The Weeping Widow

XXV

Karen

"Dorinda can you slow down just a little bit please?" I said grabbing onto my seatbelt tightly as she weaved in and out of traffic.

"No I can't. We have to hurry up and get there Kare and you know that." She replied as she continued to swerve around cars that were in her way.

I took a deep breath and said a silent prayer before glancing in the back seat watching Twinkie trying to console Jacky to the best of her abilities.

"Jacky you gotta breathe or you're going to have another panic attack." Twinkie said gently as she rubbed Jacky's back trying to calm her down but it wasn't working.

I looked back towards the road and saw that we were pulling up to the emergency room of the hospital. Before Dorinda could even fully stop Jacky hopped out of the car and ran inside so I quickly did the same thing and followed after her while Dorinda and Twinkie went to park the car.

"Hi ma'am my niece was just brought in. She was shot multiple times, her name is Emrys Jackson." I said to the receptionist once I made it to the desk. She nodded and typed on her computer for a few seconds before looking up at me.

"She currently in surgery for her gunshot wounds. They doctors are trying to remove the bullets from her at the moment. I'll page them and let them know you all are here so they can explain her condition further. I can put you in a private waiting area if you'd like?" She responded with a solemn smile.

"That would be great. Thank you." I replied returning the same smile as Dorinda and Twinkie walked inside.

The receptionist then took us to a private waiting area and closed the door behind herself. Dorinda and Twinkie were still working on calming Jacky down so I took the opportunity to call everyone and inform them of what was happening.

As I was doing that I saw KJ and Keon walking down the hallway with wristbands and their shirts covered in blood as I knocked on the window to get their attention. They saw me and immediately came into the room, Keon crashed into my arms and KJ went to Jacky as they began to sob.

"Oh honey what happened?" I sighed as I held him close and rubbed his back.

"Auntie we was just chilling at the house and somebody came through shooting. They emptied out a whole clip on us and she was in front. I couldn't protect her quick enough Auntie I'm so sorry." He sobbed into my shoulder. I felt my eyes water but I blinked my tears away while comforting him.

"Hey I know and you know that you did everything you could. Now its in the hands of God and the doctors working on her. We just got to keep the faith that she'll be alright. Let me look at you, are you hurt anywhere?" I asked as I pulled back slightly to exam him.

"I got grazed in my arm and side and KJ got grazed on his leg, but she got shot up everywhere. I tried to stop the bleeding but so much was coming out. I'm scared Auntie I can't lose her, she all we got man." He said as he pulled away. I could tell that the severity of the situation was emotionally trying for him. He was usually so calm and collects but he started pacing around and pulling at his dreads letting me know just how stressful this situation was for them.

I approached him and grabbed his hands pulling him back into a tight hug before praying over him and KJ so that they would have peace of mind even if it was momentarily.