***
“ Sarah coded again and we had to put her on a ventilator . She ’ s breathing easier now , but she fought us every step of the way . I really thought we lost her .”
Marcus just stared straight ahead , not seeing the wall , not wanting to entertain the thoughts swirling through his mind . His stomach churned listening .
Sarah was going to get better . She had to .
“ There ’ s not much more we can do for her . All of her numbers are getting worse and her systems are beginning to shut down one by one . I think we need to prepare ourselves .”
“ No . She ’ ll get better . I know she will ,” Marcus said , not blinking and not looking at the doctor .
From the corner of his eye , he could see the man looking at the ceiling , arms folded across his chest , stethoscope around his shoulders . Marcus knew what that meant .
He also knew he had a phone call to make .
Tempest left on the third morning , Sarah spent and tired . She was thin , no meat on her bones as her mother would ’ ve said . Her skin sagged all over her body , an ashen haze , like a funeral pall draped across her shoulders . Her tongue felt like a swollen caterpillar , slow and pasty , lolling in her mouth . Even though Tempest was gone , Sarah could still feel the ghost sensation of her proboscis in her throat , making her cough . It was hard to
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