“Oh—” She gripped it tighter in disappointment. “Hi. How are you?” They hadn’t talked since Alexa had gone to lunch with her.
“Alexa, it’s obvious you haven’t heard the news. Nico left town for me on a secret mission.”
What?
“In the middle of last night he was in a car on his way home with some NIS agents when there was a collision.”
Alexa’s cry brought her grandfather and Phyllis into the kitchen. She thought she was going to faint and sat on the nearest chair. “H-he isn’t—”
“He’s alive.”
“Oh, thank heaven, thank heaven.”
“Everyone survived, but Nico was brought to Saint Paul Hospital unconscious and still is. I don’t know the extent of his injuries. My parents and I are here with him, waiting for news from the doctor about his condition.”
Alexa tried to stifle a moan, but she wasn’t successful. She feared for Nico’s father with his heart problem.
“Is Dimitra there? I know this news is going to come as a horrible shock to her.”
Dimitra... This was agony beyond bearing. “No. Kristos came by and they’ve gone to the university.”
“Then he doesn’t know either. I’ll phone Irena. She’ll want to be told and get in touch with her son. She adores my brother.”
We all adore him.
A groan came out of Alexa. “I—I’ll text Dimitra,” she stammered. “She’ll tell Kristos.” It was a struggle for breath. “What floor are you on?”
“Six. We’re in the lounge area, east wing.”
“I’ll be there soon.” She hung up.
Her grandfather wheeled his chair next to her. “What terrible news has caused you to go white as a sheet?”
“Oh, Papoú—” She threw her arms around him. “It’s Nico. He was in a car crash last night and hasn’t gained consciousness yet. I’ve got to get to Saint Paul Hospital, and Dimitra has to be told.”
“You leave that to me. I’ll call her while you get dressed. We’ll all go and pick her up on our way to the hospital. He needs his family with him.”
Alexa didn’t remember getting dressed or driving to the hospital with her grandfather and Phyllis. Irena had already called Kristos. He was bringing Dimitra straight from the university.
Within a half hour, a congregation had gathered in the lounge area, everyone waiting to hear from the doctor. Alexa couldn’t sit still and kept watching for any sign of someone to come and tell them what was going on.
How could this have happened after all the suffering Nico had been through in his life? It wasn’t fair. He was the best man on earth. She looked around the room. Everyone loved and needed him. He held their world together.
Though they’d been separated all those years, Alexa had always known where she could find Nico. But if the worst happened to him now, there was no address on earth she could look up to find him.
The second she saw a nurse come in the lounge, Alexa ran up to her. “Do you have news about Kýrie Angelis?”
“The doctor will be in shortly to talk to everyone,” she said before walking over to Nico’s parents.
Dimitra ran over and put an arm around her waist. “What did she tell you?”
“Nothing. She said to wait for the doctor.”
“I don’t believe Baba is going to die. We just found each other.”
Alexa hugged her around the shoulders. “I agree. He’s going to pull out of this and walk you down the aisle. You’ll see.” Her daughter was trying valiantly not to break down. Alexa needed to be strong for her. “We have to have faith.” More faith than Alexa had exhibited in her entire life.
A few minutes after the nurse left the lounge, the doctor came in and headed straight for Nico’s parents. She clung to Dimitra while they waited to hear the news.