BURN THE GIRLS - Chapter 8

Constance, Abigail, and Aunt Jenny sat in the waiting room outside of the Intensive Care Unit. Constance looked up at the clock hanging above a corner table littered with well-worn magazines. An artistic rendering of Senator Robert Kennedy graced the cover of the September 16, 1966 issue of Time Magazine sitting atop the pile. A frail janitor floated like a ghost through the room, emptying the ash trays beside the seats bordering the only window in the space. He left without saying a word or making eye contact. It was nine-thirty in the evening, but it may as well have been three o’clock in the morning. Constance was exhausted despite her drug-induced nap earlier that afternoon.

She shifted in her chair and every nerve in her body protested in some measure. The skin on the back of her arm felt tight and sensitive to the slightest contact with her bandages. The bump on the side of her head felt like a time bomb ready to explode the moment she doubted its existence.

Her wrists and ankles throbbed from her persistent fighting while restrained. Although she couldn’t deny her injuries, they didn’t matter in the moment. Her thoughts were fully consumed with the state of Delilah.

One of the substantial double doors to the ICU ward unlatched and nurse Nancy partially emerged from the opening.

“Ladies, I can bring you back now.”