The Open Road

Chapter 13

Bob

"I'm scared she's going to die."

No matter how much I tried to shove that statement to the back of my head, it kept drilling its way back to the surface. What had happened? How bad was it? Where was my brother while all this was happening? I twiddled my thumbs unable to shake off my heightening worry. Sue was scared; she never got scared. She always held her own, she had always been the strong one even when everything was going to s**t. Her admitting she was feeling fear was new and frankly, unnerving. Her voice had come out as a low whisper over the phone, clearly she was losing hope. All I had wanted to do at that very moment was to run into her arms and just hold her. I would have let her press her body against mine, let her rest her head on my chest. Once she had told me that I always made her feel safe, that I was the humanoid version of a home. I had laughed it off and walked away, no respectable man would allow his woman to see him blush. Did men even blush?

Kimberley's face suddenly flashed in my mind. Her coy demeanour, chestnut eyes, angelic face. How could her life end? It had barely began. There was so much she had not done yet, so much that I would have loved her to see. I scarcely wondered if she had been to the Escarpments to watch the sunrise or Mombasa to swim in the beach and collect shells. I had a feeling she would enjoy a visit to Kericho where everything was so rich with color and quality. Sue and I would have taught her how to pick tea leaves and brew the perfect cup from them. Some losses in life change us. They alter our very being forcing us to carry our grief everywhere we go like a giant rucksack. The sad part is, we hold on to these rucksacks fearing that once we let them go, we will forget the ones we have lost. I shuddered at the thought of Kimberly's death, what it would do to Sue.

Jack kept glancing at me from the corner of his eye. He was currently driving me to Upper Hill hospital in Nairobi. We had spent half an hour after my brief conversation with Sue arguing over my sudden need to see her, to see Kimberly. He had raised a valid argument against this choice but I would be damned if I let Sue go through this s**t storm without me.

"You could go to jail for this!"

"Jere would kill you for not seeing through what you promised him."

"That girl could actually live!"

Every word he had uttered had been true. This detour had the potential of ruining a lot of things. I popped out the pressure from my knuckles and sighed.

If only I was a free man.

I would have rushed Kimberly to the hospital alongside Sue. I would have demanded that she be given the best room. I would have held Sue in my arms and assured her that our daughter would be okay. That was what she would have been, wouldn't,Our daughter? The image of my smirking brother made its way to the surface of my brain. What kind of a man steals his brother's woman and impregnates her?

You don't know that Kimberly is his Bob.

We reached the hospital at midday. The sun was scorching and it nearly blinded me as I alighted the car. In my mind I knew this wouldn't, couldn't work. There was no way I would be able to saunter in and out of the hospital without being caught. Jack squinted his eyes at me. I quickly noticed the clench on his jaw. Clearly he was no coward; the guy had driven a good one hour to another county with an escaped convict in the passenger's seat. Surprisingly, we had not encountered any problems.

"So? What's the plan?"

I furrowed my eyebrows. In truth, I had none. A doctor exited the hospital building and wandered into the parking lot. It was midday; people would be going for breaks while others took over their shifts. It was a private hospital, chances were new doctors zoomed in and out of there from time to time. I nodded my head towards Jack gesturing him to follow me. He hesitated but did as instructed which told me he was used to being a lapdog. My eyes swept over the parking lot and landed on my target. I could almost hear the wheels turning in Jack's head trying to predict my intentions. I saw him reach for his holster as a reflex. I quickly drew out my hand to stop him. Unfortunately, we had not been stealthy enough. The doctor shifted his bodyweight to assess his surroundings. We all froze and simply stared at each other. The situation reminded me of a Texas standoff.

"I'm going to need that coat, and your hospital credentials."

I noticed that the doctor was about Jack's height and age; perfect. Before the doctor could process my statement, Jack seemed to have figured out my plan. He tackled him to the ground. This was done quietly and effortlessly. Jack was good, scary good. Five minutes later, he had disguised himself as doctor Peter Ojure, a cardiologist.

"Look for those things patients are put on when they are in critical shape. I need to be covered as a patient in order to access the hospital. I hope the good doctor will be knocked out cold for a while."

Jack responded with a nod flashing his signature smirk. I rolled my eyes at his confidence. Astonishingly, he could actually pass for a cardiologist. We soon found a gurney in a*****e near the exit of the hospital. I quickly got on top of what I hoped would be my ticket to see Kimberly. Jack covered me with one of the sheets he found in the cabinets and started pushing me out of the store towards the entry of the hospital.

We had actually done it. We were getting away with it!

"Hey you! Stop right there! I said stop!"

Shit.