A Close Call: Rescuing My Daughter

“I want to see if anything links back to him!”

Kai immediately became agitated.

“Shawn, I get you’re worried about Luna, but you can’t just throw around accusations like that!”

His eyes welled up with tears as he turned to Marina.

“Marina, I just came by to help. I was worried that you might be overwhelmed.

“Why on earth would I hurt a child? I’ve only even seen her a couple of times!”

Marina frowned. She looked at me. Her face shone with frustration.

“Shawn Woods! You’ve been completely out of line all night.”

She took a deep breath, then said, “She had a fever. I told you to call 911. You hung up for no reason and tried to drive her here yourself. I told you an ambulance was faster and safer, but you screamed at me. You said that I…”

She paused. A flicker of shame crossed her face, but she continued, “You said that I was trying to hurt our daughter.

“Fine! Let’s say you weren’t thinking straight. Before your tire was slashed, I called 911. Kai here was kind enough to help expedite things. He came to the hospital because he was worried, and you pushed him!

“Now, you’re telling the doctor about ‘suspicious exposure’ and dragging him into this?”

With every word she spoke, the few waiting family members and passing nurses glanced our way more intently.

“Is the dad having a mental breakdown?”

“Someone tries to help, and this is the thanks they get? No appreciation at all.”

“I get that he’s stressed with a sick kid, but this is too much!”

Kai sighed and looked even more hurt.

As I listened to Marina listing my faults one by one, cold dread spread throughout my entire body.

To her, all my struggle and vigilance tonight were merely me being ungrateful or hysterical.

I pulled the brooch from my pocket and held it up before Kai.

“This brooch is what popped my tire.

“This is yours, isn’t it, Kai? How did it just happen to be right next to my flat tire?”

Kai’s face paled.

“I might’ve dropped it. I was walking around the complex yesterday.

“Shawn, that still doesn’t prove I slashed your tire. That’s insane!”

He turned to Marina. “Marina, I didn’t do it! Maybe Shawn is too stressed and feeling paranoid.

“I get that he’s scared for his kid, but he can’t just accuse me like this!”

Marina’s gaze wavered. But then, she let out a sigh and rubbed her temples.

“Shawn, a brooch doesn’t prove anything.

“You’re not thinking straight. Just calm down. Can we wait until Luna’s out of surgery before we talk about this?”

Her taking Kai’s side was the final straw.

Kai then said softly, “Marina, don’t be too hard on Shawn. He’s just struggling. In case Luna doesn’t wake—”

A sharp slap struck his face.

Kai covered his face as his eyes widened in disbelief.

“Shawn, have you lost your mind?!” Marina screamed with rage.

“Kai saved Luna! He’s her rescuer! How could you hit him?”

She raised her hand to strike me.

At that moment, the nurse from earlier hurried back. She was holding a transparent sealed bag.