CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
THE LONG WAY HOME
The days began to lose their names.
At first, Mathew counted them.
One.
Two.
Three.
He knew exactly how long Carol and Destiny had been in the hospital because he kept checking the date on his phone every morning.
Then, eventually, the numbers stopped meaning anything.
Morning became afternoon.
Afternoon became evening.
Evening became another night spent beneath fluorescent lights.
And somewhere in between, the hospital became a second home.
Bailey Falls Memorial Hospital had never been designed to feel like one.
It smelled of antiseptic and coffee.
Its corridors were always too bright.
Its chairs were always too uncomfortable.
Its vending machines hummed constantly.
Its automatic doors opened and closed every few minutes, allowing ambulances, nurses, doctors, visitors and frightened families to move in and out.
But for two weeks, it was where Mathew lived.
Not literally.
But close enough.
