Both Judi and Jaci were now awake enough to recognize the crying, both were upset and asking what happened to mom.  Both Sandra and Judi were trying to console them.  The first part of their ordeal over, the president and the doctor moved to between the daughter’s beds.  It was no longer possible to keep anything from them.  Obviously they knew something was really wrong with mom.  To not tell them would only make them believe the worst.

The doctor pulled back the curtain between the two girls.  Before he could say anything Jaci started asking questions, “Why is mom crying?”

“She’s got some pain.”

“You’re lying, is she going to die?”

“No, she is not going to die.”

“Then why is she crying like that?”  The doctor now knew he would have to tell them, there was just no easy way to do this.

“She has a lot of pain.  The man shot her in both of her knees.”

“Give her something for it, for the pain, like you did me.  Don’t let her just lay there and hurt.”

“We did, we just told her what we had to do to her legs.  It really upset her.”

“But you fixed both of them, like you fixed my leg,” Judi replied.  “It hurts really bad but it’s going to get better.”

The doctor was not ready for that comeback.  He decided to tell them of the extent of their mother’s injuries before he got to them but now they would equate the injuries.  They were focused on mom.  It would be best to tell about her first.  “The man shot your mom in both knees, the bullets really badly damaged them, we couldn’t fix them, the nerves and blood vessels of over seven inches of her legs were shredded, we had to amputate both of her legs about four inches above the knees.” 

The First Family: Chapter 1 – Introduction

The First Family 16: The First Days After the Shooting

The First Family 18: Jaci Faces the Problem Head On