoid a confrontation so that we could all concentrate on helping Kendall through this. I'm sure that I can find someone who will represent me if you choose to remove yourself from the case. In the meantime, though, I will insist that you maintain client privilege and not disclose the fact that we were divorcing and allow them to discover the documents on their own."
"I understand," Livia answered sorrowfully. "Zach… I need to think about this. I'm not withdrawing as your attorney yet, but I need to consider what is best for my other client. You have to remember that Kendall is my client as well – and her needs are paramount right now."
"I concur, Livia. We have no dispute on that. However, what would you have chosen to do if the accident had happened the day before we signed those documents? Would you have felt ethically bound to put my legal rights in question?" Zach asked pointedly.
There was silence at the other end of the line for several minutes before Livia responded, "You have a point, Zach. This is an unusual situation in that you and Kendall plan to continue a long-term relationship despite the divorce. And I have to admit – I couldn't understand why you both chose that course of action when you are so committed to each other. I've never seen either one of you as happy as you've been since your marriage – you've been good for each other."
Zach was surprised at Livia's comments, and didn't quite know how to answer her. However, he realized that she was warming up to helping him in his quest to remain in Kendall's life during her recovery so he needed to answer her carefully. He drew in a sharp breath before replying, "Kendall and I care a great deal about each other, and wanted to pursue whatever relationship we had without the masquerade of a false marriage getting in the way… except that now I'm very grateful for that marriage because I wish to remain a part of her life. Is it possible for me to rescind my portion of the petition?"
"Yes… and that will effectively end the divorce proceedings until Kendall is in a physical condition to pursue it herself. In Pennsylvania, both parties must be in agreement for a no-fault divorce. If one party contests, then there is a one year waiting period followed by a hearing before any dissolution can be made. When Kendall recovers, she can still pursue the divorce but it will buy you some time right now should anyone contest your rights as her husband," Livia answered having made up her mind more quickly than she expected. "I'll bring the papers by the hospital later this morning and have them filed before the day is out. I only hope that I'm doing the right thing."
"You are, Livia," Zach responded with relief. "Please… if anyone asks about the papers… just tell them it is about keeping Slater-Hart Gaming in operation during Kendall's illness. I'd prefer that they believe I'm a cold-hearted bastard than to know the real story."
"As you've already pointed out, you're the boss Zach," Livia answered. "I'll see you in a few hours."
"Thank you, Livia… for your discretion… and for your friendship," Zach said quietly.
"You're welcome," the attorney replied before severing the connection.