Page 35

CHAPTER 34

B EN

I’m pacing back and forth in the surgery waiting area for almost an hour when Fitz and Shayna show up. Emily is in the neurological intensive care unit for monitoring over the next forty-eight hours. She has a concussion and because she lost consciousness several times, the doctors want to keep her for a few days.

Fitz and Shayna sit down in two of the empty chairs near where I’m apparently trying to wear holes in the floor. I notice them intermittently looking at me, then glancing at each other, concern and confusion in their eyes.

“Did you know Emily and Fitz were doing it? Apparently, a lot,” Shayna blurts out.

“Jesus Christ, Shayna,” Fitz objects.

“What? I’m trying to distract him.” She tries to whisper, but she sucks at it, and I hear it all.

I’m grateful for the attempt to get my mind on something else, so I take a seat by them. “I did. Trina told me.”

Fitz groans and leans his head back on the chair.

“Now what’s going on with you and Trina?” Shayna asks.

“Nope. Not doing this.” I stand and start pacing again.

We pass the next several hours with Fitz and I taking turns pacing, all of us drinking shitty hospital coffee, and—at least on my end—praying for Trina and Emily to be okay.

When the doors to our right make a clicking sound, then swing open and someone in scrubs walks toward us, we all stand.

“Are you the family of?—”

“Trina Flynn,” I say, eager for him to give us the update.

“I’m Dr. Williams. I performed her surgery. We removed her spleen successfully and stopped her internal bleeding. Other than her fractured wrist, we didn’t find any additional injuries or sources of bleeding. When she gets closer to discharge, we’ll talk about the importance of staying up on immunizations and other things she’ll need to know because of the spleen being gone.”

“How long will she need to be in the hospital?” Shayna asks.

“I would expect a week, but it could be a little longer because of the collapsed lung.”

“When can we see her?” I’m dying to get my eyes on her and see for myself that she’s okay.

“She’s just getting settled in the ICU. Give the nurses about ten minutes and they’ll be out to get you.” With that, the surgeon nods and takes his leave.

Fitz sighs deeply and my entire body relaxes as I plop myself into a chair and scrub both my hands over my face and through my hair. I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths.

My phone rings and I answer immediately.

“Donley. What’s up?”

“Ben it’s Rachel. They got him. He tried to exit on one of the roads Meadow Creek had blocked. He blew through the roadblock, but they gave chase and eventually caught him. You were right about the boots.”

“Keep him in the interrogation room. I’m going to see how Trina is and then I’ll be down.”

When I end the call, Shayna and Fitz stare at me expectantly.

“We got him.”

* * *

I’ve been sitting at Trina’s bedside in the ICU watching her breathe for an hour. I don’t want to take my eyes off of her. Never again.

“Ben?” Her voice is hushed and raspy.

I nearly pass out from relief when I look at her face and see her gorgeous eyes open. They’re sleepy looking, but they’re fucking open.I press the buzzer to let the nurse know she’s awake.

“Babe,” I whisper as I stand and cup her face in my hands. “God, I’m so damn happy to see you awake.” I kiss her temple and hold my lips there for a moment before sitting back down and taking her hand.

“Em? How’s Emily?” Her eyes are begging for news on her sister.

“She’s okay. She has a concussion and a broken wrist, but she’s gonna be okay. They’re keeping her here in the hospital for a few days to monitor her before they release her. Fitz and Shayna are with her.”

We have to pause our conversation while the nurse comes in and checks on Trina, but she’s efficient and leaves us after a few minutes. Trina looks over at me, clearly ready to resume our conversation.

“Fitz is with her…” She smiles and closes her eyes for a few seconds before opening them again, holding me captive in her gaze with a hint of hope in her eyes. “Is it over?”

I know immediately what she means. “Yeah, it’s over.” I brush some hair off her forehead to keep it out of her eyes. “Meadow Creek caught him. I wanted to stay with you until you woke up and then I’m heading there to make sure all the I s get dotted and all the T s get crossed. But let’s not focus on that right now. I’ll tell you everything when I get back.”

My phone pings with a text from Fitz.

Fitz: Is Trina awake yet? Emily’s not allowed screen time because of her concussion, but she wants to hear Trina’s voice, if possible. You think it’s a good idea?

“Babe, you feel up to having a quick call with Em?”

Trina’s eyes immediately light up and I smile at her and place the call, then hold the phone up on speaker so she can hear. When it stops ringing, it’s Emily’s voice that comes across.

“Tri? Are you okay?” A sob comes through from Emily’s end of the line.

“I’m fine, Ems. Just worried about you. Tell me you’re okay.”

“I am. I have a killer headache and I’m sore all over, but I’m okay. You had me so worried.”

“Me? Nah, there’s no reason to worry about me. I promise.”The pinched expression on Trina’s face tells a different story.

Trina grips my hand tightly and I suspect she’s hurting, so when Fitz speaks up and suggests they let each other rest now that they’ve heard each other, I’m glad for it. The sisters say their I love you sand Fitz tells Trina he’ll be over shortly to sit with her, then ends the call.

A few minutes later, when the nurse comes to tell us Fitz is here to visit, I kiss Trina goodbye, tell her I love her, then head out to deal with the motherfucker who hurt her.