Chapter 10 - Noah Wakes Up Safe And Warm
Inside Treatment Room Four, the heart monitors hummed a steady, comforting lullaby as the warming blankets did their work. I walked over to the bed and gently brushed a damp curl away from Noah’s forehead, watching his eyelids flutter open.
“Mom?” he whispered sleepily, his voice still raspy from the freezing air he had inhaled hours earlier. “Are we still at the hospital?” I smiled, leaning down to press a soft kiss against his healing cheek. “Yes, sweetie, but you’re completely safe now. Grandpa and Grandma are gone.”
Noah blinked, looking down at his bandaged fingers before reaching up to wrap his small arms around my neck. “I really didn't steal Mason’s watch, Mom. I promise I was telling the truth the whole time.”
“I know you were, baby,” I whispered, holding him close as fresh tears spilled over my eyelashes. “We have the security video proving it. You never have to go back to their house ever again, I promise you that.”
Noah let out a long, shuddering sigh of relief, his little body relaxing against the hospital mattress as the heavy trauma began to lift. “Is Dad coming home soon?” he asked quietly, staring up at me with big, hopeful eyes. q
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“He’s on a red-eye flight right now, and he’ll be here by morning,” I assured him, smoothing the blanket over his chest. “And when he gets here, we are going to start a brand new life where nobody will ever hurt you again.”
The nurse on duty walked in quietly, checking the IV bag and offering a warm, sympathetic smile. “His vitals are stabilizing wonderfully, Dr. Whitaker. The acute hypothermia phase has passed, and he’s going to make a full recovery.”
