Death on a Deadline

but I had time to breathe one more prayer. Dear God, please let her be wrong.

Twenty-two

    Beyond the intense beam of light everything was white. I could hear. . .singing? No. More monotonous. Beep. Beep.
    A cool hand touched my forehead. If I could just keep my eyes open long enough to focus.
    “She’s waking up.” Mama sounded happy.
    My dad’s face floated in front of me. “Jenna, Jenna, honey, how do you feel?”
    “Are you in heaven with me?” Even to me my voice sounded strange.
    “Honey, you’re in the hospital, not in heaven.” Mama’s laugh sounded like a sob.
    “Hospital?” That explained the tiredness.
    She looked at Daddy. “Do you want to go out and tell the others she’s awake?”
    He nodded, then gave me a big hug. Then right there at my bedside, my quiet dad took my hand and closed his eyes. “Dear Lord, thank you so much for giving us our baby back.” When he opened his eyes, tears were glistening there.
    Whatever happened to me, I must have been at death’s door. After he went out, I said as much to Mama, who was bustling around, getting me some clothes to put on and laying out my toothbrush and toothpaste.
    “We had some scary times, sweetie. The whole church family has been praying for you around the clock, though.”
    “What happened to me?”
    She walked over to my bedside and used the arrows to raise me to a sitting position. “How much do you remember?”
    Remembering was a strain, but the events of that Saturday came back to me slowly. “Lois drugged me.”
    Mama nodded.
    “And Carly!” I looked around the room. “Where’s Carly? Is she okay?” I threw the covers back and started to swing my legs down.
    “Wait, wait!” Mama put her hand on my legs. “Carly’s fine. She slept for about twelve hours and woke up. You’ve been out of it for three days. But Carly has no memory of anything once she got to Lois’s.”
    Relief sapped me of any desire to get up. I sank back against the mattress. “Why do I remember?”
    “We didn’t know if you would or not. Your reaction to this drug isn’t typical.” Her smile was watery. “But then you’ve never been typical.” She nodded toward the hairbrush on the bedside table. “A lot of people want to see you. Why don’t we get you freshened up a little?”
    Why don’t we not and say we did? All I really wanted to do was just go back to sleep.
    “Alex is in the hall, waiting his turn to come in.”
    In that case. . . I slid my legs around again, and this time she let me.
    A few minutes later, my breath minty fresh, I sat in the blue vinyl chair next to the bed while Mama brushed my hair. “Your daddy and I have been so worried. Jenna Marie, promise me you won’t ever pull a stunt like this again. Confronting that crazy woman. And it’s not enough that you go, but to get Carly to go, too! You girls could’ve been killed!” When she noticed the tears streaming down my cheeks, she stopped. She buried her face in my hair and wrapped her arms around me. “Jenna, honey, you girls are our lives. If we lost you. . .well, it’s just unthinkable. I didn’t mean to upset you, I’m just so thankful you’re okay.”
    I twisted around to meet her hug. I felt so safe in Mama’s arms. But, I guess partly because of the lingering effects of the drug, I couldn’t stop crying. Face buried in Mama’s shoulder, I mourned everything, from losing the Olympics to losing Colton. And for misplacing Alex. I cried for my inadequacies. I had messed up enough for someone twice my age. When I thought of what a blessing it was to have a Father in heaven who forgives my inadequacies, in addition to earthly parents who love me for who I am, I cried some more. After the tears were gone, I pushed back and patted Mama’s soggy shoulder. “Sorry.”
    “This old thing?” She motioned toward her turquoise blouse. “Don’t give it another thought. Do you feel better?”
    I nodded. I really did. “Think I’ve got time for a shower?”
    “You’ve got all the time in the world, honey.” That was good to know. I looked forward to heaven. But I was happy living the life on earth God had planned for me. Including the twists and turns.
    After my shower, Mama settled me back into the blue chair.
    “Knock, knock.” I looked up to see Alex standing in the door, unshaven and wrinkled but, I had no doubt, still the best-looking man in the hospital.
    “Hey.”
    “Hey, water girl.” He dropped a light kiss on my brow. I hurried to unpucker