He could hear her voice before he entered the ICU waiting room. Something had upset Erica Kane, and Zach could only imagine that it had to do with him. He squared his shoulders and entered the room, smiling enigmatically at the virago's husband before seating himself in one of the empty chairs.
"…for those few minutes. I will not tolerate being treated in such a manner!" Erica took a breath and opened her mouth to continue berating the young woman in scrubs that was standing with her.
"Let me call Dr. Martin and see if he can straighten this out for you," the woman answered hurriedly before turning to face Zach. "Mr. Slater!"
Zach leaned back in his chair. "Yes…" he answered cautiously.
"You can return to your wife's room whenever you're ready," she answered with a smile before quickly retreating behind a door marked "Restricted. Authorized Personnel Only."
Erica huffed, "Well, I never!" as her husband squeezed her shoulder and glowered at Zach when he rose from the chair.
"Slater. I'd like a word," Jackson Montgomery said in his most lawyerly tone.
Zach turned to face the other man as he answered carefully, "Jackson."
"My wife has been informed that she is limited to a maximum of four fifteen-minute visits per day with her daughter while you it seems are to have unlimited access to Kendall. We all know that this marriage of yours is nothing more than a business arrangement," Jackson said in agitation. "For the sake of everyone involved, stop this farce and leave. Let the people who love Kendall take care of her."
"I'm sorry that I can't oblige you. I intend to spend as much time with my wife as I can. I will, however, see what I can do about getting Erica more time with her daughter," Zach answered in exaggerated politeness. "Now… if you'll excuse me."
Without another word, Zach left the room and went straight to Kendall's bedside. He found her much the same as when he had left her, even to the chair pulled up alongside her bed. He seated himself and clasped her hand in his, wondering to himself why she hadn't regained consciousness. He had no idea how long he sat quietly at Kendall's side, but pulled his attention away from Kendall as the door opened and Joe Martin entered the room.
"Mr. Slater…" Joe began.
"Dr. Martin," Zach interrupted. "Shouldn't Kendall have regained consciousness by now?"
The older man looked at Zach compassionately, "Yes. The anesthesia has long since worn off – I'm afraid Kendall is in a coma."
"A coma – but that's not unusual after a head injury, is it? When will she wake up?" Zach asked quietly.
"It's hard to say. It could be any minute… or hours from now. Or this could go on for a very long time. I'm afraid that the only thing we can do now is wait," the physician responded.
Zach answered confidently, "Bianca was in a coma… and she woke up."
"Yes, she did," Joe answered him seriously, "but we can't take anything for granted with a trauma of this magnitude. Kendall's stable at the moment but she's still in critical condition…"
"This is Kendall, Dr. Martin… she's a fighter," Zach reminded the older man who nodded his head in agreement. "When can I speak with her doctors?"
"Dr. Donelson will be by this afternoon, along with Dr. Stallman, to answer your questions. Kendall's in very good hands," the physician said in a reassuring tone.
"Is there anything that I can do… that we can do… to help her right now?" Zach asked.
"Sometimes coma patients are aware of their surroundings, of the people who visit them and of the voices and conversations that are held in their presence. You should talk to her, just as if it was a normal day and you were having a normal conversation. Include her in the same way you would have before the accident. Maybe it will cause a spark that can help her find her way back," Joe said. He paused and cleared his throat before continuing, "Mr. Slater… Erica…"
"Erica would like to have me removed from the hospital and barred from seeing my wife. I know. But she's Kendall's mother and she should spend more time with her than the rules allow… as well as Bianca when she arrives from Paris," Zach replied evenly.
"I understand that she's flying home to be with Kendall as we speak," Joe Martin answered Zach with a curious look.
Zach continued as if the older man had not spoken, "Would it be possible for us to share the time with Kendall? Perhaps in eight hour stretches? She'd want them to be with her, too."
"That's very generous, Mr. Slater… especially in light of Erica's…"
"Erica's determination to get rid of me," Zach chuckled softly. "But this isn't about me… or Erica. This is about Kendall and what's best for her is to have her mother and sister with her, too."
"Very well… I'll be happy to make those arrangements," Joe answered with some relief.
As the physician turned to leave the room Zach said, "Dr. Martin… I would like to ask another favor."
"Certainly, Mr. Slater, I'll do what I can," Joe responded hesitantly.
"Once Erica is settled in with Kendall for the day… I'll be going home to change clothes and pick up a few things. I think I'd like to stay with her at night. It will be easier on the family, and that way she won't be alone during those bleak, desolate hours. But I want to stay close even when I'm not with her… is there a place where I could rest during the day? Leaving Kendall is not really an option for me," Zach said compellingly. "Perhaps a physicians' lounge? Or a cot in an out of the way corner?"
Joe Martin was actually so relieved that he would not be forced to mediate some type of truce between Erica and Zach that he was more than willing to accommodate Zach's request without argument. "I'm sure that we can arrange something for you, Mr. Slater," Joe answered. "Although I would encourage you to conserve your energy for when Kendall wakes up – that's when she'll need you the most."
"That's what I intend to do, Dr. Martin. I doubt I would rest at all unless I was close by should Kendall need me. I assumed that's the reason why I've already been granted unlimited access to my wife," he answered with a slight edge to his voice.
"That's fine, Mr. Slater. If you prefer to stay here, I'll make whatever arrangements are necessary. If you'll excuse me, I'll go and tell Erica that she can sit with her daughter," Joe answered as he left the room.
Zach looked at Kendall for a moment before speaking to her as Joe had suggested, "Kendall… it's me… Zach. I'm going to leave for a little while, but I'll be back to stay with you tonight. You don't have to worry about being alone – Erica will be here with you… and…" Zach struggled to keep his voice from breaking before he continued, "… and Bianca's on her way. We're all here waiting… for you… for you to… wake up… Kendall… open those beautiful eyes for me… you know you want to..."
At a soft sound Zach lifted his eyes and saw Erica standing in the doorway with the same expression she had on her face as when they had shared a few moments of comfort the previous day. Without speaking, Zach nodded to her before leaning down to tenderly kiss Kendall's cheek and whisper, "Your mother's here now. I'm just going to get a few things… I'll check on your place while I'm at it… and I'll be back before you know it."
Zach relinquished his seat to Erica who slipped into the room and sat down before he could change his mind, but said nothing until Zach had nearly quit the room.
"Zach… she will wake up," Erica said with intensity. "She's a Kane woman… and we never take anything lying down."
"That's what I'm counting on," Zach replied before leaving the room. He walked over to the nurses' station and gave a clerk his contact numbers before once again leaving the ICU.
As he passed through the waiting room, he noticed that Jackson had left and wondered if he had gone to the airport to meet Bianca's plane. He shook his head briefly – seeing Bianca again caused him to feel both joy and anxiety. They had parted on difficult terms because she could not understand his actions toward his son, and it seemed that all of his actions since that time had only hardened her resolve against him. He was permitted no contact with his niece, Miranda, and even Kendall's attempt to soften her towards him had been unsuccessful. He didn't relish having another member of Kendall's family doing battle with him – especially someone that he loved as much as he loved Bianca. No… he wasn't ready to face Bianca's scorn again. Unfortunately the only way he could avoid it was to stay away from Kendall – and that was something he would not do. Without understanding the reasoning behind it, he felt absolutely certain that his place was at Kendall's side and that she would never regain consciousness or recover from her injuries unless he was with her. He had learned to rely on his instincts for survival and they had served him well – he could only hope that those same instincts would be as useful to Kendall.