Zach glanced at his watch as he entered the hospital, noting that he had been absent for a little more than two hours. Hefting the overnight bag that he carried, he walked over to the information desk, asked for and received directions to Joe Martin's office. Feeling certain that the physician had made arrangements for his temporary quarters, he wanted to get settled in before a scheduled meeting with Kendall's physicians in half an hour.
After leaving the hospital, Zach had driven his car straight to the condominium complex where he and Kendall both lived. Although they had never lived together, their condos faced each other and sometimes felt almost as if they were extensions of each other's home. As their friendship had grown, they had exchanged keys and kept an eye on the other's place when one of them had gone out of town. Carrying Kendall's belongings from the accident as well as his stained clothing from the previous day, he let himself into Kendall's condo and collected her mail before moving across the courtyard to his own home.
Moving methodically, Zach showered, shaved and dressed in dark casual clothing before concentrating on keeping his business and personal lives running while he stayed at the hospital with Kendall. His life was already arranged in such a way that the mundane and everyday events occurred without the necessity of his constant attention, and a few well-placed phone calls were all that was required to include Kendall in his well-ordered routine. He quickly arranged to have a cleaning lady caring for both condos, and had a lengthy conversation with Edie about caring for their mail, bills, and the casino for whatever extended period that they would be unavailable as well as arranging for regular updates during a portion of the day when Erica or Bianca would be staying with Kendall.
After concluding his arrangements with Edie he had packed an overnight bag with enough clothing for three days, planning to return for more after that length of time should it become necessary. He placed his laptop computer in its case and perused his collection of books for reading material. After selecting a couple of books his hand lingered over a novel that he had not read in a very long time, but had once enjoyed very much. He found himself wondering if Kendall had ever read it, or if she would enjoy it as much as he had. Without further thought, he added the book to his bag with the intention of revisiting it as an old friend that night when he sat with Kendall.
After arranging to have Kendall's car picked up from Lacy's parking lot and returned to the condominium, he received a call from Dr. Donelson's secretary setting a time to meet with her and Dr. Stallman to discuss Kendall's condition. His final stop before returning to the hospital had been an impromptu visit to Livia Frye at her offices to sign the documents they had discussed earlier in the day. She had expressed dismay at finding out Kendall was in a coma, but none of her earlier misgivings about rescinding the divorce petition.
Upon entering the administrative offices of the hospital, Zach was greeted by an efficient assistant who said, "Mr. Slater? Dr. Martin asked me to give you this."
She handed Zach an envelope that contained two keys and directions to a physician's lounge that he could use. It was on the same floor as the ICU and one key was used to enter the area while the other gave him access to a personal locker for his clothing and toilet articles. He quickly thanked her for the assistance and took his things to the locker before returning to the ICU waiting room until it was time to meet with Kendall's physicians.
"Slater!" Ryan Lavery said sharply as Zach seated himself in the waiting room. "And here I thought you'd finally got the message and left for good. We are Kendall's family and we will take care of her. Your presence is not needed… and it's certainly not wanted… so go back to your casino and bilk some more unsuspecting gamblers while we take care of our family."
Having heard a version of this diatribe many times during the months of his marriage to Kendall, it did not even irritate Zach to hear it again. The fact was that Ryan Lavery was so enamored of the sound of his own voice and his own delusions of heroism that Zach found him to be nothing more than a humorous buffoon. It was difficult to get angry with someone who was so ineffectual, and Zach was never one to waste unnecessary effort or emotion on an unworthy opponent. Consequently, Zach's response was silence as he opened up the day's newspaper to read the coverage of his wife's accident from a journalist's perspective without noticing all the inhabitants of the room.
After a moment of strained silence on the part of the other members in Kendall's extended family, Zach looked up from the paper when a soft, musical voice said his name. He looked into the eyes of the young woman he so admired and replied softly, "Bianca. How was your flight?"
"It was fine. Zach…" she began before pausing with a pained expression on her face. Zach sat and quietly waited until she continued, "Uncle Jack told me how you've been here with Kendall since the accident… and that you arranged for Mom and me to have time with her while she's in ICU… but…"
After it became obvious that Bianca could not continue Zach finished for her, "…you would prefer that I stay away... I can't do that, Bianca. I'm sorry… I don't expect you to understand my relationship with your sister, but I was hoping that you'd respect it. My place is with my wife just as yours is with your sister… and we all want the same thing, you know. We want Kendall to wake up."
"I know… I know that, Zach… but… but you make us all… uncomfortable," Bianca answered as she seated herself next to Zach. "You don't love my sister… you're married… but you've never shared a house, much less a bed with her. And she doesn't need a business partner to help her wake up – she needs the people who love her. She needs her family," Bianca said passionately. She placed a hand on his arm as she continued, "…and no matter what that marriage license says… in her heart you're not family."
Zach cleared his throat for a moment and tried to ignore the strong emotions that Bianca always wrung from him as he replied, "I'm sorry you feel that way, Bianca… but I'm glad that you've been honest with me. I made sure that you and your mother will get plenty of time with Kendall because that's what is going to help her wake up and get better – and no matter how you or Erica feel about me, that's not going to change. But you don't know anything about Kendall and me… you've been in Paris with Miranda, and that's good… you deserved a fresh start… but we made a fresh start too… and I'm staying right here with my wife until she asks me to leave."
"Alright… I guess there's no point in saying anymore… but we'll all be watching, Zach. And if you do anything that could get in the way of her recovery…" Bianca said with an edge to her voice.
I had thought that you of all people would be able to see through to the truth – and certainly not be swayed by the opinions of others… Zach thought before he answered brusquely, "Just do me one favor, Bianca. Call Mrs. Fargate… ask her if she thinks that I'm a threat to Kendall… and then make up your own mind."
Bianca nodded before rising from the chair, "I'll do that… I guess I owe you that much."
Zach picked up the newspaper and appeared to be reading it while actually listening to the whispered conversation being held between Ryan, Jackson and Bianca. Both men were urgently trying to convince Bianca to maintain her tough stance against Zach and Ryan went so far as to question Myrtle's ability to be an impartial judge of Zach's character. Zach suppressed a smile at Bianca's indignant response and noted with encouragement that she ended the conversation and picked up the waiting room phone to speak with Myrtle herself rather than take either man's advice.
Bianca's conversation only lasted a few minutes before a clerk arrived to summon him to a private consultation room to meet with Kendall's physicians. Zach walked over to Bianca and whispered, "Would you join us, please?"
Bianca nodded to Zach and ended her conversation with Myrtle. She rose and joined Zach in leaving the room and was followed to the doorway by Ryan and Jackson. Before the other men could accompany them any further, though, Zach turned around and commented, "This is the end of the line for you boys. Erica and Bianca will be included and informed of everything regarding Kendall… but that is the extent of my patience. You can learn anything you need to know from them." With that statement Zach turned on his heel and followed Bianca from the waiting area.