Epilogue

The next morning, after forcing down some breakfast, Brian pressed the nurse call button on the side of his bed. A few moments later, a nurse poked her head in.

“Need something?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“What’s up?” She was friendly, and had her mothering concern made Brian smile.

“If you don’t mind, I need to get some information about what happened to another one of the victims. They took her out in an ambulance, but I don’t know where she is or if she made it. Could you find out for me? I really need to know.”

“Sure. Name?”

“Lila. Lila…” he racked his brain to remember her last name. “Kikter,” he said finally. “It’s Lila Kikter. This is very important to me.”

“I’ll look into it right away, and see what I can find.” She disappeared, and Brian settled back against the pillows. He couldn’t get her out of his head. Had she made it? Had he succeeded? Was he able to keep his promise? He prayed he would not have to make the phone call she had requested of him.

About a half an hour later, she reappeared carrying a piece of paper.

“Good news for you.”

He sat up a little straighter.

“She’s at Mercy hospital, about twenty minutes from here. She’s been upgraded from critical, and they told me she is supposed to make it.

He felt a lump form in his throat. “That’s wonderful,” he croaked. “I’m so glad.”

“Yeah. She was lucky. She’d lost a lot of blood. If she had gotten there any later, they would have lost her.”

He thanked her again, and settled down to rest. It wasn’t long before he woke up. He found Nick sitting by his bedside. He had never seen his best friend so serious in his entire life.

“Nick, you look like someone just told you that all Nintendos have been outlawed.”

He cracked a small smile. “Funny. Very funny Frick.”

“I try. If I wasn’t so groggy I know I could come up with something better.”

“How are you feeling?”

“Absolutely hunky dory. Never better.”

“Seriously, man. I’m worried about you!”

Brian sobered. “I know. I’m trying not to think about it. I don’t want to remember it.”

“I can’t even imagine what it was like,” he said softly. “It was bad enough for us waiting outside.”

“It was bad. He could have killed any of us at any time. There were six of us in there, and only three of us came out. A.J. and I could have easily been one of the three hostages that didn’t. That’s what gets me the most.” He shook his head, and shuddered at the horrific memories. “I saw four people die today. Do you know how horrible that is?”

“I’m sorry,” Nick said softly. He placed a comforting hand on Brian’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry.”

“The one man, Christ, Nick, his blood was everywhere. It was all over me.”

“It’s ok now. You’re ok now.”

Brian nodded, closing his eyes.

“Are you going to be ok?” Nick asked, trying to disguise how upset he was. He wanted to reassure himself that Brian was still emotionally intact. The doctor’s words about his mental condition had scared him more than he had let on to the others.

Brian smiled at him. He could see the nervousness in Nick, and it touched him.

“I think so,” he said honestly, and with conviction. “After all, I’ve got you and the others to get me through, don’t I?”

“Damn right,” Nick declared. “You couldn’t get rid of me if you tried.”

“Oh really? Sounds like a challenge to me,” he said with a mischievous grin.

“Don’t even,” Nick warned, smiling back at him. “You know I can take you.”

“Bullshit!” Brian said with a burst of laughter. “When’s the last time you beat me in basketball? Huh? When!”

“Ouch,” Nick said with a grin. “That one hurts.”

“Burn baby burn,” Brian said, making a face at him.

Nick laughed, and finally began to believe that things really would be all right.

A media circus ensued after the event. Reporters swarmed around them, and they received phone calls right and left from people wanting statements and wanting interviews. Kevin made sure their reps handled things, and told him they would agree to an interview at the end of the week.

The concerts they missed were rescheduled at the end of the tour, and as soon as Brian was released, they were flown home for a few days off. Touring resumed in a week, just as the doctor had told them. Brian and A.J. met with a counselor several times, and seemed to be handling their ordeal very well. A.J. seemed very on edge for several days afterward, and is first few concerts back were not among his best, but he slowly slipped back into his groove.

Much to Brian’s dismay, he was unable to get to the other hospital to look in on Lila. He had not heard anything more about her. He wondered if he ever would.

The End

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