Coma Girl: part 3 (Kindle Single) Read online

  No, please…

  “I considered it.”

  “And?”

  “And instead I acquired another vial of the experimental cocktail.”

  “Acquired?”

  “Don’t ask. Ms. Kemp’s responses and overall health were best right after you administered the first vial. I think we should try a second dose.”

  “But that’s never been done.”

  “No… but it’s never been tested on a pregnant patient. I figure we’re dealing with two neural patients—the mother and the child. I think the baby took most of the first dose and Marigold got what was left over. This second dose will be for her.”

  “How much trouble can we get into?”

  “No more than we’re already in,” she said. “If we don’t, we’re going to lose them both.”

  “Are you going to ask the family?”

  “I have a better idea,” she said. “Let’s ask Marigold.”

  Oh, wow… no pressure.

  “And since she seems to respond better to your voice, I need you to ask her.”

  “Okay,” Jarvis said. “Do you have her hand?”

  “Yes.”

  “Marigold, I need to ask you a very important question and I need you to tell me yes or no. Dr. Tyson and I want to give you a second dose of the experimental drug. We think it’s the best chance for you and your baby. Do you want us to give you the second dose? No is default. If you don’t move your fingers, we won’t administer the dose. If yes, move the fingers on your right hand.”

  I’m trying so hard.

  “Marigold, your baby’s life depends on it. If you don’t move your fingers, we won’t administer the dose. If yes, move the fingers on your right hand.”

  Ooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhh.

  “I felt that!” Dr. Tyson said. “She moved her fingers.”

  He exhaled. “Thank God.”

  “But I’m giving you a chance to walk out now, Jarvis, if you don’t want any part of this.”

  “I’m staying,” he said evenly.

  “Okay,” she said. “Let’s do this.”

  September 30, Friday

  I CAN ALMOST feel the experimental medicine they gave me filtering through my body. Last night I had the most vivid dreams I can remember since the accident. Everything seems louder, more colorful, more vivid.

  But the dreams are more than dreams—they’re memories… things that actually happened. It’s been the one part of my brain that was chugging along more slowing—making new memories, and remembering things that happened around the time of the accident. They’re close to the surface, as if they’ve been lying dormant and are bursting to break through….

  I pull up to the curb at the airport and see Sidney emerge like a beautiful flower. It’s hot, and the A/C in my car isn’t working. I feel like a wet sponge, but Sid always looks cool and collected.

  On the drive home, we have the windows down. Sid is smoking a cigarette, which I’ve never seen her do before. She says she smokes occasionally to keep her anxiety at bay. I say I didn’t know she had anxiety, and she says I have no idea how hard law school is. She is right—I don’t.

  When we get off the interstate, I ask if she minds if I stop to get a lottery ticket. She teases me about it, but we stop. I run in to get a ticket and a half-gallon of chocolate milk for Dad. As I come back out…

  Sid pulls up in my car. I’m driving… you’re too slow.

  I climb into the passenger seat and hold up my lottery ticket.

  Good luck with that…

  I don’t need luck. Aunt Winnie’s psychic told me I’m going to win.

  My phone rings and it’s Roberta. She wants to talk about a hot new guy at our apartment building. We’re laughing and talking.

  Sid’s phone rings, a loud gonging ringtone. She reaches into her bag, rummaging for the phone. She’s all over the road. I try to help her so she can drive, but her purse spills and…

  Watch out!

  *****

  Don’t miss a single day of COMA GIRL!

  You can follow along for free on www.stephaniebond.com,

  or if you prefer to read the segments early or all at once,

  click here to pre-order COMA GIRL, part 4!

  A FREE Coma Girl Coloring Sheet!

  Coloring is all the craze! Enthusiasts say it’s fun and even therapeutic—have you tried it yet? This is the third of 6 coloring sheets to celebrate the one bit of color in COMA GIRL’s limited world—the scarves Sidney brings to cover Marigold’s head bandages. (I think the teddy bears are so cute!) Print the FREE coloring sheet at ComaGirlColoring3 (if you can’t print from your ebook reader, type the link into a web browser from any computer) then add your own interpretation with colored pencils, crayons, markers, etc.

  And if you’re a social creature, take a picture of your masterpiece and post it to social media with the #ComaGirl hashtag!

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  Stephanie on Instagram: @stephaniebond.author

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  Enjoy!

  A note from the author

  Thank you so very much for taking the time to read my story COMA GIRL (part 3). I hope you’re still having fun—I’m certainly having fun writing it. This project has been a labor of love for me. I’ve been toying with the idea of a daily serial for some time, and once I decided how to present it, I needed the right story, something that would sustain a daily narrative for an extended period of time.

  When I was ten years old, one of my teachers revealed an accident had left her in a coma when she was young. She said she remembered all the conversations around her during that time and when she awoke, astounded doctors and family members by asking them about things they had said while she was “asleep.” At ten, my imagination was just starting to take flight, so I was fascinated by her tale and it stayed with me. Fast forward to when I began a fiction-writing career in the late 1990s. I pitched a romantic comedy about a woman in a coma to a publisher who liked the idea and, subsequently, bought it. But before I could finish writing it, the line closed and the contract was cancelled. (Please do not get me started about the unending wonkiness of the publishing industry.) I was so disappointed. I had written several chapters of the story and while I loved the concept, it didn’t fit any line I wrote for as my career progressed. So it sat on a shelf for 20 years.

  When I was trying to come up with a story that could be told as a daily serial, I remembered the coma story, and thought the concept was perfect. I had to make a lot of adjustments to the original story, but I’m really happy with the way it turned out—I hope you are, too! And I hope you’ll follow along with all 6 parts of COMA GIRL covering six months in the life of Marigold Kemp as she lies a victim of everyone who visits her hospital room and unloads on her!

  Reviews are so important to authors and our books—especially series. Reviews help me to attract new readers so I can keep producing more stories for you. Plus I really want to know if I’m keeping you entertained! If you enjoyed COMA GIRL, part 3, and feel inclined to leave an Amazon review, I would appreciate it very much.

  And are you signed up to receive notices of my future book releases? If not, please click here to enter your email address. I promise not to flood you with emails and I will never share or sell your address. And you can unsubscribe at any time.

  Also, although I can’t count the times this book has been edited and proofed, I am human, so if you do spot a typo, please email me at [email protected] to let me know! Thanks again for your time and interest, and for telling your friends about my books. If you’d like to know more about some of my other books, please scroll ahead to the next section.

  Happy reading!

  Stephanie Bond

  Other works by Stephanie Bond

  And for a heartwarming romance, try ALMOST A FAMILY. In ALMOST A FAMILY, a divorced couple reunites when their baby who was kidnapped ten years ago is found…alive.


  “Wonderful story, poignant, warm, emotion packed. Loved the characters. Excellent plot and happy ending.” —Rendezvous

  “[The author] writes quite perceptively about the complexity of familial relationships in this nicely developed tale of love reborn.” —Romantic Times Book Reviews

  Click here to download a sample or to order ALMOST A FAMILY from Amazon!

  *****

  And you might like my humorous romantic mystery WHOLE LOTTA TROUBLE, a whodunit that gives you some insight into the back-biting world of publishing!

  “Stephanie Bond seems to get so much enjoyment out of writing her stories that the joy spills over to the reader. If you like a dash of mystery, outlandish situations, great characters, and enjoy laughing, then this is the book for you.” —AOL Romance Fiction Forum

  “The story is well-written and paced, with unforgettable characters, snappy dialogue, and plenty of plot twists and turns.” —AOL Romance Fiction Forum

  Click here to download a sample or to order WHOLE LOTTA TROUBLE from Amazon!

  *****

  Have you ever thought about writing a novel? If so, this book is for you! In YOUR PERSONAL FICTION-WRITING COACH: 365 Days of Motivation & Tips to Write a Great Book! Stephanie has assembled 20 years’ worth of writing advice in digestible bites that will ease you through the process of brainstorming, writing, and publishing a novel!

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  “5 STARS! The book offers an enlightening peek into a writer’s world.” –Amazon customer

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  About the Author

  Stephanie Bond was seven years deep into a corporate career in computer programming and pursuing an MBA at night when an instructor remarked she had a flair for writing and suggested she submit material to academic journals. But Stephanie was more interested in writing fiction—more specifically, romance and mystery novels. After writing in her spare time for two years, she sold her first manuscript; after selling ten additional projects to two publishers, she left her corporate job to write fiction full-time. To-date, Stephanie has more than seventy published novels to her name, including the popular BODY MOVERS humorous mystery series. Her romantic comedy STOP THE WEDDING! is now a Hallmark Channel movie. For more information on all of Stephanie’s books, visit www.stephaniebond.com.

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

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  Copyright 2016 by Stephanie Bond, Inc.

  Cover by Andrew Brown at clicktwicedesign.com