Page 20 of Jake
“No… How did I end up in the hospital?”
“You don’t remember being kidnapped and attacked?” On hearing Connor’s question, memories flooded back.
“Fuck.” I locked eyes with my big brother. “Russo?”
“Dead, along with the arseholes who worked for him, and the compound is ashes.”
“Good.”
“How bad is the pain?” Barry inquired.
“Scale of one to ten? About an eight, I think. Just don’t ask me to move because then it’ll be about ninety.”
Barry chuckled as he moved closer. “We have much to tell you, but you need rest, a lot of it, Jake. It’s going to be a very long process of healing.”
“How long before I can go home?”
“At least a month.”
“A month? I can’t stay here for a fucking month.” I must be in a pretty bad way after the beating I’d endured, but I remembered nothing after being carried from the house. “How long have I been here?” My question was directed at Barry.
“Coming up on five days.”
“Five days! Why am I only awake now?”
“Your injuries were severe, Jake. You’re very fortunate to be alive. We kept you on life support to give your body a chance to recover following surgery.”
“Surgery?”
“As I said, I’ll explain later when you are clearer in the head. For now, I want you to rest as much as possible. We’re going to keep you heavily sedated until your pain reaches more manageable levels.”
“Can you get rid of that fucking beeping?”
Barry shook his head. “Not yet. We need you carefully monitored until we’re sure you won’t have another heart attack.”
Heart attack? I’d had a heart attack? They were for old people, not young, fit men like me. How much damage had been done, and would I fully recover? This was all too much to absorb. Closing my eyes, I allowed the darkness to claim me again. It was where I could live in denial.
***
Two weeks later
“I want to go home.” It was a demand, not a request. I’d had more than enough of being coddled day and night by not only the staff but also my family, including my arsehole brothers. Who knew they cared so much? “You’ve all got things to take care of and we’ve been away long enough.”
I pierced Barry with a stare, defying him to argue. He pretended to ignore me by reading a printout from one of the machines.
“Barry! Sign me out, or I’ll do it myself.”
The doctor sighed and moved closer to the bed. “You’re not ready, Jake. You still have far too much pain, and your wounds are a long way from being healed…”
I cut him off, knowing what he was going to say next. “…and I still can’t piss without feeling like my dick is going to drop off, but I don’t give a fuck. Everything I’m doing here can be done at home. You can organise a nurse or something. I fucking swear I’m getting out of this bed and leaving with or without your approval.”
Connor smirked, I suspected he was rather amused by my less than patient attitude. It was unusual for me to be angry and unleash on anyone, especially family and friends. After being told about the heart attacks and the fact I would be on medication to prevent another for the rest of my life, surgery, removal of organs, and wounds that needed time to heal, I needed to be somewhere I could be alone to process it all. My biggest fear was not knowing if I’d be able to function as a man again after what had happened to my dick. Barry had said it would be healed in six to eight weeks, and I’d be able to fuck, but what if he was wrong? What if I could no longer get hard?
“Tania and Natalie have both volunteered to help Waigi and Mala look after Jake once he’s home since it will be a while until the lab at the Bonello compound is ready. Viola will be there around the clock too.” Viola was Jake’s Haus Meri, who’d been with him since we’d arrived in PNG; the first three years, she acted more as his nanny. “It means no outsider will need to be brought in from town. You could take them through treatments and pills, Barry.”
O… kay. I appreciated Connor being in my corner, but Natalie? She’d find out I was damaged down there, and how fucking embarrassing would that be for both of us?
“As Jake’s father, I’m putting my foot down.”
